Wetware computer

High school (ages 12+)
Science & Technology

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/wetware-computer

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the computational substrate?Living biological material, primarily neurons, as opposed to silicon
2. What is the origin of prototype?Georgia Institute of Technology, led by William Ditto, 1999
3. What are wetware computers?Wetware computers are special computers that use living brain cells instead of metal wires to do the work of a computer.
4. Why do wetware computers use living cells?Living cells can naturally process information and use very little energy, which helps the computer run more efficiently.

Artificial Organic Brain: A system designed to mimic the structure and function of a biological brain using organic components.
Synaptic Plasticity: The ability of synaptic connections between neurons to change in strength, fundamental to learning and memory.
Neurotransmitter Diffusion: The process by which chemical messengers are released and spread between neurons to transmit signals.