An important goal in neuroscience is to understand the structure of links between neurons that make up the brain: in other words, to build an accurate 3-D map of the brain’s neural network.
Researchers have made significant progress with various kinds of high-resolution imaging techniques. For example, attaching fluorescent molecules to neurons can show their structure, and electron microscope images of brain sections can also reveal structure at the neuronal level.
These techniques all have an important limitation. The images they produce show changes in image intensity. But these variations must then be interpreted to infer the position and shape of the actual neurons. This final step is a difficult task when the neurons and the connections between them number in the thousands and millions….
Source: MIT Tech Review