I teach game design. I love it.

The MicrobotC85 will be ready for new pilots soon! You will be able to navigate the molecular world, move individual molecules, solve problems and save humans from bacterial invasions. Read our Biochemistry and Games blog at www.MolecularJig.com

My academic research:Using Game Design Principles to Teach Molecular Science Project 1: Using Immune Defense to teach concepts of molecular cell biology Project 2: Designing ChemSimGame to teach concepts of acid/base equilibriumIn both projects, we identify fundamental principles that are required to understand the concepts. Then we create game mechanics that require the user to manipulate objects in ways that require an understanding of the fundamental principles in order to solve various game-like puzzles. We hold a playtesting session in class and follow up with an assessment. In particular, we assess 1) game performance 2) translation of game performance into real-life understanding and 3) what is missing between game and real life. Then we would discuss whether we should fill in the missing parts with changes in the game, follow up reading/explanation from the teacher, or both. We edit our game, our assessment tools, and our follow-up teaching materials and repeat the cycle. Games teach by putting users in the middle of a system and giving them a goal to accomplish. As the user learns to win the game, they learn more about the system. Iterative development of games and the assessment tools along with continuous discussion with experts allows us to fully integrate the learning with the game mechanics. *This makes game more fun.*

I design and develop games, pure fun and also learning fun, in Unity3d. I work with the education team to design surveys of learning and interest. I write research funding proposals, such as SBIR applications. Dig-It Games is a quirky mixture of learning and indie game development.

I focused on innovative, digital methods to bring deep understanding of science to non-experts. Teaching the fundamental concepts in game format encourages players to experiment and learn at their own pace. Using digital games allows us to show incredibly small objects like cells and proteins to our players. Using game also lets us introduce the function and behavior of objects before we discuss them in words. Diffusion then is not a word, but a behavior the player is familiar with. I created methods to test for this kind of understanding. This is what I am interested in: determining whether a student understand complex concepts, and whether a given intervention has made a difference.

I studied how a video game can teach biology. In particular I created an extensive evaluation of the game Immune Attack. I evaluated learning of the biology presented in the game, transference to outside the game, and gains in confidence in players. I also investigated whether gamers learned more or gained more confidence than non gamers and what aspects of the game fostered learning and confidence games. Read my research paper: http://www.molecularjig.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Stegman-2014-Immune-Attack.pdf

One third of the world's people have TB bacteria in their lungs. Ten percent of them will become sick, extremely contagious and die if left untreated. We have antibiotics that kill tuberculosis bacteria and cure people. This is why we do not have many cases of TB in America. However, antibiotics don't work well in people who are starving or distracted from their daily trip to the doctor by war or the effects of poverty. Ineffective treatment of a bacteria with antibiotics results in antibiotic resistant bacteria. In 2004 there about a 1/2 million cases of drug resistant TB world wide. At Weill Cornell with Carl Nathan, I conducted a screen for organic molecules that inhibited the tuberculosis bacteria's DNA repair mechanism.Mazloum, N., Stegman, M.A., Croteau DL, Van Houten B, Kwon NS, Ling Y, Dickinson C, Venugopal A, Towheed MA, Nathan C. Identification of a chemical that inhibits the mycobacterial UvrABC complex in nucleotide excision repair. Biochemistry. 2011 50:1329.

Taught genetics, gene regulation and cell biology to high school kids who came to afterschool classes at the Museum.