When a particular part of the brain is being used, there is an increase in blood flow to that area. The increase in blood flow means that there is an increase in the amount of oxygen-carrying hemoglobin in the blood. The image of the brain shows activation in the areas receiving increased blood flow. Tasks performed by the volunteers involved exercises to test working memory, attentional focus, and a combination of the two. All of the subjects, who were healthy, normal volunteers, participated in all of the task groups.
Dual- task involves changing focus between alternative goals successively.
According to the fMRI data, their predictions were correct. The FPPC was activated only during those tasks that involved an interaction between working memory and attentional focus decisions. The FPPC is the region of the brain that controls complex problem solving and is especially well developed in humans as compared to other primates. The study showed that the FPPC selectively mediates the human ability to multi-task. It is part of the National Institutes of Health located in Bethesda, Maryland, and will celebrate its 50th anniversary in the year 2000.