Arguably the world’s most significant science project along with DARPA SyNAPSE, Blue Brain is working to create a functioning NeoCortical column (think “how we think”) simulation via a supercomputer. Progress seems pretty steady although DARPA SyNAPSE has been getting a lot more press and money lately.
http://thebeautifulbrain.com/2011/08/bluebrain-year-two/
Darpa’s Synapse project has been more or less abandoned. They’ve scaled back their ambitions quite a bit, and the guy who conceived it has left.