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PET scan
PET stands for Positron Emission Tomography. PET scans can be used to examine the relationship between the metabolic activity in the Brain and mental processes.A small amount of harmless radioactive material is injected into the participant which bonds to a substance such as glucose. This is called a tracer. As the Brain uses glucose as energy, the areas of the brain which are most active absorb it. The glucose is broken down but the radioactive material remains and it emits positively charged particles called positrons which are picked up by the scan. This information can be read by a computer which produces coloured images of the level of activity occurring throughout the brain. PET scanning is the most established of brain-imaging techniques, but requires massive investment.
