How is the identification of these thoughts accomplished? A computer analyzes the pattern of activity recorded in several regions of the brain. The team looks at whether the right or left hemisphere of the brain becomes more active. One type of thought will cause much more overall activity than another.

Machine learning: Classification

Explanation:Machine learning and pattern recognition algorithms have in the past years developed to become a working horse in brain imaging and the computational neurosciences, as they are instrumental for mining vast amounts of neural data of ever increasing measurement precision and detecting minuscule signals from an overwhelming noise floor. They provide the means to decode and characterize task relevant brain states