Revealing brain network dynamics during the emotional state of suspense using TDA

Suspense is an affective state that is ubiquitous in human life, from art to quotidian events. However, little is known about the behavior of large-scale brain networks during suspenseful experiences. To address this question, we examined the continuous brain responses of participants watching a suspenseful movie, along with reported levels of suspense from an independent set of viewers. We employ sliding window analysis and Pearson correlation to measure functional connectivity states over time. Then, we use Mapper, a topological data analysis tool, to obtain a graphical representation that captures the dynamical transitions of the brain across states; this representation enables the anchoring of the topological characteristics of the combinatorial object with the measured suspense. Our analysis revealed changes in functional connectivity within and between the salience, fronto-parietal, and default networks associated with suspense. In particular, the functional connectivity between the salience and fronto-parietal networks increased with the level of suspense. In contrast, the connections of both networks with the default network decreased. Together, our findings reveal specific dynamical changes in functional connectivity at the network level associated with variation in suspense, and suggest topological data analysis as a potentially powerful tool for studying dynamic brain networks.