CULTURE MANAGEMENT / POPULATION BIOLOGY

Cell Colony

One dish. A growing population. Keep nutrients and oxygen available, expand the culture area, and decide when growth should slow before the colony exhausts its resources.

2 MINUTES · POINTER / TOUCH / KEYBOARD · OFFLINE READY
Best round: —

Microscopy-inspired illustration of cells with detailed nuclei in a culture dish

CULTURE BENCH

2:00

CULTURE VIEW · AEROBIC ANIMAL-CELL MODELIllustration

Experiment brief

Population and resource values are model indices. Conditions and culture rates are not a laboratory protocol.

Culture log

Your observations will appear here.

Biology behind the model

A growing population increases resource demand. Many cultured animal cells respond to growth signals and density; resource depletion and waste can also limit proliferation. Resting cells still require maintenance resources.

Further reading, available when online:
Extracellular Control of Cell Division and Growth
The Eukaryotic Cell Cycle

ROUND REPORT

✳

For the curious at heart. A pocket-sized collection of science-inspired games.
Made for a quick break, a little discovery, and one more round.

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How to play Cell Colony

Manage a hypothetical aerobic, density-sensitive animal-cell culture for two minutes. Practice mode removes the deadline and continues to simulate the selected culture.

Monitor nutrients, oxygen, waste, culture health, and occupied space.
Choose rest, moderate, or high division stimulation. This control represents external growth-promoting culture conditions.
Exchange medium or add oxygen when reserves fall. Clear waste, expand area, or passage the culture when needed.
Install a nutrient pump or aerator for sustained inflow. Each has three levels. Spend credits carefully; they replenish slowly.
Supply interruptions occur at 35, 75, and 100 seconds. Survive with a healthy population and meet the selected scenario target.

Passaging retains 80% of the cultured population and removes some waste. Transferred-away cells are not counted as deaths. Expansion stops at 130 space units.

Keyboard: Q exchanges medium, W adds oxygen, E clears waste, R expands, T passages, A installs a pump, S installs an aerator. 1–3 set division stimulation; P pauses; M toggles music; H opens help.

Cell counts, thresholds, credits, rates, and disturbances are game mechanics, not culture protocols or biological predictions. Oxygen requirements vary across cell types. Density-sensitive proliferation has several mechanisms; physical contact alone does not explain all growth inhibition.

Music starts after a play action. Help, pause, and a hidden browser tab freeze the round. A saved best score stays on this browser when storage is available.