How does the brain process continuous experiences so they can be remembered? Evidence suggests that people perceive their experience as a series of distinct and meaningful events. Information encountered within the same event shows greater temporal integration into memory as well as enhanced neural representational similarity. Although these data support the theory that the brain builds and maintains a mental model of the current event that represents recently encountered stimulus information, this hypothesis has not been directly tested. We used fMRI in humans (N = 21, 13 female) to test whether within-event neural similarity indicates the persistence of stimulus representations in a mental model. Participants viewed trial-unique visual images that were grouped into events. We calculated neural pattern similarity across time in the category-selective visual cortex to measure stimulus persistence. Pattern similarity was enhanced within, compared with between, events in the object-sensitive left lateral occipital (LO) cortex. This was specific to situations when objects could persist within a mental model, suggesting modulation of neural activity based on the features and structure of the event. Left LO object persistence was correlated with activity in a medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) region linked to representing mental models within events. mFPC activity also correlated with pattern similarity in the hippocampus but more generally across stimulus categories. Critically, left LO similarity was related to estimates of temporal proximity in memory. The data suggest that temporal neural stability reflects stimulus persistence in mental models and highlight the importance of within-event representational stability in the transformation of experience to memory.

SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT How does the brain process continuous experiences so they can be remembered? One idea is that information persists in mental models during stable events, facilitating the organization of events in memory. Using fMRI pattern similarity analysis, we found enhanced similarity within, compared with between, events in the object-sensitive LO but only when objects could persist within a mental model. mPFC activity correlated with left LO similarity when objects persisted within an event; in contrast, mPFC activity correlated with hippocampal similarity across stimulus categories. Left LO persistence was also related to the remembered temporal proximity of stimuli. The data suggest the brain dynamically maintains stimulus information in mental models during events, supporting the transformation of experience into memory.

大脑如何处理连续的经历，以便记住它们？有证据表明，人们将他们的经历视为一系列独特而有意义的事件。在同一事件中遇到的信息显示出更大的时间整合到记忆中以及增强的神经表征相似性。尽管这些数据支持大脑建立并维持代表最近遇到的刺激信息的当前事件的心理模型的理论，但该假设尚未得到直接检验。我们在人类中使用了 fMRI（N= 21, 13 女性）来测试事件内神经相似性是否表明心理模型中刺激表征的持续性。参与者查看了分组到事件中的试验独特的视觉图像。我们计算了类别选择性视觉皮层中随时间变化的神经模式相似性，以测量刺激持久性。与对象敏感的左侧枕叶 (LO) 皮层中的事件相比，模式相似性在内部得到了增强。这是特定于对象可以在心智模型中持续存在的情况，表明基于事件的特征和结构对神经活动进行调制。左 LO 对象持久性与内侧前额叶皮层 (mPFC) 区域的活动相关，该区域与代表事件中的心理模型相关。mFPC 活动也与海马体的模式相似性相关，但更普遍的是跨刺激类别。至关重要的是，左 LO 相似性与记忆中时间接近度的估计有关。数据表明，时间神经稳定性反映了心理模型中的刺激持久性，并强调了事件内表征稳定性在将经验转化为记忆中的重要性。

意义声明大脑如何处理连续的经历以便记住它们？一种想法是，在稳定事件期间，信息会持续存在于心智模型中，从而促进事件在记忆中的组织。使用 fMRI 模式相似性分析，我们发现与对象敏感 LO 中的事件之间相比，内部的相似性增强，但前提是对象可以在心智模型中持续存在。当对象在事件中持续存在时，mPFC 活动与左 LO 相似性相关；相比之下，mPFC 活动与跨刺激类别的海马相似性相关。左 LO 持久性也与记住的刺激的时间接近性有关。数据表明，在事件发生期间，大脑动态地维持心智模型中的刺激信息，支持将经验转化为记忆。