Evidence and Role of Rhythmic Organization in Early Vocal Development in Human Infants

1991 ◽  
pp. 135-149 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ray D. Kent ◽  
Pamela R. Mitchell ◽  
Michele Sancier
Keyword(s):  
Vocal Development ◽  
Human Infants ◽  
Rhythmic Organization

scholarly journals Expression of FoxP2 in the basal ganglia regulates vocal motor sequences in the adult songbird

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lei Xiao ◽  
Devin P. Merullo ◽  
Therese M. I. Koch ◽  
Mou Cao ◽  
Marissa Co ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Transcription Factor ◽  
Basal Ganglia ◽  
Dopamine Receptor ◽  
Speech Disorders ◽  
Receptor Expression ◽  
Vocal Development ◽  
Motor Actions

AbstractDisruption of the transcription factor FoxP2, which is enriched in the basal ganglia, impairs vocal development in humans and songbirds. The basal ganglia are important for the selection and sequencing of motor actions, but the circuit mechanisms governing accurate sequencing of learned vocalizations are unknown. Here, we show that expression of FoxP2 in the basal ganglia is vital for the fluent initiation and termination of birdsong, as well as the maintenance of song syllable sequencing in adulthood. Knockdown of FoxP2 imbalances dopamine receptor expression across striatal direct-like and indirect-like pathways, suggesting a role of dopaminergic signaling in regulating vocal motor sequencing. Confirming this prediction, we show that phasic dopamine activation, and not inhibition, during singing drives repetition of song syllables, thus also impairing fluent initiation and termination of birdsong. These findings demonstrate discrete circuit origins for the dysfluent repetition of vocal elements in songbirds, with implications for speech disorders.

scholarly journals Statistical learning in domestic chicks is modulated by strain and sex

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Chiara Santolin ◽  
Orsola Rosa-Salva ◽  
Bastien S. Lemaire ◽  
Lucia Regolin ◽  
Giorgio Vallortigara
Keyword(s):  
Sex Differences ◽  
Statistical Learning ◽  
Comparative Research ◽  
Learning Task ◽  
Human Infants ◽  
Sensory Inputs ◽  
Automated Tracking ◽  
Domestic Chicks ◽  
Continuous Stream

Abstract Statistical learning is a key mechanism for detecting regularities from a variety of sensory inputs. Precocial newborn domestic chicks provide an excellent model for (1) exploring unsupervised forms of statistical learning in a comparative perspective, and (2) elucidating the ecological function of statistical learning using imprinting procedures. Here we investigated the role of the sex of the chicks in modulating the direction of preference (for familiarity or novelty) in a visual statistical learning task already employed with chicks and human infants. Using both automated tracking and direct human coding, we confirmed chicks’ capacity to recognize the presence of a statistically defined structure underlying a continuous stream of shapes. Using a different chicken strain than previous studies, we were also able to highlight sex differences in chicks’ propensity to approach the familiar or novel sequence. This could also explain a previous failure to reveal statistical learning in chicks which sex was however not determined. Our study confirms chicks’ ability to track visual statistics. The pivotal role of sex in determining familiarity or novelty preferences in this species and the interaction with the animals’ strain highlight the importance to contextualize comparative research within the ecology of each species.

scholarly journals Early life manipulations of vasopressin-family peptides alter vocal learning

2017 ◽  
Vol 284 (1859) ◽  
pp. 20171114 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicole M. Baran ◽  
Samantha C. Peck ◽  
Tabitha H. Kim ◽  
Michael H. Goldstein ◽  
Elizabeth Adkins-Regan
Keyword(s):  
Vocal Learning ◽  
Young Male ◽  
Social Motivation ◽  
Arginine Vasotocin ◽  
Zebra Finches ◽  
Human Infants ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Typical Behaviour ◽  
Interactive Feedback

Vocal learning from social partners is crucial for the successful development of communication in a wide range of species. Social interactions organize attention and enhance motivation to learn species-typical behaviour. However, the neurobiological mechanisms connecting social motivation and vocal learning are unknown. Using zebra finches ( Taeniopygia guttata ), a ubiquitous model for vocal learning, we show that manipulations of nonapeptide hormones in the vasopressin family (arginine vasotocin, AVT) early in development can promote or disrupt both song and social motivation. Young male zebra finches, like human infants, are socially gregarious and require interactive feedback from adult tutors to learn mature vocal forms. To investigate the role of social motivational mechanisms in song learning, in two studies, we injected hatchling males with AVT or Manning compound (MC, a nonapeptide receptor antagonist) on days 2–8 post-hatching and recorded song at maturity. In both studies, MC males produced a worse match to tutor song than controls. In study 2, which experimentally controlled for tutor and genetic factors, AVT males also learned song significantly better compared with controls. Furthermore, song similarity correlated with several measures of social motivation throughout development. These findings provide the first evidence that nonapeptides are critical to the development of vocal learning.

scholarly journals The Implementation of the Conception of Friendship on the Basis of Comparative Structural-semantic Analysis of English and Russian Proverbs

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 301-318
Author(s):  
Tatiana G. Orlova
Keyword(s):  
Semantic Analysis ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Personal Relationships ◽  
Mutual Help ◽  
Syntactic Structures ◽  
The World ◽  
Different Origins ◽  
Rhythmic Organization ◽  
Insufficient Knowledge

The article is devoted to the study of the conception of friendship based on the results of comparative structural-semantic analysis of English and Russian proverbs about friendship. The study includes two complementary steps. The first step consists in formulating the main aspects of the conception of friendship. The second consists in comparing fragments of this proverbial field, which made it possible to explore the implementation of eight aspects of the conception of friendship on the material studied. The clarification of similarities and differences made it possible to identify the specific national and cultural characters of thinking and mentality of the two non-related peoples towards understanding of friendship. The relevance of the study is determined by the novelty of the proposed approach to the study of the conception of friendship based on the comparative structural and semantic analysis of proverbs of two linguistic-cultural ethnic groups, as well as the insufficient knowledge of proverbs expressing the concept of “friendship” from the point of view of identifying their figurative and motivational basis, figurative means (metaphor, metonymy, comparison, personification, gradation, hyperbole, irony, allegory, antithesis), semantics of lexical components, syntactic structures (repetitions, parallelism, ellipsis, compression), expressive means, as well as rhythmic organization. There were selected and systematized similar and unique meanings of English and Russian proverbs as a result of research on the material of these languages. The analysis of these meanings allowed us to explore conception of friendship, thereby providing the basis for deeper rethinking both the conception and the proverbial material. As the part of the study there were observed differences in understanding of a person, personal relationships with others, mutual help, etc. These differences are largely due to the different origins of English and Russian proverbs. Most of the English proverbs are short sayings, which were formed under the influence of Latin expressions and quotations from Bible. Most of the Russian proverbs are peasant by origin and therefore they are closely connected with a specific and imaginative perception of the world. Their expressiveness is much higher at the expense of using the means of oral folk creativity. This analysis made it possible to reveal the role of linguistic means in expressing the mentality of the representatives of both peoples.

The Emergence of Intentional Communication in Ontogeny, Phylogeny, and Pathology

1997 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 216-225 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luigia Camaioni
Keyword(s):  
Children With Autism ◽  
First Year ◽  
Gestural Communication ◽  
Human Infants ◽  
Intentional Communication ◽  
Communicative Development ◽  
Language And Social Interaction ◽  
First Year Of Life ◽  
Special Case

The emergence of intentional gestural communication around the end of the first year of life is widely recognized as a basic milestone in the infant's communicative development. Two types of comparison are carried out in this paper. The first comparison concerns the gestural communication of human infants and of our nearest primate relatives, the apes, and especially the well-studied chimpanzees. The second comparison considers a special case of gestural communication, namely children with autism, who fail to develop some important forms of communication, language, and social interaction that normal infants develop in the first 2 years of life. In seeking to explain the patterns of similarities and differences derived from these two comparisons, the possible role of several developmental processes will be considered and evaluated: social sensitivity, sensitivity to eye contact and gaze, understanding of agency, and understanding of subjectivity.

Soy-Protein Formulas: Recommendations for Use in Infant Feeding

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1983 ◽  
Vol 72 (3) ◽  
pp. 359-363
Author(s):  
Keyword(s):  
Soy Protein ◽  
Cow’S Milk ◽  
Infant Formulas ◽  
Human Infants ◽  
Term Infants ◽  
Cow's Milk ◽  
Clear Cut ◽  
Critical Issues ◽  
Milk Substitute

Many infant formulas are available as alternatives to breast-feeding. These formulas are necessary and valuable resources in the nutriture of infants, but it is important to evaluate their use and efficacy periodically. Soybean preparations were suggested as a milk substitute by Hill and Stuart1 in 1929. Since then, the use of these products has expanded appreciably, and they are used for an estimated 10% to 15% of all formula-fed infants. This increase in use has prompted examination of the following critical issues about the indications for use of soy-protein formulas in infants. (1) Are soy-protein formulas an adequate nutritional substitute for cow's milk-based formulas in full-term infants? (2) Is it appropriate to recommend soy-protein formulas to provide a lactose-free formula, or are there better alternatives? (3) Are soy-protein formulas ever indicated for use in premature infants? (4) What is the evidence for and against the use of soy-protein formulas in the management of cow's milkprotein allergy? (5) What is the role of soy-protein formulas in prophylaxis of allergic disease? (6) What is the evidence for and against the use of soy-protein formulas in the management of "colic"? Examination of these issues will hopefully, provide a more clear-cut basis for decisions regarding the use of soy-protein formulas and updated recommendations for the role of soy-protein formulas in feeding human infants. COMPOSITION OF SOY-PROTEIN FORMULAS Soy-protein formulas, although different in carbohydrate and protein source, are similar in composition to cow's milk-protein formulas following the American Academy of Pediatrics, Committee on Nutrition, 1976 recommendations for nutrient levels in infant formulas.2

SOUND IMAGE OF A CUCKOO IN INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC BY COMPOSERS OF THE XVIITH — XIXTH CENTURIES

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
pp. 130-138
Author(s):  
A. V. Limitovskaya ◽  
◽  
I. V. Alekseeva ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Acoustic Signal ◽  
Instrumental Music ◽  
Acoustic Model ◽  
Signal Source ◽  
Artistic Creation ◽  
Sound Image ◽  
Rhythmic Organization

The article presents the results of the research on musical and artistic creation of the image of one of the most striking creatures — the cuckoo. The ways to implement the peculiarities of its singing in instrumental compositions of the XVIIth – XIXth centuries are revealed and described in cultural and stylistic context. The authors analyze the role of timbre-intonational components of the bird's singing in the formation of some acoustic model, which becomes the basis for its representation by instrumental means in composer's works. The special sound pitch and rhythmic organization, together with timbre, representing the characteristics of the acoustic signal source, make it possible to recognise the cuckoo's voice in nature, while measured and repeated intonational complex becomes an absolute index-sign for perception. This research revealed that the method of artistic modeling appears to be the main one in creating the image of a cuckoo in music. A two-step falling intonational figure, which migrates in the works of composers of different styles and nationalities, becomes the invariant. Preserving its main features, it changes under the influence of the context — metrorhythmic, dynamic, agogic and other components of the text. Distinguishing the characteristic intonation in our perception, the timbre component largely determines its transformation in a musical text. The result is a wide development of timbre-intonational model.

Expression of FoxP2 in the Basal Ganglia Regulates Vocal Motor Sequences in the Adult Songbird

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lei Xiao ◽  
Devin P. Merullo ◽  
Mou Cao ◽  
Marissa Co ◽  
Ashwinikumar Kulkarni ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Transcription Factor ◽  
Basal Ganglia ◽  
Dopamine Receptor ◽  
Speech Disorders ◽  
Receptor Expression ◽  
Vocal Development ◽  
Motor Actions

SUMMARYDisruption of the transcription factor FoxP2, which is enriched in the basal ganglia, impair vocal development in humans and songbirds. The basal ganglia are essential for the selection and sequencing of motor actions, but the circuit mechanisms governing accurate sequencing of learned vocalizations are unknown. Here, we show expression of FoxP2 in the basal ganglia is vital for the fluent initiation and termination of birdsong, and the maintenance of song syllable sequencing in adulthood. Knockdown of FoxP2 imbalances dopamine receptor expression across striatal direct-like and indirect-like pathways, suggesting a role of dopaminergic signaling in regulating vocal-motor sequencing. Confirming this prediction, we show that phasic dopamine activation, and not inhibition, during singing drives repetition of song syllables, thus also impairing fluent initiation and termination of birdsong. These findings demonstrate discrete circuit origins for the dysfluent repetition of vocal elements, a phenotype commonly observed in speech disorders.

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