BIO COMPUTERS - SCI
& TECH
News: Living brain-cell biocomputers
are now training on dopamine
What's in the news?
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Current AI training methods burn colossal amounts
of energy to learn, but the human brain sips just 20 W.
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Swiss startup FinalSpark is now selling access to
cyborg biocomputers, running up to four living human brain organoids wired into
silicon chips.
Bio Computers:
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They are also called brain organoids and are 3D cultures of brain tissue developed
in the lab.
Uses of Bio Computers:
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They are used to study human brain development and test drugs to see how they
respond.
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Traditionally, researchers have used rat brains to
investigate various human neurological disorders.
○
There are several differences in structure and
function in the cognitive capacities of rodents and humans.
Process:
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The brain organoids will be combined with modern computing methods to create bio computers.
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The organoids will be coupled with machine learning by growing the organoids inside
flexible structures affixed with multiple electrodes using machine learning.
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These structures will be able to record the firing patterns of the neurons and
also deliver electrical stimuli, to mimic sensory stimuli and later analysed by
machine-learning techniques.
Opportunities for Bio
Computers:
1. Processing complex
information:
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Bio-computers can utilize the superior processing
power of the human brain to handle complex tasks.
2. Researching
Neurodegenerative Diseases:
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Brain organoids developed using stem cells from
patients with neurodegenerative diseases can be used to decode the pathology of
these diseases and develop drugs to treat them.
3. Revealing the
Biological Basis of Human Cognition:
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Comparing the data on brain structure, connections,
and signalling between healthy and patient-derived organoids can reveal the
biological basis of human cognition, learning, and memory.
4. Advancing Drug
Development:
● Brain organoids can be used to test drugs for effectiveness and safety before they are tested on humans, potentially speeding up the drug development process.