This week’s technology report isn’t on something you can use – yet. ScienceDaily reports that a team at the University of Reading has created a robot that is controlled by an actual biological brain. This has a great deal of potential applications as it continues to develop and become more complex.
Using cultured neurons, the scientists developed this brain in a move to determine how memories manifest and how the brain “stores specific pieces of data”. The neurons are placed into a dish called a multi-electrode array (MEA) that has 60 electrodes which pick up the electrical signals sent by the cells. These signals are what determine how the robot moves.
As researchers figure out how to get the robot to learn, they hope to be able to watch the actual process of how memories manifest themselves when the robot travels over known territory.
Knowing more about how memory forms will help researchers understand how memory is damaged in a traumatic brain injury (TBI) and eventually, how to repair it!
To keep an eye on this research, visit the University of Reading.