Collaborative Research: RUI: Cognitive Overload versus Enhanced Performance: Is More Information Always Better?

任何看过孔雀表演的人都可以证明，交流信号形成了我们这个星球上动物多样性的一些最显著的特征。一个需要回答的基本问题是，精心设计的通信信号是在什么条件下形成的？为了解决这个问题，将对中美洲热带雨林的两种居民--金枪蛙及其捕食者--吃青蛙的蝙蝠进行一系列实验。雄性金枪蛙在热带雨林嘈杂的背景下发出声音，试图吸引配偶。在发声的同时，青蛙还会在喉咙里充气一个大气囊，在它们周围产生一连串的水波。这些实验将研究寻找配偶的雌性青蛙或寻找食物的蝙蝠如何以及何时使用这些不同的信号成分。动物行为研究中的一个常见假设是，动物信号中的额外信息总是会提高信号接收者定位该信号者的能力。然而，在对人类的研究中，人们了解到，更多的信息会导致认知超负荷和决策能力下降。这项研究将解决增加信息提高或降低动物通信信号效率的条件。该项目还将包括对未来科学家的培训，范围从本科生到博士后研究人员。此外，从该项目中获得的知识将通过在大学和小学进行学生培训以及通过博物馆展览进行公众宣传来传播。动物行为中的一个基本问题是，动物如何利用可获得的信息来指导适应行为？在行为生态学中，经常有一种隐含的假设，即信息越多越好。然而，在人类心理物理学中，有大量证据表明，更多的信息会导致认知超载，扰乱信号检测和决策。研究人员之前的研究结果表明，雄性金枪鱼交配展示的信息与两个接收器的反应没有线性关系，这两个接收器是雌性青蛙或它的捕食者--吃青蛙的蝙蝠。为了解决“信息越多越好”的问题，将在日益复杂的多模式背景噪声条件下进行一系列回放实验。这些实验噪声级将模拟环境中自然发生的可变噪声级。将评估两个接收器(雌性青蛙和蝙蝠捕食者)对回放呼叫的性能(决策准确性和延迟)，这将对理解动物在复杂世界中如何做出决策做出关键贡献。这将是第一项明确对比假设的研究，这些假设认为，在环境中增加信息会导致接受者的表现增强或认知超负荷。这项研究的一个附加价值是，它将产生关于两个完全不同的物种的信息，它们的感觉系统和认知能力根本不同。这将增强解释的一般性，为不同的认知系统如何处理环境噪音提供洞察。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

As anyone who has seen the display of a peacock can attest, communication signals form some of the most striking features of animal diversity on our planet. A fundamental question to be answered is, under what conditions do elaborate communication signals develop? To address this, a series of experiments will be conducted on two inhabitants of the Central American rainforest, the tungara frog, and its predator, the frog-eating bat. Male tungara frogs vocalize in the noisy backdrop of the rainforest as they attempt to attract a mate. While vocalizing, the frogs also inflate a large sac in their throat which generates a cascade of water ripples surrounding them. The experiments will address how and when each of these different signal components is used by a female frog searching for a mate or a bat searching for a meal. A common assumption in studies of animal behavior is that, additional information in an animal's signal always improves the ability of signal recipients to locate that signaler. In studies on humans, however, it is understood that more information can lead to cognitive overload and degrade decision performance. This study will address the conditions under which added information improves or degrades the efficiency of animal communication signals. The project will also incorporate training of future scientists, ranging from undergraduate students to post-doctoral researchers. Further, the knowledge gained from the project will be disseminated through student training at universities and primary schools as well as public outreach through museum displays. A fundamental question in animal behavior is, how do animals utilize available information to inform adaptive behaviors? In behavioral ecology there is often the implicit assumption that more information is better. In human psychophysics, however, there is substantial evidence to show that more information can lead to cognitive overload and disrupt signal detection and decision-making. Previous results from the investigators have made it clear that information in the male tungara frog's mating display is not linearly related to the response of two receivers, the female frog or its predator, the frog-eating bat. To address the question, "is more information always better," a series of playback experiments will be conducted under conditions of increasingly complex multimodal background noise. These experimental noise levels will mimic the variable noise levels that occur naturally in the environment. The performance (decision accuracy and latency) of the two receivers (female frog and bat predator) to playback calls will be assessed, making a critical contribution to an understanding of how animal decision-making occurs in a complex world. This will be the first study to explicitly contrast hypotheses that added information in the environment leads to either enhanced performance or cognitive overload on the part of the receiver. An added value of this study is that it will yield information on two very different species, with fundamentally different sensory systems and cognitive abilities. This will enhance the generality of the interpretations, providing insights into how different cognitive systems deal with environmental noise.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.