Blink-related momentary activation of the default mode network while viewing videos

It remains unknown why we generate spontaneous eyeblinks every few seconds, more often than necessary for ocular lubrication. Because eyeblinks tend to occur at implicit breakpoints while viewing videos, we hypothesized that eyeblinks are actively involved in the release of attention. We show that w...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS 2013-01, Vol.110 (2), p.702-706
Main Authors: Nakano, Tamami, Kato, Makoto, Morito, Yusuke, Itoi, Seishi, Kitazawa, Shigeru
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Attention
Biological and medical sciences
Biological Sciences
Blackouts
Blinking
Blinking - physiology
Brain
Cognitive psychology
Communications technology
Eye and associated structures. Visual pathways and centers. Vision
Eye movements
Eyelids
Eyes & eyesight
Female
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Humans
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Male
Neuropsychology
Photic Stimulation
Research universities
Sensory perception
Vertebrates: nervous system and sense organs
Video clips
Visual cortex
Young Adult
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Summary:It remains unknown why we generate spontaneous eyeblinks every few seconds, more often than necessary for ocular lubrication. Because eyeblinks tend to occur at implicit breakpoints while viewing videos, we hypothesized that eyeblinks are actively involved in the release of attention. We show that while viewing videos, cortical activity momentarily decreases in the dorsal attention network after blink onset but increases in the default-mode network implicated in internal processing. In contrast, physical blackouts of the video do not elicit such reciprocal changes in brain networks. The results suggest that eyeblinks are actively involved in the process of attentional disengagement during a cognitive behavior by momentarily activating the default-mode network while deactivating the dorsal attention network.
ISSN:0027-8424
1091-6490
DOI:10.1073/pnas.1214804110