iTechGuides is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Learn more
Rishu’s FlyCNS-TicTacToe project routes a tic-tac-toe board through a selected circuit from the male fruit fly connectome. With its default safety setting enabled, minimax first identifies the game-theoretically optimal moves; the circuit then picks among them. The result is a programming experiment—not a fly brain independently learning or solving the game.
How does the project turn a board into a move?
FlyCNS-TicTacToe uses a subset of the male Drosophila central nervous system connectome. Its repository identifies the source dataset as male-cns:v1.0, hosted through neuPrint. The extraction pipeline selects descending neurons and upstream central-brain intrinsic neurons, ranks candidate partners by synaptic weight, groups outputs into nine board-cell readouts, and retains the largest connected component of the selected circuit.
The game layer divides selected central-brain neurons into nine input groups, one for each square. A player’s mark sends a positive signal to its group; the opponent’s mark sends a negative signal; an empty square contributes no signal. A simplified leaky-integrator calculation propagates activation over signed connectome edges. The strongest output group corresponding to an empty square becomes the circuit’s preferred move. The repository lists neuprint-python, networkx, and pandas among its tools.
Where do the signs come from?
The project assigns edge signs using database-predicted neurotransmitter identities: acetylcholine is treated as excitatory, GABA and glutamate as inhibitory, and other predictions as neutral. These are predicted identities, not certain measurements of each neuron’s effect, so the signed circuit is an engineering interpretation of connectome metadata.
#1 Best Overall
- 【Tic Tac Toe Game】- Environment-friendly resin plastic material, healthy, lightweight, portable, waterproof.Compact design and lightweight, exquisite appearance, convenient to carry and store.
- 【Tic Tac Toe】- Various colors and shapes can enhance childrens cognitive ability to shape and color.Helps promote childrens hands-on skills and intelligence. An ideal parent-child interactive toy.
- 【Table Games】- This is a perfect little game for kids to take in the car on a trip, or a perfect party favor. Enjoy hours of fun and challenge your friends and family to an intense game.
- 【 Family Board Games】- This tic-tac-toe game is sure to be a great conversation starter for game night. Perfect for family gatherings and shy guests, this is one of the best coffee table games to break the ice and encourage conversation at family gatherings, even in family Christmas games.
- 【Worry-Free Refund】 - Dear customer, if you have any questions about our products or are dissatisfied after receiving the products, please feel free to consult our customer service, we will reply you as soon as possible, Your satisfaction is the driving force of our work.
Does the connectome actually choose the move?
In the default unbeatable=True configuration, exact minimax determines the set of game-theoretically optimal moves, and the connectome selects among that set. Minimax supplies the strategic guarantee; the circuit acts as a tie-breaker and may have no choice when only one optimal move is available. The project does not demonstrate that the connectome itself can independently play optimally.
Set unbeatable=False to let the circuit choose without minimax filtering. In that mode it can make a losing move. The available project descriptions provide no win-rate benchmark, so neither mode should be presented with an invented performance statistic.
Rank #2
- Perfecting a Classic: Ultimate Tic Tac Toe upgrades the game you know and love with a series of interconnected mini games, perfect for classroom prizes or an ice breaker game. Play Standard mode for quick fun or Advanced for a more strategic match.
- TikTok Approved: This game is made in partnership with the viral @Games4Two creators! Take it from the experts, this revamped classic blends brain games with fun games for a guaranteed good time.
- Grab N' Go Fun: Bring the excitement with Ultimate Tic Tac Toe. All components pack inside of the board, making it great for travel games, camping games, road trip activities for kids, backyard games, and more!
- How To Play: The standard game has 9 small games of tic-tac-toe. Pick any square to start. Your first goal is to get 3 mini pieces in a row in a small game. Then claim that section of the big game. Win 3 small games in a row to win the big game!
- More To Love: Brought to you by Relatable. Check out the rest of our 2 player games, strategy board games for families, and other enjoyable games for kids and adults.
What happens on an empty board?
With no marks, every input signal is zero and the resulting activation is flat. The repository says the tie is broken by the output group’s input weight, making the opening deterministic. Rishu reports that identical boards produce identical moves, but a likely preference for particular squares has not been measured; there is no documented square-bias result to report.
Recommended Free Tools
Which parts are biological, and which are designed?
The neuron identities, connectivity, synapse counts, and predicted transmitter metadata come from the connectome source, according to the project author. The board encoding, the assignment of neurons to nine cell groups, and the interpretation of circuit outputs as square choices are project conventions. The selected subgraph is not a real sensory pathway that feeds a board into a fly: no fly sees or responds to a tic-tac-toe grid.
Rank #3
- Premium Quality: Experience exquisite craftsmanship with our beautifully designed XOXO game allows you to enjoy countless hours of thrilling table games like never before. Crafted from high-quality wood, our Tic Tac Toe game, measures 5.5x5.5x1.2 inch., is built to last.
- Learning and Social Tools: Enhance critical thinking and stronger family bonds with our wooden brain teasers. It's more than just a brain games; it's a learning games while creating cherished moments as a family games. Made your day with these party games, travel games or pool game!
- Easy and Fun: Enjoy hours of fun and excitement for players with our easy and entertaining tictactoe game. This isn't only s games, it's designed for adults, it guarantees endless excitement and laughter for everyone involved.
- Coffee Table Decor: Add a touch of aesthetic to your home with our classic table top game. This is a perfect blend of elegance and functionality with farmhouse decor which gives a minimalist home decor vibe. Let this rustic home decor redefine your home design games with unique home decor.
- Unique Gift for All Occasions: Surprise your loved ones and make every occasion memorable with our toy&games, unisex gifts for adults and s that will leave a lasting impression. Perfect wood gifts for unisex gift exchange, also fun gifts, funny gift and prank gifts.
The computation is also not a biophysical simulation of a living fly. It uses leaky-integrator signal propagation and does not model spikes, real-time dynamics, biological time constants, or refractory periods. It is best understood as a way to experiment with connectome-derived wiring inside a deliberately constructed game interface.
How can you run the project?
The repository documents a workflow using uv, a neuPrint token, the neuPrint CNS host, and the male-cns:v1.0 dataset. Service access requirements and repository instructions can change, so consult the linked project and neuPrint pages for current details.
Rank #4
- Classic gameplay
- Great for game night
- Oversized pieces are easy for little hands to grasp
- A perfect addition to your game collection
- For 2 players, ages 6 and up
- Install the project dependencies with
uv sync. - Configure a neuPrint token. The author says a free token is required; check neuPrint for current access requirements.
- Set the neuPrint host to
neuprint-cns.janelia.organd select themale-cns:v1.0dataset as described in the repository. - Run the repository’s extraction pipeline to build the selected circuit.
- Start the terminal game using the repository’s documented command.
The repository identifies the project but does not give the exact extraction or game-start commands, so use the current README rather than guessing command names.
What’s actually slowing this PC down?
Pick the symptom - the matching free tool is one click away.
What licenses apply?
The repository states that its code is MIT licensed, while the connectome data is separately licensed CC-BY. Those licenses cover different materials: the code license does not replace the attribution terms for the dataset. The repository directs users publishing outputs derived from the data to credit the dataset creators separately; check the relevant license text and repository guidance for the precise attribution required.
Best Value
- Family Board Games Set: Classic 4 in a row and Tic Tac Toe are fun for the whole family, exercise strategy skills and overall thinking ability, increases mind thinking and reaction speed. Tic Tac Toe: 5.4 x 5.4 x 1.2 Inch, 4 in a row: 10 x 6.3 x 1.6 Inch.
- High Quality: Crafted from safe and non-toxic, top quality wooden material, smooth surface, neatly cut, without sharp edges. Tic Tac Toe 4 O and 5 X are included. 4 In a Row 21 red discs and 21 blue discs are included.
- Developing Skills: cultivate imagination, hand-eye coordination, creative expression and fine motor skills, make them think independently, great importance for general development, self-confidence and learning.
- Portable Board Game: designed board games provide a convenient place to store pieces, making them safe and in one place. The box is designed with a lid that slides easily and in the right size for easy portability.
- Great Gift: good for various occasions, such as a Christmas gift, birthday gift, classroom teaching and so on.
What the experiment does—and does not—show
The project makes a biological wiring dataset part of a playable programming experiment. It does not show that a fly can recognize a board, that the selected circuit evolved for tic-tac-toe, or that a biological brain was modeled in realistic detail. With minimax enabled, the game-theoretic safety comes from the conventional algorithm; the connectome-derived circuit contributes only the choice among moves minimax has already judged optimal.
Quick Recap
Sources: FlyCNS-TicTacToe repository; neuPrint.
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.

