What is the Default Mode Network (DMN)? Think of your brain as having two primary operational modes: Task-Positive Network (TPN): The "spotlight." It's active when you are focused on external goals—reading, solving a math problem, having a conversation, writing to a prompt. Default Mode Network (DMN): The "starlight." It's a large-scale, interconnected brain system that becomes more active when you are not focused on the outside world. It's your brain's "idle" or "baseline" state. The DMN is primarily centered in the medial prefrontal cortex (self-relevance, narrative), the posterior cingulate cortex/retrosplenial cortex (memory integration), the inferior parietal lobe (perspective-taking), and the hippocampal formation (memory). What Does the DMN Do When It's "ON"? When your external focus shuts off (you're daydreaming, showering...
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