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People Fixing the World
Gaming for good
People Fixing the World
Oct 22, 2019

Video games are often blamed for time-wasting and violence, but there’s a group of people proving this stereotype wrong.

We meet the scientists behind a game designed to speed up finding a treatment for Alzheimer’s disease, and we speak to a teenager who plays it because “it’s something I can do to help people in my spare time”.

Citizen science projects like this have had some remarkable successes, and gamers have been credited with significant research such as figuring out the structure of a protein that shares similarities with HIV.

Fans of this model believe gaming has a huge part to play in the future of problem solving.

Produced by Kathleen Hawkins

(Photo Credit: Getty Images)

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People Fixing The World from the BBC is about brilliant solutions to the world's problems. We release a new edition every Tuesday. We'd love you to let us know what you think and to hear about your own solutions. You can contact us on WhatsApp by messaging +44 8000 321721 or email [email protected]. And please leave us a review on your chosen podcast provider.

Presenter: Myra Anubi Producer: Richard Kenny Editor: Jon Bithrey Sound mix: Andrew Mills

(Photo: A mountain gorilla in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. Credit: Richard Kenny)


23min 14sec

Gaming for good

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