Reported April 2009

ABOUT SEARCH ENGINES: There are differences in the ways various search engines work, but they all perform three basic tasks. They search the Internet -- or select pieces of the Internet -- based on important words. They keep an index of the words they find, and where they find them. They allow users to look for words or combinations of words found in that index.

WHAT IS fMRI? Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) uses radio waves and a strong magnetic field rather than X-rays to take clear and detailed pictures of internal organs and tissues. fMRI, or functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging, uses this technology to identify regions of the brain where blood vessels are expanding, chemical changes are taking place, or extra oxygen is being delivered. These are indications that a particular part of the brain is processing information and giving commands to the body. As a patient performs a particular task, the metabolism will increase in the brain area responsible for that task, changing the signal in the MRI image and allowing scientists to locate the part of the brain that governs that function.

If you would like more information, please contact:

Rachel Champeau
Public Affairs
University of California - Los Angeles
(310) 794-2270
rchampeau@mednet.ucla.edu

ON THE WEB...