Brain Networks Change According To Cognitive Task

EVANSTON, Ill. --- Using a newly released method to analyze functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), Northwestern University researchers have demonstrated that the interconnections between different parts of the brain are dynamic and not static. This and other findings answer longstanding debates about how brain networks operate to solve different cognitive tasks. They are presented in the current (June 1) issue of the Journal of Neuroscience.

Equally important, the researchers discovered that the brain region that performed the integration of information shifted depending on the task their subjects performed. In this study, the subjects were assigned two language tasks. In both, subjects were asked to read individual words and then make a spelling or rhyming judgment.

Depending on the goal of the task -- whether subjects were asked to make an orthographic (spelling) judgment or a phonological (rhyming) judgment the Northwestern researchers found that different convergence zones in the network were involved in the task.

[E]ach task preferentially strengthened the influences converging on the task specific regions (LTC for rhyming, IPS for spelling). This finding suggests that task specific regions serve as convergence zones that integrate information from other parts of the brain.
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The above news item illustrates the conceptual brain model of the Thinkerer. Guided by the short-term goal, the subjects activated appropriate brain modules to support that goal. Their success at the task depended on the effectiveness of the individual modules, and the effectiveness of the integration process. The effectiveness of the integration, in turn, would be influenced by accurate selection of processes and the suppression of competing processes (defocus). Note that the overt actions would be strong in awareness, but the person would probably not be able to report any sense of the selection and integration processes.