# Key Points from #hplusroadmap IRC Logs

- The Blue Brain Project released a significant digital reconstruction of a neocortical microcircuit, featuring interactive SVG visualizations and videos that demonstrate their progress in modeling neural circuits (available at https://bbp.epfl.ch/nmc-portal/welcome).

- Boston Dynamics' Atlas robot from the DARPA Robotics Challenge requires approximately 3KW of power (hydraulics at 2500psi, pump at 95°C, 17A @ 170V), highlighting current inefficiencies in bipedal robotic locomotion systems.

- Biotech startup Zymergen secured $44 million in funding to develop robotic systems for mass production of materials from microbes, combining genetic engineering with machine learning and automation.

- A versatile microfluidic device for automating synthetic biology processes was shared, pointing to advances in laboratory automation for biological engineering (published in ACS Synthetic Biology: http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acssynbio.5b00062).

- Russia's approach to biomedical technology was discussed, including the controversial labeling of the "Dynasty Foundation" as a "Foreign Agent" and Russia's ban on imported biomedical technology in favor of domestic development.

- A philosophical point was raised about speech itself functioning as a form of imprecise mind control by causing changes in the recipient's brain, suggesting discussions about the nature of cognition and influence.