Human Connectome Project releases major data set on brain connectivity

The Human Connectome Project, a five-year endeavor to link brain connectivity to human behavior, has just released a set of high-quality imaging and behavioral data to the scientific community. Shown is a map of the average “functional connectivity” in the human cerebral cortex, collected on healthy subjects while “at rest” in the MRI scanner.

Scientists have new help finding brain’s nooks and crannies

Like explorers mapping a new planet, scientists probing the brain need every type of landmark they can get. Each mountain, river or forest helps scientists find their way through the intricacies of the human brain. Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have developed a new technique that provides rapid access to brain landmarks formerly only available at autopsy.