<P> Brain imaging has also revealed that working memory functions are not limited to the PFC . A review of numerous studies shows areas of activation during working memory tasks scattered over a large part of the cortex . There is a tendency for spatial tasks to recruit more right - hemisphere areas, and for verbal and object working memory to recruit more left - hemisphere areas . The activation during verbal working memory tasks can be broken down into one component reflecting maintenance, in the left posterior parietal cortex, and a component reflecting subvocal rehearsal, in the left frontal cortex (Broca's area, known to be involved in speech production). </P> <P> There is an emerging consensus that most working memory tasks recruit a network of PFC and parietal areas . A study has shown that during a working memory task the connectivity between these areas increases . Another study has demonstrated that these areas are necessary for working memory, and not simply activated accidentally during working memory tasks, by temporarily blocking them through transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), thereby producing an impairment in task performance . </P> <P> A current debate concerns the function of these brain areas . The PFC has been found to be active in a variety of tasks that require executive functions . This has led some researchers to argue that the role of PFC in working memory is in controlling attention, selecting strategies, and manipulating information in working memory, but not in maintenance of information . The maintenance function is attributed to more posterior areas of the brain, including the parietal cortex . Other authors interpret the activity in parietal cortex as reflecting executive functions, because the same area is also activated in other tasks requiring attention but not memory . </P> <P> A 2003 meta - analysis of 60 neuroimaging studies found left frontal cortex was involved in low - task demand verbal working memory and right frontal cortex for spatial working memory . Brodmann's areas (BAs) 6, 8, and 9, in the superior frontal cortex was involved when working memory must be continuously updated and when memory for temporal order had to be maintained . Right Brodmann 10 and 47 in the ventral frontal cortex were involved more frequently with demand for manipulation such as dual - task requirements or mental operations, and Brodmann 7 in the posterior parietal cortex was also involved in all types of executive function . </P>

Where is working memory stored in the brain