Abstract: We present experimental and anatomical data from a case study of impaired auditory perception following bilateral hemispheric strokes. To consider the cortical representation of sensory, perceptual, and cognitive functions mediating tonal information processing in music, pure tone sensation thresholds, spectral intonation judgments, and the associative priming of spectral intonation judgments by harmonic context were examined, and lesion localization was analyzed quantitatively using straight-line two-dimensional maps of the cortical surface reconstructed from magnetic resonance images. Despite normal pure tone sensation thresholds at 250--8000 Hz, the perception of tonal spectra was severely impaired, such that harmonic structures (major triads) were almost uniformly judged to sound dissonant; yet, the associative priming of spectral intonation judgments by harmonic context was preserved, indicating that cognitive representations of tonal hierarchies in music remained intact and accessible. Brainprints demonstrated complete bilateral lesions of the transverse gyri of Heschl and partial lesions of the right and left superior temporal gyri involving 98 and 20% of their surface areas, respectively. In the right hemisphere, there was partial sparing of the planum temporale, temporoparietal junction, and inferior parietal cortex. In the left hemisphere, all of the superior temporal region anterior to the transverse gyrus and parts of the planum temporale, temporoparietal junction, inferior parietal cortex, and insula were spared. These observations suggest that (1) sensory, perceptual, and cognitive functions mediating tonal information processing in music are neurologically dissociable; (2) complete bilateral lesions of primary auditory cortex combined with partial bilateral lesions of auditory association cortex chronically impair tonal consonance perception; (3) cognitive functions that hierarchically structure pitch information and generate harmonic expectancies during music perception do not rely on the integrity of primary auditory cortex; and (4) musical priming may be mediated by broadly tuned subcomponents of the thala-mocortical auditory system.

Abstract: Duplex perception has been interpreted as revealing distinct systems for general auditory perception and speech perception. The systems yield distinct experiences of the same acoustic signal, the one conforming to the acoustic structure itself and the other to its source in vocal-tract activity. However, this interpretation has not been tested by examining whether duplex perception can be obtained for nonspeech sounds that are not plausibly perceived by a specialized system. In five experiments, we replicate some of the phenomena associated with duplex perception of speech using the sound of a slamming door. Similarities between subjects' responses to syllables and door sounds are striking enough to suggest that some conclusions in the speech literature should be tempered that (a) duplex perception is special to sounds for which there are perceptual modules and (b) duplex perception occurs because distinct systems have rendered different percepts of the same acoustic signal.

Abstract: : Neurophysiological experiments have been directed at gaining an understanding of how auditory neurons encode pitch related information in the temporal properties of discharge. In general, all physiological neuronal types recorded to date in the chinchilla cochlear nuclea can show periodicities in their discharges that are related to the pitch of harmonic tone complexes, but only those neurons that show phase-locking at best frequency can encode the pitch related information in cost + rippled noise. The results of binaural psychophysical experiments suggest (1) that spectrally synthetic binaural processing is the rule when the number of components in the tone complex are relatively few (less than 10) and there are no dynamic binaural cues to aid segregation of the target from the background, and (2) that waveforms having large effective envelope depths are on the average more easily lateralized than those having small effective envelope depths.

Abstract: Part 1 An introduction to the auditory cortex. Part 2 Tools for studying the auditory cortex: microelectrode recording technique classical methods for neuronal and fibre staining methods for tracing the connections of neurones functional anatomy. Part 3 Basic features of the organization of the subcortical auditory pathway: the physiology of the cochlea physiology of cochlear nerve afferents the organization of the brain stem auditory pathways parallel processing in the auditory brain stem the response properties of collicular neurones projecting axons into the thalamocortical auditory system the preservation of parallel processing channels in the auditory thalamus. Part 4 The representation of the cochlea in the cerebral cortex: auditory cortical areas in primates auditory fields in non-primate mammals functional aspects of tonotopic organization. Part 5 Connectionns of the auditory cortex: ascending connections inter-hemispheric connections intra-hemispheric connections efferent projections. Part 6 The internal organization of the auditory cortex: the layers of the auditory cortex and their neuronal composition laminar organization of pathways related to the AI synaptic actions on AI neurones of different input pathways columnar organization of the AI. Part 7 Physiological response properties of neurones in the auditory cortex: response patterns to simple acoustic stimuli influence of the stimulus intensity on response rate frequency response characteristics effects of time-varying acoustic features auditory cortical units and "natural" sounds. Part 8 Binaural physiology of the primary auditory complex: the responses of cortical neurones to binaural stimuli presented dichotically responses to free-field stimuli organization of binaural neurones across the auditory cortex the AI and sound localization behaviour. Part 9 The development of the auditory cortex: maturation of auditory cortical structure maturation of discharge characteristics adaptability of the mature auditory cortex. Part 10 Cortical deafness: unilateral lesions of the auditory cortex bilateral lesions of the auditory cortex bilateral temporal lobe lesions in humans the cortex and language production the relationship between electrical activity and human perception. Part 11 Horizons.

Abstract: Speakers change the level of their voice when they listen to noise or hear their own speech amplified: When noise level is increased the voice becomes louder, whilst the response to speech amplification is a reduction of voice level. The question posed here is whether, when the level of various sounds concurrent with vocalisation is raised, the direction of the vocal level response is like that to the speaker's speech or like that to noise. Voice level was measured in response to speech, white noise, delayed auditory feedback, frequency-shifted speech, and noise created by an "Edinburgh masker". Selection of these sounds was governed by the role they have played in the explanation and treatment of stuttering. Fluent speakers and stutterers increased voice level when played delayed auditory feedback, the Edinburgh masker, or white noise; they reduced the level slightly in the remaining conditions. These results are used to assess auditory feedback monitoring accounts of the speech behavior of fluent speakers and stutterers, and some implications for the treatment of stuttering are pointed out.

Abstract: Neonates demonstrated two-stimulus auditory operant discrimination by altering nonnutritive sucking patterns during an 18-min session. Discriminative stimuli were two isolated, repeated syllables, and reinforcers were a recording of mother's adult-directed speech and quiet. During the final 6 min, 16 of 20 subjects ( M age = 55 hours) initiated bursts of sucking relatively more frequently during the syllable which signalled the availability of the recording of mother's voice versus quiet. In addition to providing new evidence of newborn speech perception and learning capacities, the results suggest a useful method for investigating neonatal auditory perception.

Abstract: We mapped the topographic distribution of auditory responses in the posterior cerebellar vermis of the cat under barbiturate anesthesia. Auditory neurons in the granule cell layer of lobules VI and VII appeared to be arranged in columns perpendicular to the surface of the cerebellar cell layers. Mapping the surface of the cerebellum, auditory responses were found as separated patches of the order of a square millimeter. Neurons on these patches responded to auditory stimuli but neurons between patches did not respond to sound. In decerebrated cats, the entire granule cell layer within the cerebellar auditory area responded to acoustic stimulation without a patchy pattern. Responses to tonal stimuli from single neurons in the granule cell layer were studied before and after the induction of barbiturate anesthesia. Some neurons showed no change in their responses to sound before and under barbiturate. But other neurons showed dramatically attenuated responses or essentially stopped responding as a result of barbiturate anesthesia. These results suggest that there may be two types of granule cells distinguishable in their auditory responses and therefore possibly in function.

Abstract: Basic sciences physical properties of sound nature of sound complex tones phenomena linked to the propagation of sound psychoacoustics auditory sensitivity subjective characteristics of auditory perception differential sensitivity masking binaural hearing phenomena linked to loudness anatomy of the ear physiology of hearing physiology of balance techniques for hearing assessment (Part contents).

Abstract: Stimuli in many visual stimulus control studies typically are presented simultaneously; in contrast the stimuli in auditory discrimination studies are presented successively. Many everyday auditory stimuli that control responding occur simultaneously. This suggests that simultaneous auditory discriminations should be readily acquired. The purpose of the present experiment was to train rats in a simultaneous auditory discrimination. The apparatus consisted of a cage with two response levers mounted on one wall and a speaker mounted adjacent to each lever. A feeder was mounted on the opposite wall. In a go-right/go-left procedure, two stimuli were presented on each trial, a wide-band noise burst through one speaker and a 2-kHz complex signal through the other. The stimuli alternated randomly from side to side across trials, and the stimulus correlated with reinforcement for presses varied across subjects. The rats acquired the discrimination in 400 to 700 trials, and no response position preference developed during acquisition. The ease with which the simultaneous discrimination was acquired suggests that procedures, such as matching to sample, that require simultaneous presentation of stimuli can be used with auditory stimuli in animals having poor vision.

Abstract: In order to clarify the differences between the visual and the auditory memories and the interference effect between them, a paired presentation method was developed. In this method, the subject under the experimental condition memorized two independent sequences of random digits, which were presented simultaneously digit by digit, the digits of the one sequence being presented visually and the digits of the other auditorily. After the presentation, subjects were asked to recall first either the visual or the auditory digit sequence, and then the other sequence. The subject under the control condition, on the other hand, memorized one sequence of random digits which were presented either visually or auditorily, and after recalling them memorized another sequence of random digits presented in the other modality. The results can be summarized as follows. (1) Under the experimental as well as under the control conditions, the recency effect appeared in the auditory memory task, but it did not in the visual memory task. (2) The performance for visual by presented digits under the experimental condition was lower than that under the control condition, whereas the performance for auditorily presented digits under the former was equal to that under the latter. The results presented might suggest that: (1) there are independent visual and auditory memories in the short-term memory; and (2) the memorizing of the auditory materials interferes with the memorizing of the visual one, but the latter does not interfere with the former.

Abstract: This article describes several ways to demonstrate the relation between various aspects of auditory stimulation and sensation. Simple equipment, including an oscilloscope and a sound generator, is required to hear and visualize simultaneously a variety of auditory signals. These demonstrations allow students to learn more about auditory function in particular and sensory processing in general.

Abstract: This correlational study of acutely ill geriatric patients examined (1) if psychosocial dysfunctioning is associated with hearing impairment, as popularly believed; (2) the utility of using psychosocial changes as cues for making the nursing diagnosis sensory/perceptual alterations: auditory; and (3) an alternative model of defining characteristics for predicting auditory perception using variables that have been reported in the literature as being associated with hearing loss but, to date, are not part of the approved diagnostic category. A random sample (n = 226) was drawn from daily admission lists of English-speaking patients 65 years of age or older, admitted to nonintensive care units of a medical center hospital. The major defining characteristics for sensory/perceptual alterations were operationalized as seven variables: depression, cognitive function, social contact with children, social contact with other relatives, social contact with friends, subject-reported hearing ability, and subject-reported overall health status. Auditory sensory perception was operationalized as number of tones heard on audiometric examination. Findings indicate that assessing psychosocial functions does not provide nurses with helpful cues for making the auditory alteration diagnosis. Rather results suggest that nurses can make a more accurate diagnosis merely by knowing the patient's age, self-rating of hearing, and checking ear canals for impacted cerumen.

Abstract: Reprint rcquerts. Dr Kuhl, ChzM Dpv~l (qm~nt and M~ntal Retardatzon C t n t ~ r , bt7J-10, C'nzverszg of Washzngton, SeattL, WA 98195 Communication through speech and language is an exclusively human behavior. No other animal's cornrriunicative system parallels the complexity or the flexibility that is afforded by the human language system. Chomsky (1980) argued that language is the canonical example of a sudden "emergence" or "rriutatior~" that brought fonvard a fully formed and complex ability, arld that urltil we understand how such "mutations" can occur, we will not fully comprehend the evolutionary biology of human language. Opponents of this position argue that regardless of its complexity, larig~~age evolved gr-adually from preexisting abilities, in accordance with Darwiriian principles. The substrates of language should thus be rooted in nonhuman primates. 'l'his position favors continuity in the theory of hurr~an cvolution (I.ieherman, 1984). The phonetic level of language-the consonanis and vowels that constitute human speech-affords an ideal linguistic signal with which to test hypotheses about the phylogeny and ontogeny of the human capacity for language. The perception of speech sounds can be studied in human i r ~ f a r ~ ~ s only a few hours old, well before more formal evidence of language (such as infants' first worrls) begins to appear. Cornparisons can also be made between the abilities of man and other animals to perceive speech sounds. Speech thus provides an opporturiity to investigate the nature and origins of human linguistic ability. NO-nonhuman primates are capable of human speech, in part because they lack the supralaryngeal vocal tract that is required to produce speech sounds (LieberInan, 1984). The assuniptiori made by many is that animals also have a corresponding lack in the mechanisnis involved in the puception of speech sounds. If this were so, it would provide some tangible cvidcrlce supporting human uniqueness in the ability to process linguistic (phonetic) signals. The goal of the research reviewed here was to make direct comparisons between the speech-perception capabilities of human infants and those of nonhuman animals. By examining the skills evidenced by 77

Abstract: : Intersensory (Visual/auditory) facilitation of reaction times (RTs) was examined using three different response systems: saccadic eye movements, directed manual responses (deflections of a joystick towards the target location) and simple manual responses. The data were examined in the context of race models (in which facilitation is attributed to the minimum of two random variables representing the detection times associated with the visual and auditory targets) versus neural summation coactivation models (where the facilitation is attributed to a combination of the activities within the visual and auditory channels prior to detection). The first experiment provides evidence for neural summation coactivation in all three response model. The effects of varying combinations of auditory and visual stimulus intensity were examined in the second experiment. Intensity-dependent mismatches in the auditory and visual RTs had little effect on the magnitude of the redundant targets effect, indicating that visual-auditory integration occurs over temporal intervals of at least 40 msecs. The effects of spatial correspondence (auditory and visual targets presented in spatial register or in opposite hemifields) was examined in the third experiment. Coactivation depends upon the spatial alignment of the targets for directed responses (both saccades and directed manual responses) but not simple manual RTs; evidence of coactivation of simple RTs was found for both in register and out-of-register stimuli.

Abstract: Reaction times and the relative latency evaluated by the temporal-order-judgment method for two stimuli of different modalities (visual and auditory) were measured. The difference between reaction times for visual and auditory stimuli was about 40 ms. The relative latency was slightly shorter, however; in conflict with Rutschmann and Link's (1964) previous result, the auditory stimulus must be delayed to be perceived simultaneously with the visual one.