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Australian researchers have trained lab-grown human brain cells on a silicon chip to interact with the classic video game Doom, a milestone that highlights the growing field of biological computing. The cells, grown from stem cells and integrated into a device called CL1, were connected to a digital environment that translated the game into electrical signals the neurons could interpret. In response, the cells produced patterns of activity that controlled basic in-game actions such as moving and firing. The work is notable not because the cells played the game well, but because they showed real-time adaptation and goal-directed learning. Researchers say this suggests living neurons can process feedback and adjust behavior in ways that may eventually be useful for more practical applications. Those possible uses include more advanced brain-inspired computing systems, robotics control, and other tasks where adaptive decision-making matters. The project is still early-stage and experimental, but it demonstrates that living cells can be used as a functional computing substrate. Scientists involved in the research say they are only beginning to understand what these neuron-based systems may be capable of as the technology develops.

Why the future of computation may be biological, not just silicon

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