中国科学家发明类人脑芯片
The human brain is the world's most sophisticated computer, but a group of Chinese scientists have developed a computer chip that works much like the brain.
人脑是世界上最复杂的电脑，一组中国科学家发明的电脑芯片与人脑的工作方式很像。
Jointly developed by scientists from Hangzhou Dianzi University and Zhejiang University in east China's Zhejiang Province, the new chip, named "Darwin," was revealed earlier this week after more than a year of research.
"It can perform intelligent computer tasks by simulating a human brain's neural networks, in which neurons connect with one another via synapses," said Dr. Ma De from Hangzhou Dianzi University.
The black plastic piece is smaller than a dime, but is equipped with 2,048 neurons and four million synapses, two of the fundamental units that make up the human brain.
With the new chip, a computer can do more while using less electricity. "It can process 'fuzzy information' that conventional computer chips fail to process," said Shen Juncheng, a scientist from Zhejiang University.
For example, it can recognize numbers written by different people, distinguish among different images, and move objects on screen by receiving a user's brain signals.