Chunk of Rat Brain Learns How to Fly Fighter Jet, Cries When Goose Dies

"It sounds like science fiction: a brain nurtured in a Petri dish learns to pilot a fighter plane as scientists develop a new breed of "living" computer. But in groundbreaking experiments in a Florida laboratory that is exactly what is happening.

The "brain", grown from 25,000 neural cells extracted from a single rat embryo, has been taught to fly an F-22 jet simulator by scientists at the University of Florida.

In the most striking experiment, the brain was linked to the jet simulator. Manipulated by the electrodes and a desktop computer, it was taught to control the flight path, even in mock hurricane-strength winds.

"When we first hooked them up, the plane 'crashed' all the time," Dr DeMarse said. "But over time, the neural network slowly adapts as the brain learns to control the pitch and roll of the aircraft. After a while, it produces a nice straight and level trajectory."

I'm not going to get into the ethics of this - mostly because that's not really the point of this blog. My main question here is what motivates a rat brain in a dish? When you train a dog, you use treats. When you train a monkey, you use bananas. Do they soak the brain in cheese dip as a reward?