Project to map to the human brain

Summary:

     The Human Genome Project was a project where scientists mapped to exact gene sequence of the entire human genome. This was a huge endeavor, but it led to a huge understanding of the human genome that we then used in modern medical science. President Obama has recently released a plan to create a new project similar to this, mapping the brain instead of the genome. The hope is that the understanding of the brain will help us both to create better artificial intelligence and the find cures to neurological diseases such as Alzheimer's.

Relevance:

     This news is relevant because we have been studying the nervous system, which this project directly addresses. It hopes to get a better understanding of the brain, a major part of said system which we studied the known parts of in some detail. It also is in an attempt to stop diseases such as Alzheimer's, a disease that was talked about in a group presentation in class.

By Erik Viggh

May 19 2013