EcoBuilder is a game developed by researchers at Imperial College, where you can, as the name suggests, build your own ecosystem. It was developed in order to solve a long standing debate in the the world of ecology, known as the ‘stability vs. complexity’ problem. The problem arises because mathematical models suggest that ecosystems should start collapsing after only a few dozen of species are thrown together, but ecosystems with many thousands of species somehow exist in the real world. EcoBuilder tasks the player with the job of getting as many species to coexist together as possible, before the whole thing collapses.
This will help researchers because the simulation used in the game uses the same equations as those studied by researchers. If players are able to come up with successful strategies to make species coexist, researchers can then analyse those strategies to better understand the behaviour of mathematics driving the models. After completing a set of levels designed to teach players all about the dynamics of ecosystems, you will earn the right to compete on global leaderboards, where users are ranked according to who can build the biggest and most healthy ecosystems. The higher your score, the more you will help scientists to understand the natural world.
EcoBuilder is available now on iOS and Android.
More information here:
https://www.imperial.ac.uk/news/200793/new-smartphone-game-lets-solve-real-world/