European Month of the Brain: the EU and US putting our grey matter together - Main contents

To kick off European Month of the Brain (#brainmonth), a blog about the exciting brain research initiatives being led from both sides of the Atlantic.

You may have seen our recent announcement about the human brain project (HBP). The deserved joint winner of our Future and Emerging Technology scheme; and hence recipient of around €1 billion euros in funding over 10 years.

Separately you may also have seen President Obama’s initiative on Brain Activity Mapping (BAM), worth $100 million in the first year.

So how do those initiatives fit together? Five quick points about their relationship.

First, although led from Europe, our Human Brain Project already benefits from wide international collaboration. Including many prestigious US institutions.

Second, President Obama’s announcement again confirms this is an important area of research. Understanding the brain isn’t just a philosophical puzzle; it has practical scientific value. And not just as an organ of the body, but as an intelligent system with plenty to teach us.

Despite great progress over recent decades, there is much more still to be discovered. From computers that think like our brains do (like computer networks that replicate brain structure to better cope with ‘big data’), to detecting and curing the brain disorders that affect up to one third of Europeans each year - from Alzheimer’s and autism to schizophrenia.

Third, in two such large and fertile areas of research, there are many possible approaches. And indeed these two projects do come at the problem from different angles. The HBP is building integrated models and platforms, from the generic and molecular level right up to modelling whole functions, like how we think or feel emotions. It will largely use existing data, but should give brain researchers access to innovative tools and services. On the other side, the US BAM project is looking to record actual brain activity, ultimately to map out human brain functions.

Fourth, these two projects can help each other - they will (so to speak) “pick each other’s brains”. On the one hand, data from the BAM can feed into and improve the HBP models; conversely, the US project can use HBP platforms to test out and improve its own models.

And finally, I hope there is continuing intense cooperation between the two projects. Already I know the HBP project leader, Henry Markram, is in frequent touch with many of those in the lead on the BAM. But I’d like to see cooperation at other levels: like becoming part of our regular political dialogue with the US; just as we as already cooperate with the US in detail in areas from e-Health to cybersecurity.

In short, I welcome both initiatives. I am confident there will be cross-fertilisation without duplication. Most of all I’m convinced that, by putting their grey matter together, researchers in the EU and US can deliver a better world for all our citizens.

Starting tomorrow, and over the course of May, it’s European Month of the Brain. More than 50 events will highlight how brain research can answer questions massively important to our economy and society. So stand by for more! (Twitter hashtag: #brainmonth)