Mapping the Inner Brain, Outside World
Maps hold a special fascination for many people. After all, they are a manifestation of mankind’s effort to dominate Earth and even the heavens.
Two software programs, PC Globe+ and PC USA, use a personal computer to create maps of the world and the United States, complete with a wealth of statistical comparisons. Each sells for $70.
A third intriguing program attempts to map a more difficult subject: the human brain. Called the Brain Simulator, the $99 package is aimed at people who are curious about neural network design, a type of computer logic modeled on physical features of our brains.
You don’t have to be a computer designer, a psychologist or a brain surgeon to enjoy learning what the Brain Simulator has to teach. But you do need a pretty strong desire, because neural networks are not easy to comprehend. The program has no practical application, but using it can help you learn about this computing frontier.
It takes virtually no skill or dedication to enjoy the two mapping programs produced by PC Globe+ Inc. of Tempe, Ariz. The first program, introduced about a year ago, was PC Globe+. The companion PC USA came out a couple of months ago, offering a bit more sophistication than the first.
The idea behind the programs is as simple as the results are fascinating. They open by displaying an outline map of their respective subjects--the world or the United States--that is tied to a database of smaller detail maps and lists of information.
With a few key strokes, you can see the countries of the world compared by a series of demographic, economic, production and health statistics. If you want more detail, you can zoom in on regions, continents, countries, or, in PC USA, on states and see the statistical detail on which the comparisons are based.
You can learn everything from land elevations to birth and death rates, from industrial and agricultural output to the names of major office holders and the dates their terms expire.
Do you know the member countries of the European Community or Organization of African Unity or Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries? They are all there, accessible under a pull-down menu at the top of the computer screen labeled World. There are similar menus for region, country, database and utilities. In PC USA, world is replaced with USA and country with state, but otherwise the headings and the operation are the same.
In PC Globe+, you can select the area to view by typing its name or moving the highlight bar in the lists provided. One of the enhancements in PC USA is the ability to also move a cross-hair pointer on the screen with a mouse or the keyboard to make selections.
When a state or country is displayed, you can see colorful bar graph representations of its statistics if you have a color monitor. The database for the states is more complete than for countries, containing 161 separate categories, compared to 92 for the global program. For instance, the U.S. database contains crime and highway statistics missing in the global program, as well as more complete education yardsticks.
Some other features I liked were the ability to select two cities and display the compass bearing and distance from one to the other and the display of time zone demarcations.
The Brain Simulator, also sold direct from its publisher, Abbot, Foster & Hauserman Co. of San Francisco, is not an easy program to understand, although using it at its most basic level is quite easy.
The idea behind it is to emulate a small part of the brain’s neural circuitry to create complex networks and parallel architecture. Neural networks and parallel computer architecture are the leading edge in computer development and the Brain Simulator provides an insight into those fields.
A neuron is a basic cell within the brain. A computer neural network is just a collection of simulated neurons and their interconnections.
The Brain Simulator presents several such networks, ranging from very simple to quite complex. Each is constructed according to sets of rules that govern how much stimulation a neuron must receive before it fires a pulse. That, in turn, determines how much stimulation subsequent neurons receive.
If, as is true in several cases, some of the networks loop back upon themselves, a sort of perpetual logic machine is set into motion. Just to make things even more interesting (and difficult), some neurons send out negative signals and others send positive signals, the combination affecting behavior of the network down the line. Chess is fairly simple and straightforward by comparison.
The Brain Simulator presents several sample neural networks that you can manipulate by issuing keyboard commands, causing certain neurons to fire. Using character-based graphics so that it will work with any PC monitor, the program then executes the rules established for the network and displays the activity that occurs.
Once you understand how the sample networks work, you are ready to graduate to modifying the samples and finally to creating your own networks from scratch. But remember, this is just a simulation. You are not going to invent a fifth-generation supercomputer, although one of the sample networks actually appears to learn the shapes of letters in the alphabet.
MAP PROGRAMS: THE SPECS
PC Globe+ and PC USA
Features: Map software with underlying databases of statistical comparisons. They display and print global, regional, national or state maps along with statistical comparisons of a wide variety of demographic, economic, health, education, manufacturing and agricultural data. Maps can be transferred to desktop publishing and other software for reports and other uses.
Requirements: IBM PC or compatible with graphics monitor, preferably color. At least 512 kilobytes of memory. A hard disk improves performance, as does a mouse. Laser, dot matrix and color printing is supported with limited list of printers.
Bottom Line: $70 each. Publisher is PC Globe+ Inc., 4435 S. Rural Road, Bldg. 5, Suite 333, Tempe, Ariz. 85282. Phone: (602) 730-9000.
The Brain Simulator
Features: The teaching program for learning about neural networks has several sample networks that can be operated and modified. Other networks can be designed from scratch. On-screen explanations of how the networks operate.
Requirements: IBM PC with at least 320 kilobytes of memory and any monitor. A mouse improves operation.
Bottom Line: $99. Publisher is Abbot, Foster & Hauserman Co., 44 Montgomery St., Fifth Floor, San Francisco, Calif. 94104. Phone: (415) 955-2711.
