Problem solving gamification
Problem Solving Gamification – This is a relatively new term and can be a bit trendy, possibly over the top, and tends to be misunderstood as a topic. Let me dig a little deeper into painting a picture of what it’s capable of (and solving). In essence, gamification presents an innovative way of solving real-world problems in a simulated environment. We are seeing proven success stories from your apps and you still have a lot of untapped potential and evolution before you come full circle.
How can you solve problems through Gamification?
According to Karl Kapp, he states that: “It is one thing to teach someone to solve a problem using gamification techniques; another is to get people to work on the problem itself. This is where gamification problem solving projects like US Army game platform to generate multiple ideas to defeat Somali pirates, FoldIt and Phylo come into play. Each of these gamified platforms has several similar components that can be employed when creating large-scale gamification problem-solving efforts.“
The US government and businesses are turning to gamification to help address and solve real-world problems. When you take a real world problem and twist it to provide a challenging, fun and interactive environment in which to solve it; the person has more drive to want to solve the problem and get the reward/recognition for their achievement. You can reach a wide range of people from a wide range of backgrounds and educations to address a solution to a problem that otherwise would not have been possible without the concept of problem solving through gamification. By brainstorming together, an unlimited number of participants can ultimately increase the chance of solving the problem at hand. Within a simulation type of environment, learners have the ability to test their skills outside of the classroom in a simulated real-world experience without any of the real-world ramifications of making the wrong decision.
Proven examples of gamification and its ability to solve problems:
One such example took place in 2011, when almost a thousand people from all over the world went online and started playing a new online computer game based on a geopolitical situation located off the coast of Somalia. In the game, players had to create action plans to respond to piracy in international waters, and not just by military means. The players were also special: political, military, legal, technical, and security experts from a wide range of fields. This game introduced a new concept that came to be known as “Massively Multiplayer Online War Game Leveraging the Internet” or (MMOWGLI) for short. This initiative was led by the United States Office of Naval Research (ONR) together with the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS). This is a strong example of the gamification app using problem-solving techniques to obtain a variety of information that would otherwise not have been received.
Another example of gamification related to problem solving also took place in 2011. It was then that the team behind Foldit, a collaborative work game developed at the University of Washington, made headlines for unlocking the structure of an enzyme related to AIDS found in monkeys. . What had puzzled scientists for 15 years was solved in a matter of 10 days by almost 40,000 people (mostly non-scientists) playing an online game. Let’s go through those numbers… What took scientists 15 years to try to solve was unraveled in 10 days using elements of gamification, thereby bringing the scientific community that much closer to a potential cure for HIV and other retroactive viruses! ! That’s a feat in itself and just proves my point that gamification has great potential for change, as well as a wide variety of applications where it can be applied.
Phylo, created by a research team at McGill University, is an example of gamification problem solving through “multiple sequence alignment” or, in other words, deciphering DNA, RNA or proteins and comparing them to other species to find common ground and other information. The ‘game’ becomes not only coordination patterns, but also decision making. It allows players to choose their level of difficulty and even select which disease they want to help study. By participating in Phylo, one has the ability to help science help cure a variety of diseases and gain insight into human development.
Building the case for success in solving gamification problems
By collaborating and sharing ideas with others, the application of gamification has unlimited potential to solve problems, whether they are simple or complex. It’s not just another gaming technology… gamification has the power to do almost anything and solve real-world problems that might otherwise go unresolved or take much longer to answer. Therefore, creating a problem-solving simulation can provide great business value and help a company gain insight from employees that might not be available through other means.
How can a game really solve a problem? Gamification not only harnesses the power of games, but also the human tendency to compete with each other and solve problems. By nature, we as humans for the most part want to be rewarded, achieve status, and just be in a competitive environment. This is especially true when one person (or the power of many people) can help a cause or benefit humanity. Ultimately, humans and machines, when working together through gamification, have the potential to make a difference in the real world. It’s results like the ones mentioned above that have the power to revolutionize results for science, health, business, and a host of other topics. So, as you can see in business problems and beyond, gamification problem solving has the power to create change and make a difference.