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Artificial Synapse Created For Synthetic Brain

Posted by timothy on from the let's-vote-these-amateur-clowns-out-of-office dept.

Zothecula writes "It's probably still going to be a while before autonomous, self-aware androids are wandering amongst us. That scenario has come a little closer to reality, however, with researchers from the University of Southern California having created a functioning synapse circuit using carbon nanotubes. An artificial version of the connections that allow electrical impulses to pass between neurons in our brains, the circuit could someday be one component of a synthetic brain."

3 of 129 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Self-assembly, too? by Hognoxious · · Score: 3, Interesting

    For that it would need to be able to interface with plain old mark one grey matter, and there's nothing (wishes side) in the article to suggest that it can.

    Until it can do that, why is this any better than simply emulating the connections with software?

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  2. Re:Whatever you say by camperslo · · Score: 3, Interesting

    The Androids would most likely be upset with software patents, a stifling inhuman rights abuse.

  3. Why do robot brains need synapses? by MMC+Monster · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Just because biological brains have synapses, do computer brains need them as well?

    Serious question. I don't know where AI is or where it's taking us.

    This is more useful to study human neurology.

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