August 18, 2008 The University of Reading has designed a robotthat is controlled by 300,000 cultured rat neurons. “Gordon” can use its biological brain to navigate around a room, and scientists hope that repeated exposure to the same settings will provoke signs of recognition in the brain cells.

The University of Reading team anticipates that the behavior of the rat neurons will provide insight into how brains store data, which could lead to a better understanding of disorders such as Alzheimer’s Disease, Parkinson’s Disease, and strokes.

The rat neurons are housed in a small vat of nutrients and antibiotics, where they make connections and generate electrical signals. A multi-electrodearray, equipped with approximately 60 electrodes, picks up the signals and transmits them to the robot via Bluetooth. Information about the robot’s surroundings is collected from an ultrasound sensor, and communicated to the neurons via the MEA. When the robot nears an obstacle, the MEA stimulates the neurons, causing them to react. Their reaction is transmitted back to the robot, moving it left or right. By applying different signals when the robot moves into a predefined location, it is hoped the neurons will begin to manifest signs of memory creation.