Stanford scientists uncover how a fluctuating brain network may make us better thinkers

Communication between different areas of our brain increases when we are faced with a difficult task. Understanding these fluctuating patterns could reveal why some people learn new tasks more quickly.  “The brain is stunning in its complexity and I feel like, in a way, we’ve been able to describe some of its beauty in this story,” said study lead author Mac Shine, a postdoctoral researcher in the labof Russell Poldrack, a professor of psychology “We’ve been able to say, ‘Here’s this underlying structure that you would never have guessed was there, that might help us explain the mystery of why the brain is organized in the way that it is.’”