Understanding the brain.

All over the world, researchers are trying to decipher the breathtaking complexity of the human brain. But the knowledge gained in this way still remains unconnected. At Forschungszentrum Jülich, we are therefore developing a digital 3D atlas of the brain that pools the findings of countless laboratories worldwide.

For this purpose, thousands of microscopically thin brain slices were analyzed and the tissue reconstructed three-dimensionally on the computer. With the help of the atlas, data on various facets of our brain can be precisely linked to help us, for example, better understand the mechanisms of a brain disease and plan medical interventions more precisely.

The atlas is only a part of the larger European Human Brain Project, in which researchers are using new computer technologies to decode the brain. In the process, a new, globally unique research infrastructure, EBRAINS, will be established. This digital platform provides neuroscientists with data and high-tech solutions, for example for simulations or big data analyses. Together, we can solve the mysteries of the brain, one of the greatest challenges of modern science.

(Photo: Mareen Fischinger)