Henry Markram, director of the Blue Brain Project, told the TED conference in Oxford that a functional artificial human brain may only be 10 years away.  Markram has already built components of a rat brain.

The technology hinges upon “recording the electrophysiology of neurons,” which sounds quite impressive and probably is.

The details of this technology are best left for those left-brainers who understand such matters; the crux of it, though, is the goal: to give researchers transparency as to how a brain perceives the world.  Animal rights activists will be pleased as well, since Markram notes that building animal models to minimize animal experimentation is a practical application for the technology.

And so we award a Fantasy T-Wearer Award today to Henry Markram.  May he enjoy the cheeky “Never Underestimate” T-shirt, at right.