Fight cancer while you sleep

By Eden Tokatly

closeup phone charging white power bank portable device
New app uses the processing power of your smartphone to help cancer research while you sleep.

An estimated 126,800 new cases of cancer were diagnosed in Australia this year, with that number set to rise to 150,000 by 2020. What if we could help cancer research, simply by going to bed?

Cancer researcher is currently set back by inadequate access to supercomputers and processing power, that’s where an app called DreamLab comes in. The Vodafone Foundation has united with the Garvan Institute of Medical Research to create the app which aims to fast track a cure for cancer by creating a “supercomputer” collective.

Supercomputers are needed to sort through the infinite amount of data that has been collected in the crusade for advancements in battling cancer, but these supercomputers are very costly. Researchers say that with 100,000 users they will be able to crunch data 3,000 times faster than the current rate. With five million users, that number increases to 150 thousand times faster than the current rate.

Every night while your phone is charging it will be given small questions to solve, essentially placing the pieces in the grand puzzle to find a cure. The app goes to work once your phone is over 95% and it won’t drain your battery or access your private information, you can even use your smartphone while the app goes to work.

Alyssa Jones, Head of the Vodafone Foundation Australia, said it’s never been easier for Australians to give back to a cause that means so much, to so many.  “Almost every Australian has a heartbreaking story to tell about cancer,” Jones said. “We all want to play a part in the fight against this disease and now, with more smartphones than people, we have an opportunity to make a tangible difference.

For Vodafone Australia customers, the data used for solving research problems is totally free on the Vodafone network in Australia.

 

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