What's next for the Blue Brain Project?

Phase I marks the completion of a proof-of-principle simulation-based research process that has resulted in a cellular-level model of the neocortical column. We have achieved biological fidelity such that the model itself now serves as a primary tool for evaluating the consistency and relevance of neurobiological data, while providing guidance for new experimental efforts. These new data will serve to further refine the neocortical column model. The assembled process allows neuroscientists to investigate scientific questions by integrating the available experimental data and evaluating hypotheses of network dynamics and neural function.

The completion of phase I provides the basis now for increasing the resolution of the models down to the molecular level and expanding the size of the models towards the whole brains of mammals.

In the future, information from the molecular and genetic level will be added to the algorithms that generate the individual neurons and their connections, and thus this level of detail will be reflected in the circuit's construction. The simulations can be used to explore what happens when this molecular or genetic information is altered -- situations such as a genetic variation in particular neurotransmitters, or what happens when the molecular environment is altered via drugs.

The project will continue to expand and will necessarily involve additional scientists and research groups from around the world.