Meng-Yun Wang

I am interested in understanding the underlying complicity of the human brain, with a background in psychology specifically in cognitive neuroscience. My research utilizes various neuroimaging methods, including EEG, fNIRS (functional near-infrared spectroscopy), and fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging). Here are some projects in which I have been involved:

Project 4: The Intra-sub Reliability of MRI Measurements on Human Brains
Goals: This project aims to assess the intra-subject reliability of MRI measurements. Prior studies, limited by only a few data points per subject, have failed to accurately chart the precision of MRI measurements for individuals. To address this limitation and achieve our objective, we acquired the Bergen Breakfast Scanning Club (BBSC) deep brain imaging dataset, involving repeated scans of three subjects over a one-year period. Our focus is to examine the reliability of MRI measurements within each subject using this dataset. 

Related work:
Wang, M-Y., Korbmacher, M., Eikeland R., Craven A. R., Specht K. (2023). The intra-individual reliability of 1H-MRS measurement in the anterior cingulate cortex across one year. Human Brain Mapping, (https://doi.org/10.1002/hbm.26531)

Wang, M-Y., Korbmacher, M., Eikeland R., Specht K. (2023). The Bergen Breakfast Scanning Club dataset: a deep brain imaging dataset. bioRxiv, 2023.05.30.542072. doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2023.05.30.542072

Wang, M-Y., Korbmacher, M., Eikeland R., Specht K. (2022). Deep brain imaging of three participants across 1 year: The Bergen breakfast scanning club project. Frontiers in human neuroscience, 16, 1021503.

Project 3: Naturalistic Neuroimaging
This project aims to investigate brain activations in realistic or lifelike settings, as opposed to controlled laboratory environments. To achieve this, we employ naturalistic stimuli (such as dynamic faces, movies) and naturalistic settings (such as hyperscanning, where multiple subjects interact while their brain activity is simultaneously recorded).
Related work:
Wang, M-Y., & Yuan, Z.* (2021). EEG Decoding of Dynamic Facial Expressions of Emotion: Evidence from SSVEP and Causal Cortical Network Dynamics. Neuroscience, 459, 50-58.

Wang, M-Y., Luan, P., Zhang, J., Xiang, Y. T., Niu, H., & Yuan, Z.* (2018). Concurrent mapping of brain activation from multiple subjects during social interaction by hyperscanning: a mini-review. Quantitative Imaging in Medicine and Surgery, 8(8), 819-837.

Wang, M-Y./He, Y. (co-first), Li, D., & Yuan, Z. (2017). Optical mapping of brain activity underlying translation asymmetry during Chinese/English sight translation. Biomedical Optics Express, 8(12), 5399-5411.

Project 2: Applications of fNIRS in Cognitive Neuroscience
While EEG and fMRI have been widely used in cognitive neuroscience, the application of fNIRS in this field is still in its early stages. Therefore, we seek to explore the potential of fNIRS in addressing inquiries in cognitive neuroscience.
Related work:
 

Wang, M-Y., Yuan, A., Zhang, J., Xiang, Y., & Yuan, Z.* (2020). fNIRS can detect low-frequency hemodynamic oscillations in the prefrontal cortex during SSVEP-inducing periodic facial expression stimuli presentation. Visual Computing for Industry, Biomedicine, and Art, 3(1), 1-8.

Wang, M-Y., Lu, F. M., Hu, Z., Zhang, J., & Yuan, Z.* (2018). Optical mapping of prefrontal brain connectivity and activation during emotion anticipation. Behavioural Brain Research, 350, 122-128.

Wang, M-Y., Zhang, J., Lu, F. M., Xiang, Y. T., & Yuan, Z.* (2018). Neuroticism and conscientiousness respectively positively and negatively correlated with the network characteristic path length in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex: A resting‐state fNIRS study. Brain and Behavior, e01074.

Project 1: Cognitive Deficit in OCD Patients
In this project, we investigated the cognitive deficits present in individuals with OCD or subclinical OCD symptoms. Our findings indicate that OCD patients exhibit excessive avoidance of OCD-related stimuli, providing experimental evidence for the efficacy of exposure therapy in treating OCD.
Related work:
Wang, M-Y./Zhang, Z-M. (co-first), Guo X., Miao, X., Zhang, T., Gao, D., & Yuan, Z.* (2017). Attentional avoidance of threats in obsessive-compulsive disorder: an event-related potential study. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 97, 96-104.

Wang, M-Y./Zhang, Z-M. (co-first), Miao, X., Li, Y., Hitchman, G., & Yuan, Z.* (2017). Individuals with high obsessive-compulsive tendencies or undermined confidence rely more on external proxies to access their internal states. Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 54, 263-269.