How play, science, and grief come together to create unexpected community

Some freaks show up in obvious places.

Labs. Universities. Gaming consoles.

And then there are the freaks who live at the intersections — where research meets play, grief meets creativity, and community forms in unexpected ways.

In this episode of Find Your Freaks, Tonya Kubo sits down with philosopher, cognitive scientist, and systems thinker Jeff Yoshimi, a professor at University of California, Merced, to explore how video games and citizen science can do more than entertain — they can save lives.

Jeff’s book Gaming Cancer was born out of personal loss, professional curiosity, and a refusal to accept helplessness as the final answer. After cancer touched his family in devastating ways, Jeff began asking a radical question:

What if everyday people — gamers, designers, artists, marketers — could meaningfully contribute to cancer research without needing a lab coat?

Together, Tonya and Jeff explore how games tap into our deep wiring as problem-solving creatures, why motivation works differently when the challenge is the reward, and how belonging can form when people from wildly different worlds come together around a shared mission.

If you’ve ever felt powerless in the face of a massive problem — or wondered whether your skills could actually matter — this conversation offers a hopeful, grounded, and deeply human reframe.

[05:40] Why humans are wired to solve problems — and how games activate that instinct

[10:55] How game design creates intrinsic motivation (and why homework can’t compete)

[16:30] The moment Gaming Cancer was born during a sleepless night at Stanford

[22:45] Citizen science explained: how everyday players can contribute to real research

[28:10] How the RNA-design game Eterna helped advance vaccine research

[35:20] Why designers and marketers are essential to scientific progress

[41:50] What happens when grief, play, and purpose exist in the same space

[49:05] Why trying something — even without guaranteed success — still matters

[55:40] What to do if you want to help but don’t know where to start

Jeff explains that games aren’t just distractions — they’re beautifully engineered systems that reward curiosity, persistence, and creative problem-solving.

When scientific challenges are embedded into game mechanics, players can unknowingly contribute to real discoveries simply by doing what humans do best: trying to solve the puzzle in front of them.

One powerful example comes from Eterna, a game where players helped design RNA molecules — contributions that played a role in developing coronavirus vaccines stable at room temperature. That’s not hypothetical impact. That’s real science shaped by collective effort.

Cancer often leaves people searching for something they can do.

Fundraising. Awareness. Advocacy. Prevention.

Jeff suggests a fifth path: contribution through skill.

Artists can design.

Marketers can attract players.

Developers can build systems.

Gamers can play — and solve.

Instead of asking people to leave their talents behind, citizen-science games invite them to bring all of who they are into the fight.

One of the most grounding truths in this conversation is simple:

You don’t need certainty to justify action.

Jeff is clear — most scientific progress is incremental. But reframing problems through