$15m mega-project aims to create 'virtual humans' 3 May, 2021 05:00 PM 3 minutes to read Auckland Bioengineering Institute deputy director Professor Merryn Tawhai has been using computational modelling to map out human lung structure and function. Photo / University of Auckland Auckland Bioengineering Institute deputy director Professor Merryn Tawhai has been using computational modelling to map out human lung structure and function. Photo / University of Auckland Insights about our bodies gleaned from years of modelling are set to be translated into clinical practice, in a major new effort that could bring us closer to personalised medicine. In what's been dubbed the "12 Labours" project, University of Auckland researchers will build off a sprawling international effort to create a complete virtual physiological human.