Human Brain to be Built Using Supercomputer

The Hindu reports that scientists are trying to build human brain using the world’s most powerful computer. At least 12 years from completion, the machine will reportedly try to combine all the information so far uncovered about the brain’s mysterious workings — and replicate them on a screen, right down to the level of individual cells and molecules.

The complexity of the brain, with its billions of interconnected neurons, makes it hard for neuroscientists to truly understand how it works,” said project leader Professor Henry Markram. “Simulating it will make it much easier — allowing them to manipulate and measure any aspect of the brain,” he said. Housed at a facility in Dusseldorf in Germany, the ‘brain’ will feature thousands of three-dimensional images built around a semi-circular ‘cockpit’ so scientists can virtually ‘fly’ around different areas and watch how they communicate with each other.

The project has received some funding from the EU and has been shortlisted for a 1 billion euro EU grant, which will be decided next month. Read the Full Story.