Researchers Successfully Trained Micro-Brains to Play a Simplified Version of Pong, as Rats Attempted to Solve a Scaled-down Doom Game
Playing Games with Brain Cells: Rules Revised for the Digital Age
Let's reminisce about the first video game that came to life for you—for me, it was the old-school Punch-Out!! on the NES. But what if the video game landscape isn't just confined to virtual characters and pixels? Let's dive into the unknown realm where human brain cells and classic games collide.
Australia's Cortical Labs has embarked on an extraordinary venture, combining human brain cells with the 1972 classic, Pong. They've created a game of sorts, where brain cells grown on microelectrode arrays control a virtual paddle to bounce a block against a wall. The system, dubbed "DishBrain", transmits and receives the ball's location, allowing the brain cells to control the paddle.
Observing gameplay reveals that while DishBrain neurons may not be as adept as AI at the game, they quickly master the task in about 5 minutes, compared to an AI's 90 minutes. Furthermore, as Futurism put it, these brain cells are not merely controlling the paddle but effectively becoming it, merging the digital and organic worlds.
Stepping away from DishBrain, let's peer into the strange lab of a neuroengineer from Hungary, Viktor Tóth. He is trying to teach rats the rudimentary mechanics of Doom II. Emulating the approach of Neuralink, Toth's goal is to understand how animals learn complex tasks on their own.
Modifying the original game's layout, Toth's rats learn to move forward using a polystyrene ball and fire when they lift their front legs. With some sugar water as motivation, a rat can manage the seemingly impossible and leave us pondering what lies ahead. Imagine cats double-teaming in a game of Double Dragon or a llama casually playing Animal Crossing.
Curiosity leads us to the latest advancements in this field. Beyond Cortical Labs' DishBrain, 28bio has harnessed brain cells to interact with computer systems, even controlling a Pac-Man-like game, showcasing the potential for organoid intelligence in future data centers. Cortical Labs has also introduced the CL1 model, which improves input channels and reduces signal latency, enabling quicker and more accurate interactions between brain cells and games.
These developments represent the burgeoning interest in biological computing, a field aiming to exploit the efficiency and adaptability of biological systems to create advanced and sustainable computing technologies. The future of gaming holds endless possibilities, fusing human creativity with biological intelligence to bring forth unparalleled digital experiences.
In the realm of future gaming, scientific advancements are merging organic and digital worlds through experiments like Australia's Cortical Labs' DishBrain, where brain cells control classic games such as Pong, demonstrating a form of mental-health controlled artificial-intelligence. Meanwhile, neuroengineer Viktor Tóth from Hungary is utilizing rats to learn complex tasks from games like Doom II, signifying a potential relationship between health-and-wellness, technology, and artificial-intelligence in the gaming industry.
