The function of the human mediodorsal thalamic nucleus (MD) has so far eluded a clear definition in terms of specific cognitive processes and tasks. Although it was at first proposed to play a role in long-term memory, a set of recent studies in animals and humans has revealed a more complex, and broader, role in […]

Modern psychology has long focused on the body as the basis of the self. Recently, predictive processing accounts of interoception (perception of the body ‘from within’) have become influential in accounting for experiences of body ownership and emotion. Here, we describe embodied selfhood in terms of ‘instrumental interoceptive inference’ that emphasises allostatic regulation and physiological […]

Most cognitive neuroscience theories have focused on the functions of individual brain regions, but cognitive abilities depend also on functional interactions among multiple regions. Many recent studies on these interactions have examined large-scale, resting-state networks, but these networks are difficult to link to theories about specific cognitive processes. Cognitive theories are easier to link to […]