'Artistic' rat cells could shed light on learning

Australian and US researchers have combined efforts to produce artistic rat cells, which can paint pictures across the world from their Petri dish. And hopefully give some insight into the learning process at the same time.

Several thousand rat neurons are linked electronically to a robot arm by means of a 60-way Multi-Electrode Array (MEA), which allows neural activity to be translated into image creation. The information from the robot arm's sensors is then sent back to the neuron cells in the form of electrical stimuli. By closing the loop, it is hoped the system will learn something about itself and its environment.

"We can look at the drawings it makes and see some evidence of learning. Then we can scrutinize the cultured network under the microscope to help understand the learning process at the cellular level," said Steve Potter, professor in Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech and Emory University.

Potter's team are developing the rat neuron link, which is connected by the internet to the robotic image-output arm at the University of Western Australia, under the auspices of Guy Ben-Ary, director at the School of Anatomy and Human Biology at Western Australia.

Potter is attempting to prove that a cultured in vitro network system can learn similar to the way live human and animal brains do. The team hopes to bridge the gap between biological and artificial systems to produce a machine capable of matching the intelligence of the simplest organism.

"We're attempting to create an entity that over time will evolve, learn, and express itself," said Potter.