I'm sure most of you have not heard about the Human Brainome Project which was launched last year and how it is working to map every neuron and synapse of our brains in excruciating detail. It may be the most inspiring and disturbing technological project in contemporary history, and underlies the agenda of several brain mapping organizations, most prominently this one. Apparently there is now a race going on with corporations also performing similar experiments, except with the intent of patenting the results. Now what I'm wondering is if another distributed computing effort might be in order. What do you all think? I don't see how information like this can be patented. There is nothing truly proprietary about it, and it would do more good in the public where the benefit can truly be felt.

Without the right incentive, no action may be taken. And money is the ultimate incentive. I say, let them corporations do the hard work and, once finished, a way should be found to deal with the information distribution. Either way, the public wins.
I'm surprise that you think no one here at BRAIN META has heard of these projects. That's as naive a statement as I've read in a while!!!
(Maybe you were joking, which means I just wrote the naivest statement I've seen in awhile)

It is almost a waste of breath to talk to someone who thinks that no one here as heard of the project considering Shawn is a neuroscientist and is mapping the brain on his website brainmaps.org

I think it's meant as a joke. There have been no announcements for a Human Brainome Project, though there may be soon. And even if there was, what would you patent?