Default mode network

Default mode network
fMRI scan showing regions of the default mode network; the dorsal medial prefrontal cortex, the posterior cingulate cortex, the precuneus and the angular gyrus
Identifiers
MeSH	D000082702
Anatomical terminology [edit on Wikidata]

In neuroscience, the default mode network (DMN), also known as the default network, default state network, or anatomically the medial frontoparietal network (M-FPN), is a large-scale brain network primarily composed of the dorsal medial prefrontal cortex, posterior cingulate cortex, precuneus and angular gyrus. It is best known for being active when a person is not focused on the outside world and the brain is at wakeful rest, such as during daydreaming and mind-wandering. It can also be active during detailed thoughts related to external task performance.^[3] Other times that the DMN is active include when the individual is thinking about others, thinking about themselves, remembering the past, and planning for the future.^[4][5]

The DMN was originally noticed to be deactivated in certain goal-oriented tasks and was sometimes referred to as the task-negative network,^[6] in contrast with the task-positive network. This nomenclature is now widely considered misleading, because the network can be active in internal goal-oriented and conceptual cognitive tasks.^{[7][8][9][10]} The DMN has been shown to be negatively correlated with other networks in the brain such as attention networks.^[11]

Evidence has pointed to disruptions in the DMN of people with Alzheimer's disease and autism spectrum disorder.^[4]