More on the Big Blue brain

The Economist has a story on IBM's effort to simulate the neocortical column in the brain in order to understand exactly how the brain functions. Yes, this is week-old news by now and I've blogged it earlier, but I think the idea is absolutely fascinating. An interesting observation by one scientist cited in the Economist article:

Some academics, such as Roger Penrose of Oxford University, argue that brains do not work in a way comparable with a computer, so any kind of simulation that is built on digital architecture and uses traditional programming techniques is doomed to failure. Dr Penrose thinks that exotic quantum processes are involved in the generation of consciousness.

Hm ... reminds me of how people once thought you could sail to the end of the earth. Then they discovered the solar system. Then they discovered our galaxy. Then ...

Or, the search for human consciousness could be described as similar to how Greek philosophers theorized about atomic structure. Then scientists discovered elementary charged particles in atomic nuclei. Then they discovered quarks. Then ...