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The Neurobiology of Imagination: Possible Role of Interaction-Dominant Dynamics and Default Mode Network

Overview of attention for article published in Frontiers in Psychology, January 2013
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About this Attention Score

  • In the top 5% of all research outputs scored by Altmetric
  • High Attention Score compared to outputs of the same age (99th percentile)
  • High Attention Score compared to outputs of the same age and source (95th percentile)

Mentioned by

news
10 news outlets
blogs
2 blogs
twitter
21 X users
facebook
1 Facebook page
googleplus
3 Google+ users

Citations

dimensions_citation
42 Dimensions

Readers on

mendeley
110 Mendeley
citeulike
1 CiteULike
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Title
The Neurobiology of Imagination: Possible Role of Interaction-Dominant Dynamics and Default Mode Network
Published in
Frontiers in Psychology, January 2013
DOI 10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00296
Pubmed ID
Authors

Luigi F. Agnati, Diego Guidolin, L. Battistin, G. Pagnoni, K. Fuxe

Abstract

This work aims at presenting some hypotheses about the potential neurobiological substrate of imagery and imagination. For the present purposes, we will define imagery as the production of mental images associated with previous percepts, and imagination as the faculty of forming mental images of a novel character relating to something that has never been actually experienced by the subject but at a great extent emerges from his inner world. The two processes appear intimately related and imagery can arguably be considered as one of the main components of imagination. In this proposal, we argue that exaptation and redeployment, two basic concepts capturing important aspects of the evolution of biological structures and functions (Anderson, 2007), could also be useful in explaining imagery and imagination. As far as imagery is concerned it is proposed that neural structures originally implicated in performing certain functions, e.g., motor actions, can be reused for the imagery of the virtual execution of that function. As far as imagination is concerned we speculate that it can be the result of a "tinkering" that combines and modifies stored perceptual information and concepts leading to the creation of novel "mental objects" that are shaped by the subject peculiar inner world. Hence it is related to his self-awareness. The neurobiological substrate of the tinkering process could be found in a hierarchical model of the brain characterized by a multiplicity of functional modules (FMs) that can be assembled according to different spatial and temporal scales. Thus, it is surmised that a possible mechanism for the emergence of imagination could be represented by modulatory mechanisms controlling the perviousness of "modifiers" along the communication channels within and between FMs leading to their dynamically reassembling into novel configurations.

X Demographics

X Demographics

The data shown below were collected from the profiles of 21 X users who shared this research output. Click here to find out more about how the information was compiled.
Mendeley readers

Mendeley readers

The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 110 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.

Geographical breakdown

Country Count As %
Italy 2 2%
United Kingdom 1 <1%
Spain 1 <1%
Argentina 1 <1%
Unknown 105 95%

Demographic breakdown

Readers by professional status Count As %
Student > Ph. D. Student 20 18%
Student > Master 15 14%
Student > Bachelor 10 9%
Researcher 9 8%
Professor 7 6%
Other 25 23%
Unknown 24 22%
Readers by discipline Count As %
Psychology 29 26%
Neuroscience 19 17%
Medicine and Dentistry 10 9%
Philosophy 5 5%
Engineering 5 5%
Other 16 15%
Unknown 26 24%
Attention Score in Context

Attention Score in Context

This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 102. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 13 March 2024.
All research outputs
#408,164
of 25,182,110 outputs
Outputs from Frontiers in Psychology
#845
of 34,011 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#2,860
of 293,942 outputs
Outputs of similar age from Frontiers in Psychology
#49
of 969 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 25,182,110 research outputs across all sources so far. Compared to these this one has done particularly well and is in the 98th percentile: it's in the top 5% of all research outputs ever tracked by Altmetric.
So far Altmetric has tracked 34,011 research outputs from this source. They typically receive a lot more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 13.2. This one has done particularly well, scoring higher than 97% of its peers.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 293,942 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one has done particularly well, scoring higher than 99% of its contemporaries.
We're also able to compare this research output to 969 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one has done particularly well, scoring higher than 95% of its contemporaries.