Daydreaming, a common experience for humans, has long puzzled neuroscientists regarding its underlying brain processes.
By monitoring neuron activity in the visual cortex of mice during periods of quiet wakefulness, the researchers identified patterns suggesting that the mice were daydreaming about specific images.
Let's see what they've discovered.
A Surprising Study
The study involved showing mice two different checkerboard patterns and recording neuron activity in the visual cortex.
Interestingly, the neural patterns during the mice's initial daydreams predicted how their brains would respond to the images later on, indicating a potential role in brain plasticity.
During moments of quiet wakefulness, akin to daydreaming, neurons fired in patterns similar to those when the mice observed actual images.
Notably, these daydreams correlated with representational drift, a change in how the brain responds to the same image over time.
The researchers suspect that daydreaming may guide this process by influencing neural patterns and helping distinguish between similar images.
Why It's Important
The study raises questions about whether a similar phenomenon occurs in human daydreaming and suggests the importance of allowing moments of quiet wakefulness for potential benefits in brain plasticity.
Further research will explore the intricate connections between neurons in the visual cortex during image recall.
Previously, we talked about separation from parents.
