Project Discovery Phase 4: Cancer Edition

Yesterday CCP Games launched the fourth phase of its Project Discovery for players to access. The news was big enough to warrant a press release on the corporate website.

REYKJAVÍK, Iceland – July 30, 2024 - CCP Games, in collaboration with Massively Multiplayer Online Science (MMOS), today launched Project Discovery: Phase Four, advancing the groundbreaking citizen science initiative within the renowned sci-fi MMO, EVE Online. This ambitious update enables players to actively participate in cancer and immune system research, potentially accelerating real-world medical breakthroughs through collective player contributions.

Announced at EVE Fanfest last year, the latest phase of Project Discovery expands research to critical immune system diseases, including cancer, marking a significant advancement in scope and potential impact. Starting today, players can access an updated version of the innovative in-game minigame, contributing to real-world scientific research while playing EVE Online.

Project Discovery’s flow cytometry technique, introduced in 2020 to accelerate COVID-19 research, has seen over 900,000 EVE Online players make substantial contributions to scientific research. Project Discovery continues to receive significant daily participation from the EVE Online community.

Building on the initiative’s past success, Phase Four adds new visualizations to increase the quality of player results. Players can now examine complex blood samples using new X/Y axis density curves, drawing polygons around cell clusters in flow cytometry data. This process will increase the performance of AI models trained on the data, supporting scientists in decoding immune system interactions with cancer and paving the way for potential treatment breakthroughs.

To reward their valuable contributions, participants in Phase Four can earn exclusive in-game rewards. These include three new SKINR design elements (Insightful Azure Metallic, Citizen Cyan Metallic, and Scientific Panache Satin), the Biosecurity Responders SKIN, and exclusive apparel.

I tried out the new data set last night and to my delight discovered my progress and accuracy rating was not reset to zero. I also received an option to take the tutorial explaining how Project Discovery works going forward.

Example of shoulders

The dataset examples come with density curves which may take some getting used to, which is why I advise going through the new tutorial.

Example of valleys

Some of the examples I didn't quite get the first time, like tails.

Example of tails

And the last type is comets. One of the problems I had with the feature is Project Discovery needs a toggle to reenter the tutorial if a player takes a long break from the feature. If one exists in the settings, I'd recommend the tutorial be the default. Although, to be honest, I think I'm probably in a small minority on that.

My passing score on comets

Of course, what is a press release without some impressive stats?

Project Discovery Achievements Since 2020:

• Over 900,000 EVE Online players participating
• More than 500 million citizen science games played
• Two high-performing AI models developed from player-generated data
• One Webby People's Voice Award for contributions to science and society

The reach of EVE Online's Project Discovery is getting a lot bigger as time goes on. The press release has quotes from four major stakeholders in the effort.

“Project Discovery’s fourth phase marks a major milestone for citizen science by contributing to the cure for one of the world’s most deadly diseases,” said Bergur Finnbogason, EVE Online’s Creative Director. “The EVE community has a proven track record of helping scientists advance research for important causes. We are calling gamers from all walks of life to join our capsuleers in the fight against cancer.”

“The collective effort of EVE Online players has produced a dataset unparalleled in quality and size,” said Dr. Ryan Brinkman, Distinguished Scientist at BC Cancer Agency and University of British Columbia. “In this new era of Artificial Intelligence, this data is pivotal in developing groundbreaking tools for unprecedented scientific discoveries. We eagerly anticipate sharing these contributions with the scientific community.”

“The EVE Online community’s collective contribution to science over the years is tremendous,” said Jérôme Waldispühl, Associate Professor at McGill University’s School of Computer Science. “Project Discovery is a unique, effective, and reliable resource for major research initiatives. The synergy of this project with the rise of AI techniques is a one-of-a-kind opportunity to push the boundaries of science.”

“Seeing the continuous activity and high-quality contributions of EVE players, we know that Project Discovery is not only a highly valuable tool for science but can also be repurposed to serve many important areas of research,” said Attila Szantner, CEO of Massively Multiplayer Online Science. “After four years, we still have 100-200 data analyses per minute submitted by players, demonstrating the power of this collaboration.”

I know I liberally copy and pasted from the press release, but I hope including some screenshots and a little commentary about the new tutorial adds a little more value. At the very least, the rewards on the progress bar have not changed and progress was not wiped. I only got two research levels last night and the Biosecurity SKINs still drop from the crates, so I can try to get all of them. And I probably will try to do so. Oh yeah, and fuck cancer!