Thomas Reid with Anthony Jack and Robert Brown
Analysis of Topographic Maps from fMRI Data
In recent years, a number of studies have attempted to demonstrate the presence of retinotopic maps in occipital, parietal and frontal cortex. The evidence for these maps has come from inspection of color-coded maps based on phase-encoded visual field stimulation. However, this method is qualitative in nature and the maps have not been consistent between groups and subjects, thus leaving the important question of what these mappings look like or whether they even exist unanswered. Our research involves regression analysis of BOLD fMRI data in an attempt to establish a more quantitatively rigorous assessment of the presence of topographical maps on the cortical surface. If time permits, we would like to extend this mapping from the occipital lobe to higher cortical areas, and examine the faithfulness of our mapping for when considering both attended and unattended stimuli.