The compartments can be linked to form multi-compartment neurons at any level of morphological complexity. The neurons themselves can be linked in circuits for network simulations. The object-oriented features allow exchange or reuse of whole models or individual components. The book is both a manual and a report of major modeling work done with the system. The system is neutral with respect to any particular theory of brain function.
Investigators begin with as detailed a description as possible of the relevant neuroanatomy.
This biological realism allows known data to be used as constraints for model parameters. More than 45 educational institutions have used the system and, to date, more than 90 articles reporting work with the system have appeared, exclusive of studies published by the group at Caltech. Another component fosters model sharing among neuroscientists at different sites. It allows researchers to access databases of existing neural models from the Internet and, using a Java-based browser tool, to retrieve new modeling components or elements from remote databases. It makes information already accumulated within our system, and by neurobiologists around the world, more available and accessible.