HIV, Maya and 3ds Max Visualisation challenge

 

“Scientific visualization is a multi-billion dollar industry, which aims to investigate and communicate the realms that exist beyond our normal senses. In the molecular world of alien-looking shapes and bizarre physics, Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) attacks critical immune system defense cells in human blood, causing the disease AIDS. This pandemic has taken over 33,000,000 lives, with millions more added each year.

Autodesk unites with two leading research institutes to challenge you to explore this mysterious world. They will provide competitors with a cellPack model of HIV in blood serum and a powerful open source app, called autoPACK. It is up to you to convey humanity's complex relationships with this virus, be they emotional, political, or intellectual. We need your help to excite general audiences with visuals that will help us spread interest in the search for a cure.

This is your opportunity to be a pioneer on the frontier of science!”

Instructions can be found here.

For more information, please visit: http://www.autopack.org/challenge

The Challenge

You can see that this HIV-in-BloodSerum model is complex, both visually and computationally. 

1. We need you to make this model both more clear to scientists and more engaging to non-scientists. 
2. We suggest that you convey the fateful nature of humanity's complex relationships with this virus, be they emotional, political, or intellectual, to help us spread interest in the public fight to search for a cure.
3. We suggest that you customize the model as you see fit. Find details of the contest here, but to overview:
   1. You must begin by installing the autoPack plugin to load the model into Maya or 3ds Max.
   2. You should retain some essence of the model, to help us improve the cellPack tool that will help scientists to better understand and investigate interactions that occur in on this messy and mysterious scale of biology. HOWEVER, you may use any tools in your arsenal to convey your message and the contest will be judged on aesthetics and creativity alone and we've provided tutorials to help you customize and modify the models.
   3. With the model constructed, you may use any application you see fit to customize the model:
      1. If you want to retain scientific accuracy, we suggest using molecular plugins like ePMV or mMaya to replace individual molecules with styles to your liking (see tutorials here).
      2. If you may prefer to build individual molecules from scratch or to replace them with more fanciful or editorial components, this tutorial will get you started.
      3. Again, you are welcome to add, delete, animate, simulate, etc. anything you want in/to the scene to convey your message, create a mood, clarify the data, beautify/horrify the scene, or otherwise accomplish your goals.

All participants (individuals, groups, academic or industry) using registered versions of the free plugin autoPack as part of their modeling, rigging, or animating process may participate.

The competition closes on March 18th 2013.

Prizes can be found here.