The Fenix infrastructure, set up by Europe’s leading supercomputing centres, emerged from the Human Brain Project and now offers invaluable computing and data resources for the entire scientific community.

HBP researchers from Forschungszentrum Jülich and the University of Cologne (Germany) have uncovered how neuron densities are distributed across and within cortical areas in the mammalian brain. They have unveiled a fundamental organisational principle of cortical cytoarchitecture: the ubiquitous lognormal distribution of neuron densities.

In the Human Brain Project, researchers are using state-of-the-art measurements, analysis and modelling tools to advance our knowledge of the neural mechanisms underlying our senses, especially vision, which is responsible for a large part of the information we receive from our surroundings.

Researchers of the Human Brain Project have coupled the measurements of brain waves associated with disorders of consciousness (DoC) with glucose usage in specific brain areas, identifying where in the brain the waves might be generated. The study for the first time adds the dimension of location and energy consumption to the reading of brain waves in DoC, and reveals the important role of subcortical areas in driving cortical activity associated with consciousness. The findings have been published in the journal Cell Reports.

Our brain has evolved through embodiment in a physical system – the human body – that directly senses and acts in the world. In contrast, most of the currently used AI systems have no ‘bodies’ and lack a direct connection to the physical world. Connecting AI systems to the physical world through robotics and designing them based on principles from evolution, is a promising approach to develop AI with more human-like cognition. This is the position taken by HBP researcher and Professor at the University of Sheffield in Cognitive Robotics Tony Prescott in a paper recently published in Science Robotics.

HBP researchers from Germany performed detailed cytoarchitectonic mapping of distinct areas in a human cortical region called frontal operculum and, using connectivity modelling, linked the areas to a variety of different functions including sexual sensation, muscle coordination as well as music and language processing.

From September 12 - 13, 2023, the Human Brain Project will celebrate its successful conclusion with a scientific symposium at Forschungszentrum Jülich. The symposium will be accompanied by scientific exhibits, an impressive picture gallery, guided tours and hands-on training sessions. The full programme is now available and registration is open until August 20.

In a recently published study, HBP researchers from France simulate slow-wave sleep and wakefulness brain states across multiple scales using EBRAINS. The findings are published in Frontiers in Computational Neuroscience.

The HBP is using neuro-derived technologies to make machines smarter. This not only advances the field of robotics but also helps neuroscientists to better understand how the brain works.

12–13 September 2023, the Human Brain Project will celebrate its successful conclusion with a scientific symposium at Forschungszentrum Jülich, Germany. In addition to the international project partners and the scientific community, representatives from politics and the media are cordially invited to attend. Registration for the two-day event is open.