(Bloomberg) –Think of the human brain as an immensely powerful supercomputer. But as one of the most complex systems in nature, there’s still much to learn about how it works. That’s why researchers from the Human Brain Project are attempting to unravel even more of its mysteries.
Katrin Amunts leads the decade-long project, which includes more than 500 scientists across 100 universities. Researchers are attempting to create a three dimensional brain atlas—work that’s expected to cost more than $1.1 billion when it concludes in 2023. In the final installment of Moonshot, a Bloomberg Originals series, we show you how they are unlocking the intricacies of the brain.
“The more I am working on the brain, the more I understand how complex it is—how difficult it is,” says Amunts. Understanding this complexity is vitally important to the future of technology, she says. By modeling the brain, scientists can one day create computer hardware inspired by it, which will increase the speed and efficiency of future machines.
“Better understanding of the human brain is really one of the challenges of the 21st century,” says Amunts.
