This study will look at the way activity within the brain changes over time while a person is trying to think about certain everyday concepts. To measure brain activity accurately, we will be using electrodes placed on people's brains during awake brain surgery.

This study will measure the dynamics of cortical activity among early modal cortex and multimodal cortical regions during conceptual retrieval using electrocorticography. Participants will be patients undergoing awake temporal lobe craniotomies. During the surgery patients will have multiple high-density grids placed to simultaneously record activity in multiple areas while the patient is performing language tasks. Activity in each of these regions will be tested for timing differences and informational directionality to determine the temporal dynamics.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Clinically determined to require an awake left temporal resection of a brain lesion with concurrent language testing.
• English as a first language.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Significant preoperative neuropsychological deficits in memory or naming.
• Patients with inability to make decisions regarding their participation in this research project.
• Surgeon does not plan to expose the area of interest or determines that recording during the resection will interfere with his surgical plan.