Wagner James Au writes, "Openworm, the open source collaborative project to construct an artificial life form from the cellular level, now has a Kickstarter so supporters can back the project and also get a copy of the worm itself, Wormsim, to put on their browser and even tweak the code. Here's some background from the project coordinator, who I also ask if this Kickstarter is, you know, contributing to the ultimate creation of a completely artificial sentient life form that will turn against humankind and enslave our children.
They're mostly raising money for core engineering, with the balance going to administration and educational outreach. The code is all MIT-licensed free/open source software.
OpenWorm is an open science project aimed at building a digital organism, a microscopic worm called C. elegans. With this KickStarter we want you to join us in contributing to the creation of the first digital organism and we want to give you your own "WormSim" to play with on your web browser. Your WormSim will improve over time and will get smarter as our model gets better and closer to the real one.
We are also creating the OpenWorm Academy to teach you all about how this tiny worm works and what goes in to creating a digital organism in an easy to understand online course.
OpenWorm: A Digital Organism In Your Browser
Previously: Openworm milestone: artificial worm gains muscle sensation
