Digital Human Brain Map Unveiled

     A change of pace from looking at how ICT is changing how we think, today we look at how ICT is changing our understanding of the mind itself.  Microsoft founder Paul Allen funded a project called the Allen Human Brain Atlas, which recently revealed the worlds first computerized brain map.  From the website:

     The Allen Human Brain Atlas is a unique multi-modal atlas of the human brain that integrates anatomic and genomic information, coupled with a suite of visualization and mining tools to create an open public resource for brain researchers and other scientists across a wide range of specialties.
     Data modalities incorporated into this resource include magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), histology and gene expression data derived from both microarray and in situ hybridization (ISH) approaches.

   This Atlas should prove a critical component in understanding the human mind.  The atlas maps over 1,000 unique sites correlated with their known function and chemistry.  The information is available for free online.   This is map is part of a $55 million undertaking, and is a major step forward in understanding the structure of the human brain.  Not only will this help scientists working on curing neurological diseases like Alzheimer's, but it will also push forward research on cognition and thought.