The Surprising Role of the Default Mode Network
T. Brandman, R. Malach, E. Simony. preprint
The default mode network (DMN), a set of high-order brain regions, is linked to processing naturalistic events, but its cognitive function was unclear. Using a novel state-fluctuation pattern analysis, DMN coactivation during a short movie was selectively correlated with the cognitive state of surprise across movie events, compared to other states like emotion or vividness. This effect was specific to the DMN and not seen in dorsal attention or visual networks. Surprise also mediated DMN coactivations with the hippocampus and nucleus accumbens. These findings suggest the DMN serves as a major hub for high-level prediction-error representations.