>what is the possibility that something like this could be used to generate an artificial neural network which imitates, even crudely, the functions of the human brain?

If possible, this would open a huge ethical can of worms: how can we tell such a simulation is not conscious? Would deleting its runtime data after however many simulation cycles be tantamount to murder?

Edit: I am not saying that the above concerns should stop us from working towards developing human brain simulations since the potential benefits of those are just too great. Rather, it is something we have to have in mind as they get more complex and closer to the real thing.