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1: Nat Rev Neurosci. 2001 Oct;2(10):685-94.Click here to read Links

Searching for a baseline: functional imaging and the resting human brain.

Gusnard DA, Raichle ME, Raichle ME.

The Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology, Washington University, St Louis, Missouri 63110, USA.

Functional brain imaging in humans has revealed task-specific increases in brain activity that are associated with various mental activities. In the same studies, mysterious, task-independent decreases have also frequently been encountered, especially when the tasks of interest have been compared with a passive state, such as simple fixation or eyes closed. These decreases have raised the possibility that there might be a baseline or resting state of brain function involving a specific set of mental operations. We explore this possibility, including the manner in which we might define a baseline and the implications of such a baseline for our understanding of brain function.

PMID: 11584306 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]