Understanding the neural processes underlying the comprehension of visual images and sentences remains a major open challenge in cognitive neuroscience. We previously demonstrated with fMRI and DTI that comprehension of visual images and sentences describing human activities recruits a common extended parietal-temporal-frontal semantic system. The current research tests the hypothesis that this common semantic system will display similar ERP profiles during processing in these two modalities, providing further support for the common comprehension system. We recorded EEG from naïve subjects as they saw simple narratives made up of a first visual image depicting a human event, followed by a second image that was either a sequentially coherent narrative follow-up, or not, of the first. Incoherent second stimuli depict the same agents but shifted into a different situation. In separate blocks of trials the same protocol was presented using narrative sentence stimuli. Part of the novelty is the comparison of sentence and visual narrative responses. ERPs revealed common neural profiles for narrative processing across image and sentence modalities in the form of early and late central and frontal positivities in response to narrative incoherence. There was an additional posterior positivity only for sentences in a very late window. These results are discussed in the context of ERP signatures of narrative processing and meaning, and a current model of narrative comprehension.

理解视觉图像和句子理解背后的神经过程仍然是认知神经科学中的一个重大开放挑战。我们之前用 fMRI 和 DTI 证明了对描述人类活动的视觉图像和句子的理解会招募一个共同的扩展顶叶 - 颞叶 - 额叶语义系统。目前的研究检验了这样一种假设，即该通用语义系统在这两种方式的处理过程中将显示相似的 ERP 配置文件，为通用理解系统提供进一步的支持。我们记录了来自天真的受试者的脑电图，因为他们看到了由描绘人类事件的第一幅视觉图像组成的简单叙述，然后是第二幅图像，该图像要么是连续连贯的叙事后续，要么不是第一幅。不连贯的第二刺激描绘了相同的代理，但转移到了不同​​的情况。在不同的试验块中，使用叙述句刺激呈现相同的协议。部分新颖之处在于句子和视觉叙事反应的比较。ERP 揭示了跨图像和句子模式的叙事处理的常见神经特征，以早期和晚期中央和正面积极的形式响应叙事不连贯。只有在非常晚的窗口中的句子才有额外的后验积极性。这些结果在叙事处理和意义的 ERP 特征以及叙事理解的当前模型的背景下进行了讨论。部分新颖之处在于句子和视觉叙事反应的比较。ERP 揭示了跨图像和句子模式的叙事处理的常见神经特征，以早期和晚期中央和正面积极的形式响应叙事不连贯。只有在非常晚的窗口中的句子才有额外的后验积极性。这些结果在叙事处理和意义的 ERP 特征以及叙事理解的当前模型的背景下进行了讨论。部分新颖之处在于句子和视觉叙事反应的比较。ERP 揭示了跨图像和句子模式的叙事处理的常见神经特征，以早期和晚期中央和正面积极的形式响应叙事不连贯。只有在非常晚的窗口中的句子才有额外的后验积极性。这些结果在叙事处理和意义的 ERP 特征以及叙事理解的当前模型的背景下进行了讨论。