The subject of the book is the grounding of architectural acoustics in psychophysics (perception,... more The subject of the book is the grounding of architectural acoustics in psychophysics (perception, listener preferences) and neuroscience (auditory function, neural correlates of perception and preference). This is the first rational-scientific approach to designing performance spaces that is based on systematic psychoacoustical observations of spatial hearing and listener preferences. Observations of the neuronal correlates of auditory qualities and listener preferences ground the theory of listener preferences in the neurophysiology of the human brain. A correlation-based model of neuronal signal processing in the central auditory system is proposed. Observed psychological and neurophysiological commonalities between auditory and visual sensations and preference patterns are presented and discussed. This book thus spans the disciplines of physics, acoustics, psychology, neurophysiology, and music production, thereby blending science and art. Temporal and spatial sensations. Temporal auditory sensations include auditory qualities such as pitch, timbre, loudness, and duration, which are modeled using features extracted from the temporal autocorrelation function (ACF) of the sound. Neuronal responses related to these qualities are mainly associated with left hemisphere auditory regions of cerebral cortex. Spatial auditory sensations include the perceived direction of sound, its apparent size (apparent source width, ASW) and its subjective diffuseness deeply related to envelopment. These spatial aspects of sound perception are extracted from the interaural crosscorrelation function (IACF), which takes into account the differences in the sounds that reach the two ears. Cortical neuronal responses related to spatial hearing are mainly associated with auditory regions in the right hemisphere. Thus, the "primary sensation" evoked by a sound in some space can be divided into two categories: temporal sensations and spatial sensations. Any other subjective responses of the source sound signal and the sound field can be described in terms of temporal and spatial factors. Part I of the book describes experimental results from basic research in acoustics, psychoacoustics, the psychology of auditory preferences, and auditory neurophysiology. Applications include optimal design of concert hall and opera house acoustics, architectural acoustics of speech intelligibility and musical expression, as well as the perception of noise and its annoyance. In Part II, temporal and spatial sensations in vision are described in terms of similar kinds of correlation-based representations. A seamless, general theory can be established for temporal and spatial aspects of vision that includes subjective preferences for visual environments. Many audio-visual analogies are drawn. A typical temporal sensation of vision is the "pitch" of a flickering light, for which the missing fundamental is perceived in a manner highly analogous to its acoustic counterpart. Visual spatial sensations include contrast, regularity and coarseness. A spatial "vibrato" in a drawing is demonstrated as an application of the theory in the visual arts. The reader is given a highly fleshed out strategy for architectural acoustical design that is grounded both in psychology and neuroscience. Few other works are as ambitious in attempting to understand and explain such a wide range of perceptual phenomena. This human-centered design approach can be applied to any design practice in which the goal is to optimize the experience of the design product by its users. The proposed theory shows how a unified science of human perceptual experience and preference might be both possible and useful.
... universe. There is also the fundamental question of whether consciousness itself is an emerge... more ... universe. There is also the fundamental question of whether consciousness itself is an emergent aspect of the universe (Broad, 1925; Clayton, 2004). If ... concieved). Page 7. Figure 2. The Robotic Action Painter of Leonel Mours. In ...
ABSTRACT: A perspective relating adaptivity and emergence is outlined. Organisms and robotic devi... more ABSTRACT: A perspective relating adaptivity and emergence is outlined. Organisms and robotic devices utilizing sensing, computing, and effecting elements with various plasticities are considered. Qualitatively distinct types of adaptivity (adaptive computations, adaptive ...
Page 1. Specialist and Generalist Strategies in Sensory Evolution Peter A. Cariani Department of ... more Page 1. Specialist and Generalist Strategies in Sensory Evolution Peter A. Cariani Department of Otology and Laryngology Harvard Medical School and Eaton Peabody Laboratory of Auditory Physiology Massachusetts Eye & Ear Infirmary 243 Charles St. ...
Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, Mar 1, 2019
Global temporal models for pitch analyze population-wide, all-order interspike interval distribut... more Global temporal models for pitch analyze population-wide, all-order interspike interval distributions of the entire auditory nerve to accurately predict almost all known F0-pitch phenomena. Population-interval distributions (PIDs) are neural representations that resemble log-frequency scaled, half-wave rectified summary autocorrelation functions (SACF) of stimuli. PIDs produced by periodic stimuli show regular patterns of lag peaks associated with subharmonics of harmonics, with major peaks at n/F0, whereas early global temporal models chose the highest PID peak to estimate one, dominant pitch, later models compared average interval-densities of different sets of F0-related PID peaks to estimate relative pitch saliences, all saliences above a threshold being audible. However, this method inherently generates octave confusions amongst related subharmonics. Using Pearson correlation coefficients between PIDs and periodicity-related lag patterns (lags at n/F0) to estimate pitch saliences obviates the octave ambiguity problem and lag-weightings. The results from recent simulations using the Zilany-Bruce-Carney ANF model to estimate the pitches heard for dyads and triads of complex harmonic tones will be presented. For triadic chords (major, minor, suspended, augmented, and diminished), the model estimates relative saliences of F0s of notes, fundamental basses, and individual harmonics). Correlation salience values indicating relative pitch strengths (pitch stabilities) generally comport with music theoretic rankings for these chords.
Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, Apr 1, 2015
Musical pitches can be perceived in broadband noise stimuli near frequencies corresponding to par... more Musical pitches can be perceived in broadband noise stimuli near frequencies corresponding to parameter changes along the frequency dimension. For example, monaural edge pitches (MEPs) are produced by noise stimuli with sharp spectral edges. Binaural edge pitches (BEPs) are produced by dichotic noise with interaural-phase changes at frequency boundaries (e.g., 0-pi), and binaural-coherence edge pitches (BICEPs) arise from boundaries between frequency regions with different interaural coherence (such as changes from correlated to uncorrelated noises). Perceived pitches are shifted slightly in frequency away from spectral edges: MEPs are shifted into noise bands, BICEPs are shifted into the incoherent region, and BEPs are shifted bimodally. This presentation proposes a temporal model for these edge pitches based on population-wide all-order interspike interval distributions (summary autocorrelations, SACFs), computed using the Zilany-Bruce-Carney 2014 model of the auditory nerve. Pitches were estimated from mean SACF values among lags at all F0-subharmonics (0–30 ms). Binaural pitches were estimated from computations based on corresponding left and right PSTs after a binaural delay and cancellation process. Model predictions agreed well with pitch judgments in both monaural and binaural cases. [Work supported by NIDCD (R01 DC00100 and P30 DC004663) and by AFOSR FA9550-11-1-0101.]
My commentary criticizes Kravchenko’s objections to Barbieri’s biosemiotic theory. Because Kravch... more My commentary criticizes Kravchenko’s objections to Barbieri’s biosemiotic theory. Because Kravchenko holds that concepts of signs, codes, and languages should be applied only to humans, his …
The subject of the book is the grounding of architectural acoustics in psychophysics (perception,... more The subject of the book is the grounding of architectural acoustics in psychophysics (perception, listener preferences) and neuroscience (auditory function, neural correlates of perception and preference). This is the first rational-scientific approach to designing performance spaces that is based on systematic psychoacoustical observations of spatial hearing and listener preferences. Observations of the neuronal correlates of auditory qualities and listener preferences ground the theory of listener preferences in the neurophysiology of the human brain. A correlation-based model of neuronal signal processing in the central auditory system is proposed. Observed psychological and neurophysiological commonalities between auditory and visual sensations and preference patterns are presented and discussed. This book thus spans the disciplines of physics, acoustics, psychology, neurophysiology, and music production, thereby blending science and art. Temporal and spatial sensations. Temporal auditory sensations include auditory qualities such as pitch, timbre, loudness, and duration, which are modeled using features extracted from the temporal autocorrelation function (ACF) of the sound. Neuronal responses related to these qualities are mainly associated with left hemisphere auditory regions of cerebral cortex. Spatial auditory sensations include the perceived direction of sound, its apparent size (apparent source width, ASW) and its subjective diffuseness deeply related to envelopment. These spatial aspects of sound perception are extracted from the interaural crosscorrelation function (IACF), which takes into account the differences in the sounds that reach the two ears. Cortical neuronal responses related to spatial hearing are mainly associated with auditory regions in the right hemisphere. Thus, the "primary sensation" evoked by a sound in some space can be divided into two categories: temporal sensations and spatial sensations. Any other subjective responses of the source sound signal and the sound field can be described in terms of temporal and spatial factors. Part I of the book describes experimental results from basic research in acoustics, psychoacoustics, the psychology of auditory preferences, and auditory neurophysiology. Applications include optimal design of concert hall and opera house acoustics, architectural acoustics of speech intelligibility and musical expression, as well as the perception of noise and its annoyance. In Part II, temporal and spatial sensations in vision are described in terms of similar kinds of correlation-based representations. A seamless, general theory can be established for temporal and spatial aspects of vision that includes subjective preferences for visual environments. Many audio-visual analogies are drawn. A typical temporal sensation of vision is the "pitch" of a flickering light, for which the missing fundamental is perceived in a manner highly analogous to its acoustic counterpart. Visual spatial sensations include contrast, regularity and coarseness. A spatial "vibrato" in a drawing is demonstrated as an application of the theory in the visual arts. The reader is given a highly fleshed out strategy for architectural acoustical design that is grounded both in psychology and neuroscience. Few other works are as ambitious in attempting to understand and explain such a wide range of perceptual phenomena. This human-centered design approach can be applied to any design practice in which the goal is to optimize the experience of the design product by its users. The proposed theory shows how a unified science of human perceptual experience and preference might be both possible and useful.
... universe. There is also the fundamental question of whether consciousness itself is an emerge... more ... universe. There is also the fundamental question of whether consciousness itself is an emergent aspect of the universe (Broad, 1925; Clayton, 2004). If ... concieved). Page 7. Figure 2. The Robotic Action Painter of Leonel Mours. In ...
ABSTRACT: A perspective relating adaptivity and emergence is outlined. Organisms and robotic devi... more ABSTRACT: A perspective relating adaptivity and emergence is outlined. Organisms and robotic devices utilizing sensing, computing, and effecting elements with various plasticities are considered. Qualitatively distinct types of adaptivity (adaptive computations, adaptive ...
Page 1. Specialist and Generalist Strategies in Sensory Evolution Peter A. Cariani Department of ... more Page 1. Specialist and Generalist Strategies in Sensory Evolution Peter A. Cariani Department of Otology and Laryngology Harvard Medical School and Eaton Peabody Laboratory of Auditory Physiology Massachusetts Eye & Ear Infirmary 243 Charles St. ...
Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, Mar 1, 2019
Global temporal models for pitch analyze population-wide, all-order interspike interval distribut... more Global temporal models for pitch analyze population-wide, all-order interspike interval distributions of the entire auditory nerve to accurately predict almost all known F0-pitch phenomena. Population-interval distributions (PIDs) are neural representations that resemble log-frequency scaled, half-wave rectified summary autocorrelation functions (SACF) of stimuli. PIDs produced by periodic stimuli show regular patterns of lag peaks associated with subharmonics of harmonics, with major peaks at n/F0, whereas early global temporal models chose the highest PID peak to estimate one, dominant pitch, later models compared average interval-densities of different sets of F0-related PID peaks to estimate relative pitch saliences, all saliences above a threshold being audible. However, this method inherently generates octave confusions amongst related subharmonics. Using Pearson correlation coefficients between PIDs and periodicity-related lag patterns (lags at n/F0) to estimate pitch saliences obviates the octave ambiguity problem and lag-weightings. The results from recent simulations using the Zilany-Bruce-Carney ANF model to estimate the pitches heard for dyads and triads of complex harmonic tones will be presented. For triadic chords (major, minor, suspended, augmented, and diminished), the model estimates relative saliences of F0s of notes, fundamental basses, and individual harmonics). Correlation salience values indicating relative pitch strengths (pitch stabilities) generally comport with music theoretic rankings for these chords.
Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, Apr 1, 2015
Musical pitches can be perceived in broadband noise stimuli near frequencies corresponding to par... more Musical pitches can be perceived in broadband noise stimuli near frequencies corresponding to parameter changes along the frequency dimension. For example, monaural edge pitches (MEPs) are produced by noise stimuli with sharp spectral edges. Binaural edge pitches (BEPs) are produced by dichotic noise with interaural-phase changes at frequency boundaries (e.g., 0-pi), and binaural-coherence edge pitches (BICEPs) arise from boundaries between frequency regions with different interaural coherence (such as changes from correlated to uncorrelated noises). Perceived pitches are shifted slightly in frequency away from spectral edges: MEPs are shifted into noise bands, BICEPs are shifted into the incoherent region, and BEPs are shifted bimodally. This presentation proposes a temporal model for these edge pitches based on population-wide all-order interspike interval distributions (summary autocorrelations, SACFs), computed using the Zilany-Bruce-Carney 2014 model of the auditory nerve. Pitches were estimated from mean SACF values among lags at all F0-subharmonics (0–30 ms). Binaural pitches were estimated from computations based on corresponding left and right PSTs after a binaural delay and cancellation process. Model predictions agreed well with pitch judgments in both monaural and binaural cases. [Work supported by NIDCD (R01 DC00100 and P30 DC004663) and by AFOSR FA9550-11-1-0101.]
My commentary criticizes Kravchenko’s objections to Barbieri’s biosemiotic theory. Because Kravch... more My commentary criticizes Kravchenko’s objections to Barbieri’s biosemiotic theory. Because Kravchenko holds that concepts of signs, codes, and languages should be applied only to humans, his …
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