Center for Imaging Sciences Seminar
Department of Bio-Medical Engineering
John Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD
September 28, 1999

Flat Mapping the Brain using Circle Packings to Control Angular Distortion

Monica K. Hurdal, Department of Mathematics, Florida State University

The surface of the human brain varies considerably from person to person, making it difficult to compare functional activation within and between subjects. Since the cortical surface is topologically equivalent to a two-dimensional sheet, it is possible to unfold or flatten this surface to create a flat map of the brain. In this seminar, I will present a novel computer realization of the Riemann Mapping Theorem which uses circle packings and allows us to create quasi-conformal flat maps that attempt to control angular distortion. These maps can be created in the conventional Euclidean plane, in the hyperbolic plane and on a sphere and offer several advantages over existing approaches.


Updated September 1999.
Copyright 1999 by Monica K. Hurdal. All rights reserved.