Two analytic traditions characterize fMRI language research. One relies on averaging
activations voxel-wise across individuals. This approach has limitations: because of inter-
individual variability in the locations of language areas, a location in a common brain space
cannot be meaningfully linked to function. An alternative approach relies on identifying
language areas in each individual using a functional 'localizer'. Because of its greater
sensitivity, functional resolution, and interpretability, functional localization is gaining …