Title | Salmon Run: Teaching the Science of Population Genetics Through Gameplay |
Presenter(s) | Eli Mcardle, Kayleigh Manchester and Ben Person |
Session | Conference Reception, Game Exhibition, and Poster Session |
Time | Wednesday, October 12, 7:00p-9:30p |
Location | MSU Union Ballroom |
Format | Poster Presentation |
Description | Salmon Run is a tower defense game created by developers at MSU BEACON, and is used in classrooms to teach students the basics of population genetics. Salmon Run is a game about managing the local salmon population under various restrictions, and trying to prevent the salmon population from becoming too high or too low. Salmon Run's scene reflects a real world natural environment, the Columbia River watershed. By placing anglers, rangers, fish ladders, or otherwise manipulating the environment, players experiment to determine how the population's genetic traits are increased or decreased, and how those changes affect future generations. |