Blog: Weizmann Institute Scientists Create Working Artificial Nerve Networks

Weizmann Institute Scientists Create Working Artificial Nerve Networks
Weizmann Institute of Science (01/28/09)

At the Weizmann Institute of Science, Physics of Complex Systems Department professor Elisha Moses and former research students Ofer Feinerman and Assaf Rotem have created logic gate circuits made from living nerve cells grown in a lab. The researchers say their work could lead to an interface that links the brain and artificial systems using nerve cells created for that purpose. The cells used in the circuits are brain nerve cells grown in culture. The researchers grew a model nerve network in a single direction by getting the neurons to grow along a groove etched in a glass plate. Nerve cells in the brain are connected to a vast number of other cells through axons, and must receive a minimum number of incoming signals before they relay the signal. The researchers found a threshold, about 100 axons, below which the chance of a response was questionable. The scientists then used two thin stripes of about 100 axons each to create an AND logic gate. "We have been able to enforce simplicity on an inherently complicated system. Now we can ask, 'What do nerve cells grown in culture require in order to be able to carry out complex calculations?' " Moses says. "As we find answers, we get closer to understanding the conditions needed for creating a synthetic, many-neuron 'thinking' apparatus."

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