A thalamo-prefrontal system for representation in executive response choice.
This study demonstrates the neural system potentially involved in the representation of, and choice between, stimulus classifications in an ambiguous, novel, decision-making task. This difficult choice behaviour is taken as an example of a basic executive processing task. Subjects heard sounds that were consonant-vowel combinations that had been distorted and were required to categorize each stimulus as speech-like or not-speech-like. Cerebral activity was measured with positron emission tomography. A neural system (thalamic and medial prefrontal cortical regions) was demonstrated; there was greater activity involved in assigning the sound to the larger class of not-speech-like sounds than to the more restricted category of speech-like sounds. We interpret this activity as reflecting process and representation in a simple central executive task.
Scott
S K
SK
MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit (formerly MRC Applied Psychology Unit), Cambridge.
Holmes
A
A
Friston
K J
KJ
Wise
R J
RJ
D000161:Acoustic Stimulation; D002560:Cerebrovascular Circulation / Q000502:physiology; D002755:Choice Behavior / Q000502:physiology; D003657:Decision Making / Q000502:physiology*; D004192:Discrimination, Psychological / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D017397:Prefrontal Cortex / Q000098:blood supply / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000502:physiology*; D013067:Speech Perception / Q000502:physiology; D013788:Thalamus / Q000098:blood supply / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000502:physiology*; D014055:Tomography, Emission-Computed