Project Discovery is a "citizen science" project involving the collaboration of hundreds to thousands of players across the world, combining their problem solving skills to process huge amounts of scientific data. Several rounds were conducted in the past with EVE Online players to great success. Now, in collaboration with Ghent University, we are bringing Project Discovery to EVE Echoes!
EVE Echoes is a next-gen mobile spaceship MMO game based upon hallmark EVE Online design principles. In EVE Echoes, players will be able to forge their own path to glory within a massive space sandbox environment, forming alliances with other pilots from across the galaxy to shape the game’s persistent universe.
The team at Ghent University uses mass spectrometry to analyze complex organic compounds. By comparing the output data with that of known compounds, it is possible to quickly identify a wide range of unknown molecules. Ghent University is developing a machine-learning algorithm to process this huge volume of data, but to do so requires training data--more than a small team of scientists can produce on their own. That's where we need your help!
EVE Echoes players of at least Tech Level 7 can participate. Simply open the Events menu while docked at a station and to find the Project Discovery page. From there, players can start playing, browse the rewards shop, or check the leaderboards.
Project Discovery players will receive "Science Credits" which can be redeemed for prizes including exclusive SKINs and ships. The most dedicated players will also receive unique medals for their weekly and all-time participation!
Project Discovery, along with many other citizen science projects has been used for a wide range of scientific endeavors, from detecting exoplanets to folding complex proteins. The mass spectrometry algorithm can be used to analyze a variety of compounds, with an emphasis on organic compounds like peptides. If the project is successful, this could apply to many fields of biological sciences from biochemistry to epidemiology and more--the potential is limitless. We hope you will join us in this exciting endeavor and make your mark on scientific history!