4 ms·

It says the data's available at http://mouse.brain-map.org/ http://mouse.brain-map.org/ Is there a torrent available? And what is the probability my ISP will

by csense 13y ago

It says the data's available at http://mouse.brain-map.org/ http://mouse.brain-map.org/ Is there a torrent available? And what is the probability my ISP will cut me off for downloading 1.8 PB? For that matter...I guess I'd need to buy ~600 3 TB hard drives to store it...that would cost $60,000. Plus networking and servers...eep... Why is it so big? Suppose you have 75M neurons where each neuron has on average 1000 weighted connections with other neurons. Then you would need 4 bytes per connection to store the address and 4 more bytes to store the weight, for a total of (4 + 4 bytes) * 1,000 * 75,000,000 ~ 600 GB This back-of-the-envelope computation is off by over three orders of magnitude. What gives?

epistasis 13y ago
The data they're talking about isn't anything like that at all, it's actually micron-resolution 3D scans. Here's the abstract of the paper: >Comprehensive knowledge of the brain’s wiring diagram is fundamental for understanding how the nervous system processes information at both local and global scales. However, with the singular exception of the C. elegans microscale connectome, there are no complete connectivity data sets in other species. Here we report a brain-wide, cellular-level, mesoscale connectome for the mouse. The Allen Mouse Brain Connectivity Atlas uses enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP)-expressing adeno-associated viral vectors to trace axonal projections from defined regions and cell types, and high-throughput serial two-photon tomography to image the EGFP-labelled axons throughout the brain. This systematic and standardized approach allows spatial registration of individual experiments into a common three dimensional (3D) reference space, resulting in a whole-brain connectivity matrix. A computational model yields insights into connectional strength distribution, symmetry and other network properties. Virtual tractography illustrates 3D topography among interconnected regions. Cortico-thalamic pathway analysis demonstrates segregation and integration of parallel pathways. The Allen Mouse Brain Connectivity Atlas is a freely available, foundational resource for structural and functional investigations into the neural circuits that support behavioural and cognitive processes in health and disease.
s-macke 13y ago
You describe a very abstract type of a synapse. Nature is more complex than this. I think it's just a definition problem. What do we mean with modeling a brain? Is it the same like modeling a neuronal network? On which level do we define a brain. E. g. We can also include all chemistry and even fluid dynamics in a cell. E. g. to understand a computer: do we have to have to simulate on the electron leven with doped compounds and barriers, or is it enough to model it with characteristic curves of transistors, or is it even enough to model it on the binary level as switches between 0 and 1?

by csense 13y ago

epistasis 13y ago

The data they're talking about isn't anything like that at all, it's actually micron-resolution 3D scans. Here's the abstract of the paper: >Comprehensive knowledge of the brain’s wiring diagram is fundamental for understanding how the nervous system processes information at both local and global scales. However, with the singular exception of the C. elegans microscale connectome, there are no complete connectivity data sets in other species. Here we report a brain-wide, cellular-level, mesoscale connectome for the mouse. The Allen Mouse Brain Connectivity Atlas uses enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP)-expressing adeno-associated viral vectors to trace axonal projections from defined regions and cell types, and high-throughput serial two-photon tomography to image the EGFP-labelled axons throughout the brain. This systematic and standardized approach allows spatial registration of individual experiments into a common three dimensional (3D) reference space, resulting in a whole-brain connectivity matrix. A computational model yields insights into connectional strength distribution, symmetry and other network properties. Virtual tractography illustrates 3D topography among interconnected regions. Cortico-thalamic pathway analysis demonstrates segregation and integration of parallel pathways. The Allen Mouse Brain Connectivity Atlas is a freely available, foundational resource for structural and functional investigations into the neural circuits that support behavioural and cognitive processes in health and disease.

s-macke 13y ago

You describe a very abstract type of a synapse. Nature is more complex than this. I think it's just a definition problem. What do we mean with modeling a brain? Is it the same like modeling a neuronal network? On which level do we define a brain. E. g. We can also include all chemistry and even fluid dynamics in a cell. E. g. to understand a computer: do we have to have to simulate on the electron leven with doped compounds and barriers, or is it enough to model it with characteristic curves of transistors, or is it even enough to model it on the binary level as switches between 0 and 1?