It occured to me that only a very few expert players are needed to solve most of the unsolved protein structures. The key to finding the experts is to have foldit do what 90% of us can do.
An expert should not need to see the protein. Or manipulate it effectively in space. Or perform a rebuild. Or perform a sidechain snap.
The expert only needs to know the goal, and then be provided with a few examples.
foldit needs to be linked to a neural network. foldit needs to become far more intelligent and scalable, to lower the bar for the entry-level player. The tools must become incredibly more sophisticated and powerful.
The more playable the game becomes, the harder it will become to excel at it ( 90% of all players will fall into the largest percentile )
Only an expert will be able to quickly and efficiently evaluate a hydropathic pathway to determine the conformational probability of a polypeptide tending in a certain direction.
The single handful of individuals whom excel at this will be your expert players.
A game which focuses on the aspects which makes us human, is the most playable.
Interesting comment Seagat. How do people become experts in your scenario? You seem to be saying that only the experts are needed so the remainder shouldn't bother. I can't follow your logic about this. IMHO 90% of players do fall in the largest percentile now.
Also the competitive nature of Foldit would be a factor to push 'the experts' to the highest score possible.
In my scenario, you do not "become" an expert - because no mastery of the science is required. You merely demonstrate the spatial capabilities you already have. There are many talented players out there (e.g color-blind players) who may find themselves limited by the tools. This does not mean they are not superior to you.
The best player of foldit may be blind.
Perhaps my points are not valid. Who knows what the best way toward the future of foldit is.. And I only seem to be offending. I no longer wish to pursue this. feedback closed.
the non-experts can at least be good enough to provide a reference for the experts. if you're an expert, you might stop at a point that looks good, but if the average person can beat that score, then obviously more work is needed.
So there needs to be some sort of genetic filtering for players? Maybe check for some gene combination that decrees you are an 'expert', and the rest of us need not apply
Pretty elitist, don't ya think?
Not at all! My understanding is based on a thorough knowledge of these terms.
Neural Crest
an oral hygiene product for the brain
Microtome
An itty bitty book
Asymmetry
Where you bury dead people
Diglyceride
what you scream out when trying to kill a glyceride
Helminth
what the hockeyplayers wear on their heads, thilly
Plastid
Drunk
Amoebaes
| ./ |
Ameoba vaulting a high fence
!
Ameoba with a bakers hat
,
Ameoba with a broken leg
*.
Ameoba with a flashlight
@.
Ameoba with a French Horn
(.)
Ameoba wearing antlers
.-
Ameoba with a rifle
?
Ameoba with an umbrella
.}
Ameoba with a bow and arrow
.
Ameoba with flat feet
.
o=o
Ameoba skateboarding
..
Ameobas having a conversation
PS - Also I would ask all genetic refuges not to ponder these statements too hard as this could lead to further genetic errors and cancers.
