How Neurogrid was Born

Neurogrid is the name of the super fast and energy efficient circuit board constructed by the computer scientists at Stanford. It combines 16 customized ‘Neurocore’ chips on a single circuit the size of an iPad. This contraption aims at using silicon and software to build electronic systems that mimic neurons and synapses that occur in the human brain. The human brain is considered a superlative model and it is very difficult to mimic it and reproduce its actions.

The device was constructed with the support of the National Institutes of Health. It can simulate orders of magnitude more neurons and synapses than other brain mimics on the power it takes to run a tablet computer as per Kwabena Boahen. Boahen is an associate professor of bioengineering at Stanford and was closely involved with the actual construction of the device.

It cost $40,000 to build the Neurogrid prototype board. Boahen says that they are now working on creating a neurocompiler where you do not have to have any knowledge of synapses and neurons  and how the brain works, but can still work the device. The team of scientists he is working with hope to build prosthetic limbs for paralyzed people that can be controlled by a similar chip. That would be a really useful science project.