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，交流信号是我们这个星球上动物多样性最显著的特征之一。需要回答的一个基本问题是，复杂的通信信号是在什么条件下产生的？为了解决这个问题，一系列的实验将在中美洲雨林的两种居民身上进行，tungara蛙和它的捕食者，吃青蛙的蝙蝠。雄性通加拉蛙在雨林嘈杂的背景下发出声音，试图吸引配偶。在发声的同时，青蛙也会在喉咙里膨胀一个大囊，在它们周围产生一连串的水波。这些实验将研究雌蛙寻找配偶或蝙蝠寻找食物时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普遍假设是，动物信号中的附加信息总是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载并降低决策绩效。本研究将探讨在何种条件下，添加的信息会提高或降低动物交流信号的效率。该项目还将包括对未来科学家的培训，从本科生到博士后研究人员。此外，从项目中获得的知识将通过大学和小学的学生培训以及通过博物馆展览向公众宣传来传播。动物行为学的一个基本问题是，动物如何利用可获得的信息来指导适应性行为？在行为生态学中，通常有一个隐含的假设，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，破坏信号检测和决策。研究人员先前的研究结果已经清楚地表明，雄性通加拉蛙的求偶信息与雌性蛙或它的捕食者——食蛙蝙蝠——这两个接受者的反应并不是线性相关的。为了回答“信息是否越多越好”这个问题，将在日益复杂的多模态背景噪声条件下进行一系列回放实验。这些实验噪声水平将模仿环境中自然发生的可变噪声水平。将评估两种接受者（雌性青蛙和蝙蝠捕食者）对回放呼叫的表现（决策准确性和延迟），为理解动物在复杂世界中如何做出决策做出重要贡献。这将是第一个明确对比在环境中添加信息会导致表现增强或接受者认知超载的假设的研究。这项研究的一个附加价值是，它将提供两个截然不同的物种的信息，这两个物种有着根本不同的感觉系统和认知能力。这将增强解释的通用性，为不同的认知系统如何处理环境噪声提供见解。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值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.