July 2019, ScientificAmerican.com 31Putting It Together
Modules for vision, attention and other cognitive
func tions are dedicated to specific tasks, of ten re p-
resented here by psychological tests. The most active
tasks rise to the top. The visual module, for instance,
is involved with naming, reading and observing. Many
tasks require multiple modules. For example, a mental
rotation task recruits both the visual and the attention
modules. Some modules are entrusted with more
abstract tasks. The frontoparietal module engages
in switching tasks or recalling lists. The default mode
module attends to subjective emotional states or passive
listening when a person is at rest.Braille reading
Visual tracking
Action observation
Picture naming (silently)
Brightness perception
Picture naming (out loud)
Silent reading
Visual attention
Drawing
Controlling eye movement
Mental rotation
Visual control
Pointing
Writing
Imagined movement
Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (reasoning)
Counting
Tower of London (complex planning task)
n-back working memory task
Sternberg working memory task
Task switching
Word stem completion (out loud)
Free word list recall
Stroop task
Flanker response inhibition task
Detecting vibrations through touch
Finger tapping
Vocal rehearsing
Small hand movements
Whistling
Grasping
Isometric force
Awareness of need to urinate
Stimulation monitoring
Nonpainful electrical stimulation
Breath holding
Word stem completion (silent)
Playing music
Imaging what others think
Categorizing emotional scenes
Passive listening
Lying
Pitch detection
Event recall (episodic memory)
Delayed gratification
Word generation (out loud)
Word meaning discrimination
Grammar
Face-emotion identification
Scent detection
Video games
Classical conditioning
Eating/drinking
Passive viewing
Monetary reward taskVisualBrain ModuleAttentionSalienceLimbicFrontoparietal
controlDefaultTaskStrength of
relationshipSomatic
motorStrongestGraphics by Max Bertolero (brains and network diagram) and Jen Christiansen (task chart)