Behm, L. | bioRxiv Science

bioRxiv2026

Enhanced processing of cartoons in infant visual cortex

Developing sensory systems may have heightened sensitivity to exaggerated features that emphasize diagnostic information, as shown by the benefits of infant-directed speech for language acquisition. Here, we examine this sensory exaggeration hypothesis in the visual domain by testing whether cartoons elicit stronger and more consistent neural representations than realistic movies in human infants. We collected fMRI data while 24 awake infants (4-15 months) watched the same 3-minute clip of the opening sequence from the original animated version of The Lion King (1994) and its shot-for-shot remake with photorealistic CGI (2019). A computer vision model confirmed that the movies differed in low-level features while depicting similar high-level content. Consistent with sensory exaggeration, the animated version yielded more reliable neural responses and better decoding of visual features than the CGI version throughout occipital cortex. This effect was not observed in adults nor in higher-order regions in infants and could not be explained by differential head motion or looking time. These results suggest that the developing visual system may be attuned to diagnostic features and that cartoons may (unwittingly) exploit this early neural preference.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2025

Data retention in awake infant fMRI: Lessons from more than 750 scanning sessions

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in awake infants has the potential to reveal how the early developing brain gives rise to cognition and behavior. However, awake infant fMRI poses significant methodological challenges that have hampered wider adoption. The present work takes stock after the collection of a substantial amount of awake infant fMRI data across multiple studies from two labs at different institutions. These data were leveraged to glean insights on participant recruitment, experimental design, and data acquisition that could be useful to consider for future studies. Across 766 fMRI sessions with awake infants aged 1-36 months, the authors explored the factors that influenced how much usable data were obtained per session. The age of an infant predicted whether they would successfully enter the scanner (younger more likely) and, if they did enter, the number of minutes of functional data collected (linear, younger more) and retained after preprocessing with lab-specific protocols or harmonized motion exclusion thresholds (quadratic, 12-24 months more than younger and older). The amount of functional data retained was also influenced by assigned sex (female more), experimental paradigm (movies better than blocks and events), and stimulus content (social better than abstract). There were many differences in the research approach between labs making head-to-head comparisons difficult, but Yale was more likely to get infants into the scanner, MIT collected more data from infants who entered, and the amount of data retained after preprocessing did not differ statistically between labs (9 minutes). In addition, the authors assessed the value of attempting to collect multiple experiments per session, an approach that yielded more than one usable experiment averaging across all sessions. Although any given scan is unpredictable, these findings support the feasibility of awake infant fMRI and suggest practices to optimize future research.

neuroscience↗