Uncover myths

A quiz to determine whether common traits are hereditary or influenced by environment.

This interactive game supported a BBC series about twin studies.

We recreated factual elements of the series in a play environment, allowing learners to indicate how heritable they think different character traits are. These decisions are stored in a database, which can be used by academics to measure public perception, as well as provide a comparison for learners.

In addition we created two animations which explain the principles of inherited genetic traits as well as the theory behind twin studies in a way which can be easily grasped.

  • The Open University / BBC

  • Supporting animations

  • > 18,000 responses so far

  • Mobile, Tablet, Desktop

A slider question from the game asking how heritable smoking is, with an illustrated pair of twins

Example of decision point and interactive slider. A value can be input via the keyboard for people with accessibility requirements.

Results screen showing further information on one of the topics

The feedback panel allows the learner to drill down into the content that interests them.

The public vote results screen showing public opinion compared to the research results

The public vote area shows a direct comparison between academic research and public opinion.]

An animation to show students how twin studies can explore whether or not certain traits are genetic.