(New York Times) – Many patients thought to be in vegetative or minimally conscious states may be capable of thought, researchers reported.

Teams of neurologists at six research centers asked 241 unresponsive patients to spend several minutes at a time doing complex cognitive tasks, such as imagining themselves playing tennis. Twenty-five percent of them responded with the same patterns of brain activity seen in healthy people, suggesting that they were able to think and at least somewhat aware. (Read More)