DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Mechanisms of receiver psychology in acoustic communication

人类和其他动物经常在嘈杂的社会环境中通过声音进行交流。当多个人同时发出信号时，这些环境对有效的通信提出了严重的挑战。听觉神经科学的一个基本目标是了解神经系统如何在多个竞争源存在的情况下将一个源产生的不同声音组合在一起。本研究调查了一种动物模型中的听觉分组，这种动物在大型社会群体中通过声音进行交流，并且具有独特的听觉系统。这项工作使用行为分析和神经记录来研究无尾动物（青蛙和蟾蜍）如何利用频率线索将组成交流信号的离散声音元素分组。初步研究表明，无尾猿对频率信号的使用有两种机制，一种类似于哺乳动物和鸟类，另一种源于无尾猿内耳的独特生理机能。进一步的研究将探讨这些机制在听觉系统的各个层面。人们预计，低水平的听觉系统将使用类似于在其他动物中观察到的机制，但将有两种截然不同的变化，再次反映了无尾龙耳朵独特的生理机能。在更高层次的听觉系统中，一种新的机制有望显现出来，它将频率线索与时间线索结合起来，产生动物感知状态的神经“读出”。这项研究将有助于更广泛和更普遍地了解听觉系统如何在嘈杂环境中感知声学通信信号。这些数据对于理解进化可能解决不同动物群体共同问题的方式的潜在多样性至关重要。反过来，这些基本的生物学知识有一天可能会使听力受损的人受益。该项目还将研究与本科生和研究生的培训和教学相结合，此外还将促进国际合作。

Humans and other animals often communicate acoustically in noisy social environments. These environments present serious challenges to effective communication when multiple individuals signal simultaneously. A fundamental goal of auditory neuroscience is to understand how nervous systems group together the different sounds produced by one source in the presence of multiple competing sources. This research investigates auditory grouping in an animal model that communicates acoustically in large social groups and has a unique auditory system. The work uses behavioral assays and neural recordings to study how anurans (frogs and toads) use frequency cues to group the discrete sound elements comprising communication signals. Preliminary studies suggested that use of frequency cues by anurans is supported by two mechanisms, one similar to that of mammals and birds and one resulting from the unique physiology of anuran inner ears. Further study will investigate these mechanisms at various levels of the anuran auditory system. It is expected that low levels of the auditory system will use mechanisms similar to those that have been observed in other animals, but that there will be two distinct variations, again reflecting the anuran ears' unique physiology. At higher levels of the auditory system, a new mechanism is expected to manifest which combines frequency cues with temporal cues to produce a neural "readout" of the perceptual state of the animal. This research will contribute to a broader and more general understanding of how auditory systems perceive acoustic communication signals in noisy environments. Such data are essential for understanding the potential diversity of ways that evolution may solve common problems in diverse groups of animals. This basic biological knowledge, in turn, could one day benefit people with impaired hearing. The project also integrates research with the training and teaching of undergraduate and graduate students and additionally will foster an international collaboration.