A new article titled "Energy in functional brain states correlates with cognition in adolescent schizophrenia and healthy persons" has been uploaded to the biology preprint server, bioRxiv, and is currently under peer review.
The brain's "functional connectivity" is the networked interaction of different brain regions. These regions exert influence over each other, resulting in observable patterns of "on" and "off" configurations across several brain regions. Using a mathematical equation called the Ising model, also called the pairwise maximum entropy model (MEM), the likelihood of brain state configurations happening can be measured. This measurement is called energy.
In task fMRI, where participants undergo a brain scan during engagement of a cognitive task, we can collect both their performance data and the brain energy state measurements. When examined together, these energy measurements appear to be associated both with adolescent schizophrenia status, as well as ability to do the in-scanner cognitive task. Visit the bioRxiv link above to see the full article!
