A computer that models the human brain

MIT Technology Review : Researchers at IBM have been developing a radically new computer architecture that mimics the functioning of neurons in the human brain. The TrueNorth system comprises 100 trillion virtual synapses and 2 billion neurosynaptic cores, each containing a network of 256 “neurons.” It differs from the traditional Von Neumann architecture used in modern-day computers by storing and processing information in a distributed, parallel way rather than relying on separate units dedicated to specific tasks, such as data storage and data processing. The new system runs via special programs called corelets, each of which performs a particular function, like detecting motion or sorting images by color. The individual corelets can be linked together in increasingly complex structures. It is hoped that TrueNorth may be able to avoid the bottlenecks that occur in traditional computing when large amounts of data are involved. Although the system will not replace existing devices, it could be used to solve problems that traditional Von Neumann machines cannot.