A beautiful mind: Kaleidoscopic images reveal the complex and colourful inner workings of the human brain

  • Colourful images of brain activity will go on show for the first time in St Andrew Square in Edinburgh this month
  • The pictures consist of MRI scans, microscopic images and electrical monitoring results
  • Researchers from Edinburgh created the exhibition to show the beauty of neurological disorders such as autism
  • Exhibition also highlights the advanced technologies used by scientists to image the brain and its cells in action

By Sarah Griffiths

Published: 11:15 EST, 10 June 2014 | Updated: 12:44 EST, 10 June 2014

The brain differences between the young and the old, people with autism, and even female mice have been revealed in a series of beautiful rainbow images.

The collection of pictures use a kaleidoscope of colours to highlight neurons, electrical connections between cells, and other brain activity, and will go on show for the first time in St Andrew Square, Edinburgh later this month.

The pictures were created using MRI scans, microscopic images and electrical monitoring and are part of an exhibition called The Brain Is Wider Than The Sky.

Colourful images show the activity in the human brain in a kaleidoscope of colours and will go on show for the first time in St Andrew Square, Edinburgh. This Wiring The Brain image shows shows detailed maps of brain wiring in a sleeping newborn baby (left) and an adult in their seventies (right) visualised using an MRI scanner

Colourful images show the activity in the human brain in a kaleidoscope of colours and will go on show for the first time in St Andrew Square, Edinburgh. This Wiring The Brain image shows shows detailed maps of brain wiring in a sleeping newborn baby (left) and an adult in their seventies (right) visualised using an MRI scanner

Researchers from the University of Edinburgh created the exhibition to show the beauty they encounter while studying neurological disorders, such as autism.

 

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The exhibition also highlights the advanced technologies used by scientists to image the brain and its cells in action.

Some of the pictures, including one titled The Female Mosaic, look like impressionist artwork, but instead show neurons in the brain of a female mouse.

During the course of their research, the scientists who created the images found that autism and intellectual disability - linked to the X chromosome - are more prevalent in men than women.

The pictures are created from MRI scans, microscopic images and electrical monitoring, and are part of an exhibition called The Brain Is Wider Than The Sky. This image, called The Breakdown In Communication, shows differences between a typical brain (left) and autism (right)

The pictures are created from MRI scans, microscopic images and electrical monitoring, and are part of an exhibition called The Brain Is Wider Than The Sky. This image, called The Breakdown In Communication, shows differences between a typical brain (left) and autism (right)

Researchers from the University of Edinburgh have created the exhibition to show the beauty that they come across while studying neurological disorders such as autism. The Sensory Superhighway is pictured, which shows the complex electrical connections between brain cells

Researchers from the University of Edinburgh have created the exhibition to show the beauty that they come across while studying neurological disorders such as autism. The Sensory Superhighway is pictured, which shows the complex electrical connections between brain cells

Males have one X and one Y chromosome, while females have two X chromosomes - one inherited from each parent. To compensate for this second X, each cell in a female body randomly ‘turns off’ one X chromosome.

The picture shows that neurons in the mouse’s brain have turned off the X chromosome inherited from the mother (in green) and those that have silenced the X inherited from the father (in red).

In another picture called Glial Grandeur, the image created looks almost like a picture of deep space taken from the Hubble Telescope.

An Electron's View Of The Brain shows that neurons talk to one another across a gap called the synaptic cleft, rather than being directly connected to one another. A trained eye can identify the wires

An Electron's View Of The Brain shows that neurons talk to one another across a gap called the synaptic cleft, rather than being directly connected to one another. A trained eye can identify the wires

This image, titled High Fidelity, shows the difference in brain signals from a typical brain (left) and from a brain affected by a condition similar to Fragile X Syndrome, which is the most common inherited form of autism

This image, titled High Fidelity, shows the difference in brain signals from a typical brain (left) and from a brain affected by a condition similar to Fragile X Syndrome, which is the most common inherited form of autism

The brain has two main cell types - neurons and glia.

Glia - named from the Greek word for glue - were originally thought of as the support cells for neurons. But it is now known that they are essential for many brain functions.

The image in the collection shows two main types of glia from a human brain - astrocytes (in green) and a white oligodendrocyte.

Researchers from the university’s Patrick Wild Centre collaborated with the Scottish charity Mindroom, to create the exhibition.

‘The human brain has more cells than there are stars in the Milky Way and these cells communicate through a thousand times as many connections,’ said Sally Till, a fellow at the centre.

This image, titled The Female Mosaic, shows neurons in the brain of a female mouse. It reveals the neurons that have switched off the X chromosome inherited from the mother (in green), and those that have silenced the X chromosome inherited from the father (in red)

This image, titled The Female Mosaic, shows neurons in the brain of a female mouse. It reveals the neurons that have switched off the X chromosome inherited from the mother (in green), and those that have silenced the X chromosome inherited from the father (in red)

‘Our goal is to understand how even small changes in these connections can have such detrimental effects on learning and memory.’

Sophie Dow, Founder of Mindroom, added: ‘These images are simply too beautiful to be hidden away in a lab.

‘They were created to further our understanding of the brain but they can also be viewed as stunning examples of abstract art.

'Our hope is that people admiring the pictures on show will also come away with a greater awareness of what it means to be affected by learning difficulties and other brain conditions.’

This image might look like one taken by the Hubble Telescope of deep space, but Glial Grandeur shows the two main types of glia from a human brain - astrocytes (in green) and a white oligodendrocyte. They also look a little bit like a spider's web, only this web measures just 1/20 of a millimetre. Glia - named from the Greek word for glue - were originally thought of as the support cells for neurons. But it is now known they are essential for many brain functions

This image might look like one taken by the Hubble Telescope of deep space, but Glial Grandeur shows the two main types of glia from a human brain - astrocytes (in green) and a white oligodendrocyte. They also look a little bit like a spider's web, only this web measures just 1/20 of a millimetre. Glia - named from the Greek word for glue - were originally thought of as the support cells for neurons. But it is now known they are essential for many brain functions

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Far Out Man!

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My brain looks like this after a pack of Smarties.

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Incredible! We are our own mini universe.

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God is wonderful

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I wonder what a kaleidoscopic picture of Justin Bieber's brain would look like ?

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More ridiculous comments about "god". It would be nice to read an intelligent article without having to read the god rubbish!

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You're intolerant with insecurities. Dark blackness for infinity is your scientific god before the big bang. You want to force all commenters to bow before the religion of atheism and have no personal choice in their beliefs. There are plenty of christian scientists who study, research, and experiment in the quest for learning about natural phenomena.

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Lovely.

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My brain emits these colours at the start of my journey to the kitchen to collect some tasty morsel. However, at the end of my ten foot trek it has become a blank canvas because I can't remember why I went to the kitchen in the first place! I wondered why I was losing weight.

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I went for a brain scan. They never found anything.

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Stop showing this crap every day; publish something where did you came from and where are you heading to? Until then with all due respect Shut up!!!!

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