Europe’s major brain-research project has unveiled a set of prototype computing tools and called on the global neuroscience community to start using them. The move marks the end of the 30-month ramp-up phase of the Human Brain Project (HBP), and the start of its operational phase.

The release of the computing platforms — which include brain-simulation tools, visualization software and a pair of remotely accessible supercomputers to study brain processes in real time — could help to allay concerns about the €1-billion (US$1.1-billion) project’s benefits to the wider scientific community. 

“The new platforms open countless new possibilities to analyse the human brain,” said Katrin Amunts, a neuroscientist at the Jülich Research Centre in Germany and a member of the project’s board of directors, at a press conference on 30 March. “We are proud to offer the global brain community a chance to participate.”

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