Adi Upadhyayula
@adibuoy23.bsky.social
Postdoc at Washington University in St. Louis, working on scene and event cognition. Interested in all things cognition. (he/him)
Credits for the realization : @liliand.bsky.social
September 5, 2025 at 3:07 PM
Credits for the realization : @liliand.bsky.social
Also, I just realised that this might be a key moment version of the preprint 😅
September 5, 2025 at 3:06 PM
Also, I just realised that this might be a key moment version of the preprint 😅
Thank you, Isabel!
September 3, 2025 at 12:07 PM
Thank you, Isabel!
10/ TL;DR
Continuous experience is compressed it into a handful of key moments that synchronize across people, shape memory, and dominate recall.
Read the preprint: https://doi.org/10.1101/2025.08.30.673233.
Continuous experience is compressed it into a handful of key moments that synchronize across people, shape memory, and dominate recall.
Read the preprint: https://doi.org/10.1101/2025.08.30.673233.
September 3, 2025 at 1:39 AM
10/ TL;DR
Continuous experience is compressed it into a handful of key moments that synchronize across people, shape memory, and dominate recall.
Read the preprint: https://doi.org/10.1101/2025.08.30.673233.
Continuous experience is compressed it into a handful of key moments that synchronize across people, shape memory, and dominate recall.
Read the preprint: https://doi.org/10.1101/2025.08.30.673233.
9/ This opens new doors:
How are key moments selected in the brain?
How do they interact with schemas and prior knowledge?
Could identifying key moments help us design better learning tools, clinical interventions, or AI models of memory?
How are key moments selected in the brain?
How do they interact with schemas and prior knowledge?
Could identifying key moments help us design better learning tools, clinical interventions, or AI models of memory?
September 3, 2025 at 1:39 AM
9/ This opens new doors:
How are key moments selected in the brain?
How do they interact with schemas and prior knowledge?
Could identifying key moments help us design better learning tools, clinical interventions, or AI models of memory?
How are key moments selected in the brain?
How do they interact with schemas and prior knowledge?
Could identifying key moments help us design better learning tools, clinical interventions, or AI models of memory?
8/ Why does this matter?
It suggests memory is not just shaped by boundaries but also by informative highlights — the emotionally rich, narratively crucial, or semantically dense bits that define how stories are remembered.
It suggests memory is not just shaped by boundaries but also by informative highlights — the emotionally rich, narratively crucial, or semantically dense bits that define how stories are remembered.
September 3, 2025 at 1:39 AM
8/ Why does this matter?
It suggests memory is not just shaped by boundaries but also by informative highlights — the emotionally rich, narratively crucial, or semantically dense bits that define how stories are remembered.
It suggests memory is not just shaped by boundaries but also by informative highlights — the emotionally rich, narratively crucial, or semantically dense bits that define how stories are remembered.
7/ Together, these results suggest:
Experience is compressed into a subset of meaningful moments. Key moments are partly distinct from event boundaries.
They organize both comprehension and memory reinstatement.
Experience is compressed into a subset of meaningful moments. Key moments are partly distinct from event boundaries.
They organize both comprehension and memory reinstatement.
September 3, 2025 at 1:39 AM
7/ Together, these results suggest:
Experience is compressed into a subset of meaningful moments. Key moments are partly distinct from event boundaries.
They organize both comprehension and memory reinstatement.
Experience is compressed into a subset of meaningful moments. Key moments are partly distinct from event boundaries.
They organize both comprehension and memory reinstatement.
6/ 🔄 During recall, the same pattern emerged.
Neural activity patterns linked to key moments dominated reinstatement in the posterior-medial cortex — showing that memory retrieval relies heavily on these compressed anchors.
Neural activity patterns linked to key moments dominated reinstatement in the posterior-medial cortex — showing that memory retrieval relies heavily on these compressed anchors.
September 3, 2025 at 1:39 AM
6/ 🔄 During recall, the same pattern emerged.
Neural activity patterns linked to key moments dominated reinstatement in the posterior-medial cortex — showing that memory retrieval relies heavily on these compressed anchors.
Neural activity patterns linked to key moments dominated reinstatement in the posterior-medial cortex — showing that memory retrieval relies heavily on these compressed anchors.
5/ 🧠 Next, we turned to fMRI data.
When participants viewed the same movie, brain activity in the Default Mode Network (DMN) synchronized strongly at key moments.
This suggests these moments anchor shared representations of the underlying experience across people.
When participants viewed the same movie, brain activity in the Default Mode Network (DMN) synchronized strongly at key moments.
This suggests these moments anchor shared representations of the underlying experience across people.
September 3, 2025 at 1:39 AM
5/ 🧠 Next, we turned to fMRI data.
When participants viewed the same movie, brain activity in the Default Mode Network (DMN) synchronized strongly at key moments.
This suggests these moments anchor shared representations of the underlying experience across people.
When participants viewed the same movie, brain activity in the Default Mode Network (DMN) synchronized strongly at key moments.
This suggests these moments anchor shared representations of the underlying experience across people.
4/ Were these just event boundaries — moments when one event ends and another begins?
Not quite.
Although there was overlap between event boundaries and key moments, there was also non-overlap. Our findings suggest that they are at least somewhat different.
Not quite.
Although there was overlap between event boundaries and key moments, there was also non-overlap. Our findings suggest that they are at least somewhat different.
September 3, 2025 at 1:39 AM
4/ Were these just event boundaries — moments when one event ends and another begins?
Not quite.
Although there was overlap between event boundaries and key moments, there was also non-overlap. Our findings suggest that they are at least somewhat different.
Not quite.
Although there was overlap between event boundaries and key moments, there was also non-overlap. Our findings suggest that they are at least somewhat different.
3/ To capture key moments, we developed a storyboard paradigm:
After watching short films, participants were asked to retell the story by picking the frames that best captured what happened.
The result: people consistently agreed on which frames mattered most.
After watching short films, participants were asked to retell the story by picking the frames that best captured what happened.
The result: people consistently agreed on which frames mattered most.
September 3, 2025 at 1:39 AM
3/ To capture key moments, we developed a storyboard paradigm:
After watching short films, participants were asked to retell the story by picking the frames that best captured what happened.
The result: people consistently agreed on which frames mattered most.
After watching short films, participants were asked to retell the story by picking the frames that best captured what happened.
The result: people consistently agreed on which frames mattered most.
2/ Not all moments in life are equal. Think of a movie: you might recall the shocking twist or emotional climax, while most scenes fade away.
We set out to study these key moments: What are they? How do people agree on them? And what happens in the brain when they occur?
We set out to study these key moments: What are they? How do people agree on them? And what happens in the brain when they occur?
September 3, 2025 at 1:39 AM
2/ Not all moments in life are equal. Think of a movie: you might recall the shocking twist or emotional climax, while most scenes fade away.
We set out to study these key moments: What are they? How do people agree on them? And what happens in the brain when they occur?
We set out to study these key moments: What are they? How do people agree on them? And what happens in the brain when they occur?
September 3, 2025 at 1:39 AM