"... The occurrence and duration of latching dynamics is found through simulations to depend critically on the strength of local attractor states, expressed in the Potts model by a parameter w. Here we describe with simulations and then analytically the boundaries between distinct phases of no latching, of transient and sustained latching, deriving a phase diagram in the plane w-T, where T parametrizes thermal noise effects. Implications for real cortical dynamics are briefly reviewed in the conclusions."

"In this paper we present a methodological framework that meets novel requirements emerging from upcoming types of accelerated and highly configurable neuromorphic hardware systems. We describe in detail a device with 45 million programmable and dynamic synapses that is currently under development, and we sketch the conceptual challenges that arise from taking this platform into operation. More specifically, we aim at the establishment of this neuromorphic system as a flexible and neuroscientifically valuable modeling tool that can be used by non-hardware-experts. We consider various functional aspects to be crucial for this purpose, and we introduce a consistent workflow with detailed descriptions of all involved modules that implement the suggested steps: The integration of the hardware interface into the simulator-independent model description language PyNN; a fully automated translation between the PyNN domain and appropriate hardware configurations; an executable specification of the future neuromorphic system that can be seamlessly integrated into this biology-to-hardware mapping process as a test bench for all software layers and possible hardware design modifications; an evaluation scheme that deploys models from a dedicated benchmark library, compares the results generated by virtual or prototype hardware devices with reference software simulations and analyzes the differences. The integration of these components into one hardware-software workflow provides an ecosystem for ongoing preparative studies that support the hardware design process and represents the basis for the maturity of the model-to-hardware mapping software. The functionality and flexibility of the latter is proven with a variety of experimental results."

"The feathering maneuver rotates the wing tips upward, slowing down the craft and allowing it to reenter the atmosphere from any angle without requiring the absolutely precise reentry angles of the Space Shuttle, which returns to Earth at orbital speeds of 16,000 mph."

"The Dendritic Cell Algorithm (DCA) is inspired by the function of the dendritic cells of the human immune system. In nature, dendritic cells are the intrusion detection agents of the human body, policing the tissue and organs for potential invaders in the form of pathogens. In this research, and abstract model of DC behaviour is developed and subsequently used to form an algorithm, the DCA. The abstraction process was facilitated through close collaboration with laboratory- based immunologists, who performed bespoke experiments, the results of which are used as an integral part of this algorithm. The DCA is a population based algorithm, with each agent in the system represented as an 'artificial DC'. Each DC has the ability to combine multiple data streams and can add context to data suspected as anomalous.…"

"The results obtained show that there is a clear computational potential within the model; it should therefore be possible to use other similar models as basis for EC techniques.

The adaptation of such models to EC is not straightforward. As these are mostly complex systems, a thorough comprehension of their exact dynamics is often not possible. The choice of how to encode inputs and outputs is also not a simple issue, and can greatly influence their computational potential."

We were talking about the Uncanny Valley a few days ago, and I was reminded of Hod's dreaming spider robots, twitching in their sleep.

And then Pink Floyd plays...?