Comments on: Canadian Scientists Create Virtual Human Brain https://gregladen.com/blog/2012/12/05/canadian-scientists-create-virtual-human-brain/ Mon, 24 Dec 2012 03:56:03 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.4.8 By: NRS https://gregladen.com/blog/2012/12/05/canadian-scientists-create-virtual-human-brain/#comment-496604 Mon, 24 Dec 2012 03:56:03 +0000 http://scienceblogs.com/gregladen/?p=14745#comment-496604 If we separate the complexities and take a small area of the functions of the brain, then it is simulation. Mind does not enter into the picture. However, if every aspect of life controlled by the brain then, mind and brain merge together. It will take small steps like this to create and understand the parts of the complex brain. I had been there simulating instrumental music to understand the physics of music and nothing else.

]]> By: bks https://gregladen.com/blog/2012/12/05/canadian-scientists-create-virtual-human-brain/#comment-496603 Mon, 10 Dec 2012 16:21:23 +0000 http://scienceblogs.com/gregladen/?p=14745#comment-496603 http://www.pdn.cam.ac.uk/groups/comp-cell/Papers/Bray12a.pdf

–bks

]]> By: John M https://gregladen.com/blog/2012/12/05/canadian-scientists-create-virtual-human-brain/#comment-496602 Thu, 06 Dec 2012 18:05:43 +0000 http://scienceblogs.com/gregladen/?p=14745#comment-496602 Common usage of the term implies that a simulated mind is not actually a “real” mind. However, I agree with you if you mean that simulation of neurons and inter-neuron processes should lead to the emergence of a mind.

But further, if this mind operates on a set of inputs/outputs entirely virtualized within the computer itself, then from the mind’s perspective, this set would be it’s total perceived reality — welcome to the Matrix!

]]> By: Greg Laden https://gregladen.com/blog/2012/12/05/canadian-scientists-create-virtual-human-brain/#comment-496601 Thu, 06 Dec 2012 16:59:48 +0000 http://scienceblogs.com/gregladen/?p=14745#comment-496601 Human brains are in (large?) part organs designed by Natural Selection to simulate other human minds.

]]> By: Calli Arcale https://gregladen.com/blog/2012/12/05/canadian-scientists-create-virtual-human-brain/#comment-496600 Thu, 06 Dec 2012 16:53:33 +0000 http://scienceblogs.com/gregladen/?p=14745#comment-496600 John — why would simulation and mind be mutually exclusive? I think it’s both. It’s a simulation of the human mind; any decent simulation of the human mind should actually *be* a mind in its own right. Just not quite exactly a human one.

]]> By: John M https://gregladen.com/blog/2012/12/05/canadian-scientists-create-virtual-human-brain/#comment-496599 Thu, 06 Dec 2012 04:00:16 +0000 http://scienceblogs.com/gregladen/?p=14745#comment-496599 It occurs to me that if a mind is defined by information processing then this is not a simulation, it is an emergent mind itself. It doesn’t matter whether this information processing is accomplished via algorithms running on a CPU, or via physical neurons. In other words, if it acts like a mind then it *is* a mind. It is not conscious only insofar as it does not behave that way…

]]> By: Doug Alder https://gregladen.com/blog/2012/12/05/canadian-scientists-create-virtual-human-brain/#comment-496598 Thu, 06 Dec 2012 03:22:05 +0000 http://scienceblogs.com/gregladen/?p=14745#comment-496598 With current computer tech available (unless they could get their hands on Big Blue or something similar) it would not be practical to scale this up to the 86b or so neurons the average human brain has. That would take ~34K times as long to process (not taking into account they could go with something reasonably accessible running lie an hs23v blade system running dual octacore cpus with 96GB RAM)

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