In June, scientists at McGill University's School of Computer Science announced the return of Project Discovery, a mini-game to help collect data. This time around, Project Discovery sheds light on data about coronaviruses simply by mapping cell populations in the game; according to BBC News, more than 171,000 players have completed a whopping 47 million tasks.

These numbers reveal the strength of citizen science. The number of mini-games completed is equivalent to 36 years of cell classification, something that would have been impossible for the McGill University team alone. On the other hand, all the players of EVE Online needed to do was draw polygons around a group of cells, and David Ecker, lead producer of EVE Online, says it took very little time to get people interested in this mini-game: "We've We gamified it quite a bit. We've gamified it quite a bit. There is an incentive for people to do it: ...... But it is also the heart and soul of our community. These are things that our people really enjoy doing, and this is really for the greater good." [Players interviewed by the BBC said the mini-games not only made them feel like they could help with something important from the comfort of their homes, but also made the science behind something that affects so many people more accessible. It is certainly nice to know that it doesn't take much to do your part in the face of something that makes you feel helpless.

If you are interested in participating, you can find more information on EVE Online's dedicated Project Discovery page; in September, EVE Online's official blog also published a detailed article about the project and the science behind it, including insights from several scientists.