title: Brain-decoding fMRI reveals how wholes relate to the sum of parts.
abstract: The human brain performs many nonlinear operations in order to extract relevant information from local inputs. How can we observe and quantify these effects within and across large patches of cortex? In this paper, we discuss the application of multi-voxel pattern analysis (MVPA) in functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to address this issue. Specifically, we show how MVPA (i) allows to compare various possibilities of part combinations into wholes, such as taking the mean, weighted mean, or the maximum of responses to the parts; (ii) can be used to quantify the parameters of these combinations; and (iii) can be applied in various experimental paradigms. Through these procedures, fMRI helps to obtain a computational understanding of how local information is integrated into larger wholes in various cortical regions.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Biological Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; Laboratory of Experimental Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Jonas
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kubilius
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Biological Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; Laboratory of Experimental Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Annelies
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Baeck
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Experimental Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Johan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wagemans
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Biological Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium. Electronic address: Hans.OpdeBeeck@ppw.kuleuven.be.
authors.forename: Hans P
authors.initials: HP
authors.lastname: Op de Beeck
mesh_terms: D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology*; D001931:Brain Mapping / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*
keywords: Functional magnetic resonance imaging; Multi-voxel pattern analysis; Nonlinear