IDBR: Developing a Behavioral Acoustic Biome Measurement System

蒙大拿州立大学的罗斯·斯奈德和加州大学圣地亚哥分校的科里·米勒获得了一项奖项，以开发一种新的声学和行为记录系统，用于研究野生小型哺乳动物通信网络的持续动态。交流是一种生理上的需要。没有沟通的能力，个体之间的互动是不可能的。为此，物种进化出复杂的通信系统，为它们提供一系列信号，向其他个体传递有意义的信息。目前对通信机制的大部分了解来自于涉及信号产生者和信号接收者的相对简单的相互作用。毫无疑问，这仍然是交流的核心组成部分，但对人类和非人类动物的一系列研究表明，交流往往要复杂得多。通信并不局限于二元对，而是经常涉及动态网络中的多个个体。调查这些通信网络的一个重要限制是方法。传统的方法可能不足以记录野外多个个体之间持续的声音互动。该项目旨在通过开发一种新型的基于项圈的记录系统来解决这一限制，该系统可以同时收集社会群体中多个个体的声音和行为数据。以一种非人类灵长类动物——普通狨猴为模型，这个记录系统将为了解物种典型通信网络的复杂性提供重要的见解。这个项目的跨学科性质为培训和教育提供了几个独特的机会。通过结合电气工程和有机生物学的方法，为从事该项目的研究生提供了独特的机会，不仅可以在应用各自的技术方面进行培训，还可以参与跨学科的整合。工程专业的学生将获得开发应用技术的宝贵经验，而生物学专业的学生将获得开发和实施新工具的重要性的经验。少数民族学生将在研究生和本科阶段参与该项目。此外，由于该项目专门研究交流，这是一个与人类语言相关的重要主题，因此作为生物系统中仪器开发和实施的一个例子，它为外展教育提供了一个独特的机会。将为不同年龄的学生创建一个演示，用于教室和其他教育环境。该奖项由生物基础设施部生物研究仪器开发部门和刺激竞争性研究实验项目（EPSCoR）颁发。

An award has been made to Ross Snider of Montana State University and Cory Miller of the University of California, San Diego to develop a novel acoustic and behavioral recording system for investigating the ongoing dynamics of communication networks in wild small mammals. Communication is a biological necessity. Without the ability to communication, interactions between individuals would be impossible. To this end, species evolved complex communication systems that provide them with a range of signals that function to convey meaningful information to other individuals. Much of what is currently known about the mechanisms underlying communication is derived from relatively simple interactions involving a signal producer and signal receiver. While this undoubtedly remains a core component of communication, a range of studies in human and nonhuman animals show that communication is often far more complex. Rather than being restricted to a dyadic pair, communication frequently involves multiple individuals in a dynamic network. A significant constraint on investigating these communication networks is methodological. Traditional methods may be inadequate for recording the ongoing vocal interactions of multiple individuals in the wild. This project seeks to address this limitation by developing a novel collar-based recording system that allows the simultaneous acoustic and behavioral data collection on multiple individuals in a social group. Using a species of nonhuman primates, the common marmoset, as a model, this recording system will provide significant insight into the complexities of species-typical communication networks.The interdisciplinary nature of this project provides several unique opportunities for training and education. By combining methods from electrical engineering and organismal biology, the graduate students working on the project are afforded the unique opportunity to not only be trained in applying the respective techniques but to be involved in integrating across the disciplines. Engineering students will gain valuable experience with developing applicable technologies, while the biology students will gain experience in the significance of developing and implementing novel tools. Minority students will participate in this project at both the graduate and undergraduate levels. Furthermore, as this project deals specifically with communication - a topic of significance when related to human language - it provides a unique opportunity for outreach education as an example of instrumentation development and implementation in a biological system. A demonstration for students of multiple ages will be created to use in classrooms and other educational settings. This award is made through the Instrument Development for Biological research in the Division of Biological Infrastructure, and through the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR).