I'm not a card game expert, so I'm looking to the community to come up with some ideas here.
Who am I?
I’m sure this pub game has a name
It's a variant of Blind Man's Bluff, I guess.
With a group of players in a circle, stick or hold a liquorice or card name structure card to your forehead (I guess saliva is no longer the low risk adhesive!) and try to identify which amino acid you are by asking the person next to you a question. If they do not know the answer they could give a forfeit and the question moves to the next person.
You get the idea!
If you're ready to guess, announce this - wrong - you get a forfeit, correct, you win that round.
I’m sure this pub game has a name
It's a variant of Blind Man's Bluff, I guess.
With a group of players in a circle, stick or hold a liquorice or card name structure card to your forehead (I guess saliva is no longer the low risk adhesive!) and try to identify which amino acid you are by asking the person next to you a question. If they do not know the answer they could give a forfeit and the question moves to the next person.
- “Am I basic?”
- “Am I polar?”
- “Do I contain side chain nitrogen?”
- “Do I have an isomer?”
- “Am I achiral?”
You get the idea!
If you're ready to guess, announce this - wrong - you get a forfeit, correct, you win that round.
Rummy
You'll need to know your amino acids for this one.
The basic in any form of rummy is to build 'melds' which can be either sets (three or four of a kind of the same rank) or 'runs' (three or more sequential cards of the same suit) and either be first to go out or to amass more points than the opposition.
So, what types of melds could we make?
Basic amino acids: R,K,H (remember you have four chances at each amino acid)
Containing two nitrogen residues: K,N,Q,W
61
Aromatics: F,Y,W
You'll need to know your amino acids for this one.
The basic in any form of rummy is to build 'melds' which can be either sets (three or four of a kind of the same rank) or 'runs' (three or more sequential cards of the same suit) and either be first to go out or to amass more points than the opposition.
So, what types of melds could we make?
Basic amino acids: R,K,H (remember you have four chances at each amino acid)
Containing two nitrogen residues: K,N,Q,W
61
Aromatics: F,Y,W
The next games were suggested by ChatGPT, an AI tool. This was the prompt:
'Suggest a game played with Zwitter. Zwitter is a set of cards, of four suits. Each suit contains 20 cards, representing the amino acids commonly found in proteins. Two suits are molecular structures, the other two suits capture different properties of each amino acid. I am looking for a game that does not require any gambling.'
'Suggest a game played with Zwitter. Zwitter is a set of cards, of four suits. Each suit contains 20 cards, representing the amino acids commonly found in proteins. Two suits are molecular structures, the other two suits capture different properties of each amino acid. I am looking for a game that does not require any gambling.'
Matching
One possible game that can be played with Zwitter cards is a matching game. To play, each player is dealt a number of cards and the remaining cards are placed face down in a stack on the table.
The first player turns over a card from the stack and attempts to find a matching card in their hand. If they have a match, they place the pair face up on the table and play continues to the next player. If they do not have a match, they draw a card from the stack and play passes to the next player.
The game continues until all pairs have been matched and the player with the most matches wins. This game does not require any gambling and can be enjoyed by players of all ages.
One possible game that can be played with Zwitter cards is a matching game. To play, each player is dealt a number of cards and the remaining cards are placed face down in a stack on the table.
The first player turns over a card from the stack and attempts to find a matching card in their hand. If they have a match, they place the pair face up on the table and play continues to the next player. If they do not have a match, they draw a card from the stack and play passes to the next player.
The game continues until all pairs have been matched and the player with the most matches wins. This game does not require any gambling and can be enjoyed by players of all ages.
Fish
Another possible game that can be played with Zwitter cards is a card game called "Go Fish" or "Fish".
To play, each player is dealt a number of cards and the remaining cards are placed face down in a stack on the table. The goal of the game is to collect as many pairs of matching cards as possible. On their turn, a player can ask another player if they have a specific card (e.g. "Do you have any threonines?") If the other player has the card, they must give it to the asking player, who can then use it to make a pair.
If the other player does not have the card, they say "Go Fish" and the asking player must draw a card from the stack. The game continues until all pairs have been collected or the stack is exhausted. The player with the most pairs wins. This game does not require any gambling and can be enjoyed by players of all ages.
Another possible game that can be played with Zwitter cards is a card game called "Go Fish" or "Fish".
To play, each player is dealt a number of cards and the remaining cards are placed face down in a stack on the table. The goal of the game is to collect as many pairs of matching cards as possible. On their turn, a player can ask another player if they have a specific card (e.g. "Do you have any threonines?") If the other player has the card, they must give it to the asking player, who can then use it to make a pair.
If the other player does not have the card, they say "Go Fish" and the asking player must draw a card from the stack. The game continues until all pairs have been collected or the stack is exhausted. The player with the most pairs wins. This game does not require any gambling and can be enjoyed by players of all ages.
Alphabet Soup (I rather like this one)
One possible game that can be played with alphabet cards is a card game called "Alphabet Soup". To play, each player is dealt a number of cards and the remaining cards are placed face down in a stack on the table.
The goal of the game is to create words using the cards in your hand and the cards that are revealed during the game. The game is played in rounds, with each round starting with a player drawing a card from the stack and placing it face up on the table. The next player must then use that card to create a word by adding it to the beginning, middle, or end of the word created by the previous player.
For example, if the first player creates the word "bat", the next player could add the letter "c" to create the word "cat" or the letter "s" to create the word "bats". Players continue to take turns adding letters to the word until a player is unable to create a new word, at which point they must draw a new card from the stack. The game continues until all cards have been used or a player is unable to create a new word.
The player with the most points, based on the length and difficulty of the words they create, wins the game. This game can be enjoyed by players of all ages and can help develop vocabulary and word-building skills.
One possible game that can be played with alphabet cards is a card game called "Alphabet Soup". To play, each player is dealt a number of cards and the remaining cards are placed face down in a stack on the table.
The goal of the game is to create words using the cards in your hand and the cards that are revealed during the game. The game is played in rounds, with each round starting with a player drawing a card from the stack and placing it face up on the table. The next player must then use that card to create a word by adding it to the beginning, middle, or end of the word created by the previous player.
For example, if the first player creates the word "bat", the next player could add the letter "c" to create the word "cat" or the letter "s" to create the word "bats". Players continue to take turns adding letters to the word until a player is unable to create a new word, at which point they must draw a new card from the stack. The game continues until all cards have been used or a player is unable to create a new word.
The player with the most points, based on the length and difficulty of the words they create, wins the game. This game can be enjoyed by players of all ages and can help develop vocabulary and word-building skills.
Scrabble
This one doesn't work for me, but I suspect there might be a variant to be developed . We could, for example, print out the structure of human insulin, or on a cloth poster, with card-sized spaces for each amino acid. I'll think on this.
Another possible game that can be played with alphabet cards is a card game called "Scrabble". To play, each player is dealt a number of cards and the remaining cards are placed face down in a stack on the table. The goal of the game is to create words using the cards in your hand and earn points based on the length and difficulty of the words you create. The game is played on a grid, with each player taking turns placing their cards on the grid to create words. Players can add to existing words or create new words, but each word must be at least three letters long and must be connected to other words on the grid. Points are awarded for each word based on the length and difficulty of the word, with longer and more complex words earning more points. The game continues until all cards have been used or a player is unable to create a new word. The player with the most points wins the game. This game can be enjoyed by players of all ages and can help develop vocabulary and word-building skills.
This one doesn't work for me, but I suspect there might be a variant to be developed . We could, for example, print out the structure of human insulin, or on a cloth poster, with card-sized spaces for each amino acid. I'll think on this.
Another possible game that can be played with alphabet cards is a card game called "Scrabble". To play, each player is dealt a number of cards and the remaining cards are placed face down in a stack on the table. The goal of the game is to create words using the cards in your hand and earn points based on the length and difficulty of the words you create. The game is played on a grid, with each player taking turns placing their cards on the grid to create words. Players can add to existing words or create new words, but each word must be at least three letters long and must be connected to other words on the grid. Points are awarded for each word based on the length and difficulty of the word, with longer and more complex words earning more points. The game continues until all cards have been used or a player is unable to create a new word. The player with the most points wins the game. This game can be enjoyed by players of all ages and can help develop vocabulary and word-building skills.
The entire ChatGPT dialogue - all spelling errors are mine! I've left them in to show how it does not seem to throw the AI.
Me in red
Suggest a game played with Zwitter. Zwitter is a set of cards, of four suits. Each suit contains 20 cards, representing the amino acids commonly found in proteins. Two suits are molecular structures, the other two suits capture different properties of each amino acid. I am looking for a game that does not require any gambling.
One possible game that can be played with Zwitter cards is a matching game. To play, each player is dealt a number of cards and the remaining cards are placed face down in a stack on the table. The first player turns over a card from the stack and attempts to find a matching card in their hand. If they have a match, they place the pair face up on the table and play continues to the next player. If they do not have a match, they draw a card from the stack and play passes to the next player. The game continues until all pairs have been matched and the player with the most matches wins. This game does not require any gambling and can be enjoyed by players of all ages.
suggest another
Another possible game that can be played with Zwitter cards is a card game called "Go Fish" or "Fish". To play, each player is dealt a number of cards and the remaining cards are placed face down in a stack on the table. The goal of the game is to collect as many pairs of matching cards as possible. On their turn, a player can ask another player if they have a specific card (e.g. "Do you have any threonines?") If the other player has the card, they must give it to the asking player, who can then use it to make a pair. If the other player does not have the card, they say "Go Fish" and the asking player must draw a card from the stack. The game continues until all pairs have been collected or the stack is exhausted. The player with the most pairs wins. This game does not require any gambling and can be enjoyed by players of all ages.
now suggest a game that might have a gambling element
One possible game that can be played with Zwitter cards and includes a gambling element is a card game called "Poker". To play, each player is dealt a number of cards and the remaining cards are placed face down in a stack on the table. The goal of the game is to create the best hand of cards using the cards in your hand and the cards that are revealed during the game. Players take turns betting on the strength of their hand, with the player who has the strongest hand winning the pot. The game can include elements of chance, such as drawing additional cards from the stack, as well as strategy and skill, as players must decide when to bet and how much to bet based on the strength of their hand and the actions of other players. This game can be enjoyed by players over the age of 18 who are interested in gambling.

suggest another please
Another possible game that can be played with Zwitter cards and includes a gambling element is a card game called "Blackjack" or "Twenty-One". To play, each player is dealt two cards and the remaining cards are placed face down in a stack on the table. The goal of the game is to get as close to 21 points as possible without going over. The cards in each suit are worth a specific number of points, with the molecular structure suits worth more points than the property suits. Players take turns drawing additional cards from the stack and adding them to their hand, trying to get as close to 21 points as possible without going over. If a player goes over 21 points, they lose their bet. The player with the hand closest to 21 points without going over wins the pot. This game can be enjoyed by players over the age of 18 who are interested in gambling.
suggest a game where cards are played in sequence. EAch card can be defined by a lwtter of the alphabet
One possible game that can be played with alphabet cards is a card game called "Alphabet Soup". To play, each player is dealt a number of cards and the remaining cards are placed face down in a stack on the table. The goal of the game is to create words using the cards in your hand and the cards that are revealed during the game. The game is played in rounds, with each round starting with a player drawing a card from the stack and placing it face up on the table. The next player must then use that card to create a word by adding it to the beginning, middle, or end of the word created by the previous player. For example, if the first player creates the word "bat", the next player could add the letter "c" to create the word "cat" or the letter "s" to create the word "bats". Players continue to take turns adding letters to the word until a player is unable to create a new word, at which point they must draw a new card from the stack. The game continues until all cards have been used or a player is unable to create a new word. The player with the most points, based on the length and difficulty of the words they create, wins the game. This game can be enjoyed by players of all ages and can help develop vocabulary and word-building skills.
and one more
Another possible game that can be played with alphabet cards is a card game called "Scrabble". To play, each player is dealt a number of cards and the remaining cards are placed face down in a stack on the table. The goal of the game is to create words using the cards in your hand and earn points based on the length and difficulty of the words you create. The game is played on a grid, with each player taking turns placing their cards on the grid to create words. Players can add to existing words or create new words, but each word must be at least three letters long and must be connected to other words on the grid. Points are awarded for each word based on the length and difficulty of the word, with longer and more complex words earning more points. The game continues until all cards have been used or a player is unable to create a new word. The player with the most points wins the game. This game can be enjoyed by players of all ages and can help develop vocabulary and word-building skills
thank you
You're welcome! I'm glad I could help. Let me know if you have any other questions or if you would like suggestions for more games.
what if we had three dice that could represent a codon when thrown
If you had three dice that could represent a codon when thrown, you could use them to play a variety of dice games. One possible game is called "Codon Craps". To play, each player takes turns rolling the three dice and trying to roll specific codons. For example, players could try to roll the codon for the amino acid leucine (CTT) or the codon for the amino acid arginine (AGA). Points could be awarded for rolling specific codons, and the game could be played with a betting element where players can wager on the outcome of their rolls. This game could be enjoyed by players of all ages who are interested in genetics and the structure of proteins.
could we use the codon dice to informa the amino acid card game
Yes, you could use the codon dice to inform the amino acid card game. For example, you could modify the "Go Fish" game described earlier by adding a step where players must roll the codon dice before they can ask for a specific amino acid card. If the codon they roll matches the codon for the amino acid they are asking for, they can continue with their turn and ask for the card. If the codon they roll does not match the codon for the amino acid they are asking for, they must draw a card from the stack instead. This added step would introduce an element of chance to the game and could make it more exciting and unpredictable. It could also provide players with an opportunity to learn more about the structure of proteins and the relationship between codons and amino acids.