MentalHealthDaily

Image Memorability, Not Recognition Success, Drove N400 Encoding Signals

by GLOOM

MHD featured image for image memorability and N400 EEG signals.

A 2026 EEG study found that image memorability predicted recognition strongly, z = 9.17, p < 0.001, and the N400 encoding signal tracked memorability after later recognition success was included in the same model.1 The result weakens the common shortcut that every hit-vs-miss brain signal is purely an encoding-success signal. Research Highlights Memorability predicted recognition: …

Emotional Memory fMRI Separates Arousal From Valence

by GLOOM

Photoreal illustration of brain with amygdala and prefrontal cortex highlighted, conveying dual-pathway emotional memory mechanism.

A 2026 fMRI study of 1,006 healthy young adults found that emotional pictures were remembered better than neutral pictures, but the brain signal split after arousal was modeled: amygdala and insula effects dropped out, while negative and positive valence kept separate cortical encoding patterns.1 Research Highlights Emotional pictures had the recall advantage: in the full …