Gamers design swarms of nanoparticles for cancer research [with video]

NanoDoc (http://nanodoc.org) is a new online game to crowdsource the design of nanomedicine. It allows bioengineers and the general public to imagine nanoparticle strategies towards the treatment of cancer and test them on a virtual tumor. The challenge is to design nanoparticles that interact with each other and their environment in a way that leads to better treatment outcomes. The ultimate goal is to design nanoparticles that swarm like self-organized systems in nature. Best strategies will be tested using cancer-on-a-chip devices and large robotic swarms.

HFSP Cross-Disciplinary Fellow Sabine Hauert and colleagues authored on Thu, 26 September 2013

Cancer is the leading cause of death worldwide according to the WHO. To treat cancer, bioengineers are designing nanoparticles that can deliver drugs and therapeutics directly to tumors. Nanoparticles come in different sizes, shapes and materials. They can be loaded with drugs that are released in a controlled fashion, and coated with molecules that allow them to interact with their environment. Some of these molecules can serve as a signature to uniquely identify cancer cells.

As a result, there are many ways to design a nanoparticle. Depending on its design, the nanoparticle will move, sense and act in different ways in the tumor; changing the body of the nanoparticle will change its behavior. The challenge is to understand which nanoparticle designs will improve treatment outcome. This is a difficult problem because trillions of nanoparticles typically interact in a tumor with millions of cells. Predicting and optimizing the emergent behavior of all these nanoparticles is guess work at best.

To address this challenge, the Laboratory of Sangeeta Bhatia at MIT recently released an online game called NanoDoc (http://nanodoc.org) that allows bioengineers and the general public to imagine new nanoparticle strategies towards the treatment of cancer. It uses a realistic simulator developed at the laboratory to model how nanoparticles interact with each other and the tumor environment. The first levels of the game are used to train new NanoDocs; licensed NanoDocs are then given challenges to solve. Since its launch two weeks ago, the game has seen 10,000 visitors, 1750 players and over 40,000 simulations.

Figure: NanoDoc game to crowdsource the design of nanomedicine. The crowd designs nanoparticles and combines them into treatments (left). Treatments are then injected into a virtual tumor scenario designed by bioengineers (right). The goal is to discover ways in which nanoparticles can cooperate.

The longterm goal is to discover ways in which nanoparticles can cooperate, or swarm, like self-organized systems in nature. Select nanotreatments discovered using NanoDoc will be validated using

1. in vitro tissue-on-a-chip constructs designed to emulate the extravasation of functionalized nanoparticles from artificial vessels into a compartment containing tumor cells and 
2. robotic swarm systems in collaboration with Radhika Nagpal’s lab from the Wyss Institute at Harvard University.

http://nanodoc.org

Link to article in New Scientist

Link to article in Guardian

Interview: Dan Perez, Founder and CEO of Marblar

ORIGINAL: The Clean Revolution

04 June 2013

Dan Perez

LONDON: Today, 16% of all waste generated by the global society, 31% of all energy consumed and 10% of all fresh water used, is consumed in and around our homes. The EarthHack, conceived by UK start-up Marblar in partnership with The Climate Group, is an international competition which invites competitors from all disciplines to re-imagine existing technology to address this fact by creating a more sustainable home.

Supported by leading retailers Phillips and IKEA, the first prize winner of the EarthHack will take home $15,000, with a shared pot of $25,000.

The Climate Group’s Alana Ryan spoke with Dan Perez about the origins of Marblar, the potential crowdsourcing offers and how the EarthHack can revolutionize energy consumption and waste management within the home.

For those who aren’t familiar with Marblar, could you briefly explain what it is and how it came about?
Marblar crowdsources market applications for emerging and existing technology. We work with universities, research institutes and technology companies to post interesting technology in the form of a challenge, asking people: “what would you do with this technology?” We have a community of creatives from around the world who compete and collaborate towards re-imagining existing technology into new applications.

I am a PhD student in biochemistry, and so I saw first-hand a load of technology that wasn’t being commercialized (like less than 95%) and that seemed like a terrible waste. Moreover, there is latent genius everywhere – so our premise was borne: allowing people from across disciplines and around the world to chew on technology from a variety of angles.

A novel feature of Marblar is the emphasis that it places on crowdsourcing. Do you see crowdsourcing as the future of technological progress?
As science has progressed, we’ve increasingly become specialized – to the point where today’s scientists may not fully appreciate how their discoveries may fit into other disciplines, or how other disciplines can add to their inventions. With Marblar we breakdown science such that non-experts could understand, with the aim of re-establishing perspective.

Obviously a stem-cell biologist isn’t much of a laser physicist, but that biologist might understand enough about the laser to think: “why not point this at stem cells?” Something the physicist may not have even considered. Those are the types of serendipitous interactions we’re looking to spark.

What led you to develop the EarthHack competition, and how specifically can it help tackle climate change? The EarthHack was very much something that was conceived jointly with Ben Ferrari and Mark Kenber at The Climate Group. Our initial conversations were about our two platforms and how we could leverage challenge-driven innovation to not just realize potential in existing technologies, but to focus that potential towards carbon reducing solutions.

The EarthHack was a result of that incredible collaboration and brainstorming, and we’re absolutely thrilled by its progress and the potential for more EarthHacks.

For a small start-up how important is it to have partners such as IKEA, Philips and The Climate Group for achieving global reach?
As a small start-up it’s not always easy to be taken seriously by large corporates – especially given their portfolio and the many opportunities coming their way from more established companies. For Marblar, what really helped was working with a more established organization, like The Climate Group. While older and well respected, the charity is very nimble and flat, and has the ear of multi-nationals.

I’d encourage start-ups to think about these peripheral avenues to tap into, consider having larger companies, NGOs, universities or wealthy individuals on your advisory board.

Who can actually enter the EarthHack?
Anyone can enter the EarthHack! Ok ok, well, you have to be over 18. But aside from that, the competition is open to anyone from around the world, and we hope to realize concepts and solutions for not just Western homes, but to re-imagine sustainable homes globally.

Do you have any plans for further sustainability orientated competitions? Absolutely, we’re already in the preparation phase of EarthHack’s for transport, information technology/communications, and perhaps even biomimetics. Stay tuned!

Read more:

• EarthHack:CrowdSourcing the Solution to Climate Change
• EarthHack - [Sustainable Homes]
• Marblar is a partner of The Climate Group

Crowdsourcing Science Webinar: "How to recruit citizen scientists for discovery"

ORIGINAL: AAAS



Please join us on April 5, 2013 at 12 noon ET for an hour-long webinar on crowdsourcing science.

Have a research project that requires a lot of data collection and analysis? Working with limited funds and a tight timeline? Ever thought about outsourcing some your research to the public? Using the power of the crowd, via the Internet and social media, citizen scientists could help you get the job done on time and on budget.

This webinar brings together three experts in crowdsoucing science. They will explain how it works, where to find citizen scientists, and how to insure you get the best data possible.

The live webinar is free for all and requires a short registration. An archived version of the event will be available for on-demand viewing on AAAS MemberCentral within 48 hours of the event.

Friday, April 5, 2013 - 12:00 pm EDT
Register Now

Have a research project that requires large data collection and analysis? Working on a tight budget and an even tighter timeline? Ever thought about outsourcing some of this work to the public? Using the power of the crowd, via the Internet and social media, citizen scientists can help get the job done on time and on budget.


This webinar brings together three experts in crowdsoucing. They will show you how it works, where to find citizen scientists, and how to insure you get the best data possible.


Join us April 5 at 12 noon ET for this hour-long webinar, brought to you by AAAS MemberCentral.

There will also be a live conversation on Twitter about the webinar, join the conversation at #AAASWebinar
Speakers:

Darlene Cavalier
Founder of SciStarter and Science Cheerleader

Darlene Cavalier is the founder of SciStarter.com, an online citizen science community. The site is a one-stop-shop for potential citizen scientists and a share space where researchers recruit participants. She is also the founder of ScienceCheerleader.com, a site that creates mechanisms for public engagement in scientific research and policy discussions, but is far better known for giving rise to the “Science Cheerleaders” comprised of more than 250 current and former NFL and NBA cheerleaders who are also scientists and engineers. Cavalier herself was a cheerleader for the Philadelphia 76ers. These so-called Science Cheerleaders playfully challenge stereotypes, inspire young women to consider science careers, and involve people from all walks of life in citizen science. Cavalier is the Director of Special Projects at Discover Magazine. She holds a Masters Degree from the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia where she resides with her husband and four children.

William Ludington Bowes Fellow at UC Berkeley
Cofounder of uBiome

Will Ludington, PhD, is Bowes faculty fellow in the Immunology and Pathogenesis Division of the Molecular Cell Biology Department at UC Berkeley, where he studies the interactions between endogenous gut microbes, the host immune system, and host behavior using metagenomics and experimental model systems. Coming from a background in both large scale ecology and cell biology, the microbiome was a natural research direction. Will cofounded the citizen science startup, uBiome, in order to put metagenomic research into the hands of the public.

Iyad Rahwan

Associate Professor & Head Computing & Information Science, Masdar Institute
Coauthor of Balloon Challenge and Tag Challenge

Iyad Rahwan is Associate Professor at Masdar Institute, a research institute established in cooperation with MIT. He is an Honorary Fellow at the University of Edinburgh, and was previously a visiting scholar at the MIT Media Lab. He holds a PhD from the University of Melbourne. Dr. Rahwan's research on crowdsourcing and social mobilization appeared in major academic journals, including Science, PNAS, and IEEE Computer, and was featured in popular media, such as The Economist, MSNBC, New Scientist, and Popular Science. Dr. Rahwan led the winning team in the 2012 US State Department's Tag Challenge, in which he used crowdsourcing to successfully locate 3 people in remote cities in less than 12 hours.

 Moderator:Adam Ruben is a writer, comedian, storyteller, and molecular biologist in Washington, DC who has performed stand-up comedy for over 10 years at clubs, colleges, and private venues. Adam is the author of the book Surviving Your Stupid, Stupid Decision to Go to Grad School (Broadway Books, 2010) and the monthly humor column "Experimental Error" in Science Careers. He has appeared on NPR's "All Things Considered," the Food Network's "Food Detectives," and the Science Channel's "Head Rush," and currently co-hosts "You Have Been Warned" on the Discovery Channel. Learn more at adamruben.net.

Welcome to Marblar

I find Marblar and amazing initiative. I feel this concept can revolutionize the way people see and interact with science.

-Vanessa Restrepo Schild

@VanessaSchild

ORIGINAL: http://www.marblar.com/

Want to be one of the lucky first few to start solving Science's most pressing real-world problems? Enter your e-mail address and desired profile URL below, and we'll notify you when we're ready:

So who are you? You might be a current scientist, a recovering scientist, a revolutionary, or just really into checking out neat innovations. Well, Marblar's a right-brained buffet – and we're about to open the kitchen. 

Who says finding homes for inventions can´t be fun? Who says the process has to be closed to just a select few? Marblar.com is a democratic playground for creativity. You´ve got great ideas and we´ve got great inventions. As a Marblar you´ll be part of an artistic community and earn marbles for flexing your imagination in the service of science. 

So there you have it. You´re a creative beast. The left brains sure aren´t starting the Fourth Industrial Revolution. 

You are. 

Join today.

(@play_marblar)

Can't think about a better way to establish a bit of perspective about where us humans fit into the big picture... http://t.co/0MAK3E8l 

MT @OpenExpl @DrBondarPerlstein’s Princeton Perspective: A Completely Unique Approach to Academia http://t.co/pHwZfE56 #openscience 

@sohear that hurts 

From flaming unicorns & drivable hammocks to chair-sized 3-D printers and cat-accommodating wagons - the Maker Faire http://t.co/wkRB3rxZ 

So who are you? You might be a current scientist, a recovering scientist, a revolutionary, or just really into checking out neat innovations. Well, Marblar's a right-brained buffet – and we're about to open the kitchen. 

Who says finding homes for inventions can´t be fun? Who says the process has to be closed to just a select few? Marblar.com is a democratic playground for creativity. You´ve got great ideas and we´ve got great inventions. As a Marblar you´ll be part of an artistic community and earn marbles for flexing your imagination in the service of science. 

So there you have it. You´re a creative beast. The left brains sure aren´t starting the Fourth Industrial Revolution. 

You are. 

Join today. 

Visit t

As seen in:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/businessclub/9404101/Marblar-aims-to-match-university-research-with-inventors.html

http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/network-central/2012/07/12/what-is-marblar/

http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg21528766.000-unused-inventions-get-a-crowdsourced-creative-spark.html

http://arstechnica.com/science/2012/06/gamification-helps-orphaned-intellectual-property-find-a-home/

a-fledgling-entrepreneur

mg21528766.000-unused-inventions-get-a-crowdsourced-creative-spark.html

CoLab climático: El aprovechamiento de la mente colectiva para mitigar el cambio climático

ORIGINAL: FastCoexist

Image: Iakov Filimonov/Shutterstock

Ciertamente, no parece que nadie a su cargo tiene alguna idea sobre cómo detener el cambio climático, así que vamos a abrirnos a todo el mundo. Un proyecto de crowdsourcing del MIT ha encontrado las mejores soluciones que provienen del resto de nosotros - como medios de transporte personal rápidos o convencernos a todos a comer menos carne.

A la vista de la crisis planetaria, no deben ser descartada ninguna opinión, no se sabe quién podría llegar a la próxima gran idea. Esto es especialmente cierto con el cambio climático - un dilema que tiene pocas respuestas definitivas.

En 2010, el Colab Climático MIT - el brazo de crowdsourcing sobre clima del Centro para la Inteligencia Colectiva de MIT - trató de aplicar crowdsourcing al próximo acuerdo internacional sobre el clima, con las ideas arriba presentadas a las Naciones Unidas, el Congreso y el Departamento de Energía. Aunque las ideas aportadas nunca han contribuído a un acuerdo importante sobre cambio climático, el CoLab de clima está de vuelta otra vez con sus 2.011 ganadores del concurso. En esta ocasión, los participantes se les dio una tarea diferente: descubrir cómo la economía del siglo 21 debe evolucionar para responder a los riesgos del cambio climático. Nuestros equipos favoritos ganar, todos los cuales llegarán a presentar sus ideas ante las Naciones Unidas y el Congreso a finales de este mes, están a continuación.

REDUCIR EL CONSUMO DE CARNE DE MUNDIAL

Propuesto por un equipo afiliado con el blog liberal Daily Kos, la idea ganadora sugiere reducir el consumo de carne para aliviar nuestra carga del planeta. El equipo trabaja a través de estadísticas contundentes: Se estima que

• el 80% a 90% de los terrenos despejados en el Amazonas brasileño se puede atribuir a los pastos o la ganadería, 
• la deforestación en los trópicos representa hasta un 20% de las emisiones de CO2 de la actividad humana, y 
• el aumento de ganado y aves de corral es responsable del 51% de las emisiones de gases de efecto invernadero (en parte porque el metano es liberado a partir de gases digestivos de los animales).

Esto no quiere decir que todos deben dejar de comer carne hoy en día. El equipo propone "una rápida aceleración de la educación a través de las organizaciones existentes, con énfasis en las instituciones más grandes y con más énfasis en las crecientes economías de China e India", así como el aumento de presión "por la influencia de la Ley Agrícola de EE.UU. de 2012, para tratar de reducir los subsidios del gobierno de EE.UU. para el maíz y la soja, que contribuyen a la cultura de la fábrica de ganado. " No hay necesidad de eliminar la carne por completo, simplemente que lo disminuyamos como un alimento básico diario puede hacer una gran diferencia en las emisiones de gases de efecto invernadero.

PERSONAL REDES Rapid Transit

Christopher Fry, un investigador del Media Lab del MIT, propone la instalación generalizada de un sistema personal de tránsito rápido (PRT) en las áreas urbanas y suburbanas más densas que contienen el 50% de la población de EE.UU.. Fry dice: "Podemos eliminar los coches, autobuses, metros y aviones de corto alcance de nuestras áreas urbanas con una malla de células de 1 milla cuadrada de mag-lev guías, 20 pies por encima de una ciudad en la que módulos para dos personas están a la espera para los clientes a una distancia media de 1 / 4 milla de cada punto de la red. Estos módulos utilizarán menos energía y dinero por pasajero por milla que cualquier otro coche eléctrico práctico, autobús o tren (ligero o no) y son más seguros y más rápidos. "

El PRT ya existe. La NASA, por ejemplo, está probando actualmente SkyTran, un sistema de móculos para dos personas pendientes de guías sobre las calles y carreteras. Los módulos pueden parar cada media milla más o menos para cualquiera que necesite bajar.