Our Approach
Games For Discovery
We make scientific discovery visible to the public by creating digital games for learning science. Working in close collaboration with institute biologists, medical researchers, computer scientists and engineers, and education research staff (learning scientists, game designers, education researchers, artists and programmers) we design games that provide authentic windows into the scientific process. Our games engage players in roles that take them inside the worlds that captivate our top scientists every day. In some games, players act as scientists or medical practitioners, interpreting ambiguous scientific data. In others, they play the role of a virus seeking to destroy a cell. While engaged in these scientific worlds, players not only experience the fun of problem-solving, but also learn factual information, concepts, skills and the values of the scientific enterprise. In addition, the games we build with our science colleagues focus on areas of critical social importance, providing the public with better tools to address challenges and identify promising opportunities.
Guiding Principles
Audience
While we value the work of researchers who are developing educational materials for schools, our efforts focus on developing and researching games designed for informal science contexts such as homes, museums and community centers. This focus enables us to design not only for school-age youth, but also for legislators, policy-makers in insurance companies, health care providers, patients and even healthcare practitioners and medical researchers. All of these groups need engaging and easily accessible learning resources to address great health care and other challenges that face us and that science can help us address.