This mobile game is helping fight dementia
UK scientists have developed a smart way to conduct dementia research with this fun mobile game. In a joint project for Alzheimer’s Research UK between researchers at University College London, the University of East Anglia and Deutche Telekom with the help of game designer Glitchers.
Sea Hero Quest, available for free for iOS and Android devices, involves players navigating their way around courses to find missing map pieces. It may sound basic, but the brains behind the app believe every bit of game time will provide valuable data about how we respond to our environment. This data is crucial given that one of the first signs of dementia is decreased special awareness.
Scientists are thrilled at this new opportunity, telling The Telegraph that every two minutes of game play equals around five hours of traditional research methods.
Dr Hugo Spiers and Professor Michael Hornberger claim “This project provides an unprecedented chance to study how many thousands of people from different countries and cultures navigate space. This will help shed light on how we use our brain to navigate and aid in future work on diagnostics and drug treatment programmes in dementia research.”
Take a look at the game trailer above, we think it looks great!
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