Researchers decode thought Researchers at CMU have developed a
computer-based model designed to decode the patterns of neural
activity within the human brain. Their model is not only able to
differentiate between a person’s perceptions of different
physical objects, but is also able to predict the brain
activation patterns associated with new, untested objects. For
the past six years, Tom Mitchell, a computer scientist at CMU
and chair of its Machine Learning department, and Marcel Just, a
cognitive neuroscientist here and director of its Center for
Cognitive Brain Imaging, have led a team in researching how
thoughts are represented within the brain. The knowledge
acquired from this research may lead to an increased
understanding of certain neurological conditions. “With these
techniques, we can ask how a person with autism, for example,
represents a concept like ‘friendship,’ ‘parent,’ or ‘love,’ and
compare that neural representation to those of typical people,
in order to see what is different,” Just said.