In Silico

In Silico

Sloan Foundation Film

Release Date

2020

Director

  • Noah Hutton

Awards

Will the Blue Brain Project—a highly publicized billion-euro effort to create a complete digital simulation of the human brain—revolutionize neuroscience or fall victim to hype, criticism, and its own ambitions?

A young filmmaker sets out to document a brilliant neuroscientist who has become frustrated with his field’s status quo. With time elapsing and millions of dollars on the line, In Silico explores an audacious 10-year quest to simulate the entire human brain on supercomputers. Along the way, it reveals the profound beauty of tiny mistakes and bold predictions—a controversial space where scientific process meets ego, and where the lines between objectivity and ambition blur.

Banner image courtesy of filmmakers

Possible Topics

  • Simulated consciousness
  • The power and limitations of computer modeling
  • Understanding the human brain

Past Programs

2021

Hutton and Herzog on IN SILICO

Coolidge Corner Theatre, Brookline, MA