Wet-Ware Computers

[SaxonViolence]

I have a book around here somewhere, about "State-of-the-Art" Brain Research--only trouble is, it was written in the early 90s. :unsure:

 

Anyway, they were talking about a Brain Researcher in Japan--if I ever dig that Book up again, I'll Google that Professor's name, and see what progress he's made.

 

But anyway, he'd done a lot of Experiments with Squid Nerve Cells because they were jumbo-sized and Robust.

 

Then he started working with Rat's Nerve Cells. He found out that Rat Cells that started out as Tendon Cells could be stimulated to metamorphose into Nerve Cells if properly stimulated early enough in their life cycle--and they were always a good bit more hardy than straight-up Nerve Cells.

 

Well he had them growing on glass microscope slides. He had gotten them to grow in well ordered strips, just as he'd planned for them, on the Slides.

 

As I remember, he'd even gotten them to grow into NAND and NOR Gates, and stimulated them electrically to do basic calculations.

 

All this is a neat trick--but it seems to me that if you want to take advantage of Organic Brains greatest abilities, you need to get away from linear operations such as those done by NAND & NOR Switches.

 

Still, you have to start somewhere.

 

Imagine that you could take Nerve Cells--perhaps Genetically tailored to our purpose.....

 

Then we get them to grow into Neural Networks. I picture these networks to be simpler in structure than the network in a natural Brain. There would be noticeably less Neural connections per unit volume, than in a Natural Brain--and they would be a good bit more regular.....

 

Both these simplifying traits should make them easier to understand and program.

 

But you could build them far larger than any natural Brain.

 

They would need a steady supply of Oxygen, Glucose, Various Amino Acids, Vitamins, Essential Fatty Acids, Electrolytes.....

 

Picture about a fifteen Gallon Aquarium filled with Artificial Neural Networks suspended in it, with Oxygen steadily bubbling op through the liquid medium.

 

For a number of reasons, the modular units would be Wide and Tall, but no more than an inch or two thick through the middle--allow better access to fresh fluid--better access for repair or adjustments.

 

If the thing relied on Neural Networks to carry messages the whole length of the tank, then it would be ponderously slow.....

 

However, there are many Junctions, where Impulses are intercepted by Silicone Chips, the signal cleaned-up and amplified, before being sent to the next bank of Neurons that it needs to be analyzed to--perhaps at the most distant part of the Tank.

 

Presumably, this should give you "Beaucoup" Parallel processing power.

 

Obviously, you'd need to keep your Aquariums reasonably sterile.

 

Perhaps genetically tailored White Blood Cells and/or Nanites might be used.

 

It is an interesting concept to speculate on--I think.

 

Saxon Violence

[Mister Agenda]

I think it might be more difficult to come up with the interface than the brain.