Simulating the Brain Digitally

Clench both your fists and put them together, this is how your teacher told you how big your brain is during middle school. It seems like a simple concept but it doesn't show the complex structures and interactions going on in a brain. This being said, the brain is easily the most complex organ in any animal. The human brain has billions of neurons with multiple synapses connecting each one. It's an almost  impossible task to know everything that goes on in a brain. There are also restrictions to research that can be done to humans to understand the brain better due to moral and ethical reasons. So how would someone show what the brain is then?

One way to answer this is through modeling. Modeling is to make something into a 2-D or 3-D model to show how it works. Modeling a realistic 3-D brain though is incredibly difficult. Dr. Mark Albert, from the University of Loyola Chicago, overcame this by showing how microprocessors are similar to the brain. In his research paper, "Could a Neuroscientist Understand a Microprocessor?", he uses a MOS6502 microprocessor and 3 games, Donkey Kong, Space Invader, and Pitfall (Jones). In this study, he lesions transistors while playing one of the games to see what transistors are vitally important to booting up the game. Using different games, allows him to see if different transistors are needed for different games. In the end, the games shared a lot of the same vitally important transistors needed to start and a smaller amount of not shared transistors. Mark Albert showed that modeling is a good way to represent the brain. Is there a way to get a better model of the brain though? 

The Blue Brain Project, headed by Henry Markham is doing just that, trying to get a better model of the human brain. Their goal is to digitize the human brain, to make a realistic simulation that would act and react to changes in it just like a human brain would (In brief). The Blue Brain Project was started in 2005 and is still going on today. In 2013, the Blue Brain Project received a billion euro grant. Their work is far from complete but they remain optimistic. What benefits will a simulation like this have? 

But why make this simulation of the human brain? Markham believes that "building a unified model is the only way to unite our knowledge, and to start filling in the gaps in a focused way" (Yong 2013). This would be helpful since no ones knows everything that goes on in the brain. Markham also states in his 2009 TED talk that the medical benefits would be great (Markham). He believes a working model could show what affects drugs could have on individuals. I think a working simulation of the brain would be great for a multitude of reasons, but the most practical to me would be the learning aspect. As a student, it would an invaluable resource. 

References 

“In Brief.” About Blue Brain | EPFL, 22 Sept. 2017, bluebrain.epfl.ch/page-56882-en.html

Jones, Erica, and Konrad Paul Kording , “Could a Neuroscientist Understand a Microprocessor?.” Journal.pcbi.1005268.Pdf | Power by Box, PLOS , 12 Jan. 2017, luc.app.box.com/v/neuroseminar/file/216114468678

Markham, Henry, director. A Brain in a Supercomputer . TED , TED, July 2009, www.ted.com/talks/henry_markham_supercomputering_the_brain_s_secrets.

Yong, Ed. “Will We Ever… Simulate the Brain?” Phenomena, National Geographic | Phenomena, 8 Feb. 2013, http://phenomena.nationalgeographic.com/2013/02/14/will-we-ever-simulate-the-brain/