A study on dynamic information processing system in the hierarchical structure of the hearing sense

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A hierarchical structure of the hearing sense, which consists of auditory hardware, auditory software, and knowledge and consciousness database, is assumed in this study. Auditory hardware and software simulate the functions of the auditory periphery and the central nerves system, respectively. The aim of this study is to describe the dynamic information processing in the hierarchy.In FY1997, the dynamic information processing system was addressed. Psychoacoustical experiments were carried out in which dissimilarities among various amplitude-modulated sounds were rated by subjects. An ABS (Analysis By Synthesis) analysis revealed that the characteristics of the differential system and/or the modulation filter bank are dominant to determine the property of the hardware. As to the software, Euclidean distances among the sounds seem to be calculated for the time-frequency excitation patterns in the auditory nerves system.In FY1998, the effects of the knowledge and consciousness database on the dynamic processing were examined. Psychoacoustical experiments to evaluate environmental sounds were conducted by the method of SD under the following three conditions : (1) without any information, (2) with the verbal information on the sound sources, and (3) with the visual information. The results were analyzed by factor analysis, and the stable seven-factors were derived for each experiment in spite of the differences in the experimental conditions. On the other hand, the effects of the verbal and visual information on the perception of the sounds were shown as the drastic changes in factor scores for the sounds. Consequently, the effects of the database on the sound perception were indicated by these experiments with cross modality.