Methods and apparatus are provided for using a breakpoint determination unit to examine an artificial nervous system. One example method generally includes operating at least a portion of the artificial nervous system; using the breakpoint determination unit to detect that a condition exists based at least in part on monitoring one or more components in the artificial nervous system; and at least one of suspending, examining, modifying, or flagging the operation of the at least the portion of the artificial nervous system, based at least in part on the detection.
Please help me write a proper abstract based on the patent claims. CLAIM: 1. A method for using a breakpoint determination unit to examine an artificial nervous system, comprising: operating at least a portion of the artificial nervous system; using the breakpoint determination unit to detect that a condition exists based at least in part on monitoring one or more components in the artificial nervous system; and at least one of suspending, examining, modifying, or flagging the operation of the at least the portion of the artificial nervous system, based at least in part on the detection. 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising: outputting an indication of the condition based at least in part on the detection; and determining to at least one of suspend, examine, modify, or flag the operation of the at least the portion of the artificial nervous system, based at least in part on the indication. 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the indication of the condition comprises at least one of an interrupt, a flag being set, or a change in a status register. 4. The method of claim 2, wherein the breakpoint determination unit is configured to output the indication of the condition. 5. The method of claim 4, wherein the indication of the condition provides an alert of one or more properties of the one or more components in the artificial nervous system. 6. The method of claim 2, wherein the breakpoint determination unit is configured to trigger an event transmitter based at least in part on the detection and wherein the event transmitter is configured to output the indication of the condition. 7. The method of claim 6, wherein the event transmitter, after being triggered, is configured to output the indication of the condition immediately, at an end of a current time step, before the next time step, or after a predetermined number of time steps have passed. 8. The method of claim 1, wherein the condition comprises at least one of a spiking event, an expectation of the spiking event, a combination of spiking events, an expectation of the combination of spiking events, or any combination thereof, from the one or more components. 9. The method of claim 8, wherein the condition comprises the combination of spiking events occurring within a specified time window. 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the condition comprises a state of the breakpoint determination unit meeting or exceeding a threshold. 11. The method of claim 1, wherein the condition is based at least in part on a spiking rate or an expectation of the spiking rate. 12. The method of claim 1, wherein the condition is based at least in part on at least one parameter of the one or more components changing by a predetermined amount. 13. The method of claim 1, wherein the breakpoint determination unit has at least some of the same capabilities as an artificial neuron. 14. The method of claim 13, wherein the breakpoint determination unit is configured to output one or more spiking events after being activated. 15. The method of claim 1, further comprising configuring the breakpoint determination unit with the condition and the one or more components to be monitored, before the detecting. 16. An apparatus for using a breakpoint determination unit to examine an artificial nervous system, comprising: a processing system configured to: operate at least a portion of the artificial nervous system; using the breakpoint determination unit to detect that a condition exists based at least in part on monitoring one or more components in the artificial nervous system; and at least one of suspend, examine, modify, or flag the operation of the at least the portion of the artificial nervous system, based at least in part on the detection; and a memory coupled to the processing system. 17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the processing system is further configured to: output an indication of the condition based at least in part on the detection; and determine to at least one of suspend, examine, modify, or flag the operation of the at least the portion of the artificial nervous system, based at least in part on the indication. 18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the indication of the condition comprises at least one of an interrupt, a flag being set, or a change in a status register. 19. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the breakpoint determination unit is configured to output the indication of the condition. 20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the indication of the condition provides an alert of one or more properties of the one or more components in the artificial nervous system. 21. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the breakpoint determination unit is configured to trigger an event transmitter based at least in part on the detection and wherein the event transmitter is configured to output the indication of the condition. 22. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the event transmitter, after being triggered, is configured to output the indication of the condition immediately, at an end of a current time step, before the next time step, or after a predetermined number of time steps have passed. 23. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the condition comprises at least one of a spiking event, an expectation of the spiking event, a combination of spiking events, an expectation of the combination of spiking events, or any combination thereof, from the one or more components. 24. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the condition comprises the combination of spiking events occurring within a specified time window. 25. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the condition comprises a state of the breakpoint determination unit meeting or exceeding a threshold. 26. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the condition is based at least in part on a spiking rate or an expectation of the spiking rate. 27. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the condition is based at least in part on at least one parameter of the one or more components changing by a predetermined amount. 28. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the breakpoint determination unit has at least some of the same capabilities as an artificial neuron. 29. The apparatus of claim 28, wherein the breakpoint determination unit is configured to output one or more spiking events after being activated. 30. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the processing system is further adapted to configure the breakpoint determination unit with the condition and the one or more components to be monitored, before the detecting. 31. An apparatus for using a breakpoint determination unit to examine an artificial nervous system, comprising: means for operating at least a portion of the artificial nervous system; means for using the breakpoint determination unit to detect that a condition exists based at least in part on monitoring one or more components in the artificial nervous system; and means for at least one of suspending, examining, modifying, or flagging the operation of the at least the portion of the artificial nervous system, based at least in part on the detection. 32. A computer program product for using a breakpoint determination unit to examine an artificial nervous system, comprising a non-transitory computer-readable medium having instructions executable to: operate at least a portion of the artificial nervous system; use the breakpoint determination unit to detect that a condition exists based at least in part on monitoring one or more components in the artificial nervous system; and at least one of suspend, examine, modify, or flag the operation of the at least the portion of the artificial nervous system, based at least in part on the detection.