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Updated: Jun 13, 2026

Cross-Modal Multivariate Pattern Analysis
Published on: November 9, 2011
Predicting visual stimuli on the basis of activity in auditory cortices
Kaspar Meyer1, Jonas T Kaplan, Ryan Essex
1Brain and Creativity Institute, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, USA. 5P50NS019632-25
Abstract:
Using multivariate pattern analysis of functional magnetic resonance imaging data, we found that the subjective experience of sound, in the absence of auditory stimulation, was associated with content-specific activity in early auditory cortices in humans. As subjects viewed sound-implying, but silent, visual stimuli, activity in auditory cortex differentiated among sounds related to various animals, musical instruments and objects. These results support the idea that early sensory cortex activity reflects perceptual experience, rather than sensory stimulation alone.
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