ABSTRACT We demonstrate that regions within human prefrontal cortex develop moment-to-moment models for patterns of events occurring in the sensory environment. Subjects viewed a random

binary sequence of images, each presented singly and each requiring a different button press response. Patterns occurred by chance within the presented series of images. Using functional

magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we identified activity evoked by viewing a stimulus that interrupted a pattern. Prefrontal activation was evoked by violations of both repeating and

alternating patterns, and the amplitude of this activation increased with increasing pattern length. Violations of repeating patterns, but not of alternating patterns, activated the basal

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support SIMILAR CONTENT BEING VIEWED BY OTHERS NEURAL SIGNATURES OF TEMPORAL ANTICIPATION IN HUMAN CORTEX REPRESENT EVENT PROBABILITY DENSITY Article Open access 16 March 2025 PERSISTENT

ACTIVITY IN HUMAN PARIETAL CORTEX MEDIATES PERCEPTUAL CHOICE REPETITION BIAS Article Open access 12 October 2022 DYNAMICS OF FMRI PATTERNS REFLECT SUB-SECOND ACTIVATION SEQUENCES AND REVEAL

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_Hum. Brain Mapp._ 3, 287–301 (1995). Article  Google Scholar  Download references ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We thank C. Michelich, J. Voyvodic and J. Wu for assistance in data visualization and

programming, and G. Lockhead, G. Mangun and D. Purves for comments on the manuscript. This research was supported by the US Department of Veterans' Affairs, by National Institute of

Mental Health grants MH-05286 and MH-12541, and by National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke grant NS-41328. G. M. is a Department of Veterans' Affairs Research Career

Scientist. AUTHOR INFORMATION AUTHORS AND AFFILIATIONS * Brain Imaging and Analysis Center, Box 3918, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, 27710, North Carolina, USA Scott A. Huettel, 

Peter B. Mack & Gregory McCarthy Authors * Scott A. Huettel View author publications You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar * Peter B. Mack View author publications

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Correspondence to Gregory McCarthy. ETHICS DECLARATIONS COMPETING INTERESTS The authors declare no competing financial interests. RIGHTS AND PERMISSIONS Reprints and permissions ABOUT THIS

ARTICLE CITE THIS ARTICLE Huettel, S., Mack, P. & McCarthy, G. Perceiving patterns in random series: dynamic processing of sequence in prefrontal cortex. _Nat Neurosci_ 5, 485–490

(2002). https://doi.org/10.1038/nn841 Download citation * Received: 26 October 2001 * Accepted: 19 March 2002 * Published: 08 April 2002 * Issue Date: 01 May 2002 * DOI:

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