A Density-Driven Method for the Placement of Biological Cells Over Two-Dimensional Manifolds

We introduce a graphical method originating from the computer graphics domain that is used for the arbitrary placement of cells over a two-dimensional manifold. Using a bitmap image whose luminance provides cell density, this method guarantees a discrete distribution of the positions of the cells re...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Nicolas P. Rougier
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2018-03-01
Series:Frontiers in Neuroinformatics
Subjects:
Online Access:http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fninf.2018.00012/full
Description
Summary:We introduce a graphical method originating from the computer graphics domain that is used for the arbitrary placement of cells over a two-dimensional manifold. Using a bitmap image whose luminance provides cell density, this method guarantees a discrete distribution of the positions of the cells respecting the local density. This method scales to any number of cells, allows one to specify arbitrary enclosing shapes and provides a scalable and versatile alternative to the more classical assumption of a uniform spatial distribution. The method is illustrated on a discrete homogeneous neural field, on the distribution of cones and rods in the retina and on the neural density of a flattened piece of cortex.
ISSN:1662-5196