
Making a Brain Map That We Can Use - robg
http://www.npr.org/blogs/13.7/2015/01/16/377631652/making-a-brain-map-that-we-can-use
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jacobsimon
I'm not sure what this article is getting at. Understanding the connections
among neurons is not at all like examining the atoms of a smart phone.
Connectome researchers like Seung are more interested in the connections
between various systems that have evolved in the brain—systems that we
actually understand very well from a behavioral standpoint. We know how a lot
of the brain works in precise detail up to a point, especially the vision
system.

Understanding the biology of how neurons work is also critically important
because that's how we'll discover new medicines and technologies that
interface with the brain. If we didn't have a complete understanding of how
the retina or cochlea work to convert physical signals into neural signals, we
wouldn't have been able to create implants to replace these functions.

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stefantalpalaru
> The point is not just that it is hard to understand the brain's holistic
> operation in terms of what cells are doing but, instead, that it might be
> impossible [...]

You can't seriously expect to develop a model of the brain while ignoring
neurons and their connections. Neurons are not like atoms for a smartphone,
they are like computers for the internet.

Even high level functionality like memory seems linked to dendritic spines
(small protrusions of the membrane that change shape, appear and disappear in
a matter of hours). Looking at the big picture is all fine and dandy, but
until we have a decent model of the brain's functionality we are not in any
position to decide what's superfluous and what's not.

