Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) fMRI combines highly detailed images of brain structures with moment-by-moment tracking of brain activity. Here, fMRI was used to record the brain activity of a 23-year-old woman who had been unresponsive to external stimuli for five months following an auto accident (Owens & others, 2006). Researchers asked her to first imagine playing tennis, and then to imagine walking through her house. The scans above compare her brain activity to that of normal volunteers (“controls”) performing the same tasks. In both the patient and the controls, regions known to be involved in movement and spatial navigation were active. The fMRI scans confirmed that the patient was conscious of her surroundings and able to respond to spoken commands.

Owen, A.M., et al. “Detecting awareness in the vegetative state.” Science 313 (2006):1402. Reprinted with permission from AAAS