Behavioral and neural correlates of vowel length in German and of its interaction with the tense/lax contrast

该项目研究了德语元音长度与德语元音系统中紧张度区分的行为和神经相关关系。在项目的第一部分，元音长度是研究在自己的权利与[aj和[aa]之间的区别。在其他语言的相关实验之后，我们想首先记录对这种区别的分类感知。此外，我们希望在两个神经生理学实验中使用MEG研究长元音额外长度单位的神经相关性。在项目的第二部分，研究了元音长度与紧张/松弛区分的相互作用。正在调查的问题是，长度或紧张是关键（潜在）特征，而另一个是次要（衍生）的。为此，我们提出了一种新的实验设计，在两个维度的长度和张力中使用二维声学连续矩阵。我们期望，范畴边界在这个矩阵中运行的方式将提供明确的证据，说明长度还是紧张在感知上更具决定性。这将在行为实验和脑磁图实验中进行测试。

This project investigates behavioral and neural correlates of German vowel length, in interaction with the tenseness distinction in the German vowel system. In the first part of the project vowel length is investigated in its own right with the distinction between [aj and [aa]. Following up on related experiments in other languages, we want to first document categorical perception of this distinction. Further, we want to study the neural correlates of the additional length unit of the long vowel using MEG in two neurophysiological experiments. In the second part of the project the interaction of vowel length with the tense/lax distinction is investigated. The question under investigation is whether length or tenseness is the crucial (underlying) feature relative to which the other is secondary (derived) in stressed positions. For this purpose, we propose a new experimental design that employs a two-dimensional matrix of acoustic continua in the two dimensions length and tenseness. We expect that the way in which the category-boundary runs through this matrix will provide clear evidence as to whether length or tenseness is perceptually more decisive. This will be tested both in a behavioral experiment and in an MEG experiment.