The BioRC Project at the University of Southern California,
led by Prof.
Alice Parker in the Ming Hsieh Department of Electrical
Engineering,
researches the fundamental National
Academy of Engineering's Grand Challenge, Reverse
Engineering
the Brain.
The questions if, when and how an
artificial brain could be constructed are being raised, and research
into the fundamental challenges involved
in whole brain emulation is continuing. These challenges include
- emulating the complexity
of the individual
neuronal computations,
- constructing systems on the scale of the human
brain with billions of neurons and trillions of synapses,
- connecting
the neurons for effective and efficient communication, and
- implementing plasticity,
the
ability of the brain to change and grow as learning
occurs.
- An ancillary challenge is producing a low-power
design.
The basic approach
of the BioRC
project is to employ analog
computations (an approach pioneered by
Carver Mead at Cal Tech) to emulate neural structures.
This approach is supported by the use of nanotechnology, with
structures a few nanometers in dimension, with the capability of
controlled assembly and use, envisioned
a half-century ago by physicist Richard Feynman. The approach relies on
implementing the functions of neural
mechanisms believed to be
important for learning and memory, while approximating the
detailed
implementations of the mechanisms.
The BioRC group is
the first
group to demonstrate in a CMOS circuit the effect of Astrocytes (Glial Cells) on synaptic
transmission, one of first three groups to use fabricated carbon nanoutube transistors to
demonstrate analog neuromorphic circuits (in collaboration with Chongwu
Zhou's Nanolab), the first group to simulate neuomorphic circuits using
carbon nanotube models (in collaboration with Chongwu Zhou's Nanolab),
and the first group to implement dendritic
plasticity in neuromorphic circuits
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