Brain research bears the promise of a new computing paradigm with the ultimate goal of realizing machines that could surpass the human brain, with some aspects of cognitive intelligence. As part of a complete cognitive hardware and software ecosystem, Neuromorphic engineering opens new computing frontiers for neuro-robotics, artificial intelligence and super-computing applications. In this talk we will discuss the fundamentals of neuromorphic engineering, focusing on the digital neuron model for neuro-synaptic cores, cognitive programming paradigms, and algorithms and applications for networks of neuro-synaptic cores.