Description:

Title: Engaged Minds Think Alike: Measuring Neural Similarity and Dynamic Audiovisual Stimuli

Speaker: Sam Barnett, Ph.D., Northwestern University

Abstract:We often take for granted our ability to share ideas through content—images, symbols, sounds, words, etc.—but this critical brain function has been grossly understudied and difficult to quantify. Since this phenomenon depends on our ability to “think alike,” we have developed a novel measure of shared neural activity when content is presented: cross-brain correlation (CBC). We computed CBC on Fourier transformed and filtered electroencephalography (EEG) data and have shown that the measure is predictive of other indicators of content engagement—future memory, preferences, and decisions. Furthermore, we have found that CBC is negatively correlated to stimulus complexity; in other words, brains diverge when faced with greater degrees of attentional freedom. We propose new methods to relate neural signals to complex natural stimuli, such as advertisements, movie trailers, and even political debates.

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