The recent publication of the human genome sequence constitutes a milestone for the Human Genome Project. Sequencing the genome has been heralded as one of the major scientific breakthroughs in history, a statement that cannot be dismissed as an exaggeration. Looking at this resounding success, we cannot help but ask ourselves what neuroscientific accomplishment would match the impact of the human genome sequence. Although it is hard to come up with a satisfactory answer, it is reassuring to know that, just as there is a Human Genome Project, there is also a multidisciplinary research effort known as the Human Brain Project (HBP).

The HBP was launched in 1993 as a reaction to the explosive growth of the neurosciences and our concomitant inability to maintain an integrated view of the brain. The goal of this initiative is to create a series of Internet-based databases and data-management tools that will help us to analyse the available neuroscientific data. The different neuroscience databases will be fully interoperable with other resources such as genome and protein databases, but their ultimate goal is to provide more than just a collection of information. The HBP hopes that scientists will use the databases to gain a deeper understanding of brain structure and function across every level of analysis.

Although the HBP has not yet reached the notoriety of the Human Genome Project, significant progress has already been made on some fronts. A visit to the HBP website (in particular, to the ' Research Grants' page) will give you a feel for the kind of research projects that are supported, as well as their current status. Hopefully, it won't be long before one of them is also proclaimed as an extraordinary breakthrough in our understanding of the human species.