1. Problem. 

Currently, in the field of neuroscience there is a wealth of information which is distributed amongst specialists. Many scientists and researchers find it difficult to collaborate and exchange information in a standard way that permits querying and other useful tasks. The problem is that when researchers wish to query information about the brain, they are forced with the reality that the information is not stored in an easily accessable manner. They are forced to read volumes of literature to extract the information, and it's usually lacking context. Additionally, this information would be better-suited as searchable both spatially and semanticly. 


2. Target users. 

We are targetting a group of users that doesn't quite exists yet. Although most users will be related to neuroscience, this may include students, researchers, faculty and scientists. Although scientists may be interested in querying, students may be employed as curators of this knowledgebase.  Secondly, this would provide an excellent learning tool, so teachers and students would be targetted. Users probably will not deal well with a sharp learning curve on such an already difficult subject.

3. Solution. 

The solution we will develop originates with the OntoMorphTab project, which was a proof-of-concept that tied together a semantic meaning database (an OWL ontology) to spatial information about neuron's structure (neuroleucida files). This program will build on this idea to provide an entire-brain atlas for annotating new information as well as displaying current information about neuroanatomical parts with encyclopedia-type information in the same interface. The program should allow users to explore the brain in a way that has never been done before, a way that is much more intuitive. The tool should provide new insight from the combining information from multiple sources and give neuroscientists a common-language tool for collaborating and a common context. This tool is essentially a graphical/semantic database explorer.


4. Research.

Currently, the tasks involved in this application are usually done by looking through books and articles. Users will be assumed to be indoors at a desk, however the application should run on nearly all hardware platforms. Users will need access to the internet in order to collaborate using the latest ontology and spatial files. Physical limitations include representation of 3D structures on a 2D space (the monitor). Another constraint is that this will be a memory-intensive application (newer computers are better). This application relies heavily on the use of symbols, identity, object groupings and lists, which will be handled by color-coding for related objects, animation for simulation, transparency for context in navigation. Users will be assumed to have basic computer knowledge, and minimal neuroscience background comparable to a beginning undergrad in the field. This is because there is a domain knowledge that is neccessary for certain terms to be useful. Excellent analogous programs to consider are AutoCAD/SolidWorks and Google Earth. These programs allow users to explore very large spaces.