By: Marta Mendaluk

EDT 180 Dr. Legacy

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 • A fMRI stands for Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging
• It maps brain activity
• Noninvasive and safe
• Helps study how a healthy brain works
• Could show how normal function is disrupted in disease.
What is the • Differs from regular MRI.
fMRI?

Check out how

a fMRI sounds

More on what is an fMRI

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  We can use fMRI by looking at brain activity and
seeing whether or not the part of the brain that should be
working is functioning properly.
 Can be detected because the brain will light up in that
specific area.
How can we
read it?

Check out this video!

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  Psychologists use it by studying the areas of the brain that
are active. And comparing it to others.
 They can observe which parts of the brain experiences
emotions such as love, hate, anger and sadness.
How do
Psychologists
use it?

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 Parts of the Function
Brain

Amygdala Controls
emotions of
Some key parts anger, anxiety,
and fear
of the brain Hippocampus Involved in
memory
and what they
mean Broca’s Area Involved in
Speech

Limbic System Emotional Note: There are many more parts

responses like of the brain. List consists of few
laughing important ones

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 • The use of fMRI can help
prove that a person is lying
• The accuracy of these tests
Forensic of deception prove a 76%-
90% accuracy.
Psychology and • Can be inaccurate especially
fMRI because a criminal defendant
can have similar scans to a
thousand other people

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  According to Stephanie Watson's article "What are the
advantages and Disadvantages of fMRI, they don't use
radiation like x-rays, PET scans, and CT scans
 Virtually no risks

BRAIN USAGE
Pros Human Brain Usage How Much We Don't Use

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  Evaluate brain activity safely
 Depending on stimuli, can see which areas of brain light
up which furthers research.

Pros

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  Hard to know if the activity
is always blood flow or if it is
individual neurons firing
Cons  Expensive

Pictured: neuron

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  Sometimes the brain can light
up in contradicting areas
Cons  Makes it difficult for
researchers to connect the lit-
up areas to specific emotions
because they can differ.

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 • Brian Dugan, an Illinois man raped and killed a 10 year old girl
• He was on trial and getting the death penalty

• His defense team utilized an fMRI to scan his brain

• The scans came up as being similar to those of a psychopath

FMRI as • His defense team argues that with these scans, it proved that he had a brain
disorder and should not get the death penalty.

evidence in a • Jury was not convinced and they still gave him life in prison.

trial

Brian Dugan

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Feel free to contact me via email
mmendalu@asu.edu

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  Berman, et al. “Studying Mind and Brain with FMRI.” OUP Academic,
Oxford University Press, 1 Sept. 2006,
academic.oup.com/scan/article/1/2/158/2362915.
 Hopelab. “FMRI BrainScan: SideView.” YouTube, YouTube, 14 Mar. 2012,
www.youtube.com/watch?v=9IK2eDh3cVs.
 MillerNov, Greg, and Eva FrederickSep. “FMRI Evidence Used in
Murder Sentencing.” Science, 10 Dec. 2017,
www.sciencemag.org/news/2009/11/fmri-evidence-used-murder-
sentencing.
Works Cited  Nicholson, Christy. “Thinking It Over: FMRI and Psychological Science.”
Association for Psychological Science - APS,
www.psychologicalscience.org/observer/thinking-it-over-fmri-and-
psychological-science.
 Watson, Stephanie. “How FMRI Works.” HowStuffWorks Science,
HowStuffWorks, 28 June 2018, science.howstuffworks.com/fmri4.htm.
 “What Is FMRI?” What Is FMRI? - Center for Functional MRI - UC San
Diego, fmri.ucsd.edu/Research/whatisfmri.html.

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 McLachlan, Justin. “Will Brain-Scanning Lie Detectors Free the
Innocent or Jail Them?” Popular Science, Popular Science, 18 Mar. 2019,
www.popsci.com/science/article/2010-02/will-brain-scan-lie-detectors-
free-innocent-or-jail-them/.
What Is an FMRI Scan and How Does It Work?,
www.jameco.com/Jameco/workshop/HowItWorks/what-is-an-fmri-
scan-and-how-does-it-work.html.
“Monochrome Drawing Brain Vintage Style Stock Vector Art
Works Cited 953686942.” IStock, www.istockphoto.com/illustrations/human-brain.

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