Wouldn't it be neat if playing a video game counted as proof of work for a blockchain instead of arbitrary work hashing algorithms? Well it is easier than you think.
Microsoft already has a patent.
https://www.tomshardware.com/news/microsoft-patent-application-crypto-mining-brain-wavesMicrosoft has filed a patent application that details the use of subconscious thoughts as a proof-of-work concept with the intention of mining cryptocurrency.
The concept uses body data, including brain waves, body temperature, blood flow, movement, organ activity, your pulse, eye movement and much more. These data points are then paired with the task a person is doing and then used as a proof-of-work (PoW) element This data would be unique for each individual, forming essentially a digital fingerprint and the unique data required for PoW.
Black mirror had an episode called
Fifteen Million Meritshttps://www.imdb.com/title/tt2089049/In this alternate, future reality, Bing and thousands of others must ride exercise bikes for hours a day to earn "merits", credits that can be used to purchase basic necessities as well as novelty items. They are surrounded by televisions playing mindless entertainment all day long, including TV shows that mock the odd overweight citizen who cannot work, a lot of pornography...and a talent show similar to the real-world Got Talent franchise. When Bing meets, Abi, a woman with a talent for singing, he believes she can win the competition and earn a better life. However, after he makes sacrifice upon sacrifice to get her to the show, she is degraded and harassed by the judges and audience, who offer her a choice: start a career in pornography...or go back to being a slave.
*Note the reference to the guy named Bing,
(also the name of Microsoft's Search engine).