Human Brain Becomes Prettier

Though it does not (clearly) tell us how the brain works, connectomics, the brain's wiring diagram--connections between neurons, shows pretty images.

The heart of connectome deals with how nervous systems can be reconstructed using electron microscopy. To do this, neural tissue is cut into slices 40-50 nanometers thick, and then imaged to a resolution of a few nanometers. Imaging 1 cubic millimeter of cortex generates 1 petabyte of data (about one billion photos from ordinary digital camera).

Irimia et al (2012) just revealed a new technique for visualizing connections. They published their study in NeuroImage.

Irimia et al (2012)

Irimia, A., et al. (2012). Circular representation of human cortical networks for subject and population-level connectomic visualization. NeuroImage Jan 28. DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2012.01.107

Koch, C. (2012). Neuroscience: the connected self. Nature 482(31) Feb 1. DOI: 10.1038/483021a