A team of German scientists has created a circuit that mimics the functions of the human brain without the use of computer processors. The team's highly technical research has been published in Applied Physics Letters. The team created a circuit that features two oscillators which create periodic electrical impulses. Between the two oscillators is a network of special circuitry made up of special components that can 'remember' the level of voltage that previously flowed through them, allowing them to adapt to varying voltage levels generated by the oscillators. In this circuit, the oscillators were able to synchronize themselves similar to the manner in which neurons synchronize in the human brain. It is this synchronization ability that has Thorsten Bartsch, neurologist at Kiel University and researcher in this study, excited about the potential of this new neural circuit: "There have been discussions for a long time whether the human consciousness is closely linked with this