Music and language: Overlapping or independent systems?

这项研究将研究语言和音乐处理是否依赖于重叠或独立的机制。语言和音乐都是基于语义的交流系统，涉及根据潜在规则组织的连续声音事件。语言遵循句法和音韵规则，而西方音乐则遵循旋律组织和和谐的规则。虽然一些学者推测这两个系统依赖于相同的基本机制，但其他人则认为这两个系统是独立的。另一种观点认为，语言测试和音乐处理测试之间的联系可能是一般认知能力或人口统计变量的个体差异的结果。

The proposed research will examine whether language and music processing rely on overlapping or independent mechanisms. Language and music are both auditory-based systems of communication that involve successive sound events organized accordingly to underlying rules. Whereas language follows rules of syntax and phonology, Western music has rules of melodic organization and harmony. Although some scholars speculate that both systems rely on the same underlying mechanisms, others argue for independence. Another view holds that associations between performance on tests of language and music processing may be the consequence of individual differences in general cognitive ability or demographic variables.