Scientists at Harvard and MIT are mapping the microwiring of the human brain to create a circuitry diagram.
Scientists at Harvard University and MIT, undaunted by the vast scope of the project, have undertaken to map the circuitry of the human brain. They're working in a field called connectomics, whose new knowledge will help researchers understand the neural mechanisms behind mental illness, cognitive development, among other medical questions.
Find out how a microneuroanatomist uses an "automatic tape-collecting lathe ultramicrotome" on Wired: Mapping the most complex structure in the universe: Your brain