Qi, Xiaoxi
(2023)
The neural representation of semantic granularity: does inducing retrieval of different semantic levels influence memory reactivation?
Undergraduate Thesis, University of Pittsburgh.
(Unpublished)
Abstract
Our knowledge of a concept can be represented at multiple levels of semantic granularity - from item-specific perceptual features to contextual meaning. We can access our memory for a concept through different levels. In this study, we asked if reactivating a concept through different granularities affects how it is later neurally retrieved. We used fMRI to measure brain activity as people encoded, restudied, and then retrieved pairs of novel words and object images. Each pairing was restudied through a question drawing on one of three semantic levels: item, category, or theme, before the object was later recognized from lures similar in identity and visual angle. We found that recognition-associated activity in a hypothesized region of interest, left ventrolateral prefrontal cortex, was significantly greater for pairings that had been restudied at the theme, compared to item, level. Activity in the right inferior frontal gyrus, ventral temporal cortex, and middle occipital gyrus, was also affected by the prior restudy. These findings suggest the level of semantic granularity invoked during active restudy can influence subsequent memory reactivation. Future work will use multivariate approaches to study this data further.
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Details
Item Type: |
University of Pittsburgh ETD
|
Status: |
Unpublished |
Creators/Authors: |
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ETD Committee: |
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Date: |
24 April 2023 |
Date Type: |
Publication |
Defense Date: |
5 December 2022 |
Approval Date: |
24 April 2023 |
Submission Date: |
19 April 2023 |
Access Restriction: |
2 year -- Restrict access to University of Pittsburgh for a period of 2 years. |
Number of Pages: |
38 |
Institution: |
University of Pittsburgh |
Schools and Programs: |
David C. Frederick Honors College Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences > Psychology |
Degree: |
BPhil - Bachelor of Philosophy |
Thesis Type: |
Undergraduate Thesis |
Refereed: |
Yes |
Uncontrolled Keywords: |
Semantic granularity, fMRI, memory reactivation |
Date Deposited: |
24 Apr 2023 18:05 |
Last Modified: |
24 Apr 2023 18:05 |
URI: |
http://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/id/eprint/44629 |
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