Default mode network
Large-scale brain network active when not focusing on an external task / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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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]
Default mode network | |
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![]() 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 |

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]