This April, US President Barack Obama pledged US$100 million to support an initiative to map the human brain.

Having promised to make more money available for scientific research,

Obama said, "If we want to make the best products, we also have to invest in the best ideas."

The initiative is called BRAIN.

This stands for Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies.

The idea of mapping the brain has been floating around since 2011,

and had been gathering support until it finally received backing from the White House.

The initiative's goal is to find new ways to prevent, treat, and cure brain disorders such as Alzheimer's disease and epilepsy.

The human brain is a complex organ, full of individual cells and neural pathways that literally react at the speed of thought.

If scientists can understand how all the components work, they will hopefully be able to fix any damage to the brain.

The mapping process should also provide insights into other mysteries, such as memory, personality, and behavior.

Much of the White House's financial support will be put toward the development of new technologies necessary for this research.

Furthermore, Obama pointed out other potential benefits to the initiative.

"What if computers could respond to our thoughts?

Or language barriers could come tumbling down?" he remarked.

He also stated that he hoped investing in the initiative would create new jobs in neurotechnology.