

Neurokernel: Emulating the Fruit Fly Brain - T-A
http://www.bionet.ee.columbia.edu/projects/neurokernel

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guru_meditation
Quoting from the course front page:

Students with extensive software engineering experience (systems software,
parallel programming or computer graphics) are strongly encouraged to apply.

 _Almost_ makes me want to go back to grad school. Look at these folks, they
made GPU-enabled code available as Python's SciKit[1]

But then I see they're patenting stuff left and right [2] and my enthusiasm
for this project _dwindles_....

[1]
[http://www.bionet.ee.columbia.edu/code/scikits.cuda](http://www.bionet.ee.columbia.edu/code/scikits.cuda)

[2]
[http://www.bionet.ee.columbia.edu/patents/](http://www.bionet.ee.columbia.edu/patents/)

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adrianN
There is a similar project called OpenWorm, that aims to simulate a nematode
completely. It's pretty cool, you should check it out

[http://www.openworm.org/](http://www.openworm.org/)

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comrade1
Based on the current rate of processor development we will probably be able to
model a human brain in realtime around 2045 on a supercomputer.

We can model the processing of a human now but it is exceedingly slow, and it
is just toy calculations. So even if we can model a mind in 2045 it will may
be a long time after that before it can be done in a meaningful way.

In the meantime we will probably be able to model humans in a more simplistic
way. Our external interactions are simple. If we can record all interactions
of a person over time we can develop a cognitive profile and develop a 'beta'
copy of that person. Not a real thinking AI, but to someone interacting with
that copy essentially the real thing.

People are working on this topic now but they're a long way away. I'm guessing
2035.

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Retric
We have trouble accurately modeling how a single protean folds. A cell is
vastly more complex. And a brain is far more so.

So, at best we are talking about some model of a human brain at some detail
level. IMO, a timescale on it is silly when we don't know how complex the
model needs to be to be useful.

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comrade1
They're able to model about a second of brain processing in about an hour now
on our largest computers. The challenge of course is the parallel nature of
our processing.

Based on current rates of processing growth they can probably model a brain in
realtime in 2045.

[http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/10567942/Supercomputer...](http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/10567942/Supercomputer-
models-one-second-of-human-brain-activity.html)

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Retric
"with a single second’s worth of activity from just one per cent" So, at some
accuracy level they modeled 1% of a brain.

However, while 'the most accurate yet' yet they did not model things like cell
death and as ~10,000 neurons die a day it's still an important process even in
adult brains. With children it's extremely important as over 1/2 of the brain
cells your born with die by 18. Granted on a second by second basis cell death
is not that important, but if you want to model a human brain vs say an
abstract neural net then accuracy is important.

Sure, other things like cellular energy expenditure, hormones, orientation,
gravity, blood flow, oxygen levels, immune response, might not seem important.
But, again do you want to model a brain or make a fun simulation.

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comrade1
That's where the 2045 date comes from. That article mentions the 1% issue, and
based on that someone came up with the date 2040/2050.

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noiv
According to the specs a fruit fly is smarter than my mobile.

