The Connectome Engine, robotic worm, InterIntelligence Research, Westlake Village, California, USA

One of the age old questions has been whether the way a brain is wired, negating other attributes like intracellular systems biology, will give rise to how we think and how we behave. We are not at the point yet to answer that question regarding the human brain but by using the well mapped connectome of the nematode Caenorhabditis Elegans (C. Elegans), we were able to answer this question as a resounding yes, at least in part. Using a simple robot (i.e. Lego Mindstorms EV3) and connecting sensors on the robot to stimulate specific simulated sensory neurons in an artificial connectome and condensing worm muscle excitation to move a left and right motor on the robot, we observe worm like behaviors in the robot based purely on environmental factors.

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Extending the connectome of C Elegans to a robot, displays behaviors we observe in the living organism and allows researchers to study the connectome from sensory input to motor output in real world environments.

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