According to an article on Reuters, brain scans can predict if consumers are going to buy something or not:

When people see something they want to purchase, a portion of the brain called the nucleus accumbens “lights up” on a brain scan. If the price is too high, another region of the brain called the insula is activated and the mesial prefrontal cortex (MPFC) is deactivated, Dr. Brian Knutson of Stanford University in California and colleagues report.

Based on the activation and deactivation of these regions, Knutson and his team were able to predict whether or not people would purchase something before they were conscience of making a decision.

Cue the scary sci-fi music. —MEGHANN MARCO

Brain scans predict shoppers’ purchasing choices [Yahoo! via BoingBoing]

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