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Sample records for finch song response

  1. Song decrystallization in adult zebra finches does not require the song nucleus NIf.

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    Roy, Arani; Mooney, Richard

    2009-08-01

    In adult male zebra finches, transecting the vocal nerve causes previously stable (i.e., crystallized) song to slowly degrade, presumably because of the resulting distortion in auditory feedback. How and where distorted feedback interacts with song motor networks to induce this process of song decrystallization remains unknown. The song premotor nucleus HVC is a potential site where auditory feedback signals could interact with song motor commands. Although the forebrain nucleus interface of the nidopallium (NIf) appears to be the primary auditory input to HVC, NIf lesions made in adult zebra finches do not trigger song decrystallization. One possibility is that NIf lesions do not interfere with song maintenance, but do compromise the adult zebra finch's ability to express renewed vocal plasticity in response to feedback perturbations. To test this idea, we bilaterally lesioned NIf and then transected the vocal nerve in adult male zebra finches. We found that bilateral NIf lesions did not prevent nerve section-induced song decrystallization. To test the extent to which the NIf lesions disrupted auditory processing in the song system, we made in vivo extracellular recordings in HVC and a downstream anterior forebrain pathway (AFP) in NIf-lesioned birds. We found strong and selective auditory responses to the playback of the birds' own song persisted in HVC and the AFP following NIf lesions. These findings suggest that auditory inputs to the song system other than NIf, such as the caudal mesopallium, could act as a source of auditory feedback signals to the song motor network.

  2. Drinking songs: alcohol effects on learned song of zebra finches.

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    Christopher R Olson

    Full Text Available Speech impairment is one of the most intriguing and least understood effects of alcohol on cognitive function, largely due to the lack of data on alcohol effects on vocalizations in the context of an appropriate experimental model organism. Zebra finches, a representative songbird and a premier model for understanding the neurobiology of vocal production and learning, learn song in a manner analogous to how humans learn speech. Here we show that when allowed access, finches readily drink alcohol, increase their blood ethanol concentrations (BEC significantly, and sing a song with altered acoustic structure. The most pronounced effects were decreased amplitude and increased entropy, the latter likely reflecting a disruption in the birds' ability to maintain the spectral structure of song under alcohol. Furthermore, specific syllables, which have distinct acoustic structures, were differentially influenced by alcohol, likely reflecting a diversity in the neural mechanisms required for their production. Remarkably, these effects on vocalizations occurred without overt effects on general behavioral measures, and importantly, they occurred within a range of BEC that can be considered risky for humans. Our results suggest that the variable effects of alcohol on finch song reflect differential alcohol sensitivity of the brain circuitry elements that control different aspects of song production. They also point to finches as an informative model for understanding how alcohol affects the neuronal circuits that control the production of learned motor behaviors.

  3. "Bird Song Metronomics": Isochronous Organization of Zebra Finch Song Rhythm.

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    Norton, Philipp; Scharff, Constance

    2016-01-01

    The human capacity for speech and vocal music depends on vocal imitation. Songbirds, in contrast to non-human primates, share this vocal production learning with humans. The process through which birds and humans learn many of their vocalizations as well as the underlying neural system exhibit a number of striking parallels and have been widely researched. In contrast, rhythm, a key feature of language, and music, has received surprisingly little attention in songbirds. Investigating temporal periodicity in bird song has the potential to inform the relationship between neural mechanisms and behavioral output and can also provide insight into the biology and evolution of musicality. Here we present a method to analyze birdsong for an underlying rhythmic regularity. Using the intervals from one note onset to the next as input, we found for each bird an isochronous sequence of time stamps, a "signal-derived pulse," or pulse(S), of which a subset aligned with all note onsets of the bird's song. Fourier analysis corroborated these results. To determine whether this finding was just a byproduct of the duration of notes and intervals typical for zebra finches but not dependent on the individual duration of elements and the sequence in which they are sung, we compared natural songs to models of artificial songs. Note onsets of natural song deviated from the pulse(S) significantly less than those of artificial songs with randomized note and gap durations. Thus, male zebra finch song has the regularity required for a listener to extract a perceived pulse (pulse(P)), as yet untested. Strikingly, in our study, pulses(S) that best fit note onsets often also coincided with the transitions between sub-note elements within complex notes, corresponding to neuromuscular gestures. Gesture durations often equaled one or more pulse(S) periods. This suggests that gesture duration constitutes the basic element of the temporal hierarchy of zebra finch song rhythm, an interesting parallel

  4. “Bird Song Metronomics”: Isochronous Organization of Zebra Finch Song Rhythm

    Science.gov (United States)

    Norton, Philipp; Scharff, Constance

    2016-01-01

    The human capacity for speech and vocal music depends on vocal imitation. Songbirds, in contrast to non-human primates, share this vocal production learning with humans. The process through which birds and humans learn many of their vocalizations as well as the underlying neural system exhibit a number of striking parallels and have been widely researched. In contrast, rhythm, a key feature of language, and music, has received surprisingly little attention in songbirds. Investigating temporal periodicity in bird song has the potential to inform the relationship between neural mechanisms and behavioral output and can also provide insight into the biology and evolution of musicality. Here we present a method to analyze birdsong for an underlying rhythmic regularity. Using the intervals from one note onset to the next as input, we found for each bird an isochronous sequence of time stamps, a “signal-derived pulse,” or pulseS, of which a subset aligned with all note onsets of the bird's song. Fourier analysis corroborated these results. To determine whether this finding was just a byproduct of the duration of notes and intervals typical for zebra finches but not dependent on the individual duration of elements and the sequence in which they are sung, we compared natural songs to models of artificial songs. Note onsets of natural song deviated from the pulseS significantly less than those of artificial songs with randomized note and gap durations. Thus, male zebra finch song has the regularity required for a listener to extract a perceived pulse (pulseP), as yet untested. Strikingly, in our study, pulsesS that best fit note onsets often also coincided with the transitions between sub-note elements within complex notes, corresponding to neuromuscular gestures. Gesture durations often equaled one or more pulseS periods. This suggests that gesture duration constitutes the basic element of the temporal hierarchy of zebra finch song rhythm, an interesting parallel to the

  5. Zebra finch mates use their forebrain song system in unlearned call communication.

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    Ter Maat, Andries; Trost, Lisa; Sagunsky, Hannes; Seltmann, Susanne; Gahr, Manfred

    2014-01-01

    Unlearned calls are produced by all birds whereas learned songs are only found in three avian taxa, most notably in songbirds. The neural basis for song learning and production is formed by interconnected song nuclei: the song control system. In addition to song, zebra finches produce large numbers of soft, unlearned calls, among which "stack" calls are uttered frequently. To determine unequivocally the calls produced by each member of a group, we mounted miniature wireless microphones on each zebra finch. We find that group living paired males and females communicate using bilateral stack calling. To investigate the role of the song control system in call-based male female communication, we recorded the electrical activity in a premotor nucleus of the song control system in freely behaving male birds. The unique combination of acoustic monitoring together with wireless brain recording of individual zebra finches in groups shows that the neuronal activity of the song system correlates with the production of unlearned stack calls. The results suggest that the song system evolved from a brain circuit controlling simple unlearned calls to a system capable of producing acoustically rich, learned vocalizations.

  6. Song exposure regulates known and novel microRNAs in the zebra finch auditory forebrain

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    Kim Jong H

    2011-05-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background In an important model for neuroscience, songbirds learn to discriminate songs they hear during tape-recorded playbacks, as demonstrated by song-specific habituation of both behavioral and neurogenomic responses in the auditory forebrain. We hypothesized that microRNAs (miRNAs or miRs may participate in the changing pattern of gene expression induced by song exposure. To test this, we used massively parallel Illumina sequencing to analyse small RNAs from auditory forebrain of adult zebra finches exposed to tape-recorded birdsong or silence. Results In the auditory forebrain, we identified 121 known miRNAs conserved in other vertebrates. We also identified 34 novel miRNAs that do not align to human or chicken genomes. Five conserved miRNAs showed significant and consistent changes in copy number after song exposure across three biological replications of the song-silence comparison, with two increasing (tgu-miR-25, tgu-miR-192 and three decreasing (tgu-miR-92, tgu-miR-124, tgu-miR-129-5p. We also detected a locus on the Z sex chromosome that produces three different novel miRNAs, with supporting evidence from Northern blot and TaqMan qPCR assays for differential expression in males and females and in response to song playbacks. One of these, tgu-miR-2954-3p, is predicted (by TargetScan to regulate eight song-responsive mRNAs that all have functions in cellular proliferation and neuronal differentiation. Conclusions The experience of hearing another bird singing alters the profile of miRNAs in the auditory forebrain of zebra finches. The response involves both known conserved miRNAs and novel miRNAs described so far only in the zebra finch, including a novel sex-linked, song-responsive miRNA. These results indicate that miRNAs are likely to contribute to the unique behavioural biology of learned song communication in songbirds.

  7. Estradiol and song affect female zebra finch behavior independent of dopamine in the striatum

    OpenAIRE

    Svec, Lace A.; Lookingland, Keith J.; Wade, Juli

    2009-01-01

    Female songbirds display preferences for certain song characteristics, but the neural and hormonal mechanisms mediating these preferences are not fully clear. The present study sought to further explore the role of estradiol, as well as assess potential roles of dopaminergic systems, on behavioral responses to song. Adult female zebra finches were treated with estradiol and exposed to tutored or untutored song or silence. Behavior was quantified and neurochemistry of the nucleus accumbens and...

  8. Altered auditory BOLD response to conspecific birdsong in zebra finches with stuttered syllables.

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    Henning U Voss

    2010-12-01

    Full Text Available How well a songbird learns a song appears to depend on the formation of a robust auditory template of its tutor's song. Using functional magnetic resonance neuroimaging we examine auditory responses in two groups of zebra finches that differ in the type of song they sing after being tutored by birds producing stuttering-like syllable repetitions in their songs. We find that birds that learn to produce the stuttered syntax show attenuated blood oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD responses to tutor's song, and more pronounced responses to conspecific song primarily in the auditory area field L of the avian forebrain, when compared to birds that produce normal song. These findings are consistent with the presence of a sensory song template critical for song learning in auditory areas of the zebra finch forebrain. In addition, they suggest a relationship between an altered response related to familiarity and/or saliency of song stimuli and the production of variant songs with stuttered syllables.

  9. Song tutoring in presinging zebra finch juveniles biases a small population of higher-order song-selective neurons toward the tutor song.

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    Adret, Patrice; Meliza, C Daniel; Margoliash, Daniel

    2012-10-01

    We explored physiological changes correlated with song tutoring by recording the responses of caudal nidopallium neurons of zebra finches aged P21-P24 (days post hatching) to a broad spectrum of natural and synthetic stimuli. Those birds raised with their fathers tended to show behavioral evidence of song memorization but not of singing; thus auditory responses were not confounded by the birds' own vocalizations. In study 1, 37 of 158 neurons (23%) in 17 of 22 tutored and untutored birds were selective for only 1 of 10 stimuli comprising broadband signals, early juvenile songs and calls, female calls, and adult songs. Approximately 30% of the selective neurons (12/37 neurons in 9 birds) were selective for adult conspecific songs. All these were found in the song system nuclei HVC and paraHVC. Of 122 neurons (17 birds) in tutored birds, all of the conspecific song-selective neurons (8 neurons in 6 birds) were selective for the adult tutor song; none was selective for unfamiliar song. In study 2 with a different sampling strategy, we found that 11 of 12 song-selective neurons in 6 of 7 birds preferred the tutor song; none preferred unfamiliar or familiar conspecific songs. Most of these neurons were found in caudal lateral nidopallium (NCL) below HVC. Thus by the time a bird begins to sing, there are small numbers of tutor song-selective neurons distributed in several forebrain regions. We hypothesize that a small population of higher-order auditory neurons is innately selective for complex features of behaviorally relevant stimuli and these responses are modified by specific perceptual/social experience during development.

  10. Metabolic and respiratory costs of increasing song amplitude in zebra finches.

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    Sue Anne Zollinger

    Full Text Available Bird song is a widely used model in the study of animal communication and sexual selection, and several song features have been shown to reflect the quality of the singer. Recent studies have demonstrated that song amplitude may be an honest signal of current condition in males and that females prefer high amplitude songs. In addition, birds raise the amplitude of their songs to communicate in noisy environments. Although it is generally assumed that louder song should be more costly to produce, there has been little empirical evidence to support this assumption. We tested the assumption by measuring oxygen consumption and respiratory patterns in adult male zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata singing at different amplitudes in different background noise conditions. As background noise levels increased, birds significantly increased the sound pressure level of their songs. We found that louder songs required significantly greater subsyringeal air sac pressure than quieter songs. Though increased pressure is probably achieved by increasing respiratory muscle activity, these increases did not correlate with measurable increases in oxygen consumption. In addition, we found that oxygen consumption increased in higher background noise, independent of singing behaviour. This observation supports previous research in mammals showing that high levels of environmental noise can induce physiological stress responses. While our study did not find that increasing vocal amplitude increased metabolic costs, further research is needed to determine whether there are other non-metabolic costs of singing louder or costs associated with chronic noise exposure.

  11. Food for Song: Expression of C-Fos and ZENK in the Zebra Finch Song Nuclei during Food Aversion Learning

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    Tokarev, Kirill; Tiunova, Anna

    2011-01-01

    Background Specialized neural pathways, the song system, are required for acquiring, producing, and perceiving learned avian vocalizations. Birds that do not learn to produce their vocalizations lack telencephalic song system components. It is not known whether the song system forebrain regions are exclusively evolved for song or whether they also process information not related to song that might reflect their ‘evolutionary history’. Methodology/Principal Findings To address this question we monitored the induction of two immediate-early genes (IEGs) c-Fos and ZENK in various regions of the song system in zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) in response to an aversive food learning paradigm; this involves the association of a food item with a noxious stimulus that affects the oropharyngeal-esophageal cavity and tongue, causing subsequent avoidance of that food item. The motor response results in beak and head movements but not vocalizations. IEGs have been extensively used to map neuro-molecular correlates of song motor production and auditory processing. As previously reported, neurons in two pallial vocal motor regions, HVC and RA, expressed IEGs after singing. Surprisingly, c-Fos was induced equivalently also after food aversion learning in the absence of singing. The density of c-Fos positive neurons was significantly higher than that of birds in control conditions. This was not the case in two other pallial song nuclei important for vocal plasticity, LMAN and Area X, although singing did induce IEGs in these structures, as reported previously. Conclusions/Significance Our results are consistent with the possibility that some of the song nuclei may participate in non-vocal learning and the populations of neurons involved in the two tasks show partial overlap. These findings underscore the previously advanced notion that the specialized forebrain pre-motor nuclei controlling song evolved from circuits involved in behaviors related to feeding. PMID:21695176

  12. Blocking estradiol synthesis affects memory for songs in auditory forebrain of male zebra finches.

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    Yoder, Kathleen M; Lu, Kai; Vicario, David S

    2012-11-14

    Estradiol (E2) has recently been shown to modulate sensory processing in an auditory area of the songbird forebrain, the caudomedial nidopallium (NCM). When a bird hears conspecific song, E2 increases locally in NCM, where neurons express both the aromatase enzyme that synthesizes E2 from precursors and estrogen receptors. Auditory responses in NCM show a form of neuronal memory: repeated playback of the unique learned vocalizations of conspecific individuals induces long-lasting stimulus-specific adaptation of neural responses to each vocalization. To test the role of E2 in this auditory memory, we treated adult male zebra finches (n=16) with either the aromatase inhibitor fadrozole (FAD) or saline for 8 days. We then exposed them to 'training' songs and, 6 h later, recorded multiunit auditory responses with an array of 16 microelectrodes in NCM. Adaptation rates (a measure of stimulus-specific adaptation) to playbacks of training and novel songs were computed, using established methods, to provide a measure of neuronal memory. Recordings from the FAD-treated birds showed a significantly reduced memory for the training songs compared with saline-treated controls, whereas auditory processing for novel songs did not differ between treatment groups. In addition, FAD did not change the response bias in favor of conspecific over heterospecific song stimuli. Our results show that E2 depletion affects the neuronal memory for vocalizations in songbird NCM, and suggest that E2 plays a necessary role in auditory processing and memory for communication signals.

  13. Syringeal specialization of frequency control during song production in the Bengalese finch (Lonchura striata domestica.

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    Kristen R Secora

    Full Text Available Singing in songbirds is a complex, learned behavior which shares many parallels with human speech. The avian vocal organ (syrinx has two potential sound sources, and each sound generator is under unilateral, ipsilateral neural control. Different songbird species vary in their use of bilateral or unilateral phonation (lateralized sound production and rapid switching between left and right sound generation (interhemispheric switching of motor control. Bengalese finches (Lonchura striata domestica have received considerable attention, because they rapidly modify their song in response to manipulations of auditory feedback. However, how the left and right sides of the syrinx contribute to acoustic control of song has not been studied.Three manipulations of lateralized syringeal control of sound production were conducted. First, unilateral syringeal muscular control was eliminated by resection of the left or right tracheosyringeal portion of the hypoglossal nerve, which provides neuromuscular innervation of the syrinx. Spectral and temporal features of song were compared before and after lateralized nerve injury. In a second experiment, either the left or right sound source was devoiced to confirm the role of each sound generator in the control of acoustic phonology. Third, air pressure was recorded before and after unilateral denervation to enable quantification of acoustic change within individual syllables following lateralized nerve resection.These experiments demonstrate that the left sound source produces louder, higher frequency, lower entropy sounds, and the right sound generator produces lower amplitude, lower frequency, higher entropy sounds. The bilateral division of labor is complex and the frequency specialization is the opposite pattern observed in most songbirds. Further, there is evidence for rapid interhemispheric switching during song production. Lateralized control of song production in Bengalese finches may enhance acoustic

  14. Using Digital Images of the Zebra Finch Song System as a Tool to Teach Organizational Effects of Steroid Hormones: A Free Downloadable Module

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    Grisham, William; Schottler, Natalie A.; Beck McCauley, Lisa M.; Pham, Anh P.; Ruiz, Maureen L.; Fong, Michelle C.; Cui, Xinran

    2011-01-01

    Zebra finch song behavior is sexually dimorphic: males sing and females do not. The neural system underlying this behavior is sexually dimorphic, and this sex difference is easy to quantify. During development, the zebra finch song system can be altered by steroid hormones, specifically estradiol, which actually masculinizes it. Because of the…

  15. Sexual dimorphism in song-induced ZENK expression in the medial striatum of juvenile zebra finches

    OpenAIRE

    Bailey, David J.; Wade, Juli

    2006-01-01

    In the brains of male zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata), the nuclei that direct song learning and production are larger than the corresponding regions in females, who do not sing. The dimorphism in Area X of the medial striatum (MSt), an area important for song learning, is even more dramatic in that it is identifiable in males but not females by Nissl stain. In the present study, conspecific song, but not other auditory stimuli, induced expression of the immediate early gene ZENK in the MS...

  16. Social interaction with a tutor modulates responsiveness of specific auditory neurons in juvenile zebra finches.

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    Yanagihara, Shin; Yazaki-Sugiyama, Yoko

    2018-04-12

    Behavioral states of animals, such as observing the behavior of a conspecific, modify signal perception and/or sensations that influence state-dependent higher cognitive behavior, such as learning. Recent studies have shown that neuronal responsiveness to sensory signals is modified when animals are engaged in social interactions with others or in locomotor activities. However, how these changes produce state-dependent differences in higher cognitive function is still largely unknown. Zebra finches, which have served as the premier songbird model, learn to sing from early auditory experiences with tutors. They also learn from playback of recorded songs however, learning can be greatly improved when song models are provided through social communication with tutors (Eales, 1989; Chen et al., 2016). Recently we found a subset of neurons in the higher-level auditory cortex of juvenile zebra finches that exhibit highly selective auditory responses to the tutor song after song learning, suggesting an auditory memory trace of the tutor song (Yanagihara and Yazaki-Sugiyama, 2016). Here we show that auditory responses of these selective neurons became greater when juveniles were paired with their tutors, while responses of non-selective neurons did not change. These results suggest that social interaction modulates cortical activity and might function in state-dependent song learning. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  17. Bird brains and songs : Neural mechanisms of auditory memory and perception in zebra finches

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Gobes, S.M.H.|info:eu-repo/dai/nl/304832669

    2009-01-01

    Songbirds, such as zebra finches, learn their songs from a ‘tutor’ (usually the father), early in life. There are strong parallels between the behavioural, cognitive and neural processes that underlie vocal learning in humans and songbirds. In both cases there is a sensitive period for auditory

  18. Estradiol induces region-specific inhibition of ZENK but does not affect the behavioral preference for tutored song in adult female zebra finches

    OpenAIRE

    Svec, Lace A.; Wade, Juli

    2008-01-01

    Female zebra finches display a preference for songs of males raised with tutors compared to those from males without tutors. To determine howthis behavioral preference may bemediated by auditory perception sites, the social behavior network, and the dopamine reward system, and whether responses of these regions are affected by estradiol, females were treated with hormone or blank implants.An auditory choice test was conducted followed by exposure to tutored or untutored song or silence to exa...

  19. A daily oscillation in the fundamental frequency and amplitude of harmonic syllables of zebra finch song.

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    William E Wood

    Full Text Available Complex motor skills are more difficult to perform at certain points in the day (for example, shortly after waking, but the daily trajectory of motor-skill error is more difficult to predict. By undertaking a quantitative analysis of the fundamental frequency (FF and amplitude of hundreds of zebra finch syllables per animal per day, we find that zebra finch song follows a previously undescribed daily oscillation. The FF and amplitude of harmonic syllables rises across the morning, reaching a peak near mid-day, and then falls again in the late afternoon until sleep. This oscillation, although somewhat variable, is consistent across days and across animals and does not require serotonin, as animals with serotonergic lesions maintained daily oscillations. We hypothesize that this oscillation is driven by underlying physiological factors which could be shared with other taxa. Song production in zebra finches is a model system for studying complex learned behavior because of the ease of gathering comprehensive behavioral data and the tractability of the underlying neural circuitry. The daily oscillation that we describe promises to reveal new insights into how time of day affects the ability to accomplish a variety of complex learned motor skills.

  20. Cannabinoid exposure during zebra finch sensorimotor vocal learning persistently alters expression of endocannabinoid signaling elements and acute agonist responsiveness

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    Lichtman Aron H

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Previously we have found that cannabinoid treatment of zebra finches during sensorimotor stages of vocal development alters song patterns produced in adulthood. Such persistently altered behavior must be attributable to changes in physiological substrates responsible for song. We are currently working to identify the nature of such physiological changes, and to understand how they contribute to altered vocal learning. One possibility is that developmental agonist exposure results in altered expression of elements of endocannabinoid signaling systems. To test this hypothesis we have studied effects of the potent cannabinoid receptor agonist WIN55212-2 (WIN on endocannabinoid levels and densities of CB1 immunostaining in zebra finch brain. Results We found that late postnatal WIN treatment caused a long-term global disregulation of both levels of the endocannabinoid, 2-arachidonyl glycerol (2-AG and densities of CB1 immunostaining across brain regions, while repeated cannabinoid treatment in adults produced few long-term changes in the endogenous cannabinoid system. Conclusions Our findings indicate that the zebra finch endocannabinoid system is particularly sensitive to exogenous agonist exposure during the critical period of song learning and provide insight into susceptible brain areas.

  1. Mate call as reward: Acoustic communication signals can acquire positive reinforcing values during adulthood in female zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata).

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    Hernandez, Alexandra M; Perez, Emilie C; Mulard, Hervé; Mathevon, Nicolas; Vignal, Clémentine

    2016-02-01

    Social stimuli can have rewarding properties and promote learning. In birds, conspecific vocalizations like song can act as a reinforcer, and specific song variants can acquire particular rewarding values during early life exposure. Here we ask if, during adulthood, an acoustic signal simpler and shorter than song can become a reward for a female songbird because of its particular social value. Using an operant choice apparatus, we showed that female zebra finches display a preferential response toward their mate's calls. This reinforcing value of mate's calls could be involved in the maintenance of the monogamous pair-bond of the zebra finch. (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

  2. Vocal Communication: Decoding Sexy Songs.

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    Gahr, Manfred

    2018-04-02

    Male birds communicate sexual motivation via song performance, and receiving females might eventually respond to such 'ornaments'. A new study now shows that female zebra finches have a specialized higher order sensory (forebrain) region that preferably responds to the males' mating songs. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. Sexually dimorphic expression of the genes encoding ribosomal proteins L17 and L37 in the song control nuclei of juvenile zebra finches.

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    Tang, Yu Ping; Wade, Juli

    2006-12-18

    Studies evaluating the role of steroid hormones in sexual differentiation of the zebra finch song system have produced complicated and at times paradoxical results, and indicate that additional factors may be critical. Therefore, in a previous study we initiated a screen for differential gene expression in the telencephalon of developing male and female zebra finches. The use of cDNA microarrays and real-time quantitative PCR revealed increased expression of the genes encoding ribosomal proteins L17 and L37 (RPL17 and RPL37) in the male forebrain as a whole. Preliminary in situ hybridization data then indicated enhanced expression of both these genes in song control regions. Two experiments in the present study quantified the mRNA expression. The first utilized 25-day-old male and female zebra finches. The second compared a separate set of juveniles to adults of both sexes to both re-confirm enhanced expression in juvenile males and to determine whether it is limited to developing animals. In Experiment 1, males exhibited increased expression of both RPL17 and RPL37 compared to females in Area X, the robust nucleus of the arcopallium (RA), and the ventral ventricular zone (VVZ), which may provide neurons to Area X. Experiment 2 replicated the sexually dimorphic expression of these genes at post-hatching day 25, and documented that the sex differences are eliminated or greatly reduced in adults. The results are consistent with the idea that these ribosomal proteins may influence sexual differentiation of Area X and RA, potentially regulating the genesis and/or survival of neurons.

  4. Growth and atrophy of neurons labeled at their birth in a song nucleus of the zebra finch

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Konishi, M.; Akutagawa, E.

    1990-01-01

    The robust nucleus of the archistriatum (RA) is one of the forebrain nuclei that control song production in birds. In the zebra finch (Poephila guttata), this nucleus contains more and larger neurons in the male than in the female. A single injection of tritiated thymidine into the egg on the 6th or 7th day of incubation resulted in labeling of many RA neurons with tritium. The size of tritium-labeled neurons and the tissue volume containing them did not differ between the sexes at 15 days after hatching. In the adult brain, tritium-labeled neurons and the tissue volume containing them were much larger in the male than in the female. Also, tritium-labeled RA neurons were large in females which received an implant of estrogen immediately after hatching. The gender differences in the neuron size and nuclear volume of the zebra finch RA are, therefore, due not to the replacement of old neurons by new ones during development but to the growth and atrophy of neurons born before hatching. Similarly, the masculinizing effects of estrogen on the female RA are due not to neuronal replacement but to the prevention of atrophy and promotion of growth in preexisting neurons

  5. Castration modulates singing patterns and electrophysiological properties of RA projection neurons in adult male zebra finches

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    Songhua Wang

    2014-04-01

    Full Text Available Castration can change levels of plasma testosterone. Androgens such as testosterone play an important role in stabilizing birdsong. The robust nucleus of the arcopallium (RA is an important premotor nucleus critical for singing. In this study, we investigated the effect of castration on singing patterns and electrophysiological properties of projection neurons (PNs in the RA of adult male zebra finches. Adult male zebra finches were castrated and the changes in bird song assessed. We also recorded the electrophysiological changes from RA PNs using patch clamp recording. We found that the plasma levels of testosterone were significantly decreased, song syllable’s entropy was increased and the similarity of motif was decreased after castration. Spontaneous and evoked firing rates, membrane time constants, and membrane capacitance of RA PNs in the castration group were lower than those of the control and the sham groups. Afterhyperpolarization AHP time to peak of spontaneous action potential (AP was prolonged after castration.These findings suggest that castration decreases song stereotypy and excitability of RA PNs in male zebra finches.

  6. A sensorimotor area in the songbird brain is required for production of vocalizations in the song learning period of development.

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    Piristine, Hande C; Choetso, Tenzin; Gobes, Sharon M H

    2016-11-01

    Sensory feedback is essential for acquiring and maintaining complex motor behaviors, including birdsong. In zebra finches, auditory feedback reaches the song control circuits primarily through the nucleus interfacialis nidopalii (Nif), which provides excitatory input to HVC (proper name)-a premotor region essential for the production of learned vocalizations. Despite being one of the major inputs to the song control pathway, the role of Nif in generating vocalizations is not well understood. To address this, we transiently inactivated Nif in late juvenile zebra finches. Upon Nif inactivation (in both hemispheres or on one side only), birds went from singing stereotyped zebra finch song to uttering highly variable and unstructured vocalizations resembling sub-song, an early juvenile song form driven by a basal ganglia circuit. Simultaneously inactivating Nif and LMAN (lateral magnocellular nucleus of the anterior nidopallium), the output nucleus of a basal ganglia circuit, inhibited song production altogether. These results suggest that Nif is required for generating the premotor drive for song. Permanent Nif lesions, in contrast, have only transient effects on vocal production, with song recovering within a day. The sensorimotor nucleus Nif thus produces a premotor drive to the motor pathway that is acutely required for generating learned vocalizations, but once permanently removed, the song system can compensate for its absence. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Develop Neurobiol 76: 1213-1225, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  7. Sex- and age-related differences in ribosomal proteins L17 and L37, as well as androgen receptor protein, in the song control system of zebra finches.

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    Tang, Y P; Wade, J

    2010-12-29

    The zebra finch song system is sexually dimorphic--only males sing, and the morphology of forebrain regions controlling the learning and production of this song is greatly enhanced in males compared to females. Masculinization appears to involve effects of steroid hormones as well as other factors, perhaps including the expression of sex chromosome genes (males: ZZ, females: ZW). The present study investigated three proteins--two encoded by Z-linked genes, ribosomal proteins L17 and L37 (RPL17 and RPL37), including their co-localization with androgen receptor (AR), from post-hatching day 25 to adulthood. Extensive co-expression of AR with the ribosomal proteins was detected in the three song nuclei investigated (HVC, robust nucleus of the arcopallium (RA), and Area X) across these ages. In general, more cells expressed each of these proteins in males compared to females, and the sex differences increased as animals matured. Specific patterns differed across regions and between RPL17 and RPL37, which suggest potential roles of one or both of these proteins in the incorporation and/or differentiation of song system cells. Copyright © 2010 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  8. Exploring vocal recovery after cranial nerve injury in Bengalese finches.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Urbano, Catherine M; Peterson, Jennifer R; Cooper, Brenton G

    2013-02-08

    Songbirds and humans use auditory feedback to acquire and maintain their vocalizations. The Bengalese finch (Lonchura striata domestica) is a songbird species that rapidly modifies its vocal output to adhere to an internal song memory. In this species, the left side of the bipartite vocal organ is specialized for producing louder, higher frequencies (≥2.2kHz) and denervation of the left vocal muscles eliminates these notes. Thus, the return of higher frequency notes after cranial nerve injury can be used as a measure of vocal recovery. Either the left or right side of the syrinx was denervated by resection of the tracheosyringeal portion of the hypoglossal nerve. Histologic analyses of syringeal muscle tissue showed significant muscle atrophy in the denervated side. After left nerve resection, songs were mainly composed of lower frequency syllables, but three out of five birds recovered higher frequency syllables. Right nerve resection minimally affected phonology, but it did change song syntax; syllable sequence became abnormally stereotyped after right nerve resection. Therefore, damage to the neuromuscular control of sound production resulted in reduced motor variability, and Bengalese finches are a potential model for functional vocal recovery following cranial nerve injury. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. Reward and vocal production: song-associated place preference in songbirds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Riters, Lauren V; Stevenson, Sharon A

    2012-05-15

    Vocal production is crucial for successful social interactions in multiple species. Reward can strongly influence behavior; however, the extent to which reward systems influence vocal behavior is unknown. In songbirds, singing occurs in different contexts. It can be spontaneous and undirected (e.g., song produced alone or as part of a large flock) or directed towards a conspecific (e.g., song used to attract a mate or influence a competitor). In this study, we developed a conditioned place preference paradigm to measure reward associated with different types of singing behavior in two songbird species. Both male zebra finches and European starlings developed a preference for a chamber associated with production of undirected song, suggesting that the production of undirected song is tightly coupled to intrinsic reward. In contrast, neither starlings nor zebra finches developed a place preference in association with directed song; however, male starlings singing directed song that failed to attract a female developed a place aversion. Unsuccessful contact calling behavior was also associated with a place aversion. These findings suggest that directed vocal behavior is not tightly linked to intrinsic reward but may be externally reinforced by social interactions. Data across two species thus support the hypothesis that the production of undirected but not directed song is tightly coupled to intrinsic reward. This study is the first to identify song-associated reward and suggests that reward associated with vocal production differs depending upon the context in which communication occurs. The findings have implications for understanding what motivates animals to engage in social behaviors and ways in which distinct reward mechanisms function to direct socially appropriate behaviors. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  10. How the songbird brain listens to its own songs

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hahnloser, Richard

    2010-03-01

    Songbirds are capable of vocal learning and communication and are ideally suited to the study of neural mechanisms of auditory feedback processing. When a songbird is deafened in the early sensorimotor phase after tutoring, it fails to imitate the song of its tutor and develops a highly aberrant song. It is also known that birds are capable of storing a long-term memory of tutor song and that they need intact auditory feedback to match their own vocalizations to the tutor's song. Based on these behavioral observations, we investigate feedback processing in single auditory forebrain neurons of juvenile zebra finches that are in a late developmental stage of song learning. We implant birds with miniature motorized microdrives that allow us to record the electrical activity of single neurons while birds are freely moving and singing in their cages. Occasionally, we deliver a brief sound through a loudspeaker to perturb the auditory feedback the bird experiences during singing. These acoustic perturbations of auditory feedback reveal complex sensitivity that cannot be predicted from passive playback responses. Some neurons are highly feedback sensitive in that they respond vigorously to song perturbations, but not to unperturbed songs or perturbed playback. These findings suggest that a computational function of forebrain auditory areas may be to detect errors between actual feedback and mirrored feedback deriving from an internal model of the bird's own song or that of its tutor.

  11. Social context-induced song variation affects female behavior and gene expression.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sarah C Woolley

    2008-03-01

    Full Text Available Social cues modulate the performance of communicative behaviors in a range of species, including humans, and such changes can make the communication signal more salient. In songbirds, males use song to attract females, and song organization can differ depending on the audience to which a male sings. For example, male zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata change their songs in subtle ways when singing to a female (directed song compared with when they sing in isolation (undirected song, and some of these changes depend on altered neural activity from a specialized forebrain-basal ganglia circuit, the anterior forebrain pathway (AFP. In particular, variable activity in the AFP during undirected song is thought to actively enable syllable variability, whereas the lower and less-variable AFP firing during directed singing is associated with more stereotyped song. Consequently, directed song has been suggested to reflect a "performance" state, and undirected song a form of vocal motor "exploration." However, this hypothesis predicts that directed-undirected song differences, despite their subtlety, should matter to female zebra finches, which is a question that has not been investigated. We tested female preferences for this natural variation in song in a behavioral approach assay, and we found that both mated and socially naive females could discriminate between directed and undirected song-and strongly preferred directed song. These preferences, which appeared to reflect attention especially to aspects of song variability controlled by the AFP, were enhanced by experience, as they were strongest for mated females responding to their mate's directed songs. We then measured neural activity using expression of the immediate early gene product ZENK, and found that social context and song familiarity differentially modulated the number of ZENK-expressing cells in telencephalic auditory areas. Specifically, the number of ZENK-expressing cells in the

  12. Differing House Finch Cytokine Expression Responses to Original and Evolved Isolates of Mycoplasma gallisepticum.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vinkler, Michal; Leon, Ariel E; Kirkpatrick, Laila; Dalloul, Rami A; Hawley, Dana M

    2018-01-01

    The recent emergence of the poultry bacterial pathogen Mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG) in free-living house finches ( Haemorhous mexicanus ), which causes mycoplasmal conjunctivitis in this passerine bird species, resulted in a rapid coevolutionary arms-race between MG and its novel avian host. Despite extensive research on the ecological and evolutionary dynamics of this host-pathogen system over the past two decades, the immunological responses of house finches to MG infection remain poorly understood. We developed seven new probe-based one-step quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction assays to investigate mRNA expression of house finch cytokine genes ( IL1B, IL6, IL10, IL18, TGFB2, TNFSF15 , and CXCLi2 , syn. IL8L ). These assays were then used to describe cytokine transcription profiles in a panel of 15 house finch tissues collected at three distinct time points during MG infection. Based on initial screening that indicated strong pro-inflammatory cytokine expression during MG infection at the periorbital sites in particular, we selected two key house finch tissues for further characterization: the nictitating membrane, i.e., the internal eyelid in direct contact with MG, and the Harderian gland, the secondary lymphoid tissue responsible for regulation of periorbital immunity. We characterized cytokine responses in these two tissues for 60 house finches experimentally inoculated either with media alone (sham) or one of two MG isolates: the earliest known pathogen isolate from house finches (VA1994) or an evolutionarily more derived isolate collected in 2006 (NC2006), which is known to be more virulent. We show that the more derived and virulent isolate NC2006, relative to VA1994, triggers stronger local inflammatory cytokine signaling, with peak cytokine expression generally occurring 3-6 days following MG inoculation. We also found that the extent of pro-inflammatory interleukin 1 beta signaling was correlated with conjunctival MG loads

  13. Differing House Finch Cytokine Expression Responses to Original and Evolved Isolates of Mycoplasma gallisepticum

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michal Vinkler

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available The recent emergence of the poultry bacterial pathogen Mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG in free-living house finches (Haemorhous mexicanus, which causes mycoplasmal conjunctivitis in this passerine bird species, resulted in a rapid coevolutionary arms-race between MG and its novel avian host. Despite extensive research on the ecological and evolutionary dynamics of this host–pathogen system over the past two decades, the immunological responses of house finches to MG infection remain poorly understood. We developed seven new probe-based one-step quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction assays to investigate mRNA expression of house finch cytokine genes (IL1B, IL6, IL10, IL18, TGFB2, TNFSF15, and CXCLi2, syn. IL8L. These assays were then used to describe cytokine transcription profiles in a panel of 15 house finch tissues collected at three distinct time points during MG infection. Based on initial screening that indicated strong pro-inflammatory cytokine expression during MG infection at the periorbital sites in particular, we selected two key house finch tissues for further characterization: the nictitating membrane, i.e., the internal eyelid in direct contact with MG, and the Harderian gland, the secondary lymphoid tissue responsible for regulation of periorbital immunity. We characterized cytokine responses in these two tissues for 60 house finches experimentally inoculated either with media alone (sham or one of two MG isolates: the earliest known pathogen isolate from house finches (VA1994 or an evolutionarily more derived isolate collected in 2006 (NC2006, which is known to be more virulent. We show that the more derived and virulent isolate NC2006, relative to VA1994, triggers stronger local inflammatory cytokine signaling, with peak cytokine expression generally occurring 3–6 days following MG inoculation. We also found that the extent of pro-inflammatory interleukin 1 beta signaling was correlated with conjunctival

  14. Effects of estradiol on incorporation of new cells in the developing zebra finch song system: potential relationship to expression of ribosomal proteins L17 and L37.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tang, Yu Ping; Wade, Juli

    2009-06-01

    Mechanisms regulating masculinization of the zebra finch song system are unclear; both estradiol and sex-specific genes may be important. This study was designed to investigate relationships between estrogen and ribosomal proteins (RPL17 and RPL37; sex-linked genes) that exhibit greater expression in song control nuclei in juvenile males than females. Four studies on zebra finches were conducted using bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) injections on posthatching days 6-10 with immunohistochemistry for the ribosomal proteins and the neuronal marker HuC/D at day 25. Volumes of brain regions were also assessed in Nissl-stained tissue. Most BrdU+ cells expressed RPL17 and RPL37. The density and percentage of cells co-expressing BrdU and HuC/D was greatest in Area X. The density of BrdU+ cells in Area X (or its equivalent) and the percentage of these cells that were neurons were greater in males than females. In RA and HVC, total BrdU+ cells were increased in males. A variety of effects of estradiol were also detected, including inducing an Area X in females with a masculine total number of BrdU+ cells, and increasing the volume and percentage of new neurons in the HVC of females. The same manipulation in males decreased the density of BrdU+ cells in Area X, total number of BrdU+ cells in RA, and density of new neurons in HVC and RA. These data are consistent with the idea that RPL17, RPL37, and estradiol might all influence sexual differentiation, perhaps with the hormone and proteins interacting, such that an appropriate balance is required for normal development.

  15. A three-dimensional MRI atlas of the zebra finch brain in stereotaxic coordinates

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Poirier, Colline; Vellema, Michiel; Verhoye, Marleen

    2008-01-01

    of different brain areas (nuclei) involved in the sensory and motor control of song. Until now, the only published atlases of songbird brains consisted in drawings based on histological slices of the canary and of the zebra finch brain. Taking advantage of high-magnetic field (7 Tesla) MRI technique, we...

  16. FoxP2 isoforms delineate spatiotemporal transcriptional networks for vocal learning in the zebra finch

    Science.gov (United States)

    Day, Nancy F; Kimball, Todd Haswell; Aamodt, Caitlin M; Heston, Jonathan B; Hilliard, Austin T; Xiao, Xinshu; White, Stephanie A

    2018-01-01

    Human speech is one of the few examples of vocal learning among mammals yet ~half of avian species exhibit this ability. Its neurogenetic basis is largely unknown beyond a shared requirement for FoxP2 in both humans and zebra finches. We manipulated FoxP2 isoforms in Area X, a song-specific region of the avian striatopallidum analogous to human anterior striatum, during a critical period for song development. We delineate, for the first time, unique contributions of each isoform to vocal learning. Weighted gene coexpression network analysis of RNA-seq data revealed gene modules correlated to singing, learning, or vocal variability. Coexpression related to singing was found in juvenile and adult Area X whereas coexpression correlated to learning was unique to juveniles. The confluence of learning and singing coexpression in juvenile Area X may underscore molecular processes that drive vocal learning in young zebra finches and, by analogy, humans. PMID:29360038

  17. Ontogeny of adaptive antibody response to a model antigen in captive altricial zebra finches.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tess L Killpack

    Full Text Available Based on studies from the poultry literature, all birds are hypothesized to require at least 4 weeks to develop circulating mature B-cell lineages that express functionally different immunoglobulin specificities. However, many altricial passerines fledge at adult size less than four weeks after the start of embryonic development, and therefore may experience a period of susceptibility during the nestling and post-fledging periods. We present the first study, to our knowledge, to detail the age-related changes in adaptive antibody response in an altricial passerine. Using repeated vaccinations with non-infectious keyhole limpet hemocyanin (KLH antigen, we studied the ontogeny of specific adaptive immune response in altricial zebra finches Taeniopygia guttata. Nestling zebra finches were first injected at 7 days (7d, 14 days (14d, or 21 days post-hatch (21d with KLH-adjuvant emulsions, and boosted 7 days later. Adults were vaccinated in the same manner. Induced KLH-specific IgY antibodies were measured using ELISA. Comparisons within age groups revealed no significant increase in KLH-specific antibody levels between vaccination and boost in 7d birds, yet significant increases between vaccination and boost were observed in 14d, 21d, and adult groups. There was no significant difference among age groups in KLH antibody response to priming vaccination, yet KLH antibody response post-boost significantly increased with age among groups. Post-boost antibody response in all nestling age groups was significantly lower than in adults, indicating that mature adult secondary antibody response level was not achieved in zebra finches prior to fledging (21 days post-hatch in zebra finches. Findings from this study contribute fundamental knowledge to the fields of developmental immunology and ecological immunology and strengthen the utility of zebra finches as a model organism for future studies of immune ontogeny.

  18. Variation in social relationships relates to song preferences and EGR1 expression in a female songbird.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schubloom, Hannah E; Woolley, Sarah C

    2016-09-01

    Social experiences can profoundly shape social behavior and the underlying neural circuits. Across species, the formation of enduring social relationships is associated with both neural and behavioral changes. However, it remains unclear how longer-term relationships between individuals influence brain and behavior. Here, we investigated how variation in social relationships relates to variation in female preferences for and neural responses to song in a pair-bonding songbird. We assessed variation in the interactions between individuals in male-female zebra finch pairs and found that female preferences for their mate's song were correlated with the degree of affiliation and amount of socially modulated singing, but not with the frequency of aggressive interactions. Moreover, variation in measures of pair quality and preference correlated with variation in the song-induced expression of EGR1, an immediate early gene related to neural activity and plasticity, in brain regions important for auditory processing and social behavior. For example, females with weaker preferences for their mate's song had greater EGR1 expression in the nucleus Taeniae, the avian homologue of the mammalian medial amygdala, in response to playback of their mate's courtship song. Our data indicate that the quality of social interactions within pairs relates to variation in song preferences and neural responses to ethologically relevant stimuli and lend insight into neural circuits sensitive to social information. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Develop Neurobiol 76: 1029-1040, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  19. Social Memory Formation Rapidly and Differentially Affects the Motivation and Performance of Vocal Communication Signals in the Bengalese Finch (Lonchura striata var. domestica).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Toccalino, Danielle C; Sun, Herie; Sakata, Jon T

    2016-01-01

    Cognitive processes like the formation of social memories can shape the nature of social interactions between conspecifics. Male songbirds use vocal signals during courtship interactions with females, but the degree to which social memory and familiarity influences the likelihood and structure of male courtship song remains largely unknown. Using a habituation-dishabituation paradigm, we found that a single, brief (memory for that female: adult male Bengalese finches were significantly less likely to produce courtship song to an individual female when re-exposed to her 5 min later (i.e., habituation). Familiarity also rapidly decreased the duration of courtship songs but did not affect other measures of song performance (e.g., song tempo and the stereotypy of syllable structure and sequencing). Consistent with a contribution of social memory to the decrease in courtship song with repeated exposures to the same female, the likelihood that male Bengalese finches produced courtship song increased when they were exposed to a different female (i.e., dishabituation). Three consecutive exposures to individual females also led to the formation of a longer-term memory that persisted over days. Specifically, when courtship song production was assessed 2 days after initial exposures to females, males produced fewer and shorter courtship songs to familiar females than to unfamiliar females. Measures of song performance, however, were not different between courtship songs produced to familiar and unfamiliar females. The formation of a longer-term memory for individual females seemed to require at least three exposures because males did not differentially produce courtship song to unfamiliar females and females that they had been exposed to only once or twice. Taken together, these data indicate that brief exposures to individual females led to the rapid formation and persistence of social memories and support the existence of distinct mechanisms underlying the motivation to

  20. Ecoimmunity in Darwin's finches: invasive parasites trigger acquired immunity in the medium ground finch (Geospiza fortis.

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    Sarah K Huber

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Invasive parasites are a major threat to island populations of animals. Darwin's finches of the Galápagos Islands are under attack by introduced pox virus (Poxvirus avium and nest flies (Philornis downsi. We developed assays for parasite-specific antibody responses in Darwin's finches (Geospiza fortis, to test for relationships between adaptive immune responses to novel parasites and spatial-temporal variation in the occurrence of parasite pressure among G. fortis populations. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We developed enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs for the presence of antibodies in the serum of Darwin's finches specific to pox virus or Philornis proteins. We compared antibody levels between bird populations with and without evidence of pox infection (visible lesions, and among birds sampled before nesting (prior to nest-fly exposure versus during nesting (with fly exposure. Birds from the Pox-positive population had higher levels of pox-binding antibodies. Philornis-binding antibody levels were higher in birds sampled during nesting. Female birds, which occupy the nest, had higher Philornis-binding antibody levels than males. The study was limited by an inability to confirm pox exposure independent of obvious lesions. However, the lasting effects of pox infection (e.g., scarring and lost digits were expected to be reliable indicators of prior pox infection. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: This is the first demonstration, to our knowledge, of parasite-specific antibody responses to multiple classes of parasites in a wild population of birds. Darwin's finches initiated acquired immune responses to novel parasites. Our study has vital implications for invasion biology and ecological immunology. The adaptive immune response of Darwin's finches may help combat the negative effects of parasitism. Alternatively, the physiological cost of mounting such a response could outweigh any benefits, accelerating population decline. Tests

  1. Social Memory Formation Rapidly and Differentially Affects the Motivation and Performance of Vocal Communication Signals in the Bengalese Finch (Lonchura striata var. domestica)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Toccalino, Danielle C.; Sun, Herie; Sakata, Jon T.

    2016-01-01

    Cognitive processes like the formation of social memories can shape the nature of social interactions between conspecifics. Male songbirds use vocal signals during courtship interactions with females, but the degree to which social memory and familiarity influences the likelihood and structure of male courtship song remains largely unknown. Using a habituation-dishabituation paradigm, we found that a single, brief (female led to the formation of a short-term memory for that female: adult male Bengalese finches were significantly less likely to produce courtship song to an individual female when re-exposed to her 5 min later (i.e., habituation). Familiarity also rapidly decreased the duration of courtship songs but did not affect other measures of song performance (e.g., song tempo and the stereotypy of syllable structure and sequencing). Consistent with a contribution of social memory to the decrease in courtship song with repeated exposures to the same female, the likelihood that male Bengalese finches produced courtship song increased when they were exposed to a different female (i.e., dishabituation). Three consecutive exposures to individual females also led to the formation of a longer-term memory that persisted over days. Specifically, when courtship song production was assessed 2 days after initial exposures to females, males produced fewer and shorter courtship songs to familiar females than to unfamiliar females. Measures of song performance, however, were not different between courtship songs produced to familiar and unfamiliar females. The formation of a longer-term memory for individual females seemed to require at least three exposures because males did not differentially produce courtship song to unfamiliar females and females that they had been exposed to only once or twice. Taken together, these data indicate that brief exposures to individual females led to the rapid formation and persistence of social memories and support the existence of distinct

  2. Neural mechanisms of song memory formation in juvenile zebra finches

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Moorman, S.

    2015-01-01

    There are many parallels between the acquisition of spoken language in human infants and song learning in songbirds, at the behavioural, neural, genetic and cognitive levels. Both human infants and juvenile songbirds are able to imitate sounds from adults of the same species (often their parents),

  3. Multimodal signalling in estrildid finches: song, dance and colour are associated with different ecological and life-history traits.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gomes, A C R; Funghi, C; Soma, M; Sorenson, M D; Cardoso, G C

    2017-07-01

    Sexual traits (e.g. visual ornaments, acoustic signals, courtship behaviour) are often displayed together as multimodal signals. Some hypotheses predict joint evolution of different sexual signals (e.g. to increase the efficiency of communication) or that different signals trade off with each other (e.g. due to limited resources). Alternatively, multiple signals may evolve independently for different functions, or to communicate different information (multiple message hypothesis). We evaluated these hypotheses with a comparative study in the family Estrildidae, one of the largest songbird radiations, and one that includes many model species for research in sexual selection and communication. We found little evidence for either joint evolution or trade-offs between song and colour ornamentation. Some negative correlations between dance repertoire and song traits may suggest a functional compromise, but generally courtship dance also evolved independently from other signals. Instead of correlated evolution, we found that song, dance and colour are each related to different socio-ecological traits. Song complexity evolved together with ecological generalism, song performance with investment in reproduction, dance with commonness and habitat type, whereas colour ornamentation was shown previously to correlate mostly with gregariousness. We conclude that multimodal signals evolve in response to various socio-ecological traits, suggesting the accumulation of distinct signalling functions. © 2017 European Society For Evolutionary Biology. Journal of Evolutionary Biology © 2017 European Society For Evolutionary Biology.

  4. Sensorimotor nucleus NIf is necessary for auditory processing but not vocal motor output in the avian song system.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cardin, Jessica A; Raksin, Jonathan N; Schmidt, Marc F

    2005-04-01

    Sensorimotor integration in the avian song system is crucial for both learning and maintenance of song, a vocal motor behavior. Although a number of song system areas demonstrate both sensory and motor characteristics, their exact roles in auditory and premotor processing are unclear. In particular, it is unknown whether input from the forebrain nucleus interface of the nidopallium (NIf), which exhibits both sensory and premotor activity, is necessary for both auditory and premotor processing in its target, HVC. Here we show that bilateral NIf lesions result in long-term loss of HVC auditory activity but do not impair song production. NIf is thus a major source of auditory input to HVC, but an intact NIf is not necessary for motor output in adult zebra finches.

  5. Female song rates in response to simulated intruder are positively related to reproductive success.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kristal E Cain

    2015-10-01

    Full Text Available Bird song is well studied in males as a sexually selected behavior. However, although song is also common among females, it is infrequently examined and poorly understood. Research suggests that song is often used as a resource defense behavior and is important in female-female competition for limited resources, e.g. mates and territories. If so, song should be positively related to fitness and related to other resource defense behaviors, but this possibility has rarely been explored. Here we examine fitness estimates in relation to spontaneous song rates and song rates in response to a simulated intruder (playback, in the superb fairy-wren (Malurus cyaneus, a cooperatively breeding songbird. We also determine how song rates relate to other territorial defense behaviors. Song rate in response to playback, but not spontaneous song rate, was positively related to nest success and the number of fledglings produced by successful females. Further, response song rate was also correlated with other territorial defense behaviors (latency to respond and flights. This evidence supports the hypothesis that female song may be used in the context of female-female competition to improve access to limited reproductive resources, and suggests that song may provide direct fitness benefits.

  6. Sexual dimorphism in striatal dopaminergic responses promotes monogamy in social songbirds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tokarev, Kirill; Hyland Bruno, Julia; Ljubičić, Iva; Kothari, Paresh J; Helekar, Santosh A; Tchernichovski, Ofer; Voss, Henning U

    2017-08-11

    In many songbird species, males sing to attract females and repel rivals. How can gregarious, non-territorial songbirds such as zebra finches, where females have access to numerous males, sustain monogamy? We found that the dopaminergic reward circuitry of zebra finches can simultaneously promote social cohesion and breeding boundaries. Surprisingly, in unmated males but not in females, striatal dopamine neurotransmission was elevated after hearing songs. Behaviorally too, unmated males but not females persistently exchanged mild punishments in return for songs. Song reinforcement diminished when dopamine receptors were blocked. In females, we observed song reinforcement exclusively to the mate's song, although their striatal dopamine neurotransmission was only slightly elevated. These findings suggest that song-triggered dopaminergic activation serves a dual function in social songbirds: as low-threshold social reinforcement in males and as ultra-selective sexual reinforcement in females. Co-evolution of sexually dimorphic reinforcement systems can explain the coexistence of gregariousness and monogamy.

  7. Activity in a premotor cortical nucleus of zebra finches is locally organized and exhibits auditory selectivity in neurons but not in glia.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michael H Graber

    Full Text Available Motor functions are often guided by sensory experience, most convincingly illustrated by complex learned behaviors. Key to sensory guidance in motor areas may be the structural and functional organization of sensory inputs and their evoked responses. We study sensory responses in large populations of neurons and neuron-assistive cells in the songbird motor area HVC, an auditory-vocal brain area involved in sensory learning and in adult song production. HVC spike responses to auditory stimulation display remarkable preference for the bird's own song (BOS compared to other stimuli. Using two-photon calcium imaging in anesthetized zebra finches we measure the spatio-temporal structure of baseline activity and of auditory evoked responses in identified populations of HVC cells. We find strong correlations between calcium signal fluctuations in nearby cells of a given type, both in identified neurons and in astroglia. In identified HVC neurons only, auditory stimulation decorrelates ongoing calcium signals, less for BOS than for other sound stimuli. Overall, calcium transients show strong preference for BOS in identified HVC neurons but not in astroglia, showing diversity in local functional organization among identified neuron and astroglia populations.

  8. Experimental demonstration of a parasite-induced immune response in wild birds: Darwin's finches and introduced nest flies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koop, Jennifer A H; Owen, Jeb P; Knutie, Sarah A; Aguilar, Maria A; Clayton, Dale H

    2013-08-01

    Ecological immunology aims to explain variation among hosts in the strength and efficacy of immunological defenses. However, a shortcoming has been the failure to link host immune responses to actual parasites under natural conditions. Here, we present one of the first experimental demonstrations of a parasite-induced immune response in a wild bird population. The recently introduced ectoparasitic nest fly Philornis downsi severely impacts the fitness of Darwin's finches and other land birds in the Galápagos Islands. An earlier study showed that female medium ground finches (Geospiza fortis) had P. downsi-binding antibodies correlating with presumed variation in fly exposure over time. In the current study, we experimentally manipulated fly abundance to test whether the fly does, in fact, cause changes in antibody levels. We manipulated P. downsi abundance in nests and quantified P. downsi-binding antibody levels of medium ground finch mothers, fathers, and nestlings. We also quantified host behaviors, such as preening, which can integrate with antibody-mediated defenses against ectoparasites. Philornis downsi-binding antibody levels were significantly higher among mothers at parasitized nests, compared to mothers at (fumigated) nonparasitized nests. Mothers with higher antibody levels tended to have fewer parasites in their nests, suggesting that antibodies play a role in defense against parasites. Mothers showed no behavioral changes that would enhance the effectiveness of the immune response. Neither adult males, nor nestlings, had P. downsi-induced immunological or behavioral responses that would enhance defense against flies. None of the parasitized nests fledged any offspring, despite the immune response by mothers. Thus, this study shows that, while the immune response of mothers appeared to be defensive, it was not sufficient to rescue current reproductive fitness. This study further shows the importance of testing the fitness consequences of immune

  9. Sex differences in audiovisual discrimination learning by Bengalese finches (Lonchura striata var. domestica).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Seki, Yoshimasa; Okanoya, Kazuo

    2008-02-01

    Both visual and auditory information are important for songbirds, especially in developmental and sexual contexts. To investigate bimodal cognition in songbirds, the authors conducted audiovisual discrimination training in Bengalese finches. The authors used two types of stimulus: an "artificial stimulus," which is a combination of simple figures and sound, and a "biological stimulus," consisting of video images of singing males along with their songs. The authors found that while both sexes predominantly used visual cues in the discrimination tasks, males tended to be more dependent on auditory information for the biological stimulus. Female responses were always dependent on the visual stimulus for both stimulus types. Only males changed their discrimination strategy according to stimulus type. Although males used both visual and auditory cues for the biological stimulus, they responded to the artificial stimulus depending only on visual information, as the females did. These findings suggest a sex difference in innate auditory sensitivity. (c) 2008 APA.

  10. Evidence for cholinergic participation in the control of bird song; acetylcholinesterase distribution and muscarinic receptor autoradiography in the zebra finch brain

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ryan, S.M.; Arnold, A.P.

    1981-01-01

    Brain regions thought to be involved in the control of song in the zebra finch (Poephila guttata), were examined histochemically using the Karnovsky and Roots direct-coloring method for the detection of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and the autoradiographic method for the localization of muscarinic cholinergic receptors following injection of tritiated quinuclidinyl benzilate (3H QNB). All presently identified vocal control nuclei in both males and females contain AChE. These nuclei include Area X, magnocellular nucleus of the anterior neostriatum (MAN), nucleus interface (NIF), caudal nucleus of the hyperstriatum ventrale (HVc), intercollicular nucleus (ICo), nucleus uva, robust nucleus of the archistriatum (RA), and tracheosyringeal portion of the hypoglossal nerve nucleus (nXIIts). All nuclei except Area X contain mostly AChE-synthesizing cell bodies. All of these nuclei contain some AChE in the neuropil, with particularly intense staining in Area X, the surrounding LPO, and the dorsomedial portion of ICo. In agreement with this description are very high concentrations of 3H QNB in both Area X and the dorsomedial ICo. HVc also appears specifically labeled. Evidence from these two histological technique suggests that efferent projections of most vocal control area may utilize acetylcholine, and that several of the vocal control nuclei may themselves receive muscarinic cholinergic projection. In Area X, there are sex differences of AChE neuropil staining. This evidence suggesting that sexually dimorphic projections to or within Area X are cholinergic or cholinoceptive

  11. Exploring sex differences in the adult zebra finch brain: In vivo diffusion tensor imaging and ex vivo super-resolution track density imaging.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hamaide, Julie; De Groof, Geert; Van Steenkiste, Gwendolyn; Jeurissen, Ben; Van Audekerke, Johan; Naeyaert, Maarten; Van Ruijssevelt, Lisbeth; Cornil, Charlotte; Sijbers, Jan; Verhoye, Marleen; Van der Linden, Annemie

    2017-02-01

    Zebra finches are an excellent model to study the process of vocal learning, a complex socially-learned tool of communication that forms the basis of spoken human language. So far, structural investigation of the zebra finch brain has been performed ex vivo using invasive methods such as histology. These methods are highly specific, however, they strongly interfere with performing whole-brain analyses and exclude longitudinal studies aimed at establishing causal correlations between neuroplastic events and specific behavioral performances. Therefore, the aim of the current study was to implement an in vivo Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) protocol sensitive enough to detect structural sex differences in the adult zebra finch brain. Voxel-wise comparison of male and female DTI parameter maps shows clear differences in several components of the song control system (i.e. Area X surroundings, the high vocal center (HVC) and the lateral magnocellular nucleus of the anterior nidopallium (LMAN)), which corroborate previous findings and are in line with the clear behavioral difference as only males sing. Furthermore, to obtain additional insights into the 3-dimensional organization of the zebra finch brain and clarify findings obtained by the in vivo study, ex vivo DTI data of the male and female brain were acquired as well, using a recently established super-resolution reconstruction (SRR) imaging strategy. Interestingly, the SRR-DTI approach led to a marked reduction in acquisition time without interfering with the (spatial and angular) resolution and SNR which enabled to acquire a data set characterized by a 78μm isotropic resolution including 90 diffusion gradient directions within 44h of scanning time. Based on the reconstructed SRR-DTI maps, whole brain probabilistic Track Density Imaging (TDI) was performed for the purpose of super resolved track density imaging, further pushing the resolution up to 40μm isotropic. The DTI and TDI maps realized atlas

  12. The role of stimulus-specific adaptation in songbird syntax generation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wittenbach, Jason D.

    Sequential behaviors are an important part of the behavioral repertoire of many animals and understanding how neural circuits encode and generate such sequences is a long-standing question in neuroscience. The Bengalese finch is a useful model system for studying variable action sequences. The songs of these birds consist of well-defined vocal elements (syllables) that are strung together to form sequences. The ordering of the syllables within the sequence is variable but not random - it shows complex statistical patterns (syntax). While often thought to be first-order, the syntax of the Bengalese finch song shows a distinct form of history dependence where the probability of repeating a syllable decreases as a function of the number of repetitions that have already occurred. Current models of the Bengalese finch song control circuitry offer no explanation for this repetition adaptation. The Bengalese finch also uses real-time auditory feedback to control the song syntax. Considering these facts, we hypothesize that repetition adaptation in the Bengalese finch syntax may be caused by stimulus-specific adaptation - a wide-spread phenomenon where neural responses to a specific stimulus become weaker with repeated presentations of the same stimulus. We begin by proposing a computational model for the song-control circuit where an auditory feedback signal that undergoes stimulus-specific adaptation helps drive repeated syllables. We show that this model does indeed capture the repetition adaptation observed in Bengalese finch syntax; along the way, we derive a new probabilistic model for repetition adaptation. Key predictions of our model are analyzed in light of experiments performed by collaborators. Next we extend the model in order to predict how the syntax will change as a function of brain temperature. These predictions are compared to experimental results from collaborators where portions of the Bengalese finch song circuit are cooled in awake and behaving birds

  13. Expression analysis of the speech-related genes FoxP1 and FoxP2 and their relation to singing behavior in two songbird species

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Qianqian; Heston, Jonathan B.; Burkett, Zachary D.; White, Stephanie A.

    2013-01-01

    SUMMARY Humans and songbirds are among the rare animal groups that exhibit socially learned vocalizations: speech and song, respectively. These vocal-learning capacities share a reliance on audition and cortico-basal ganglia circuitry, as well as neurogenetic mechanisms. Notably, the transcription factors Forkhead box proteins 1 and 2 (FoxP1, FoxP2) exhibit similar expression patterns in the cortex and basal ganglia of humans and the zebra finch species of songbird, among other brain regions. Mutations in either gene are associated with language disorders in humans. Experimental knock-down of FoxP2 in the basal ganglia song control region Area X during song development leads to imprecise copying of tutor songs. Moreover, FoxP2 levels decrease naturally within Area X when zebra finches sing. Here, we examined neural expression patterns of FoxP1 and FoxP2 mRNA in adult Bengalese finches, a songbird species whose songs exhibit greater sequence complexity and increased reliance on audition for maintaining their quality. We found that FoxP1 and FoxP2 expression in Bengalese finches is similar to that in zebra finches, including strong mRNA signals for both factors in multiple song control nuclei and enhancement of FoxP1 in these regions relative to surrounding brain tissue. As with zebra finches, when Bengalese finches sing, FoxP2 is behaviorally downregulated within basal ganglia Area X over a similar time course, and expression negatively correlates with the amount of singing. This study confirms that in multiple songbird species, FoxP1 expression highlights song control regions, and regulation of FoxP2 is associated with motor control of song. PMID:24006346

  14. Song practice promotes acute vocal variability at a key stage of sensorimotor learning.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Julie E Miller

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Trial by trial variability during motor learning is a feature encoded by the basal ganglia of both humans and songbirds, and is important for reinforcement of optimal motor patterns, including those that produce speech and birdsong. Given the many parallels between these behaviors, songbirds provide a useful model to investigate neural mechanisms underlying vocal learning. In juvenile and adult male zebra finches, endogenous levels of FoxP2, a molecule critical for language, decrease two hours after morning song onset within area X, part of the basal ganglia-forebrain pathway dedicated to song. In juveniles, experimental 'knockdown' of area X FoxP2 results in abnormally variable song in adulthood. These findings motivated our hypothesis that low FoxP2 levels increase vocal variability, enabling vocal motor exploration in normal birds. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: After two hours in either singing or non-singing conditions (previously shown to produce differential area X FoxP2 levels, phonological and sequential features of the subsequent songs were compared across conditions in the same bird. In line with our prediction, analysis of songs sung by 75 day (75d birds revealed that syllable structure was more variable and sequence stereotypy was reduced following two hours of continuous practice compared to these features following two hours of non-singing. Similar trends in song were observed in these birds at 65d, despite higher overall within-condition variability at this age. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Together with previous work, these findings point to the importance of behaviorally-driven acute periods during song learning that allow for both refinement and reinforcement of motor patterns. Future work is aimed at testing the observation that not only does vocal practice influence expression of molecular networks, but that these networks then influence subsequent variability in these skills.

  15. Higher songs of city birds may not be an individual response to noise.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zollinger, Sue Anne; Slater, Peter J B; Nemeth, Erwin; Brumm, Henrik

    2017-08-16

    It has been observed in many songbird species that populations in noisy urban areas sing with a higher minimum frequency than do matched populations in quieter, less developed areas. However, why and how this divergence occurs is not yet understood. We experimentally tested whether chronic noise exposure during vocal learning results in songs with higher minimum frequencies in great tits ( Parus major ), the first species for which a correlation between anthropogenic noise and song frequency was observed. We also tested vocal plasticity of adult great tits in response to changing background noise levels by measuring song frequency and amplitude as we changed noise conditions. We show that noise exposure during ontogeny did not result in songs with higher minimum frequencies. In addition, we found that adult birds did not make any frequency or song usage adjustments when their background noise conditions were changed after song crystallization. These results challenge the common view of vocal adjustments by city birds, as they suggest that either noise itself is not the causal force driving the divergence of song frequency between urban and forest populations, or that noise induces population-wide changes over a time scale of several generations rather than causing changes in individual behaviour. © 2017 The Author(s).

  16. Imaging auditory representations of song and syllables in populations of sensorimotor neurons essential to vocal communication.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peh, Wendy Y X; Roberts, Todd F; Mooney, Richard

    2015-04-08

    Vocal communication depends on the coordinated activity of sensorimotor neurons important to vocal perception and production. How vocalizations are represented by spatiotemporal activity patterns in these neuronal populations remains poorly understood. Here we combined intracellular recordings and two-photon calcium imaging in anesthetized adult zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) to examine how learned birdsong and its component syllables are represented in identified projection neurons (PNs) within HVC, a sensorimotor region important for song perception and production. These experiments show that neighboring HVC PNs can respond at markedly different times to song playback and that different syllables activate spatially intermingled PNs within a local (~100 μm) region of HVC. Moreover, noise correlations were stronger between PNs that responded most strongly to the same syllable and were spatially graded within and between classes of PNs. These findings support a model in which syllabic and temporal features of song are represented by spatially intermingled PNs functionally organized into cell- and syllable-type networks within local spatial scales in HVC. Copyright © 2015 the authors 0270-6474/15/355589-17$15.00/0.

  17. White-crowned sparrow males show immediate flexibility in song amplitude but not in song minimum frequency in response to changes in noise levels in the field.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Derryberry, Elizabeth P; Gentry, Katherine; Derryberry, Graham E; Phillips, Jennifer N; Danner, Raymond M; Danner, Julie E; Luther, David A

    2017-07-01

    The soundscape acts as a selective agent on organisms that use acoustic signals to communicate. A number of studies document variation in structure, amplitude, or timing of signal production in correspondence with environmental noise levels thus supporting the hypothesis that organisms are changing their signaling behaviors to avoid masking. The time scale at which organisms respond is of particular interest. Signal structure may evolve across generations through processes such as cultural or genetic transmission. Individuals may also change their behavior during development (ontogenetic change) or in real time (i.e., immediate flexibility). These are not mutually exclusive mechanisms, and all must be investigated to understand how organisms respond to selection pressures from the soundscape. Previous work on white-crowned sparrows ( Zonotrichia leucophrys ) found that males holding territories in louder areas tend to sing higher frequency songs and that both noise levels and song frequency have increased over time (30 years) in urban areas. These previous findings suggest that songs are changing across generations; however, it is not known if this species also exhibits immediate flexibility. Here, we conducted an exploratory, observational study to ask whether males change the minimum frequency of their song in response to immediate changes in noise levels. We also ask whether males sing louder, as increased minimum frequency may be physiologically linked to producing sound at higher amplitudes, in response to immediate changes in environmental noise. We found that territorial males adjust song amplitude but not minimum frequency in response to changes in environmental noise levels. Our results suggest that males do not show immediate flexibility in song minimum frequency, although experimental manipulations are needed to test this hypothesis further. Our work highlights the need to investigate multiple mechanisms of adaptive response to soundscapes.

  18. Song mimicry, song dialects, and behavioural context of songs in ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Straw-tailed Whydahs, Vidua fischeri, mimic the songs and calls of their host species, the Purple Grenadier, Granatina ianthinogaster, and they also have songs that do not mimic the hosts. Neighbouring male whydahs match song themes with each other, while males a few km distant have another set of song themes.

  19. The songbird syrinx morphome: a three-dimensional, high-resolution, interactive morphological map of the zebra finch vocal organ

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Düring Daniel N

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Like human infants, songbirds learn their species-specific vocalizations through imitation learning. The birdsong system has emerged as a widely used experimental animal model for understanding the underlying neural mechanisms responsible for vocal production learning. However, how neural impulses are translated into the precise motor behavior of the complex vocal organ (syrinx to create song is poorly understood. First and foremost, we lack a detailed understanding of syringeal morphology. Results To fill this gap we combined non-invasive (high-field magnetic resonance imaging and micro-computed tomography and invasive techniques (histology and micro-dissection to construct the annotated high-resolution three-dimensional dataset, or morphome, of the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata syrinx. We identified and annotated syringeal cartilage, bone and musculature in situ in unprecedented detail. We provide interactive three-dimensional models that greatly improve the communication of complex morphological data and our understanding of syringeal function in general. Conclusions Our results show that the syringeal skeleton is optimized for low weight driven by physiological constraints on song production. The present refinement of muscle organization and identity elucidates how apposed muscles actuate different syringeal elements. Our dataset allows for more precise predictions about muscle co-activation and synergies and has important implications for muscle activity and stimulation experiments. We also demonstrate how the syrinx can be stabilized during song to reduce mechanical noise and, as such, enhance repetitive execution of stereotypic motor patterns. In addition, we identify a cartilaginous structure suited to play a crucial role in the uncoupling of sound frequency and amplitude control, which permits a novel explanation of the evolutionary success of songbirds.

  20. Statistical learning in songbirds: from self-tutoring to song culture.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fehér, Olga; Ljubičić, Iva; Suzuki, Kenta; Okanoya, Kazuo; Tchernichovski, Ofer

    2017-01-05

    At the onset of vocal development, both songbirds and humans produce variable vocal babbling with broadly distributed acoustic features. Over development, these vocalizations differentiate into the well-defined, categorical signals that characterize adult vocal behaviour. A broadly distributed signal is ideal for vocal exploration, that is, for matching vocal production to the statistics of the sensory input. The developmental transition to categorical signals is a gradual process during which the vocal output becomes differentiated and stable. But does it require categorical input? We trained juvenile zebra finches with playbacks of their own developing song, produced just a few moments earlier, updated continuously over development. Although the vocalizations of these self-tutored (ST) birds were initially broadly distributed, birds quickly developed categorical signals, as fast as birds that were trained with a categorical, adult song template. By contrast, siblings of those birds that received no training (isolates) developed phonological categories much more slowly and never reached the same level of category differentiation as their ST brothers. Therefore, instead of simply mirroring the statistical properties of their sensory input, songbirds actively transform it into distinct categories. We suggest that the early self-generation of phonological categories facilitates the establishment of vocal culture by making the song easier to transmit at the micro level, while promoting stability of shared vocabulary at the group level over generations.This article is part of the themed issue 'New frontiers for statistical learning in the cognitive sciences'. © 2016 The Authors.

  1. Ecologically-relevant exposure to methylmercury during early development does not affect adult phenotype in zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Morran, Spencer A M; Elliott, John E; Young, Jessica M L; Eng, Margaret L; Basu, Niladri; Williams, Tony D

    2018-04-01

    Methylmercury causes behavioural and reproductive effects in adult mammals via early developmental exposure. Similar studies in birds are limited and mostly focussed on aquatic systems, but recent work has reported high blood mercury concentrations in terrestrial, passerine songbirds. We used the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata) as a model to explore the long-term effects of early developmental exposure to methylmercury exposure. Chicks were dosed orally with either the vehicle control, 0.0315 µg Hg/g bw/day, or 0.075 µg Hg/g bw/day throughout the nestling period (days 1-21 post-hatching). We then measured (a) short-term effects on growth, development, and behaviour (time to self-feeding, neophobia) until 30 days of age (independence), and (b) long-term effects on courtship behaviour and song (males) and reproduction (females) once methylmercury-exposed birds reached sexual maturity (90 days post-hatching). High methylmercury treated birds had mean blood mercury of 0.734 ± 0.163 µg/g at 30 days post-hatching, within the range of values reported for field-sampled songbirds at mercury contaminated sites. However, there were no short-term effects of treatment on growth, development, and behaviour of chicks, and no long-term effects on courtship behaviour and song in males or reproductive performance in females. These results suggest that the nestling period is not a critical window for sensitivity to mercury exposure in zebra finches. Growing nestlings can reduce blood mercury levels through somatic growth and depuration into newly growing feathers, and as a result they might actually be less susceptible compared to adult birds receiving the same level of exposure.

  2. Species collapse via hybridization in Darwin's tree finches.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kleindorfer, Sonia; O'Connor, Jody A; Dudaniec, Rachael Y; Myers, Steven A; Robertson, Jeremy; Sulloway, Frank J

    2014-03-01

    Species hybridization can lead to fitness costs, species collapse, and novel evolutionary trajectories in changing environments. Hybridization is predicted to be more common when environmental conditions change rapidly. Here, we test patterns of hybridization in three sympatric tree finch species (small tree finch Camarhynchus parvulus, medium tree finch Camarhynchus pauper, and large tree finch: Camarhynchus psittacula) that are currently recognized on Floreana Island, Galápagos Archipelago. Genetic analysis of microsatellite data from contemporary samples showed two genetic populations and one hybrid cluster in both 2005 and 2010; hybrid individuals were derived from genetic population 1 (small morph) and genetic population 2 (large morph). Females of the large and rare species were more likely to pair with males of the small common species. Finch populations differed in morphology in 1852-1906 compared with 2005/2010. An unsupervised clustering method showed (a) support for three morphological clusters in the historical tree finch sample (1852-1906), which is consistent with current species recognition; (b) support for two or three morphological clusters in 2005 with some (19%) hybridization; and (c) support for just two morphological clusters in 2010 with frequent (41%) hybridization. We discuss these findings in relation to species demarcations of Camarhynchus tree finches on Floreana Island.

  3. Zebra finches can use positional and transitional cues to distinguish vocal element strings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Jiani; Ten Cate, Carel

    2015-08-01

    Learning sequences is of great importance to humans and non-human animals. Many motor and mental actions, such as singing in birds and speech processing in humans, rely on sequential learning. At least two mechanisms are considered to be involved in such learning. The chaining theory proposes that learning of sequences relies on memorizing the transitions between adjacent items, while the positional theory suggests that learners encode the items according to their ordinal position in the sequence. Positional learning is assumed to dominate sequential learning. However, human infants exposed to a string of speech sounds can learn transitional (chaining) cues. So far, it is not clear whether birds, an increasingly important model for examining vocal processing, can do this. In this study we use a Go-Nogo design to examine whether zebra finches can use transitional cues to distinguish artificially constructed strings of song elements. Zebra finches were trained with sequences differing in transitional and positional information and next tested with novel strings sharing positional and transitional similarities with the training strings. The results show that they can attend to both transitional and positional cues and that their sequential coding strategies can be biased toward transitional cues depending on the learning context. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: In Honor of Jerry Hogan. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  4. White-throated sparrows alter songs differentially in response to chorusing anurans and other background noise.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lenske, Ariel K; La, Van T

    2014-06-01

    Animals can use acoustic signals to attract mates and defend territories. As a consequence, background noise that interferes with signal transmission has the potential to reduce fitness, especially in birds that rely on song. While much research on bird song has investigated vocal flexibility in response to urban noise, weather and other birds, the possibility of inter-class acoustic competition from anurans has not been previously studied. Using sound recordings from central Ontario wetlands, we tested if white-throated sparrows (Zonotrichia albicolis) make short-term changes to their singing behaviour in response to chorusing spring peepers (Pseudacris crucifer), as well as to car noise, wind and other bird vocalizations. White-throated sparrow songs that were sung during the spring peeper chorus were shorter with higher minimum frequencies and narrower bandwidths resulting in reduced frequency overlap. Additionally, sparrows were less likely to sing when car noise and the vocalizations of other birds were present. These patterns suggest that birds use multiple adjustment strategies. This is the first report to demonstrate that birds may alter their songs differentially in response to different sources of noise. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: insert SI title. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  5. Cooperation of deterministic dynamics and random noise in production of complex syntactical avian song sequences: a neural network model

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yuichi eYamashita

    2011-04-01

    Full Text Available How the brain learns and generates temporal sequences is a fundamental issue in neuroscience. The production of birdsongs, a process which involves complex learned sequences, provides researchers with an excellent biological model for this topic. The Bengalese finch in particular learns a highly complex song with syntactical structure. The nucleus HVC (HVC, a premotor nucleus within the avian song system, plays a key role in generating the temporal structures of their songs. From lesion studies, the nucleus interfacialis (NIf projecting to the HVC is considered one of the essential regions that contribute to the complexity of their songs. However, the types of interaction between the HVC and the NIf that can produce complex syntactical songs remain unclear. In order to investigate the function of interactions between the HVC and NIf, we have proposed a neural network model based on previous biological evidence. The HVC is modeled by a recurrent neural network (RNN that learns to generate temporal patterns of songs. The NIf is modeled as a mechanism that provides auditory feedback to the HVC and generates random noise that feeds into the HVC. The model showed that complex syntactical songs can be replicated by simple interactions between deterministic dynamics of the RNN and random noise. In the current study, the plausibility of the model is tested by the comparison between the changes in the songs of actual birds induced by pharmacological inhibition of the NIf and the changes in the songs produced by the model resulting from modification of parameters representing NIf functions. The efficacy of the model demonstrates that the changes of songs induced by pharmacological inhibition of the NIf can be interpreted as a trade-off between the effects of noise and the effects of feedback on the dynamics of the RNN of the HVC. These facts suggest that the current model provides a convincing hypothesis for the functional role of NIf-HVC interaction.

  6. Autoradiographic localization of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors in the brain of the zebra finch (Poephila guttata)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Watson, J.T.; Adkins-Regan, E.; Whiting, P.; Lindstrom, J.M.; Podleski, T.R.

    1988-01-01

    We have localized nicotinic acetylcholine receptors in the zebra finch brain by using three 125I-labelled ligands: alpha bungarotoxin and two monoclonal antibodies to neuronal nicotinic receptors. Unfixed brains from intact adult male and female zebra finches were prepared for in vitro autoradiography. Low-resolution film autoradiograms and high-resolution emulsion autoradiograms were prepared for each of the three ligands. The major brain structures that bind all three of the ligands are hippocampus; hyperstriatum dorsalis; hyperstriatum ventralis; nucleus lentiformis mesencephali; nucleus pretectalis, some layers of the optic tectum; nucleus mesencephalicus lateralis; pars dorsalis; locus ceruleus; and all cranial motor nuclei except nucleus nervi hypoglossi. The major structures labelled only by [125I]-alpha bungarotoxin binding included hyperstriatum accessorium and the nuclei: preopticus medialis, medialis hypothalami posterioris, semilunaris, olivarius inferior, and the periventricular organ. Of the song control nuclei, nucleus magnocellularis of the anterior neostriatum; hyperstriatum ventralis, pars caudalis; nucleus intercollicularis; and nucleus hypoglossus were labelled. The binding patterns of the two antibodies were similar to one another but not identical. Both labelled nucleus spiriformis lateralis and nucleus geniculatus lateralis, pars ventralis especially heavily and also labelled the nucleus habenula medialis; nucleus subpretectalis; nucleus isthmi, pars magnocellularis; nucleus reticularis gigantocellularis; nucleus reticularis lateralis; nucleus tractus solitarii; nucleus vestibularis dorsolateralis; nucleus vestibularis lateralis; nucleus descendens nervi trigemini; and the deep cerebellar nuclei

  7. Detection of Mycoplasma gallisepticum in House Finches ( Haemorhous mexicanus) from Arizona.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Staley, Molly; Bonneaud, Camille; McGraw, Kevin J; Vleck, Carol M; Hill, Geoffrey E

    2018-03-01

    In 1994, an endemic poultry pathogen, Mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG), was identified as the causative agent of a novel disease in house finches ( Haemorhous mexicanus). After an initial outbreak in Maryland, MG spread rapidly throughout eastern North American populations of house finches. Subsequently, MG spread slowly through the northern interior of North America and then into the Pacific Northwest, finally reaching California in 2006. Until 2009, there were no reports of MG in the southwestern United States east of California. In August 2011, after reports of house finches displaying conjunctivitis characteristic of MG infection in Arizona, we trapped house finches at bird feeders in central Arizona (Tempe) and southern Arizona (Tucson and Green Valley) to assay for MG infection. Upon capture, we noted whether birds exhibited conjunctivitis, and we collected choanal swabs to test for the presence of MG DNA using PCR. We detected MG in finches captured from Green Valley (in ∼12% of birds captured), but not in finches from Tucson or Tempe. Based on resampling of house finches at these sites in July 2014, we suggest that central Arizona finches likely remain unexposed to MG. We also suggest that low urban connectivity between arid habitats of southern and central Arizona or a reduction in the prevalence of MG after its initial arrival in Arizona may be limiting the spread of MG from south to north in Arizona. In addition, the observed conjunctivitis-like signs in house finches that were negative for MG by PCR may be caused primarily by avian pox virus.

  8. Brood size and immunity costs in zebra finches Taeniopygia guttata

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Verhulst, S; Riedstra, B; Wiersma, P

    Birds rearing experimentally enlarged broods have lower antibody responses to a novel antigen, and we tested three hypotheses that could explain this result. We used zebra finches Taeniopygia guttata inoculated with sheep red blood cells (SRBC) as a study system, for which this trade-off was

  9. The Songbird Neurogenomics (SoNG Initiative: Community-based tools and strategies for study of brain gene function and evolution

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lewin Harris A

    2008-03-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Songbirds hold great promise for biomedical, environmental and evolutionary research. A complete draft sequence of the zebra finch genome is imminent, yet a need remains for application of genomic resources within a research community traditionally focused on ethology and neurobiological methods. In response, we developed a core set of genomic tools and a novel collaborative strategy to probe gene expression in diverse songbird species and natural contexts. Results We end-sequenced cDNAs from zebra finch brain and incorporated additional sequences from community sources into a database of 86,784 high quality reads. These assembled into 31,658 non-redundant contigs and singletons, which we annotated via BLAST search of chicken and human databases. The results are publicly available in the ESTIMA:Songbird database. We produced a spotted cDNA microarray with 20,160 addresses representing 17,214 non-redundant products of an estimated 11,500–15,000 genes, validating it by analysis of immediate-early gene (zenk gene activation following song exposure and by demonstrating effective cross hybridization to genomic DNAs of other songbird species in the Passerida Parvorder. Our assembly was also used in the design of the "Lund-zfa" Affymetrix array representing ~22,000 non-redundant sequences. When the two arrays were hybridized to cDNAs from the same set of male and female zebra finch brain samples, both arrays detected a common set of regulated transcripts with a Pearson correlation coefficient of 0.895. To stimulate use of these resources by the songbird research community and to maintain consistent technical standards, we devised a "Community Collaboration" mechanism whereby individual birdsong researchers develop experiments and provide tissues, but a single individual in the community is responsible for all RNA extractions, labelling and microarray hybridizations. Conclusion Immediately, these results set the foundation for a

  10. Familial differences in the effects of mercury on reproduction in zebra finches

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Varian-Ramos, Claire W.; Swaddle, John P.; Cristol, Daniel A.

    2013-01-01

    Ecotoxicologists often implicitly assume that populations are homogenous entities in which all individuals have similar responses to a contaminant. However, genetically variable responses occur within populations. This variation can be visualized using dose–response curves of genetically related groups, similar to the way that evolutionary biologists construct reaction norms. We assessed the variation in reproductive success of full-sibling families of captive zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) experimentally exposed to methylmercury. We found significant variation among families in the effects of methylmercury on several reproductive parameters. This variation suggests that there may be strong responses to selection for resistant genotypes in contaminated areas. This has important implications for the evolution of tolerance as well as risk assessment and wildlife conservation efforts on sites with legacy contamination. -- Highlights: •Dose-response curves can visualize genetic differences in response to pollutants. •Families of zebra finch respond differently to mercury contamination. •Differences in reproductive success can lead to selection for resistant genotypes. •Resistance to contamination has implications for risk assessment and conservation. -- Genetic variation in response to contaminants can lead to adaptation on long-term contaminated sites, with implications for risk assessment and conservation of impacted populations

  11. Parasitism of wild Gouldian finches (Erythrura gouldiae) by the air-sac mite Sternostoma tracheacolum.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tidemann, S C; McOrist, S; Woinarski, J C; Freeland, W J

    1992-01-01

    Sixty-two percent of 26 wild caught Gouldian finches (Erythrura gouldiae) were infected with Sternostoma tracheacolum, a parasitic rhinonyssid mite. The intensity of infection was higher in adult finches than juveniles, and higher in juvenile females than juvenile males. Histopathological investigation of wild Gouldian Finches revealed bronchopneumonia and air sacculitis associated with mite infection. Although this mite may not have contributed to the decline of Gouldian finch populations in the wild during the past 20 yr, it may be suppressing the return of the finch to its former status.

  12. Evolution and plasticity: Divergence of song discrimination is faster in birds with innate song than in song learners in Neotropical passerine birds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Freeman, Benjamin G; Montgomery, Graham A; Schluter, Dolph

    2017-09-01

    Plasticity is often thought to accelerate trait evolution and speciation. For example, plasticity in birdsong may partially explain why clades of song learners are more diverse than related clades with innate song. This "song learning" hypothesis predicts that (1) differences in song traits evolve faster in song learners, and (2) behavioral discrimination against allopatric song (a proxy for premating reproductive isolation) evolves faster in song learners. We tested these predictions by analyzing acoustic traits and conducting playback experiments in allopatric Central American sister pairs of song learning oscines (N = 42) and nonlearning suboscines (N = 27). We found that nonlearners evolved mean acoustic differences slightly faster than did leaners, and that the mean evolutionary rate of song discrimination was 4.3 times faster in nonlearners than in learners. These unexpected results may be a consequence of significantly greater variability in song traits in song learners (by 54-79%) that requires song-learning oscines to evolve greater absolute differences in song before achieving the same level of behavioral song discrimination as nonlearning suboscines. This points to "a downside of learning" for the evolution of species discrimination, and represents an important example of plasticity reducing the rate of evolution and diversification by increasing variability. © 2017 The Author(s). Evolution © 2017 The Society for the Study of Evolution.

  13. Attenuated Phenotype of a Recent House Finch-Associated Mycoplasma gallisepticum Isolate in Domestic Poultry.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pflaum, K; Tulman, E R; Beaudet, J; Liao, X; Dhondt, K V; Dhondt, A A; Hawley, D M; Ley, D H; Kerr, K M; Geary, S J

    2017-06-01

    Mycoplasma gallisepticum , known primarily as a respiratory pathogen of domestic poultry, has emerged since 1994 as a significant pathogen of the house finch ( Haemorhous mexicanus ) causing severe conjunctivitis and mortality. House finch-associated M. gallisepticum (HFMG) spread rapidly and increased in virulence for the finch host in the eastern United States. In the current study, we assessed virulence in domestic poultry with two temporally distant, and yet geographically consistent, HFMG isolates which differ in virulence for house finches-Virginia 1994 (VA1994), the index isolate of the epidemic, and Virginia 2013 (VA2013), a recent isolate of increased house finch virulence. Here we report a significant difference between VA1994 and VA2013 in their levels of virulence for chickens; notably, this difference correlated inversely to the difference in their levels of virulence for house finches. VA1994, while moderately virulent in house finches, displayed significant virulence in the chicken respiratory tract. VA2013, while highly virulent in the house finch, was significantly attenuated in chickens relative to VA1994, displaying less-severe pathological lesions in, and reduced bacterial recovery from, the respiratory tract. Overall, these data indicate that a recent isolate of HFMG is greatly attenuated in the chicken host relative to the index isolate, notably demonstrating a virulence phenotype in chickens inversely related to that in the finch host. Copyright © 2017 American Society for Microbiology.

  14. ANDROID BASED TELEOPERATION FOR THE FINCH ROBOT

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Oliver Faust

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available The act of creating a robot involves systems engineering and creative problem solutions. It is about using established components to create a system that works in the natural or at least in the human environment. The current project is no exception, we have used the Robot Operating System (ROS to create an android based teleoperator application for the Finch robot. A Raspberry Pi processing platform establishes the link between the android device and the Finch robot. The most creative task, during the system design, was to translate the commands from the teleoperator application into wheel movements of the Finch robot. The translation must take into account the physical setup of the robot, including unintended negative influences, such as drag. The command translation involved a nonlinear coordinate transformation. The ROS framework enabled us to focus on that nonstandard coordinate translation task by offering a high level of abstraction and the ability to create component functionalities independently.

  15. Female Zebra Finches Smell Their Eggs.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sarah Golüke

    Full Text Available Parental investment in unrelated offspring seems maladaptive from an evolutionary perspective, due to the costs of energy and resources that cannot be invested in related offspring at the same time. Therefore selection should favour mechanisms to discriminate between own and foreign offspring. In birds, much emphasis has been placed on understanding the visual mechanisms underlying egg recognition. However, olfactory egg recognition has almost been completely ignored. Here, we investigated whether female zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata are able to discriminate between their own and a conspecific egg based on olfactory cues alone. Zebra finches are colonial-breeding songbirds. Eggs are monomorphic, i.e. without any spotting pattern, and intraspecific brood parasitism frequently occurs. In a binary choice experiment, female zebra finches were given the choice between the scent of their own and a conspecific egg. After the onset of incubation, females chose randomly and showed no sign of discrimination. However, shortly before hatching, females preferred significantly the odour of their own egg. The finding that females are capable to smell their own egg may inspire more research on the potential of olfaction involved in egg recognition, especially in cases where visual cues might be limited.

  16. Developmental song learning as a model to understand neural mechanisms that limit and promote the ability to learn.

    Science.gov (United States)

    London, Sarah E

    2017-11-20

    Songbirds famously learn their vocalizations. Some species can learn continuously, others seasonally, and still others just once. The zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata) learns to sing during a single developmental "Critical Period," a restricted phase during which a specific experience has profound and permanent effects on brain function and behavioral patterns. The zebra finch can therefore provide fundamental insight into features that promote and limit the ability to acquire complex learned behaviors. For example, what properties permit the brain to come "on-line" for learning? How does experience become encoded to prevent future learning? What features define the brain in receptive compared to closed learning states? This piece will focus on epigenomic, genomic, and molecular levels of analysis that operate on the timescales of development and complex behavioral learning. Existing data will be discussed as they relate to Critical Period learning, and strategies for future studies to more directly address these questions will be considered. Birdsong learning is a powerful model for advancing knowledge of the biological intersections of maturation and experience. Lessons from its study not only have implications for understanding developmental song learning, but also broader questions of learning potential and the enduring effects of early life experience on neural systems and behavior. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  17. Invasive parasites, habitat change and heavy rainfall reduce breeding success in Darwin's finches.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cimadom, Arno; Ulloa, Angel; Meidl, Patrick; Zöttl, Markus; Zöttl, Elisabet; Fessl, Birgit; Nemeth, Erwin; Dvorak, Michael; Cunninghame, Francesca; Tebbich, Sabine

    2014-01-01

    Invasive alien parasites and pathogens are a growing threat to biodiversity worldwide, which can contribute to the extinction of endemic species. On the Galápagos Islands, the invasive parasitic fly Philornis downsi poses a major threat to the endemic avifauna. Here, we investigated the influence of this parasite on the breeding success of two Darwin's finch species, the warbler finch (Certhidea olivacea) and the sympatric small tree finch (Camarhynchus parvulus), on Santa Cruz Island in 2010 and 2012. While the population of the small tree finch appeared to be stable, the warbler finch has experienced a dramatic decline in population size on Santa Cruz Island since 1997. We aimed to identify whether warbler finches are particularly vulnerable during different stages of the breeding cycle. Contrary to our prediction, breeding success was lower in the small tree finch than in the warbler finch. In both species P. downsi had a strong negative impact on breeding success and our data suggest that heavy rain events also lowered the fledging success. On the one hand parents might be less efficient in compensating their chicks' energy loss due to parasitism as they might be less efficient in foraging on days of heavy rain. On the other hand, intense rainfalls might lead to increased humidity and more rapid cooling of the nests. In the case of the warbler finch we found that the control of invasive plant species with herbicides had a significant additive negative impact on the breeding success. It is very likely that the availability of insects (i.e. food abundance)is lower in such controlled areas, as herbicide usage led to the removal of the entire understory. Predation seems to be a minor factor in brood loss.

  18. Invasive parasites, habitat change and heavy rainfall reduce breeding success in Darwin's finches.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Arno Cimadom

    Full Text Available Invasive alien parasites and pathogens are a growing threat to biodiversity worldwide, which can contribute to the extinction of endemic species. On the Galápagos Islands, the invasive parasitic fly Philornis downsi poses a major threat to the endemic avifauna. Here, we investigated the influence of this parasite on the breeding success of two Darwin's finch species, the warbler finch (Certhidea olivacea and the sympatric small tree finch (Camarhynchus parvulus, on Santa Cruz Island in 2010 and 2012. While the population of the small tree finch appeared to be stable, the warbler finch has experienced a dramatic decline in population size on Santa Cruz Island since 1997. We aimed to identify whether warbler finches are particularly vulnerable during different stages of the breeding cycle. Contrary to our prediction, breeding success was lower in the small tree finch than in the warbler finch. In both species P. downsi had a strong negative impact on breeding success and our data suggest that heavy rain events also lowered the fledging success. On the one hand parents might be less efficient in compensating their chicks' energy loss due to parasitism as they might be less efficient in foraging on days of heavy rain. On the other hand, intense rainfalls might lead to increased humidity and more rapid cooling of the nests. In the case of the warbler finch we found that the control of invasive plant species with herbicides had a significant additive negative impact on the breeding success. It is very likely that the availability of insects (i.e. food abundanceis lower in such controlled areas, as herbicide usage led to the removal of the entire understory. Predation seems to be a minor factor in brood loss.

  19. At the interface of the auditory and vocal motor systems: NIf and its role in vocal processing, production and learning.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lewandowski, Brian; Vyssotski, Alexei; Hahnloser, Richard H R; Schmidt, Marc

    2013-06-01

    Communication between auditory and vocal motor nuclei is essential for vocal learning. In songbirds, the nucleus interfacialis of the nidopallium (NIf) is part of a sensorimotor loop, along with auditory nucleus avalanche (Av) and song system nucleus HVC, that links the auditory and song systems. Most of the auditory information comes through this sensorimotor loop, with the projection from NIf to HVC representing the largest single source of auditory information to the song system. In addition to providing the majority of HVC's auditory input, NIf is also the primary driver of spontaneous activity and premotor-like bursting during sleep in HVC. Like HVC and RA, two nuclei critical for song learning and production, NIf exhibits behavioral-state dependent auditory responses and strong motor bursts that precede song output. NIf also exhibits extended periods of fast gamma oscillations following vocal production. Based on the converging evidence from studies of physiology and functional connectivity it would be reasonable to expect NIf to play an important role in the learning, maintenance, and production of song. Surprisingly, however, lesions of NIf in adult zebra finches have no effect on song production or maintenance. Only the plastic song produced by juvenile zebra finches during the sensorimotor phase of song learning is affected by NIf lesions. In this review, we carefully examine what is known about NIf at the anatomical, physiological, and behavioral levels. We reexamine conclusions drawn from previous studies in the light of our current understanding of the song system, and establish what can be said with certainty about NIf's involvement in song learning, maintenance, and production. Finally, we review recent theories of song learning integrating possible roles for NIf within these frameworks and suggest possible parallels between NIf and sensorimotor areas that form part of the neural circuitry for speech processing in humans. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier

  20. The Use of Song Worksheet to Enhance EFL Elementary School Students’ Vocabulary Mastery

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ahmad Fadhli

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available This study aimed to enhance students’ vocabulary mastery through the use of song worksheet. Twenty -two fourth graders of an elementary school in Indonesia were selected as participants. Action research was adopted in this study consisting of three cycles. To find out students’ achievement, vocabulary test was given. To investigate students’ responses, observation and interview were implemented.Findings showed that song worksheet could enhance students’ vocabulary mastery. They also gave positive responses to the use of song worksheet. However, students complained that the songs were too fast. This study supports the use of songs in the EFL context which could make teaching - learning processes more fun

  1. Neural representation of calling songs and their behavioral relevance in the grasshopper auditory system

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gundula eMeckenhäuser

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available Acoustic communication plays a key role for mate attraction in grasshoppers. Males use songs to advertise themselves to females. Females evaluate the song pattern, a repetitive structure of sound syllables separated by short pauses, to recognize a conspecific male and as proxy to its fitness. In their natural habitat females often receive songs with degraded temporal structure. Perturbations may, for example, result from the overlap with other songs. We studied the response behavior of females to songs that show different signal degradations. A perturbation of an otherwise attractive song at later positions in the syllable diminished the behavioral response, whereas the same perturbation at the onset of a syllable did not affect song attractiveness. We applied naïve Bayes classifiers to the spike trains of identified neurons in the auditory pathway to explore how sensory evidence about the acoustic stimulus and its attractiveness is represented in the neuronal responses. We find that populations of three or more neurons were sufficient to reliably decode the acoustic stimulus and to predict its behavioral relevance from the single-trial integrated firing rate. A simple model of decision making simulates the female response behavior. It computes for each syllable the likelihood for the presence of an attractive song pattern as evidenced by the population firing rate. Integration across syllables allows the likelihood to reach a decision threshold and to elicit the behavioral response. The close match between model performance and animal behavior shows that a spike rate code is sufficient to enable song pattern recognition.

  2. Are olfactory cues involved in nest recognition in two social species of estrildid finches?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    E Tobias Krause

    Full Text Available Reliably recognizing their own nest provides parents with a necessary skill to invest time and resources efficiently in raising their offspring and thereby maximising their own reproductive success. Studies investigating nest recognition in adult birds have focused mainly on visual cues of the nest or the nest site and acoustic cues of the nestlings. To determine whether adult songbirds also use olfaction for nest recognition, we investigated the use of olfactory nest cues for two estrildid finch species, zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata and Bengalese finches (Lonchura striata var. domestica during the nestling and fledgling phase of their offspring. We found similar behavioural responses to nest odours in both songbird species. Females preferred the odour of their own nest over a control and avoided the foreign conspecific nest scent over a control during the nestling phase of their offspring, but when given the own odour and the foreign conspecific odour simultaneously we did not find a preference for the own nest odour. Males of both species did not show any preferences at all. The behavioural reaction to any nest odour decreased after fledging of the offspring. Our results show that only females show a behavioural response to olfactory nest cues, indicating that the use of olfactory cues for nest recognition seems to be sex-specific and dependent on the developmental stage of the offspring. Although estrildid finches are known to use visual and acoustic cues for nest recognition, the similar behavioural pattern of both species indicates that at least females gain additional information by olfactory nest cues during the nestling phase of their offspring. Thus olfactory cues might be important in general, even in situations in which visual and acoustic cues are known to be sufficient.

  3. Beyond Language: Metaphor as an Expressive Resource in the Song of Songs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eleuterio R. Ruiz

    2015-04-01

    Full Text Available The starting point of this paper is the old debate on which kind of interpretation is more appropriate for the Song of Songs, namely, literal or allegorical, and to what extent. Treating the poem as a literary work and letting it speak for itself, metaphor emerges as the main expressive resource referring to a multi-dimensional reality. The analysis of metaphor in the Song of Songs, based on selected samples, reveals highly developed metaphoric speech in the poem, with images accumulating and interacting in multiple, concurrent and mutually enriching levels of meaning. Behind this complex intertwining of metaphors there emerges the main referent for the book as a whole. Metaphor, then, appears as a particularly adequate means of articulating both anthropological and theological discourse.Key words: Song of Songs, Metaphor, Love.

  4. Food, stress, and reproduction: short-term fasting alters endocrine physiology and reproductive behavior in the zebra finch.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lynn, Sharon E; Stamplis, Teresa B; Barrington, William T; Weida, Nicholas; Hudak, Casey A

    2010-07-01

    Stress is thought to be a potent suppressor of reproduction. However, the vast majority of studies focus on the relationship between chronic stress and reproductive suppression, despite the fact that chronic stress is rare in the wild. We investigated the role of fasting in altering acute stress physiology, reproductive physiology, and reproductive behavior of male zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) with several goals in mind. First, we wanted to determine if acute fasting could stimulate an increase in plasma corticosterone and a decrease in corticosteroid binding globulin (CBG) and testosterone. We then investigated whether fasting could alter expression of undirected song and courtship behavior. After subjecting males to fasting periods ranging from 1 to 10h, we collected plasma to measure corticosterone, CBG, and testosterone. We found that plasma corticosterone was elevated, and testosterone was decreased after 4, 6, and 10h of fasting periods compared with samples collected from the same males during nonfasted (control) periods. CBG was lower than control levels only after 10h of fasting. We also found that, coincident with these endocrine changes, males sang less and courted females less vigorously following short-term fasting relative to control conditions. Our data demonstrate that acute fasting resulted in rapid changes in endocrine physiology consistent with hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis activation and hypothalamo-pituitary-gonadal axis deactivation. Fasting also inhibited reproductive behavior. We suggest that zebra finches exhibit physiological and behavioral flexibility that makes them an excellent model system for studying interactions of acute stress and reproduction. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  5. Amplitude modulation of sexy phrases is salient for song attractiveness in female canaries (Serinus canaria).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pasteau, Magali; Ung, Davy; Kreutzer, Michel; Aubin, Thierry

    2012-07-01

    Song discrimination and recognition in songbird species have usually been studied by measuring responses to song playbacks. In female canaries, Serinus canaria, copulation solicitation displays (CSDs) are used as an index of female preferences, which are related to song recognition. Despite the fact that many studies underline the role of song syntax in this species, we observed that short segments of songs (a few seconds long) are enough for females to discriminate between conspecific and heterospecific songs, whereas such a short duration is not sufficient to identify the syntax rules. This suggests that other cues are salient for song recognition. In this experiment, we investigated the influence of amplitude modulation (AM) on the responses (CSDs) of female canaries to song playbacks. We used two groups of females: (1) raised in acoustic isolation and (2) raised in normal conditions. When adult, we tested their preferences for sexy phrases with different AMs. We broadcast three types of stimuli: (1) songs with natural canary AM, (2) songs with AM removed, or (3) song with wren Troglodytes troglodytes AM. Results indicate that female canaries prefer and have predispositions for a song type with the natural canary AM. Thus, this acoustic parameter is a salient cue for song attractiveness.

  6. Song forms from Kustilj and neighbouring villages

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kristina PLANJANIN SIMIC

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available Song-forms constitute one of the four sub-categories of folklore within the classification of children’s folklore The song-forms reflect children's responses in relation to nature. They are dedicated to animals that children find interesting and dear. In the distant past, they were performed at fixed hours and days, on certain places and there was a number of their repetition, but over the past centuries, they lost the initial position and became the motive for play and recreational activities for children. In the examples collected for this paper, what can be observed and singled out are a few basic melodic and rhythmic motifs that also occur in children's songs around the world, the connection between children's rhythm with the text, simplicity and the syllable of melody as well as the fact that the tone of these songs often relates to archaic diatonic infra-pentatonic series. In addition to educational and entertainment features, these songs reveal a mentality, way of thinking, creativity and spiritual development of a generation that will grow up at the beginning of the 21st century.

  7. Fitness consequences of polymorphic inversions in the zebra finch genome.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Knief, Ulrich; Hemmrich-Stanisak, Georg; Wittig, Michael; Franke, Andre; Griffith, Simon C; Kempenaers, Bart; Forstmeier, Wolfgang

    2016-09-29

    Inversion polymorphisms constitute an evolutionary puzzle: they should increase embryo mortality in heterokaryotypic individuals but still they are widespread in some taxa. Some insect species have evolved mechanisms to reduce the cost of embryo mortality but humans have not. In birds, a detailed analysis is missing although intraspecific inversion polymorphisms are regarded as common. In Australian zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata), two polymorphic inversions are known cytogenetically and we set out to detect these two and potentially additional inversions using genomic tools and study their effects on embryo mortality and other fitness-related and morphological traits. Using whole-genome SNP data, we screened 948 wild zebra finches for polymorphic inversions and describe four large (12-63 Mb) intraspecific inversion polymorphisms with allele frequencies close to 50 %. Using additional data from 5229 birds and 9764 eggs from wild and three captive zebra finch populations, we show that only the largest inversions increase embryo mortality in heterokaryotypic males, with surprisingly small effect sizes. We test for a heterozygote advantage on other fitness components but find no evidence for heterosis for any of the inversions. Yet, we find strong additive effects on several morphological traits. The mechanism that has carried the derived inversion haplotypes to such high allele frequencies remains elusive. It appears that selection has effectively minimized the costs associated with inversions in zebra finches. The highly skewed distribution of recombination events towards the chromosome ends in zebra finches and other estrildid species may function to minimize crossovers in the inverted regions.

  8. The Strange Use of דגל in Song of Songs 5:10

    OpenAIRE

    Andruska, Jennifer

    2017-01-01

    The use of the word דגל in the Song of Songs 5:10 has caused considerable confusion among commentators. Most occurrences of the word in the Song are thought to be related to an army or host carrying banners, except in 5:10, where this usage is said to make little sense. Scholars therefore interpret the woman’s use of דגל in 5:10 differently from when the man uses it to describe her awe-striking an unnerving appearance in 6:4 and 6:10. This has given some the impression that the lovers view ea...

  9. Faithful reconstruction of digital holograms captured by FINCH using a Hamming window function in the Fresnel propagation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Siegel, Nisan; Rosen, Joseph; Brooker, Gary

    2013-10-01

    Recent advances in Fresnel incoherent correlation holography (FINCH) increase the signal-to-noise ratio in hologram recording by interference of images from two diffractive lenses with focal lengths close to the image plane. Holograms requiring short reconstruction distances are created that reconstruct poorly with existing Fresnel propagation methods. Here we show a dramatic improvement in reconstructed fluorescent images when a 2D Hamming window function substituted for the disk window typically used to bound the impulse response in the Fresnel propagation. Greatly improved image contrast and quality are shown for simulated and experimentally determined FINCH holograms using a 2D Hamming window without significant loss in lateral or axial resolution.

  10. Responses to playback of different subspecies songs in the Reed Bunting (Emberiza s. schoeniclus)

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Matessi, Giuliano; Dabelsteen, Torben; Pilastro, A.

    2000-01-01

    Populations of Reed Buntings Emberiza schoeniclus in the western Palearctic are classified in two major subspecies groups according to morphology: northern migratory schoeniclus and Mediterranean resident intermedia. Songs of the two groups differ mainly in complexity and syllable structure......, with intermedia songs being more complex. We explored the possibilities of song as a subspecies isolating mechanism by testing if male schoeniclus Reed Buntings reacted differently to field playbacks of songs from their own subspecies group, from the foreign subspecies group and from a control species...

  11. Reading the Song of Songs through a spiritual direction lens

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Judy E. Lam

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available Research on the use of the Song of Songs in spiritual direction is rare; yet, the Song of Songs (or Canticle of Canticles is a highly conducive case as it provides in nuce the poetics, lyrics, erotics, and aesthetics of human and divine love which is found nowhere else in Scripture. This article draws on these unique features, integrates the biblical and the experiential, and offers a poetics-praxis paradigm for use in contemporary spiritual praxis. With the poem’s metaphorical vineyard (a figurative term for the beloved herself serving as hermeneutical key, the beloved’s experience of love is interpreted through a multifaceted reading that is intrinsic to the poem, namely: eros [yearning]; mythos [searching]; mustikos [finding]; and kosmos [birthing]. In following the inner dynamism and dramatic tensions across the eight chapters of the Song, the fourfold reading traces the beloved’s transformation from a neglected vineyard (Can 1:6 to a generative vineyard (Can 8:12. The article concludes that transformation in love is a journey from depletion (the giving away of self towards deification (the giving of self in love, and suggests tending one’s own vineyard as a living testament to divine love and a living sacrament in the world.

  12. Humpback whale song: A new review

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frankel, Adam S.

    2003-04-01

    The humpback whale song has been described and investigated since the early 1970s. Much has been learned about the humpback whale social structure, but the understanding of the song and its function remains elusive. The hierarchical nature of the song structure was described early on: Songs can be sung for a long period, apparently by males, and primarily during the mating season. However, singers also become physically competitive, suggesting alternative mating strategies. There are a number of unique structural features of song. Its structure evolves over time and combination. The nature of song evolution strongly implies cultural transmission. Song structure appears to be shared within an entire population, even though there appears to be little interchange of individuals between sub populations. Despite over thirty years of inquiry there are still numerous unanswered questions: Why is the song structure so complex? Is song a sexual advertisement, an acoustic space mediation mechanism, or both? How do females choose mates, or do they? What drives song evolution, and why is there so much variation in the rate of change? Are there nonreproductive functions of song? What prompts a male to begin or end singing? Our current understanding and the outstanding questions yet to be answered will be reviewed.

  13. Selective auditory grouping by zebra finches: testing the iambic-trochaic law.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Spierings, Michelle; Hubert, Jeroen; Ten Cate, Carel

    2017-07-01

    Humans have a strong tendency to spontaneously group visual or auditory stimuli together in larger patterns. One of these perceptual grouping biases is formulated as the iambic/trochaic law, where humans group successive tones alternating in pitch and intensity as trochees (high-low and loud-soft) and alternating in duration as iambs (short-long). The grouping of alternations in pitch and intensity into trochees is a human universal and is also present in one non-human animal species, rats. The perceptual grouping of sounds alternating in duration seems to be affected by native language in humans and has so far not been found among animals. In the current study, we explore to which extent these perceptual biases are present in a songbird, the zebra finch. Zebra finches were trained to discriminate between short strings of pure tones organized as iambs and as trochees. One group received tones that alternated in pitch, a second group heard tones alternating in duration, and for a third group, tones alternated in intensity. Those zebra finches that showed sustained correct discrimination were next tested with longer, ambiguous strings of alternating sounds. The zebra finches in the pitch condition categorized ambiguous strings of alternating tones as trochees, similar to humans. However, most of the zebra finches in the duration and intensity condition did not learn to discriminate between training stimuli organized as iambs and trochees. This study shows that the perceptual bias to group tones alternating in pitch as trochees is not specific to humans and rats, but may be more widespread among animals.

  14. Immunological investments reflect parasite abundance in island populations of Darwin's finches.

    OpenAIRE

    Lindström, Karin M.; Foufopoulos, Johannes; Pärn, Henrik; Wikelski, Martin

    2004-01-01

    The evolution of parasite resistance can be influenced by the abundance of parasites in the environment. However, it is yet unresolved whether vertebrates change their investment in immune function in response to variation in parasite abundance. Here, we compare parasite abundance in four populations of small ground finches (Geospiza fuliginosa) in the Galapagos archipelago. We predicted that populations exposed to high parasite loads should invest more in immune defence, or alternatively use...

  15. Comparison of semiautomated bird song recognition with manual detection of recorded bird song samples

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lisa A. Venier

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Automated recording units are increasingly being used to sample wildlife populations. These devices can produce large amounts of data that are difficult to process manually. However, the information in the recordings can be summarized with semiautomated sound recognition software. Our objective was to assess the utility of the semiautomated bird song recognizers to produce data useful for conservation and sustainable forest management applications. We compared detection data generated from expert-interpreted recordings of bird songs collected with automated recording units and data derived from a semiautomated recognition process. We recorded bird songs at 109 sites in boreal forest in 2013 and 2014 using automated recording units. We developed bird-song recognizers for 10 species using Song Scope software (Wildlife Acoustics and each recognizer was used to scan a set of recordings that was also interpreted manually by an expert in birdsong identification. We used occupancy models to estimate the detection probability associated with each method. Based on these detection probability estimates we produced cumulative detection probability curves. In a second analysis we estimated detection probability of bird song recognizers using multiple 10-minute recordings for a single station and visit (35-63, 10-minute recordings in each of four one-week periods. Results show that the detection probability of most species from single 10-min recordings is substantially higher using expert-interpreted bird song recordings than using the song recognizer software. However, our results also indicate that detection probabilities for song recognizers can be significantly improved by using more than a single 10-minute recording, which can be easily done with little additional cost with the automate procedure. Based on these results we suggest that automated recording units and song recognizer software can be valuable tools to estimate detection probability and

  16. Happy Handwashing Song

    Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

    This song (sung to the tune of Happy Birthday) encourages kids to wash their hands with soap and water to keep germs away. The song is sung twice through, the recommended length of time to wash hands. Sing along!

  17. Language in Childhood Song.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bondi, Edith F.

    The purpose of this study was to design a strategy for teaching young children the information expressed in words of selected songs. Out of five classes of from 25 to 30 seven-year-old students, 86 students were selected for observation. The investigator chose 18 songs from a song textbook to be taught for the first 12 weeks of school. During the…

  18. Zebra finches are sensitive to prosodic features of human speech.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Spierings, Michelle J; ten Cate, Carel

    2014-07-22

    Variation in pitch, amplitude and rhythm adds crucial paralinguistic information to human speech. Such prosodic cues can reveal information about the meaning or emphasis of a sentence or the emotional state of the speaker. To examine the hypothesis that sensitivity to prosodic cues is language independent and not human specific, we tested prosody perception in a controlled experiment with zebra finches. Using a go/no-go procedure, subjects were trained to discriminate between speech syllables arranged in XYXY patterns with prosodic stress on the first syllable and XXYY patterns with prosodic stress on the final syllable. To systematically determine the salience of the various prosodic cues (pitch, duration and amplitude) to the zebra finches, they were subjected to five tests with different combinations of these cues. The zebra finches generalized the prosodic pattern to sequences that consisted of new syllables and used prosodic features over structural ones to discriminate between stimuli. This strong sensitivity to the prosodic pattern was maintained when only a single prosodic cue was available. The change in pitch was treated as more salient than changes in the other prosodic features. These results show that zebra finches are sensitive to the same prosodic cues known to affect human speech perception. © 2014 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved.

  19. Learning to breathe and sing: development of respiratory-vocal coordination in young songbirds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Veit, Lena; Aronov, Dmitriy; Fee, Michale S

    2011-10-01

    How do animals with learned vocalizations coordinate vocal production with respiration? Songbirds such as the zebra finch learn their songs, beginning with highly variable babbling vocalizations known as subsong. After several weeks of practice, zebra finches are able to produce a precisely timed pattern of syllables and silences, precisely coordinated with expiratory and inspiratory pulses (Franz M, Goller F. J Neurobiol 51: 129-141, 2002). While respiration in adult song is well described, relatively little is known about respiratory patterns in subsong or about the processes by which respiratory and vocal patterns become coordinated. To address these questions, we recorded thoracic air sac pressure in juvenile zebra finches prior to the appearance of any consistent temporal or acoustic structure in their songs. We found that subsong contains brief inspiratory pulses (50 ms) alternating with longer pulses of sustained expiratory pressure (50-500 ms). In striking contrast to adult song, expiratory pulses often contained multiple (0-8) variably timed syllables separated by expiratory gaps and were only partially vocalized. During development, expiratory pulses became shorter and more stereotyped in duration with shorter and fewer nonvocalized parts. These developmental changes eventually resulted in the production of a single syllable per expiratory pulse and a single inspiratory pulse filling each gap, forming a coordinated sequence similar to that of adult song. To examine the role of forebrain song-control nuclei in the development of respiratory patterns, we performed pressure recordings before and after lesions of nucleus HVC (proper name) and found that this manipulation reverses the developmental trends in measures of the respiratory pattern.

  20. Comparative study on the song behavior and song control nuclei in male and female Mongolian larks (Melanocorypha mongolica).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Xuebo; Zeng, Shaoju; Zhang, Xinwen; Zuo, Mingxue

    2011-09-12

    Songbirds can produce a remarkable diversity of songs, which is well-characterized learned behavior that reflects the basic processes of language learning in humans. As song control nuclei governing song behavior has been identified, bird song provides an excellent model to address the relationship between brain areas and their controlling behavior. The Mongolian lark (Melanocorypha mongolica), a species of the Alaudidae family, is well known for its elaborate singing and ability to learn new songs, even in adulthood. Here, we studied the singing behavior and underlying neural structures of the Mongolian lark in both sexes. We found that the sizes of song bouts and song phrases (song repertoires) in male Mongolian larks are extremely large, and that each song repertoire or phrase has a complex structure, comprising several different syllables that seldom appear in other types of song bouts. In accordance with these complex songs, Mongolian lark song control nuclei are well developed and can be easily detected by Nissl staining. In contrast to male Mongolian larks, females were not observed to sing. However, they possess significant song control nuclei with abundant neural connectivity within them despite their small sizes compared with males. These data provide new evidence that help further clarify the mechanisms by which songbirds sing. Our results also have implications for the evolution of complex birdsongs and song control nuclei in oscine birds. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  1. Multimodal signalling in estrildid finches

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gomes, A. C. R.; Funghi, C.; Soma, M.

    2017-01-01

    Sexual traits (e.g. visual ornaments, acoustic signals, courtship behaviour) are often displayed together as multimodal signals. Some hypotheses predict joint evolution of different sexual signals (e.g. to increase the efficiency of communication) or that different signals trade off with each other...... (e.g. due to limited resources). Alternatively, multiple signals may evolve independently for different functions, or to communicate different information (multiple message hypothesis). We evaluated these hypotheses with a comparative study in the family Estrildidae, one of the largest songbird...... compromise, but generally courtship dance also evolved independently from other signals. Instead of correlated evolution, we found that song, dance and colour are each related to different socio-ecological traits. Song complexity evolved together with ecological generalism, song performance with investment...

  2. Hemispheric dominance underlying the neural substrate for learned vocalizations develops with experience.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chirathivat, Napim; Raja, Sahitya C; Gobes, Sharon M H

    2015-06-22

    Many aspects of song learning in songbirds resemble characteristics of speech acquisition in humans. Genetic, anatomical and behavioural parallels have most recently been extended with demonstrated similarities in hemispheric dominance between humans and songbirds: the avian higher order auditory cortex is left-lateralized for processing song memories in juvenile zebra finches that already have formed a memory of their fathers' song, just like Wernicke's area in the left hemisphere of the human brain is dominant for speech perception. However, it is unclear if hemispheric specialization is due to pre-existing functional asymmetry or the result of learning itself. Here we show that in juvenile male and female zebra finches that had never heard an adult song before, neuronal activation after initial exposure to a conspecific song is bilateral. Thus, like in humans, hemispheric dominance develops with vocal proficiency. A left-lateralized functional system that develops through auditory-vocal learning may be an evolutionary adaptation that could increase the efficiency of transferring information within one hemisphere, benefiting the production and perception of learned communication signals.

  3. Behavioral Relevance of Species-Specific Vasotocin Anatomy in Gregarious Finches

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aubrey M Kelly

    2013-12-01

    Full Text Available Despite substantial species differences in the vasotocin/vasopressin (VT/VP circuitry of the medial bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BSTm and lateral septum (LS; a primary projection target of BSTm VT/VP cells, functional consequences of this variation are poorly known. Previous experiments in the highly gregarious zebra finch (Estrildidae: Taeniopygia guttata demonstrate that BSTm VT neurons promote gregariousness in a male-specific manner and reduce anxiety in both sexes. However, in contrast to the zebra finch, the less gregarious Angolan blue waxbill (Estrildidae: Uraeginthus angolensis exhibits fewer VT-immunoreactive cells in the BSTm as well as differences in receptor distribution across the LS subnuclei, suggesting that knockdown of VT production in the BSTm would produce behavioral effects in Angolan blue waxbills that are distinct from zebra finches. Thus, we here quantified social contact, gregariousness (i.e. preference for the larger of two groups, and anxiety-like behavior following bilateral antisense knockdown of VT production in the BSTm of male and female Angolan blue waxbills. We find that BSTm VT neurons promote social contact, but not gregariousness (as in male zebra finches, and that antisense effects on social contact are significantly stronger in male waxbills than in females. Knockdown of BSTm VT production has no effect on anxiety-like behavior. These data provide novel evidence that species differences in the VT/VP circuitry arising in the BSTm are accompanied by species-specific effects on affiliation behaviors.

  4. Improved axial resolution of FINCH fluorescence microscopy when combined with spinning disk confocal microscopy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Siegel, Nisan; Brooker, Gary

    2014-09-22

    FINCH holographic fluorescence microscopy creates super-resolved images with enhanced depth of focus. Addition of a Nipkow disk real-time confocal image scanner is shown to reduce the FINCH depth of focus while improving transverse confocal resolution in a combined method called "CINCH".

  5. Human-like brain hemispheric dominance in birdsong learning.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moorman, Sanne; Gobes, Sharon M H; Kuijpers, Maaike; Kerkhofs, Amber; Zandbergen, Matthijs A; Bolhuis, Johan J

    2012-07-31

    Unlike nonhuman primates, songbirds learn to vocalize very much like human infants acquire spoken language. In humans, Broca's area in the frontal lobe and Wernicke's area in the temporal lobe are crucially involved in speech production and perception, respectively. Songbirds have analogous brain regions that show a similar neural dissociation between vocal production and auditory perception and memory. In both humans and songbirds, there is evidence for lateralization of neural responsiveness in these brain regions. Human infants already show left-sided dominance in their brain activation when exposed to speech. Moreover, a memory-specific left-sided dominance in Wernicke's area for speech perception has been demonstrated in 2.5-mo-old babies. It is possible that auditory-vocal learning is associated with hemispheric dominance and that this association arose in songbirds and humans through convergent evolution. Therefore, we investigated whether there is similar song memory-related lateralization in the songbird brain. We exposed male zebra finches to tutor or unfamiliar song. We found left-sided dominance of neuronal activation in a Broca-like brain region (HVC, a letter-based name) of juvenile and adult zebra finch males, independent of the song stimulus presented. In addition, juvenile males showed left-sided dominance for tutor song but not for unfamiliar song in a Wernicke-like brain region (the caudomedial nidopallium). Thus, left-sided dominance in the caudomedial nidopallium was specific for the song-learning phase and was memory-related. These findings demonstrate a remarkable neural parallel between birdsong and human spoken language, and they have important consequences for our understanding of the evolution of auditory-vocal learning and its neural mechanisms.

  6. Motor Control of Drosophila Courtship Song

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Troy R. Shirangi

    2013-11-01

    Full Text Available Many animals utilize acoustic signals—or songs—to attract mates. During courtship, Drosophila melanogaster males vibrate a wing to produce trains of pulses and extended tone, called pulse and sine song, respectively. Courtship songs in the genus Drosophila are exceedingly diverse, and different song features appear to have evolved independently of each other. How the nervous system allows such diversity to evolve is not understood. Here, we identify a wing muscle in D. melanogaster (hg1 that is uniquely male-enlarged. The hg1 motoneuron and the sexually dimorphic development of the hg1 muscle are required specifically for the sine component of the male song. In contrast, the motoneuron innervating a sexually monomorphic wing muscle, ps1, is required specifically for a feature of pulse song. Thus, individual wing motor pathways can control separate aspects of courtship song and may provide a “modular” anatomical substrate for the evolution of diverse songs.

  7. Analysis of CR1 Repeats in the Zebra Finch Genome

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    George E. Liu

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available Most bird species have smaller genomes and fewer repeats than mammals. Chicken Repeat 1 (CR1 repeat is one of the most abundant families of repeats, ranging from ~133,000 to ~187,000 copies accounting for ~50 to ~80% of the interspersed repeats in the zebra finch and chicken genomes, respectively. CR1 repeats are believed to have arisen from the retrotransposition of a small number of master elements, which gave rise to multiple CR1 subfamilies in the chicken. In this study, we performed a global assessment of the divergence distributions, phylogenies, and consensus sequences of CR1 repeats in the zebra finch genome. We identified and validated 34 CR1 subfamilies and further analyzed the correlation between these subfamilies. We also discovered 4 novel lineage-specific CR1 subfamilies in the zebra finch when compared to the chicken genome. We built various evolutionary trees of these subfamilies and concluded that CR1 repeats may play an important role in reshaping the structure of bird genomes.

  8. Acoustic fine structure may encode biologically relevant information for zebra finches.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Prior, Nora H; Smith, Edward; Lawson, Shelby; Ball, Gregory F; Dooling, Robert J

    2018-04-18

    The ability to discriminate changes in the fine structure of complex sounds is well developed in birds. However, the precise limit of this discrimination ability and how it is used in the context of natural communication remains unclear. Here we describe natural variability in acoustic fine structure of male and female zebra finch calls. Results from psychoacoustic experiments demonstrate that zebra finches are able to discriminate extremely small differences in fine structure, which are on the order of the variation in acoustic fine structure that is present in their vocal signals. Results from signal analysis methods also suggest that acoustic fine structure may carry information that distinguishes between biologically relevant categories including sex, call type and individual identity. Combined, our results are consistent with the hypothesis that zebra finches can encode biologically relevant information within the fine structure of their calls. This study provides a foundation for our understanding of how acoustic fine structure may be involved in animal communication.

  9. The song of Iopas

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    T. E. Kinsey

    1979-06-01

    Full Text Available The Song of Iopas plays an important part in the development of the relationship between Dido and Aeneas. There is no symbolism in the Song and no attempt to arouse Roman prejudice against the Carthaginians.

  10. A Marshmallow and a Song

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kenney, Susan

    2009-01-01

    Music exists in time. One cannot get to the end of the song before going through the song. Is this significant for helping children wait? And can the way we present a singing game activity intensify the delay of what might be a gratifying moment at the end of the song? In this article, the author reflects on whether music can teach delayed…

  11. Reversing song behavior phenotype: testosterone driven induction of singing and measures of song quality in adult male and female canaries (Serinus canaria)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Madison, Farrah N.; Rouse, Melvin L.; Balthazart, Jacques; Ball, Gregory F

    2014-01-01

    In songbirds, such as canaries (Serinus canaria), the song control circuit has been shown to undergo a remarkable change in morphology in response to exogenous testosterone (T). It is also well established that HVC, a telencephalic nucleus involved in song production, is significantly larger in males than in females. T regulates seasonal changes in HVC volume in males and exposure to exogenous T in adult females increases HVC volume and singing activity such that their song becomes more male-like in frequency and structure. However, whether there are sex differences in the ability of T to modulate changes in the song system and song behavior has not been investigated in canaries. In this study, we compared the effects of increasing doses of T on singing and song control nuclei volumes in adult male and female American Singer canaries exposed to identical environmental conditions. Males were castrated and all birds were placed on short days (8L:16D) for 8 weeks. Males and females were implanted either with a 2, 6 or 12 mm long Silastic™ implant filled with crystalline T or an empty 12 mm implant as control. Birds were then housed individually in sound attenuated chambers. Brains were collected from six birds from each group after 1 week or 3 weeks of treatment. Testosterone was not equally effective in increasing singing activity in both males and females. Changes in song quality and occurrence rate took place after a shorter latency in males than in females however, females did undergo marked changes in a number of measures of song behavior if given sufficient time. Males responded with an increase in HVC volume at all three doses. In females, T-induced changes in HVC volume only had limited amplitude and these volumes never reached male-typical levels a suggesting that there are sex differences in the neural substrate that responds to T. PMID:25260250

  12. Prevalence of blood parasites in eastern versus Western house finches: are eastern birds resistant to infection?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Davis, Andrew K; Hood, Wendy R; Hill, Geoffrey E

    2013-09-01

    The rapid spread of the bacterial disease, Mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG), throughout the introduced range of house finches (Carpodacus mexicanus) in eastern North America, compared to its slower spread through the native western range, has puzzled researchers and highlights the need to understand the relative differences in health state of finches from both populations. We conducted a light-microscope survey of hemoparasites in populations of finches from Arizona (within the western range) and from Alabama (within the eastern range), and compared our estimates of prevalence to published reports from house finches sampled in both ranges. Of the 33 Arizona birds examined, we recorded hematozoan infections in 16 (48.5%) individuals, compared to 1 infected Alabama bird out of 30 birds examined (3.3%). Based on independent surveys of seven western North American and five eastern North American populations of house finches the average prevalence of blood parasites in western populations is 38.8% (±17.9 SD), while the average prevalence within the eastern range is only 5.9% (±6.1 SD). The average rate of infection among all songbirds sampled in the east is 34.2% (±4.8 SD). Thus, our surveys of wild birds as well as previously published observations point to eastern house finches having a much lower prevalence of blood parasite infections than their western counterparts. Combined with the fact that eastern finches also tend to have lower rates of avian pox infections than do western birds (based on a literature review), these observations suggest that eastern birds have either strong resistance to these infections or high susceptibility and associated mortality.

  13. Using Songs in Developing Intercultural Competence

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Liliia Shayakhmetova

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available Songs in teaching English are not used to the full extent. To confirm this, we created a set of exercises based on the use of songs to form socio-cultural and regional knowledge, to familiarize students with the culture and way of life of Great Britain, to gain a deeper understanding of the representatives of this linguistic cultural community. The next step was carrying out a survey on revealing the effectiveness of using songs in EFL class, more precisely their effect on the developing of intercultural competence. Following methods were used to conduct the survey: the questionnaire of teachers and students, to determine the role of English songs in the developing of intercultural competence; the analysis of English language course books to determine the presence of songs focusing on their cultural significance; Life in the UK Test, a test to check the knowledge of the history and culture of Britain. The results of the research showed the expediency of using song to develop intercultural competence. Moreover, use of songs aroused interest among students; they expressed the opinion that lyrics have a much deeper meaning and varied information than they thought before using them in English classes. They expressed a desire to continue using songs during classes in keeping with this approach.

  14. Cover song identification by sequence alignment algorithms

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Chih-Li; Zhong, Qian; Wang, Szu-Ying; Roychowdhury, Vwani

    2011-10-01

    Content-based music analysis has drawn much attention due to the rapidly growing digital music market. This paper describes a method that can be used to effectively identify cover songs. A cover song is a song that preserves only the crucial melody of its reference song but different in some other acoustic properties. Hence, the beat/chroma-synchronous chromagram, which is insensitive to the variation of the timber or rhythm of songs but sensitive to the melody, is chosen. The key transposition is achieved by cyclically shifting the chromatic domain of the chromagram. By using the Hidden Markov Model (HMM) to obtain the time sequences of songs, the system is made even more robust. Similar structure or length between the cover songs and its reference are not necessary by the Smith-Waterman Alignment Algorithm.

  15. Colour preferences in nest-building zebra finches.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Muth, Felicity; Steele, Matthew; Healy, Susan D

    2013-10-01

    Some bird species are selective in the materials they choose for nest building, preferring, for example, materials of one colour to others. However, in many cases the cause of these preferences is not clear. One of those species is the zebra finch, which exhibits strong preferences for particular colours of nest material. In an attempt to determine why these birds strongly prefer one colour of material over another, we compared the preferences of paired male zebra finches for nest material colour with their preferences for food of the same colours. We found that birds did indeed prefer particular colours of nest material (in most cases blue) but that they did not generally prefer food of one colour over the other colours. It appears, then, that a preference for one colour or another of nest material is specific to the nest-building context. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: insert SI title. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  16. Substrate texture affects female cricket walking response to male calling song

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sarmiento-Ponce, E. J.; Sutcliffe, M. P. F.; Hedwig, B.

    2018-03-01

    Field crickets are extensively used as a model organism to study female phonotactic walking behaviour, i.e. their attraction to the male calling song. Laboratory-based phonotaxis experiments generally rely on arena or trackball-based settings; however, no attention has been paid to the effect of substrate texture on the response. Here, we tested phonotaxis in female Gryllus bimaculatus, walking on trackballs machined from methyl-methacrylate foam with different cell sizes. Surface height variations of the trackballs, due to the cellular composition of the material, were measured with profilometry and characterized as smooth, medium or rough, with roughness amplitudes of 7.3, 16 and 180 µm. Female phonotaxis was best on a rough and medium trackball surface, a smooth surface resulted in a significant lower phonotactic response. Claws of the cricket foot were crucial for effective walking. Females insert their claws into the surface pores to allow mechanical interlocking with the substrate texture and a high degree of attachment, which cannot be established on smooth surfaces. These findings provide insight to the biomechanical basis of insect walking and may inform behavioural studies that the surface texture on which walking insects are tested is crucial for the resulting behavioural response.

  17. Experimental demonstration of the fitness consequences of an introduced parasite of Darwin's finches.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jennifer A H Koop

    2011-05-01

    Full Text Available Introduced parasites are a particular threat to small populations of hosts living on islands because extinction can occur before hosts have a chance to evolve effective defenses. An experimental approach in which parasite abundance is manipulated in the field can be the most informative means of assessing a parasite's impact on the host. The parasitic fly Philornis downsi, recently introduced to the Galápagos Islands, feeds on nestling Darwin's finches and other land birds. Several correlational studies, and one experimental study of mixed species over several years, reported that the flies reduce host fitness. Here we report the results of a larger scale experimental study of a single species at a single site over a single breeding season.We manipulated the abundance of flies in the nests of medium ground finches (Geospiza fortis and quantified the impact of the parasites on nestling growth and fledging success. We used nylon nest liners to reduce the number of parasites in 24 nests, leaving another 24 nests as controls. A significant reduction in mean parasite abundance led to a significant increase in the number of nests that successfully fledged young. Nestlings in parasite-reduced nests also tended to be larger prior to fledging.Our results confirm that P. downsi has significant negative effects on the fitness of medium ground finches, and they may pose a serious threat to other species of Darwin's finches. These data can help in the design of management plans for controlling P. downsi in Darwin's finch breeding populations.

  18. V. Tormis: "Bridge of Song / Brian Hunt

    Index Scriptorium Estoniae

    Hunt, Brian

    1997-01-01

    Uuest heliplaadist "V. Tormis: "Bridge of Song" - Bridge of Song; Singing aboard ship; Brides Farewell; Kihnu Island Wedding Songs; 17 Estonian Wedding Songs; Three Estonian Game Songs; Four Estonian Lullabies. Estonian Radio Choir / Toomas Kapten. Finlandia 4509 96937-2; 56:52 DDD; "People of Kalevala" - God protect us from war; Vespian Winter; Eagle Flew From the North East; Plague Memory; Vainamoinen's Words of Wisdom; The Seventeenth Rune of Kalevala. National Male Choir of Estonia. Finlandia 0630 12245-2; 56:52 DDD

  19. The perception of regularity in an isochronous stimulus in zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) and humans

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van der Aa, J.; Honing, H.; ten Cate, C.

    2015-01-01

    Perceiving temporal regularity in an auditory stimulus is considered one of the basic features of musicality. Here we examine whether zebra finches can detect regularity in an isochronous stimulus. Using a go/no go paradigm we show that zebra finches are able to distinguish between an isochronous

  20. Gene duplication and fragmentation in the zebra finch major histocompatibility complex.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Balakrishnan, Christopher N; Ekblom, Robert; Völker, Martin; Westerdahl, Helena; Godinez, Ricardo; Kotkiewicz, Holly; Burt, David W; Graves, Tina; Griffin, Darren K; Warren, Wesley C; Edwards, Scott V

    2010-04-01

    Due to its high polymorphism and importance for disease resistance, the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) has been an important focus of many vertebrate genome projects. Avian MHC organization is of particular interest because the chicken Gallus gallus, the avian species with the best characterized MHC, possesses a highly streamlined minimal essential MHC, which is linked to resistance against specific pathogens. It remains unclear the extent to which this organization describes the situation in other birds and whether it represents a derived or ancestral condition. The sequencing of the zebra finch Taeniopygia guttata genome, in combination with targeted bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) sequencing, has allowed us to characterize an MHC from a highly divergent and diverse avian lineage, the passerines. The zebra finch MHC exhibits a complex structure and history involving gene duplication and fragmentation. The zebra finch MHC includes multiple Class I and Class II genes, some of which appear to be pseudogenes, and spans a much more extensive genomic region than the chicken MHC, as evidenced by the presence of MHC genes on each of seven BACs spanning 739 kb. Cytogenetic (FISH) evidence and the genome assembly itself place core MHC genes on as many as four chromosomes with TAP and Class I genes mapping to different chromosomes. MHC Class II regions are further characterized by high endogenous retroviral content. Lastly, we find strong evidence of selection acting on sites within passerine MHC Class I and Class II genes. The zebra finch MHC differs markedly from that of the chicken, the only other bird species with a complete genome sequence. The apparent lack of synteny between TAP and the expressed MHC Class I locus is in fact reminiscent of a pattern seen in some mammalian lineages and may represent convergent evolution. Our analyses of the zebra finch MHC suggest a complex history involving chromosomal fission, gene duplication and translocation in the

  1. Gene duplication and fragmentation in the zebra finch major histocompatibility complex

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Burt David W

    2010-04-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Due to its high polymorphism and importance for disease resistance, the major histocompatibility complex (MHC has been an important focus of many vertebrate genome projects. Avian MHC organization is of particular interest because the chicken Gallus gallus, the avian species with the best characterized MHC, possesses a highly streamlined minimal essential MHC, which is linked to resistance against specific pathogens. It remains unclear the extent to which this organization describes the situation in other birds and whether it represents a derived or ancestral condition. The sequencing of the zebra finch Taeniopygia guttata genome, in combination with targeted bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC sequencing, has allowed us to characterize an MHC from a highly divergent and diverse avian lineage, the passerines. Results The zebra finch MHC exhibits a complex structure and history involving gene duplication and fragmentation. The zebra finch MHC includes multiple Class I and Class II genes, some of which appear to be pseudogenes, and spans a much more extensive genomic region than the chicken MHC, as evidenced by the presence of MHC genes on each of seven BACs spanning 739 kb. Cytogenetic (FISH evidence and the genome assembly itself place core MHC genes on as many as four chromosomes with TAP and Class I genes mapping to different chromosomes. MHC Class II regions are further characterized by high endogenous retroviral content. Lastly, we find strong evidence of selection acting on sites within passerine MHC Class I and Class II genes. Conclusion The zebra finch MHC differs markedly from that of the chicken, the only other bird species with a complete genome sequence. The apparent lack of synteny between TAP and the expressed MHC Class I locus is in fact reminiscent of a pattern seen in some mammalian lineages and may represent convergent evolution. Our analyses of the zebra finch MHC suggest a complex history involving

  2. Early life manipulations of vasopressin-family peptides alter vocal learning.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baran, Nicole M; Peck, Samantha C; Kim, Tabitha H; Goldstein, Michael H; Adkins-Regan, Elizabeth

    2017-07-26

    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. © 2017 The Author(s).

  3. Happy Handwashing Song

    Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

    2010-02-25

    This song (sung to the tune of Happy Birthday) encourages kids to wash their hands with soap and water to keep germs away. The song is sung twice through, the recommended length of time to wash hands. Sing along!  Created: 2/25/2010 by National Center for Preparedness, Detection, and Control of Infectious Diseases (NCPDCID), Division of Global Migration and Quarantine (DGMQ).   Date Released: 2/25/2010.

  4. Political Party Songs: Analysis of the Theme in a Song Topo By ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    It was through these songs that followers of different political parties expressed their feelings of sadness, happiness or hope. This paper analyses one song titled Topo by the band named Setlamo which was said to be aligned to Basotho Congress Party. Informed by New Criticism theory, the paper analyses the lyrics in the ...

  5. Undirected (solitary birdsong in female and male blue-capped cordon-bleus (Uraeginthus cyanocephalus and its endocrine correlates.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nicole Geberzahn

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Birdsong is a popular model system in research areas such as vocal communication, neuroethology or neuroendocrinology of behaviour. As most research has been conducted on species with male-only song production, the hormone-dependency of male song is well established. However, female singing and its mechanisms are poorly understood. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We characterised the song and its endocrine correlates of blue-capped cordon-bleus (Uraeginthus cyanocephalus, a species in which both sexes sing. Like other estrildids, they produce directed song during courtship and undirected (or solitary song in isolation, i.e. when the mate is not visible or absent. We compare solitary song of blue-capped cordon-bleus to published descriptions of the song of its relative, the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata. Solitary song of cordon-bleus shared some overall song features with that of zebra finches but differed in spectro-temporal song features, sequential stereotypy and sequential organisation. The song of cordon-bleus was dimorphic with respect to the larger size of syllable repertoires, the higher song duration and the lower variability of pitch goodness (measuring the pureness of harmonic sounds in males. However, in both sexes the overall plasma testosterone concentrations were low (ca. 300 pg/ml and did not correlate with the sexually dimorphic song motor pattern. Despite such low concentrations, the increase in the rate of solitary song coincided with an increase in the level of testosterone. Furthermore, the latency to start singing after the separation from the mate was related to hormone levels. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Our findings suggest that the occurrence of solitary song but not its motor pattern might be under the control of testosterone in female and male cordon-bleus.

  6. The Equivalence of Translated Songs Lyrics and their Effects - The Case of Translated Ecclesial Songs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S. Suharto

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available This study aimed at describing the equivalence of eclessial song lyrics, which belong to the content word, the meaning of the sentences and their effect on church songs. The method used in this study is descriptive and qualitative by using music, language, and interdiciline approach. The data collection method used questionnaires technique, interview, documents and content analysis. The data used are 5 documents of songs chosen purposively as the primary data. Based on the data being analyzed, the results of this study were: 1 The translated content word located in the same bars and equivalent was around 27.07%, the translated content word located in the same bars, but not equivalent was 18.34%, the translated content word located in the different bars, but equivalent was 11.79%, the translated content word located in the different bars and not equivalent was 2.62%, and the untranslated words were 4.17%. 2 The translation of equivalence beautiful lyrics showed the beauty of the song was equivalent at 17.02%, the beauty of the song was less equivalent at 29.78%, the beauty of the song was not equivalent of 61.70%. 3. The differences of structure caused the incorrect dictions or choice of words and missing words in the translated lyrics.

  7. Great American Work Songs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Daniels, Elva S.

    1983-01-01

    A teaching unit uses the songs of sailors, loggers, coal miners, and other workers to illustrate how the United States was built in the nineteenth century. Words and music for seven songs are given, along with classroom activities to help children understand occupations and industries during that time. (PP)

  8. Hemispheric dominance underlying the neural substrate for learned vocalizations develops with experience

    OpenAIRE

    Chirathivat, Napim; Raja, Sahitya C.; Gobes, Sharon M. H.

    2015-01-01

    Many aspects of song learning in songbirds resemble characteristics of speech acquisition in humans. Genetic, anatomical and behavioural parallels have most recently been extended with demonstrated similarities in hemispheric dominance between humans and songbirds: the avian higher order auditory cortex is left-lateralized for processing song memories in juvenile zebra finches that already have formed a memory of their fathers? song, just like Wernicke?s area in the left hemisphere of the hum...

  9. Molecular phylogenetics of finches and sparrows: consequences of character state removal in cytochrome b sequences.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Groth, J G

    1998-12-01

    The complete mitochondrial cytochrome b genes of 53 genera of oscine passerine birds representing the major groups of finches and some allies were compared. Phylogenetic trees resulting from three levels of character partition removal (no data removed, transitions at third positions of codons removed, and all transitions removed [transversion parsimony]) were generally concordant, and all supported several basic statements regarding relationships of finches and finch-like birds, including: (1) larks (Alaudidae) show no close relationship to any finch group; (2) Peucedramus (olive warbler) is phylogenetically far removed from true wood warblers; (3) a clade consisting of fringillids, passerids, motacillids, and emberizids is supported, and this clade is characterized by evolution of a vestigial 10th wing primary; and (4) Hawaiian honeycreepers are derived from within the cardueline finches. Excluding transition substitutions at third positions of codons resulted in phylogenetic trees similar to, but with greater bootstrap nodal support than, trees derived using either all data (equally weighted) or transversion parsimony. Relative to the shortest trees obtained using all data, the topologies obtained after elimination of third-position transitions showed only slight increases in realized treelength and homoplasy. These increases were negligable compared to increases in overall nodal support; therefore, this partition removal scheme may enhance recovery of deep phylogenetic signal in protein-coding DNA datasets. Copyright 1998 Academic Press.

  10. Effects of the social environment during adolescence on the development of social behaviour, hormones and morphology in male zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bölting, Stefanie; von Engelhardt, Nikolaus

    2017-01-01

    Individual differences in behaviour are widespread in the animal kingdom and often influenced by the size or composition of the social group during early development. In many vertebrates the effects of social interactions early in life on adult behaviour are mediated by changes in maturation and physiology. Specifically, increases in androgens and glucocorticoids in response to social stimulation seem to play a prominent role in shaping behaviour during development. In addition to the prenatal and early postnatal phase, adolescence has more recently been identified as an important period during which adult behaviour and physiology are shaped by the social environment, which so far has been studied mostly in mammals. We raised zebra finches ( Taeniopygia guttata ) under three environmental conditions differing in social complexity during adolescence - juvenile pairs, juvenile groups, and mixed-age groups - and studied males' behavioural, endocrine, and morphological maturation, and later their adult behaviour. As expected, group-housed males exhibited higher frequencies of social interactions. Group housing also enhanced song during adolescence, plumage development, and the frequency and intensity of adult courtship and aggression. Some traits, however, were affected more in juvenile groups and others in mixed-age groups. Furthermore, a testosterone peak during late adolescence was suppressed in groups with adults. In contrast, corticosterone concentrations did not differ between rearing environments. Unexpectedly, adult courtship in a test situation was lowest in pair-reared males and aggression depended upon the treatment of the opponent with highest rates shown by group-reared males towards pair-reared males. This contrasts with previous findings, possibly due to differences in photoperiod and the acoustic environment. Our results support the idea that effects of the adolescent social environment on adult behaviour in vertebrates are mediated by changes in

  11. Female in-nest chatter song increases predation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kleindorfer, Sonia; Evans, Christine; Mahr, Katharina

    2016-01-01

    Female song is an ancestral trait in songbirds, yet extant females generally sing less than males. Here, we examine sex differences in the predation cost of singing behaviour. The superb fairy-wren (Malurus cyaneus) is a Southern Hemisphere songbird; males and females provision the brood and produce solo song year-round. Both sexes had higher song rate during the fertile period and lower song rate during incubation and chick feeding. Females were more likely than males to sing close to or inside the nest. For this reason, female but not male song rate predicted egg and nestling predation. This study identifies a high fitness cost of song when a parent bird attends offspring inside a nest and explains gender differences in singing when there are gender differences in parental care. © 2016 The Author(s).

  12. Bill redness is positively associated with reproduction and survival in male and female zebra finches.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mirre J P Simons

    Full Text Available Sexual traits can serve as honest indicators of phenotypic quality when they are costly. Brightly coloured yellow to red traits, which are pigmented by carotenoids, are relatively common in birds, and feature in sexual selection. Carotenoids have been linked to immune and antioxidant function, and the trade-off between ornamentation and these physiological functions provides a potential mechanism rendering carotenoid based signals costly. Mutual ornamentation is also common in birds and can be maintained by mutual mate choice for this ornament or by a correlated response in one sex to selection on the other sex. When selection pressures differ between the sexes this can cause intralocus sexual conflict. Sexually antagonistic selection pressures have been demonstrated for few sexual traits, and for carotenoid-dependent traits there is a single example: bill redness was found to be positively associated with survival and reproductive output in male zebra finches, but negatively so in females. We retested these associations in our captive zebra finch population without two possible limitations of this earlier study. Contrary to the earlier findings, we found no evidence for sexually antagonistic selection. In both sexes, individuals with redder bills showed higher survival. This association disappeared among the females with the reddest bills. Furthermore, females with redder bills achieved higher reproductive output. We conclude that bill redness of male and female zebra finches honestly signals phenotypic quality, and discuss the possible causes of the differences between our results and earlier findings.

  13. Song convergence in multiple urban populations of silvereyes (Zosterops lateralis).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Potvin, Dominique A; Parris, Kirsten M

    2012-08-01

    Recent studies have revealed differences between urban and rural vocalizations of numerous bird species. These differences include frequency shifts, amplitude shifts, altered song speed, and selective meme use. If particular memes sung by urban populations are adapted to the urban soundscape, "urban-typical" calls, memes, or repertoires should be consistently used in multiple urban populations of the same species, regardless of geographic location. We tested whether songs or contact calls of silvereyes (Zosterops lateralis) might be subject to such convergent cultural evolution by comparing syllable repertoires of geographically dispersed urban and rural population pairs throughout southeastern Australia. Despite frequency and tempo differences between urban and rural calls, call repertoires were similar between habitat types. However, certain song syllables were used more frequently by birds from urban than rural populations. Partial redundancy analysis revealed that both geographic location and habitat characteristics were important predictors of syllable repertoire composition. These findings suggest convergent cultural evolution: urban populations modify both song and call syllables from their local repertoire in response to noise.

  14. Insights into the evolution of Darwin’s finches from comparative analysis of the Geospiza magnirostris genome sequence

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rands Chris M

    2013-02-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background A classical example of repeated speciation coupled with ecological diversification is the evolution of 14 closely related species of Darwin’s (Galápagos finches (Thraupidae, Passeriformes. Their adaptive radiation in the Galápagos archipelago took place in the last 2–3 million years and some of the molecular mechanisms that led to their diversification are now being elucidated. Here we report evolutionary analyses of genome of the large ground finch, Geospiza magnirostris. Results 13,291 protein-coding genes were predicted from a 991.0 Mb G. magnirostris genome assembly. We then defined gene orthology relationships and constructed whole genome alignments between the G. magnirostris and other vertebrate genomes. We estimate that 15% of genomic sequence is functionally constrained between G. magnirostris and zebra finch. Genic evolutionary rate comparisons indicate that similar selective pressures acted along the G. magnirostris and zebra finch lineages suggesting that historical effective population size values have been similar in both lineages. 21 otherwise highly conserved genes were identified that each show evidence for positive selection on amino acid changes in the Darwin's finch lineage. Two of these genes (Igf2r and Pou1f1 have been implicated in beak morphology changes in Darwin’s finches. Five of 47 genes showing evidence of positive selection in early passerine evolution have cilia related functions, and may be examples of adaptively evolving reproductive proteins. Conclusions These results provide insights into past evolutionary processes that have shaped G. magnirostris genes and its genome, and provide the necessary foundation upon which to build population genomics resources that will shed light on more contemporaneous adaptive and non-adaptive processes that have contributed to the evolution of the Darwin’s finches.

  15. Oxytocin mechanisms of stress response and aggression in a territorial finch.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goodson, James L; Schrock, Sara E; Kingsbury, Marcy A

    2015-03-15

    All jawed vertebrates produce a form of oxytocin (OT), and in birds, mammals and fish, OT is strongly associated with affiliation. However, remarkably few data are available on the roles of OT and OT receptors (OTRs) in aggression. Because OT and OTRs exert anxiolytic effects in mammals (although context-specific) and modulate stress coping, we hypothesized that OTR activation is at least permissive for territorial aggression. Indeed, we find that peripheral injections of an OTR antagonist significantly reduce male-male and female-female aggression in a highly territorial finch. This finding suggests the hypothesis that aggression is accompanied by an increase in transcriptional (Fos) activity of OT neurons, but contrary to this hypothesis, we find that dominant male residents do not elevate OT-Fos colocalization following an aggressive encounter and that OT-Fos colocalization in the preoptic area and hypothalamus correlates negatively with aggression. Furthermore, OT-Fos colocalization increases dramatically in males that were aggressively subjugated or pursued by a human hand, likely reflecting OT modulation of stress response. Because OT inhibits the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis, the antagonist effects may reflect the fact that aggressive birds and mammals tend to be hyporesponsive to stress. If this is correct, then 1) the observed effects of OTR antagonism may reflect alterations in corticosterone feedback to the brain rather than centrally mediated OTR effects, and 2) the negative correlation between OT-Fos colocalization and aggression may reflect the fact that more aggressive, stress hyporesponsive males require less inhibition of the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis than do less aggressive males, despite the requirement of that inhibition for the normal display of aggression. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  16. Slangs in Beyonce Knowles' Songs

    OpenAIRE

    Elia Masa Gintings, Christina Septiani Manurung and

    2015-01-01

    This study is based on sociolinguistics problems. It deals with the use of slang.The writer focuses on Beyonce Knowles's songs lyrics as the scope of data. Theobjectives of the study were to find out the types of slang are used in BeyonceKnowles' songs and to reason for the use of the types of slang in BeyonceKnowles' songs. The data that support this study by using descriptive qualitativedata by reading some references related to the subject matters. The findingsshowed Abbreviation and Baby'...

  17. Competing sound sources reveal spatial effects in cortical processing.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ross K Maddox

    Full Text Available Why is spatial tuning in auditory cortex weak, even though location is important to object recognition in natural settings? This question continues to vex neuroscientists focused on linking physiological results to auditory perception. Here we show that the spatial locations of simultaneous, competing sound sources dramatically influence how well neural spike trains recorded from the zebra finch field L (an analog of mammalian primary auditory cortex encode source identity. We find that the location of a birdsong played in quiet has little effect on the fidelity of the neural encoding of the song. However, when the song is presented along with a masker, spatial effects are pronounced. For each spatial configuration, a subset of neurons encodes song identity more robustly than others. As a result, competing sources from different locations dominate responses of different neural subpopulations, helping to separate neural responses into independent representations. These results help elucidate how cortical processing exploits spatial information to provide a substrate for selective spatial auditory attention.

  18. BUILDING VOCABULARY USING POP SONGS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    author Rahmatika Kayyis

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available The objective of the study is to find out whether there is a significant difference between the vocabulary mastery of first semester students taughtusing English pop songs and that taught without using English pop songs as a medium. This study involved 64 students of first semesterof STKIP Muhammadiyah Pringsewu Lampung in the academic year of 2012/2013 as the objects of the study. The result of the study shows there is a significant difference in the student’s vocabulary mastery between the experimental group who are taughtusing English pop songs and that taught without using English pop songs as a medium.The mean of post test score of the experimental group is 16.93 while the mean score of the control group is 14.54. The result of t-test shows that t-observed value which is higher than the t-value of the table (2.572>1.99, with a probability value of 0.008 which is lower than the significance level (0.008 < 0.05. In conclusion, the use of English pop songscould improve the students’ vocabulary mastery.Keywords: Vocabulary, English Pop Songs

  19. The combined effect of lead exposure and high or low dietary calcium on health and immunocompetence in the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Snoeijs, Tinne; Dauwe, Tom; Pinxten, Rianne; Darras, Veerle M.; Arckens, Lutgarde; Eens, Marcel

    2005-01-01

    The widespread contamination by lead and the acidification of the environment ask for a better understanding of the effects of the interaction between lead and calcium on various aspects of health, including disease defense, in wildlife. Here, we investigated the effects of chronic exposure to sublethal levels of lead, combined with high or low dietary calcium, on health and several components of immunity in male and female zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata). Thirty individuals of each sex were randomly assigned to three groups: a control group, a group exposed to lead with an additional calcium source (i.e. grit) and a group exposed to lead without access to an extra calcium source. Lead was administered as lead acetate via the drinking water (20 ppm) for 38 consecutive days. Exposure to lead increased significantly the concentrations of lead in kidney and bone in individuals of the experimental groups. Furthermore, the lack of a calcium supplement significantly enhanced the uptake of lead. Lead did not affect health indices such as hematocrit, spleen mass and body mass, nor the adrenal stress response. Cell-mediated immune responsiveness, assessed by a delayed-type hypersensitivity response to phytohaemagglutinin, was also not affected by lead exposure. On the other hand, lead exposure did significantly suppress the secondary humoral immune response towards sheep red blood cells in females, but only when the additional calcium source was not available. This effect was not found in males, suggesting sexual differences in susceptibility of humoral immunity to lead treatment in zebra finches. - Male and female finches may respond to lead differently

  20. Degradation of Rural and Urban Great Tit Song

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mockford, Emily J; Marshall, Rupert C; Dabelsteen, Torben

    2011-01-01

    Acoustic signals play a fundamental role in avian territory defence and mate attraction. Several studies have now shown that spectral properties of bird song differ between urban and rural environments. Previously this has been attributed to competition for acoustic space as a result of low......-frequency noise present in cities. However, the physical structure of urban areas may have a contributory effect. Here we investigate the sound degradation properties of woodland and city environments using both urban and rural great tit song. We show that although urban surroundings caused significantly less...... degradation to both songs, the transmission efficiency of rural song compared to urban song was significantly lower in the city. While differences between the two songs in woodland were generally minimal, some measures of the transmission efficiency of rural song were significantly lower than those of urban...

  1. SECRETS OF SONG VIDEO

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chernyshov Alexander V.

    2014-04-01

    Full Text Available The article focuses on the origins of the song videos as TV and Internet-genre. In addition, it considers problems of screen images creation depending on the musical form and the text of a songs in connection with relevant principles of accent and phraseological video editing and filming techniques as well as with additional frames and sound elements.

  2. Exploring the zebra finch Taeniopygia guttata as a novel animal model for the speech-language deficit of fragile X syndrome.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Winograd, Claudia; Ceman, Stephanie

    2012-01-01

    Fragile X syndrome (FXS) is the most common cause of inherited intellectual disability and presents with markedly atypical speech-language, likely due to impaired vocal learning. Although current models have been useful for studies of some aspects of FXS, zebra finch is the only tractable lab model for vocal learning. The neural circuits for vocal learning in the zebra finch have clear relationships to the pathways in the human brain that may be affected in FXS. Further, finch vocal learning may be quantified using software designed specifically for this purpose. Knockdown of the zebra finch FMR1 gene may ultimately enable novel tests of therapies that are modality-specific, using drugs or even social strategies, to ameliorate deficits in vocal development and function. In this chapter, we describe the utility of the zebra finch model and present a hypothesis for the role of FMRP in the developing neural circuitry for vocalization.

  3. Female in-nest chatter song increases predation

    OpenAIRE

    Kleindorfer, Sonia; Evans, Christine; Mahr, Katharina

    2016-01-01

    Female song is an ancestral trait in songbirds, yet extant females generally sing less than males. Here, we examine sex differences in the predation cost of singing behaviour. The superb fairy-wren (Malurus cyaneus) is a Southern Hemisphere songbird; males and females provision the brood and produce solo song year-round. Both sexes had higher song rate during the fertile period and lower song rate during incubation and chick feeding. Females were more likely than males to sing close to or ins...

  4. AstroCappella: Songs of the Universe

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boyd, P. T.; Smale, A. P.; Smale, K. M.

    2008-11-01

    The AstroCappella Project is a classroom-ready collection of upbeat pop songs, lesson plans, and background information, all rich in science content. It was developed as a collaboration between working research astronomers, educators, and a contemporary vocal band, The Chromatics. A multimedia music CD, ``AstroCappella 2.0,'' has been produced containing 13 astronomically correct songs with original lyrics and music. Song topics range from the Sun, Moon, planets and small bodies of the Solar System, through the Doppler shift, the nearest stars, and extra-solar planets, to radio and X-ray astronomy. The CD also contains extensive CD-ROM materials including science background information, curriculum notes, lesson plans and activities for each song, images, movies, and slide shows. The songs and accompanying information have been extensively field-tested, and align to the K--12 National Science Education Standards. The AstroCappella materials are in widespread use in classrooms and homes across the U.S., and are supplemented with frequent live performances and teacher workshops.

  5. Song competition affects monoamine levels in sensory and motor forebrain regions of male Lincoln's sparrows (Melospiza lincolnii.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kendra B Sewall

    Full Text Available Male animals often change their behavior in response to the level of competition for mates. Male Lincoln's sparrows (Melospiza lincolnii modulate their competitive singing over the period of a week as a function of the level of challenge associated with competitors' songs. Differences in song challenge and associated shifts in competitive state should be accompanied by neural changes, potentially in regions that regulate perception and song production. The monoamines mediate neural plasticity in response to environmental cues to achieve shifts in behavioral state. Therefore, using high pressure liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection, we compared levels of monoamines and their metabolites from male Lincoln's sparrows exposed to songs categorized as more or less challenging. We compared levels of norepinephrine and its principal metabolite in two perceptual regions of the auditory telencephalon, the caudomedial nidopallium and the caudomedial mesopallium (CMM, because this chemical is implicated in modulating auditory sensitivity to song. We also measured the levels of dopamine and its principal metabolite in two song control nuclei, area X and the robust nucleus of the arcopallium (RA, because dopamine is implicated in regulating song output. We measured the levels of serotonin and its principal metabolite in all four brain regions because this monoamine is implicated in perception and behavioral output and is found throughout the avian forebrain. After controlling for recent singing, we found that males exposed to more challenging song had higher levels of norepinephrine metabolite in the CMM and lower levels of serotonin in the RA. Collectively, these findings are consistent with norepinephrine in perceptual brain regions and serotonin in song control regions contributing to neuroplasticity that underlies socially-induced changes in behavioral state.

  6. A duetting perspective on avian song learning.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rivera-Cáceres, Karla D; Templeton, Christopher N

    2017-12-25

    Avian song learning has a rich history of study and has become the preeminent system for understanding the ontogeny of vocal communication in animals. Song learning in birds has many parallels with human language learning, ranging from the neural mechanisms involved to the importance of social factors in shaping signal acquisition. While much has been learned about the process of song learning, virtually all of the research done to date has focused on temperate species, where often only one sex (the male) sings. Duetting species, in which both males and females learn to sing and learn to combine their songs into temporally coordinated joint displays, could provide many insights into the processes by which vocal learning takes place. Here we highlight three key features of song learning-neuroendocrine control mechanisms, timing and life history stages of song acquisition, and the role of social factors in song selection and use-that have been elucidated from species where only males sing, and compare these with duetting species. We summarize what is known about song learning in duetting species and then provide several suggestions for fruitful directions for future research. We suggest that focusing research efforts on duetting species could significantly advance our understanding of vocal learning in birds and further cement the importance of avian species as models for understanding human conversations and the processes of vocal learning more broadly. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  7. Three Molecular Markers Show No Evidence of Population Genetic Structure in the Gouldian Finch (Erythrura gouldiae.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Peri E Bolton

    Full Text Available Assessment of genetic diversity and connectivity between regions can inform conservation managers about risk of inbreeding, potential for adaptation and where population boundaries lie. The Gouldian finch (Erythrura gouldiae is a threatened species in northern Australia, occupying the savannah woodlands of the biogeographically complex monsoon tropics. We present the most comprehensive population genetic analysis of diversity and structure the Gouldian finch using 16 microsatellite markers, mitochondrial control region and 3,389 SNPs from genotyping-by-sequencing. Mitochondrial diversity is compared across three related, co-distributed finches with different conservation threat-statuses. There was no evidence of genetic differentiation across the western part of the range in any of the molecular markers, and haplotype diversity but not richness was lower than a common co-distributed species. Individuals within the panmictic population in the west may be highly dispersive within this wide area, and we urge caution when interpreting anecdotal observations of changes to the distribution and/or flock sizes of Gouldian finch populations as evidence of overall changes to the population size of this species.

  8. Sympatric song variant in mountain chickadees Poecile gambeli does not reduce aggression from black-capped chickadees Poecile atricapillus

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Snell Cara L.

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available When habitats overlap and species compete for resources, negative interactions frequently occur. Character displacement in the form of behavioural, social or morphological divergences between closely related species can act to reduce negative interactions and often arise in regions of geographic overlap. Mountain chickadees Poecile gambeli have an altered song structure in regions of geographic overlap with the behaviourally dominant black-capped chickadee Poecile atricapillus. Similar to European and Asian tits, altered song in mountain chickadees may decrease aggression from black-capped chickadees. To test this hypothesis, we conducted a playback study in Prince George, BC, Canada, to examine how black-capped chickadees responded to the songs of mountain chickadees recorded in regions where the two species were either sympatric or allopatric. We used principal component analysis (PCA to collapse behavioural response variables into a single ‘approach’ variable and a single ‘vocalisation’ variable. We then used mixed-model analysis to determine whether there was a difference in approach or vocalisation response to the two types of mountain chickadee songs (allopatric songs and variant sympatric songs. Black-capped chickadees responded with equal intensity to both types of mountain chickadee songs, suggesting that the variant mountain chickadee songs from regions of sympatry with black-capped chickadees do not reduce heterospecific aggression. To our knowledge, this is the only instance of a character shift unassociated with reduced aggression in the family Paridae and raises interesting questions about the selective pressures leading to the evolution of this song divergence.

  9. Transcending the Versification of Oraliture: Song-Text as Oral Performance among the Ilaje

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    N. Akingbe

    2013-12-01

    Full Text Available Oraliture is a terminology that is often employed in the description of the various genres of oral literature such as proverbs, legends, short stories, traditional songs and rhymes, song-poems, historical narratives traditional symbols, images, oral performance, myths and other traditional stylistic devices. All these devices constitute vibrant appurtenances of oral narrative performance in Africa. Oral narrative performance is invariably situated within the domain of social communication, which brings together the raconteur/performer and the audience towards the realisation of communal entertainment. While the narrator/performer, plays the leading role in an oral performance, the audience’s involvement and participation is realised through song, verbal/choral responses, gestures and, or instrumental/musical accompaniment. This oral practice usually take place at one time or the other in various African communities during the festival, ritual/religious procession which ranges from story- telling, recitation of poems, song text and dancing. This paper is essentially concerned with the illustration of the use of song- text, as oral performance among the Ilaje, a burgeoning coastal subethnic group, of the Yoruba race in the South Western Nigeria. The paper will further examine how patriotism, history, death and anti-social behaviours are evaluated through the use of songs among the Ilaje.

  10. Students’ acceptance of song lyrics containing national characters

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dwija Iswara Prana

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper aims at analyzing the acceptance of elementary school students of song lyrics containing national characters. The study was employed using research and development method, and this paper is the result of the interview related to the learning of nine song lyrics containing national characters. The results showed that all students had no difficulty in learning the vocabulary in the lyrics. However, the students were generally passive when asked about the meaning of the lyrics, hence the ability of students in singing the songs does not represent their understanding of the content of the lyrics. The implication of this research is that students always love songs and can sing songs, but it does not guarantee that students really understand the contents of the song.

  11. Long-range order in canary song.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Markowitz, Jeffrey E; Ivie, Elizabeth; Kligler, Laura; Gardner, Timothy J

    2013-01-01

    Bird songs range in form from the simple notes of a Chipping Sparrow to the rich performance of the nightingale. Non-adjacent correlations can be found in the syntax of some birdsongs, indicating that the choice of what to sing next is determined not only by the current syllable, but also by previous syllables sung. Here we examine the song of the domesticated canary, a complex singer whose song consists of syllables, grouped into phrases that are arranged in flexible sequences. Phrases are defined by a fundamental time-scale that is independent of the underlying syllable duration. We show that the ordering of phrases is governed by long-range rules: the choice of what phrase to sing next in a given context depends on the history of the song, and for some syllables, highly specific rules produce correlations in song over timescales of up to ten seconds. The neural basis of these long-range correlations may provide insight into how complex behaviors are assembled from more elementary, stereotyped modules.

  12. Of mice, birds, and men: the mouse ultrasonic song system has some features similar to humans and song-learning birds.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gustavo Arriaga

    Full Text Available Humans and song-learning birds communicate acoustically using learned vocalizations. The characteristic features of this social communication behavior include vocal control by forebrain motor areas, a direct cortical projection to brainstem vocal motor neurons, and dependence on auditory feedback to develop and maintain learned vocalizations. These features have so far not been found in closely related primate and avian species that do not learn vocalizations. Male mice produce courtship ultrasonic vocalizations with acoustic features similar to songs of song-learning birds. However, it is assumed that mice lack a forebrain system for vocal modification and that their ultrasonic vocalizations are innate. Here we investigated the mouse song system and discovered that it includes a motor cortex region active during singing, that projects directly to brainstem vocal motor neurons and is necessary for keeping song more stereotyped and on pitch. We also discovered that male mice depend on auditory feedback to maintain some ultrasonic song features, and that sub-strains with differences in their songs can match each other's pitch when cross-housed under competitive social conditions. We conclude that male mice have some limited vocal modification abilities with at least some neuroanatomical features thought to be unique to humans and song-learning birds. To explain our findings, we propose a continuum hypothesis of vocal learning.

  13. Can the Song of Songs be described (also as a form of dark green religion?

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    Hendrik Viviers

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available Bron Taylor defines dark green religion as: �� a deep sense of belonging to and connectedness in nature, whilst perceiving the earth and its living systems to be sacred and interconnected�. It not only emphasises a felt kinship with the rest of life but also evokes awe, wonderment and humility towards nature that binds to something �greater than oneself�. Do the intimate �oneness� and living in the moment of the two young lovers in the Song also extend to a diminishing of the self and an experience of oneness with a greater, timeless, mysterious reality? In order to determine whether the Song of Songs complies with a form of nature spirituality, the notions of belonging, interconnectedness and sacredness were investigated as they appear in this ancient book of love. It was found that the Song is representative of a form of dark green religion of a non-doctrinaire, immanent kind. It exhibits ubiquitously the notions of belonging and connection (kinship with nature, an interconnectedness and interdependency of the web of life and the sacredness of the earth and its inhabitants (their intrinsic worth that evokes awe, wonderment and humility. The experience of sensuality, living mindfully in the moment, transforms into a timeless spirituality of connection to �another, mysterious world�.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: The relevance of reader-oriented appreciations of biblical texts, notably ecological hermeneutics, is demonstrated; this approach can also be extended to other sacred texts apart from the Bible; furthermore, it points to the need for the ongoing dialogue with the natural sciences.Keywords: dark green religion; nature spirituality; belonging;interconnectedness; sacredness; Song of Songs

  14. Exploratory behavior is linked to stress physiology and social network centrality in free-living house finches (Haemorhous mexicanus).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moyers, Sahnzi C; Adelman, James S; Farine, Damien R; Moore, Ignacio T; Hawley, Dana M

    2018-05-21

    Animal personality has been linked to individual variation in both stress physiology and social behaviors, but few studies have simultaneously examined covariation between personality traits, stress hormone levels, and behaviors in free-living animals. We investigated relationships between exploratory behavior (one aspect of animal personality), stress physiology, and social and foraging behaviors in wild house finches (Haemorhous mexicanus). We conducted novel environment assays after collecting samples of baseline and stress-induced plasma corticosterone concentrations from a subset of house finches. We then fitted individuals with Passive Integrated Transponder tags and monitored feeder use and social interactions at radio-frequency identification equipped bird feeders. First, we found that individuals with higher baseline corticosterone concentrations exhibit more exploratory behaviors in a novel environment. Second, more exploratory individuals interacted with more unique conspecifics in the wild, though this result was stronger for female than for male house finches. Third, individuals that were quick to begin exploring interacted more frequently with conspecifics than slow-exploring individuals. Finally, exploratory behaviors were unrelated to foraging behaviors, including the amount of time spent on bird feeders, a behavior previously shown to be predictive of acquiring a bacterial disease that causes annual epidemics in house finches. Overall, our results indicate that individual differences in exploratory behavior are linked to variation in both stress physiology and social network traits in free-living house finches. Such covariation has important implications for house finch ecology, as both traits can contribute to fitness in the wild. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  15. Model calculations for the airborne Fast Ice Nuclei CHamber FINCH-HALO

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nillius, B.; Bingemer, H.; Bundke, U.; Jaenicke, R.; Reimann, B.; Wetter, T.

    2009-04-01

    Ice nuclei (IN) initiate the formation of primary ice in tropospheric clouds. In mixed phase clouds the primary ice crystals can grow very fast by the Bergeron-Findeisen process (Findeisen, 1938) at the expense of evaporating water droplets, and form precipitation. Thus, IN are essential for the development of precipitation in mixed phase clouds in the middle latitude. However, the role of IN in the development of clouds is still poorly understood and needs to be studied (Levin and Cotton, 2007). A Fast Ice Nuclei CHamber (FINCH-HALO) for airborne operation on the High And LOng Range research aircraft (HALO) is under development at the Institute for Atmosphere and Environment University Frankfurt. IN particles are activated within the chamber at certain ice super-saturation and temperature by mixing three gas flows, a warm moist, a cold dry, and an aerosol flow. After activation the particles will grow within a processing chamber. In an optical depolarisation detector droplets and ice crystals are detected separately. The setup of the new FINCH-HALO instrument is based on the ground based IN counter FINCH (Bundke, 2008). In FINCH-HALO a new cooling unit is used. Thus, measurements down to -40°C are possible. Furthermore minor changes of the inlet section where the mixing occurs were done. The contribution will present 3D model calculations with FLUENT of the flow conditions in the new inlet section for different pressure levels during a flight typical for HALO. Growth rates of ice crystals in the chamber at different temperature and super-saturation will be shown. References: Bundke U., B. Nillius, R. Jaenicke, T. Wetter, H. Klein, H. Bingemer, (2008). The Fast Ice Nucleus Chamber FINCH, Atmospheric Research, doi:10.1016/j.atmosres.2008.02.008 Findeisen, R., (1938). Meteorologisch-physikalische Begebenheiten der Vereisung in der Atmosphäre. Hauptversammlung 1938 der Lilienthal-Gesellschaft. Levin, Z., W. Cotton, (2007). Aerosol pollution impact on precipitation

  16. Male mice song syntax depends on social contexts and influences female preferences

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    Jonathan eChabout

    2015-04-01

    Full Text Available In 2005 Holy & Guo advanced the idea that male mice produce ultrasonic vocalizations (USV with some features similar to courtship songs of songbirds. Since then, studies showed that male mice emit USV songs in different contexts (sexual and other and possess a multisyllabic repertoire. Debate still exists for and against plasticity in their vocalizations. But the use of a multisyllabic repertoire can increase potential flexibility and information, in how elements are organized and recombined, namely syntax. In many bird species, modulating song syntax has ethological relevance for sexual behavior and mate preferences. In this study we exposed adult male mice to different social contexts and developed a new approach of analyzing their USVs based on songbird syntax analysis. We found that male mice modify their syntax, including specific sequences, length of sequence, repertoire composition, and spectral features, according to stimulus and social context. Males emit longer and simpler syllables and sequences when singing to females, but more complex syllables and sequences in response to fresh female urine. Playback experiments show that the females prefer the complex songs over the simpler ones. We propose the complex songs are to lure females in, whereas the directed simpler sequences are used for direct courtship. These results suggest that although mice have a much more limited ability of song modification, they could still be used as animal models for understanding some vocal communication features that songbirds are used for.

  17. Songs of a Medicine Woman. Native Language and Culture Project.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pratt, Alice; Bennett, Ruth, Ed.

    Traditional and contemporary Hupa songs as sung by a Hupa medicine woman in her 70's are collected in this booklet. Songs are presented in Hupa and English on facing pages that are illustrated with pen and ink drawings. The four songs are "Flower Dance Song" and "Kick Dance Song" (both for traditional religious ceremonial…

  18. Discovery of the First Germline-Restricted Gene by Subtractive Transcriptomic Analysis in the Zebra Finch, Taeniopygia guttata.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Biederman, Michelle K; Nelson, Megan M; Asalone, Kathryn C; Pedersen, Alyssa L; Saldanha, Colin J; Bracht, John R

    2018-05-21

    Developmentally programmed genome rearrangements are rare in vertebrates, but have been reported in scattered lineages including the bandicoot, hagfish, lamprey, and zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata) [1]. In the finch, a well-studied animal model for neuroendocrinology and vocal learning [2], one such programmed genome rearrangement involves a germline-restricted chromosome, or GRC, which is found in germlines of both sexes but eliminated from mature sperm [3, 4]. Transmitted only through the oocyte, it displays uniparental female-driven inheritance, and early in embryonic development is apparently eliminated from all somatic tissue in both sexes [3, 4]. The GRC comprises the longest finch chromosome at over 120 million base pairs [3], and previously the only known GRC-derived sequence was repetitive and non-coding [5]. Because the zebra finch genome project was sourced from male muscle (somatic) tissue [6], the remaining genomic sequence and protein-coding content of the GRC remain unknown. Here we report the first protein-coding gene from the GRC: a member of the α-soluble N-ethylmaleimide sensitive fusion protein (NSF) attachment protein (α-SNAP) family hitherto missing from zebra finch gene annotations. In addition to the GRC-encoded α-SNAP, we find an additional paralogous α-SNAP residing in the somatic genome (a somatolog)-making the zebra finch the first example in which α-SNAP is not a single-copy gene. We show divergent, sex-biased expression for the paralogs and also that positive selection is detectable across the bird α-SNAP lineage, including the GRC-encoded α-SNAP. This study presents the identification and evolutionary characterization of the first protein-coding GRC gene in any organism. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. Ivan Zajc's Bulgarian Songs

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    Stefanka Georgieva

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available On the basis of newly discovered historiographic documents, this study traces the »biography« of Ivan Zajc’s Bulgarian songs. It specifies some disputed details with regard to the numbering and structure of two vocal cycles; it submits a transcript of a music sheet of the song Robstvo (The Yoke, op. 843a and the original of an unknown composition Majko kleta (Poor Mother on the verses of the Bulgarian poet Ivan Vazov which has not been registered by Hubert Pettan in Zajc’s catalogue of works. This exploration, together with the historiographic focus, highlights the connection of these opuses with the Bulgarian poetry which gained wide popularity through the anthology Bulgarian Songs by August Harambašić. Indeed, some details which Zajc indicated on the title pages of his scores, lead to this assumption. At the same time, the spread of the songs in Bulgaria indicates the connection of the Croatian composer with Bulgarian musicians, choral societies, schools etc., as a result of which in the first decade of the 20th century Zagreb’s Hrvatski glazbeni zavod became an attractive educational centre for many young Bulgarian people. Ivan Zajc’s Bulgarian Songs have not only enriched the artistic repertoire of Bulgarian choral societies. They outline one of the lines of active multicultural transfer between Bulgaria and Croatia on the border between the last decades of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th centuries. The melodies of his marches, creating the spirit of the struggles for national liberation of Bulgarian nation, have become part of the newly created national musical culture and have been often accepted as Bulgarian in their origin.

  20. Stylistic analysis of songs in beverage advertisement

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    周双卉

    2012-01-01

    With the development of the advertisement,people tend to study the stylistic analysis of it.However,in this paper,the focus will be on the songs in beverage advertisement.The analysis will be focused on the features of the beverage advertisement songs and the stylistics of it.The aim of the paper is to improve the people and the scholars' understanding of the beverage advertisement songs.

  1. The song of the Brazilian population of Humpback Whale Megaptera novaeangliae, in the year 2000: individual song variations and possible implications

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    Arraut Eduardo M.

    2004-01-01

    Full Text Available The song of the Brazilian population of the Humpback Whale Megaptera novaeangliae was studied in its breeding and calving ground, the Abrolhos Bank, Bahia, Brazil, from July to November 2000. Aural and spectral analyses of digital recordings were completed for approximately 20 song cycles, totaling 5 hours of song from 10 different recording events. We identified 24 note types, organized in five themes. All songs presented the same themes and the order in which they were sung did not vary. We registered the appearance of a note type and the disappearance of a phrase ending, which indicate that the song changed as the season progressed. Moreover, we detected individual variation in the way singers performed certain complex note types. As songs are transmitted culturally, it is likely that singers have different abilities to compose and/or learn new notes. If, as it has been previously suggested, 'new' songs are preferred to 'old' ones, these more able singers will be sending out information about their learning abilities that could be used by other whales to decide whether or not to interact with them.

  2. An Analysis of Moral and Educational Values on Madura Folk Songs

    OpenAIRE

    Wakil, Abdul

    2015-01-01

    At this moment traditional songs was not pay attention so that almost the traditional song is not well known by young generations. The position of traditional songs was lost with technology. If there is not an conservation and appreciation for traditional songs especially Madura traditional songs, so the traditional song can be lost in the future so that writer try to analysis of moral and educational values on Madura folk songs.The discussion in this thesis the author tried to review the ped...

  3. The perception of regularity in an isochronous stimulus in zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) and humans.

    Science.gov (United States)

    van der Aa, Jeroen; Honing, Henkjan; ten Cate, Carel

    2015-06-01

    Perceiving temporal regularity in an auditory stimulus is considered one of the basic features of musicality. Here we examine whether zebra finches can detect regularity in an isochronous stimulus. Using a go/no go paradigm we show that zebra finches are able to distinguish between an isochronous and an irregular stimulus. However, when the tempo of the isochronous stimulus is changed, it is no longer treated as similar to the training stimulus. Training with three isochronous and three irregular stimuli did not result in improvement of the generalization. In contrast, humans, exposed to the same stimuli, readily generalized across tempo changes. Our results suggest that zebra finches distinguish the different stimuli by learning specific local temporal features of each individual stimulus rather than attending to the global structure of the stimuli, i.e., to the temporal regularity. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  4. Nursing problem-based learning activity: song writing and singing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chan, Zenobia C Y

    2014-08-01

    The function of song is not only to deliver individual's messages, but also to serve as a learning approach to facilitate students' learning. To observe the effectiveness of songs in facilitating students' learning, a Problem-based Learning (PBL) class with twenty students was divided into four groups with five students per group. Each group was asked to write a song based on two given scenarios, to sing the song out loud, and to participate in a follow-up focus group interview afterwards. The four songs reflected the students' understanding of academic knowledge and their perspectives toward the protagonists in the presented scenarios. Two songs are presented in this paper to demonstrate how the approach was carried out in the nursing PBL class. This paper aims to show the implication of song writing and singing in PBL and shed some light on teaching and learning. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. Oscillating magnetic field disrupts magnetic orientation in Zebra finches, Taeniopygia guttata

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    Wiltschko Wolfgang

    2009-10-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Zebra finches can be trained to use the geomagnetic field as a directional cue for short distance orientation. The physical mechanisms underlying the primary processes of magnetoreception are, however, largely unknown. Two hypotheses of how birds perceive magnetic information are mainly discussed, one dealing with modulation of radical pair processes in retinal structures, the other assuming that iron deposits in the upper beak of the birds are involved. Oscillating magnetic fields in the MHz range disturb radical pair mechanisms but do not affect magnetic particles. Thus, application of such oscillating fields in behavioral experiments can be used as a diagnostic tool to decide between the two alternatives. Methods In a setup that eliminates all directional cues except the geomagnetic field zebra finches were trained to search for food in the magnetic north/south axis. The birds were then tested for orientation performance in two magnetic conditions. In condition 1 the horizontal component of the geomagnetic field was shifted by 90 degrees using a helmholtz coil. In condition 2 a high frequently oscillating field (1.156 MHz was applied in addition to the shifted field. Another group of birds was trained to solve the orientation task, but with visual landmarks as directional cue. The birds were then tested for their orientation performance in the same magnetic conditions as applied for the first experiment. Results The zebra finches could be trained successfully to orient in the geomagnetic field for food search in the north/south axis. They were also well oriented in test condition 1, with the magnetic field shifted horizontally by 90 degrees. In contrast, when the oscillating field was added, the directional choices during food search were randomly distributed. Birds that were trained to visually guided orientation showed no difference of orientation performance in the two magnetic conditions. Conclusion The results

  6. Seasonal and hormonal modulation of neurotransmitter systems in the song control circuit.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ball, Gregory F; Balthazart, Jacques

    2010-03-01

    In the years following the discovery of the song system, it was realized that this specialized circuit controlling learned vocalizations in songbirds (a) constitutes a specific target for sex steroid hormone action and expresses androgen and (for some nuclei) estrogen receptors, (b) exhibits a chemical neuroanatomical pattern consisting in a differential expression of various neuropeptides and neurotransmitters receptors as compared to surrounding structures and (c) shows pronounced seasonal variations in volume and physiology based, at least in the case of HVC, on a seasonal change in neuron recruitment and survival. During the past 30 years numerous studies have investigated how seasonal changes, transduced largely but not exclusively through changes in sex steroid concentrations, affect singing frequency and quality by modulating the structure and activity of the song control circuit. These studies showed that testosterone or its metabolite estradiol, control seasonal variation in singing quality by a direct action on song control nuclei. These studies also gave rise to the hypothesis that the probability of song production in response to a given stimulus (i.e. its motivation) is controlled through effects on the medial preoptic area and on catecholaminergic cell groups that project to song control nuclei. Selective pharmacological manipulations confirmed that the noradrenergic system indeed plays a role in the control of singing behavior. More experimental work is, however, needed to identify specific genes related to neurotransmission that are regulated by steroids in functionally defined brain areas to enhance different aspects of song behavior. Copyright 2009. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  7. Distribution of language-related Cntnap2 protein in neural circuits critical for vocal learning.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Condro, Michael C; White, Stephanie A

    2014-01-01

    Variants of the contactin associated protein-like 2 (Cntnap2) gene are risk factors for language-related disorders including autism spectrum disorder, specific language impairment, and stuttering. Songbirds are useful models for study of human speech disorders due to their shared capacity for vocal learning, which relies on similar cortico-basal ganglia circuitry and genetic factors. Here we investigate Cntnap2 protein expression in the brain of the zebra finch, a songbird species in which males, but not females, learn their courtship songs. We hypothesize that Cntnap2 has overlapping functions in vocal learning species, and expect to find protein expression in song-related areas of the zebra finch brain. We further expect that the distribution of this membrane-bound protein may not completely mirror its mRNA distribution due to the distinct subcellular localization of the two molecular species. We find that Cntnap2 protein is enriched in several song control regions relative to surrounding tissues, particularly within the adult male, but not female, robust nucleus of the arcopallium (RA), a cortical song control region analogous to human layer 5 primary motor cortex. The onset of this sexually dimorphic expression coincides with the onset of sensorimotor learning in developing males. Enrichment in male RA appears due to expression in projection neurons within the nucleus, as well as to additional expression in nerve terminals of cortical projections to RA from the lateral magnocellular nucleus of the nidopallium. Cntnap2 protein expression in zebra finch brain supports the hypothesis that this molecule affects neural connectivity critical for vocal learning across taxonomic classes. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  8. Exaggeration of Language-Specific Rhythms in English and French Children's Songs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hannon, Erin E; Lévêque, Yohana; Nave, Karli M; Trehub, Sandra E

    2016-01-01

    The available evidence indicates that the music of a culture reflects the speech rhythm of the prevailing language. The normalized pairwise variability index (nPVI) is a measure of durational contrast between successive events that can be applied to vowels in speech and to notes in music. Music-language parallels may have implications for the acquisition of language and music, but it is unclear whether native-language rhythms are reflected in children's songs. In general, children's songs exhibit greater rhythmic regularity than adults' songs, in line with their caregiving goals and frequent coordination with rhythmic movement. Accordingly, one might expect lower nPVI values (i.e., lower variability) for such songs regardless of culture. In addition to their caregiving goals, children's songs may serve an intuitive didactic function by modeling culturally relevant content and structure for music and language. One might therefore expect pronounced rhythmic parallels between children's songs and language of origin. To evaluate these predictions, we analyzed a corpus of 269 English and French songs from folk and children's music anthologies. As in prior work, nPVI values were significantly higher for English than for French children's songs. For folk songs (i.e., songs not for children), the difference in nPVI for English and French songs was small and in the expected direction but non-significant. We subsequently collected ratings from American and French monolingual and bilingual adults, who rated their familiarity with each song, how much they liked it, and whether or not they thought it was a children's song. Listeners gave higher familiarity and liking ratings to songs from their own culture, and they gave higher familiarity and preference ratings to children's songs than to other songs. Although higher child-directedness ratings were given to children's than to folk songs, French listeners drove this effect, and their ratings were uniquely predicted by n

  9. Naris deformation in Darwin’s finches: Experimental and historical evidence for a post-1960s arrival of the parasite Philornis downsi

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    Sonia Kleindorfer

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available The rate of evolution depends on the strength of selection, which may be particularly strong for introduced parasites and their naive hosts. Because natural selection acts on phenotypes and because parasites can alter host phenotype, one fruitful starting point to measure the impact of novel pathogens is to quantify parasite-induced changes to host phenotype. Our study system is Darwin’s finches on Floreana Island, Galápagos Archipelago, and the virulent fly larvae of Philornis downsi that were first discovered in Darwin’s finch nests in 1997. We use an experimental approach and measure host phenotype in parasitized and parasite-free chicks in Darwin’s small ground finch (Geospiza fuliginosa. Beak size did not differ between the two treatment groups, but naris size was 106% larger in parasitized chicks (∼3.3 mm versus parasite-free chicks (∼1.6 mm. To test if P. downsi was present prior to the 1960s, we compared naris size in historical (1899–1962 and contemporary birds (2004–2014 on Floreana Island in small ground finches (G. fuliginosa and medium tree finches (Camarhynchus pauper. Contemporary Darwin’s finches had significantly larger naris size (including extreme deformation, whereas historical naris size was both smaller and less variable. These findings provide the first longitudinal analysis for the extent of P. downsi-induced change to host naris size and show that Darwin’s finches, prior to the 1960s, were not malformed. Thus natural selection on altered host phenotype as a consequence of P. downsi parasitism appears to be contemporary and novel.

  10. The Rhetorical Dimensions of Popular Song.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Winebrenner, T. C.

    Communication scholars have recently focused attention on songs as artifacts of popular culture. Current literature implies that the contexts of music communication are defined by the relationships that songs establish between artists and their audience: persuasive, expressive, and commercial. As the commercialization of music is an inherently…

  11. As cidades em Marguerite Duras: um estudo sobre «India song»

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    Adson Cristiano Bozzi Ramatis Lima

    2011-10-01

    Full Text Available Resumo: A partir de uma análise do livro escrito em 1972 por Marguerite Duras, India song, procura-se lançar luz sobre as particularidades de uma narrativa na qual o espaço tem uma importância para além de uma simples “ambientação” ficcional. Na análise, foi privilegiada a questão do espaço como o elemento formador do caráter da literatura durassiana – neste sentido, compreende-se o espaço das cidades da Índia e as suas significações como o próprio destino das personagens.Palavras-chave: Marguerite Duras; India Song; espaço. Resúmé: A partir d’une analyse du livre écrit en 1972 par Marguerite Duras, India song, on essaie de comprendre les principales caractéristiques d’une narration où l’espace joue un rôle très important. Dans l’analyse on a pris la question de l’espace comme l’élement responsable de la conformation du caratère de la littérature de Marguerite Duras – ainsi, comprendre l’espace, c’est comprendre le destin même des personnages.Mots-clés: Marguerite Duras; India song; espace.Keywords: Marguerite Duras; India song; space.

  12. Does a rival’s song elicit territorial defense in a tropical songbird, the Pied Bush Chat (Saxicola caprata?

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    Navjeevan Dadwal

    2017-05-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of bird song and the way in which it is delivered has been argued to be adapted mainly for territorial defense. We performed a field experiment with the combination of playbacks and a model to test how much song actually relates to increased territorial defense in the territorial tropical songbird, the Pied Bush Chat, during breeding season (Feb–May, 2015 at Haridwar, Himalayan Foothills, India. As expected, the results of the experiment indicated that song was the major cue used by territory holders to cope with rival intrusions. The song rate was particularly escalated during simulated territorial interactions when the model was presented with a playback song of conspecifics. Behaviors such as restlessness (perch change, the height of perch, and distance from the model appeared to be of relatively lesser importance. To our knowledge, no avian species from the Indian subcontinent has been studied to provide evidence that song can escalate aggressive response by a territory owner.

  13. Degradation of rural and urban great tit song: testing transmission efficiency.

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    Emily J Mockford

    Full Text Available Acoustic signals play a fundamental role in avian territory defence and mate attraction. Several studies have now shown that spectral properties of bird song differ between urban and rural environments. Previously this has been attributed to competition for acoustic space as a result of low-frequency noise present in cities. However, the physical structure of urban areas may have a contributory effect. Here we investigate the sound degradation properties of woodland and city environments using both urban and rural great tit song. We show that although urban surroundings caused significantly less degradation to both songs, the transmission efficiency of rural song compared to urban song was significantly lower in the city. While differences between the two songs in woodland were generally minimal, some measures of the transmission efficiency of rural song were significantly lower than those of urban song, suggesting additional benefits to singing rural songs in this setting. In an attempt to create artificial urban song, we mimicked the increase in minimum frequency found several times previously in urban song. However, this did not replicate the same transmission properties as true urban song, suggesting changes in other song characteristics, such as temporal adjustments, are needed to further increase transmission of an avian signal in the city. We suggest that the structure of the acoustic environment, in addition to the background noise, plays an important role in signal adaptation.

  14. Development and validation of a house finch interleukin-1β (HfIL-1β) ELISA system.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Sungwon; Park, Myeongseon; Leon, Ariel E; Adelman, James S; Hawley, Dana M; Dalloul, Rami A

    2017-08-30

    A unique clade of the bacterium Mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG), which causes chronic respiratory disease in poultry, has resulted in annual epidemics of conjunctivitis in North American house finches since the 1990s. Currently, few immunological tools have been validated for this songbird species. Interleukin-1β (IL-1β) is a prototypic multifunctional cytokine and can affect almost every cell type during Mycoplasma infection. The overall goal of this study was to develop and validate a direct ELISA assay for house finch IL-1β (HfIL-1β) using a cross-reactive chicken antibody. A direct ELISA approach was used to develop this system using two different coating methods, carbonate and dehydration. In both methods, antigens (recombinant HfIL-1b or house finch plasma) were serially diluted in carbonate-bicarbonate coating buffer and either incubated at 4 °C overnight or at 60 °C on a heating block for 2 hr. To generate the standard curve, rHfIL-1b protein was serially diluted at 0, 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18, 21, and 24 ng/mL. Following blocking and washing, anti-chicken IL-1b polyclonal antibody was added, plates were later incubated with detecting antibodies, and reactions developed with tetramethylbenzidine solution. A commercially available anti-chicken IL-1β (ChIL-1β) polyclonal antibody (pAb) cross-reacted with house finch plasma IL-1β as well as bacterially expressed recombinant house finch IL-1β (rHfIL-1β) in immunoblotting assays. In a direct ELISA system, rHfIL-1β could not be detected by an anti-ChIL-1β pAb when the antigen was coated with carbonate-bicarbonate buffer at 4°C overnight. However, rHfIL-1β was detected by the anti-ChIL-1β pAb when the antigen was coated using a dehydration method by heat (60°C). Using the developed direct ELISA for HfIL-1β with commercial anti-ChIL-1β pAb, we were able to measure plasma IL-1β levels from house finches. Based on high amino acid sequence homology, we hypothesized and demonstrated cross-reactivity of

  15. The 'cognitive' and the 'emotive' component in Christian songs: Tracing the shifts in traditional and contemporary songs

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    J. Gertrud T�nsing

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available This research article is based on the author�s doctoral research into the question of quality criteria for Christian songs. In many Christian congregations today, the question of music is an emotive issue as the service and its music touch the heart of people�s faith life and shapes people�s theology. Of the many issues that were investigated in the dissertation, this article focuses on one question only, the question of the �cognitive� and the �emotive� value of the songs that are sung in a Sunday service. It will be argued that, in �good� songs, there needs to be a good balance between �cognitive� and �emotive� value. The general question is how to identify songs that can nurture faith and sustain people through life. Characteristic of such songs is, amongst many other criteria, a good balance between the cognitive and emotive value of the text and the tune. In the discussion, the author focusses largely on her own Lutheran liturgical and hymnological tradition as well as on the �Praise and Worship� movement which has a dramatic impact on churches all over the world. The author argues that finding songs that balance the emotive and the cognitive component is an effective way to bridge the divides on worship music within a congregation.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: Within the discipline of hymnological studies, the article opens a ground-breaking new way to analyse and critique music used in worship with objective tools for analysis. This is, as far as the author knows, new for this discipline, and it also has an effect on other disciplines.

  16. Noradrenergic control of gene expression and long-term neuronal adaptation evoked by learned vocalizations in songbirds.

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    Tarciso A F Velho

    Full Text Available Norepinephrine (NE is thought to play important roles in the consolidation and retrieval of long-term memories, but its role in the processing and memorization of complex acoustic signals used for vocal communication has yet to be determined. We have used a combination of gene expression analysis, electrophysiological recordings and pharmacological manipulations in zebra finches to examine the role of noradrenergic transmission in the brain's response to birdsong, a learned vocal behavior that shares important features with human speech. We show that noradrenergic transmission is required for both the expression of activity-dependent genes and the long-term maintenance of stimulus-specific electrophysiological adaptation that are induced in central auditory neurons by stimulation with birdsong. Specifically, we show that the caudomedial nidopallium (NCM, an area directly involved in the auditory processing and memorization of birdsong, receives strong noradrenergic innervation. Song-responsive neurons in this area express α-adrenergic receptors and are in close proximity to noradrenergic terminals. We further show that local α-adrenergic antagonism interferes with song-induced gene expression, without affecting spontaneous or evoked electrophysiological activity, thus dissociating the molecular and electrophysiological responses to song. Moreover, α-adrenergic antagonism disrupts the maintenance but not the acquisition of the adapted physiological state. We suggest that the noradrenergic system regulates long-term changes in song-responsive neurons by modulating the gene expression response that is associated with the electrophysiological activation triggered by song. We also suggest that this mechanism may be an important contributor to long-term auditory memories of learned vocalizations.

  17. Context effects on tempo and pleasantness judgments for Beatles songs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rashotte, Matthew A; Wedell, Douglas H

    2012-04-01

    Context effects on tempo and pleasantness judgments of different tempos were demonstrated in three experiments using Beatles songs. In Experiments 1 and 2, we explored how listening to versions of the same song that were played at different tempos affected tempo and pleasantness ratings. In both experiments, contrast effects were found on judgments of tempo, with target tempos rated faster when context tempos were slow than when they were fast. In both experiments, we also showed that the peak of the pleasantness rating function shifted toward the values of the context tempos, reflecting disordinal context effects on pleasantness relationships. Familiarity with the songs did not moderate these effects, and shifts in tempo ratings did not correlate with shifts in most pleasant target tempos when context was manipulated within subjects. In Experiment 3, we examined how manipulations of context tempos for one song affected judgments of the same song as compared with judgments of other more or less similar songs. For tempo ratings, contrast effects transferred to ratings of a similar song, but for pleasantness ratings, assimilative shifts of ideals were found only for the same song and not for similar songs. This pattern of results was supportive of independent bases for the two context effects.

  18. Testosterone affects song modulation during simulated territorial intrusions in male black redstarts (Phoenicurus ochruros.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Beate Apfelbeck

    Full Text Available Although it has been suggested that testosterone plays an important role in resource allocation for competitive behavior, details of the interplay between testosterone, territorial aggression and signal plasticity are largely unknown. Therefore, we investigated if testosterone acts specifically on signals that communicate the motivation or ability of individuals to engage in competitive situations in a natural context. We studied the black redstart, a territorial songbird species, during two different life-cycle stages, the early breeding phase in spring and the non-breeding phase in fall. Male territory holders were implanted with the androgen receptor blocker flutamide (Flut and the aromatase inhibitor letrozole (Let to inhibit the action of testosterone and its estrogenic metabolites. Controls received a placebo treatment. Three days after implantation birds were challenged with a simulated territorial intrusion (STI. Song was recorded before, during and after the challenge. In spring, both treatment groups increased the number of elements sung in parts of their song in response to the STI. However, Flut/Let-implanted males reacted to the STI with a decreased maximum acoustic frequency of one song part, while placebo-implanted males did not. Instead, placebo-implanted males sang the atonal part of their song with a broader frequency range. Furthermore, placebo-, but not Flut/Let-implanted males, sang shorter songs with shorter pauses between parts in the STIs. During simulated intrusions in fall, when testosterone levels are naturally low in this species, males of both treatment groups sang similar to Flut/Let-implanted males during breeding. The results suggest that song sung during a territorial encounter is of higher competitive value than song sung in an undisturbed situation and may, therefore, convey information about the motivation or quality of the territory holder. We conclude that testosterone facilitates context-dependent changes

  19. Folklore and Folk Songs of Chittagong: A Critical Review

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    Amir Mohammad Khan

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available Folk Songs stems from Folklore are very rich in the southern region of Chittagong. In this part of the world Folk Songs play pivotal role in the lifestyle of people as a heart-touching and heavenly connection exists between human, nature and Folk Songs. Folk Songs in this area are special because we found the theme of Nature Conservation in them. We took the southern part of Chittagong (Lohagara, Satkania, Chandanaish and Patiya as our research area, selected a village namely Chunati in the systematic sampling and more than 100 people were interviewed through focus group discussion and key informant interviews. The sufficient literature review is also done. People in this area love nature a lot. Here music personnel were born from time to time who not only worked for the musical development but also created consciousness among people to love nature and save it. We discussed about the origin of Folk Songs, pattern of Folk Songs to clarify the importance of Folk Songs of Chittagong for its connection to Folklore and at the same time for promoting the idea of Nature Conservation. Of course, this part of studies deserves more attention in the field of research. Our ultimate goal should be to conserve and promote Folk Songs of Chittagong with yearlong heritage that automatically will later enrich Folklore and Nature Conservation.

  20. Female listeners’ autonomic responses to dramatic shifts between loud and soft music/sound passages: a study of heavy metal songs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tzu-Han eCheng

    2016-02-01

    Full Text Available Although music and the emotion it conveys unfold over time, little is known about how listeners respond to shifts in musical emotions. A special technique in heavy metal music utilizes dramatic shifts between loud and soft passages. Loud passages are penetrated by distorted sounds conveying aggression, whereas soft passages are often characterized by a clean, calm singing voice and light accompaniment. The present study used heavy metal songs and soft sea sounds to examine how female listeners’ respiration rates and heart rates responded to the arousal changes associated with auditory stimuli. The high-frequency power of heart rate variability (HF-HRV was used to assess cardiac parasympathetic activity. The results showed that the soft passages of heavy metal songs and soft sea sounds expressed lower arousal and induced significantly higher HF-HRVs than the loud passages of heavy metal songs. Listeners’ respiration rate was determined by the arousal level of the present music passage, whereas the heart rate was dependent on both the present and preceding passages. Compared with soft sea sounds, the loud music passage led to greater deceleration of the heart rate at the beginning of the following soft music passage. The sea sounds delayed the heart rate acceleration evoked by the following loud music passage. The data provide evidence that sound-induced parasympathetic activity affects listener’s heart rate in response to the following music passage. These findings have potential implications for future research of the temporal dynamics of musical emotions.

  1. Gender messages in contemporary popular Malay songs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Collin Jerome

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available Gender has been an important area of research in the field of popular music studies. Numerous scholars have found that contemporary popular music functions as a locus of diverse constructions and expressions of gender. While most studies focus on content analyses of popular music, there is still a need for more research on audience’s perception of popular music’s messages. This study examined adult Malay listeners’ perceptions of gender messages in contemporary Malay songs. A total of 16 contemporary Malay songs were analysed using Fairclough’s (1992 method of text analysis. The content of the songs that conveyed messages about gender were the basis for analysis. The results showed that the messages revolve mainly around socially constructed gender roles and expectations in romantic relationships. Gender stereotypes are also used in the songs to reinforce men’s and women’s roles in romantic relationships. The results also showed that, while listeners acknowledge the songs’ messages about gender, their own perceptions of gender and what it means to be a gendered being in today’s world are neither represented nor discussed fully in the songs analysed. It is hoped the findings from this, particularly the mismatch between projected and perceived notions of gender, contribute to the field of popular Malay music studies in particular, and popular music studies in general where gender messages in popular songs and their influence on listeners’ perceptions of their own gender is concerned.

  2. Evaluation of Best Practices for the Euthanasia of Zebra Finches (Taeniopygia guttata).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scott, Kathleen E; Bracchi, Lauren A; Lieberman, Mia T; Hill, Nichola J; Caron, Tyler J; Patterson, Mary M

    2017-11-01

    Although zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) have been used in biomedical research for many years, no published reports are available about euthanizing these small birds. In this study, we compared 5 methods for zebra finch euthanasia: sodium pentobarbital (NaP) given intracoelomically with physical restraint but no anesthesia; isoflurane anesthesia followed by intracoelomic injection of NaP; and CO2 asphyxiation at 20%, 40%, and 80% chamber displacement rates (percentage of chamber volume per minute). Birds undergoing euthanasia were videorecorded and scored by 2 observers for behaviors potentially related to discomfort or distress. Time to recumbency and time until respiratory arrest (RA) were also assessed. RA was achieved faster by using NaP in a conscious bird compared to using isoflurane anesthesia followed by NaP; however, neither method caused behaviors that might affect animal welfare, such as open-mouth breathing, to any appreciable extent. Among the CO2 treatment groups, there was an inverse correlation between the chamber displacement rate used and the duration of open-mouth breathing, onset of head retroflexion, and time to RA. The results demonstrate that the intracoelomic administration of NaP in an awake, restrained zebra finch is a rapid and effective method of euthanasia. If CO2 is used to euthanize these birds, a high displacement rate (for example, 80%) will minimize the duration of the procedure and associated behaviors.

  3. Socialism or Art: Yugoslav Mass Song and Its Institutionalizations

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    Srđan Atanasovski

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available The genre of the mass song is one of the fundamental phenomena in aesthetics and practice of socialist realism. Mass songs are supposed not only to be accessible to the lay audience, but also to be composed in a way that invites the participation of amateurs. Importantly, the institutions which have been disseminating the mass song under state socialism, such as various institutions of education, culture and art, have also served as mechanisms for the normalization of its ideological content. This article summarizes important aspects of the concept of the mass song in general and offers a multifaceted exemplification, before proceeding to discuss the history of mass songs in socialist Yugoslavia (including, by and large, what is usually referred to as partisan songs, with emphasis on the institutional framework through which they were practiced and disseminated, and on specificities that the genre had accrued within the Yugoslav framework. This historical framework of practicing mass songs in Yugoslavia provides a platform for opening the question of intrinsic incompatibility between the project of a classless society and the institution of art. In regards to this, article discusses contemporary practice of Yugoslav mass songs as practiced by self-organized choirs and their new political potential.   Article received: May 6, 2017; Article accepted: May 14, 2017; Published online: September 15, 2017 Original scholarly paper How to cite this article: Atanasovski, Srđan. "Socialism or Art: Yugoslav Mass Song and Its Institutionalizations." AM Journal of Art and Media Studies 13 (2017: 31-42. doi: 10.25038/am.v0i13.185

  4. Songs as a Medium for Embedded Reproductive Messages

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    Dawn R. Hobbs

    2011-07-01

    Full Text Available Research shows that sensational news stories as well as popular romance novels often feature themes related to important topics in evolutionary psychology. In the first of four studies described in this paper we examined the song lyrics from three Billboard charts: Country, Pop, and R&B. A content analysis of the lyrics revealed 18 reproductive themes that read like an outline for a course in evolutionary psychology. Approximately 92% of the 174 songs that made it into the Top Ten in 2009 contained one or more reproductive messages, with an average of 10.49 reproductive phrases per song. Although differences in the frequency of different themes between charts were found, further analyses showed that the most popular/bestselling songs contained significantly more reproductive messages. An analysis of the lyrics of opera arias and art songs also revealed evidence for many of the same embedded reproductive messages extending back more than 400 years.

  5. SONG-China Project: A Global Automated Observation Network

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Z. Z.; Lu, X. M.; Tian, J. F.; Zhuang, C. G.; Wang, K.; Deng, L. C.

    2017-09-01

    Driven by advancements in technology and scientific objectives, data acquisition in observational astronomy has been changed greatly in recent years. Fully automated or even autonomous ground-based network of telescopes has now become a tendency for time-domain observational projects. The Stellar Observations Network Group (SONG) is an international collaboration with the participation and contribution of the Chinese astronomy community. The scientific goal of SONG is time-domain astrophysics such as asteroseismology and open cluster research. The SONG project aims to build a global network of 1 m telescopes equipped with high-precision and high-resolution spectrographs, and two-channel lucky-imaging cameras. It is the Chinese initiative to install a 50 cm binocular photometry telescope at each SONG node sharing the network platform and infrastructure. This work is focused on design and implementation in technology and methodology of SONG/50BiN, a typical ground-based network composed of multiple sites and a variety of instruments.

  6. Multiple song features are related to paternal effort in common nightingales.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bartsch, Conny; Weiss, Michael; Kipper, Silke

    2015-06-18

    Sexual ornamentation may be related to the degree of paternal care and the 'good-parent' model predicts that male secondary characters honestly advertise paternal investment. In most birds, males are involved in bringing up the young and successful reproduction highly depends on male contribution during breeding. In passerines, male song is indicative of male attributes and for few species it has been shown that song features also signal paternal investment to females. Males of nightingales Luscinia megarhynchos are famous for their elaborate singing but so far there is only little knowledge on the role of male song in intersexual communication, and it is unknown whether male song predicts male parenting abilities. Using RFID technology to record male feeding visits to the nest, we found that nightingale males substantially contribute to chick feeding. Also, we analyzed male nocturnal song with focus on song features that have been shown to signal male quality before. We found that several song features, namely measures of song complexity and song sequencing, were correlated with male feeding rates. Moreover, the combination of these song features had strong predictive power for male contribution to nestling feeding. Since male nightingales are involved in chick rearing, paternal investment might be a crucial variable for female mate choice in this species. Females may assess future paternal care on the basis of song features identified in our study and thus these features may have evolved to signal direct benefits to females. Additionally we underline the importance of multiple acoustic cues for female mating decisions especially in species with complex song such as the nightingale.

  7. Experimental Infection and Clearance of Coccidian Parasites in Mercury-Exposed Zebra Finches.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ebers Smith, Jessica H; Cristol, Daniel A; Swaddle, John P

    2018-01-01

    Mercury is a globally distributed, persistent environmental contaminant that affects the health of many taxa. It can suppress the immune system, which often plays a role in defense against parasites. However, there have been few investigations of whether mercury affects the abilities of animals to resist parasitic infection. Here, we exposed zebra finches to a lifetime dietary exposure of methylmercury (1.2 μg/g wet weight) and experimentally infected them with coccidian parasites to examine the effect of methylmercury exposure on parasitic infection. The mercury-exposed birds did not have an altered immune response (heterophil:lymphocyte ratio) nor a reduced ability to clear the infection. However, mercury-exposed birds tended to have higher parasite loads at the time when we expected the greatest immune response (2-3 weeks post-infection). Although mercury did not greatly influence the infection-course of this parasite in captivity, responses may be more accentuated in the wild where birds face additional immune challenges.

  8. A Landscape-Scale, Applied Fire Management Experiment Promotes Recovery of a Population of the Threatened Gouldian Finch, Erythrura gouldiae, in Australia's Tropical Savannas.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sarah Legge

    Full Text Available Fire is an integral part of savanna ecology and changes in fire patterns are linked to biodiversity loss in savannas worldwide. In Australia, changed fire regimes are implicated in the contemporary declines of small mammals, riparian species, obligate-seeding plants and grass seed-eating birds. Translating this knowledge into management to recover threatened species has proved elusive. We report here on a landscape-scale experiment carried out by the Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC on Mornington Wildlife Sanctuary in northwest Australia. The experiment was designed to understand the response of a key savanna bird guild to fire, and to use that information to manage fire with the aim of recovering a threatened species population. We compared condition indices among three seed-eating bird species--one endangered (Gouldian finch and two non-threatened (long-tailed finch and double-barred finch--from two large areas (> 2,830 km2 with initial contrasting fire regimes ('extreme': frequent, extensive, intense fire; versus 'benign': less frequent, smaller, lower intensity fires. Populations of all three species living with the extreme fire regime had condition indices that differed from their counterparts living with the benign fire regime, including higher haematocrit levels in some seasons (suggesting higher levels of activity required to find food, different seasonal haematocrit profiles, higher fat scores in the early wet season (suggesting greater food uncertainty, and then lower muscle scores later in the wet season (suggesting prolonged food deprivation. Gouldian finches also showed seasonally increasing stress hormone concentrations with the extreme fire regime. Cumulatively, these patterns indicated greater nutritional stress over many months for seed-eating birds exposed to extreme fire regimes. We tested these relationships by monitoring finch condition over the following years, as AWC implemented fire management to produce the 'benign

  9. A Landscape-Scale, Applied Fire Management Experiment Promotes Recovery of a Population of the Threatened Gouldian Finch, Erythrura gouldiae, in Australia's Tropical Savannas.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Legge, Sarah; Garnett, Stephen; Maute, Kim; Heathcote, Joanne; Murphy, Steve; Woinarski, John C Z; Astheimer, Lee

    2015-01-01

    Fire is an integral part of savanna ecology and changes in fire patterns are linked to biodiversity loss in savannas worldwide. In Australia, changed fire regimes are implicated in the contemporary declines of small mammals, riparian species, obligate-seeding plants and grass seed-eating birds. Translating this knowledge into management to recover threatened species has proved elusive. We report here on a landscape-scale experiment carried out by the Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC) on Mornington Wildlife Sanctuary in northwest Australia. The experiment was designed to understand the response of a key savanna bird guild to fire, and to use that information to manage fire with the aim of recovering a threatened species population. We compared condition indices among three seed-eating bird species--one endangered (Gouldian finch) and two non-threatened (long-tailed finch and double-barred finch)--from two large areas (> 2,830 km2) with initial contrasting fire regimes ('extreme': frequent, extensive, intense fire; versus 'benign': less frequent, smaller, lower intensity fires). Populations of all three species living with the extreme fire regime had condition indices that differed from their counterparts living with the benign fire regime, including higher haematocrit levels in some seasons (suggesting higher levels of activity required to find food), different seasonal haematocrit profiles, higher fat scores in the early wet season (suggesting greater food uncertainty), and then lower muscle scores later in the wet season (suggesting prolonged food deprivation). Gouldian finches also showed seasonally increasing stress hormone concentrations with the extreme fire regime. Cumulatively, these patterns indicated greater nutritional stress over many months for seed-eating birds exposed to extreme fire regimes. We tested these relationships by monitoring finch condition over the following years, as AWC implemented fire management to produce the 'benign' fire regime

  10. Rapid effects of hearing song on catecholaminergic activity in the songbird auditory pathway.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lisa L Matragrano

    Full Text Available Catecholaminergic (CA neurons innervate sensory areas and affect the processing of sensory signals. For example, in birds, CA fibers innervate the auditory pathway at each level, including the midbrain, thalamus, and forebrain. We have shown previously that in female European starlings, CA activity in the auditory forebrain can be enhanced by exposure to attractive male song for one week. It is not known, however, whether hearing song can initiate that activity more rapidly. Here, we exposed estrogen-primed, female white-throated sparrows to conspecific male song and looked for evidence of rapid synthesis of catecholamines in auditory areas. In one hemisphere of the brain, we used immunohistochemistry to detect the phosphorylation of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH, a rate-limiting enzyme in the CA synthetic pathway. We found that immunoreactivity for TH phosphorylated at serine 40 increased dramatically in the auditory forebrain, but not the auditory thalamus and midbrain, after 15 min of song exposure. In the other hemisphere, we used high pressure liquid chromatography to measure catecholamines and their metabolites. We found that two dopamine metabolites, dihydroxyphenylacetic acid and homovanillic acid, increased in the auditory forebrain but not the auditory midbrain after 30 min of exposure to conspecific song. Our results are consistent with the hypothesis that exposure to a behaviorally relevant auditory stimulus rapidly induces CA activity, which may play a role in auditory responses.

  11. Maternal effects underlie ageing costs of growth in the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata.

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    Mathilde L Tissier

    Full Text Available Maternal effects provide a mechanism to adapt offspring phenotype and optimize the mother's fitness to current environmental conditions. Transferring steroids to the yolk is one way mothers can translate environmental information into potential adaptive signals for offspring. However, maternally-derived hormones might also have adverse effects for offspring. For example, recent data in zebra finch chicks suggested that ageing related-processes (i.e. oxidative stress and telomere loss were increased after egg-injection of corticosterone (CORT. Still, we have few experimental data describing the effect of maternal effects on the growth-ageing trade-off in offspring. Here, we chronically treated pre-laying zebra finch females (Taeniopygia guttata with 17-β-estradiol (E2 or CORT, and followed offspring growth and cellular ageing rates (oxidative stress and telomere loss. CORT treatment decreased growth rate in male chicks and increased rate of telomere loss in mothers and female offspring. E2 increased body mass gain in male offspring, while reducing oxidative stress in both sexes but without affecting telomere loss. Since shorter telomeres were previously found to be a proxy of individual lifespan in zebra finches, maternal effects may, through pleiotropic effects, be important determinants of offspring life-expectancy by modulating ageing rate during embryo and post-natal growth.

  12. Language and music: differential hemispheric dominance in detecting unexpected errors in the lyrics and melody of memorized songs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yasui, Takuya; Kaga, Kimitaka; Sakai, Kuniyoshi L

    2009-02-01

    Using magnetoencephalography (MEG), we report here the hemispheric dominance of the auditory cortex that is selectively modulated by unexpected errors in the lyrics and melody of songs (lyrics and melody deviants), thereby elucidating under which conditions the lateralization of auditory processing changes. In experiment 1 using familiar songs, we found that the dipole strength of responses to the lyrics deviants was left-dominant at 140 ms (M140), whereas that of responses to the melody deviants was right-dominant at 130 ms (M130). In experiment 2 using familiar songs with a constant syllable or pitch, the dipole strength of frequency mismatch negativity elicited by oddballs was left-dominant. There were significant main effects of experiment (1 and 2) for the peak latencies and for the coordinates of the dipoles, indicating that the M140 and M130 were not the frequency mismatch negativity. In experiment 3 using newly memorized songs, the right-dominant M130 was observed only when the presented note was unexpected one, independent of perceiving unnatural pitch transitions (i.e., perceptual saliency) and of selective attention to the melody of songs. The consistent right-dominance of the M130 between experiments 1 and 3 suggests that the M130 in experiment 1 is due to unexpected notes deviating from well-memorized songs. On the other hand, the left-dominant M140 was elicited by lyrics deviants, suggesting the influence of top-down linguistic information and the memory of the familiar songs. We thus conclude that the left- lateralized M140 and right-lateralized M130 reflect the expectation based on top-down information of language and music, respectively.

  13. Maskandi : A critical discourse analysis of indigenous isiZulu songs ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The main finding of the analysis is that the reported song reveals a number of sociocultural themes relating to ways of knowing in indigenous literacy systems. These include use of metaphoric expressions, call-and-response patterns, repetition, indirection, interactive and group dynamics that are general, yet particular, ...

  14. The neural dynamics of song syntax in songbirds

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jin, Dezhe

    2010-03-01

    Songbird is ``the hydrogen atom'' of the neuroscience of complex, learned vocalizations such as human speech. Songs of Bengalese finch consist of sequences of syllables. While syllables are temporally stereotypical, syllable sequences can vary and follow complex, probabilistic syntactic rules, which are rudimentarily similar to grammars in human language. Songbird brain is accessible to experimental probes, and is understood well enough to construct biologically constrained, predictive computational models. In this talk, I will discuss the structure and dynamics of neural networks underlying the stereotypy of the birdsong syllables and the flexibility of syllable sequences. Recent experiments and computational models suggest that a syllable is encoded in a chain network of projection neurons in premotor nucleus HVC (proper name). Precisely timed spikes propagate along the chain, driving vocalization of the syllable through downstream nuclei. Through a computational model, I show that that variable syllable sequences can be generated through spike propagations in a network in HVC in which the syllable-encoding chain networks are connected into a branching chain pattern. The neurons mutually inhibit each other through the inhibitory HVC interneurons, and are driven by external inputs from nuclei upstream of HVC. At a branching point that connects the final group of a chain to the first groups of several chains, the spike activity selects one branch to continue the propagation. The selection is probabilistic, and is due to the winner-take-all mechanism mediated by the inhibition and noise. The model predicts that the syllable sequences statistically follow partially observable Markov models. Experimental results supporting this and other predictions of the model will be presented. We suggest that the syntax of birdsong syllable sequences is embedded in the connection patterns of HVC projection neurons.

  15. Song learning and cognitive ability are not consistently related in a songbird.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Anderson, Rindy C; Searcy, William A; Peters, Susan; Hughes, Melissa; DuBois, Adrienne L; Nowicki, Stephen

    2017-03-01

    Learned aspects of song have been hypothesized to signal cognitive ability in songbirds. We tested this hypothesis in hand-reared song sparrows (Melospiza melodia) that were tutored with playback of adult songs during the critical period for song learning. The songs developed by the 19 male subjects were compared to the model songs to produce two measures of song learning: the proportion of notes copied from models and the average spectrogram cross-correlation between copied notes and model notes. Song repertoire size, which reflects song complexity, was also measured. At 1 year of age, subjects were given a battery of five cognitive tests that measured speed of learning in the context of a novel foraging task, color association, color reversal, detour-reaching, and spatial learning. Bivariate correlations between the three song measures and the five cognitive measures revealed no significant associations. As in other studies of avian cognition, different cognitive measures were for the most part not correlated with each other, and this result remained true when 22 hand-reared female song sparrows were added to the analysis. General linear mixed models controlling for effects of neophobia and nest of origin indicated that all three song measures were associated with better performance on color reversal and spatial learning but were associated with worse performance on novel foraging and detour-reaching. Overall, the results do not support the hypothesis that learned aspects of song signal cognitive ability.

  16. Slave songs: Codes of resistance

    OpenAIRE

    Bayer, Sidney Konrad

    2010-01-01

    When slaves were forcibly taken from their homes in Africa and brought to North America to live, work, and die in servitude, they brought with them their culture. This included music and dance, which had been used for generations to express their feelings. Africans still use songs to criticize, to protest, for social commentary, and to resist oppression. Slaves used a variety of means to protest and resist their condition; for example, secret meetings, songs which encouraged escape and sabota...

  17. Songs in the desert : The Rabbis and Origen on spiritual ascent

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Poorthuis, Marcel; van Geest, Paul

    The songs in the desert serve both the Rabbis and Origen to sketch a development of spiritual growth. By comparing the songs chosen it is possible to assess the different perspectives: the Rabbis view Moses as the pinnacle, Origen avoids Moses and instead highlights Solomon and his Song of Songs as

  18. READING TEXT POPULAR SONG INDONESIA: STUDY SEMIOTIC-HEURISTIC

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rika Widawati

    2015-02-01

    Full Text Available Abstract. This paper is the result of the research that based on the phenomenon in Indonesia today. The texts of Indonesian popular songs that part of the literature which create new vocabularies or make the modification of old language. The structure of this work seems to be odd. It means the new vocabulary is different from the standard of Indonesian structure. The aim of this descriptions are the correction of (1 the mistake of the phenomenon in the text of Indonesian popular songs (2 the meaning of indonesian popular songs must be based on reading of semiotics and heuristic.  To describe this purpose, we use semiotic theory and structuralism. While the sources of this research are adopted from the texts of Indonesian popular songs which are published in 2000-2010 periode. Both Indonesian popular songs, either good songs or odd songs which has the value of good literature, namely which consist of good structure, poetic, romantic with symbolic style. Heuristically readings of the two text Indonesian songs indicate violations of linguistic rules either syntagmatic, paradigmatic, meaningfulness relations and composition. Keywords: the text of Indonesian popular song, semiotic, heuristic Abstrak. Tulisan ini merupakan hasil penelitian yang didasari oleh fenomena bahwa dewasa ini teks lagu populer Indonesia sebagai bagian dari karya sastra banyak menampilkan kosakata baru ataupun modifikasi kosakata lama, dengan komposisi yang dipandang “menyimpang” dari kaidah tata bahasa baku maupun konvensi sastra. Tulisan ini bertujuan untuk mendeskripsikan (1 fenomena struktur kebahasaan dalam teks lagu populer Indonesia dan (2 makna teks lagu populer Indonesia berdasarkan pembacaan semiotik-heuristik. Untuk mendeskripsikan hal tersebut digunakan teori semiotik dan strukturalisme. Sementara sumber data penelitian ini adalah teks lagu populer Indonesia tahun 2000 – 2010. Baik lagu-lagu yang dipandang menyimpang dari kaidah atau konvensi sastra maupun

  19. Does twitter song amplitude signal male arousal in redwings (Turdus iliacus)?

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lampe, H.M.; Balsby, T.J.S.; Espmark, Y.O.

    2010-01-01

    Bird songs may vary in amplitude for several reasons. Variations due to differences in environmental conditions are well known but whether signal information varies with song amplitude is less well known. In some species quiet songs are heard as a soft twitter. These twitter songs are common...... in Turdus species and may be used during escalated close range encounters when a quiet song will attract less attention from others. Male redwings (T. iliacus) sing a terminating twitter part that is quieter and highly variable both between and within males compared with the introductory motif part....... The twitter song of redwings, however, is often louder than the twitter in other Turdus species, especially during escalated song encounters. The seasonal variation in twitter duration also suggests that the twitter may signal increased aggression. We tested how male redwings responded to an assumed...

  20. GENDER ROLES IN PAKISTANI-URDU WEDDING SONGS

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    Syeda Bushra Zaidi

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available This qualitative study of Pakistani-Urdu wedding songs allows a closer look at the gender situation, and towards the understanding of the process of construction and perpetuation of gender-based stereotypes. However, the major concern of this study is to understand the portrayal of each gender along with the question that does such portrayal underlines the traditional gender roles and gender inequality. Taking a discourse analysis perspective, this study analyzes textual data from the lyrics of the seventeen wedding songs. The song selection was based on purposive sampling technique. The data were collected through transcription and recording of the audios of the songs. As a result of thematic analysis thirteen themes emerged, ten portraying the female gender and four portraying the male gender. These themes reveal important findings that support and reinforce the gender-based stereotypes and also reflect gender hierarchy, normative heterosexual relationships, kinship norms and gender subversions.

  1. Long-time storage of song types in birds: evidence from interactive playbacks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Geberzahn, Nicole; Hultsch, Henrike

    2003-05-22

    In studies of birdsong learning, imitation-based assays of stimulus memorization do not take into account that tutored song types may have been stored, but were not retrieved from memory. Such a 'silent' reservoir of song material could be used later in the bird's life, e.g. during vocal interactions. We examined this possibility in hand-reared nightingales during their second year. The males had been exposed to songs, both as fledglings and later, during their first full song period in an interactive playback design. Our design allowed us to compare the performance of imitations from the following categories: (i) songs only experienced during the early tutoring; (ii) songs experienced both during early tutoring and interactive playbacks; and (iii) novel songs experienced only during the simulated interactions. In their second year, birds imitated song types from each category, including those from categories (i) and (ii) which they had failed to imitate before. In addition, the performance of these song types was different (category (ii) > category (i)) and more pronounced than for category (iii) songs. Our results demonstrate 'silent' song storage in nightingales and point to a graded influence of the time and the social context of experience on subsequent vocal imitation.

  2. Humpback whale, Megaptera novaeangliae, song during the ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Madagascar Conservation & Development ... Song is made up of single units combined together into phrases, which are repeated to make up themes. A song ... to educate the communities of the Gulf of Tribugá about the importance of conservation, and to advocate for stricter guidelines for safe whale-watching practices.

  3. Love songs, bird brains and diffusion tensor imaging.

    Science.gov (United States)

    De Groof, Geert; Van der Linden, Annemie

    2010-08-01

    The song control system of songbirds displays a remarkable seasonal neuroplasticity in species in which song output also changes seasonally. Thus far, this song control system has been extensively analyzed by histological and electrophysiological methods. However, these approaches do not provide a global view of the brain and/or do not allow repeated measurements, which are necessary to establish causal correlations between alterations in neural substrate and behavior. Research has primarily been focused on the song nuclei themselves, largely neglecting their interconnections and other brain regions involved in seasonally changing behavior. In this review, we introduce and explore the song control system of songbirds as a natural model for brain plasticity. At the same time, we point out the added value of the songbird brain model for in vivo diffusion tensor techniques and its derivatives. A compilation of the diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) data obtained thus far in this system demonstrates the usefulness of this in vivo method for studying brain plasticity. In particular, it is shown to be a perfect tool for long-term studies of morphological and cellular changes of specific brain circuits in different endocrine/photoperiod conditions. The method has been successfully applied to obtain quantitative measurements of seasonal changes of fiber tracts and nuclei from the song control system. In addition, outside the song control system, changes have been discerned in the optic chiasm and in an interhemispheric connection. DTI allows the detection of seasonal changes in a region analogous to the mammalian secondary auditory cortex and in regions of the 'social behavior network', an interconnected group of structures that controls multiple social behaviors, including aggression and courtship. DTI allows the demonstration, for the first time, that the songbird brain in its entirety exhibits an extreme seasonal plasticity which is not merely limited to the song control

  4. Neural and Behavioral Correlates of Song Prosody

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gordon, Reyna Leigh

    2010-01-01

    This dissertation studies the neural basis of song, a universal human behavior. The relationship of words and melodies in the perception of song at phonological, semantic, melodic, and rhythmic levels of processing was investigated using the fine temporal resolution of Electroencephalography (EEG). The observations reported here may shed light on…

  5. Does foraging behaviour affect female mate preferences and pair formation in captive zebra finches?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Neeltje J Boogert

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Successful foraging is essential for survival and reproductive success. In many bird species, foraging is a learned behaviour. To cope with environmental change and survive periods in which regular foods are scarce, the ability to solve novel foraging problems by learning new foraging techniques can be crucial. Although females have been shown to prefer more efficient foragers, the effect of males' foraging techniques on female mate choice has never been studied. We tested whether females would prefer males showing the same learned foraging technique as they had been exposed to as juveniles, or whether females would prefer males that showed a complementary foraging technique. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We first trained juvenile male and female zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata to obtain a significant proportion of their food by one of two foraging techniques. We then tested whether females showed a preference for males with the same or the alternative technique. We found that neither a male's foraging technique nor his foraging performance affected the time females spent in his proximity in the mate-choice apparatus. We then released flocks of these finches into an aviary to investigate whether assortative pairing would be facilitated by birds taught the same technique exploiting the same habitat. Zebra finches trained as juveniles in a specific foraging technique maintained their foraging specialisation in the aviary as adults. However, pair formation and nest location were random with regard to foraging technique. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Our findings show that zebra finches can be successfully trained to be foraging specialists. However, the robust negative results of the conditions tested here suggest that learned foraging specializations do not affect mate choice or pair formation in our experimental context.

  6. Exposure to dietary mercury alters cognition and behavior of zebra finches.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Swaddle, John P; Diehl, Tessa R; Taylor, Capwell E; Fanaee, Aaron S; Benson, Jessica L; Huckstep, Neil R; Cristol, Daniel A

    2017-04-01

    Environmental stressors can negatively affect avian cognitive abilities, potentially reducing fitness, for example by altering response to predators, display to mates, or memory of locations of food. We expand on current knowledge by investigating the effects of dietary mercury, a ubiquitous environmental pollutant and known neurotoxin, on avian cognition. Zebra finches Taeniopygia guttata were dosed for their entire lives with sub-lethal levels of mercury, at the environmentally relevant dose of 1.2 parts per million. In our first study, we compared the dosed birds with controls of the same age using tests of three cognitive abilities: spatial memory, inhibitory control, and color association. In the spatial memory assay, birds were tested on their ability to learn and remember the location of hidden food in their cage. The inhibitory control assay measured their ability to ignore visible but inaccessible food in favor of a learned behavior that provided the same reward. Finally, the color association task tested each bird's ability to associate a specific color with the presence of hidden food. Dietary mercury negatively affected spatial memory ability but not inhibitory control or color association. Our second study focused on three behavioral assays not tied to a specific skill or problem-solving: activity level, neophobia, and social dominance. Zebra finches exposed to dietary mercury throughout their lives were subordinate to, and more active than, control birds. We found no evidence that mercury exposure influenced our metric of neophobia. Together, these results suggest that sub-lethal exposure to environmental mercury selectively harms neurological pathways that control different cognitive abilities, with complex effects on behavior and fitness.

  7. Patterns of Song across Natural and Anthropogenic Soundscapes Suggest That White-Crowned Sparrows Minimize Acoustic Masking and Maximize Signal Content.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Elizabeth P Derryberry

    Full Text Available Soundscapes pose both evolutionarily recent and long-standing sources of selection on acoustic communication. We currently know more about the impact of evolutionarily recent human-generated noise on communication than we do about how natural sounds such as pounding surf have shaped communication signals over evolutionary time. Based on signal detection theory, we hypothesized that acoustic phenotypes will vary with both anthropogenic and natural background noise levels and that similar mechanisms of cultural evolution and/or behavioral flexibility may underlie this variation. We studied song characteristics of white-crowned sparrows (Zonotrichia leucophrys nuttalli across a noise gradient that includes both anthropogenic and natural sources of noise in San Francisco and Marin counties, California, USA. Both anthropogenic and natural soundscapes contain high amplitude low frequency noise (traffic or surf, respectively, so we predicted that birds would produce songs with higher minimum frequencies in areas with higher amplitude background noise to avoid auditory masking. We also anticipated that song minimum frequencies would be higher than the projected lower frequency limit of hearing based on site-specific masking profiles. Background noise was a strong predictor of song minimum frequency, both within a local noise gradient of three urban sites with the same song dialect and cultural evolutionary history, and across the regional noise gradient, which encompasses 11 urban and rural sites, several dialects, and several anthropogenic and natural sources of noise. Among rural sites alone, background noise tended to predict song minimum frequency, indicating that urban sites were not solely responsible for driving the regional pattern. These findings support the hypothesis that songs vary with local and regional soundscapes regardless of the source of noise. Song minimum frequency from five core study sites was also higher than the lower frequency

  8. Patterns of Song across Natural and Anthropogenic Soundscapes Suggest That White-Crowned Sparrows Minimize Acoustic Masking and Maximize Signal Content.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Derryberry, Elizabeth P; Danner, Raymond M; Danner, Julie E; Derryberry, Graham E; Phillips, Jennifer N; Lipshutz, Sara E; Gentry, Katherine; Luther, David A

    2016-01-01

    Soundscapes pose both evolutionarily recent and long-standing sources of selection on acoustic communication. We currently know more about the impact of evolutionarily recent human-generated noise on communication than we do about how natural sounds such as pounding surf have shaped communication signals over evolutionary time. Based on signal detection theory, we hypothesized that acoustic phenotypes will vary with both anthropogenic and natural background noise levels and that similar mechanisms of cultural evolution and/or behavioral flexibility may underlie this variation. We studied song characteristics of white-crowned sparrows (Zonotrichia leucophrys nuttalli) across a noise gradient that includes both anthropogenic and natural sources of noise in San Francisco and Marin counties, California, USA. Both anthropogenic and natural soundscapes contain high amplitude low frequency noise (traffic or surf, respectively), so we predicted that birds would produce songs with higher minimum frequencies in areas with higher amplitude background noise to avoid auditory masking. We also anticipated that song minimum frequencies would be higher than the projected lower frequency limit of hearing based on site-specific masking profiles. Background noise was a strong predictor of song minimum frequency, both within a local noise gradient of three urban sites with the same song dialect and cultural evolutionary history, and across the regional noise gradient, which encompasses 11 urban and rural sites, several dialects, and several anthropogenic and natural sources of noise. Among rural sites alone, background noise tended to predict song minimum frequency, indicating that urban sites were not solely responsible for driving the regional pattern. These findings support the hypothesis that songs vary with local and regional soundscapes regardless of the source of noise. Song minimum frequency from five core study sites was also higher than the lower frequency limit of hearing

  9. Synchronous seasonal change in fin whale song in the North Pacific.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Erin M Oleson

    Full Text Available Fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus song consists of down-swept pulses arranged into stereotypic sequences that can be characterized according to the interval between successive pulses. As in blue (B. musculus and humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae, these song sequences may be geographically distinct and may correlate with population boundaries in some regions. We measured inter-pulse intervals of fin whale songs within year-round acoustic datasets collected between 2000 and 2006 in three regions of the eastern North Pacific: Southern California, the Bering Sea, and Hawaii. A distinctive song type that was recorded in all three regions is characterized by singlet and doublet inter-pulse intervals that increase seasonally, then annually reset to the same shorter intervals at the beginning of each season. This song type was recorded in the Bering Sea and off Southern California from September through May and off Hawaii from December through April, with the song interval generally synchronized across all monitoring locations. The broad geographic and seasonal occurrence of this particular fin whale song type may represent a single population broadly distributed throughout the eastern Pacific with no clear seasonal migratory pattern. Previous studies attempting to infer population structure of fin whales in the North Pacific using synchronous individual song samples have been unsuccessful, likely because they did not account for the seasonal lengthening in song intervals observed here.

  10. Songs of the Universe - The AstroCappella Project

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boyd, P. T.; Smale, K. M.; Smale, A. P.

    2004-12-01

    The AstroCappella Project is a classroom-ready collection of upbeat pop songs, lesson plans, and background information, all rich in science content. It was developed as a collaboration between working research astronomers, educators, and a contemporary vocal band. A multimedia music CD ("AstroCappella 2.0") has been produced containing 13 astronomically correct songs with original lyrics and music. Song topics range from the Sun, Moon, planets and small bodies of the Solar System, through the Doppler shift, the nearest stars, and extra-solar planets, to radio astronomy, X-ray astronomy, and the Hubble Space Telescope and Swift astronomy satellites. The CD also contains extensive CD-ROM materials including science background information, curriculum notes, lesson plans and activities for each song, images, movies, and slide shows. The songs and accompanying information have been extensively field-tested, and align to the K-12 National Science Education Standards. The AstroCappella materials are in widespread use in classrooms and homes across the US, and are supplemented with frequent live performances and teacher workshops. We describe here the history, content, and educational strategy behind the AstroCappella Project, and the plans for its future development.

  11. Singing modulates parvalbumin interneurons throughout songbird forebrain vocal control circuitry

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zengin-Toktas, Yildiz

    2017-01-01

    Across species, the performance of vocal signals can be modulated by the social environment. Zebra finches, for example, adjust their song performance when singing to females (‘female-directed’ or FD song) compared to when singing in isolation (‘undirected’ or UD song). These changes are salient, as females prefer the FD song over the UD song. Despite the importance of these performance changes, the neural mechanisms underlying this social modulation remain poorly understood. Previous work in finches has established that expression of the immediate early gene EGR1 is increased during singing and modulated by social context within the vocal control circuitry. Here, we examined whether particular neural subpopulations within those vocal control regions exhibit similar modulations of EGR1 expression. We compared EGR1 expression in neurons expressing parvalbumin (PV), a calcium buffer that modulates network plasticity and homeostasis, among males that performed FD song, males that produced UD song, or males that did not sing. We found that, overall, singing but not social context significantly affected EGR1 expression in PV neurons throughout the vocal control nuclei. We observed differences in EGR1 expression between two classes of PV interneurons in the basal ganglia nucleus Area X. Additionally, we found that singing altered the amount of PV expression in neurons in HVC and Area X and that distinct PV interneuron types in Area X exhibited different patterns of modulation by singing. These data indicate that throughout the vocal control circuitry the singing-related regulation of EGR1 expression in PV neurons may be less influenced by social context than in other neuron types and raise the possibility of cell-type specific differences in plasticity and calcium buffering. PMID:28235074

  12. War songs and songs of war: the poetry in B minor by Fabrizio De André

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gleiton Lentz

    2010-11-01

    Full Text Available The 2nd half of last century, the Italian composer Fabrizio De André (1940-1999 occupied a prominent place in the history of Italian song and even the modern Italian poetry. His fans admire the moral courage and artistic coherence with which he, in the post-war Italian society, through his libertarian and pacifist songs, portrayed the world of the marginalized, the rebels and the prostitutes, and other characters on the margins of society, among those, the war combatant, hero of lost victories on the battlefield. Three of his songs are emblematic: La Ballata dell'eroe, La Guerra di Piero and Girotondo. Three poems that talk about war, death, and the figure of the combatant as an outcast of society, that kills him and then relegates him to oblivion, on behalf of the Fatherland. Exposing his provocative vision of post-war society by showing two videos of the composer is the purpose of this presentation.

  13. AHP 37: AN INTRODUCTION TO AMDO TIBETAN LOVE SONGS, OR LA GZHAS

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    Skal bzang nor bu སྐལ་བཟང་ནོར་བུ།

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available La gzhas , or Amdo Tibetan love songs, are sung between young men and women to express their love to each other. Several terms are available for this type of love song in Amdo Tibetan. La gzhas is the most common term for such songs in written Tibetan, la meaning 'mountain pass' and gzhas 'song'. In oral Amdo Tibetan, it is la-ye , a homophone of the literary term. Ri glu literally means mountain song, and this term matches the Chinese term for love songs, shan'ge. These two terms indicate where this song is often sung, in the mountains, far away from houses, villages and tents, in places where there are few people around. Rogs 'then has a more romantic connotation, rogs meaning friend or lover, and 'then meaning to pull, or hookup. ...

  14. Teaching ethics using popular songs: feeling and thinking.

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'Mathúna, Dónal P

    2008-01-01

    A connection has long been made between music and moral education. Recent discussions have focused on concerns that certain lyrics can lead to acceptance of violence, suicide, inappropriate views of women, and other unethical behaviour. Debate over whether such connections exist at least illustrates that popular songs engage listeners with ethical issues; this arises from the unique blend of emotional and cognitive reactions to music. And while the emotional side of ethics has received less attention than other aspects of ethics, it is important and music can be a powerful and unique tool to introduce the emotional aspects of ethics. Music appeals to almost everyone. Throughout history songs have rallied people to action and drawn people into deeper reflection. Music engages our emotions, our imagination and our intellect. Students already spend many hours listening to songs, some of which address ethical issues; it is thus an ideal pedagogic aid in teaching subjects like ethics. This article will discuss how carefully selected songs can encourage thoughtful reflection and critical thinking about ethical issues: a number of specific examples will be described, along with a discussion of the general practicalities of using popular songs in teaching ethics and a demonstration of how students learn to listen critically and actively reflect on the ethical messages they receive. The enjoyment of music helps to engage students with ethics and its relevance for their lives and careers. This article aims to share some of the excitement and enthusiasm that popular songs have brought to my teaching of ethics.

  15. Recognition of geriatric popular song repertoire: a comparison of geriatric clients and music therapy students.

    Science.gov (United States)

    VanWeelden, Kimberly; Cevasco, Andrea M

    2010-01-01

    The purposes of the current study were to determine geriatric clients' recognition of 32 popular songs and songs from musicals by asking whether they: (a) had heard the songs before; (b) could "name the tune" of each song; and (c) list the decade that each song was composed. Additionally, comparisons were made between the geriatric clients' recognition of these songs and by music therapy students' recognition of the same, songs, based on data from an earlier study (VanWeelden, Juchniewicz, & Cevasco, 2008). Results found 90% or more of the geriatric clients had heard 28 of the 32 songs, 80% or more of the graduate students had heard 20 songs, and 80% of the undergraduates had heard 18 songs. The geriatric clients correctly identified 3 songs with 80% or more accuracy, which the graduate students also correctly identified, while the undergraduates identified 2 of the 3 same songs. Geriatric clients identified the decades of 3 songs with 50% or greater accuracy. Neither the undergraduate nor graduate students identified any songs by the correct decade with over 50% accuracy. Further results are discussed.

  16. 92 A Literary Discourse of Nigerian Children's Accretive Songs (Pp ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Nekky Umera

    Observation in the past ten years or so shows that some systematic studies of the lore as a ... The importance of these kind of songs is the “training of the participants to ... more.... This game song is usually performed with the view to establishing the most ... context; the literary impact of the song and the predicament of the.

  17. Element repertoire: change and development with age in Whitethroat Sylvia communis song

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Balsby, T.J.S.; Hansen, P.

    2010-01-01

    Song repertoires are often important determining factors in sexual selection. In several species, older males have larger repertoires than 1-year-old males. The development of large song repertoires by an individual is, however, poorly understood. We studied song element repertoire changes in five...... based on the first-year repertoire, which may explain why large song repertoires are mainly expressed by males at least 2 years of age. It would appear, therefore, that song element repertoire size could be a reliable signal of male age....

  18. Song and Male Quality in Prairie Warblers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bruce E. Byers; Michael E. Akresh; David I. King; W. Koenig

    2016-01-01

    To determine if the songs of male prairie warblers could potentially reveal to female listeners information about the quality of singers, we compared various aspects of prairie warbler song structure and performance to attributes that might reflect a male singer's potential to enhance the fitness of his mate. We found that all the tested male attributes—arrival...

  19. Perception of words and pitch patterns in song and speech

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Julia eMerrill

    2012-03-01

    Full Text Available This fMRI study examines shared and distinct cortical areas involved in the auditory perception of song and speech at the level of their underlying constituents: words, pitch and rhythm. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed on the brain activity patterns of six conditions, arranged in a subtractive hierarchy: sung sentences including words, pitch and rhythm; hummed speech prosody and song melody containing only pitch patterns and rhythm; as well as the pure musical or speech rhythm.Systematic contrasts between these balanced conditions following their hierarchical organization showed a great overlap between song and speech at all levels in the bilateral temporal lobe, but suggested a differential role of the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG and intraparietal sulcus (IPS in processing song and speech. The left IFG was involved in word- and pitch-related processing in speech, the right IFG in processing pitch in song.Furthermore, the IPS showed sensitivity to discrete pitch relations in song as opposed to the gliding pitch in speech. Finally, the superior temporal gyrus and premotor cortex coded for general differences between words and pitch patterns, irrespective of whether they were sung or spoken. Thus, song and speech share many features which are reflected in a fundamental similarity of brain areas involved in their perception. However, fine-grained acoustic differences on word and pitch level are reflected in the activity of IFG and IPS.

  20. Female song rate and structure predict reproductive success in a socially monogamous bird.

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    Dianne Heather Brunton

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available Bird song is commonly regarded as a male trait that has evolved through sexual selection. However, recent research has prompted a re-evaluation of this view by demonstrating that female song is an ancestral and phylogenetically widespread trait. Species with female song provide opportunities to study selective pressures and mechanisms specific to females within the wider context of social competition. We investigated the relationship between reproductive success and female song performance in the New Zealand bellbird (Anthornis melanura, a passerine resident year round in New Zealand temperate forests. We monitored breeding behavior and song over three years on Tiritiri Matangi Island. Female bellbirds contributed significantly more towards parental care than males (solely incubating young and provisioning chicks at more than twice the rate of males. Female song rate in the vicinity of the nest was higher than that of males during incubation and chick-rearing stages but similar during early-nesting and post-breeding stages. Using GLMs, we found that female song rates during both incubation and chick-rearing stages strongly predicted the number of fledged chicks. However, male song rate and male and female chick provisioning rates had no effect on fledging success. Two measures of female song complexity (number of syllable types and the number of transitions between different syllable types were also good predictors of breeding success (GLM on PC scores. In contrast, song duration, the total number of syllables, and the number of ‘stutter’ syllables per song were not correlated with fledging success. It is unclear why male song rate was not associated with reproductive success and we speculate that extra-pair paternity might play a role. While we have previously demonstrated that female bellbird song is important in intrasexual interactions, we clearly demonstrate here that female song predicts reproductive success. These results, with others

  1. Own song selectivity in the songbird auditory pathway

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Poirier, Colline; Boumans, Tiny; Vellema, Michiel

    2011-01-01

    BACKGROUND: Like human speech, birdsong is a learned behavior that supports species and individual recognition. Norepinephrine is a catecholamine suspected to play a role in song learning. The goal of this study was to investigate the role of norepinephrine in bird's own song selectivity, a prope...

  2. Structural design principles of complex bird songs: a network-based approach.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kazutoshi Sasahara

    Full Text Available Bird songs are acoustic communication signals primarily used in male-male aggression and in male-female attraction. These are often monotonous patterns composed of a few phrases, yet some birds have extremely complex songs with a large phrase repertoire, organized in non-random fashion with discernible patterns. Since structure is typically associated with function, the structures of complex bird songs provide important clues to the evolution of animal communication systems. Here we propose an efficient network-based approach to explore structural design principles of complex bird songs, in which the song networks--transition relationships among different phrases and the related structural measures--are employed. We demonstrate how this approach works with an example using California Thrasher songs, which are sequences of highly varied phrases delivered in succession over several minutes. These songs display two distinct features: a large phrase repertoire with a 'small-world' architecture, in which subsets of phrases are highly grouped and linked with a short average path length; and a balanced transition diversity amongst phrases, in which deterministic and non-deterministic transition patterns are moderately mixed. We explore the robustness of this approach with variations in sample size and the amount of noise. Our approach enables a more quantitative study of global and local structural properties of complex bird songs than has been possible to date.

  3. Humpback whale song and foraging behavior on an antarctic feeding ground.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alison K Stimpert

    Full Text Available Reports of humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae song chorusing occurring outside the breeding grounds are becoming more common, but song structure and underwater behavior of individual singers on feeding grounds and migration routes remain unknown. Here, ten humpback whales in the Western Antarctic Peninsula were tagged in May 2010 with non-invasive, suction-cup attached tags to study foraging ecology and acoustic behavior. Background song was identified on all ten records, but additionally, acoustic records of two whales showed intense and continuous singing, with a level of organization and structure approaching that of typical breeding ground song. The songs, produced either by the tagged animals or close associates, shared phrase types and theme structure with one another, and some song bouts lasted close to an hour. Dive behavior of tagged animals during the time of sound production showed song occurring during periods of active diving, sometimes to depths greater than 100 m. One tag record also contained song in the presence of feeding lunges identified from the behavioral sensors, indicating that mating displays occur in areas worthy of foraging. These data show behavioral flexibility as the humpbacks manage competing needs to continue to feed and to prepare for the breeding season during late fall. This may also signify an ability to engage in breeding activities outside of the traditional, warm water breeding ground locations.

  4. Mechanisms underlying speech sound discrimination and categorization in humans and zebra finches

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Burgering, Merel A.; ten Cate, Carel; Vroomen, Jean

    Speech sound categorization in birds seems in many ways comparable to that by humans, but it is unclear what mechanisms underlie such categorization. To examine this, we trained zebra finches and humans to discriminate two pairs of edited speech sounds that varied either along one dimension (vowel

  5. Differentiating the evolution of female song and male-female duets in the New World blackbirds: can tropical natural history traits explain duet evolution?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Odom, Karan J; Omland, Kevin E; Price, J Jordan

    2015-03-01

    Female bird song and combined vocal duets of mated pairs are both frequently associated with tropical, monogamous, sedentary natural histories. Little is known, however, about what selects for duetting behavior versus female song. Female song likely preceded duet evolution and could drive apparent relationships between duets and these natural histories. We compared the evolution of female song and male-female duets in the New World blackbirds (Icteridae) by investigating patterns of gains and losses of both traits and their relationships with breeding latitude, mating system, nesting pattern, and migratory behavior. We found that duets evolved only in lineages in which female song was likely ancestral. Both female song and duets were correlated with tropical breeding, social monogamy, territorial nesting, and sedentary behavior when all taxa were included; however, correlations between duets and these natural history traits disappeared when comparisons were limited to taxa with female song. Also, likelihood values supported stronger relationships between the natural history traits and female song than between these traits and duets. Our results suggest that the natural histories thought to favor the evolution of duetting may in fact be associated with female song and that additional selection pressures are responsible for the evolution of duets. © 2015 The Author(s).

  6. LINGUISTIC AND CULTURAL CHARACTERISTICS OF RUSSIAN AND ENGLISH CHILDREN'S SONGS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ms. Valeria A. Buryakovskaya

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available Linguistic and cultural specificity of children's songs is determined by the extralinguistic and linguistic characteristics that most clearly are seen in the light of comparative analysis. For a long historical period there was a stream of cultural phenomena from Western Europe to Russia including the UK, which is reflected in the language including children's songs. The purpose of the study is to identify the similarities and differences of children's songs in Russian and English folklore cultures. It is established that the main differences of the Russian song culture from the European one are determined by historical, religious, regional, ethnic, musical, poetic and other traditions. The similarities are observed in the structural, phonetic and genre-themed events. At the same time, Russian and English children's songs differ from each other in their lexical-grammatical and stylistic peculiarities, the set of concepts and characters.

  7. Core and Shell Song Systems Unique to the Parrot Brain

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chakraborty, Mukta; Walløe, Solveig; Nedergaard, Signe; Fridel, Emma E.; Dabelsteen, Torben; Pakkenberg, Bente; Bertelsen, Mads F.; Dorrestein, Gerry M.; Brauth, Steven E.; Durand, Sarah E.; Jarvis, Erich D.

    2015-01-01

    The ability to imitate complex sounds is rare, and among birds has been found only in parrots, songbirds, and hummingbirds. Parrots exhibit the most advanced vocal mimicry among non-human animals. A few studies have noted differences in connectivity, brain position and shape in the vocal learning systems of parrots relative to songbirds and hummingbirds. However, only one parrot species, the budgerigar, has been examined and no differences in the presence of song system structures were found with other avian vocal learners. Motivated by questions of whether there are important differences in the vocal systems of parrots relative to other vocal learners, we used specialized constitutive gene expression, singing-driven gene expression, and neural connectivity tracing experiments to further characterize the song system of budgerigars and/or other parrots. We found that the parrot brain uniquely contains a song system within a song system. The parrot “core” song system is similar to the song systems of songbirds and hummingbirds, whereas the “shell” song system is unique to parrots. The core with only rudimentary shell regions were found in the New Zealand kea, representing one of the only living species at a basal divergence with all other parrots, implying that parrots evolved vocal learning systems at least 29 million years ago. Relative size differences in the core and shell regions occur among species, which we suggest could be related to species differences in vocal and cognitive abilities. PMID:26107173

  8. In-situ measurements of ice nucleating particles with FINCH (Fast Ice Nucleus Chamber)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kohl, Rebecca; Frank, Fabian; Curtius, Joachim; Rose, Diana

    2017-04-01

    Ice nucleating particles (INPs), which are a small fraction of the total aerosol population, are capable of triggering ice formation under atmospheric conditions. Since INPs play an important role for the radiative properties of clouds as well as for the formation of precipitation it is important to get quantitative information on the ice activity of various atmospheric aerosol species. With the Fast Ice Nucleus Chamber (FINCH; Bundke et al., 2008) the number concentration of INP is determined at different freezing temperatures and supersaturations. In contrast to other commonly used INP counters, i.e., continuous flow diffusion chambers (CFDCs, DeMott et al., 2011), in FINCH the supersaturation is reached by mixing the sample flow of ambient aerosol with a warm moist as well as a cold dry airflow. By changing the flow rates and temperatures of the individual airflows the freezing temperature (down to -50°C) and supersaturation (up to above water saturation) can be varied relatively quickly. Particles that are ice active at the prescribed freezing temperature and supersaturation grow to crystals and are counted by a home-built optical particle counter (OPC) mounted below the chamber (Bundke et al., 2010). FINCH was operated during the four-week INUIT-BACCHUS-ACTRIS field campaign in Cyprus in April 2016. The measuring site was the location of the Cyprus Atmospheric Observatory (CAO) at Agia Marina Xyliatou, which is typically influenced by dust from the Sahara and the Middle East, an aerosol that is known to have relatively good ice nucleating ability. First results from this campaign will be presented. Acknowledgements: The authors thank the entire INUIT-BACCHUS-ACTRIS campaign team for their cooperation and support. The INUIT-2 project is financed by the German Research Foundation DFG (FOR 1525). The INUIT-Cyprus campaign is a cooperation with the EU-funded project BACCHUS and is also funded by ACTRIS-TNA. References: Bundke, U., Nillius, B., Jaenicke, R

  9. SONG China project - participating in the global network

    Science.gov (United States)

    Deng, Licai; Xin, Yu; Zhang, Xiaobin; Li, Yan; Jiang, Xiaojun; Wang, Guomin; Wang, Kun; Zhou, Jilin; Yan, Zhengzhou; Luo, Zhiquan

    2013-01-01

    SONG (Stellar Observations Network Goup) is a low-cost ground based international collaboration aimed at two cutting edge problems in contemporary astrophysics in the time-domain: 1) Direct diagnostics of the internal structure of stars and 2) looking for and studying extra solar planets, possibly in the habitable zone. The general plan is to set up a network of 1m telescopes uniformly distributed in geographic latitude (in both hemispheres). China jointed the collaboration (initiated by Danish astronomers) at the very beginning. In addition to SONG's original plan (http://song.phys.au.dk), the Chinese team proposed a parallel photometry subnet work in the northern hemisphere, namely 50BiN (50cm Binocular Network, previously known as mini-SONG), to enable a large field photometric capability for the network, therefore maximising the potential of the network platform. The network will be able to produce nearly continuous time series observations of a number of selected objects with high resolution spectroscopy (SONG) and accurate photometry (50BiN), and to produce ultra-high accuracy photometry in dense field to look for micro-lensing events caused by planetary systems. This project has great synergy with Chinese Astronomical activities in Antarctica (Dome A), and other similar networks (e.g. LCOGT). The plan and current status of the project are overviewed in this poster.

  10. Image/Music/Voice: Song Dubbing in Hollywood Musicals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Siefert, Marsha

    1995-01-01

    Uses the practice of song dubbing in the Hollywood film musical to explore the implications and consequences of the singing voice for imaging practices in the 1930s through 1960s. Discusses the ideological, technological, and socioeconomic basis for song dubbing. Discusses gender, race, and ethnicity patterns of image-sound practices. (SR)

  11. to view fulltext PDF

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Unknown

    2004-05-02

    May 2, 2004 ... number of survivors to the age a in suitable time units. (like years for ...... Finch C E 1990 Longevity, senescence, and the genome (Uni- versity of ... Joeng K S, Song E J, Lee K J and Lee J 2004 Long lifespan in worms with ...

  12. Late Medieval Piety expressed in Song Manuscripts of the Devotio Moderna

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Burger, C.P.M.

    2008-01-01

    Booklets with song texts from houses belonging to one of the branches of the Devotio Moderna often contain texts of songs which had been sung earlier. However, the fact that such song texts were written down in booklets shows that they were valued by their owners, who chose to express their personal

  13. Melos: a Rhetoric Proof in Songs in Semiotic Perspective

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adriano Dantas de Oliveira

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available We will have, in this work, the exposure of an approach to cancional text as a specific rhetorical situation. We assimilated the melos as all musical aspects of the song as a rhetorical proof that articulates the traditional trilogy: ethos, logos and pathos. We will use an interdisciplinary theoretical framework, articulating the classical rhetoric to semiotics applied to the song, exploring, from this model, discursive aspects of cancional text. As corpus, we have the analysis of a buarquiana song sample sociopolitical theme composed and recorded during the period of dictatorship.

  14. Vocal neighbour-mate discrimination in female great tits despite high song similarity

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Blumenrath, Sandra H.; Dabelsteen, Torben; Pedersen, Simon Boel

    2007-01-01

    Discrimination between conspecifics is important in mediating social interactions between several individuals in a network environment. In great tits, Parus major, females readily distinguish between the songs of their mate and those of a stranger. The high degree of song sharing among neighbouring...... males, however, raises the question of whether females are also able to perceive differences between songs shared by their mate and a neighbour. The great tit is a socially monogamous, hole-nesting species with biparental care. Pair bond maintenance and coordination of the pair's reproductive efforts...... are important, and the female's ability to recognize her mate's song should therefore be adaptive. In a neighbour-mate discrimination playback experiment, we presented 13 incubating great tit females situated inside nestboxes with a song of their mate and the same song type from a neighbour. Each female...

  15. Memory-dependent adjustment of vocal response latencies in a territorial songbird.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Geberzahn, Nicole; Hultsch, Henrike; Todt, Dietmar

    2013-06-01

    Vocal interactions in songbirds can be used as a model system to investigate the interplay of intrinsic singing programmes (e.g. influences from vocal memories) and external variables (e.g. social factors). When characterizing vocal interactions between territorial rivals two aspects are important: (1) the timing of songs in relation to the conspecific's singing and (2) the use of a song pattern that matches the rival's song. Responses in both domains can be used to address a territorial rival. This study is the first to investigate the relation of the timing of vocal responses to (1) the vocal memory of a responding subject and (2) the selection of the song pattern that the subject uses as a response. To this end, we conducted interactive playback experiments with adult nightingales (Luscinia megarhynchos) that had been hand-reared and tutored in the laboratory. We analysed the subjects' vocal response latencies towards broadcast playback stimuli that they either had in their own vocal repertoire (songs shared with playback) or that they had not heard before (unknown songs). Likewise, we compared vocal response latencies between responses that matched the stimulus song and those that did not. Our findings showed that the latency of singing in response to the playback was shorter for shared versus unknown song stimuli when subjects overlapped the playback stimuli with their own song. Moreover birds tended to overlap faster when vocally matching the stimulus song rather than when replying with a non-matching song type. We conclude that memory of song patterns influenced response latencies and discuss possible mechanisms. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. The language of poetic texts in contemporary Tuvan pop songs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Oyumaa M. Saaya

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available The article presents a linguistic analysis of lyrics of modern Tuvan pop songs. While studying them is important for understanding contemporary songwriting in Tuva, it is also necessary to discover what linguistic means, functional styles and vocabulary are used by modern authors of popular lyrics. The study can also help identify how contemporary global trends influence songwriting in means of linguistics. Three groups of songs can be defined in Tuvan pop music. The first of them comprises songs written by both professional poets and amateurs with good writing skills. Their texts have homogenous literary style and are intended for general audience (rather than specific groups of listeners. They do not feature any jargon or youth slang. The second group consists of “songs of the people” which are still popular and relevant, but not classified as folklore. This group also contains songs previously banned by censorship, and those written by ex-convicts. Their lyrics differ in style, and the vocabulary is also heterogenous: they can include slang and contain vernacular language. The third group includes songs following popular global and Russian trends, which  triggered rapid evolution in Tuvan songwriting. There is significant number of authors or even creative unions, who write both lyric and music. They are stylistically uneven, contain a lot of neologisms, borrowed vocabulary, slang and jargon words and sometimes even macaronic (mixed language. The author provides a more in-depth analysis of lyrics belonging to the third group of songs. They can be divided into 6 thematic subgroups which greatly vary in lexical content and the use of tropes. The lyrics of contemporary Tuvan songs are quite close to the everyday language young people use. Active employment of jargon in the language of young and middle-aged people, especially in lyrics of modern songs, steadily decreases the literary norms of Tuvan language. The author emphasizes that

  17. CINCH (confocal incoherent correlation holography) super resolution fluorescence microscopy based upon FINCH (Fresnel incoherent correlation holography).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Siegel, Nisan; Storrie, Brian; Bruce, Marc; Brooker, Gary

    2015-02-07

    FINCH holographic fluorescence microscopy creates high resolution super-resolved images with enhanced depth of focus. The simple addition of a real-time Nipkow disk confocal image scanner in a conjugate plane of this incoherent holographic system is shown to reduce the depth of focus, and the combination of both techniques provides a simple way to enhance the axial resolution of FINCH in a combined method called "CINCH". An important feature of the combined system allows for the simultaneous real-time image capture of widefield and holographic images or confocal and confocal holographic images for ready comparison of each method on the exact same field of view. Additional GPU based complex deconvolution processing of the images further enhances resolution.

  18. Peregrine falcon predation of endangered Laysan teal and Laysan Finches on remote Hawaiian atolls

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reynolds, Michelle H.; Nash, Sarah A.B.; Courtot, Karen

    2015-01-01

    We report the first records of Peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus) predation on endangered Laysan teal (or duck; Anas laysanensis) and predation on endangered Laysan finches (Telespiza cantans). At Midway Atoll, vagrant Peregrine falcons killed ≥4% of a newly translocated Laysan teal population in 2006 and ≥2% in 2008. On Laysan Island during 2008–2009, remains of >76 Laysan finches (<1% of the population) were found at peregrine perches. On Midway Atoll, all depredated Laysan teal and other seabirds were recovered at kill sites on tarmac (runways). If the frequency or duration of vagrant raptors visitation increases at small atolls, this could pose a mortality risk to consider, especially during proposed translocations of endangered species. Vegetation restoration of abandoned runways near wetlands at Midway Atoll would provide cover and may help reduce mortality of endangered species due to vagrant raptors.

  19. Achieving Sound Beauty in Chinese Translations of English Songs

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    陶薪平

    2017-01-01

    Song is a kind of combination of language and music. Song achieves its aesthetic information and arouses feeling with its own sentiments and aesthetic effect. However, various kinds of present problems lead to much loss of beauty. Besides, the theoretical works concerning this area is much meager. Translation of English songs into Chinese has been studied from functional equivalence theory or the functionalism. The present thesis offers a new perspective―beauty in sound from Xu Yuanchong's"three beauties principle", aiming to seek possible ways to represent beauty in translation practice, and some typical examples are compared and analyzed.

  20. Characterizing Listener Engagement with Popular Songs Using Large-Scale Music Discovery Data.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kaneshiro, Blair; Ruan, Feng; Baker, Casey W; Berger, Jonathan

    2017-01-01

    Music discovery in everyday situations has been facilitated in recent years by audio content recognition services such as Shazam. The widespread use of such services has produced a wealth of user data, specifying where and when a global audience takes action to learn more about music playing around them. Here, we analyze a large collection of Shazam queries of popular songs to study the relationship between the timing of queries and corresponding musical content. Our results reveal that the distribution of queries varies over the course of a song, and that salient musical events drive an increase in queries during a song. Furthermore, we find that the distribution of queries at the time of a song's release differs from the distribution following a song's peak and subsequent decline in popularity, possibly reflecting an evolution of user intent over the "life cycle" of a song. Finally, we derive insights into the data size needed to achieve consistent query distributions for individual songs. The combined findings of this study suggest that music discovery behavior, and other facets of the human experience of music, can be studied quantitatively using large-scale industrial data.

  1. Characterizing Listener Engagement with Popular Songs Using Large-Scale Music Discovery Data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kaneshiro, Blair; Ruan, Feng; Baker, Casey W.; Berger, Jonathan

    2017-01-01

    Music discovery in everyday situations has been facilitated in recent years by audio content recognition services such as Shazam. The widespread use of such services has produced a wealth of user data, specifying where and when a global audience takes action to learn more about music playing around them. Here, we analyze a large collection of Shazam queries of popular songs to study the relationship between the timing of queries and corresponding musical content. Our results reveal that the distribution of queries varies over the course of a song, and that salient musical events drive an increase in queries during a song. Furthermore, we find that the distribution of queries at the time of a song's release differs from the distribution following a song's peak and subsequent decline in popularity, possibly reflecting an evolution of user intent over the “life cycle” of a song. Finally, we derive insights into the data size needed to achieve consistent query distributions for individual songs. The combined findings of this study suggest that music discovery behavior, and other facets of the human experience of music, can be studied quantitatively using large-scale industrial data. PMID:28386241

  2. Long-time storage of song types in birds: evidence from interactive playbacks.

    OpenAIRE

    Geberzahn, Nicole; Hultsch, Henrike

    2003-01-01

    In studies of birdsong learning, imitation-based assays of stimulus memorization do not take into account that tutored song types may have been stored, but were not retrieved from memory. Such a 'silent' reservoir of song material could be used later in the bird's life, e.g. during vocal interactions. We examined this possibility in hand-reared nightingales during their second year. The males had been exposed to songs, both as fledglings and later, during their first full song period in an in...

  3. Porous Privacy: The Literati Studio and Spatiality in Song China

    OpenAIRE

    Zhang, Yunshuang

    2017-01-01

    My dissertation examines the distinctive significance of the studio during the Song dynasty (960–1279) through its various literary and visual representations. Simply speaking, the studio was an enclosed site specifically used for reading, writing, and art creation. Pre-Song texts have records of a few early examples of studio sites in China. However, it was during the Song dynasty that the studio became a prominent cultural space for literati. The studio became both an object of scholarly re...

  4. Does song complexity matter in an intra-sexual context in common blackbirds

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hesler, Nana; Sacher, Thomas; Coppack, Timothy

    Bird song is thought to be subject of both inter- and intra-sexual selection and song complexity a signal of male quality. One aspect of song complexity, repertoire size, correlates with estimates of male quality in several passerine species.  The Common Blackbird (Turdus merula) has a large repe...

  5. Convergent transcriptional specializations in the brains of humans and song-learning birds

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pfenning, Andreas R.; Hara, Erina; Whitney, Osceola

    2014-01-01

    Song-learning birds and humans share independently evolved similarities in brain pathways for vocal learning that are essential for song and speech and are not found in most other species. Comparisons of brain transcriptomes of song-learning birds and humans relative to vocal nonlearners identified...... convergent gene expression specializations in specific song and speech brain regions of avian vocal learners and humans. The strongest shared profiles relate bird motor and striatal song-learning nuclei, respectively, with human laryngeal motor cortex and parts of the striatum that control speech production...... and learning. Most of the associated genes function in motor control and brain connectivity. Thus, convergent behavior and neural connectivity for a complex trait are associated with convergent specialized expression of multiple genes....

  6. The use of network analysis to study complex animal communication systems: a study on nightingale song.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weiss, Michael; Hultsch, Henrike; Adam, Iris; Scharff, Constance; Kipper, Silke

    2014-06-22

    The singing of song birds can form complex signal systems comprised of numerous subunits sung with distinct combinatorial properties that have been described as syntax-like. This complexity has inspired inquiries into similarities of bird song to human language; but the quantitative analysis and description of song sequences is a challenging task. In this study, we analysed song sequences of common nightingales (Luscinia megarhynchos) by means of a network analysis. We translated long nocturnal song sequences into networks of song types with song transitions as connectors. As network measures, we calculated shortest path length and transitivity and identified the 'small-world' character of nightingale song networks. Besides comparing network measures with conventional measures of song complexity, we also found a correlation between network measures and age of birds. Furthermore, we determined the numbers of in-coming and out-going edges of each song type, characterizing transition patterns. These transition patterns were shared across males for certain song types. Playbacks with different transition patterns provided first evidence that these patterns are responded to differently and thus play a role in singing interactions. We discuss potential functions of the network properties of song sequences in the framework of vocal leadership. Network approaches provide biologically meaningful parameters to describe the song structure of species with extremely large repertoires and complex rules of song retrieval.

  7. Tula song folklore: genre-stylistic and dialectic peculiarities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Krasovskaya Nelli Alexandrovna

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available The article analyzes the works of Tula folklore recorded in the western part of the Tula region, in terms of genre, stylistic and linguistic features. The relevance of the study is related to the fact that Tula folk songs has not been studied, linguistic features of the works are not subjected to serious analysis. The article describes the features of the genre of songs recorded in Belevsky district of Tula region, including the ancient fortunetelling chants, wedding ceremony songs, romantic ballads etc., it is cited numerous examples in the lyrics that reflect the dialectal features of the phonetic, grammatical, lexical levels. According to the authors, a modern folk song genre retains its diversity and is a kind of storeroom containing priceless linguistic wealth. The analysis allows to draw conclusions about the presence and well-preserved in the recorded music of South Russian dialect phonetic and grammatical features. So far, there is no established typology of Tula dialects, therefore, according to the authors, the fixation of folklore in the territories bordering on Tula dialects, is very important and interesting for further descriptive and comparative work on identifying the eastern and south-south-west differences in Tula dialects.

  8. A Neural Code That Is Isometric to Vocal Output and Correlates with Its Sensory Consequences.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alexei L Vyssotski

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available What cortical inputs are provided to motor control areas while they drive complex learned behaviors? We study this question in the nucleus interface of the nidopallium (NIf, which is required for normal birdsong production and provides the main source of auditory input to HVC, the driver of adult song. In juvenile and adult zebra finches, we find that spikes in NIf projection neurons precede vocalizations by several tens of milliseconds and are insensitive to distortions of auditory feedback. We identify a local isometry between NIf output and vocalizations: quasi-identical notes produced in different syllables are preceded by highly similar NIf spike patterns. NIf multiunit firing during song precedes responses in auditory cortical neurons by about 50 ms, revealing delayed congruence between NIf spiking and a neural representation of auditory feedback. Our findings suggest that NIf codes for imminent acoustic events within vocal performance.

  9. Acoustic Communication in Birds-Differences in Songs and Calls ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Songs, calls and visual displays of the Oriental magpie robin have been studied in detail. In northern India, this species breeds between May and August raising several broods. During this period, males sing complex and melodious songs in their respective territories for the advertisement of territories and mate acquisition.

  10. Using Song to Improve Students’ Vocabulary Mastery

    OpenAIRE

    Muflihah, Tatik

    2017-01-01

    Vocabulary mastery is one of the requirements for students to be able to communicate both in spoken and written. There are many ways to improve students’ vocabulary mastery used by the language teacher. This paper aims to examine the use of English song to motivate students in learning English. In addition, this concerns on the use of English song to improve students’ vocabulary mastery. The respondents were fifteen elementary students of community groups of orphans An-nur Surabaya. The data ...

  11. Postnatal nutrition influences male attractiveness and promotes plasticity in male mating preferences

    Science.gov (United States)

    Noguera, José C.; Metcalfe, Neil B.; Monaghan, Pat

    2017-12-01

    Poor early-life nutrition could reduce adult reproductive success by negatively affecting traits linked to sexual attractiveness such as song complexity. If so, this might favor strategic mate choice, allowing males with less complex songs to tailor their mating tactics to maximize the reproductive benefits. However, this possibility has been ignored in theoretical and empirical studies. By manipulating the micronutrient content of the diet (e.g., low or high) during the postnatal period of male zebra finches, we show for the first time (1) that males reared on a poor (low) micronutrient diet had less complex songs as adults; (2) that these males, in contrast to the high micronutrient diet group, were more selective in their mating strategies, discriminating against those females most likely to reduce their clutch size when paired with males having less complex songs; and (3) that by following different mating strategies, males reared on the contrasting diets obtained similar reproductive benefits. These results suggest that early-life dietary conditions can induce multiple and long-lasting effects on male and female reproductive traits. Moreover, the results seem to reflect a previously unreported case of adaptive plasticity in mate choice in response to a nutritionally mediated reduction in sexual attractiveness.

  12. Acoustic foundations of the speech-to-song illusion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tierney, Adam; Patel, Aniruddh D; Breen, Mara

    2018-06-01

    In the "speech-to-song illusion," certain spoken phrases are heard as highly song-like when isolated from context and repeated. This phenomenon occurs to a greater degree for some stimuli than for others, suggesting that particular cues prompt listeners to perceive a spoken phrase as song. Here we investigated the nature of these cues across four experiments. In Experiment 1, participants were asked to rate how song-like spoken phrases were after each of eight repetitions. Initial ratings were correlated with the consistency of an underlying beat and within-syllable pitch slope, while rating change was linked to beat consistency, within-syllable pitch slope, and melodic structure. In Experiment 2, the within-syllable pitch slope of the stimuli was manipulated, and this manipulation changed the extent to which participants heard certain stimuli as more musical than others. In Experiment 3, the extent to which the pitch sequences of a phrase fit a computational model of melodic structure was altered, but this manipulation did not have a significant effect on musicality ratings. In Experiment 4, the consistency of intersyllable timing was manipulated, but this manipulation did not have an effect on the change in perceived musicality after repetition. Our methods provide a new way of studying the causal role of specific acoustic features in the speech-to-song illusion via subtle acoustic manipulations of speech, and show that listeners can rapidly (and implicitly) assess the degree to which nonmusical stimuli contain musical structure. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

  13. RFSP simulations of Darlington FINCH refuelling transient

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Carruthers, E.V.; Chow, H.C.

    1997-01-01

    Immediately after refuelling of a channel, the fresh bundles are free of fission products. Xenon-135, the most notable of the saturating fission products, builds up to an equilibrium level in about 30 h. The channel power of the refuelled channel would therefore initially peak and then drop to a steady-state level. The RFSP code can track saturating-fission-product transients and power transients. The Fully INstrumented CHannels (FINCHs) in Darlington NGS provides channel power data on the refuelling power transients. In this paper, such data has been used to identify the physical evidence of the fission-product transient effect on channel power, and to validate RFSP fission-product-driver calculation results. (author)

  14. The organisation of musical semantic memory: evidence from false memories for familiar songs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sherman, Susan M; Kennerley, Jo

    2014-01-01

    By adapting a well-known paradigm for studying memory for words-the Deese-Roediger-McDermott or DRM paradigm (Deese, 1959, Roediger & McDermott, 1995)-the two experiments reported here explore memory for song titles and song clips. Participants were presented with five song titles (Experiment 1a) or five 30-second song clips (Experiment 1b) for each of nine popular artists (e.g., Robbie Williams). The most popular song identified for each artist in a pilot task was omitted from the sets of titles/clips. Following a distractor task, participants were asked to write down as many of the songs as they could recall. They were also asked to return a week later and complete a second recall task. Participants falsely recalled a significant number of the related but non-presented songs in both experiments and this increased a week later, while correct recall for presented items decreased. The results are discussed in terms of theory for musical memory as well as in the context of providing a novel method for exploring the organisation of musical memory.

  15. Aligning HIV/AIDS communication with the oral tradition of Africans: a theory-based content analysis of songs' potential in prevention efforts.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bekalu, Mesfin Awoke; Eggermont, Steven

    2015-01-01

    Despite a growing recognition of songs as a useful HIV/AIDS campaign strategy, little research has investigated their potential and/or actual impact. In this study, through a theory-based content analysis, we have assessed the prevention domains covered and the health-relevant constructs promoted by 23 AIDS songs widely used to aid prevention efforts in Ethiopia. To identify the health-relevant constructs and reveal their potential to facilitate or inhibit positive changes, the Extended Parallel Process Model (EPPM) has been used. The findings revealed that the songs cover most of the prevention domains that constitute the current agenda of behavior change communication in Sub-Saharan Africa. However, although all the EPPM variables have been found in almost every song, there were significantly more efficacy messages than threat messages. This suggests that although the songs may lead to positive changes in HIV/AIDS-related outcomes among audiences who have already perceived the threat posed by HIV/AIDS, they are less likely to motivate and thereby generate responses from audiences who have less or no threat perceptions. It is argued that given their potential as a culturally appropriate strategy in Sub-Saharan Africa where oral channels of communication play significant roles, songs could be harnessed for better outcomes through a theory-based design.

  16. Can rarefaction be used to estimate song repertoire size in birds?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kathleen R. PESHEK, Daniel T. BLUMSTEIN

    2011-06-01

    Full Text Available Song repertoire size is the number of distinct syllables, phrases, or song types produced by an individual or population. Repertoire size estimation is particularly difficult for species that produce highly variable songs and those that produce many song types. Estimating repertoire size is important for ecological and evolutionary studies of speciation, studies of sexual selection, as well as studies of how species may adapt their songs to various acoustic environments. There are several methods to estimate repertoire size, however prior studies discovered that all but a full numerical count of song types might have substantial inaccuracies associated with them. We evaluated a somewhat novel approach to estimate repertoire size—rarefaction; a technique ecologists use to measure species diversity on individual and population levels. Using the syllables within American robins’ Turdus migratorius repertoire, we compared the most commonly used techniques of estimating repertoires to the results of a rarefaction analysis. American robins have elaborate and unique songs with few syllables shared between individuals, and there is no evidence that robins mimic their neighbors. Thus, they are an ideal system in which to compare techniques. We found that the rarefaction technique results resembled that of the numerical count, and were better than two alternative methods (behavioral accumulation curves, and capture-recapture to estimate syllable repertoire size. Future estimates of repertoire size, particularly in vocally complex species, may benefit from using rarefaction techniques when numerical counts are unable to be performed [Current Zoology 57 (3: 300–306, 2011].

  17. Sex-specific effects of yolk testosterone on survival, begging and growth of zebra finches

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    von Engelhardt, N; Carere, C; Dijkstra, C; Groothuis, TGG

    2006-01-01

    Yolk androgens affect offspring hatching, begging, growth and survival in many bird species. If these effects are sex-specific, yolk androgen deposition may constitute a mechanism for differential investment in male and female offspring. We tested this hypothesis in zebra finches. In this species,

  18. The Relationship between Plants Used to Sustain Finches (Fringillidae) and Uses for Human Medicine in Southeast Spain

    Science.gov (United States)

    Belda, Antonio; Peiró, Victoriano; Seva, Eduardo

    2012-01-01

    We analyzed plants that are traditionally used by wild bird hunters and breeders to capture and promote captive breeding of Fringillidae (finches or songbirds) in the province of Alicante, Spain. The majority of plants used in songbird breeding have medicinal properties in traditional human medicine (48 different uses); thus, another main goal was to show their relationships with human medical uses. We compiled a list of 97 plant species from 31 botanical families that are used to attract finches and identified 11 different use categories for these plants in finch keeping. The most common uses were for trapping birds and as a source of food for birds in captivity. Cannabis sativa has the greatest cultural importance index (CI = 1.158), and Phalaris canariensis (annual canary grass or alpist) was the most common species used to attract Fringillidae and was used by all informants (n = 158). Most of the 97 species are wild plants and mainly belong to the families Compositae, Gramineae, Cruciferae, and Rosaceae and also have medicinal properties for humans. In the study area, the intensification of agriculture and abandonment of traditional management practices have caused the population of many songbirds to decline, as well as the loss of popular ethnographic knowledge. PMID:22611428

  19. The Relationship between Plants Used to Sustain Finches (Fringillidae and Uses for Human Medicine in Southeast Spain

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Antonio Belda

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available We analyzed plants that are traditionally used by wild bird hunters and breeders to capture and promote captive breeding of Fringillidae (finches or songbirds in the province of Alicante, Spain. The majority of plants used in songbird breeding have medicinal properties in traditional human medicine (48 different uses; thus, another main goal was to show their relationships with human medical uses. We compiled a list of 97 plant species from 31 botanical families that are used to attract finches and identified 11 different use categories for these plants in finch keeping. The most common uses were for trapping birds and as a source of food for birds in captivity. Cannabis sativa has the greatest cultural importance index (CI = 1.158, and Phalaris canariensis (annual canary grass or alpist was the most common species used to attract Fringillidae and was used by all informants (=158. Most of the 97 species are wild plants and mainly belong to the families Compositae, Gramineae, Cruciferae, and Rosaceae and also have medicinal properties for humans. In the study area, the intensification of agriculture and abandonment of traditional management practices have caused the population of many songbirds to decline, as well as the loss of popular ethnographic knowledge.

  20. The Relationship between Plants Used to Sustain Finches (Fringillidae) and Uses for Human Medicine in Southeast Spain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Belda, Antonio; Peiró, Victoriano; Seva, Eduardo

    2012-01-01

    We analyzed plants that are traditionally used by wild bird hunters and breeders to capture and promote captive breeding of Fringillidae (finches or songbirds) in the province of Alicante, Spain. The majority of plants used in songbird breeding have medicinal properties in traditional human medicine (48 different uses); thus, another main goal was to show their relationships with human medical uses. We compiled a list of 97 plant species from 31 botanical families that are used to attract finches and identified 11 different use categories for these plants in finch keeping. The most common uses were for trapping birds and as a source of food for birds in captivity. Cannabis sativa has the greatest cultural importance index (CI = 1.158), and Phalaris canariensis (annual canary grass or alpist) was the most common species used to attract Fringillidae and was used by all informants (n = 158). Most of the 97 species are wild plants and mainly belong to the families Compositae, Gramineae, Cruciferae, and Rosaceae and also have medicinal properties for humans. In the study area, the intensification of agriculture and abandonment of traditional management practices have caused the population of many songbirds to decline, as well as the loss of popular ethnographic knowledge.

  1. Feeder density enhances house finch disease transmission in experimental epidemics.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moyers, Sahnzi C; Adelman, James S; Farine, Damien R; Thomason, Courtney A; Hawley, Dana M

    2018-05-05

    Anthropogenic food provisioning of wildlife can alter the frequency of contacts among hosts and between hosts and environmental sources of pathogens. Despite the popularity of garden bird feeding, few studies have addressed how feeders influence host contact rates and disease dynamics. We experimentally manipulated feeder density in replicate aviaries containing captive, pathogen-naive, groups of house finches ( Haemorhous mexicanus ) and continuously tracked behaviours at feeders using radio-frequency identification devices. We then inoculated one bird per group with Mycoplasma gallisepticum (Mg), a common bacterial pathogen for which feeders are fomites of transmission, and assessed effects of feeder density on house finch behaviour and pathogen transmission. We found that pathogen transmission was significantly higher in groups with the highest density of bird feeders, despite a significantly lower rate of intraspecific aggressive interactions relative to the low feeder density groups. Conversely, among naive group members that never showed signs of disease, we saw significantly higher concentrations of Mg-specific antibodies in low feeder density groups, suggesting that birds in low feeder density treatments had exposure to subclinical doses of Mg. We discuss ways in which the density of garden bird feeders could play an important role in mediating the intensity of Mg epidemics.This article is part of the theme issue 'Anthropogenic resource subsidies and host-parasite dynamics in wildlife'. © 2018 The Author(s).

  2. TRANSLATION QUALITY OF JKT48‟S SONGS LYRICS: INDONESIAN VS ENGLISH VERSION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pritha Anggiarima

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available On expressing ourselves using songs, lyrics play a grat role, regardless the lyrics are a translated version from another language than our mother tongue. This research focuses on JKT48‘s songs lyrics, which are both Indonesian and English translation of Japanese songs sung by its sister group, AKB48. Many Indonesian listeners feel that when listening to JKT48‘s songs, they feel that the translation is weird, they cannot receive the meaning of the songs. This is because on translating AKB48‘s songs, the translator not only has to translate the words, but also to adapt the words‘ syllables with the melody. Also, Japanese language has a different structure with both Indonesian and English language, therefore, it needs more effort on understanding a translated Japanese songs. The researcher interviewed JKT48 fans in the largest JKT48 online fan forum, JKT48 no Fansu. She asked on which translation do the fans can catch the meaning better, Indonesian or English, as well as the reason why they think so. Also, she asked what suggestions do they give for the betterment of JKT48‘s translated lyrics.

  3. Budgerigars and zebra finches differ in how they generalize in an artificial grammar learning experiment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Spierings, Michelle J.; ten Cate, Carel

    2016-01-01

    The ability to abstract a regularity that underlies strings of sounds is a core mechanism of the language faculty but might not be specific to language learning or even to humans. It is unclear whether and to what extent nonhuman animals possess the ability to abstract regularities defining the relation among arbitrary auditory items in a string and to generalize this abstraction to strings of acoustically novel items. In this study we tested these abilities in a songbird (zebra finch) and a parrot species (budgerigar). Subjects were trained in a go/no-go design to discriminate between two sets of sound strings arranged in an XYX or an XXY structure. After this discrimination was acquired, each subject was tested with test strings that were structurally identical to the training strings but consisted of either new combinations of known elements or of novel elements belonging to other element categories. Both species learned to discriminate between the two stimulus sets. However, their responses to the test strings were strikingly different. Zebra finches categorized test stimuli with previously heard elements by the ordinal position that these elements occupied in the training strings, independent of string structure. In contrast, the budgerigars categorized both novel combinations of familiar elements as well as strings consisting of novel element types by their underlying structure. They thus abstracted the relation among items in the XYX and XXY structures, an ability similar to that shown by human infants and indicating a level of abstraction comparable to analogical reasoning. PMID:27325756

  4. Masonic Song in Scotland: Folk Tunes and Community

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Katherine Campbell

    2012-03-01

    Full Text Available This article explores the place of Masonic songs historically in Scotland, assessing the oral culture surrounding the genre. The article further shows that folk tunes were commonly used and investigates aspects of the group performance that was central to the Lodges. Finally, the study concludes with an examination of a Masonic procession in Northeast Scotland that survives to the present day, focusing especially on the role of music and song within it.

  5. Preschoolers' Recall of Science Content From Educational Videos Presented With and Without Songs

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schechter, Rachel L.

    This experimental investigation evaluated the impact of educational songs on a child's ability to recall scientific content from an educational television program. Preschoolers' comprehension of the educational content was examined by measuring children's ability to recall the featured science content (the function of a pulley and its parts) and their use of the precise scientific terms presented in the episode. A total of 91 preschoolers were included (3-5 years old). Clusters of children were randomly assigned to a control group or one of three video groups: (a) Dialogue Only, which did not include a song; (b) Dialogue Plus Lyrics, which included a song; or (c) Lyrics Only, which consisted of a song, played twice. Results from interviews suggested that children from all video groups (lyrics and/or dialogue) were able to explain the form and function of a pulley better than the control group. The data suggested that children from the Lyrics Only group understood the science content because of the visual imagery, not through the information provided in the lyrics. In terms of precise vocabulary terms, significantly more children in the Dialogue Only group recalled at least one precise term from the program compared to the Lyrics Only group. Looking at the interview as a whole, the children's responses suggested different levels of scientific understanding. Children would require additional teacher-led instruction to deepen their scientific understanding and to clarify any misconceptions. This paper discusses implications of these findings for teachers using multi-media tools in the science classroom and producers creating new educational programming for television and other platforms.

  6. Principles of structure building in music, language and animal song

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rohrmeier, Martin; Zuidema, Willem; Wiggins, Geraint A.; Scharff, Constance

    2015-01-01

    Human language, music and a variety of animal vocalizations constitute ways of sonic communication that exhibit remarkable structural complexity. While the complexities of language and possible parallels in animal communication have been discussed intensively, reflections on the complexity of music and animal song, and their comparisons, are underrepresented. In some ways, music and animal songs are more comparable to each other than to language as propositional semantics cannot be used as indicator of communicative success or wellformedness, and notions of grammaticality are less easily defined. This review brings together accounts of the principles of structure building in music and animal song. It relates them to corresponding models in formal language theory, the extended Chomsky hierarchy (CH), and their probabilistic counterparts. We further discuss common misunderstandings and shortcomings concerning the CH and suggest ways to move beyond. We discuss language, music and animal song in the context of their function and motivation and further integrate problems and issues that are less commonly addressed in the context of language, including continuous event spaces, features of sound and timbre, representation of temporality and interactions of multiple parallel feature streams. We discuss these aspects in the light of recent theoretical, cognitive, neuroscientific and modelling research in the domains of music, language and animal song. PMID:25646520

  7. On the composition of modal structures of Tuvan traditional songs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ayasmaa D.-B. Baranmaa

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available One of the most important aspects of musical language of song folklore of Tuvans – the scale – is as yet underinvestigated in contemporary Tuvan musicology. The author is studying the effect of structural principles in scale and sound gamut of Tuvan folk songs. The theory of monodic scales (S.P. Galitskaya, E.V. Gertsman, Yu.G. Kon, Kh.S. Kushnarev, etc. forms the methodological basis for the analysis. The object of our studies are manuscripts of traditional Tuvan songs published by Russian musicologists (A. N. Aksenov, Z. K. Kyrgys, etc. serves as material base for analysis. The analysis revealed that traditional Tuvan songs are usually based on two- or three-part composite gamut structures. This significantly enriched the substantial aspect of the process by complicating types of links between the sounds, making the medium more profound, compact and complete. Scale links and subscales were detected that can interconnect in four manners (discrete, monolithic, catenary, inclusive. Conjunction principles are illustrated by a few folk songs. Catenary and inclusive manners of conjunctions have been noticed to be dominating. A vast variety of different link combinations has been detected. This is a point where intonational abundance of folklore melos reveals its inexhaustibility.

  8. The role of singing familiar songs in encouraging conversation among people with middle to late stage Alzheimer's disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dassa, Ayelet; Amir, Dorit

    2014-01-01

    Language deficits in people with Alzheimer's disease (AD) manifest, among other things, in a gradual deterioration of spontaneous speech. People with AD tend to speak less as the disease progresses and their speech becomes confused. However, the ability to sing old tunes sometimes remains intact throughout the disease. The purpose of this study was to explore the role of singing familiar songs in encouraging conversation among people with middle to late stage AD. Six participants attended group music therapy sessions over a one-month period. Using content analysis, we qualitatively examined transcriptions of verbal and sung content during 8 group sessions for the purpose of understanding the relationship between specific songs and conversations that occurred during and following group singing. Content analysis revealed that songs from the participants' past-elicited memories, especially songs related to their social and national identity. Analyses also indicated that conversation related to the singing was extensive and the act of group singing encouraged spontaneous responses. After singing, group members expressed positive feelings, a sense of accomplishment, and belonging. Carefully selecting music from the participants' past can encourage conversation. Considering the failure in spontaneous speech in people with middle to late stage AD, it is important to emphasize that group members' responses to each other occurred spontaneously without the researcher's encouragement. © the American Music Therapy Association 2014. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  9. The politics of power, pleasure and prayer in the Eurovision Song Contest

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bolman Filip V.

    2007-01-01

    Full Text Available Since the first annual Eurovision Song Contest in 1956, politics and popularity have intersected to influence the ways in which Eurovision songs have reflected the complex forms of European nationalism. With the Eurovision victory of Marija Šerifović’s ′Molitva′ at the 52nd Eurovision in Helsinki the politics of regionalism and nationalism fully enveloped Southeastern Europe, creating the impression that old and new European alignments, from Habsburg nostalgia to an emerging Balkan brotherhood, overwhelmed the criteria that would otherwise mean that the grand prix would go to the best song. Taking Marija Šerifović’s ′Molitva′ 2007 as a point of departure, this article examines the extremely complex set of networks that intersect at the Eurovision Song Contest and the national rituals and competitions that transform the power and pleasure driving European popular song in the twenty-first century.

  10. Seismic safety margins research program. Project I SONGS 1 AFWS Project

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chuang, T.Y.; Smith, P.D.; Dong, R.G.; Bernreuter, D.L.; Bohn, M.P.; Cummings, G.E.; Wells, J.E.

    1981-01-01

    The seismic qualification requirements of auxiliary feedwater systems (AFWS) of Pressurized Water Reactors (PWR) were developed over a number of years. These are formalized in the publication General Design Criteria (Appendix A to 10CFR50). The full recognition of the system as an engineered safety feature did not occur until publication of the Standard Review Plan (1975). Efforts to determine how to backfit seismic requirements to earlier plants has been undertaken primarily in the Systematic Evaluation Program (SEP) for a limited number of operating reactors. Nuclear Reactor Research (RES) and NRR have requested LLNL to perform a probabilistic study on the AFWS of San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) Unit 1 utilizing the tools developed by the Seismic Safety Margins Research Program (SSMRP). The main objectives of this project are to: identify the weak links of AFWS; compare the failure probabilities of SONGS 1 and Zion 1 AFWS: and compare the seismic responses due to different input spectra and design values

  11. The Power of Song

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sørensen, Bent

    families) is featured in a new arrangement by Jim Lauderdale and bookended on the CD by Woody Guthrie’s “Deportee (Plane Wreck at Los Gatos)” about Mexican migrants being forcibly repatriated by airplane, and “Brother, Can You Spare a Dime”, a song of urban poverty and potential charity from 1930...

  12. Algorithmic prediction of inter-song similarity in Western popular music

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Novello, A.; Par, van de S.L.J.D.E.; McKinney, M.F.; Kohlrausch, A.G.

    2013-01-01

    We investigate a method for automatic extraction of inter-song similarity for songs selected from several genres of Western popular music. The specific purpose of this approach is to evaluate the predictive power of different feature extraction sets based on human perception of music similarity and

  13. The influence of inherited plumage colour morph on morphometric traits and breeding investment in zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    E Tobias Krause

    Full Text Available Melanin-based plumage polymorphism occurs in many wild bird populations and has been linked to fitness variation in several species. These fitness differences often arise as a consequence of variation in traits such as behaviour, immune responsiveness, body size and reproductive investment. However, few studies have controlled for genetic differences between colour morphs that could potentially generate artefactual associations between plumage colouration and trait variation. Here, we used zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata as a model system in order to evaluate whether life-history traits such as adult body condition and reproductive investment could be influenced by plumage morph. To maximise any potential differences, we selected wild-type and white plumage morphs, which differ maximally in their extent of melanisation, while using a controlled three-generation breeding design to homogenise the genetic background. We found that F2 adults with white plumage colouration were on average lighter and had poorer body condition than wild-type F2 birds. However, they appeared to compensate for this by reproducing earlier and producing heavier eggs relative to their own body mass. Our study thus reveals differences in morphological and life history traits that could be relevant to fitness variation, although further studies will be required to evaluate fitness effects under natural conditions as well as to characterise any potential fitness costs of compensatory strategies in white zebra finches.

  14. Music, emotion, and autobiographical memory: they're playing your song.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schulkind, M D; Hennis, L K; Rubin, D C

    1999-11-01

    Very long-term memory for popular music was investigated. Older and younger adults listened to 20-sec excerpts of popular songs drawn from across the 20th century. The subjects gave emotionality and preference ratings and tried to name the title, artist, and year of popularity for each excerpt. They also performed a cued memory test for the lyrics. The older adults' emotionality ratings were highest for songs from their youth; they remembered more about these songs, as well. However, the stimuli failed to cue many autobiographical memories of specific events. Further analyses revealed that the older adults were less likely than the younger adults to retrieve multiple attributes of a song together (i.e., title and artist) and that there was a significant positive correlation between emotion and memory, especially for the older adults. These results have implications for research on long-term memory, as well as on the relationship between emotion and memory.

  15. The effects of familiarity and complexity on appraisal of complex songs by cochlear implant recipients and normal hearing adults.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gfeller, Kate; Christ, Aaron; Knutson, John; Witt, Shelley; Mehr, Maureen

    2003-01-01

    The purposes of this study were (a) to develop a test of complex song appraisal that would be suitable for use with adults who use a cochlear implant (assistive hearing device) and (b) to compare the appraisal ratings (liking) of complex songs by adults who use cochlear implants (n = 66) with a comparison group of adults with normal hearing (n = 36). The article describes the development of a computerized test for appraisal, with emphasis on its theoretical basis and the process for item selection of naturalistic stimuli. The appraisal test was administered to the 2 groups to determine the effects of prior song familiarity and subjective complexity on complex song appraisal. Comparison of the 2 groups indicates that the implant users rate 2 of 3 musical genres (country western, pop) as significantly more complex than do normal hearing adults, and give significantly less positive ratings to classical music than do normal hearing adults. Appraisal responses of implant recipients were examined in relation to hearing history, age, performance on speech perception and cognitive tests, and musical background.

  16. The Relationship of Taoism in the Song Dynasty to the Duanwu Festival

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    WANG Lin

    2014-01-01

    ) , Zhang Tianshi ( Heavenly Master Zhang) and Zhong Kui.Wenshen originally was a folk deity who was responsible for spreading acute , deadly infectious diseases .After the rise of Tao-ism, this folklore was adopted by the Taoism , and built into a set of theological theory related to in-fectious diseases .Different from the action of wor-shipping Wenshen and sending away Wenshen, Zhang Tianshi and Zhong Kui were two Taoist dei-ties invited into the Duanwu festival by the people during the Song dynasty .Based on inheritance of the folklore culture of the Duanwu festival from the former dynasties , the people in the Song dynasty added a new content to the celebration of the Du-anwu Festival, i.e.no matter whether in the pal-ace or among the common folk , it was popular to hang a Tianshi Figure or wear a Tianshi amulet .In addition to Zhang Tianshi, it was also popular to invite Zhong Kui to the Duanwu festival during the Song dynasty , because the people in the Song dy-nasty believed that Zhong Kui could kill the five poisonous creatures , prevent the one hundred dis-eases, and protect and bless one's family. 2 .Taoist Magic Charms and the Customs of the Duanwu Festival in the Song Dynasty The custom of pasting magic symbols for pre-venting disasters during the Duanwu festival is an ancient custom .There are records in the literature from the Han dynasty that people already had the custom of pasting magic symbols .The people in the Song dynasty also kept this custom-in the Du-anwu Festival, these kinds of Taoist charms were sold in the market . Buddhist monks and Taoist priests also gave pouches containing the magical charms to donors .The Tianshi symbol was one of the Taoist charms worn by the Song people during the Duanwu festival . The Caihuifu ( the colored drawing amulet ) , the chilling fu ( efficacious amu-let), chaitoufu (hairpin amulet) were also Taoist amulets often worn by the Song people during the Duanwu Festival .Wearing Taoist amulets during the Duanwu

  17. Discursive Features of Selected Political Song Texts of the 2011 ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Political rallies are an integral component of political cultures in most participatory democracies. The political rally as a genre of political discourse is characterised by different signifying practices among which are talks, songs, costume and surrogate language. This study isolates songs as a system of signification in political ...

  18. The communicative functions of post-2000 Shona popular songs: A ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    This article proposes a typology of Shona popular songs employing a systemic functional linguistics (SFL) informed genre theory, which distinguishes texts on the ... Although some studies have been carried out on these songs in the context of popular music, none have attempted a linguistically-grounded analysis of the ...

  19. Shostakovich: Two Fables, Op. 4. Four Songs, Op. 46 / David Nice

    Index Scriptorium Estoniae

    Nice, David

    1994-01-01

    Uuest heliplaadist "Shostakovich: Two Fables, Op. 4. Four Songs, Op. 46. Songs on Verses by British Poets, Op. 140. From Jewish folk poetry, Op. 79. Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra / Neeme Järvi" DG CD 439860-2GH

  20. Head movements encode emotions during speech and song.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Livingstone, Steven R; Palmer, Caroline

    2016-04-01

    When speaking or singing, vocalists often move their heads in an expressive fashion, yet the influence of emotion on vocalists' head motion is unknown. Using a comparative speech/song task, we examined whether vocalists' intended emotions influence head movements and whether those movements influence the perceived emotion. In Experiment 1, vocalists were recorded with motion capture while speaking and singing each statement with different emotional intentions (very happy, happy, neutral, sad, very sad). Functional data analyses showed that head movements differed in translational and rotational displacement across emotional intentions, yet were similar across speech and song, transcending differences in F0 (varied freely in speech, fixed in song) and lexical variability. Head motion specific to emotional state occurred before and after vocalizations, as well as during sound production, confirming that some aspects of movement were not simply a by-product of sound production. In Experiment 2, observers accurately identified vocalists' intended emotion on the basis of silent, face-occluded videos of head movements during speech and song. These results provide the first evidence that head movements encode a vocalist's emotional intent and that observers decode emotional information from these movements. We discuss implications for models of head motion during vocalizations and applied outcomes in social robotics and automated emotion recognition. (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

  1. Prediction of Potential Hit Song and Musical Genre Using Artificial Neural Networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Monterola, Christopher; Abundo, Cheryl; Tugaff, Jeric; Venturina, Lorcel Ericka

    Accurately quantifying the goodness of music based on the seemingly subjective taste of the public is a multi-million industry. Recording companies can make sound decisions on which songs or artists to prioritize if accurate forecasting is achieved. We extract 56 single-valued musical features (e.g. pitch and tempo) from 380 Original Pilipino Music (OPM) songs (190 are hit songs) released from 2004 to 2006. Based on an effect size criterion which measures a variable's discriminating power, the 20 highest ranked features are fed to a classifier tasked to predict hit songs. We show that regardless of musical genre, a trained feed-forward neural network (NN) can predict potential hit songs with an average accuracy of ΦNN = 81%. The accuracy is about +20% higher than those of standard classifiers such as linear discriminant analysis (LDA, ΦLDA = 61%) and classification and regression trees (CART, ΦCART = 57%). Both LDA and CART are above the proportional chance criterion (PCC, ΦPCC = 50%) but are slightly below the suggested acceptable classifier requirement of 1.25*ΦPCC = 63%. Utilizing a similar procedure, we demonstrate that different genres (ballad, alternative rock or rock) of OPM songs can be automatically classified with near perfect accuracy using LDA or NN but only around 77% using CART.

  2. Principles of structure building in music, language and animal song.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rohrmeier, Martin; Zuidema, Willem; Wiggins, Geraint A; Scharff, Constance

    2015-03-19

    Human language, music and a variety of animal vocalizations constitute ways of sonic communication that exhibit remarkable structural complexity. While the complexities of language and possible parallels in animal communication have been discussed intensively, reflections on the complexity of music and animal song, and their comparisons, are underrepresented. In some ways, music and animal songs are more comparable to each other than to language as propositional semantics cannot be used as indicator of communicative success or wellformedness, and notions of grammaticality are less easily defined. This review brings together accounts of the principles of structure building in music and animal song. It relates them to corresponding models in formal language theory, the extended Chomsky hierarchy (CH), and their probabilistic counterparts. We further discuss common misunderstandings and shortcomings concerning the CH and suggest ways to move beyond. We discuss language, music and animal song in the context of their function and motivation and further integrate problems and issues that are less commonly addressed in the context of language, including continuous event spaces, features of sound and timbre, representation of temporality and interactions of multiple parallel feature streams. We discuss these aspects in the light of recent theoretical, cognitive, neuroscientific and modelling research in the domains of music, language and animal song. © 2015 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved.

  3. Context-dependent links between song production and opioid-mediated analgesia in male European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cynthia A Kelm-Nelson

    Full Text Available Little is known about the neural mechanisms that ensure appropriate vocal behaviors within specific social contexts. Male songbirds produce spontaneous (undirected songs as well as female-directed courtship songs. Opioid neuropeptide activity in specific brain regions is rewarding, at least in mammals, and past studies suggest that the opioid met-enkephalin in such areas is more tightly linked to undirected than female-directed song. Recent data using a song-associated place preference paradigm further suggest that production of undirected but not directed song is tightly linked to intrinsic reward. Opioids have analgesic properties. Therefore, if production of undirected song is closely linked to opioid-mediated reward, the production of undirected but not directed song should be associated with analgesia. Consistent with this prediction, in male starlings we identified a positive correlation between analgesia (decreased reactivity to a hot water bath and undirected song (in non-breeding season condition males in affiliative flocks but not female-directed song (in breeding season condition males presented with females. When breeding condition males were divided according to social status, a negative correlation was found in subordinate males (i.e. males that failed to acquire a nest box. These data are consistent with the hypotheses 1 that the production of undirected song is facilitated or maintained by opioids (and/or other neuromodulators that also induce analgesia and 2 that production of female-directed song is not linked in the same way to release of the same neuromodulators. Results also demonstrate a link between analgesia and song in subordinate individuals lacking a nesting territory within the breeding season. Overall, the findings indicate that distinct neural mechanisms regulate communication in different social contexts and support the working hypothesis that undirected but not directed song is tightly linked to opioid release.

  4. Experimental evidence for millisecond activation timescales using the Fast IN Chamber (FINCH) measurements

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bundke, U.; Jaenicke, R.; Klein, H.; Nillius, B.; Reimann, B.; Wetter, T.; Bingemer, H.

    2009-04-01

    Ice formation in clouds is a subject of great practical and fundamental importance since the occurrence of ice particle initializes dramatic changes in the microphysical structure of the cloud, which finally ends in the formation of precipitation. The initially step of ice formation is largely unknown. Homogenous nucleation of ice occurs only below -40 °C. If an ice nucleus (IN) is present, heterogeneous nucleation may occur at higher temperature. Here deposition freezing, condensation and immersion freezing as well as contact freezing are known. Also growth rates of ice particles are known as function of crystal surface properties, temperature and super saturation. Timescales for homogenous freezing activation in the order of 0.01 seconds and nucleation rates have been measured by Anderson et al. (1980) and Hagen et al., (1981) using their expansion cloud chamber. This contribution of deposition mode freezing measurements by the ice nucleus counter FINCH presents evidence that the activation timescale of this freezing mode is in the order of 1E-3 seconds. FINCH is an Ice Nucleus counter which activates IN in a supersaturated environment at freezing temperatures. The activation conditions are actively controlled by mixing three gas flows (aerosol, particle-free cold-dry and warm-humid flows).See Bundke et al. 2008 for details. In a special operation mode of FINCH we are able to produce a controlled peak super saturation in the order of 1 ms duration. For several test aerosols the results observed in this particular mode are comparable to normal mode operations, where the maximum super saturation remains for more than a second, thus leading to the conclusion that the time for activation is in the order of 1ms or less. References: R.J. Anderson et al, "A Study of Homogeneous Condensation Freezing Nucleation of Small Water Droplets in an Expansion Cloud Chamber, Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences, Vol. 37, 2508-2520, 1980 U.Bundke et al., "The fast Ice Nucleus

  5. Neural mechanisms of sequence generation in songbirds

    Science.gov (United States)

    Langford, Bruce

    Animal models in research are useful for studying more complex behavior. For example, motor sequence generation of actions requiring good muscle coordination such as writing with a pen, playing an instrument, or speaking, may involve the interaction of many areas in the brain, each a complex system in itself; thus it can be difficult to determine causal relationships between neural behavior and the behavior being studied. Birdsong, however, provides an excellent model behavior for motor sequence learning, memory, and generation. The song consists of learned sequences of notes that are spectrographically stereotyped over multiple renditions of the song, similar to syllables in human speech. The main areas of the songbird brain involve in singing are known, however, the mechanisms by which these systems store and produce song are not well understood. We used a custom built, head-mounted, miniature motorized microdrive to chronically record the neural firing patterns of identified neurons in HVC, a pre-motor cortical nucleus which has been shown to be important in song timing. These were done in Bengalese finch which generate a song made up of stereotyped notes but variable note sequences. We observed song related bursting in neurons projecting to Area X, a homologue to basal ganglia, and tonic firing in HVC interneurons. Interneuron had firing rate patterns that were consistent over multiple renditions of the same note sequence. We also designed and built a light-weight, low-powered wireless programmable neural stimulator using Bluetooth Low Energy Protocol. It was able to generate perturbations in the song when current pulses were administered to RA, which projects to the brainstem nucleus responsible for syringeal muscle control.

  6. The song of the Seychelles Warbler Acrocephalus sechellensis, an island endemic

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Catchpole, C.K.; Komdeur, J.

    1993-01-01

    The Seychelles Warbler Acrocephalus sechellensis is a resident, cooperative breeder in a saturated, island environment, whose song structure diners significantly from European marshland Acrocephalus species. The song is transmitted within a more restricted frequency range, that which propagates most

  7. Is the rate of metabolic ageing and survival determined by Basal metabolic rate in the zebra finch?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bernt Rønning

    Full Text Available The relationship between energy metabolism and ageing is of great interest because aerobic metabolism is the primary source of reactive oxygen species which is believed to be of major importance in the ageing process. We conducted a longitudinal study on captive zebra finches where we tested the effect of age on basal metabolic rate (BMR, as well as the effect of BMR on the rate of metabolic ageing (decline in BMR with age and survival. Basal metabolic rate declined with age in both sexes after controlling for the effect of body mass, indicating a loss of functionality with age. This loss of functionality could be due to accumulated oxidative damage, believed to increase with increasing metabolic rate, c.f. the free radical theory of ageing. If so, we would expect the rate of metabolic ageing to increase and survival to decrease with increasing BMR. However, we found no effect of BMR on the rate of metabolic ageing. Furthermore, survival was not affected by BMR in the males. In female zebra finches there was a tendency for survival to decrease with increasing BMR, but the effect did not reach significance (P<0.1. Thus, the effect of BMR on the rate of functional deterioration with age, if any, was not strong enough to influence neither the rate of metabolic ageing nor survival in the zebra finches.

  8. Is the rate of metabolic ageing and survival determined by Basal metabolic rate in the zebra finch?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rønning, Bernt; Moe, Børge; Berntsen, Henrik H; Noreen, Elin; Bech, Claus

    2014-01-01

    The relationship between energy metabolism and ageing is of great interest because aerobic metabolism is the primary source of reactive oxygen species which is believed to be of major importance in the ageing process. We conducted a longitudinal study on captive zebra finches where we tested the effect of age on basal metabolic rate (BMR), as well as the effect of BMR on the rate of metabolic ageing (decline in BMR with age) and survival. Basal metabolic rate declined with age in both sexes after controlling for the effect of body mass, indicating a loss of functionality with age. This loss of functionality could be due to accumulated oxidative damage, believed to increase with increasing metabolic rate, c.f. the free radical theory of ageing. If so, we would expect the rate of metabolic ageing to increase and survival to decrease with increasing BMR. However, we found no effect of BMR on the rate of metabolic ageing. Furthermore, survival was not affected by BMR in the males. In female zebra finches there was a tendency for survival to decrease with increasing BMR, but the effect did not reach significance (PBMR on the rate of functional deterioration with age, if any, was not strong enough to influence neither the rate of metabolic ageing nor survival in the zebra finches.

  9. Religious Values In Song Lyrics Tingkilan

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Muhammad Sadli Mustafa

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available This globalization era brought people of East Kalimantan tend to prefer modern music and western music. This cause the local or traditional music art is marginalized. On the other hand, they have a local music art containing a lot of local wisdom. One of them is tingkilan music. Lyrics of tingkilan contain religious values. Therefore, this study intends to find and to describe the religious values in the song lyrics of the tingkilan musical arts. This study uses a qualitative research method. The research shows that in fact some tingkilan song lyrics have a deep religious value. Some of those religious values are thanksgiving favors, learning of the holly Qur’an, the way of eating and drinking in accordance with the Islamic teaching.

  10. TEACHING ENGLISH TO YOUNG LEARNERS THROUGH SONGS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yuliana Yuliana

    2003-01-01

    Full Text Available Teaching English to Young Learners has become a trend nowadays. In every school, English is taught as one of the main subjects. In teaching young learners is not like teaching adults, children have their own way of learning. Since children like to play and have fun, the learning and teaching process should be suited with the nature of the children themselves. One of the forms of fun activities for children is through music, and songs are the common form of music that children know. Through this paper, the writer wants to show that through songs, children could enhance their language skills, such as speaking, listening and writing.

  11. The Complete Book of Rhymes, Songs, Poems, Fingerplays, and Chants.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Silberg, Jackie; Schiller, Pam

    Aside from being fun to do, singing songs, saying poems and rhymes, and doing finger plays with children helps them develop early literacy skills. The 700 selections in this compilation of songs and rhymes will help children ages 3 to 6 build a strong foundation in skills and concepts such as listening; colors, shapes, and counting; vocabulary;…

  12. Developmental exposure to a brominated flame retardant: An assessment of effects on physiology, growth, and reproduction in a songbird, the zebra finch

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Eng, Margaret L.; Williams, Tony D.; Elliott, John E.

    2013-01-01

    Mixtures of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) have been widely used as additive flame retardants, and BDE-99 is one of the most predominant congeners found in the environment. BDE-99 has been reported in avian samples worldwide, yet knowledge of its toxicity to birds is minimal. We assessed the short- and long-term effects of nestling exposure to environmentally relevant levels of BDE-99 in a model passerine, the zebra finch. Early exposure to BDE-99 did not affect hematocrit, oxidative stress, or thyroid hormones in either the juvenile or adult stages, and there were no effects on chick growth or survival. BDE-99 exposure caused a dose-dependent delay in timing of reproduction, but there were no other effects on reproductive success. In zebra finches, endpoints related to reproductive behavior appear to be the most sensitive to BDE-99. However, passerines overall appear to be less sensitive than birds of prey or mammals to PBDE exposure. -- Highlights: •We exposed zebra finches nestlings to BDE-99 and raised them to sexual maturity. •Found no effects on physiology, chick growth, survival, or reproductive success. •As BDE-99 dose increased, laying interval increased. •Passerine birds possibly less sensitive to BDE-99 than mammals or other bird species. -- Nestling exposure to BDE-99 affects timing of breeding in zebra finches, but overall passerines appear to be less sensitive to PBDEs than mammals or other bird species

  13. The effect of isolation, fragmentation, and population bottlenecks on song structure of a Hawaiian honeycreeper

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pang-Ching, Joshua M.; Paxton, Kristina L.; Paxton, Eben H.; Pack, Adam A.; Hart, Patrick J.

    2018-01-01

    Little is known about how important social behaviors such as song vary within and among populations for any of the endemic Hawaiian honeycreepers. Habitat loss and non‐native diseases (e.g., avian malaria) have resulted in isolation and fragmentation of Hawaiian honeycreepers within primarily high elevation forests. In this study, we examined how isolation of Hawai'i ‘amakihi (Chlorodrepanis virens) populations within a fragmented landscape influences acoustic variability in song. In the last decade, small, isolated populations of disease tolerant ‘amakihi have been found within low elevation forests, allowing us to record ‘amakihi songs across a large elevational gradient (10–1800 m) that parallels disease susceptibility on Hawai'i island. To understand underlying differences among populations, we examined the role of geographic distance, elevation, and habitat structure on acoustic characteristics of ‘amakihi songs. We found that the acoustic characteristics of ‘amakihi songs and song‐type repertoires varied most strongly across an elevational gradient. Differences in ‘amakihi song types were primarily driven by less complex songs (e.g., fewer frequency changes, shorter songs) of individuals recorded at low elevation sites compared to mid and high elevation populations. The reduced complexity of ‘amakihi songs at low elevation sites is most likely shaped by the effects of habitat fragmentation and a disease‐driven population bottleneck associated with avian malaria, and maintained through isolation, localized song learning and sharing, and cultural drift. These results highlight how a non‐native disease through its influence on population demographics may have also indirectly played a role in shaping the acoustic characteristics of a species.

  14. Male songbird indicates body size with low-pitched advertising songs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hall, Michelle L; Kingma, Sjouke A; Peters, Anne

    2013-01-01

    Body size is a key sexually selected trait in many animal species. If size imposes a physical limit on the production of loud low-frequency sounds, then low-pitched vocalisations could act as reliable signals of body size. However, the central prediction of this hypothesis--that the pitch of vocalisations decreases with size among competing individuals--has limited support in songbirds. One reason could be that only the lowest-frequency components of vocalisations are constrained, and this may go unnoticed when vocal ranges are large. Additionally, the constraint may only be apparent in contexts when individuals are indeed advertising their size. Here we explicitly consider signal diversity and performance limits to demonstrate that body size limits song frequency in an advertising context in a songbird. We show that in purple-crowned fairy-wrens, Malurus coronatus coronatus, larger males sing lower-pitched low-frequency advertising songs. The lower frequency bound of all advertising song types also has a significant negative relationship with body size. However, the average frequency of all their advertising songs is unrelated to body size. This comparison of different approaches to the analysis demonstrates how a negative relationship between body size and song frequency can be obscured by failing to consider signal design and the concept of performance limits. Since these considerations will be important in any complex communication system, our results imply that body size constraints on low-frequency vocalisations could be more widespread than is currently recognised.

  15. Male songbird indicates body size with low-pitched advertising songs.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michelle L Hall

    Full Text Available Body size is a key sexually selected trait in many animal species. If size imposes a physical limit on the production of loud low-frequency sounds, then low-pitched vocalisations could act as reliable signals of body size. However, the central prediction of this hypothesis--that the pitch of vocalisations decreases with size among competing individuals--has limited support in songbirds. One reason could be that only the lowest-frequency components of vocalisations are constrained, and this may go unnoticed when vocal ranges are large. Additionally, the constraint may only be apparent in contexts when individuals are indeed advertising their size. Here we explicitly consider signal diversity and performance limits to demonstrate that body size limits song frequency in an advertising context in a songbird. We show that in purple-crowned fairy-wrens, Malurus coronatus coronatus, larger males sing lower-pitched low-frequency advertising songs. The lower frequency bound of all advertising song types also has a significant negative relationship with body size. However, the average frequency of all their advertising songs is unrelated to body size. This comparison of different approaches to the analysis demonstrates how a negative relationship between body size and song frequency can be obscured by failing to consider signal design and the concept of performance limits. Since these considerations will be important in any complex communication system, our results imply that body size constraints on low-frequency vocalisations could be more widespread than is currently recognised.

  16. Architecture for Automated Tagging and Clustering of Song Files According to Mood

    OpenAIRE

    Singh, Puneet; Kapoor, Ashutosh; Kaushik, Vishal; Maringanti, Hima Bindu

    2012-01-01

    Music is one of the basic human needs for recreation and entertainment. As song files are digitalized now a days, and digital libraries are expanding continuously, which makes it difficult to recall a song. Thus need of a new classification system other than genre is very obvious and mood based classification system serves the purpose very well. In this paper we will present a well-defined architecture to classify songs into different mood-based categories, using audio content analysis, affec...

  17. Copulatory courtship song in Lutzomyia migonei (Diptera: psychodidae).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vigoder, Felipe M; Souza, Nataly A; Peixoto, Alexandre A

    2010-12-01

    Lutzomyia migonei is a vector of leishmaniasis with a wide distribution in South America, which could favour population differentiation and speciation. Cryptic species of the Lutzomyia longipalpis complex, the widely distributed sand fly vector of visceral leishmaniasis in Latin America, have previously been shown to display distinct copulation songs. We found that Lu. migonei males also produce a song during copulation. This "lovesong" presents short trains (6-8 pulses) with an inter-pulse interval around 26 ms and is potentially involved in cryptic female choice and insemination success.

  18. Digital atlas of the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata) brain: a high-resolution photo atlas.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Karten, Harvey J; Brzozowska-Prechtl, Agnieszka; Lovell, Peter V; Tang, Daniel D; Mello, Claudio V; Wang, Haibin; Mitra, Partha P

    2013-11-01

    We describe a set of new comprehensive, high-quality, high-resolution digital images of histological sections from the brain of male zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) and make them publicly available through an interactive website (http://zebrafinch.brainarchitecture.org/). These images provide a basis for the production of a dimensionally accurate and detailed digital nonstereotaxic atlas. Nissl- and myelin-stained brain sections are provided in the transverse, sagittal, and horizontal planes, with the transverse plane approximating the more traditional Frankfurt plane. In addition, a separate set of brain sections in this same plane is stained for tyrosine hydroxylase, revealing the distribution of catecholaminergic neurons (dopaminergic, noradrenergic, and adrenergic) in the songbird brain. For a subset of sagittal sections we also prepared a corresponding set of drawings, defining and annotating various nuclei, fields, and fiber tracts that are visible under Nissl and myelin staining. This atlas of the zebra finch brain is expected to become an important tool for birdsong research and comparative studies of brain organization and evolution. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  19. Chick Development and Asynchroneous Hatching in the Zebra Finch (Taeniopygia guttata castanotis).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ikebuchi, Maki; Okanoya, Kazuo; Hasegawa, Toshikazu; Bischof, Hans-Joachim

    2017-10-01

    The mode of hatching in birds has important impacts on both parents and chicks, including the costs and risks of breeding for parents, and sibling competition in a clutch. Birds with multiple eggs in a single clutch often begin incubating when most eggs are laid, thereby reducing time of incubation, nursing burden, and sibling competition. In some songbirds and some other species, however, incubation starts immediately after the first egg is laid, and the chicks thus hatch asynchronously. This may result in differences in parental care and in sibling competition based on body size differences among older and younger chicks, which in turn might produce asynchronous development among siblings favoring the first hatchling, and further affect the development and fitness of the chicks after fledging. To determine whether such processes in fact occur in the zebra finch, we observed chick development in 18 clutches of zebra finches. We found that there were effects of asynchronous hatching, but these were smaller than expected and mostly not significant. Our observations suggest that the amount of care given to each chick may be equated with such factors as a camouflage effect of the down feathers, and that the low illumination within the nest also complicates the determination of the hatching order by the parents.

  20. The Roles of Yoruba Songs on Pregnancy, Labour and Baby Care ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    This paper therefore, examines the roles of Yoruba health related songs on pregnancy, labour, delivery and baby care during the health literacy classes in selected hospitals in southwestern Nigeria. Interviews, participant observation, cultural history and lyrical analysis of the recorded songs during such training were done.

  1. Revealing Originality of Song Works: An Analysis to the Copyright Law

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Derezka Gunti Larasati

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available The topic of this paper is to describe the defining criteria of originality of song works. The aspect of originality is important to make such work be protected by Copyright Law. In this research, the criteria to define originality are based on certain doctrines and/or theories of originality that may vary case by case. The use of such doctrines and/or theories are necessary, since the stipulations regarding originality in the Indonesian Copyright Act has not been considered suffice. With regard to the song works, the criteria of originality may be different from other works. Therefore, a comprehensive research on the characteristics of song as a work is also important. This research is a qualitative research with prescriptive design. The research depicts the use of certain doctrines and/or theories as supplementary provisions to the Copyright Law in defining the originality of songs, which have specific characteristics resulted from their author’s creations and intellectuals.

  2. Noise-invariant Neurons in the Avian Auditory Cortex: Hearing the Song in Noise

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moore, R. Channing; Lee, Tyler; Theunissen, Frédéric E.

    2013-01-01

    Given the extraordinary ability of humans and animals to recognize communication signals over a background of noise, describing noise invariant neural responses is critical not only to pinpoint the brain regions that are mediating our robust perceptions but also to understand the neural computations that are performing these tasks and the underlying circuitry. Although invariant neural responses, such as rotation-invariant face cells, are well described in the visual system, high-level auditory neurons that can represent the same behaviorally relevant signal in a range of listening conditions have yet to be discovered. Here we found neurons in a secondary area of the avian auditory cortex that exhibit noise-invariant responses in the sense that they responded with similar spike patterns to song stimuli presented in silence and over a background of naturalistic noise. By characterizing the neurons' tuning in terms of their responses to modulations in the temporal and spectral envelope of the sound, we then show that noise invariance is partly achieved by selectively responding to long sounds with sharp spectral structure. Finally, to demonstrate that such computations could explain noise invariance, we designed a biologically inspired noise-filtering algorithm that can be used to separate song or speech from noise. This novel noise-filtering method performs as well as other state-of-the-art de-noising algorithms and could be used in clinical or consumer oriented applications. Our biologically inspired model also shows how high-level noise-invariant responses could be created from neural responses typically found in primary auditory cortex. PMID:23505354

  3. Noise-invariant neurons in the avian auditory cortex: hearing the song in noise.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moore, R Channing; Lee, Tyler; Theunissen, Frédéric E

    2013-01-01

    Given the extraordinary ability of humans and animals to recognize communication signals over a background of noise, describing noise invariant neural responses is critical not only to pinpoint the brain regions that are mediating our robust perceptions but also to understand the neural computations that are performing these tasks and the underlying circuitry. Although invariant neural responses, such as rotation-invariant face cells, are well described in the visual system, high-level auditory neurons that can represent the same behaviorally relevant signal in a range of listening conditions have yet to be discovered. Here we found neurons in a secondary area of the avian auditory cortex that exhibit noise-invariant responses in the sense that they responded with similar spike patterns to song stimuli presented in silence and over a background of naturalistic noise. By characterizing the neurons' tuning in terms of their responses to modulations in the temporal and spectral envelope of the sound, we then show that noise invariance is partly achieved by selectively responding to long sounds with sharp spectral structure. Finally, to demonstrate that such computations could explain noise invariance, we designed a biologically inspired noise-filtering algorithm that can be used to separate song or speech from noise. This novel noise-filtering method performs as well as other state-of-the-art de-noising algorithms and could be used in clinical or consumer oriented applications. Our biologically inspired model also shows how high-level noise-invariant responses could be created from neural responses typically found in primary auditory cortex.

  4. Noise-invariant neurons in the avian auditory cortex: hearing the song in noise.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    R Channing Moore

    Full Text Available Given the extraordinary ability of humans and animals to recognize communication signals over a background of noise, describing noise invariant neural responses is critical not only to pinpoint the brain regions that are mediating our robust perceptions but also to understand the neural computations that are performing these tasks and the underlying circuitry. Although invariant neural responses, such as rotation-invariant face cells, are well described in the visual system, high-level auditory neurons that can represent the same behaviorally relevant signal in a range of listening conditions have yet to be discovered. Here we found neurons in a secondary area of the avian auditory cortex that exhibit noise-invariant responses in the sense that they responded with similar spike patterns to song stimuli presented in silence and over a background of naturalistic noise. By characterizing the neurons' tuning in terms of their responses to modulations in the temporal and spectral envelope of the sound, we then show that noise invariance is partly achieved by selectively responding to long sounds with sharp spectral structure. Finally, to demonstrate that such computations could explain noise invariance, we designed a biologically inspired noise-filtering algorithm that can be used to separate song or speech from noise. This novel noise-filtering method performs as well as other state-of-the-art de-noising algorithms and could be used in clinical or consumer oriented applications. Our biologically inspired model also shows how high-level noise-invariant responses could be created from neural responses typically found in primary auditory cortex.

  5. Exposure to violent media: the effects of songs with violent lyrics on aggressive thoughts and feelings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Anderson, Craig A; Carnagey, Nicholas L; Eubanks, Janie

    2003-05-01

    Five experiments examined effects of songs with violent lyrics on aggressive thoughts and hostile feelings. Experiments 1, 3, 4 and 5 demonstrated that college students who heard a violent song felt more hostile than those who heard a similar but nonviolent song. Experiments 2-5 demonstrated a similar increase in aggressive thoughts. These effects replicated across songs and song types (e.g., rock, humorous, nonhumorous). Experiments 3-5 also demonstrated that trait hostility was positively related to state hostility but did not moderate the song lyric effects. Discussion centers on the potential role of lyric content on aggression in short-term settings, relation to catharsis and other media violence domains, development of aggressive personality, differences between long-term and short-term effects, and possible mitigating factors.

  6. The Poetics of the Ancestor Songs of the Tz’utujil Maya of Guatemala

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Linda O’Brien-Rothe

    2010-04-01

    Full Text Available This essay attempts to define the relationship between a song tradition that survives in the Mayan highlands of Guatemala, and 16th century poetic Mayan literature. This song tradition of Santiago Atitlán, Guatemala is slowly disappearing as the socio-cultural context in which it flourished changes. By comparing the poetics of the song texts (including their rhythmic structure, versification, and use of poetic devices such as assonance, alliteration and onomatopoeia to the poetics of the Popol Vuh, a K’iché Maya text probably copied from a manuscript that predates the Spanish invasion, a continuity is discovered that places the song texts squarely within the tradition of Mayan literature and suggests common origins.

  7. FROM REBEL SONGS TO MORO SONGS: POPULAR MUSIC AND MUSLIM FILIPINO PROTEST

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mary Talusan

    2010-06-01

    Full Text Available Rank-and-file supporters of the Bangsamoro rebellion (1972-1977 articulated their personal sentiments about the war in a genre called “rebelsongs.” The lyrics reveal that fighters’ personal aspirations often diverged from the official aims of separatist leaders. This article examines how rebel songs transitioned into “Moro songs” in the post-martial law era and why they came to more narrowly reflect the movement’s official goals of Moro unity and Islamic renewal. While Muslim separatists hinged their ideology on the concept of a shared religion and history distinct from the rest of the Philippines, the musical vehicle they approved to convey aspirations for political and religious autonomy was not, however, indigenous genres, such as tudtol or dindiken. Rather, Moro songs set Magindanaon lyrics to the melodies of American folk, country and rock ballads—such as Bryan Adams’s “Straight from the Heart”—to frame protests against the Philippine government’s incursion into the homeland, the fight for religion and calls for Muslim unity. By endorsing this hybrid genre to broadcast separatist goals, the movement opened up a communicative space for its message to internal and external audiences, across cultural and national boundaries.

  8. The Reflection of Israeli Society in Popular War Songs

    Science.gov (United States)

    2015-06-01

    festivals , musicals and movies (e.g. Woodstock Festival and the movie and the musical Hair). Rock music became more popular and it integrated into...history. The country’s best writers wrote songs and the best singers sang them in the most popular festivals and media channels. The collective...from a variety of angles. In addition to the plain text, it will pay attention to the music and the arrangement. It will examine the song’s

  9. Rock Sparrow Song Reflects Male Age and Reproductive Success

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nemeth, Erwin; Kempenaers, Bart; Matessi, Giuliano

    2012-01-01

    The evolution of mating signals is closely linked to sexual selection. Acoustic ornaments are often used as secondary sexual traits that signal the quality of the signaller. Here we show that song performance reflects age and reproductive success in the rock sparrow (Petronia petronia...... nests. Older males could be distinguished from yearlings by singing at lower rate and higher amplitudes. Our findings suggest that song rate may be used as a signal of age and together with song pitch as a signal of reproductive success in this species. Alternatively, younger and less successful males...... success. Males with higher breeding success sang at a lower rate and with a higher maximum frequency. We found also that older males gained more extra-pair young and had a higher overall breeding success, although they also differed almost significantly by having a higher loss of paternity in their own...

  10. Common cues to emotion in the dynamic facial expressions of speech and song.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Livingstone, Steven R; Thompson, William F; Wanderley, Marcelo M; Palmer, Caroline

    2015-01-01

    Speech and song are universal forms of vocalization that may share aspects of emotional expression. Research has focused on parallels in acoustic features, overlooking facial cues to emotion. In three experiments, we compared moving facial expressions in speech and song. In Experiment 1, vocalists spoke and sang statements each with five emotions. Vocalists exhibited emotion-dependent movements of the eyebrows and lip corners that transcended speech-song differences. Vocalists' jaw movements were coupled to their acoustic intensity, exhibiting differences across emotion and speech-song. Vocalists' emotional movements extended beyond vocal sound to include large sustained expressions, suggesting a communicative function. In Experiment 2, viewers judged silent videos of vocalists' facial expressions prior to, during, and following vocalization. Emotional intentions were identified accurately for movements during and after vocalization, suggesting that these movements support the acoustic message. Experiment 3 compared emotional identification in voice-only, face-only, and face-and-voice recordings. Emotion judgements for voice-only singing were poorly identified, yet were accurate for all other conditions, confirming that facial expressions conveyed emotion more accurately than the voice in song, yet were equivalent in speech. Collectively, these findings highlight broad commonalities in the facial cues to emotion in speech and song, yet highlight differences in perception and acoustic-motor production.

  11. Tokoh Kabayan Sebagai Inspirasi Torotot Heong the Song of Kabayan

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    DEDEN HAERUDIN

    2013-11-01

    Full Text Available Kabayan as an Inspiration of Torotot Heong The Song Of Kabayan. The theater art creation of Torotot Heongthe Song of Kabayan is a process that is inspired by the characters of folklore in Sundanese literature, Kabayan. InSundanese society, Kabayan is a stunt character from parable, a symbolic story, in the community as a media tonotify precept or wisdom. Kabayan is regarded as character with characteristic of Sundanese culture that hold on to“Cageur jeung Bageur” living guide (hale and healthy, and kind hearted. The creation process of Torotot Heongthe Song of Kabayan is performing into several stages and working methods according to Patri Pavis. It is startedby selecting the Kabayan’s Story to under take into the script. The next stage is doing some preparation for StagingProcess. The creating process is conducted through the mise en scene show’s appearance, perform into idea identification stage, artistic observation of cultural resources, the artist perspective and performance realization. TorototHeong the Song of Kabayan performances are the ultimate stage for the creative process of the hardworking teamwith a lot of effort to accomplish a communicative performance and appreciate well by the audience.

  12. Neural substrates for semantic memory of familiar songs: is there an interface between lyrics and melodies?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saito, Yoko; Ishii, Kenji; Sakuma, Naoko; Kawasaki, Keiichi; Oda, Keiichi; Mizusawa, Hidehiro

    2012-01-01

    Findings on song perception and song production have increasingly suggested that common but partially distinct neural networks exist for processing lyrics and melody. However, the neural substrates of song recognition remain to be investigated. The purpose of this study was to examine the neural substrates involved in the accessing "song lexicon" as corresponding to a representational system that might provide links between the musical and phonological lexicons using positron emission tomography (PET). We exposed participants to auditory stimuli consisting of familiar and unfamiliar songs presented in three ways: sung lyrics (song), sung lyrics on a single pitch (lyrics), and the sung syllable 'la' on original pitches (melody). The auditory stimuli were designed to have equivalent familiarity to participants, and they were recorded at exactly the same tempo. Eleven right-handed nonmusicians participated in four conditions: three familiarity decision tasks using song, lyrics, and melody and a sound type decision task (control) that was designed to engage perceptual and prelexical processing but not lexical processing. The contrasts (familiarity decision tasks versus control) showed no common areas of activation between lyrics and melody. This result indicates that essentially separate neural networks exist in semantic memory for the verbal and melodic processing of familiar songs. Verbal lexical processing recruited the left fusiform gyrus and the left inferior occipital gyrus, whereas melodic lexical processing engaged the right middle temporal sulcus and the bilateral temporo-occipital cortices. Moreover, we found that song specifically activated the left posterior inferior temporal cortex, which may serve as an interface between verbal and musical representations in order to facilitate song recognition.

  13. Song repertoire size correlates with measures of body size in Eurasian blackbirds

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hesler, Nana; Mundry, Roger; Sacher, Thomas

    2012-01-01

    In most oscine bird species males possess a repertoire of different song patterns. The size of these repertoires is assumed to serve as an honest signal of male quality. The Eurasian blackbird’s (Turdus merula) song contains a large repertoire of different element types with a flexible song...... organisation. Here we investigated whether repertoire size in Eurasian blackbirds correlates with measures of body size, namely length of wing, 8th primary, beak and tarsus. So far, very few studies have investigated species with large repertoires and a flexible song organisation in this context. We found...... positive correlations, meaning that larger males had larger repertoires. Larger males may have better fighting abilities and, thus, advantages in territorial defence. Larger structural body size may also reflect better conditions during early development. Therefore, under the assumption that body size...

  14. Testosterone-dependency of male solo song in a duetting songbird--evidence from females.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Voigt, Cornelia; Leitner, Stefan

    2013-01-01

    For male songbirds of the temperate zone there is a tight link between seasonal song behaviour and circulating testosterone levels. Such a relationship does not seem to hold for tropical species where singing can occur year-round and breeding seasons are often extended. White-browed sparrow weavers (Plocepasser mahali) are cooperatively breeding songbirds with a dominant breeding pair and male and female subordinates found in eastern and southern Africa. Each group defends an all-purpose territory year-round. While all group members sing duets and choruses, the most dominant male additionally sings a solo song that comprises a distinct and large syllable repertoire. Previous studies suggested this type of song being associated with reproduction but failed to support a relationship with males' circulating testosterone levels. The present study aimed to investigate the steroid hormone sensitivity of the solo song in more detail. We found that dominant males had significantly higher circulating testosterone levels than subordinates during the early and late breeding seasons. No changes in solo song characteristics were found between both time points. Further, experimental implantation of captive adult females with exogenous testosterone induced solo singing within one week of treatment. Such females produced male-typical song regarding overall structure and syllable composition. Sex differences existed, however, concerning singing activity, repertoire size and temporal organisation of song. These results suggest that solo singing in white-browed sparrow weavers is under the control of gonadal steroid hormones. Moreover, the behaviour is not male-specific but can be activated in females under certain conditions. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  15. A Comparison of the Basic Song Repertoire of Vocal/Choral and Instrumental Music Education Majors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Prickett, Carol A.; Bridges, Madeline S.

    2000-01-01

    Explores whether the basic song repertoire of vocal/choral music education majors is significantly better than instrumental music education majors. Participants attempted to identify 25 standard songs. Reveals no significant difference between the two groups, indicating that neither had developed a strong repertoire of songs. (CMK)

  16. Examining Natural Selection by Sketching and Making Models of the Finches of the Galapagos Islands

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pittman, Phoebe J. Z.; Teske, Jolene K.

    2017-01-01

    This practical lesson describes how students in six eighth grade science classes participated in a lesson combining the National Core Arts Standards with the Next Generation Science Standards. The goal of the lesson was to provide visual representations of finch beak form and function so students could better understand genetic variation and how…

  17. THE SONG OF SONGS IN THE WORK OF LUIS DE LEON, SAN JUAN DE LA CRUZ Y JUAN GELMAN LANGUAGE, CHILDREN AND SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Geneviève Fabry

    2015-04-01

    Full Text Available This paper aims to study the intertextual traces dell Song of Songs in the work of Luis de León, San Juan de la Cruz and Juan Gelman from a particular point of view: the resonance in the vernacular of small biblical book as founder dimension of an experience spiritual, emotional and literary time. Choosing our corpus may surprise but, for one, would like to emphasize the importance of two pivotal moments in the reception of the Song: the Spanish Renaissance, whose approach to the Bible is enriched by new currents philological and exegetical of which Luis de León is a sublime representative; the late twentieth century in which an insistent intertextuality observed with sanjuanista work in one direction often foreign to Christian spirituality, as in the case of the Argentine Juan Gelman.

  18. Song-associated reward correlates with endocannabinoid-related gene expression in male European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hahn, Allison H; Merullo, Devin P; Spool, Jeremy A; Angyal, Caroline S; Stevenson, Sharon A; Riters, Lauren V

    2017-03-27

    Vocal communication is required for successful social interactions in numerous species. During the breeding season, songbirds produce songs that are reinforced by behavioral consequences (e.g., copulation). However, some songbirds also produce songs not obviously directed at other individuals. The consequences maintaining or reinforcing these songs are less obvious and the neural mechanisms associated with undirected communication are not well-understood. Previous studies indicate that undirected singing is intrinsically rewarding and mediated by opioid or dopaminergic systems; however, endocannabinoids are also involved in regulating reward and singing behavior. We used a conditioned place preference paradigm to examine song-associated reward in European starlings and quantitative real-time PCR to measure expression of endocannabinoid-related neural markers (CB 1 , FABP7, FABP5, FAAH, DAGLα), in brain regions involved in social behavior, reward and motivation (ventral tegmental area [VTA], periaqueductal gray [PAG], and medial preoptic nucleus [POM]), and a song control region (Area X). Our results indicate that starlings producing high rates of song developed a conditioned place preference, suggesting that undirected song is associated with a positive affective state. We found a significant positive relationship between song-associated reward and CB 1 receptors in VTA and a significant negative relationship between song-associated reward and CB 1 in PAG. There was a significant positive relationship between reward and the cannabinoid transporter FABP7 in POM and a significant negative relationship between reward and FABP7 in PAG. In Area X, FABP5 and DAGLα correlated positively with singing. These results suggest a role for endocannabinoid signaling in vocal production and reward associated with undirected communication. Copyright © 2017 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. Batswana women's songs : vehicles for enculturation, continuity and change / by Edith Morongwa Dikotla

    OpenAIRE

    Dikotla, Edith Morongwa

    2007-01-01

    The research describes how the Batswma women use their songs as potential vehicles for cultural empowerment, continuity and change. The songs are regarded as a form of literature which is an integral part of culture and tribal life. From the traditional point of view, Batswana women participated in many rituals which had cultural significance. Through the songs women are able to teach culture to the younger generation, to maintain culture and its values, and also to change the ...

  20. Variability of IN measured with the Fast Ice Nucleus Chamber (FINCH) at the high altitude research station Jungfraujoch during wintertime 2013

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frank, Fabian; Nillius, Björn; Bundke, Ulrich; Curtius, Joachim

    2014-05-01

    Ice nuclei (IN) are an important component of the atmospheric aerosol. Despite their low concentrations in the atmosphere, they have an influence on the formation of ice crystals in mixed-phase clouds and therefore on precipitation. The Fast Ice Nucleus CHamber (FINCH)1, a counter for ice nucleating particles developed at the Goethe University Frankfurt am Main allows long-term measurements of the IN number concentration. In FINCH the ice activation of the aerosol particles is achieved by mixing air flows with different temperature and humidity. The IN number concentration measurements at different meteorological conditions during the INUIT-JFJ campaign at the high altitude research station Jungfraujoch in Switzerland are presented and its variability are discussed. The good operational performance of the instrument allowed up to 10 hours of continuous measurements. Acknowledgment: This work was supported by the German Research Foundation, DFG Grant: BU 1432/3-2 BU 1432/4-1 in the framework of INUIT (FOR 1525) and SPP 1294 HALO. 1- Bundke, U., Nillius, B., Jaenicke, R., Wetter, T., Klein, H., and Bingemer, H. (2008). The fast ice nucleus chamber finch. Atmospheric Research, 90:180-186.

  1. Neural substrates for semantic memory of familiar songs: is there an interface between lyrics and melodies?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yoko Saito

    Full Text Available Findings on song perception and song production have increasingly suggested that common but partially distinct neural networks exist for processing lyrics and melody. However, the neural substrates of song recognition remain to be investigated. The purpose of this study was to examine the neural substrates involved in the accessing "song lexicon" as corresponding to a representational system that might provide links between the musical and phonological lexicons using positron emission tomography (PET. We exposed participants to auditory stimuli consisting of familiar and unfamiliar songs presented in three ways: sung lyrics (song, sung lyrics on a single pitch (lyrics, and the sung syllable 'la' on original pitches (melody. The auditory stimuli were designed to have equivalent familiarity to participants, and they were recorded at exactly the same tempo. Eleven right-handed nonmusicians participated in four conditions: three familiarity decision tasks using song, lyrics, and melody and a sound type decision task (control that was designed to engage perceptual and prelexical processing but not lexical processing. The contrasts (familiarity decision tasks versus control showed no common areas of activation between lyrics and melody. This result indicates that essentially separate neural networks exist in semantic memory for the verbal and melodic processing of familiar songs. Verbal lexical processing recruited the left fusiform gyrus and the left inferior occipital gyrus, whereas melodic lexical processing engaged the right middle temporal sulcus and the bilateral temporo-occipital cortices. Moreover, we found that song specifically activated the left posterior inferior temporal cortex, which may serve as an interface between verbal and musical representations in order to facilitate song recognition.

  2. The rise of author-performed song in Tuva (1921–1944

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    Valentina Yu. Suzukey

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available This is a study of author-performed song in Tuva, the history of which begins when the People’s Republic of Tuva was declared in 1921. This crucial moment in the history of the region, which bore a strong influence of the October Revolution in Russia and of the following years of social change, had a profound impact on songwriting in the 1920s. The songs expressed gratitude to the October Revolution, Lenin and the Russian people for helping Tuvans get rid of the socially oppressive system (“The Glorious International”, “Freedom from Torment”, “The Great River”, “The Emergency Session of the Khural”, “No More Oppression”, etc.. New songs glorified such iconic features of new life as the first schools, the birth of national literature and the new system of writing, the change in attitude to women, the rise of the new generation of authors, the construction of a new automobile road, etc. In the 1930s further socioeconomic transformation gave rise to songs like “I Am a Kolkhoz Member”; “The Tractor Driver”, “The Propagandist”, “The Beautiful Soviet Land”, etc. By the end of the 1930s Tuva got its first amateur composers and author-performed songs. The arrival of theater, dance and music professionals from the USSR at the beginning of the 1940s at the bequest of PRT’s government led to a sea change in professionalization of Tuvan performing arts. In 1951 A. Chyrgal-ool became the first Tuvan student to join a conservatoire in Kazan which he graduated from in 1957. His works composed in 1950s marked a new stage in the rise of professional music in the region. Thus Tuvan song art featured almost the same trends and developments as most other ethnic groups in the Soviet Union.

  3. Brain regions for sound processing and song release in a small grasshopper.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Balvantray Bhavsar, Mit; Stumpner, Andreas; Heinrich, Ralf

    2017-05-01

    We investigated brain regions - mostly neuropils - that process auditory information relevant for the initiation of response songs of female grasshoppers Chorthippus biguttulus during bidirectional intraspecific acoustic communication. Male-female acoustic duets in the species Ch. biguttulus require the perception of sounds, their recognition as a species- and gender-specific signal and the initiation of commands that activate thoracic pattern generating circuits to drive the sound-producing stridulatory movements of the hind legs. To study sensory-to-motor processing during acoustic communication we used multielectrodes that allowed simultaneous recordings of acoustically stimulated electrical activity from several ascending auditory interneurons or local brain neurons and subsequent electrical stimulation of the recording site. Auditory activity was detected in the lateral protocerebrum (where most of the described ascending auditory interneurons terminate), in the superior medial protocerebrum and in the central complex, that has previously been implicated in the control of sound production. Neural responses to behaviorally attractive sound stimuli showed no or only poor correlation with behavioral responses. Current injections into the lateral protocerebrum, the central complex and the deuto-/tritocerebrum (close to the cerebro-cervical fascicles), but not into the superior medial protocerebrum, elicited species-typical stridulation with high success rate. Latencies and numbers of phrases produced by electrical stimulation were different between these brain regions. Our results indicate three brain regions (likely neuropils) where auditory activity can be detected with two of these regions being potentially involved in song initiation. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. The evolution of sexual size dimorphism in the house finch. V. Maternal effects.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Badyaev, Alexander V; Beck, Michelle L; Hill, Geoffrey E; Whittingham, Linda A

    2003-02-01

    The phenotype of a mother and the environment that she provides might differentially affect the phenotypes of her sons and daughters, leading to change in sexual size dimorphism. Whereas these maternal effects should evolve to accommodate the adaptations of both the maternal and offspring generations, the mechanisms by which this is accomplished are rarely known. In birds, females adjust the onset of incubation (coincident with the first egg or after all eggs are laid) in response to the environment during breeding, and thus, indirectly, determine the duration of offspring growth. In the two house finch (Carpodacus mexicanus) populations that breed at the extremes of the species' distribution (Montana and Alabama), females experience highly distinct climatic conditions during nesting. We show that in close association with these conditions, females adjusted jointly the onset of incubation and the sequence in which they produced male and female eggs and consequently modified the growth of sons and daughters. The onset of incubation in newly breeding females closely tracked ambient temperature in a pattern consistent with the maintenance of egg viability. Because of the very different climates in Montana and Alabama, females in these populations showed the opposite patterns of seasonal change in incubation onset and the opposite sex bias in egg-laying order. In females with breeding experience, incubation onset and sex bias in laying order were closely linked regardless of the climatic variation. In nests in which incubation began with the onset of egg laying, the first-laid eggs were mostly females in Montana, but mostly males in Alabama. Because in both populations, male, but not female, embryos grew faster when exposed to longer incubation, the sex-bias produced highly divergent sizes of male and female juveniles between the populations. Overall, the compensatory interaction between the onset of incubation and the sex-biased laying order achieved a compromise

  5. The use of network analysis to study complex animal communication systems: a study on nightingale song

    OpenAIRE

    Weiss, Michael; Hultsch, Henrike; Adam, Iris; Scharff, Constance; Kipper, Silke

    2014-01-01

    The singing of song birds can form complex signal systems comprised of numerous subunits sung with distinct combinatorial properties that have been described as syntax-like. This complexity has inspired inquiries into similarities of bird song to human language; but the quantitative analysis and description of song sequences is a challenging task. In this study, we analysed song sequences of common nightingales (Luscinia megarhynchos) by means of a network analysis. We translated long nocturn...

  6. Approaches to the mechanisms of song memorization and singing provide evidence for a procedural memory

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hultsch Henrike

    2004-01-01

    Full Text Available There is growing evidence that, during song learning, birds do not only acquire 'what to sing' (the inventory of behavior, but also 'how to sing' (the singing program, including order-features of song sequencing. Common Nightingales Luscinia megarhynchos acquire such serial information by segmenting long strings of heard songs into smaller subsets or packages, by a process reminiscent of the chunking of information as a coding mechanism in short term memory. Here we report three tutoring experiments on nightingales that examined whether such 'chunking' was susceptible to experimental cueing. The experiments tested whether (1 'temporal phrasing' (silent intersong intervals spaced out at particular positions of a tutored string, or (2 'stimulus novelty' (groups of novel song-types added to a basic string, or (3 'pattern similarity' in the phonetic structure of songs (here: sharing of song initials would induce package boundaries (or chunking at the manipulated sequential positions. The results revealed cueing effects in experiments (1 and (2 but not in experiment (3. The finding that birds used temporal variables as cues for chunking does not require the assumption that package formation is a cognitive strategy. Rather, it points towards a mechanism of procedural memory operating in the song acquisition of birds.

  7. Approaches to the mechanisms of song memorization and singing provide evidence for a procedural memory.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hultsch, Henrike; Todt, Dietmar

    2004-06-01

    There is growing evidence that, during song learning, birds do not only acquire 'what to sing' (the inventory of behavior), but also 'how to sing' (the singing program), including order-features of song sequencing. Common Nightingales Luscinia megarhynchos acquire such serial information by segmenting long strings of heard songs into smaller subsets or packages, by a process reminiscent of the chunking of information as a coding mechanism in short term memory. Here we report three tutoring experiments on nightingales that examined whether such 'chunking' was susceptible to experimental cueing. The experiments tested whether (1) 'temporal phrasing' (silent intersong intervals spaced out at particular positions of a tutored string), or (2) 'stimulus novelty' (groups of novel song-types added to a basic string), or (3) 'pattern similarity' in the phonetic structure of songs (here: sharing of song initials) would induce package boundaries (or chunking) at the manipulated sequential positions. The results revealed cueing effects in experiments (1) and (2) but not in experiment (3). The finding that birds used temporal variables as cues for chunking does not require the assumption that package formation is a cognitive strategy. Rather, it points towards a mechanism of procedural memory operating in the song acquisition of birds.

  8. Neural correlates of binding lyrics and melodies for the encoding of new songs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alonso, Irene; Davachi, Lila; Valabrègue, Romain; Lambrecq, Virginie; Dupont, Sophie; Samson, Séverine

    2016-02-15

    Songs naturally bind lyrics and melody into a unified representation. Using a subsequent memory paradigm, we examined the neural processes associated with binding lyrics and melodies during song encoding. Participants were presented with songs in two conditions: a unified condition (melodies sung with lyrics), and a separate condition (melodies sung with the syllable "la"). In both cases, written lyrics were displayed and participants were instructed to memorize them by repeating them covertly or by generating mental images of the songs. We expected the unified condition to recruit the posterior superior temporal gyrus, known to be involved in perceptual integration of songs, as well as the left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG). Conversely, we hypothesized that the separate condition would engage a larger network including the hippocampus to bind lyrics and melodies of songs, and the basal ganglia and the cerebellum to ensure the correct sequence coupling of verbal and musical information in time. Binding lyrics and melodies in the unified condition revealed activation of the left IFG, bilateral middle temporal gyrus (MTG), and left motor cortex, suggesting a strong linguistic processing for this condition. Binding in the separate compared to the unified condition revealed greater activity in the right hippocampus as well as other areas including the left caudate, left cerebellum, and right IFG. This study provides novel evidence for the role of the right hippocampus in binding lyrics and melodies in songs. Results are discussed in light of studies of binding in the visual domain and highlight the role of regions involved in timing and synchronization such as the basal ganglia and the cerebellum. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  9. Using Songs to Enhance L2 Vocabulary Acquisition in Preschool Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Coyle, Yvette; Gómez Gracia, Remei

    2014-01-01

    This article looks at the effects of a teaching sequence of song-based activities on the L2 vocabulary acquisition of a group of five-year-old Spanish child EFL learners. Twenty-five preschool children received three 30-minute lessons organized around the presentation and practice of a well-known children's song. Vocabulary picture tests were…

  10. Costs of reproduction in the Zebra Finch Taeniopygia guttata : Manipulation of brood size in the laboratory

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    deKogel, CH; Overkamp, GFJ

    1996-01-01

    Brood size of Zebra Finches Taeniopygia guttata was manipulated in an attempt to identify a trade-off between current and subsequent reproduction in a laboratory situation with ad libitum food availability. The birds were able to raise a larger brood than the most frequent brood size under the same

  11. Failure to detect seasonal changes in the song system nuclei of the black-capped chickadee (Poecile atricapillus).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smulders, T V; Lisi, M D; Tricomi, E; Otter, K A; Chruszcz, B; Ratcliffe, L M; DeVoogd, T J

    2006-08-01

    Most temperate songbird species sing seasonally, and the brain areas involved in producing song (the song system) vary in size alongside the changes in behavior. Black-capped chickadees (Poecile atricapillus) also sing seasonally, and we find that there are changes in the stereotypy and the length of the fee-bee song from the nonbreeding to the breeding season. Yet despite these changes, we fail to find any evidence of seasonal changes in the song system. The song system of males is larger than that of females, as is typical in songbirds, but the ratio between the sexes is small compared to other species. We suggest three hypotheses to explain our failure to find seasonal variation in the chickadee song system.

  12. Large-scale synchronized activity during vocal deviance detection in the zebra finch auditory forebrain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beckers, Gabriël J L; Gahr, Manfred

    2012-08-01

    Auditory systems bias responses to sounds that are unexpected on the basis of recent stimulus history, a phenomenon that has been widely studied using sequences of unmodulated tones (mismatch negativity; stimulus-specific adaptation). Such a paradigm, however, does not directly reflect problems that neural systems normally solve for adaptive behavior. We recorded multiunit responses in the caudomedial auditory forebrain of anesthetized zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) at 32 sites simultaneously, to contact calls that recur probabilistically at a rate that is used in communication. Neurons in secondary, but not primary, auditory areas respond preferentially to calls when they are unexpected (deviant) compared with the same calls when they are expected (standard). This response bias is predominantly due to sites more often not responding to standard events than to deviant events. When two call stimuli alternate between standard and deviant roles, most sites exhibit a response bias to deviant events of both stimuli. This suggests that biases are not based on a use-dependent decrease in response strength but involve a more complex mechanism that is sensitive to auditory deviance per se. Furthermore, between many secondary sites, responses are tightly synchronized, a phenomenon that is driven by internal neuronal interactions rather than by the timing of stimulus acoustic features. We hypothesize that this deviance-sensitive, internally synchronized network of neurons is involved in the involuntary capturing of attention by unexpected and behaviorally potentially relevant events in natural auditory scenes.

  13. Long-term changes in migration timing of Song Thrush Turdus philomelos at the southern Baltic coast in response to temperatures on route and at breeding grounds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Redlisiak, Michał; Remisiewicz, Magdalena; Nowakowski, Jarosław K

    2018-05-26

    Climate warming causes the advancement of spring arrival of many migrant birds breeding in Europe, but the effects on their autumn migration are less known. We aimed to determine any changes in the timing of Song Thrush captured during spring and autumn migrations at the Polish Baltic coast from 1975 to 2014, and if these were related to long-term changes of temperature at their breeding grounds and migration routes. The timing of spring migration at Hel ringing station in 1975-2014 did not show long-term advance, but they had responded to environmental conditions on the year-to-year basis. The warmer the temperatures were in April on their migration route, the earlier were the dates of the median and the end of spring migration at Hel. The beginning of autumn migration at the Mierzeja Wiślana ringing station advanced by 5 days between 1975 and 2014. The warmer the April on route, and the July at the Song Thrushes' breeding grounds, the earlier young birds began autumn migration across the Baltic coast. We suggest this was a combined effect of adults' migration and breeding early during warm springs and young birds getting ready faster for autumn migration during warm summers. The average time span of 90% of the autumn migration was extended by 5 days, probably because of early migration of young birds from first broods and late of those from second broods enabled by warm springs and summers. The response of Song Thrushes' migration timing to temperatures on route and at the breeding grounds indicated high plasticity in the species and suggested it might adapt well to climate changes.

  14. Reproductive behavior of the Red-crested Finch Coryphospingus cucullatus (Aves: Thraupidae in southeastern Brazil

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Paulo V.Q. Zima

    Full Text Available ABSTRACT Several behavioral aspects of the Red-crested Finch Coryphospingus cucullatus (Statius Müller, 1776 are poorly studied. Here we provide reproductive information on 16 active nests. This information may be valuable to elucidate the phylogenetic relationships of this bird, and to design plans to manage it. Nesting activities occurred from October to February. Clutches consisted of two to three eggs (2.06 ± 0.25, which were laid on consecutive days. Incubation usually started the morning the females laid their last egg and lasted 11.27 ± 0.47 days. Hatching was synchronous, or happened at a one-day interval. The nestling stage lasted 12 ± 0.89 days. Only females incubated the eggs and they fed the young more often than the males did. Overall nesting success, from incubation to fledging, was 28.2%. Nest architecture and egg color proved to be diagnostic characteristics of Coryphospingus , supporting its maintenance as a distinct genus within the recently proposed sub-family Tachyphoninae. Red-crested Finches showed a preference for certain nesting sites, i.e., forest borders or a Cerrado in late regeneration stage. This information can be useful to programs aiming to release illegally trapped individuals.

  15. Living, Breathing Songs: Singing Along with Bob Dylan

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Keith Negus

    2007-03-01

    Full Text Available Taking issue with approaches to Bob Dylan’s art that are preoccupied with his lyrics, this article suggests a route into thinking about his music by focusing on how Dylan’s vocal melodies work at the intersection of speech and singing. Drawing on Gino Stefani’s work on popular melodies, this article explores this issue through a discussion of how people sing along with Dylan’s songs at concerts. The discussion focuses on the song “It Ain’t Me Babe,” and examines more general points about the ways in which Dylan’s melodies connect with the everyday lives of his listeners.

  16. MEMORY SONGS DECREASE DEPRESSION FOR STROKE PATIENTS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Harmayetty Harmayetty

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available Introduction: Biological, physical and phsycosocial changes in stroke patient could be a stressor that induced a depression state. There would be an emotional disturbance in stroke patient and stroke attack would be recurrent, if it was not treated. One of the alternative techniques to reduce depression is musical therapy especially memory songs. Method: This study was used a quasy experimental pre-post test purposive sampling design. The population was stroke patients who treated in Neurological Ward A and Stroke Unit Dr Soetomo Hospital Surabaya. There were 12 respondents divided into 6 respondents for treatment group and 6 respondents for control group. The independent variable was music (memory song and dependent variable was depression. Data were collected by using questionnaire which adapted from Hamilton Depression Rating Scale and Geriatric Depression Rating Scale, then analyzed by using Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test and Mann Whitney U Test with significance level α≤0.05. Result: The result showed that there was a difference between pre test and post test in depression (p=0.0196 and there was a difference in the depression between treatment group and control group (p=0.002. Discussion: It can be concluded that music (memory songs has an effect to the depression of stroke patient. Further studies are needed to concerning other factors that may affect the relaxation technique especially in listening music.

  17. Music Activities for "Little Wolf's Song"

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cardany, Audrey Berger

    2015-01-01

    Drawn from Britta Techentrup's children's book "Little Wolf's Song", the author shares music activities appropriate for preschool and children in primary grades. Children will enjoy Technentrup's tender family story, while exploring vocal and instrumental timbres, as well as reading, writing, and creating with melodic contour.

  18. Neural expression and post-transcriptional dosage compensation of the steroid metabolic enzyme 17β-HSD type 4

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wise Petra M

    2010-04-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Steroids affect many tissues, including the brain. In the zebra finch, the estrogenic steroid estradiol (E2 is especially effective at promoting growth of the neural circuit specialized for song. In this species, only the males sing and they have a much larger and more interconnected song circuit than females. Thus, it was surprising that the gene for 17β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 4 (HSD17B4, an enzyme that converts E2 to a less potent estrogen, had been mapped to the Z sex chromosome. As a consequence, it was likely that HSD17B4 was differentially expressed in males (ZZ and females (ZW because dosage compensation of Z chromosome genes is incomplete in birds. If a higher abundance of HSD17B4 mRNA in males than females was translated into functional enzyme in the brain, then contrary to expectation, males could produce less E2 in their brains than females. Results Here, we used molecular and biochemical techniques to confirm the HSD17B4 Z chromosome location in the zebra finch and to determine that HSD17B4 mRNA and activity were detectable in the early developing and adult brain. As expected, HSD17B4 mRNA expression levels were higher in males compared to females. This provides further evidence of the incomplete Z chromosome inactivation mechanisms in birds. We detected HSD17B4 mRNA in regions that suggested a role for this enzyme in the early organization and adult function of song nuclei. We did not, however, detect significant sex differences in HSD17B4 activity levels in the adult brain. Conclusions Our results demonstrate that the HSD17B4 gene is expressed and active in the zebra finch brain as an E2 metabolizing enzyme, but that dosage compensation of this Z-linked gene may occur via post-transcriptional mechanisms.

  19. Degradation of male and female rufous-and-white wren songs in a tropical forest: effects of sex, perch height, and habitat

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Barker, Nicole K.S.; Dabelsteen, Torben; Mennill, Daniel J.

    2009-01-01

    We performed a song transmission experiment to investigate the effects of distance, song post height, receiver perch height, signaller sex, and microhabitat on song degradation in rufous-and-white wrens (Thryothorus rufalbus), a neotropical duetting songbird. We quantified the effects of these fa......We performed a song transmission experiment to investigate the effects of distance, song post height, receiver perch height, signaller sex, and microhabitat on song degradation in rufous-and-white wrens (Thryothorus rufalbus), a neotropical duetting songbird. We quantified the effects...... of these factors on excess attenuation, signal-to-noise ratio, tail-to-signal ratio, and blur ratio of male and female songs. As expected, song degradation increased with distance between signaller and receiver. Songs transmitted best when emitted from moderate heights (5-7 m), although this pattern varied....... Rufous-and-white wren songs appeared more attenuated in open field than forest habitats, but microhabitat conditions within the forests exerted a strong influence on song degradation. These findings match previous studies showing an effect of distance, song post height, and habitat, but contrast...

  20. Sex-dependent effects of nutrition on telomere dynamics in zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata)

    OpenAIRE

    Noguera, Jose C.; Metcalfe, Neil B.; Boner, Winnie; Monaghan, Pat

    2015-01-01

    At a cellular level, oxidative stress is known to increase telomere attrition, and hence cellular senescence and risk of disease. It has been proposed that dietary micronutrients play an important role in telomere protection due to their antioxidant properties. We experimentally manipulated dietary micronutrients during early life in zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata). We found no effects of micronutrient intake on telomere loss during chick growth. However, females given a diet high in micr...

  1. Interspecific variation in egg testosterone levels: implications for the evolution of bird song.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garamszegi, L Z; Biard, C; Eens, M; Møller, A P; Saino, N

    2007-05-01

    Although interspecific variation in maternal effects via testosterone levels can be mediated by natural selection, little is known about the evolutionary consequences of egg testosterone for sexual selection. However, two nonexclusive evolutionary hypotheses predict an interspecific relationship between egg testosterone levels and the elaboration of sexual traits. First, maternal investment may be particularly enhanced in sexually selected species, which should generate a positive relationship. Secondly, high prenatal testosterone levels may constrain the development of sexual characters, which should result in a negative relationship. Here we investigated these hypotheses by exploring the relationship between yolk testosterone levels and features of song in a phylogenetic study of 36 passerine species. We found that song duration and syllable repertoire size were significantly negatively related to testosterone levels in the egg, even if potentially confounding factors were held constant. These relationships imply that high testosterone levels during early development of songs may be detrimental, thus supporting the developmental constraints hypothesis. By contrast, we found significant evidence that song-post exposure relative to the height of the vegetation is positively related to egg testosterone levels. These results support the hypothesis that high levels of maternal testosterone have evolved in species with intense sexual selection acting on the location of song-posts. We found nonsignificant effects for intersong interval and song type repertoire size, which may suggest that none of the above hypothesis apply to these traits, or they act simultaneously and have opposing effects.

  2. Trends in substance references in Australian top 20 songs between 1990 and 2015.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pettigrew, Simone; Henriques, Isla; Farrier, Kaela

    2018-04-01

    This study examined references to alcohol and other drugs in top 20 songs over the last quarter of a century to explore the potential for popular music to constitute a barometer for changes occurring in youth consumption of alcohol and other substances. The online Australian Recording Industry Association charts resource was accessed to identify the top 20 songs for the period 1990 to 2015 inclusive. The lyrics of the identified songs were imported into NVivo11 for coding and analysis. Two coders analysed each song by line unit and a third coder assisted in resolving any coding discrepancies. Of the 508 discrete songs, 74 (15%) featured references to alcohol, tobacco and/or illicit drugs. Substance mentions increased over time such that the second half of the study period accounted for three-quarters of all references. The peak period for mentions was 2008-2012, with 2010 exhibiting an especially high prevalence rate for alcohol references. There was a marked decline in alcohol mentions between 2010 and 2013. The rate at which female artists referred to alcohol increased sharply until 2010 and then decreased. Patterns in substance mentions in top 20 songs in more recent years may reflect broader social trends that influence youth substance use. As such, monitoring music lyrics may assist researchers to better understand forces underlying patterns of youth substance use. © 2017 Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol and other Drugs.

  3. Exploring Student Attitudes to the Refugee Crisis: Songs on Migration

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kirsten Hempkin

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available The issue of migrants and refugees has occupied Europe for the last few months. Much of the discourse surrounding this issue has been overwhelmingly negative, lapsing at times into stereotype, prejudice and even hate speech. As language teachers at a humanities faculty, we have a responsibility to address this issue in the classroom, especially as classroom experience tells us that our students are prone to stereotypical thinking. The article presents a series of song-based activities intended for use in language development classes for future teachers and translators at the Faculty of Arts, University of Maribor.

  4. Blessed with song

    CERN Multimedia

    2008-01-01

    The Morriston Orpheus Choir from Swansea sing in the CERN control center.The Morriston Orpheus Choir from Swansea were joined by the Welsh First Minister Rhodri Morgan at the LHC control room on Sunday 12 October. Lyn Evans, a fellow Welshman, was excited to have them here at CERN. "The control room has been somewhat quieter recently than on the 10 September," he said later in his speech at the LHC inauguration ceremony, "but last week, some fellow countrymen of mine, the wonderful Morriston Orpheus choir from Wales, paid us a visit and blessed the LHC with song."

  5. Further differentiating item and order information in semantic memory: students' recall of words from the "CU Fight Song", Harry Potter book titles, and Scooby Doo theme song.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Overstreet, Michael F; Healy, Alice F; Neath, Ian

    2017-01-01

    University of Colorado (CU) students were tested for both order and item information in their semantic memory for the "CU Fight Song". Following an earlier study by Overstreet and Healy [(2011). Item and order information in semantic memory: Students' retention of the "CU fight song" lyrics. Memory & Cognition, 39, 251-259. doi: 10.3758/s13421-010-0018-3 ], a symmetrical bow-shaped serial position function (with both primacy and recency advantages) was found for reconstructing the order of the nine lines in the song, whereas a function with no primacy advantage was found for recalling a missing word from each line. This difference between order and item information was found even though students filled in missing words without any alternatives provided and missing words came from the beginning, middle, or end of each line. Similar results were found for CU students' recall of the sequence of Harry Potter book titles and the lyrics of the Scooby Doo theme song. These findings strengthen the claim that the pronounced serial position function in semantic memory occurs largely because of the retention of order, rather than item, information.

  6. Annual changes in the song of the bowhead whale Balaena mysticetus in Disko Bay, Western Greenland

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Miller, Lee

    presented by Outi at: Acoustic Communication by Animals, 2nd International Conference, August 12-15, 2008, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, USAAnnual changes in the song of the bowhead whale Balaena mysticetusin Disko Bay, Western GreenlandOuti Tervo and Mads F. Christoffersen, Arctic...... (n=659) and song notes (n=4394). All call types were present in the repertoire each year. Songs were composed of repetitive units referred here as song notes and were the most frequently documented type of vocalisation every year. Song notes had a stereotyped frequency contour and formed trains...

  7. Using Songs To Support Vocabulary Learning For Grade Four Pupils

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rashid Al-Azri

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Over the recent years the teaching of foreign language vocabulary has been the subject of much discussion and arguments and a number of research and methodology books on such topic have emerged as it is the case for example with Nation 2001 and Schmitt 2000. For a long time grammar seemed to have attracted more attention but this renewed interest in vocabulary reflects the belief that it is becoming a major component in knowing a language and as some recent scholars would admit even more important than grammar already. In addition to the various strategies used to promote vocabulary learning in the classroom environment songs are widely being used nowadays as a powerful tool in teaching new vocabulary to early grades pupils. Throughout our teaching of young learners we have noticed that they are amazingly captured by songs and they always enjoy listening to them. This might be one of the main reasons why songs have now become one of the cornerstones in the demanding and challenging process of teaching children. The purpose of this research paper is to find out as to what extent and how the use of songs may support new vocabulary learning for grade four pupils in Oman and how much it actually helps these young learners in developing their vocabulary learning habits.

  8. AHP 12: Silence in the Valley of Songs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    zla ba sgrol ma ཟླ་བ་སྒྲོལ་མ།

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available The text and more than one hundred full-page color plates document Tibetan folk music (particularly work songs, and local life in the Sman shod Valley, Sde dge County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province, China. Bo nyed, a local elder, describes the situation that motivated this timely documentation, "In the past we sang constantly, but now people don't sing no matter where they are or what they are doing. Now everyone is silent." The text includes richly contextualized and annotated transcriptions of the songs' Tibetan lyrics with English translations. Audio materials related to this publication can be found at: http://www.oralliterature.org/collections/zlaba001.html

  9. Comparison of learning ability and memory retention in altricial (Bengalese finch, Lonchura striata var. domestica) and precocial (blue-breasted quail, Coturnix chinensis) birds using a color discrimination task.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ueno, Aki; Suzuki, Kaoru

    2014-02-01

    The present study sought to assess the potential application of avian models with different developmental modes to studies on cognition and neuroscience. Six altricial Bengalese finches (Lonchura striata var. domestica), and eight precocial blue-breasted quails (Coturnix chinensis) were presented with color discrimination tasks to compare their respective faculties for learning and memory retention within the context of the two developmental modes. Tasks consisted of presenting birds with discriminative cues in the form of colored feeder lids, and birds were considered to have learned a task when 80% of their attempts at selecting the correctly colored lid in two consecutive blocks of 10 trials were successful. All of the finches successfully performed the required experimental tasks, whereas only half of the quails were able to execute the same tasks. In the learning test, finches required significantly fewer trials than quails to learn the task (finches: 13.5 ± 9.14 trials, quails: 45.8 ± 4.35 trials, P memory retention tests, which were conducted 45 days after the learning test, finches retained the ability to discriminate between colors correctly (95.0 ± 4.47%), whereas quails did not retain any memory of the experimental procedure and so could not be tested. These results suggested that altricial and precocial birds both possess the faculty for learning and retaining discrimination-type tasks, but that altricial birds perform better than precocial birds in both faculties. The present findings imply that developmental mode is an important consideration for assessing the suitability of bird species for particular experiments. © 2013 Japanese Society of Animal Science.

  10. Comparison of semiautomated bird song recognition with manual detection of recorded bird song samples

    OpenAIRE

    Lisa A. Venier; Marc J. Mazerolle; Anna Rodgers; Ken A. McIlwrick; Stephen Holmes; Dean Thompson

    2017-01-01

    Automated recording units are increasingly being used to sample wildlife populations. These devices can produce large amounts of data that are difficult to process manually. However, the information in the recordings can be summarized with semiautomated sound recognition software. Our objective was to assess the utility of the semiautomated bird song recognizers to produce data useful for conservation and sustainable forest management applications. We compared detection data generated from ex...

  11. Linguistic construct of songs of the Ham of Nigeria: A genre analysis ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The article examines the texts of songs of the Ham of Nigeria, a minority group, whose social links originate from kinship with a commonly held ancestry, to establish how such a relationship could be explicated in the content of the songs people from the society engage with. The study seeks to demonstrate the relationship ...

  12. Humpback whale, Megaptera novaeangliae, song during the ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Christina E. Perazio. Psychology Department, University of Southern Mississippi, ... thors identified the Gulf of Tribugá as a breeding ground where no recordings of .... Three distinct themes (Figure 1) were found in each song, and these were ...

  13. Musical skill in dementia: a violinist presumed to have Alzheimer's disease learns to play a new song.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cowles, Anne; Beatty, William W; Nixon, Sara Jo; Lutz, Lanna J; Paulk, Jason; Paulk, Kayla; Ross, Elliott D

    2003-12-01

    Previous studies have described patients with possible or probable Alzheimer's disease (AD) who continued to play familiar songs skillfully, despite their dementias. There are no reports about patients with dementia who successfully learned to play new songs, and two papers describe failures of patients with AD to learn to play a new song although they continued to play familiar songs competently. In the present paper we describe a moderately demented patient (SL) with probable AD who learned to play a song (Cossackaya!) on the violin that was published after the apparent onset of his dementia. He showed modest retention of the song at delays of 0 and 10 minutes. This contrasts with his profound disturbance in both recall and recognition on other anterograde memory tests (word lists, stories, figures, environmental sounds, sounds of musical instruments), and marked impairment on measures of remote memory (famous faces, autobiographical memory). SL showed milder deficits in confrontation naming, verbal fluency and attention, but no dyspraxia or aphasic comprehension deficits. Except for the Block Design test, his visuospatial skills were intact. SL's learning of the new song in the absence of any evidence of episodic memory is reminiscent of patients with temporal lobe amnesia who show better memory for song melody than for lyrics or verse, although his retention was not as good.

  14. Housing conditions and sacrifice protocol affect neural activity and vocal behavior in a songbird species, the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Elie, Julie Estelle; Soula, Hédi Antoine; Trouvé, Colette; Mathevon, Nicolas; Vignal, Clémentine

    2015-12-01

    Individual cages represent a widely used housing condition in laboratories. This isolation represents an impoverished physical and social environment in gregarious animals. It prevents animals from socializing, even when auditory and visual contact is maintained. Zebra finches are colonial songbirds that are widely used as laboratory animals for the study of vocal communication from brain to behavior. In this study, we investigated the effect of single housing on the vocal behavior and the brain activity of male zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata): male birds housed in individual cages were compared to freely interacting male birds housed as a social group in a communal cage. We focused on the activity of septo-hypothalamic regions of the "social behavior network" (SBN), a set of limbic regions involved in several social behaviors in vertebrates. The activity of four structures of the SBN (BSTm, medial bed nucleus of the stria terminalis; POM, medial preoptic area; lateral septum; ventromedial hypothalamus) and one associated region (paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus) was assessed using immunoreactive nuclei density of the immediate early gene Zenk (egr-1). We further assessed the identity of active cell populations by labeling vasotocin (VT). Brain activity was related to behavioral activities of birds like physical and vocal interactions. We showed that individual housing modifies vocal exchanges between birds compared to communal housing. This is of particular importance in the zebra finch, a model species for the study of vocal communication. In addition, a protocol that daily removes one or two birds from the group affects differently male zebra finches depending of their housing conditions: while communally-housed males changed their vocal output, brains of individually housed males show increased Zenk labeling in non-VT cells of the BSTm and enhanced correlation of Zenk-revealed activity between the studied structures. These results show that

  15. Singers' Recall for the Words and Melody of a New, Unaccompanied Song

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ginsborg, Jane; Sloboda, John A.

    2007-01-01

    The nature of the relationship between words and music in memory has been studied in a variety of ways, from investigations of listeners' recall for the words of songs stored in long-term memory to recall for novel information set to unfamiliar melodies. We asked singers to perform an unaccompanied song from memory following deliberate learning…

  16. Children’s identification of familiar songs from pitch and timing cues

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Anna eVolkova

    2014-08-01

    Full Text Available The goal of the present study was to ascertain whether children with normal hearing and prelingually deaf children with cochlear implants could use pitch or timing cues alone or in combination to identify familiar songs. Children 4-7 years of age were required to identify the theme songs of familiar TV shows in a simple task with excerpts that preserved (1 the relative pitch and timing cues of the melody but not the original instrumentation, (2 the timing cues only (rhythm, meter, and tempo, and (3 the relative pitch cues only (pitch contour and intervals. Children with normal hearing performed at high levels and comparably across the three conditions. The performance of child implant users was well above chance levels when both pitch and timing cues were available, marginally above chance with timing cues only, and at chance with pitch cues only. This is the first demonstration that children can identify familiar songs from monotonic versions—timing cues but no pitch cues—and from isochronous versions—pitch cues but no timing cues. The study also indicates that, in the context of a very simple task, young implant users readily identify songs from melodic versions that preserve pitch and timing cues.

  17. A generalized linear model for estimating spectrotemporal receptive fields from responses to natural sounds.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ana Calabrese

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available In the auditory system, the stimulus-response properties of single neurons are often described in terms of the spectrotemporal receptive field (STRF, a linear kernel relating the spectrogram of the sound stimulus to the instantaneous firing rate of the neuron. Several algorithms have been used to estimate STRFs from responses to natural stimuli; these algorithms differ in their functional models, cost functions, and regularization methods. Here, we characterize the stimulus-response function of auditory neurons using a generalized linear model (GLM. In this model, each cell's input is described by: 1 a stimulus filter (STRF; and 2 a post-spike filter, which captures dependencies on the neuron's spiking history. The output of the model is given by a series of spike trains rather than instantaneous firing rate, allowing the prediction of spike train responses to novel stimuli. We fit the model by maximum penalized likelihood to the spiking activity of zebra finch auditory midbrain neurons in response to conspecific vocalizations (songs and modulation limited (ml noise. We compare this model to normalized reverse correlation (NRC, the traditional method for STRF estimation, in terms of predictive power and the basic tuning properties of the estimated STRFs. We find that a GLM with a sparse prior predicts novel responses to both stimulus classes significantly better than NRC. Importantly, we find that STRFs from the two models derived from the same responses can differ substantially and that GLM STRFs are more consistent between stimulus classes than NRC STRFs. These results suggest that a GLM with a sparse prior provides a more accurate characterization of spectrotemporal tuning than does the NRC method when responses to complex sounds are studied in these neurons.

  18. "Wait a while, my love" -- an Indonesian popular song with a family planning message.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pekerti, R; Musa, R

    1989-10-01

    "Wait a While, My Love," recorded by pop singer Irianti Emingpraja, was the first Indonesian rock sock to contain a family planning message. The album including the song has sold over 100,000 copies. The song has also been packaged as a 60-second video that can be used as an opening theme for radio and television programs. The song, aimed at encouraging Indonesian youth to postpone marriage, has the following lyrics: "Flying free like a seagull/I'll cover many places 'round the world/Give me time for study and reflection, to grow as a mature wise woman/Oh, wait a while, my love/Don't buy me a ring, reflection of your inner love/I'll climb my way up to the top of the world/And reaching our rainbow of hope." The song was produced with support from the United Nations Fund for Population Activities and the Indonesian National Family Planning Coordinating Board. Key factors to be examined in producing a popular song with a family planning message include the specific message desired, the target audience, type of music, the singer, the producer, marketing, a multimedia campaign strategy, and distribution outlets.

  19. [Professor Xu Fu-song's traditional Chinese medicine protocols for male diseases: A descriptive analysis].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Cheng-yong; Xu, Fu-song

    2015-04-01

    To analyze the efficacy and medication principles of Professor Xu Fu-songs traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) protocols for male diseases. We reviewed and descriptively analyzed the unpublished complete medical records of 100 male cases treated by Professor Xu Fu-song with his TCM protocols from 1978 to 1992. The 100 cases involved 32 male diseases, most of which were difficult and complicated cases. The drug compliance was 95%. Each prescription was made up of 14 traditional Chinese drugs on average. The cure rate was 32% , and the effective rate was 85%. Professor Xu Fu-song advanced and proved some new theories and therapeutic methods. Professor Xu Fu-song's TCM protocols can be applied to a wide range of male diseases, mostly complicated, and are characterized by accurate differentiation of symptoms and signs, high drug compliance, and excellent therapeutic efficacy.

  20. Music Therapy by Proxy: Using Humanised Images in Song

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Carol Chambers

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available Developing awareness, exploration and expression of emotionally sensitive issues can be difficult for some clients in music therapy. They may find it hard to express emotion through improvised music and may turn instead to the perceived security of the repetition of known songs.This paper presents the results from a completed research PhD, a qualitative case study based on naturalistic clinical practice, which examined the song choices of one woman in a medium-secure forensic unit over the three-year course of her music therapy. A descriptive narrative account was subjected to analysis according to a modified form of therapeutic narrative analysis (Aldridge and Aldridge 2002, resulting in the abstraction of a series of generative metaphoric images, framed within a chronological series of events. Crucially, these images were found to be humanised figures, yet they were also emotionally decentred or depersonalised. When approached from the philosophical and methodological perspective of behaviourism, which views these as conditioned responses associating music with life experiences as part of a process of developing self-identity, such images can be seen to provide an unspoken voice for the client’s feelings to be expressed in a manner that is personally revealing, socially acceptable, culturally accessible and therapeutically constructive.I assert that using these third-person characters as a form of proxy facilitates mutual reference and experimentation, and places music firmly at the heart of a socially constructed process of music therapy.

  1. Short- and long-term consequences of early developmental conditions: a case study on wild and domesticated zebra finches.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tschirren, B; Rutstein, A N; Postma, E; Mariette, M; Griffith, S C

    2009-02-01

    Divergent selection pressures among populations can result not only in significant differentiation in morphology, physiology and behaviour, but also in how these traits are related to each other, thereby driving the processes of local adaptation and speciation. In the Australian zebra finch, we investigated whether domesticated stock, bred in captivity over tens of generations, differ in their response to a life-history manipulation, compared to birds taken directly from the wild. In a 'common aviary' experiment, we thereto experimentally manipulated the environmental conditions experienced by nestlings early in life by means of a brood size manipulation, and subsequently assessed its short- and long-term consequences on growth, ornamentation, immune function and reproduction. As expected, we found that early environmental conditions had a marked effect on both short- and long-term morphological and life-history traits in all birds. However, although there were pronounced differences between wild and domesticated birds with respect to the absolute expression of many of these traits, which are indicative of the different selection pressures wild and domesticated birds were exposed to in the recent past, manipulated rearing conditions affected morphology and ornamentation of wild and domesticated finches in a very similar way. This suggests that despite significant differentiation between wild and domesticated birds, selection has not altered the relationships among traits. Thus, life-history strategies and investment trade-offs may be relatively stable and not easily altered by selection. This is a reassuring finding in the light of the widespread use of domesticated birds in studies of life-history evolution and sexual selection, and suggests that adaptive explanations may be legitimate when referring to captive bird studies.

  2. Work Songs, Hegemony, and Illusions of Self.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Conrad, Charles

    1988-01-01

    Suggests a complex dialectical relationship among (1) the meanings that acculturation encourages workers to attribute to their everyday experiences; (2) the meanings enacted in country music work songs; and (3) the support of hierarchical social and organizational power relationships in workers' identities. (MS)

  3. Approaches to the mechanisms of song memorization and singing provide evidence for a procedural memory

    OpenAIRE

    Hultsch,Henrike; Todt,Dietmar

    2004-01-01

    There is growing evidence that, during song learning, birds do not only acquire 'what to sing' (the inventory of behavior), but also 'how to sing' (the singing program), including order-features of song sequencing. Common Nightingales Luscinia megarhynchos acquire such serial information by segmenting long strings of heard songs into smaller subsets or packages, by a process reminiscent of the chunking of information as a coding mechanism in short term memory. Here we report three tutoring ex...

  4. Video Songs from "Sesame Street": A Comparison of Fifth Graders' and Adults' Opinions Regarding Messages for Preschool Children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jellison, Judith A.; Wolfe, David E.

    1999-01-01

    Assesses the opinions of fifth graders and adults concerning messages conveyed to preschool children through video songs. Compares their responses to questions about the same video. Solicits opinions regarding the importance of the messages, whether they would be learned, and how well they would be liked by preschool children. (DSK)

  5. Northern Song Reflections on the Tang

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rice, Jeffrey

    2013-01-01

    In the mid-eleventh century Chinese intellectuals argued about history, and left their competing narratives to us in print. They contested how history should be written, and what relevant lessons ought to be adapted to the changing society of Song (960-1279) dynasty China. They were particularly concerned with the history of the long-lasting Tang…

  6. Deck Yourself with Flu Protection Song

    Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

    2009-12-22

    This song (sung to the tune of Deck the Halls) describes actions you can take to protect yourself and others from the flu. Sing along!  Created: 12/22/2009 by National Center for Preparedness, Detection, and Control of Infectious Diseases (NCPDCID), Division of Global Migration and Quarantine (DGMQ).   Date Released: 12/22/2009.

  7. The 12 Ways to Health Holiday Song

    Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

    2007-12-14

    This song (sung to the tune of The Twelve Days of Christmas) describes how to stay safe and healthy during the holidays and all year long.  Created: 12/14/2007 by CDC Office of Women's Health.   Date Released: 12/23/2007.

  8. The Characteristics and Social Function of the Tujia People’s Tima Sacred Songs

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    Chen Qian

    2016-01-01

    Sacrificial songs possess a mysteri-ous cultural identity and have been widely popular in Chinese folklore; at the same time it has been difficult to identify and record them all. Therefore, in the cultural history of the Han Chinese people, folkloristic sacrificial songs ( including ‘calling-soul-back lyrics’ or certain incantations closely re-lated to the sacrificial songs) rarely have been re-corded and/or successfully handed on to our day and age. In times past however, the sacrificial po-etry chanted by ethnic priests/shamans in various rituals and ceremonies was respected, protected, and widespread among the various people. Among all sacrificial music belonging to various ethnic groups in China, the music of the Tujia people is quite unique. The traditional worship culture of the Tujia has been very rich, elaborate, and mysterious. Due to intense cultural beliefs, the sacrificial mu-sic of the Tujia had become quite colorful. This u-nique musical style and rhyme reflects the Tujia people’ s unique historic and artistic charm, cus-toms, and connotations. The ancestors of the Tujia first lived in the isolated Wuling Mountains. Due to their limited productivity level, they weren’ t a-ble to interpret most natural and social phenome-na; instead they viewed these phenomena accord-ing to their personal animistic beliefs. In recent years, however, scholars have conducted a lot of research on the Tujia religious beliefs, including their sacrificial customs and music. In this con-text, the tima shenge ( tima sacred songs ) have enjoyed meticulous scholarly research from the per-spectives of both cultural philosophy and communi-cation. This article tries to explore the origin and mysterious musical features of the tima sacred songs, in order to better understand their socio-cultural function:this in turn could allow for a bet-ter protection and promotion of these songs. Tima sacred songs are the most ancient and o-riginal type of the Tujia songs. Tima is a

  9. Degradation of song in a species using nesting holes: the Pied Flycatcher Ficedula hypoleuca

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Helene M. Lampe

    2004-06-01

    Full Text Available The habitat, but also the nest hole of a hole-nesting species, will degrade the song during transmission. We investigated how the sounds degrade in a sound transmission experiment with the song of the Pied Flycatcher Ficedula hypoleuca (Muscicapidae. Ten different song elements were transmitted to microphones placed inside and outside a nest box. On average, song degradation was much greater inside than outside the nest boxes, especially with respect to excess attenuation and blurring of the song elements. Being inside a nest box therefore strongly reduces a Pied Flycatcher's possibility of detecting and recognizing songs or eavesdropping on singing interactions.O habitat, mas também a cavidade do ninho de uma espécie nidificando em ocos, provoca uma degradação do som durante sua transmissão. Pesquisamos como os sons são degradados num experimento de transmissão sonora usando o canto do pássaro Ficedula hypoleuca (Muscicapidae. Dez elementos diferentes do canto foram enviados para microfones colocados dentro e fora de uma caixa de nidificação. Em média, a degradação do canto foi muito maior dentro do que fora do ninho, particularmente no que diz respeito ao excesso de atenuação e à borrada dos elementos do canto. Estar dentro de uma cavidade de nidificação, portanto, reduz fortemente a capacidade da espécie de detectar e reconhecer cantos ou de interceptar interações vocais.

  10. Music and dance make me feel alive: from Mandela's prison songs and dances to public policy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Buis, Johann S

    2013-01-01

    How is it possible for song and dance to exist in political incarceration and manifest itself later as public policy responding to apartheid atrocities? Examining the body of songs, oral history accounts, and eye-witness reports provided by fellow-prisoners of Mandela on Robben Island prison, I uncover a psychological environment mediated through music and dance--within the confines of a political prison. This source of prison music-making by political prisoners in detention, provide us with the artistic expressions of revolutionary songs, parody songs, praise songs, laments, etc. These music genres reflect ontologies embedded in Mandela's juristic imagination. My framework for explaining these ontologies is a theoretical framework I call an aesthetic of function: internal ontologies that speak to the African cultural ground against which external ontologies are expressed in the jurisprudential redress to apartheid atrocities. Examining his external (jurisprudential) ontologies through song and dance, one realizes that the best way for him to have solved the unprecedented public redress of apartheid atrocities is evident in the songs he sang in Robben Island prison. Retribution could have been a logical solution for him. Instead, he turned to truth-telling and reconciliation as public policy. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission's unprecedented breaking of social and jurisprudential boundaries, the claim of agency for both victims and perpetrators, and public policy of South Africa's first democratically elected black president, lie deeply embedded in cultural practices he testified to in his autobiography, "The Long Walk to Freedom". These cultural practices in prison were singing and dancing. This paper complements the music-as-torture trope: here music in detention carries ontological agency. Musical evidence of stylistic features, text, and contextual analyses, and related literary criticism devices, expose Mandela's embedded internal and external

  11. Behavioral and neural lateralization of vision in courtship singing of the zebra finch.

    Science.gov (United States)

    George, Isabelle; Hara, Erina; Hessler, Neal A

    2006-09-01

    Along with human speech and language processing, birdsong has been one of the best-characterized model systems for understanding the relationship of lateralization of brain function to behavior. Lateralization of song production has been extensively characterized, and lateralization of song perception has begun to be studied. Here we have begun to examine whether behavior and brain function are lateralized in relation to communicative aspects of singing, as well. In order to monitor central brain function, we assayed the levels of several activity dependent immediate early genes after directed courtship singing. Consistent with a lateralization of visual processing during communication, there were higher levels of expression of both egr-1 and c-fos in the left optic tectum after directed singing. Because input from the eyes to the brain is almost completely contralateral in birds, these results suggest that visual input from the right eye should be favored during normal singing to females. Consistent with this, we further found that males sang more when they could use only their right eye compared to when they could use only their left eye. Normal levels of singing, though, required free use of both eyes to view the female. These results suggest that there is a preference for visual processing by the right eye and left brain hemisphere during courtship singing. This may reflect a proposed specialization of the avian left hemisphere in sustaining attention on stimuli toward which a motor response is planned.

  12. The emotional importance of key: do Beatles songs written in different keys convey different emotional tones?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Whissel, R; Whissel, C

    2000-12-01

    Lyrics from 155 songs written by the Lennon-McCartney team were scored using the Dictionary of Affect in Language. Resultant scores (pleasantness, activation, and imagery of words) were compared across key signatures using one way analyses of variance. Words from songs written in minor keys were less pleasant and less active than those from songs written in major keys. Words from songs written in the key of F scored extremely low on all three measures. Lyrics from the keys of C, D, and G were relatively active in tone. Results from Dictionary scoring were compared with assignments of character to keys made more than one century ago and with current musicians' opinions.

  13. Songs composed for use in music therapy: a survey of original songwriting practices of music therapists.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jones, Jennifer D

    2006-01-01

    While researchers have documented the efficacy of clinical songwriting in music therapy, limited research has been conducted on songs composed by music therapists that address clinical goals. The purpose of this research was to examine the original songwriting practices of music therapists. Professional music therapists (N = 1,364) received a 14-question survey via email asking each to identify client populations and clinical goals addressed by original songs, their length of time in clinical practice, and specifics about their acquisition of songwriting skills. The data collected from 302 completed surveys revealed that respondents who used original songs were most likely to work with children and adolescents in schools or the developmental disability field and wrote songs in order to individualize treatment. Music therapists working with persons over 65 years of age in long term care or assisted living programs were the least likely to use original songs in clinical practice, opting for interventions utilizing the client's familiar music. Most music therapists found songwriting generally easy, but only 37% indicated that they acquired this skill during their undergraduate degree. Additional research on the clinical efficacy of original songs and therapist's compositional processes is needed to identify best practices models for strategic songwriting.

  14. Personality is Tightly Coupled to Vasopressin-Oxytocin Neuron Activity in a Gregarious Finch

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aubrey M Kelly

    2014-02-01

    Full Text Available Nonapeptides of the vasopressin-oxytocin family modulate social processes differentially in relation to sex, species, behavioral phenotype, and human personality. However, the mechanistic bases for these differences are not well understood, in part because multidimensional personality structures remain to be described for common laboratory animals. Based upon principal components (PC analysis of extensive behavioral measures in social and nonsocial contexts, we now describe three complex dimensions of phenotype (personality for the zebra finch, a species that exhibits a human-like social organization that is based upon biparental nuclear families embedded within larger social groups. These dimensions can be characterized as Social competence/dominance, Gregariousness, and Anxiety. We further demonstrate that the phasic Fos response of nonapeptide neurons in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus and medial bed nucleus of the stria terminalis are significantly predicted by personality, sex, social context, and their interactions. Furthermore the behavioral PCs are each associated with a distinct suite of neural PCs that incorporate both peptide cell numbers and their phasic Fos responses, indicating that personality is reflected in complex patterns of neuromodulation arising from multiple peptide cell groups. These findings provide novel insights into the mechanisms underlying sex- and phenotype-specific modulation of behavior, and should be broadly relevant, given that vasopressin-oxytocin systems are strongly conserved across vertebrates.

  15. THE CORRELATION BETWEEN STUDENTS’ FREQUENCY OF LISTENING TO ENGLISH SONGS AND THEIR LISTENING ACHIEVEMENT

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Elvira Rosyida M. R.

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available This study is aimed at investigating whether there is a significant correlation between students’ frequency of listening to English songs and their listening achievement This study was conducted at the first year students of State Senior High School 9 Bandarlampung, Lampung. A descriptive quantitative was employed in this study which used ex-post facto design and the data were taken from questionnaire, semi-structured interview, and listening test. The data were analyzed by using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS version 16.0. The hypothesis was tested by using Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient. The test result showed that there is a significant correlation between students’ frequency of listening to English songs and their listening achievement. From the result of interview, it showed that most of the students believe that by having high frequency of listening to English songs, it helps them in recognizing the spoken language and get high score in listening ability.Keywords: listening to English song, listening ability, frequency of listening

  16. A PHONETIC CONTRASTIVE ANALYSIS OF ENGLISH WORDS IN THREE JAPANESE SONGS BY AKB48

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Harwintha Y. Anjarningsih

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available Many studies have revealed how Japanese speakers pronounce English words differently. However, not much research has explained the causes of the difference, let alone relating such difference with native language interference. By drawing a comparison between the sound structures of the English and Japanese languages using Contrastive Analysis Hypothesis (CAH, we will see how native language may influence foreign language usage and cause pronunciation differences in popular songs. Transcriptions of three AKB48’s songs – Heavy Rotation, Sugar Rush, and Namida Surprise – will be used as the data sources to determine native language interference. Our findings show that additions of vowel sounds, changes of syllable, changes of height and place of vowel articulation, replacements of a consonant with another consonant, and elisions of consonants happened to the English words across the three songs. These phonetic changes should inform discussions about the relationship between lyrics and melody in songs that incorporate two or more languages (i.e., bilingual.

  17. Divergence in male cricket song and female preference functions in three allopatric sister species.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hennig, Ralf Matthias; Blankers, Thomas; Gray, David A

    2016-05-01

    Multivariate female preference functions for male sexual signals have rarely been investigated, especially in a comparative context among sister species. Here we examined male signal and female preference co-variation in three closely related, but allopatric species of Gryllus crickets and quantified male song traits as well as female preferences. We show that males differ conspicuously in either one of two relatively static song traits, carrier frequency or pulse rate; female preference functions for these traits also differed, and would in combination enhance species discrimination. In contrast, the relatively dynamic song traits, chirp rate and chirp duty cycle, show minimal divergence among species and relatively greater conservation of female preference functions. Notably, among species we demonstrate similar mechanistic rules for the integration of pulse and chirp time scales, despite divergence in pulse rate preferences. As these are allopatric taxa, selection for species recognition per se is unlikely. More likely sexual selection combined with conserved properties of preference filters enabled divergent coevolution of male song and female preferences.

  18. Changes in the prevalence of alcohol use in rap song lyrics, 1979-97.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Herd, Denise

    2005-09-01

    This paper explores the role of changing images of drinking and alcoholic beverage use in rap music from its beginnings in the United States in the late 1970s to the late 1990s. A sample of 341 rap music song lyrics released from 1979 to 1997 were selected using Billboard and Gavin rating charts. Song lyrics were coded for music genres, alcohol beverage types and brand names, drinking behaviors, drinking contexts, intoxication, attitudes towards alcohol and consequences of drinking. From 1979 to 1997, songs with references to alcohol increased fivefold (from 8 to 44%); those exhibiting positive attitudes rose from 43% to 73%; and brand name mentions increased from 46% to 71%. There were also significant increases in songs mentioning champagne and liquor (mainly expensive brand names) when comparing songs released after 1994 with those from previous years. In addition, there were significant increases in references to alcohol to signify glamour and wealth, and using alcohol with drugs and for recreational purposes. The findings also showed that alcohol use in rap music was much more likely to result in positive than negative consequences. Many of these findings are consistent with the idea that rap music has been profoundly affected by commercial forces and the marketing of alcoholic beverages. In addition, it is possible that the increase in references to alcoholic beverages in rap music, particularly spirits, is a reflection of a broader advertising culture which increasingly associates African Americans with alcohol use.

  19. Hippocampal sclerosis affects fMR-adaptation of lyrics and melodies in songs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Irene eAlonso

    2014-02-01

    Full Text Available Songs constitute a natural combination of lyrics and melodies, but it is unclear whether and how these two song components are integrated during the emergence of a memory trace. Network theories of memory suggest a prominent role of the hippocampus, together with unimodal sensory areas, in the build-up of conjunctive representations. The present study tested the modulatory influence of the hippocampus on neural adaptation to songs in lateral temporal areas. Patients with unilateral hippocampal sclerosis and healthy matched controls were presented with blocks of short songs in which lyrics and/or melodies were varied or repeated in a crossed factorial design. Neural adaptation effects were taken as correlates of incidental emergent memory traces. We hypothesized that hippocampal lesions, particularly in the left hemisphere, would weaken adaptation effects, especially the integration of lyrics and melodies. Results revealed that lateral temporal lobe regions showed weaker adaptation to repeated lyrics as well as a reduced interaction of the adaptation effects for lyrics and melodies in patients with left hippocampal sclerosis. This suggests a deficient build-up of a sensory memory trace for lyrics and a reduced integration of lyrics with melodies, compared to healthy controls. Patients with right hippocampal sclerosis showed a similar profile of results although the effects did not reach significance in this population. We highlight the finding that the integrated representation of lyrics and melodies typically shown in healthy participants is likely tied to the integrity of the left medial temporal lobe. This novel finding provides the first neuroimaging evidence for the role of the hippocampus during repetitive exposure to lyrics and melodies and their integration into a song.

  20. The Interpretation Of Metaphor Found In 20 Songs Of Taylor Swift

    OpenAIRE

    Desriani, Shella

    2015-01-01

    This paper entitled The interpretation of metaphor found in 20 of taylor swift. this paper discuss the types and meaning of metaphor in the lyrics of the song taylor swift. The purpose of this paper is to analyze types of metaphor in the form of simile, personification and hyperbole contained in the lyrics of the song taylor swift. In this paper the authors wrote the paper used the method of literature, collect some data from some books, and the internet. the lyric which contained metaphors i...

  1. Moths produce extremely quiet ultrasonic courtship songs by rubbing specialized scales

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nakano, Ryo; Skals, Niels; Takanashi, Takuma

    2008-01-01

    level at 1 cm) adapted for private sexual communication in the Asian corn borer moth, Ostrinia furnacalis. During courtship, the male rubs specialized scales on the wing against those on the thorax to produce the songs, with the wing membrane underlying the scales possibly acting as a sound resonator....... The male's song suppresses the escape behavior of the female, thereby increasing his mating success. Our discovery of extremely low-intensity ultrasonic communication may point to a whole undiscovered world of private communication, using "quiet" ultrasound....

  2. Geographic variation in the song of Willow Flycatchers: Differentiation between Empidonax traillii adastus and E. t. extimus

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sedgwick, J.A.

    2001-01-01

    The vocal signatures of the primary song form (“fitz-bew”) of the endangered Southwestern Willow Flycatcher (Empidonax traillii extimus) and its northern counterpart, E. t. adastus, are distinctive. Songs of the extimus subspecies are longer (total song, note, internote) and frequencies at maximum amplitude are lower than those of adastus. I used vocal evidence to clarify the distributional limits of the Southwestern Willow Flycatcher and that of the geographically adjacent subspecies, E. t. adastus. Unweighted pair-group method using averaging (UPGMA) cluster analysis and canonical discriminant analysis revealed that (1) low elevation, southerly desert populations (Arizona, New Mexico, and southern Utah) have a unique vocal identity corresponding to populations in the range of E. t. extimus; (2) northerly song groups (Oregon, Colorado, and northern Utah) share a different song type corresponding to populations in the range of E. t. adastus; and (3) a departure from vocal and morphological congruence occurs for a population of high-elevation Arizona birds that, although in the currently accepted range of E. t. extimus, sings songs acoustically similar to more northern populations (E. t. adastus). Multiple regression of song distance on latitude and elevation, and a comparison of a matrix of song distances with a matrix of latitude and elevation dissimilarities, demonstrated that song populations sort out by both latitude and elevation: birds with the vocal identity of extimus occur as far north as 37°N if at low elevation, and those acoustically similar to adastus occur as far south as 33.7°N if at high elevation. The vocal background of northern New Mexico birds appears to be intermediate between that of extimus and adastus, suggesting that northern New Mexico is a zone of intermixing and intergradation between the subspecies. Pure forms of E. t. extimus apparently do not occur in Colorado because even the southernmost populations are acoustically similar to

  3. Causes and consequences of song amplitude adjustment in a territorial bird: a case study in nightingales

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Brumm Henrik

    2004-01-01

    Full Text Available Vocal amplitude, one of the crucial factors for the exchange of acoustic signals, has been neglected in studies of animal communication, but recent studies on song variation in Common Nightingales Luscinia megarhynchos have revealed new insights into its importance in the singing behavior of territorial birds. In nightingales song amplitude is not maximized per se, but is individually regulated according to the level of masking background noise. Also, birds adjust their vocal intensity according to social variables, as in male-male interactions. Moreover, during such interactions, males exploited the directionality of their songs to broadcast them in the direction of the intended receivers ensuring the most effective signal transmission. Studies of the development of this typical long-range signaling suggest that sound level is highly interrelated with overall developmental progression and learning, and thus should be viewed as an integral part of song ontogeny. I conclude that song amplitude is a dynamic feature of the avian signal system, which is individually regulated according to the ecological demands of signal transmission and the social context of communication.

  4. Humpback whale, Megaptera novaeangliae, song during the ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Colombia Foundation to educate the communities of the Gulf of. Tribugá about the ... humpback whales (Winn and Winn 1978). Humpback whale song. ARTICLE .... mental (e.g., wind, waves) or anthropogenic (e.g., water craft) fea- tures, as well ..... rine Sanctuary, Division of Aquatic Resources, Department of Land and Na-.

  5. Grieg: Songs and dramatic works with orchestra. / Alan Blyth

    Index Scriptorium Estoniae

    Blyth, Alan

    1993-01-01

    Uuest heliplaadist "Grieg: Songs and dramatic works with orchestra. Barbara Bonney, Randi Stene, Hakan Hagegard, Ruth Tellefsen, Gothenburg Symphony Chorus and Orchestra, Neeme Järvi." CD 437 519 - 2GH

  6. Phenotypic differentiation in love song traits among sibling species of the Lutzomyia longipalpis complex in Brazil.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vigoder, Felipe M; Souza, Nataly A; Brazil, Reginaldo P; Bruno, Rafaela V; Costa, Pietra L; Ritchie, Michael G; Klaczko, Louis B; Peixoto, Alexandre A

    2015-05-28

    Brazilian populations of Lutzomyia longipalpis may constitute a complex of cryptic species, and this report investigates the distribution and number of potential sibling species. One of the main differences observed among Brazilian populations is the type of acoustic signal produced by males during copulation. These copulation song differences seem to be evolving faster than neutral molecular markers and have been suggested to contribute to insemination failure observed in crosses between these sibling species. In previous studies, two main types of copulation songs were found, burst-type and pulse-type. The latter type can, in turn, be further subdivided into five different patterns. We recorded male song from 13 new populations of the L. longipalpis complex from Brazil and compared the songs with 12 already available. Out of these 25 populations, 16 produce burst-type and 9 produce pulse-type songs. We performed a principal component analysis in these two main groups separately and an additional discriminant analysis in the pulse-type group. The pulse-type populations showed a clear separation between the five known patterns with a high correspondence of individuals to their correct group, confirming the differentiation between them. The distinctiveness of the burst-type subgroups was much lower than that observed among the pulse-type groups and no clear population structure was observed. This suggests that the burst-type populations represent a single species. Overall, our results are consistent with the existence in Brazil of at least six species of the L. longipalpis complex, one with a wide distribution comprising all the populations with burst-type songs, and five more closely related allopatric siblings with different pulse-type song patterns and more restricted distribution ranges.

  7. Uropygial gland volatiles may code for olfactory information about sex, individual, and species in Bengalese finches Lonchura striata

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jian-Xu ZHANG et al.

    2009-10-01

    Full Text Available Over-shadowed by eye-catching vocal and visual signals, chemical communication has long been overlooked in birds. This study aimed at exploring whether volatile composition of the uropygial gland secretion (UGS of birds was associated with the information about sex, individual and species. By using dichloromethane extraction and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS, we analyzed the UGS volatiles of domesticated Bengalese finches (Lonchura striata, Estrildiea which is also known as white-rumped munias. We characterized 16 volatile molecules from the UGS, including eight n-alkanols, five diesters, an ester, an aldehyde and a fatty acid, and quantified them in terms of GC peak area percentages (relative abundances. Among these compounds, hexadecanol and octadecanol were major components in both sexes. The former was richer in males than females and the latter richer in females than males, suggesting that they might be male and female pheromone candidates, respectively. The high inter-individual variations, in relative abundance, of the UGS volatiles implied that they might carry information about individuality. The similarity between GC profiles of the UGS and wing feather from same individuals indicates that the birds might preen the secretion to their feathers to transmit chemical cues. Additionally, by comparing with three sympatric passerine species,i.e., zebra finches Taeniopygia guttata, yellow-bowed buntings Emberiza chrysophrys and rooks Corvus frugilegus, we found that the composition of C13-C18 alkanols in the UGS might contain information about species. Our study also show that quantitative differences (degree of same UGS volatiles might be the key for the Bengalese finch to code for information about sex and individuality whereas both the kind and degree of UGS constituents could be utilized to code for information about species [Current Zoology 55 (5:–2009].

  8. Songs and storytelling: bringing health messages to life in Uganda.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Silver, D

    2001-01-01

    In villages without doctors and hospitals in the remote eastern Ugandan district of Pallisa, traditional birth attendants and mothers are solving the most serious health problems through the teaching power of songs and stories. The village's rich oral tradition was enlisted as the principal means not only for transmitting these important health messages, but also for supporting their practice throughout the community. Utilizing existing community traditions such as songs and storytelling offers culturally appropriate ways of enhancing the communications component of the health care system to make it serve the poor majority in a readily comprehensible, credible, affordable, and accessible form. These non-formal active-learning methods are highly compatible with and promotive of the general principles of primary health care, especially for their empowering, participatory and sustainable qualities. It is only a natural extension for health educators to more fully employ the use of the time-honored oral traditions of songs and storytelling as a vehicle for communicating health messages. For students in the health professions, awareness of these proven principles for engaging people at the local levels will contribute to more effective training, strategic program design, and advocacy.

  9. Frontal lobe neurodegeneration - Use of songs in the music therapy setting

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ridder, Hanne Mette Ochsner

    2005-01-01

    .g. in vascular or frontotemporal dementia) it is difficult to avoid secondary symptoms of the brain damage that is caused by missing communicative abilities and difficulties in fulfilment of psychosocial needs. Songs are used to build up the music therapy setting with this client group. The songs function......When the frontal lobes are damaged by neurodegeneration certain qualities of psychosocial functioning are changed. The person might show lack of initiative, poor social judgment, and loss of personal and social awareness. When these symptoms co-occur with other cortical degeneration (e...

  10. [Analysis of chemical constituents of volatile components from Jia Ga Song Tang by GC-MS].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tan, Qing-long; Xiong, Tian-qin; Liao, Jia-yi; Yang, Tao; Zhao, Yu-min; Lin, Xi; Zhang, Cui-xian

    2014-10-01

    To analyze the chemical components of volatile components from Jia Ga Song Tang. The volatile oils were extracted by water steam distillation. The chemical components of essential oil were analyzed by GC-MS and quantitatively determined by a normalization method. 103 components were separated and 87 components were identified in the volatile oil of Zingiberis Rhizoma. 58 components were separated and 38 components were identified in the volatile oil of Myristicae Semen. 49 components were separated and 38 components were identified in the volatile oil of Amomi Rotundus Fructus. 89 components were separated and 63 components were identified in the volatile oil of Jia Ga Song Tang. Eucalyptol, β-phellandrene and other terpenes were the main compounds in the volatile oil of Jia Ga Song Tang. Changes in the kinds and content of volatile components can provide evidences for scientific and rational compatibility for Jia Ga Song Tang.

  11. Sexual imprinting on continuous variation: do female zebra finches prefer or avoid unfamiliar sons of their foster parents?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schielzeth, H; Burger, C; Bolund, E; Forstmeier, W

    2008-09-01

    Sexual imprinting on discrete variation that serves the identification of species, morphs or sexes is well documented. By contrast, sexual imprinting on continuous variation leading to individual differences in mating preferences within a single species, morph and sex has been studied only once (in humans). We measured female preferences in a captive population of wild-type zebra finches. Individual cross-fostering ensured that all subjects grew up with unrelated foster parents and nest mates. Females from two cohorts (N = 113) were given a simultaneous choice between (two or four) unfamiliar males, one of which was a genetic son of their foster parents (SFP). We found no significant overall preference for the SFP (combined effect size d = 0.14 +/- 0.15). Additionally, we tested if foster parent traits could potentially explain between-female variation in preferences. However, neither the effectiveness of cooperation between the parents nor male contribution to parental care affected female preferences for the son of the foster father. We conclude that at least in zebra finches sexual imprinting is not a major source of between-individual variation in mating preferences.

  12. Sleep and Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Margoliash, Daniel

    2010-03-01

    The neural basis of cognition represents a grand challenge problem involving multiple disciplines and approaches to the analysis of behavior. Song learning by juvenile songbirds such as zebra finches has proven to have considerable utility for exploring how behavior is represented at multiple levels of brain function. As classically described, young birds are exposed to a ``tutor'' (adult) song and commit that song to memory early in life, then engage in an extended period (weeks) of plastic singing as they slowly learn to match vocal output to the tutor song memory via auditory feedback. In recent years, the role of sleep in learning processes has been actively explored. Young birds isolated from adult songs, then suddenly given access to such songs at circa 40 days of age, show a sudden change in their singing behavior starting on the day following first exposure. Such birds sing songs that have less structure in the mornings than do the songs sung in the afternoons before or after that morning. This fluctuation is directly the result of sleep (not circadian rhythm), and the magnitude of fluctuation is positively correlated with the ultimate similarity to the tutor song. Examining spontaneous neuronal activity in certain brain structures during the night in sleeping adults shows ``replay'' of the patterns of activity the same neurons exhibit during daytime singing, and ``preplay'' of new patterns that will first be incorporated into daytime singing the following day. In experiments on juveniles, nighttime neuronal activity shows dramatic changes associated with song learning, even on the night after the first day of tutor song exposure (preceding changes in singing behavior). Offline processing, especially sleep, has been well documented to participate in memory consolidation in a very broad range of behaviors including in humans. Placing the bird song results in a theoretical framework thereby helps to inform a very broad range of phenomena.

  13. Sexual Dimorphism in the Early Embryogenesis in Zebra Finches.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Makhsud Tagirov

    Full Text Available Sex-specific gene expression before the onset of gonadogensis has been documented in embryos of mammals and chickens. In several mammalian species, differences in gene expression are accompanied by faster growth of pre-implantation male embryos. Here we asked whether avian embryos before gonadal differentiation are also sex-dimorphic in size and what genes regulate their growth. We used captive zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata whose freshly laid eggs were artificially incubated for 36-40 hours. Analyses controlling for the exact time of incubation of 81 embryos revealed that males were larger than females in terms of Hamburger and Hamilton stage and number of somites. Expression of 15 genes involved in cell cycle regulation, growth, metabolic activity, steroidogenic pathway and stress modulation were measured using RT-PCR in 5 male and 5 female embryos incubated for exactly 36 h. We found that in the presence of equal levels of the growth hormone itself, the faster growth of male embryos is most likely achieved by the overexpression of the growth hormone receptor gene and three other genes responsible for cell cycle regulation and metabolism, all of them located on the Z chromosome. Autosomal genes did not show sex-specific expression, except for the steroidogenic factor 1 which was expressed only in female embryos. To our knowledge this is the first report of sexual size dimorphism before gonadogenesis in birds. The finding suggests that faster growth of early male embryos is conserved through the mammalian and bird phyla, irrespective of their differential sex chromosome systems.

  14. Genetics of sexual isolation based on courtship song between two sympatric species: Drosophila ananassae and D. pallidosa.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yamada, Hirokazu; Matsuda, Muneo; Oguma, Yuzuru

    2002-11-01

    Sexual isolation has been considered one of the primary causes of speciation and its genetic study has the potential to reveal the genetics of speciation. In Drosophila, the importance of courtship songs in sexual isolation between closely related species has been well investigated, but studies analysing the genetic basis of the difference in the courtship songs associated with sexual isolation are less well documented. Drosophila ananassae and Drosophila pallidosa are useful for studies of sexual isolation, because of their sympatric distribution and absence of postmating isolation. Courtship songs are known to play a crucial role in sexual isolation between these two species, and the female discrimination behaviour against the courting male has been revealed to be controlled by a very narrow region on the second chromosome. In this study we investigated the genetic basis controlling the song differences associated with their sexual isolation, using intact and wingless males with chromosomes substituted between species. The results obtained from F1 hybrid males between these species indicate the dominance of the song characters favoured by D. pallidosa females. In addition, the results obtained from backcross F2 males indicate that chromosome 2 had a major effect on the control of the song characters associated with sexual isolation.

  15. Digital Games, Songs and Flashcards and their Effects on Vocabulary Knowledge of Iranian Preschoolers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mahboubeh Taghizadeh

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available The study aimed to investigate (a the effect of digital games, songs, and flashcards on vocabulary knowledge of Iranian EFL preschool learners and (b the young learners‟ performance on mid-course tests of vocabulary with different topics. The participants included 350 preschool female learners in Oshnaviyeh, a town in Western Azarbaijan Province and were divided into three tablet, song, and traditional groups. Pre and post-tests of vocabulary and four mid-course tests based, on the learnt vocabularies, were administered during the research. The materials also consisted of a digital game, 16 songs, a structured student book, a workbook, and 60 flashcards. The analysis of the data revealed that there was no significant difference in the vocabulary knowledge of preschool learners who learnt vocabularies via games, songs, and flashcards. The results also showed that there was a significant difference in the three groups‟ mid-course tests with different topics. The findings recommend that using different techniques in the classroom considering learners‟ interest and needs can improve vocabulary knowledge of young learners.

  16. Children's songs and human factor development: A comparative ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    ... disparate cultural zones creates a fundamental human crisis. This is precisely the case because the two categories of songs advance diametrically variant and irreconcilable codes of cognitive enrichment. For instance, English nursery rhymes are part of the discursive infrastructure for solidifying European hegemony.

  17. National Metrical Types in Nineteenth Century Art Song

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Leigh VanHandel

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available William Rothstein’s article “National metrical types in music of the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries” (2008 proposes a distinction between the metrical habits of 18th and early 19th century German music and those of Italian and French music of that period. Based on theoretical treatises and compositional practice, he outlines these national metrical types and discusses the characteristics of each type. This paper presents the results of a study designed to determine whether, and to what degree, Rothstein’s characterizations of national metrical types are present in 19th century French and German art song. Studying metrical habits in this genre may provide a lens into changing metrical conceptions of 19th century theorists and composers, as well as to the metrical habits and compositional style of individual 19th century French and German art song composers.

  18. Memory for frequency of hearing popular songs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fidler, J R; Zechmeister, E B; Shaughnessy, J J

    1988-01-01

    In two experiments college students were asked to provide situational frequency estimates of 10-s excerpts from rock songs. In both experiments familiarity of the musical selections heard one, two, three, or four times was varied. In Experiment 2 the nature of instructions given to subjects prior to presentation of the musical excerpts was also manipulated. Across both experiments subjects' estimates were less accurate for unfamiliar than for familiar rock music. In Experiment 2 instructions to remember frequency, as well as general memory instructions, resulted in better memory for presentation frequency than did instructions to "ignore" music while working on math problems. Memory for situational frequency was also related to knowledge of rock music as defined by subjects' ability to identify the titles and artists of the presented songs. The present pattern of results with popular music is viewed as similar to that obtained in experiments investigating memory for frequency of verbal stimuli. Although providing support for an automatic processing view of frequency encoding, the results also implicate meaningful elaboration of stimuli as an important determinant of memory for frequency of events.

  19. Increased fat catabolism sustains water balance during fasting in zebra finches.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rutkowska, Joanna; Sadowska, Edyta T; Cichoń, Mariusz; Bauchinger, Ulf

    2016-09-01

    Patterns of physiological flexibility in response to fasting are well established, but much less is known about the contribution of water deprivation to the observed effects. We investigated body composition and energy and water budget in three groups of zebra finches: birds with access to food and water, food-deprived birds having access to drinking water and food-and-water-deprived birds. Animals were not stimulated by elevated energy expenditure and they were in thermoneutral conditions; thus, based on previous studies, water balance of fasting birds was expected to be maintained by increased catabolism of proteins. In contrast to this expectation, we found that access to water did not prevent reduction of proteinaceous tissue, but it saved fat reserves of the fasting birds. Thus, water balance of birds fasting without access to water seemed to be maintained by elevated fat catabolism, which generated 6 times more metabolic water compared with that in birds that had access to water. Therefore, we revise currently established views and propose fat to serve as the primary source for metabolic water production. Previously assumed increased protein breakdown for maintenance of water budget would occur if fat stores were depleted or if fat catabolism reached its upper limits due to high energy demands. © 2016. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

  20. Reconnaissance invariante d'objets 3-D et correlation SONG

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roy, Sebastien

    Cette these propose des solutions a deux problemes de la reconnaissance automatique de formes: la reconnaissance invariante d'objets tridimensionnels a partir d'images d'intensite et la reconnaissance robuste a la presence de bruit disjoint. Un systeme utilisant le balayage angulaire des images et un classificateur par trajectoires d'espace des caracteristiques permet d'obtenir la reconnaissance invariante d'objets tridimensionnels. La reconnaissance robuste a la presence de bruit disjoint est realisee au moyen de la correlation SONG. Nous avons realise la reconnaissance invariante aux translations, rotations et changements d'echelle d'objets tridimensionnels a partir d'images d'intensite segmentees. Nous utilisons le balayage angulaire et un classificateur a trajectoires d'espace des caracteris tiques. Afin d'obtenir l'invariance aux translations, le centre de balayage angulaire coincide avec le centre geometrique de l'image. Le balayage angulaire produit un vecteur de caracteristiques invariant aux changements d'echelle de l'image et il transforme en translations du signal les rotations autour d'un axe parallele a la ligne de visee. Le classificateur par trajectoires d'espace des caracteristiques represente une rotation autour d'un axe perpendiculaire a la ligne de visee par une courbe dans l'espace. La classification se fait par la mesure de la distance du vecteur de caracteristiques de l'image a reconnaitre aux trajectoires stockees dans l'espace. Nos resultats numeriques montrent un taux de classement atteignant 98% sur une banque d'images composee de 5 vehicules militaires. La correlation non-lineaire generalisee en tranches orthogonales (SONG) traite independamment les niveaux de gris presents dans une image. Elle somme les correlations lineaires des images binaires ayant le meme niveau de gris. Cette correlation est equivalente a compter le nombre de pixels situes aux memes positions relatives et ayant les memes intensites sur deux images. Nous presentons

  1. Distributed Recognition of Natural Songs by European Starlings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Knudsen, Daniel; Thompson, Jason V.; Gentner, Timothy Q.

    2010-01-01

    Individual vocal recognition behaviors in songbirds provide an excellent framework for the investigation of comparative psychological and neurobiological mechanisms that support the perception and cognition of complex acoustic communication signals. To this end, the complex songs of European starlings have been studied extensively. Yet, several…

  2. Shostakovich: The Orchestral Songs Vol. 2 / Michael Tanner

    Index Scriptorium Estoniae

    Tanner, Michael

    1996-01-01

    Uuest heliplaadist "Shostakovich: The Orchestral Songs Vol. 2: Six Romances on texts by Japanese poets, Op. 21. Six Poems on Marina Tsvetayeva, Op. 143. Suite on Verses of Michelangelo, Op. 145. Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, Neeme Järvi". DG 447 085-2GH (71 minutes:DDD)

  3. Use of a barbed tool by an adult and a juvenile woodpecker finch (Cactospiza pallida).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sabine, Tebbich; Irmgard, Teschke; Erica, Cartmill; Sophia, Stankewitz

    2012-02-01

    Here we describe the modification and use of a new tool type in the woodpecker finch (Cactospiza pallida). This species is known to habitually use twigs or cactus spines to extract arthropods out of tree holes. We observed an adult and a juvenile bird using several barbed twigs from introduced blackberry bushes (Rubus niveus) which the adult bird had first modified by removing leaves and side twigs. The barbs of blackberry tools provide a novel functional feature not present in tools made from native plants and de-leafing of twigs never has been observed before. Both birds were observed using several of these tools to extract prey from under the bark of the native scalesia tree (Scalesia penduculta). They oriented the twigs such that the barbs pointed towards themselves; this rendered the barbs functional as they could be used to drag prey out of a crevice. The juvenile bird first watched the adult using the tool and then used the tool that the adult bird had left under the bark at the same location and in the same way as the adult. Our observation highlights the fact that opportunities for the transmission of social information do occur in the wild and indicates that woodpecker finches are flexible in their choice of tool material and tool modification. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  4. Woman Survival in Chinese Feudal Patrilineal Society: An Analysis of Song Lian's Destiny in Qi Qie Chenqun By Su Tong

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xuc Lin

    2009-05-01

    Full Text Available Article depicted woman’s difficulties in maintaining her life as well as her aggressiveness in the patrilineal society in Chinese feudal time. Article analyzed Song Lian’s bad fate. She was the main character of qi qie chenqun novel, written by Su Tong. Article analysis consisted of three parts. The first part described Song Lian’s background of life and her becoming a mistress. The second part indicated Song Lian’s attacking behavior to other woman because of defending her life. His third part analyzed some causes that made Song Lian did not survive in life. It can be concluded that the fact, Song Lian is able to be survive but she decides to be a mistress caused by both personal and o social reasons. Song Lian’s attacking other woman is caused by her anger representing her unsuccessful life. Principally, Song Lian’s failure in the feudal life is caused by her unsuccessful in becoming a respected woman. If she had been a respected woman, she would have also competed with other women in achieving a better life.      

  5. [Professor SONG Nanchang's experience for treatment of peripheral facial paralysis].

    Science.gov (United States)

    He, Yong; Pan, Hao; Xu, Hanbin

    2015-06-01

    Professor SONG Nanchang's clinical experience and characteristics for treatment of peripheral facial paralysis are introduced. In clinical treatment, professor SONG has adopted staging treatment strategy, and performed acupuncture stimulation with different levels. He attaches great importance to the acupoint selection on distal limbs. For the treatment on the face, he takes temperature as necessity; he inherits from famous Chinese doctor ZONG Ruilin's acupuncture technique of slow-twisting and gentle-pressing. Meanwhile, he excels in combination, of different therapies, using acupuncture, moxibustion, electroacupuncture, auricular point sticking, Chinese herbal medicine, etc. according to individual condition and disease stages. He also emphasizes on psychological counseling and daily life care to achieve rehabilitation within the shortest time.

  6. American Minimalism: The Western Vernacular in Norman Mailer’s The Executioner’s Song.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andrew Wilson

    2009-05-01

    Full Text Available This paper identifies and discusses the western vernacular and minimalist tendencies in Norman Mailer’s 1980 Pulitzer Prize winning “true-life story” The Executioner’s Song.  Mailer’s use of a lean, often flat style of narration is read in relation to Truman Capote’s “non-fiction novel” In Cold Blood to measure the extent to which Mailer moved beyond a conventional novelistic approach. The article positions The Executioner’s Song alongside earlier minimalist styles in American Literature and takes stock of Mailer’s use of oral storytelling techniques and panoramic perspectives. Mailer’s minimal presence in the narrative and the original capital punishment proceedings is established, with support from early reviews, debates surrounding the genre of The Executioner’s Song and interviews given by the author since its publication in 1979.

  7. Vasodilatory effects of exogenous nitric oxide on the brood patch of the Zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata)

    OpenAIRE

    Södergren, Anna

    2010-01-01

    In birds like the Zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata) the female, but not the male develop a brood patch upon incubation of eggs. The brood patch functions to increase heat exchange between the bird and the eggs. Development of the brood patch includes de-feathering, increased vascularization and edema formation. The increased vascularization is due to the development of arteriovenous anastomoses, AVA. The AVA are thermoregulatory vessels involved in cold induced vasodilation, CIVD, demonstrate...

  8. Facial temperature data Sing-a-Song StressTest

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Brouwer, A.M.

    2013-01-01

    We here introduce a new experimental paradigm to induce mental stress in a quick and easy way while adhering to ethical standards and controlling for potential confounds resulting from sensory input, body movements and behavior of people involved in conducting the experiment. In our Sing-a-Song

  9. Preserving American Folk Heritage through Story and Song.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jalongo, Mary Renck

    Underscoring folklore's appropriateness to multicultural classroom settings are its connection with past and present cultures, its constancy and change, and its potential for oral transmission of human values. Most importantly, folktales and songs enable children to participate in the history of universal human emotions. To effectively include…

  10. Science Song Project: Integration of Science, Technology and Music to Learn Science and Process Skills

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jiyoon Yoon

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available It has been critical to find a way for teachers to motivate their young children to learn science and improve science achievement. Since music has been used as a tool for educating young students, this study introduces the science song project to teacher candidates that contains science facts, concepts, laws and theories, and combines them with music for motivating their young children to learn science and improve science achievement. The purpose of the study is to determine the effect of the science song project on teacher candidates’ understanding of science processing skills and their attitudes toward science. The participants were 45 science teacher candidates who were enrolled in an EC-6 (Early Childhood through Grade 6 program in the teacher certification program at a racially diverse Texas public research university. To collect data, this study used two instruments: pre-and post-self efficacy tests before and after the science teacher candidates experienced the science song project and final reflective essay at the end of the semester. The results show that while developing their songs, the participating teacher candidates experienced a process for science practice, understood science concepts and facts, and positively improved attitudes toward science. This study suggests that the science song project is a science instruction offering rich experiences of process-based learning and positive attitudes toward science.

  11. The Effect of Listening to English Songs on Iranian EFL Pre-intermediate Learners’ Listening Comprehension

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mahin Rezaei

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available The aim of this study was to find out whether listening to English songs can improve pre-intermediate EFL learners’ listening comprehension. To this end, a non-randomized pretest-posttest control group design as one of the quasi-experimental research designs was employed. The sample of the study consisted of 40 male and female English learners from two classes in an Institute in Marand, Iran. The two classes were randomly assigned into the experimental and control groups.  Then, a PET test was used to check the homogeneity of both groups. The listening section of PET was also considered as the pretest of the study. Then, fifteen English songs were used in the experimental group during the treatment period. Each session, within 45 minutes, one song was played for and practiced with the learners. Meanwhile, the control group had their usual teacher -fronted class without listening to songs. At the end, both groups were post tested on their listening comprehension using the listening section of another version of PET. The collected data were analyzed using Independent-Samples and Paired-Samples t-tests. The results revealed a statistically significant improvement in the performance of the experimental group. It is implied that songs are not only an entertaining tool but they can also be used as a pedagogic material in improving learners’ listening comprehension.

  12. A mixed methods analysis of songs written by bereaved preadolescents in individual music therapy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roberts, Melina; McFerran, Katrina

    2013-01-01

    Providing opportunities for children to process loss and express grief in response to the loss of a loved one has been shown to assist with successful coping (Worden, 1996). Songwriting may be a relevant method that fosters the expression of thoughts and feelings related to the loss. The purpose of this study was to analyse lyrics written by bereaved children during individual music therapy and to determine if they did use the opportunity to address grief through songwriting. Participants were 14 bereaved children (13 girls, 1 boy) aged between 7 and 12 years. Children were recruited and participated in individual music therapy in their homes with a credentialed music therapist. Participants wrote a total of 49 songs and their lyrics were analysed using a mixed methods content analysis. An inductive analysis identified categories existing within the lyrics and each lyric was then deductively attributed to one of the categories. Results revealed that the children wrote songs about themselves, their experiences, and their relationships, including, but not limited to the topic of loss. It became apparent that through songwriting these children expressed their experiences of the world based on their developmental capacities and limitations.

  13. Implications of nutritional stress as nestling or fledgling on subsequent attractiveness and fecundity in zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata)

    OpenAIRE

    Mariam Honarmand; E. Tobias Krause; Marc Naguib

    2017-01-01

    The conditions an organism experiences during early development can have profound and long lasting effects on its subsequent behavior, attractiveness, and life history decisions. Most previous studies have exposed individuals to different conditions throughout development until nutritional independence. Yet under natural conditions, individuals may experience limitations for much shorter periods due to transient environmental fluctuations. Here, we used zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) in ...

  14. Content Analysis of Songs in Elementary Music Textbooks in Accordance with Values Education in Turkey

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yalçinkaya, Begüm

    2015-01-01

    The aim of this study is to determine which values are included in education songs in elementary school textbooks and the level of these values. This study, conducted using document analysis method, involved primary education music class textbooks. Education songs in textbooks were analyzed within the frame of 29 values determined based on…

  15. Rethinking our assumptions about the evolution of bird song and other sexually dimorphic signals

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J. Jordan Price

    2015-04-01

    Full Text Available Bird song is often cited as a classic example of a sexually-selected ornament, in part because historically it has been considered a primarily male trait. Recent evidence that females also sing in many songbird species and that sexual dimorphism in song is often the result of losses in females rather than gains in males therefore appears to challenge our understanding of the evolution of bird song through sexual selection. Here I propose that these new findings do not necessarily contradict previous research, but rather they disagree with some of our assumptions about the evolution of sexual dimorphisms in general and female song in particular. These include misconceptions that current patterns of elaboration and diversity in each sex reflect past rates of change and that levels of sexual dimorphism necessarily reflect levels of sexual selection. Using New World blackbirds (Icteridae as an example, I critically evaluate these past assumptions in light of new phylogenetic evidence. Understanding the mechanisms underlying such sexually dimorphic traits requires a clear understanding of their evolutionary histories. Only then can we begin to ask the right questions.

  16. From electromyographic activity to frequency modulation in zebra finch song.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Döppler, Juan F; Bush, Alan; Goller, Franz; Mindlin, Gabriel B

    2018-02-01

    Behavior emerges from the interaction between the nervous system and peripheral devices. In the case of birdsong production, a delicate and fast control of several muscles is required to control the configuration of the syrinx (the avian vocal organ) and the respiratory system. In particular, the syringealis ventralis muscle is involved in the control of the tension of the vibrating labia and thus affects the frequency modulation of the sound. Nevertheless, the translation of the instructions (which are electrical in nature) into acoustical features is complex and involves nonlinear, dynamical processes. In this work, we present a model of the dynamics of the syringealis ventralis muscle and the labia, which allows calculating the frequency of the generated sound, using as input the electrical activity recorded in the muscle. In addition, the model provides a framework to interpret inter-syllabic activity and hints at the importance of the biomechanical dynamics in determining behavior.

  17. VizieR Online Data Catalog: URAT Parallax Catalog (UPC) (Finch+, 2016)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Finch, C. T.; Zacharias, N.

    2016-04-01

    The URAT Parallax Catalog (UPC) consists of 112177 parallaxes. The catalog utilizes all Northern Hemisphere epoch data from the United States Naval Observatory (USNO) Robotic Astrometric Telescope (URAT). This data includes all individual exposures from April 2012 to June 2015 giving a larger epoch baseline for determining parallaxes over the 2-year span of the First USNO Robotic Astrometric Telescope Catalog (URAT1) (Zacharias et al., 2015, Cat. I/329) published data. The URAT parallax pipeline is custom code that utilizes routines from (Jao, C.-W., 2004, PhD thesis Georgia Stat), the JPL DE405 ephemeris and Green's parallax factor (Green, R.M., 1985, Spherical Astronomy) for determining parallaxes from a weighted least-squares reduction. The relative parallaxes have been corrected to absolute by using the distance color relation described in (Finch et. al, 2014, Cat. J/AJ/148/119) to determine a mean distance of all UCAC4 reference stars (R=8-16 mag) used in the astrometric reductions. Presented here are all significant parallaxes from the URAT Northern Hemisphere epoch data comprising of 2 groups: a) URAT parallax results for stars with prior published parallax, and b) first time trigonometric parallaxes as obtained from URAT data of stars without prior published parallax. Note, more stringent selection criteria have been applied to the second group than the first in order to keep the rate of false detections low. For specific information about the astrometric reductions please see 'The First U.S. Naval Observatory Robotic Astrometric Telescope Catalog' published paper (Zacharias et al., 2015AJ....150..101Z, Cat. I/329). For complete details regarding the parallax pipeline please see 'Parallax Results From URAT Epoch Data' (Finch and Zacharias, 2016, AJ, in press). This catalog gives all positions on the ICRS at Epoch J2014.0; it covers the magnitude range 6.56 to 16.93 in the URAT band-pass, with an average parallax precision of 4.3mas for stars having no known

  18. Calling songs of some South African cicadas (Homoptera: Cicadidae)

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    1987-07-13

    Jul 13, 1987 ... Figure 11 Posture of male cicadas during calling song, illustrated by a specimen ... parameters of the smaller samples falls within that of the largest conspecific ... under the control of the neuromuscular system (Pringle. 1954b).

  19. The Imprisoned Female in Song of Solomon

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    李柳英; 高崇毅

    2008-01-01

    Song of Solomon(1977) is characterized by the growth of the black male.However, the fate of the black women is still highlighted in this book.Ruth is the protagonist's mother, and she is restrained by the social convention and she lives in misery and despair.She is oppressed by racism and sexism, and she is the representative of the imprisoned black women.

  20. When phonetics matters: creation and perception of female images in song folklore

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stashko Halyna

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available This paper presents a stylistic analysis of female images in American song folklore in order to examine how sound symbolic language elements contribute to the construction of verbal images. The results obtained show the link between sound and meaning and how such phonetic means of stylistics as assonance, alliteration, and onomatopoeia function to reinforce the meanings of words or to set the mood typical of the characters. Their synergy helps create and interpret female images and provides relevant atmosphere and background to them in folk song texts.

  1. Use of Songs to Promote Independence in Morning Greeting Routines for Young Children with Autism

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kern, Petra; Wolery, Mark; Aldridge, David

    2007-01-01

    This study evaluated the effects of individually composed songs on the independent behaviors of two young children with autism during the morning greeting/entry routine into their inclusive classrooms. A music therapist composed a song for each child related to the steps of the morning greeting routine and taught the children's teachers to sing…

  2. Exploration of verbal and non-verbal semantic knowledge and autobiographical memories starting from popular songs in Alzheimer's disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Basaglia-Pappas, S; Laterza, M; Borg, C; Richard-Mornas, A; Favre, E; Thomas-Antérion, C

    2013-05-01

    In mild Alzheimer's disease (AD), a deficit in episodic memory, particularly autobiographical memory, is clearly established. Several recent studies have also shown impaired semantic memory from the onset of the disease. Musical memory capacities may be especially preserved and listening to music might encourage autobiographical recall. The aim of this study was to explore recall of popular songs in AD. We tested 12 patients with mild AD and 12 control subjects. We created a tool made up of old French popular songs: POP 10. This tool is a questionnaire composed of several subtests: melodic free recall, chorus free recall, melodic recognition, chorus recognition, semantic knowledge, autobiographical recall about the song, and autobiographical recall about the interpreter. We used non-parametric tests, the Mann-Whitney test (M-W), the Friedman test, and the a posteriori Wilcoxon test. Results of AD patients were rather similar to those of control participants for melodic memory. Concerning chorus memory (except recognition), semantic knowledge, and autobiographical recall about the interpreter, results of AD patients were significantly weaker than those of control participants. The most important result concerned autobiographical recall about the song: we found no impairment-related differences between the two groups. Our findings demonstrate that popular songs can be excellent stimuli for reminiscence, such as the ability to produce an autobiographical memory related to a song. Thus, we confirm that musical semantic knowledge associated with a song may be relatively preserved in the early stages of AD. This leads to new possibilities for cognitive stimulation.

  3. Moessbauer study of the Ru porcelain of Chinese Song Dynasty and Yuan Dynasty

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gao Zhengyao; Chen Xiande

    1994-01-01

    The Moessbauer spectra from the glazes of the Song Dynasty and the Yuan Dynasty Ru porcelains and the imitative ancient Ru porcelain are compared and analyzed. It is determined that the original firing atmosphere of the Yuan Dynasty Ru porcelain was reductive. The firing temperature was 1250 ± 20 C. The original firing atmosphere of the Song Dynasty Ru porcelain was also reductive; the firing temperature was above 1200 C. The coloring mechanism of these glazes is discussed. (orig.)

  4. Staging and Engaging with Media Events: A Study of the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Skey, Michael; Kyriakidou, Maria; McCurdy, Patrick

    2016-01-01

    , in particular, notes how this shaped responses to a controversial incident involving the Russian entry. While those with an ongoing interest, including organizers and fans, tended to emphasize personal narratives and individual freedom of expression, mainstream media and audiences adopted a far more cynical...... addresses this lacuna with reference to the biggest nonsporting live TV event in the world, the Eurovision Song Contest. Drawing on data from the 2014 competition in Copenhagen, Denmark, it examines the varying levels of commitment to the event among organizers, fans, broadcasters, and journalists and...

  5. Muscle activation patterns and motor anatomy of Anna's hummingbirds Calypte anna and zebra finches Taeniopygia guttata.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Donovan, Edward R; Keeney, Brooke K; Kung, Eric; Makan, Sirish; Wild, J Martin; Altshuler, Douglas L

    2013-01-01

    Flying animals exhibit profound transformations in anatomy, physiology, and neural architecture. Although much is known about adaptations in the avian skeleton and musculature, less is known about neuroanatomy and motor unit integration for bird flight. Hummingbirds are among the most maneuverable and specialized of vertebrate fliers, and two unusual neuromuscular features have been previously reported: (1) the pectoralis major has a unique distribution pattern of motor end plates (MEPs) compared with all other birds and (2) electromyograms (EMGs) from the hummingbird's pectoral muscles, the pectoralis major and the supracoracoideus, show activation bursts composed of one or a few spikes that appear to have a very consistent pattern. Here, we place these findings in a broader context by comparing the MEPs, EMGs, and organization of the spinal motor neuron pools of flight muscles of Anna's hummingbird Calypte anna, zebra finches Taeniopygia guttata, and, for MEPs, several other species. The previously shown MEP pattern of the hummingbird pectoralis major is not shared with its closest taxonomic relative, the swift, and appears to be unique to hummingbirds. MEP arrangements in previously undocumented wing muscles show patterns that differ somewhat from other avian muscles. In the parallel-fibered strap muscles of the shoulder, MEP patterns appear to relate to muscle length, with the smallest muscles having fibers that span the entire muscle. MEP patterns in pennate distal wing muscles were the same regardless of size, with tightly clustered bands in the middle portion of the muscle, not evenly distributed bands over the muscle's entire length. Muscle activations were examined during slow forward flight in both species, during hovering in hummingbirds, and during slow ascents in zebra finches. The EMG bursts of a wing muscle, the pronator superficialis, were highly variable in peak number, size, and distribution across wingbeats for both species. In the pectoralis

  6. Investigating the Role of Pop Songs on Vocabulary Recall, Attitude and Retention of Iranian EFL Learners: The Case of Gender

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shakerian, Pouya; Rezaei, Omid; Murnani, Zeinab Toghyani; Moeinmanesh, Hamid

    2016-01-01

    Pop songs are, in fact, an ideal source for incidental vocabulary learning because teenagers often spend large amounts of their free time listening to music and in particular to pop songs. Employing an experimental approach, this study attempted to investigate the role of pop songs on vocabulary recall, attitude and retention of Iranian advanced…

  7. French of the present and the past: the representation of the Parisian vernacular in Maurice Chevalier's songs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Abecassis, Michaël

    2005-01-01

    Full Text Available Today in France, there seems to be a resurgence of interest in 1930s French culture, with the release of Le Fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain (2001, set in Montmartre, and Patrick Bruel's re-edition of 1930s popular songs (2002. Songs of the 1930s and 1940s have hardly been exploited by linguists. I have compiled a corpus of Maurice Chevalier's songs whose lexical items I have analysed to assess how language has evolved. The stereotypical representation of the lower class which was a popular theme in musical-hall songs at that time enables the analysis of vernacular forms used at the beginning of the 20th century. I willendeavour in this analysis to establish the change in attitudes towardsthe standard and stigmatised language varieties in France by looking at lexicographers' labelling of non-standard items with stylistic indicators such as familier, populaire and argotique. I also intend to gauge through a survey conducted recently in France whether the once denigrated français populaire found in Chevalier's songs is obsolete or whether it is still used in the 21st century.

  8. Environmental acoustics and the evolution of bird song

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Brumm, H.; Naguib, M.

    2009-01-01

    Any signal must get from a sender to a receiver if information is to be transmitted. In the case of bird song, the acoustic properties of the habitat may hinder this being achieved. However, birds as senders and receivers have evolved numerous adaptations to overcome the problem of getting the

  9. Niimina Ahubiya: Western Mono Song Genres

    OpenAIRE

    Loether, Christopher

    1993-01-01

    Although Native American communities may lose their ancestral language or other aspects of their traditional culture, music seems to be more resistant to the continual onslaught of the dominant Euro-American culture. Even today, traditional music remains a vital part of Native American communities throughout the United States. In this article I examine one aspect of the musical traditions of the Western Mono, specifically the different types of songs, and their functions within Western Mono s...

  10. Cross recurrence quantification for cover song identification

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Serra, Joan; Serra, Xavier; Andrzejak, Ralph G [Department of Information and Communication Technologies, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Roc Boronat 138, 08018 Barcelona (Spain)], E-mail: joan.serraj@upf.edu

    2009-09-15

    There is growing evidence that nonlinear time series analysis techniques can be used to successfully characterize, classify, or process signals derived from real-world dynamics even though these are not necessarily deterministic and stationary. In the present study, we proceed in this direction by addressing an important problem our modern society is facing, the automatic classification of digital information. In particular, we address the automatic identification of cover songs, i.e. alternative renditions of a previously recorded musical piece. For this purpose, we here propose a recurrence quantification analysis measure that allows the tracking of potentially curved and disrupted traces in cross recurrence plots (CRPs). We apply this measure to CRPs constructed from the state space representation of musical descriptor time series extracted from the raw audio signal. We show that our method identifies cover songs with a higher accuracy as compared to previously published techniques. Beyond the particular application proposed here, we discuss how our approach can be useful for the characterization of a variety of signals from different scientific disciplines. We study coupled Roessler dynamics with stochastically modulated mean frequencies as one concrete example to illustrate this point.

  11. Cross recurrence quantification for cover song identification

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Serra, Joan; Serra, Xavier; Andrzejak, Ralph G

    2009-01-01

    There is growing evidence that nonlinear time series analysis techniques can be used to successfully characterize, classify, or process signals derived from real-world dynamics even though these are not necessarily deterministic and stationary. In the present study, we proceed in this direction by addressing an important problem our modern society is facing, the automatic classification of digital information. In particular, we address the automatic identification of cover songs, i.e. alternative renditions of a previously recorded musical piece. For this purpose, we here propose a recurrence quantification analysis measure that allows the tracking of potentially curved and disrupted traces in cross recurrence plots (CRPs). We apply this measure to CRPs constructed from the state space representation of musical descriptor time series extracted from the raw audio signal. We show that our method identifies cover songs with a higher accuracy as compared to previously published techniques. Beyond the particular application proposed here, we discuss how our approach can be useful for the characterization of a variety of signals from different scientific disciplines. We study coupled Roessler dynamics with stochastically modulated mean frequencies as one concrete example to illustrate this point.

  12. Dopamine physiology in the basal ganglia of male zebra finches during social stimulation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ihle, Eva C; van der Hart, Marieke; Jongsma, Minke; Tecott, Larry H; Doupe, Allison J

    2015-06-01

    Accumulating evidence suggests that dopamine (DA) is involved in altering neural activity and gene expression in a zebra finch cortical-basal ganglia circuit specialized for singing, upon the shift between solitary singing and singing as a part of courtship. Our objective here was to sample changes in the extracellular concentrations of DA in Area X of adult and juvenile birds, to test the hypothesis that DA levels would change similarly during presentation of a socially salient stimulus in both age groups. We used microdialysis to sample the extracellular milieu of Area X in awake, behaving adult and juvenile male zebra finches, and analysed the dialysate using high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with electrochemical detection. The extracellular levels of DA in Area X increased significantly during both female presentation to adult males and tutor presentation to juvenile males. DA levels were not correlated with the time spent singing. We also reverse-dialysed Area X with pharmacologic agents that act either on DA systems directly or on norepinephrine, and found that all of these agents significantly increased DA levels (3- to 10-fold) in Area X. These findings suggest that changes in extracellular DA levels can be stimulated similarly by very different social contexts (courtship and interaction with tutor), and influenced potently by dopaminergic and noradrenergic drugs. These results raise the possibility that the arousal level or attentional state of the subject (rather than singing behavior) is the common feature eliciting changes in extracellular DA concentration. © 2015 The Authors. European Journal of Neuroscience published by Federation of European Neuroscience Societies and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  13. The Folklore - Nationalism Relationship in the Balkans. Case Study “Whose Is This Song?” by Adela Peeva

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Elena-Lorena Nedelcu

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available This article analyses a 2003 documentary titled “Whose Is This Song?” by Bulgarian movie director Adela Peeva, in the purpose of understanding the relationship between the folklore and the nationalism in the Balkans. The theme of the documentary is the director’s quest to trace the roots of a folk song that she had thought was 100 percent Bulgarian since her childhood. The documentary follows Peeva’s journey with a camera in hand around Turkey, Greece, Macedonia, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and Bulgaria, where she discovers that the song is sung by all of these nations. The documentary can be interpreted as showing how an ordinary song could become an instrument of fanatical nationalism and that it reveals mutual strife instead of Balkan unity. In a region defined by ethnic hatred and war, what begins as a simply investigation of the true origins of a song, ends as a sociological and historical exploration of the deep misunderstandings between the people of the Balkans.

  14. Use of intelligent loop diagrams at San Onofre Nuclear Generation Station (SONGS)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Groves, J.E.; Johnson, K.I.; Foulk, J.; Reinschmidt, K.F.; Tutos, N.C.

    1991-01-01

    The use of advanced information systems will result in five million dollars potential cost reduction and two years less time for producing over 2000 Instrumentation and Control Loop Diagrams for the three nuclear units at San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS). This new information technology will also assist plant management at SONGS in generating even larger savings from reduction in operations and maintenance costs. The key element of the new solution is the use of plant drawings, the traditional primary source of plant information, for on-line access to all plant databases and information systems, by replacing paper drawings with intelligent electronic drawings. The implementation of this concept for the Instrumentation and Control Loop Diagrams, presently in progress, is part of the Integrated Nuclear Data Management Systems (INDAMS) program at SONGS, a joint effort which includes support from Stone and Webster Advanced Systems Development Services, International Business Machines Corporation (IBM), and Dassault Systems of France. The initial results have encouraged plant management to speed up the implementation process

  15. EEG Correlates of Song Prosody: A New Look at the Relationship between Linguistic and Musical Rhythm

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gordon, Reyna L.; Magne, Cyrille L.; Large, Edward W.

    2011-01-01

    Song composers incorporate linguistic prosody into their music when setting words to melody, a process called “textsetting.” Composers tend to align the expected stress of the lyrics with strong metrical positions in the music. The present study was designed to explore the idea that temporal alignment helps listeners to better understand song lyrics by directing listeners’ attention to instances where strong syllables occur on strong beats. Three types of textsettings were created by aligning metronome clicks with all, some or none of the strong syllables in sung sentences. Electroencephalographic recordings were taken while participants listened to the sung sentences (primes) and performed a lexical decision task on subsequent words and pseudowords (targets, presented visually). Comparison of misaligned and well-aligned sentences showed that temporal alignment between strong/weak syllables and strong/weak musical beats were associated with modulations of induced beta and evoked gamma power, which have been shown to fluctuate with rhythmic expectancies. Furthermore, targets that followed well-aligned primes elicited greater induced alpha and beta activity, and better lexical decision task performance, compared with targets that followed misaligned and varied sentences. Overall, these findings suggest that alignment of linguistic stress and musical meter in song enhances musical beat tracking and comprehension of lyrics by synchronizing neural activity with strong syllables. This approach may begin to explain the mechanisms underlying the relationship between linguistic and musical rhythm in songs, and how rhythmic attending facilitates learning and recall of song lyrics. Moreover, the observations reported here coincide with a growing number of studies reporting interactions between the linguistic and musical dimensions of song, which likely stem from shared neural resources for processing music and speech. PMID:22144972

  16. EEG correlates of song prosody: A new look at the relationship between linguistic and musical rhythm

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Reyna L Gordon

    2011-11-01

    Full Text Available Song composers incorporate linguistic prosody into their music when setting words to melody, a process called textsetting. Composers tend to align the expected stress of the lyrics with strong metrical positions in the music. The present study was designed to explore the idea that temporal alignment helps listeners to better understand song lyrics by directing listeners’ attention to instances where strong syllables occur on strong beats. Three types of textsettings were created by aligning metronome clicks with all, some or none of the strong syllables in sung sentences. Electroencephalographic (EEG recordings were taken while participants listened to the sung sentences (primes and performed a lexical decision task on subsequent words and pseudowords (targets, presented visually. Comparison of misaligned and well-aligned sentences showed that temporal alignment between strong/weak syllables and strong/weak musical beats were associated with modulations of induced beta and evoked gamma power, which have been shown to fluctuate with rhythmic expectancies. Furthermore, targets that followed well-aligned primes elicited greater induced alpha and beta activity, and better lexical decision task performance, compared with targets that followed misaligned and varied sentences. Overall, these findings suggest that alignment of linguistic stress and musical meter in song enhances musical beat tracking and comprehension of lyrics by synchronizing neural activity with strong syllables. This approach may begin to explain the mechanisms underlying the relationship between linguistic and musical rhythm in songs, and how rhythmic attending facilitates learning and recall of song lyrics. Moreover, the observations reported here coincide with a growing number of studies reporting interactions between the linguistic and musical dimensions of song, which likely stem from shared neural resources for processing music and speech.

  17. EEG Correlates of Song Prosody: A New Look at the Relationship between Linguistic and Musical Rhythm.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gordon, Reyna L; Magne, Cyrille L; Large, Edward W

    2011-01-01

    Song composers incorporate linguistic prosody into their music when setting words to melody, a process called "textsetting." Composers tend to align the expected stress of the lyrics with strong metrical positions in the music. The present study was designed to explore the idea that temporal alignment helps listeners to better understand song lyrics by directing listeners' attention to instances where strong syllables occur on strong beats. Three types of textsettings were created by aligning metronome clicks with all, some or none of the strong syllables in sung sentences. Electroencephalographic recordings were taken while participants listened to the sung sentences (primes) and performed a lexical decision task on subsequent words and pseudowords (targets, presented visually). Comparison of misaligned and well-aligned sentences showed that temporal alignment between strong/weak syllables and strong/weak musical beats were associated with modulations of induced beta and evoked gamma power, which have been shown to fluctuate with rhythmic expectancies. Furthermore, targets that followed well-aligned primes elicited greater induced alpha and beta activity, and better lexical decision task performance, compared with targets that followed misaligned and varied sentences. Overall, these findings suggest that alignment of linguistic stress and musical meter in song enhances musical beat tracking and comprehension of lyrics by synchronizing neural activity with strong syllables. This approach may begin to explain the mechanisms underlying the relationship between linguistic and musical rhythm in songs, and how rhythmic attending facilitates learning and recall of song lyrics. Moreover, the observations reported here coincide with a growing number of studies reporting interactions between the linguistic and musical dimensions of song, which likely stem from shared neural resources for processing music and speech.

  18. Genoarchitecture of the extended amygdala in zebra finch, and expression of FoxP2 in cell corridors of different genetic profile.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vicario, Alba; Mendoza, Ezequiel; Abellán, Antonio; Scharff, Constance; Medina, Loreta

    2017-01-01

    We used a battery of genes encoding transcription factors (Pax6, Islet1, Nkx2.1, Lhx6, Lhx5, Lhx9, FoxP2) and neuropeptides to study the extended amygdala in developing zebra finches. We identified different components of the central extended amygdala comparable to those found in mice and chickens, including the intercalated amygdalar cells, the central amygdala, and the lateral bed nucleus of the stria terminalis. Many cells likely originate in the dorsal striatal domain, ventral striatal domain, or the pallidal domain, as is the case in mice and chickens. Moreover, a cell subpopulation of the central extended amygdala appears to originate in the prethalamic eminence. As a general principle, these different cells with specific genetic profiles and embryonic origin form separate or partially intermingled cell corridors along the extended amygdala, which may be involved in different functional pathways. In addition, we identified the medial amygdala of the zebra finch. Like in the chickens and mice, it is located in the subpallium and is rich in cells of pallido-preoptic origin, containing minor subpopulations of immigrant cells from the ventral pallium, alar hypothalamus and prethalamic eminence. We also proposed that the medial bed nucleus of the stria terminalis is composed of several parallel cell corridors with different genetic profile and embryonic origin: preoptic, pallidal, hypothalamic, and prethalamic. Several of these cell corridors with distinct origin express FoxP2, a transcription factor implicated in synaptic plasticity. Our results pave the way for studies using zebra finches to understand the neural basis of social behavior, in which the extended amygdala is involved.

  19. A population memetics approach to cultural evolution in chaffinch song: meme diversity within populations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lynch, A; Baker, A J

    1993-04-01

    We investigated cultural evolution in populations of common chaffinches (Fringilla coelebs) in the Atlantic islands (Azores, Madeira, Canaries) and neighboring continental regions (Morocco, Iberia) by employing a population memetics approach. To quantify variability within populations, we used the concept of a song meme, defined as a single syllable or a series of linked syllables capable of being transmitted. The frequency distribution of memes within populations generally fit a neutral model in which there is an equilibrium between mutation, migration, and drift, which suggests that memes are functionally equivalent. The diversity of memes of single syllables is significantly greater in the Azores compared to all other regions, consistent with higher population densities of chaffinches there. On the other hand, memes of two to five syllables have greater diversity in Atlantic island and Moroccan populations compared to their Iberian counterparts. This higher diversity emanates from a looser syntax and increased recombination in songs, presumably because of relaxed selection for distinctive songs in these peripheral and depauperate avifaunas. We urge comparative population memetic studies of other species of songbirds and predict that they will lead to a formulation of a general theory for the cultural evolution of bird song analogous to population genetics theory for biological traits.

  20. Evolution of female carotenoid coloration by sexual constraint in Carduelis finches

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cardoso Gonçalo C

    2010-03-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Females often express the same ornaments as males to a similar or lesser degree. Female ornaments can be adaptive, but little is known regarding their origins and mode of evolution. Current utility does not imply evolutionary causation, and therefore it is possible that female ornamentation evolved due to selection on females, as a correlated response to selection on males (sexual constraint, or a combination of both. We tested these ideas simulating simple models for the evolution of male and female correlated traits, and compared their predictions against the coloration of finches in the genus Carduelis. Results For carotenoid-based ornamental coloration, a model of sexual constraint on females fits the Carduelis data well. The two alternative models (sexual constraint on males, and mutual constraint were rejected as causing the similarities in carotenoid coloration between males and females. For melanin coloration, the correlation between the sexes was weaker, indicating that males and females evolved independently to a greater extent. Conclusions This indicates that sexual constraint on females was an important mechanism for the evolution of ornamental carotenoid coloration in females, but less so for melanin coloration. This does not mean that female carotenoid coloration is non-adaptive or maladaptive, because sexual dichromatism could evolve if it were maladaptive. It suggests, however, that most evolution of female carotenoid coloration was male-driven and, when adaptive, may not be an adaptation stricto sensu.

  1. Teaching English to Young Learners Through Indonesian - Translated Songs

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sukirmiyadi

    2018-01-01

    As an international language, English is taught and learnt by almost all of the people in the world. In Indonesia for example, English has been introduced since the learners are studying at the elementary school. Even many of the Kindergarten Schools too, have already introduced this language to their students. However, we cannot deny that teaching foreign language is not such an easy thing due to the fact thatmany of the learners are not capable of speaking English very well although they have been learning it for more than ten years (Elementary: 6 years, Junior and Senior High School: 6 years). In line with this problem, this study aims at providing a solution by offering one teaching technique which seems to make the learners (especially young learners) enjoy learning through singing songs (Kasihani, 1999).Furthermore, Phillips(1995) said that young learners really enjoyed learning and singing songs with highly motivating. Based on those two researches andin efforts to make it easier in English language learning, especially to young learners, the writer translated the very common and popular Indonesian kid songs into English. Thesetranslated songswere then used to teach the students of Kindergarten up to Elementary ones of the first and second grade. This meant that before a teacher started to teach, s/he had to translate the Indonesian kid songsat first into English.Due to its popularity and familiarity, it was expected that this teaching technique would be more effective and efficient to apply especially to young learners.

  2. Quotations from the songs about Servant of Yahwe in Synoptic Gospels

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dariusz Adamczyk

    2011-03-01

    Full Text Available We don’t get to know from Isaiah’s songs, who is the Servant of Yahwe. In Synoptic Gospels quotations are contained from the first and fourth songs about the Servant of Yahweh. Synopticians interpreted in a new way Old Testament texts in light of Christs resurrection. They see prophetic announcement and the same type of Jesus Christ, Messiah and Saviour in Isaiah’s Servant. In Jesus Christ is filled out in a perfect and final way everything the Old Testament has announced about the Servant of Yahweh. The evangelical context of these quotations allows one to see in the suffering of the Servant of God, announcement of the redemptive fatigue, death and resurrection of Jesus.

  3. Two distinct genomic regions, harbouring the period and fruitless genes, affect male courtship song in Drosophila montana.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lagisz, M; Wen, S-Y; Routtu, J; Klappert, K; Mazzi, D; Morales-Hojas, R; Schäfer, M A; Vieira, J; Hoikkala, A; Ritchie, M G; Butlin, R K

    2012-06-01

    Acoustic signals often have a significant role in pair formation and in species recognition. Determining the genetic basis of signal divergence will help to understand signal evolution by sexual selection and its role in the speciation process. An earlier study investigated quantitative trait locus for male courtship song carrier frequency (FRE) in Drosophila montana using microsatellite markers. We refined this study by adding to the linkage map markers for 10 candidate genes known to affect song production in Drosophila melanogaster. We also extended the analyses to additional song characters (pulse train length (PTL), pulse number (PN), interpulse interval, pulse length (PL) and cycle number (CN)). Our results indicate that loci in two different regions of the genome control distinct features of the courtship song. Pulse train traits (PTL and PN) mapped to the X chromosome, showing significant linkage with the period gene. In contrast, characters related to song pulse properties (PL, CN and carrier FRE) mapped to the region of chromosome 2 near the candidate gene fruitless, identifying these genes as suitable loci for further investigations. In previous studies, the pulse train traits have been found to vary substantially between Drosophila species, and so are potential species recognition signals, while the pulse traits may be more important in intra-specific mate choice.

  4. GENDER ROLES IN PAKISTANI-URDU WEDDING SONGS

    OpenAIRE

    Syeda Bushra Zaidi

    2016-01-01

    This qualitative study of Pakistani-Urdu wedding songs allows a closer look at the gender situation, and towards the understanding of the process of construction and perpetuation of gender-based stereotypes. However, the major concern of this study is to understand the portrayal of each gender along with the question that does such portrayal underlines the traditional gender roles and gender inequality. Taking a discourse analysis perspective, this study analyzes textu...

  5. Italian validation of the Purpose In Life (PIL) test and the Seeking Of Noetic Goals (SONG) test in a population of cancer patients.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brunelli, C; Bianchi, E; Murru, L; Monformoso, P; Bosisio, M; Gangeri, L; Miccinesi, G; Scrignaro, M; Ripamonti, C; Borreani, C

    2012-11-01

    The first instruments developed to evaluate specific logotherapeutic dimensions were the Purpose In Life (PIL) and the Seeking Of Noetic Goals (SONG) tests, designed to reflect Frankl's concepts of, respectively, meaning in life attainment and will to meaning. This study aims to perform the Italian cultural adaptation and the psychometric validation of the PIL and SONG questionnaires. We administered the PIL and SONG, culturally adapted into the Italian language, to 266 cancer patients. The psychometric validation appraised construct validity, internal consistency, test-retest reliability, known-group validity, and convergent validity of the two questionnaires with respect to one another. The factorial analysis indicates that the original single-factor solution can be maintained for both instruments (proportion of variance explained by the first factor 77% and 71% for the PIL and SONG, respectively). The results show excellent internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha of 0.91 for the PIL and 0.90 for the SONG) and test-retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient of 0.92 for the PIL and 0.81 for the SONG). As expected, males, believers, patients nearer to the diagnosis, and patients not undergoing psychological therapy have higher PIL and lower SONG scores, while expectations for age were not confirmed. The average level for the PIL was 107.3, while for the SONG, it was 66.1, and a negative correlation (-0.47) between PIL and SONG scores indicates good convergent validity of the two instruments. Italian versions of the PIL and SONG are adequate and reliable self-report instruments for evaluating purpose in life and the motivation to find purpose for cancer patient populations.

  6. Early birds are sexy: male age, dawn song and extrapair paternity in blue tits, Cyanistes (formerly Parus) caeruleus

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Poesel, Angelika; Kunc, H.P.; Foerster, K.

    2006-01-01

    Sexual selection theory predicts that signals reflecting the relative quality of individuals should be used in mate choice. Females could base their choice of copulation partners on male secondary sexual traits that honestly signal male age, as predicted by the age-based indicator mechanism....... Studies have shown that female blue tits prefer older males and that aspects of dawn song reflect male quality, but it remains unknown whether dawn song characteristics correlate with male age. We compared dawn song characteristics of second-year (SY) and older (ASY) male blue tits (cross......-sectional analysis), and tested for age-related changes within individuals (longitudinal analysis) and differential overwinter survival of SY males. We further investigated the relation between dawn song and paternity gain and loss. We found that ASY male blue tits began to sing earlier relative to sunrise than did...

  7. European Blackbirds Exposed to Aircraft Noise Advance Their Chorus, Modify Their Song and Spend More Time Singing

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Javier Sierro

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Noise pollution has a strong impact on wildlife by disrupting vocal communication or inducing physiological stress. Songbirds are particularly reliant on vocal communication as they use song during territorial and sexual interactions. Birds living in noisy environments have been shown to change the acoustic and temporal parameters of their song presumably to maximize signal transmissibility. Also, research shows that birds advance their dawn chorus in urban environments to avoid the noisiest hours, but little is known on the consequences of these changes in the time they spent singing at dawn. Here we present a comprehensive view of the European blackbird singing behavior living next to a large airport in Madrid, using as a control a population living in a similar but silent forest. Blackbird song is composed of two parts: a series of loud low-frequency whistles (motif and a final flourish (twitter. We found that airport blackbirds were more likely to sing songs without the twitter part. Also, when songs included a twitter part, airport blackbirds used a smaller proportion of song for the twitter than control blackbirds. Interestingly, our results show no differences in song frequency between airport and control populations. However airport blackbirds not only sang earlier but also increased the time they spent singing when chorus and aircraft traffic overlapped on time. This effect disappeared as the season progressed and the chorus and the aircraft traffic schedule were separated on time. We propose that the typical urban upshift in frequency might not be useful under the noise conditions and landscape structure found near airports. We suggest that the modifications in singing behavior induced by aircraft noise may be adaptive and that they are specific to airport acoustic habitat. Moreover, we found that adjustment of singing activity in relation to noise is plastic and possibly optimized to cope with aircraft traffic activity. In a

  8. Fiddler on the Tree - A Bush-Cricket Species with Unusual Stridulatory Organs and Song

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heller, Klaus-Gerhard; Hemp, Claudia

    2014-01-01

    Insects of the order Orthoptera are well-known for their acoustic communication. The structures used for this purpose show a high diversity which obviously relates to differences in song parameters and to the physics of sound production. Here we describe song and morphology of the sound producing organs of a tropical bush-cricket, Ectomoptera nepicauda, from East Africa. It has a very unusual calling song consisting of frequency-modulated, pure-tone sounds in the high ultrasonic range of 80 to120 kHz and produced by extremely fast wing movements. Concerning morphology, it represents the most extreme state in the degree of left-right fore-wing differentiation found among Orthoptera: the acoustic parts of the left fore-wing consist exclusively of the stridulatory file, comparable in function to the bow of a violin, while the right wing carries only the plectrum ( =  string) and mirror ( =  soundbox). PMID:24643071

  9. The relationship between plants used to sustain finches (Fringillidae) and uses for human medicine in southeast Spain

    OpenAIRE

    Belda, Antonio; Peiro, Victoriano; Seva Román, Eduardo

    2012-01-01

    We analyzed plants that are traditionally used by wild bird hunters and breeders to capture and promote captive breeding of Fringillidae (finches or songbirds) in the province of Alicante, Spain. The majority of plants used in songbird breeding have medicinal properties in traditional human medicine (48 different uses); thus, another main goal was to show their relationships with human medical uses. We compiled a list of 97 plant species from 31 botanical families that are used to attract fin...

  10. Popular song and lyrics synchronization and its application to music information retrieval

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Kai; Gao, Sheng; Zhu, Yongwei; Sun, Qibin

    2006-01-01

    An automatic synchronization system of the popular song and its lyrics is presented in the paper. The system includes two main components: a) automatically detecting vocal/non-vocal in the audio signal and b) automatically aligning the acoustic signal of the song with its lyric using speech recognition techniques and positioning the boundaries of the lyrics in its acoustic realization at the multiple levels simultaneously (e.g. the word / syllable level and phrase level). The GMM models and a set of HMM-based acoustic model units are carefully designed and trained for the detection and alignment. To eliminate the severe mismatch due to the diversity of musical signal and sparse training data available, the unsupervised adaptation technique such as maximum likelihood linear regression (MLLR) is exploited for tailoring the models to the real environment, which improves robustness of the synchronization system. To further reduce the effect of the missed non-vocal music on alignment, a novel grammar net is build to direct the alignment. As we know, this is the first automatic synchronization system only based on the low-level acoustic feature such as MFCC. We evaluate the system on a Chinese song dataset collecting from 3 popular singers. We obtain 76.1% for the boundary accuracy at the syllable level (BAS) and 81.5% for the boundary accuracy at the phrase level (BAP) using fully automatic vocal/non-vocal detection and alignment. The synchronization system has many applications such as multi-modality (audio and textual) content-based popular song browsing and retrieval. Through the study, we would like to open up the discussion of some challenging problems when developing a robust synchronization system for largescale database.

  11. Birth of projection neurons in adult avian brain may be related to perceptual or motor learning

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Alvarez-Buylla, A.; Kirn, J.R.; Nottebohm, F.

    1990-01-01

    Projection neurons that form part of the motor pathway for song control continue to be produced and to replace older projection neurons in adult canaries and zebra finches. This is shown by combining [3H]thymidine, a cell birth marker, and fluorogold, a retrogradely transported tracer of neuronal connectivity. Species and seasonal comparisons suggest that this process is related to the acquisition of perceptual or motor memories. The ability of an adult brain to produce and replace projection neurons should influence our thinking on brain repair

  12. The Soundtrack of Revolution Memory, Affect, and the Power of Protest Songs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tiina Rosenberg

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available All cultural representations in the form of songs, pictures, literature, theater, film, television shows, and other media are deeply emotional and ideological, often difficult to define or analyze. Emotions are embedded as a cultural and social soundtrack of memories and minds, whether we like it or not. Feminist scholarship has emphasized over the past decade that affects and emotions are a foundation of human interaction. The cognitive understanding of the world has been replaced by a critical analysis in which questions about emotions and how we relate to the world as human beings is central (Ahmed 2004: 5-12.It is in this memory-related instance that this article discusses the unexpected reappearance of a long forgotten song, Hasta siempre, as a part of my personal musical memory. It is a personal reflection on the complex interaction between memory, affect and the genre of protest songs as experiences in life and music. What does it mean when a melody intrudes in the middle of unrelated thoughts, when one’s mind is occupied with rational and purposive considerations? These memories are no coincidences, I argue, they are our forgotten selves singing to us.

  13. Overtone-based pitch selection in hermit thrush song: unexpected convergence with scale construction in human music.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Doolittle, Emily L; Gingras, Bruno; Endres, Dominik M; Fitch, W Tecumseh

    2014-11-18

    Many human musical scales, including the diatonic major scale prevalent in Western music, are built partially or entirely from intervals (ratios between adjacent frequencies) corresponding to small-integer proportions drawn from the harmonic series. Scientists have long debated the extent to which principles of scale generation in human music are biologically or culturally determined. Data from animal "song" may provide new insights into this discussion. Here, by examining pitch relationships using both a simple linear regression model and a Bayesian generative model, we show that most songs of the hermit thrush (Catharus guttatus) favor simple frequency ratios derived from the harmonic (or overtone) series. Furthermore, we show that this frequency selection results not from physical constraints governing peripheral production mechanisms but from active selection at a central level. These data provide the most rigorous empirical evidence to date of a bird song that makes use of the same mathematical principles that underlie Western and many non-Western musical scales, demonstrating surprising convergence between human and animal "song cultures." Although there is no evidence that the songs of most bird species follow the overtone series, our findings add to a small but growing body of research showing that a preference for small-integer frequency ratios is not unique to humans. These findings thus have important implications for current debates about the origins of human musical systems and may call for a reevaluation of existing theories of musical consonance based on specific human vocal characteristics.

  14. FAROESTE CABOCLO: PSYCHOANALYSIS INTERPRETATION OF THE SONG

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fabiana Cristina Teixeira

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available This article aims to integrate the psychoanalytic concepts of discontent, violence, aggressiveness and enemy with the acclaimed song “Faroeste Caboclo”, an important legacy of Brazilian Pop-Rock from the 1980s. The song narrates the saga of João de Santo Cristo, an orphan whose life story was characterized by uneasiness, racial discrimination, and difficulty to deal with authority figures, which turned him into a renowned drug dealer. With an ending marked by passional tragedy, culminating with the death of all the main characters, the plot is traversed by violence, aggressiveness and hate. This demonstrates how the story unfolds to the field of alterity through the emergence of friendship and enmity, allowing a thorough discussion and comprehension of João de Santo Cristo’s story. Assuming that music is both an individual form of expression and a form of apprehension and description of social reality, this study sought to comprehend the psychic dimensions demonstrated in the lyrics, which narrate a story that is very similar to real life stories of many adolescents involved in violent criminality in Brazil. The main objective was to discuss the possible meanings of these lyrics, hence promoting a constructive dialog between psychoanalysis and culture.

  15. The Role of Songs in First-Graders’ Oral Communication Development in English

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ivon Aleida Castro Huertas

    2014-04-01

    Full Text Available We report on an action research project aimed at developing oral communication in first-graders, using songs as a strategy for young learners to use and enjoy English. It was developed at a Colombian public school over three months. The teacher-researchers attempted to encourage students using simple and amusing songs to help them learn new vocabulary in English and develop oral skills from the very moment they began their literacy process. In this article, we attempt to share our findings obtained from data collected through direct observation, field notes, video recordings, and interviews that show the process followed by very young learners to acquire vocabulary by singing.

  16. THE ANALYSIS OF SONG-TEXT COLLECTION BELONGS TO THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY: Bodleian Library of Oxford University With The Number of 127 and 128

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mehmet Nuri Parmaksiz

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available The song-text collections have great significance in consequence of their tasks in Turkish Music. The music performers have received support from song-text collections in remembering the modes, rhythms, the composers and especially the lyrics consisting short or long poems related to the each of the songs which they intend to keep in their minds.Today, those collections demonstrate the researchers employing modes, composers, forms and rhythms the musical works recorded in their contents and the transformation which Turkish Music has experienced throughout centuries.In this study, a song-text collection of the 16th century recorded in the Bodleian Library of Oxford University with the number of 127 and 128 was analyzed. The finding which obtain from song-text collection which analyzed with systematic musicology and historical methodology is expected to contribute importantly. Keywords: XVI. century, Turkish Music, song-text collection, Bodleian Library

  17. Transition of Greek art song from the national school to modernism

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kontossi Sofia

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available This study presents the different ways in which two Greek composers, Leonidas Zoras and Jani Christou, viewed modernism. The songs of Zoras are typical example of the gradual withdrawal from the aesthetic framework of the National School which dominated during the first decades of the twentieth century. In contrast, Jani Christou, who spent his childhood in Alexandria and received an exclusively Western-type education, remained untouched by Greek traditional music or the Greek National School. His work was moulded by the ancient Greek philosophical belief in the elation of the listener through the transcendental power of Art. By his Six T. S. Eliot Songs Christou offered some of the best examples of twentieth-century expressionistic vocal music.

  18. Mössbauer study of the Ru porcelain of Chinese Song Dynasty and Yuan Dynasty

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhengyao, Gao; Songhua, Chen; Xiande, Chen

    1994-12-01

    The Mössbauer spectra from the glazes of the Song Dynasty and the Yuan Dynasty Ru porcelains and the imitative ancient Ru porcelain are compared and analyzed. It is determined that the original firing atmosphere of the Yuan Dynasty Ru porcelain was reductive. The firing temperature was 1250±20 ‡C. The original firing atmosphere of the Song Dynasty Ru porcelain was also reductive; the firing temperature was above 1200 ‡C. The coloring mechanism of these glazes is discussed.

  19. Rethinking Eurovision Song Contest as a Clash of Cultures

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zeynep Merve ŞIVGIN

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available Modern era’s understanding of culture overlooked culture, as a social and cultural analysis category as well as a way of life. This point of view has lost its validity and culture gained significance as an area where rulership and power struggle exists. Especially the privileged existence of popular culture; having an interdependence attachment to power relations in addition to an allowing structure for alternative discourses other than the official discourse is a cruicial asset. This article examines Eurovision Song Contest with its over 50 years of traditionaled history, as a noteworthy television program of popular culture. Despite often being considered as “kitsch”, the contest refers more than of an ordinary song competition. The artists who participate in the contest compete for the country they represent rather than an individual race which takes “national identity” more on stage. In this respect the contest has a stimulus effect on national consciousness. This alerted effect can clearly be seen on public debates just before, during and after the contest. It is claimed in this study that Turkey’s position in Eurovision Song Contest offers a view of the “cultural struggle” towards Western civilization since the beginning of the modernization process. In this framework this study primarily focuses on the relationship between identity and culture, followed by the role of popular culture in the construction of cultural identity. Afterwards the study tries to discover how does this contest became a tool of cultural struggle in Turkish society by analyzing the news and the discource of the news that took place in national print media.

  20. Sex Differences in Brain Thyroid Hormone Levels during Early Post-Hatching Development in Zebra Finch (Taeniopygia guttata.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shinji Yamaguchi

    Full Text Available Thyroid hormones are closely linked to the hatching process in precocial birds. Previously, we showed that thyroid hormones in brain had a strong impact on filial imprinting, an early learning behavior in newly hatched chicks; brain 3,5,3'-triiodothyronine (T3 peaks around hatching and imprinting training induces additional T3 release, thus, extending the sensitive period for imprinting and enabling subsequent other learning. On the other hand, blood thyroid hormone levels have been reported to increase gradually after hatching in altricial species, but it remains unknown how the brain thyroid hormone levels change during post-hatching development of altricial birds. Here, we determined the changes in serum and brain thyroid hormone levels of a passerine songbird species, the zebra finch using radioimmunoassay. In the serum, we found a gradual increase in thyroid hormone levels during post-hatching development, as well as differences between male and female finches. In the brain, there was clear surge in the hormone levels during development in males and females coinciding with the time of fledging, but the onset of the surge of thyroxine (T4 in males preceded that of females, whereas the onset of the surge of T3 in males succeeded that of females. These findings provide a basis for understanding the functions of thyroid hormones during early development and learning in altricial birds.

  1. Sex Differences in Brain Thyroid Hormone Levels during Early Post-Hatching Development in Zebra Finch (Taeniopygia guttata).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yamaguchi, Shinji; Hayase, Shin; Aoki, Naoya; Takehara, Akihiko; Ishigohoka, Jun; Matsushima, Toshiya; Wada, Kazuhiro; Homma, Koichi J

    2017-01-01

    Thyroid hormones are closely linked to the hatching process in precocial birds. Previously, we showed that thyroid hormones in brain had a strong impact on filial imprinting, an early learning behavior in newly hatched chicks; brain 3,5,3'-triiodothyronine (T3) peaks around hatching and imprinting training induces additional T3 release, thus, extending the sensitive period for imprinting and enabling subsequent other learning. On the other hand, blood thyroid hormone levels have been reported to increase gradually after hatching in altricial species, but it remains unknown how the brain thyroid hormone levels change during post-hatching development of altricial birds. Here, we determined the changes in serum and brain thyroid hormone levels of a passerine songbird species, the zebra finch using radioimmunoassay. In the serum, we found a gradual increase in thyroid hormone levels during post-hatching development, as well as differences between male and female finches. In the brain, there was clear surge in the hormone levels during development in males and females coinciding with the time of fledging, but the onset of the surge of thyroxine (T4) in males preceded that of females, whereas the onset of the surge of T3 in males succeeded that of females. These findings provide a basis for understanding the functions of thyroid hormones during early development and learning in altricial birds.

  2. Gaze strategy in the free flying zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dennis Eckmeier

    Full Text Available Fast moving animals depend on cues derived from the optic flow on their retina. Optic flow from translational locomotion includes information about the three-dimensional composition of the environment, while optic flow experienced during a rotational self motion does not. Thus, a saccadic gaze strategy that segregates rotations from translational movements during locomotion will facilitate extraction of spatial information from the visual input. We analysed whether birds use such a strategy by highspeed video recording zebra finches from two directions during an obstacle avoidance task. Each frame of the recording was examined to derive position and orientation of the beak in three-dimensional space. The data show that in all flights the head orientation was shifted in a saccadic fashion and was kept straight between saccades. Therefore, birds use a gaze strategy that actively stabilizes their gaze during translation to simplify optic flow based navigation. This is the first evidence of birds actively optimizing optic flow during flight.

  3. The Prison Songs of Lili'uokalani

    OpenAIRE

    Morris, Cynthia L.

    2013-01-01

    This thesis is a study of the music composed by Lili'uokalani, the last monarch of Hawai'i during her 1895 incarceration at the hands of the Republic of Hawai'i. Aspects of text and context are considered for each of the songs. This thesis also engages in a discussion of the alleged politicization of a copy of "Aloha Oe," notated by the Queen during the incarceration. My research consisted of visits to the Hawai'i State Archives and the Bishop Museum Archives in Honolulu. I enlisted the help ...

  4. Unity and Difference in Andean Songs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Charles Maurice Pigott

    2013-03-01

    Full Text Available This essay explores the concepts of “unity” and “difference” in Andean songs. The verses pertain to the Masha ritual enacted annually in Mangas, central Peru, and combine Quechua (the indigenous language with Spanish. Through detailed exegesis of the texts, this essay argues that, far from being irreconcilable, “unity” and “difference” are best understood as mutually informing since the recognition of difference opens up the parameters of potential exchange. This optic is informed by a worldview that emphasizes “relation” over “entities.”

  5. Fiddler on the tree--a bush-cricket species with unusual stridulatory organs and song.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Klaus-Gerhard Heller

    Full Text Available Insects of the order Orthoptera are well-known for their acoustic communication. The structures used for this purpose show a high diversity which obviously relates to differences in song parameters and to the physics of sound production. Here we describe song and morphology of the sound producing organs of a tropical bush-cricket, Ectomoptera nepicauda, from East Africa. It has a very unusual calling song consisting of frequency-modulated, pure-tone sounds in the high ultrasonic range of 80 to 120 kHz and produced by extremely fast wing movements. Concerning morphology, it represents the most extreme state in the degree of left-right fore-wing differentiation found among Orthoptera: the acoustic parts of the left fore-wing consist exclusively of the stridulatory file, comparable in function to the bow of a violin, while the right wing carries only the plectrum ( =  string and mirror ( =  soundbox.

  6. Teaching and Learning Science Through Song: Exploring the experiences of students and teachers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Governor, Donna; Hall, Jori; Jackson, David

    2013-12-01

    This qualitative, multi-case study explored the use of science-content music for teaching and learning in six middle school science classrooms. The researcher sought to understand how teachers made use of content-rich songs for teaching science, how they impacted student engagement and learning, and what the experiences of these teachers and students suggested about using songs for middle school classroom science instruction. Data gathered included three teacher interviews, one classroom observation and a student focus-group discussion from each of six cases. The data from each unit of analysis were examined independently and then synthesized in a multi-case analysis, resulting in a number of merged findings, or assertions, about the experience. The results of this study indicated that teachers used content-rich music to enhance student understanding of concepts in science by developing content-based vocabulary, providing students with alternative examples and explanations of concepts, and as a sense-making experience to help build conceptual understanding. The use of science-content songs engaged students by providing both situational and personal interest, and provided a mnemonic device for remembering key concepts in science. The use of songs has relevance from a constructivist approach as they were used to help students build meaning; from a socio-cultural perspective in terms of student engagement; and from a cognitive viewpoint in that in these cases they helped students make connections in learning. The results of this research have implications for science teachers and the science education community in developing new instructional strategies for the middle school science classroom.

  7. A Song in the Dark. Francis of Assisi’s Canticle of Brother Sun

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Speelman Willem Marie

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available The Canticle of the Creatures or Canticle of Brother Sun is based on a particular way of perceiving reality. Francis, who had turned away from ‘the world’, discovered a different way of looking at it. This is a divine way of perceiving, in which the senses do not grasp reality, but accept it as it communicates itself. This way of perceiving is only possible if one does not attempt to master the environment, but allows one’s senses to be weak. It is significant, therefore, that this song of praise was born at a moment of the utmost despair and weakness. The song’s content is in line with this weak perception: it is not about Francis who praises God and (or for His creatures, but rather it is a testimony that the creatures-the elements-are already praising God, and a prayer that He should let Himself be praised by the creatures. Also in line with this weak perception is the fact that the creatures are praised just as they communicate themselves to Francis: as bodies. The theology of this song is that the creatures through their bodies resonate (strengthen, and colour the blessings that come from God, thereby making His blessing present here on earth. Francis’ role is to give a voice and a language to the heavenly praises as they resound in his environment. The transformative power of this song is that we, whether consciously or not, do the same thing when we participate in this song.

  8. The mass and age of the first SONG target

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Frandsen, S.; Andersen, M. Fredslund; Brogaard, K.

    2018-01-01

    possibilities for ground-based asteroseismology of solar-like oscillations with a fully robotic network have been illustrated with the results obtained from just a single site of the SONG network. The window function is still a severe problem which will be solved when there are more nodes in the network....

  9. Alors, la chanson francaise? (And So, the French Song?)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Calvet, Louis Jean

    1977-01-01

    The introductory article in an issue devoted to songs as a teaching device. The article deals with English and American rock, folk and pop music. It makes the point that learning a language is also learning the culture of the people who speak the language. (Text is in French.) (AMH)

  10. Songs To Sing and Picture: Grades PreK-2.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dudley, Lillian L.; Kinghorn, Harriet R.

    This resource, designed for both experienced music teachers and educators with limited background in music, combines 50 simple songs with related learning activities and reading suggestions to develop creativity in students and to reinforce learning in a variety of subjects. Each original composition has chord symbols for guitar and autoharp, with…

  11. Learning-related brain hemispheric dominance in sleeping songbirds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moorman, Sanne; Gobes, Sharon M H; van de Kamp, Ferdinand C; Zandbergen, Matthijs A; Bolhuis, Johan J

    2015-03-12

    There are striking behavioural and neural parallels between the acquisition of speech in humans and song learning in songbirds. In humans, language-related brain activation is mostly lateralised to the left hemisphere. During language acquisition in humans, brain hemispheric lateralisation develops as language proficiency increases. Sleep is important for the formation of long-term memory, in humans as well as in other animals, including songbirds. Here, we measured neuronal activation (as the expression pattern of the immediate early gene ZENK) during sleep in juvenile zebra finch males that were still learning their songs from a tutor. We found that during sleep, there was learning-dependent lateralisation of spontaneous neuronal activation in the caudomedial nidopallium (NCM), a secondary auditory brain region that is involved in tutor song memory, while there was right hemisphere dominance of neuronal activation in HVC (used as a proper name), a premotor nucleus that is involved in song production and sensorimotor learning. Specifically, in the NCM, birds that imitated their tutors well were left dominant, while poor imitators were right dominant, similar to language-proficiency related lateralisation in humans. Given the avian-human parallels, lateralised neural activation during sleep may also be important for speech and language acquisition in human infants.

  12. Learning-related brain hemispheric dominance in sleeping songbirds

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moorman, Sanne; Gobes, Sharon M. H.; van de Kamp, Ferdinand C.; Zandbergen, Matthijs A.; Bolhuis, Johan J.

    2015-01-01

    There are striking behavioural and neural parallels between the acquisition of speech in humans and song learning in songbirds. In humans, language-related brain activation is mostly lateralised to the left hemisphere. During language acquisition in humans, brain hemispheric lateralisation develops as language proficiency increases. Sleep is important for the formation of long-term memory, in humans as well as in other animals, including songbirds. Here, we measured neuronal activation (as the expression pattern of the immediate early gene ZENK) during sleep in juvenile zebra finch males that were still learning their songs from a tutor. We found that during sleep, there was learning-dependent lateralisation of spontaneous neuronal activation in the caudomedial nidopallium (NCM), a secondary auditory brain region that is involved in tutor song memory, while there was right hemisphere dominance of neuronal activation in HVC (used as a proper name), a premotor nucleus that is involved in song production and sensorimotor learning. Specifically, in the NCM, birds that imitated their tutors well were left dominant, while poor imitators were right dominant, similar to language-proficiency related lateralisation in humans. Given the avian-human parallels, lateralised neural activation during sleep may also be important for speech and language acquisition in human infants. PMID:25761654

  13. Social brains in context: lesions targeted to the song control system in female cowbirds affect their social network.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maguire, Sarah E; Schmidt, Marc F; White, David J

    2013-01-01

    Social experiences can organize physiological, neural, and reproductive function, but there are few experimental preparations that allow one to study the effect individuals have in structuring their social environment. We examined the connections between mechanisms underlying individual behavior and social dynamics in flocks of brown-headed cowbirds (Molothrus ater). We conducted targeted inactivations of the neural song control system in female subjects. Playback tests revealed that the lesions affected females' song preferences: lesioned females were no longer selective for high quality conspecific song. Instead, they reacted to all cowbird songs vigorously. When lesioned females were introduced into mixed-sex captive flocks, they were less likely to form strong pair-bonds, and they no longer showed preferences for dominant males. This in turn created a cascade of effects through the groups. Social network analyses showed that the introduction of the lesioned females created instabilities in the social structure: males in the groups changed their dominance status and their courtship patterns, and even the competitive behavior of other female group-mates was affected. These results reveal that inactivation of the song control system in female cowbirds not only affects individual behavior, but also exerts widespread effects on the stability of the entire social system.

  14. 'Song of Life': music therapy in terminally ill patients with cancer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Warth, Marco; Kessler, Jens; van Kampen, Josien; Ditzen, Beate; Bardenheuer, Hubert J

    2018-06-01

    Music therapy (MT) holds a promising potential to meet emotional and existential needs in palliative care patients. The aim of the present pilot study was to assess the feasibility, acceptance and potential effectiveness of a novel MT intervention to improve life closure and spiritual well-being of terminally ill patients with cancer receiving palliative care. The 'Song of Life' (SOL) intervention was provided on two consecutive sessions containing a biographical interview and a live performance of a song with high biographical relevance to the patient in a lullaby style. Pre-to-post intervention assessments comprised brief self-report measures on life closure, well-being, stress, worry and pain. 13 out of 15 patients were able to complete the protocol as intended. The chosen songs were associated with a close person, an important place or event or with a religious belief. The results showed medium-sized improvements with regard to life closure, well-being, relaxation, worry and pain. 'SOL' proved to be a feasible and highly accepted intervention for patients approaching the end of their lives. Further consideration with regard to the procedures and outcomes is necessary before implementation of a randomised trial. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

  15. The Effect of English Verbal Songs on Connected Speech Aspects of Adult English Learners’ Speech Production

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Farshid Tayari Ashtiani

    2015-02-01

    Full Text Available The present study was an attempt to investigate the impact of English verbal songs on connected speech aspects of adult English learners’ speech production. 40 participants were selected based on the results of their performance in a piloted and validated version of NELSON test given to 60 intermediate English learners in a language institute in Tehran. Then they were equally distributed in two control and experimental groups and received a validated pretest of reading aloud and speaking in English. Afterward, the treatment was performed in 18 sessions by singing preselected songs culled based on some criteria such as popularity, familiarity, amount, and speed of speech delivery, etc. In the end, the posttests of reading aloud and speaking in English were administered. The results revealed that the treatment had statistically positive effects on the connected speech aspects of English learners’ speech production at statistical .05 level of significance. Meanwhile, the results represented that there was not any significant difference between the experimental group’s mean scores on the posttests of reading aloud and speaking. It was thus concluded that providing the EFL learners with English verbal songs could positively affect connected speech aspects of both modes of speech production, reading aloud and speaking. The Findings of this study have pedagogical implications for language teachers to be more aware and knowledgeable of the benefits of verbal songs to promote speech production of language learners in terms of naturalness and fluency. Keywords: English Verbal Songs, Connected Speech, Speech Production, Reading Aloud, Speaking

  16. Songs about Cancer, Gene Expression, and the Biochemistry of Photosynthesis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heineman, Richard H.

    2018-01-01

    These three biology songs can be used for educational purposes to teach about biochemical concepts. They touch on three different topics: (1) cancer progression and germ cells, (2) gene expression, promoters, and repressors, and (3) electronegativity and the biochemical basis of photosynthesis.

  17. Crab Hole Mosquito Blues — The Song

    Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

    This podcast is a song about a major epizoodemic of a serious human and equine disease written and performed by the MARU Health Angels Band. Band members: K.M. Johnson, T.E. Walton (Retired); D.F. Antczak (Cornell University); W.H. Dietz (CDC); and D.H. Martin (Louisiana State University Health Science Center).

  18. The mass and age of the first SONG target: the red giant 46 LMi

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frandsen, S.; Fredslund Andersen, M.; Brogaard, K.; Jiang, C.; Arentoft, T.; Grundahl, F.; Kjeldsen, H.; Christensen-Dalsgaard, J.; Weiss, E.; Pallé, P.; Antoci, V.; Kjærgaard, P.; Sørensen, A. N.; Skottfelt, J.; Jørgensen, U. G.

    2018-05-01

    Context. The Stellar Observation Network Group (SONG) is an initiative to build a worldwide network of 1m telescopes with high-precision radial-velocity spectrographs. Here we analyse the first radial-velocity time series of a red-giant star measured by the SONG telescope at Tenerife. The asteroseismic results demonstrate a major increase in the achievable precision of the parameters for red-giant stars obtainable from ground-based observations. Reliable tests of the validity of these results are needed, however, before the accuracy of the parameters can be trusted. Aims: We analyse the first SONG time series for the star 46 LMi, which has a precise parallax and an angular diameter measured from interferometry, and therefore a good determination of the stellar radius. We use asteroseismic scaling relations to obtain an accurate mass, and modelling to determine the age. Methods: A 55-day time series of high-resolution, high S/N spectra were obtained with the first SONG telescope. We derive the asteroseismic parameters by analysing the power spectrum. To give a best guess on the large separation of modes in the power spectrum, we have applied a new method which uses the scaling of Kepler red-giant stars to 46 LMi. Results: Several methods have been applied: classical estimates, seismic methods using the observed time series, and model calculations to derive the fundamental parameters of 46 LMi. Parameters determined using the different methods are consistent within the uncertainties. We find the following values for the mass M (scaling), radius R (classical), age (modelling), and surface gravity (combining mass and radius): M = 1.09 ± 0.04M⊙, R = 7.95 ± 0.11R⊙ age t = 8.2 ± 1.9 Gy, and logg = 2.674 ± 0.013. Conclusions: The exciting possibilities for ground-based asteroseismology of solar-like oscillations with a fully robotic network have been illustrated with the results obtained from just a single site of the SONG network. The window function is still a

  19. Dance choreography is coordinated with song repertoire in a complex avian display.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dalziell, Anastasia H; Peters, Richard A; Cockburn, Andrew; Dorland, Alexandra D; Maisey, Alex C; Magrath, Robert D

    2013-06-17

    All human cultures have music and dance, and the two activities are so closely integrated that many languages use just one word to describe both. Recent research points to a deep cognitive connection between music and dance-like movements in humans, fueling speculation that music and dance have coevolved and prompting the need for studies of audiovisual displays in other animals. However, little is known about how nonhuman animals integrate acoustic and movement display components. One striking property of human displays is that performers coordinate dance with music by matching types of dance movements with types of music, as when dancers waltz to waltz music. Here, we show that a bird also temporally coordinates a repertoire of song types with a repertoire of dance-like movements. During displays, male superb lyrebirds (Menura novaehollandiae) sing four different song types, matching each with a unique set of movements and delivering song and dance types in a predictable sequence. Crucially, display movements are both unnecessary for the production of sound and voluntary, because males sometimes sing without dancing. Thus, the coordination of independently produced repertoires of acoustic and movement signals is not a uniquely human trait. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. Anatomically discrete sex differences in neuroplasticity in zebra finches as reflected by perineuronal nets

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Cornez, Gilles; ter Haar, Sita M; Cornil, Charlotte A; Balthazart, Jacques

    2015-01-01

    Large morphological sex differences in the vertebrate brain were initially identified in song control nuclei of oscines. Besides gross differences between volumes of nuclei in males and females, sex differences also concern the size and dendritic arborization of neurons and various neurochemical

  1. Three IgH isotypes, IgM, IgA and IgY are expressed in Gentoo penguin and zebra finch

    Science.gov (United States)

    Han, Haitang; Zhao, Yaofeng; Pan, Qingjie; Ren, Liming

    2017-01-01

    Previous studies on a limited number of birds suggested that the IgD-encoding gene was absent in birds. However, one of our recent studies showed that the gene was definitely expressed in the ostrich and emu. Interestingly, we also identified subclass diversification of IgM and IgY in these two birds. To better understand immunoglobulin genes in birds, in this study, we analyzed the immunoglobulin heavy chain genes in the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata) and Gentoo penguin (Pygoscelis papua), belonging respectively to the order Passeriformes, the most successful bird order in terms of species diversity and numbers, and Sphenisciformes, a relatively primitive avian order. Similar to the results obtained in chickens and ducks, only three genes encoding immunoglobulin heavy chain isotypes, IgM, IgA and IgY, were identified in both species. Besides, we detected a transcript encoding a short membrane-bound IgA lacking the last two CH exons in the Gentoo penguin. We did not find any evidence supporting the presence of IgD gene or subclass diversification of IgM/IgY in penguin or zebra finch. The obtained data in our study provide more insights into the immunoglobulin heavy chain genes in birds and may help to better understand the evolution of immunoglobulin genes in tetrapods. PMID:28403146

  2. Three IgH isotypes, IgM, IgA and IgY are expressed in Gentoo penguin and zebra finch.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Han, Binyue; Li, Yan; Han, Haitang; Zhao, Yaofeng; Pan, Qingjie; Ren, Liming

    2017-01-01

    Previous studies on a limited number of birds suggested that the IgD-encoding gene was absent in birds. However, one of our recent studies showed that the gene was definitely expressed in the ostrich and emu. Interestingly, we also identified subclass diversification of IgM and IgY in these two birds. To better understand immunoglobulin genes in birds, in this study, we analyzed the immunoglobulin heavy chain genes in the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata) and Gentoo penguin (Pygoscelis papua), belonging respectively to the order Passeriformes, the most successful bird order in terms of species diversity and numbers, and Sphenisciformes, a relatively primitive avian order. Similar to the results obtained in chickens and ducks, only three genes encoding immunoglobulin heavy chain isotypes, IgM, IgA and IgY, were identified in both species. Besides, we detected a transcript encoding a short membrane-bound IgA lacking the last two CH exons in the Gentoo penguin. We did not find any evidence supporting the presence of IgD gene or subclass diversification of IgM/IgY in penguin or zebra finch. The obtained data in our study provide more insights into the immunoglobulin heavy chain genes in birds and may help to better understand the evolution of immunoglobulin genes in tetrapods.

  3. The Book of Ruth and Song of Songs in the First Hebrew Translation of The Taming of the Shrew

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kahn Lily

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available This article investigates the earliest Hebrew rendition of a Shakespearean comedy, Judah Elkind’s מוסר סוררה musar sorera ‘The Education of the Rebellious Woman’ (The Taming of the Shrew, which was translated directly from the English source text and published in Berditchev in 1892. Elkind’s translation is the only comedy among a small group of pioneering Shakespeare renditions conducted in late nineteenth-century Eastern Europe by adherents of the Jewish Enlightenment movement. It was rooted in a strongly ideological initiative to establish a modern European-style literature in Hebrew and reflecting Jewish cultural values at a time when the language was still primarily a written medium on the cusp of its large-scale revernacularisation in Palestine. The article examines the ways in which Elkind’s employment of a Judaising translation technique drawing heavily on romantic imagery from prominent biblical intertexts, particularly the Book of Ruth and the Song of Songs, affects the Petruchio and Katherine plotline in the target text. Elkind’s use of carefully selected biblical names for the main characters and his conscious insertion of biblical verses well known in Jewish tradition for their romantic connotations serve to transform Petruchio and Katherine into Peretz and Hoglah, the heroes of a distinctly Jewish love story which offers a unique and intriguing perspective on the translation of Shakespearean comedy.

  4. An experimental test of condition-dependent male and female mate choice in zebra finches.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marie-Jeanne Holveck

    Full Text Available In mating systems with social monogamy and obligatory bi-parental care, such as found in many songbird species, male and female fitness depends on the combined parental investment. Hence, both sexes should gain from choosing mates in high rather than low condition. However, theory also predicts that an individual's phenotypic quality can constrain choice, if low condition individuals cannot afford prolonged search efforts and/or face higher risk of rejection. In systems with mutual mate choice, the interaction between male and female condition should thus be a better predictor of choice than either factor in isolation. To address this prediction experimentally, we manipulated male and female condition and subsequently tested male and female mating preferences in zebra finches Taeniopygia guttata, a songbird species with mutual mate choice and obligatory bi-parental care. We experimentally altered phenotypic quality by manipulating the brood size in which the birds were reared. Patterns of association for high- or low-condition individuals of the opposite sex differed for male and female focal birds when tested in an 8-way choice arena. Females showed repeatable condition-assortative preferences for males matching their own rearing background. Male preferences were also repeatable, but not predicted by their own or females' rearing background. In combination with a brief review of the literature on condition-dependent mate choice in the zebra finch we discuss whether the observed sex differences and between-studies differences arise because males and females differ in context sensitivity (e.g. male-male competition suppressing male mating preferences, sampling strategies or susceptibility to rearing conditions (e.g. sex-specific effect on physiology. While a picture emerges that juvenile and current state indeed affect preferences, the development and context-dependency of mutual state-dependent mate choice warrants further study.

  5. Song 7, 'A Seeing off Song'

    OpenAIRE

    Hu Qianma

    2011-01-01

    .wav audio file This song says, please be careful on your way. When you leave, I sincerely bless you. When you come back, I’ll restrain the dog to allow you to enter my home. Please don’t forget the people who love you. We bless and support you constantly. 这首歌的歌意为,在你的路上要小心。在你离别的时候我真心实意地祝福你。当你回来的时候我会为你挡着狗让你进入我的家。不要忘记爱你的人们。我们时常都祝福和支持你。 གླུ་འདིའི་ནང་དོན་ནི་ཁྱོད་ཀྱི་ལམ་ནང་དུ་སེམས་ཆུང་བྱོས། ཁྱོད་འགྲོ་བའི་དུས་སུ་ངས་སེམས་པ་རྣམ་དག་གིས་ཁྱོད་ལ་སྨོན་ལམ་འདེབས། ཁྱོད་ཕྱིར་ལོག་པའི་དུས་སུ་ངས་ཁྱི་བཀ...

  6. Nelson Mandela’s ‘Ordinary Love’ Addressed in Pop-rock Music: a Long Song of Freedom

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Simona Martini

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available This paper aims to highlight how inspirational the figure of Nelson Mandela has been for several musicians and songwriters. In particular, it focuses on songs written by Western musicians from the early Eighties until 2013 – all showing the extent to which the South African leader has epitomized the struggle for equality and freedom. This study points out how the success of a hit single in 1984 – British ska group The Special AKA’s “Free Nelson Mandela” – paved the way for a quick increase in the number of musicians who got involved in the anti-apartheid movement and contributed to make Western audiences know about Mandela and increasingly demand that apartheid be put to an end. This survey seeks to examine the main achievements in pop-rock songs that generated both from the growing awareness about the South African leader’s experience when he was imprisoned, and the legacy of his exemplum after he was set free. Among the songs cited: Simple Minds’ “Mandela Day”, the various artists’ tribute “46664” and the most recent Golden Globe-awarded “Ordinary Love” by U2, written for the soundtrack of the biopic The Long Walk to Freedom. To better understand how the figure of Mandela has been addressed in these works, the paper includes analyses of the most complex and significant lyrics among the songs discussed, thus also showing how the South African cultural background as it was received by the West could have informed the songwriting, and how the Western reception of such songs determined an increasing awareness about Mandela’s plight and the whole phenomenon of apartheid.

  7. The effect of preferred music genre selection versus preferred song selection on experimentally induced anxiety levels.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walworth, Darcy DeLoach

    2003-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to investigate the differences of experimentally induced anxiety levels reached by subjects listening to no music (n = 30), subjects listening to music selected by the experimenter from the subject's preferred genre or artist listed as relaxing (n = 30), and subjects listening to a specific song they listed as relaxing (n = 30). Subjects consisted of 90 individuals, male and female, randomly assigned to one of the three groups mentioned above. Subjects in either music group filled out a questionnaire prior to participating in the study indicating their preference of music used for relaxation purposes. Subjects in Experimental Group 1 marked their preferred genres and/or artists, and Experimental Group 2 marked specific songs used for relaxation purposes. While the experimenter hypothesized subjects in Experimental Group 2 would show less anxiety than both the control group and Experimental Group 1, there were no significant differences found between the 2 music groups in anxiety levels reached. However, there was a statistically significant difference between the no music control group and both music groups in the anxiety level reached by subjects. Subjects listening to music, both songs chosen by the experimenter and subject selected songs, showed significantly less anxiety than subjects not listening to music.

  8. Predicting Variation of Folk Songs: A Corpus Analysis Study on the Memorability of Melodies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Berit Janssen

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available We present a hypothesis-driven study on the variation of melody phrases in a collection of Dutch folk songs. We investigate the variation of phrases within the folk songs through a pattern matching method which detects occurrences of these phrases within folk song variants, and ask the question: do the phrases which show less variation have different properties than those which do? We hypothesize that theories on melody recall may predict variation, and as such, investigate phrase length, the position and number of repetitions of a given phrase in the melody in which it occurs, as well as expectancy and motif repetivity. We show that all of these predictors account for the observed variation to a moderate degree, and that, as hypothesized, those phrases vary less which are rather short, contain highly expected melodic material, occur relatively early in the melody, and contain small pitch intervals. A large portion of the variance is left unexplained by the current model, however, which leads us to a discussion of future approaches to study memorability of melodies.

  9. The Song of the Sabia in the 3rd. Festival Internacional da Canção: boo and sunset of the Tom Jobim bossa nova`s aesthetics

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fabio Guilherme Poletto

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available This article discusses the Song of the Sabia, composition of Tom Jobim and Chico Buarque. Mobilizes different series of sources in order to reconstruct historically the boo to the performance of the song during the III International Song Festival, held in 1968 in the city of Rio de Janeiro. Seeks to highlight how this episode catalyzed the existence of different expectations on the popular song and its role as a vehicle for ideals of modernity amid the interference of the authoritarian environment in the cultural and political field. Then, based on the analysis of the constitutive parameters of the song, suggests possibilities for understanding its musical and poetic construction in critical dialogue with its reverberations in cultural terms.This article discusses the Song of the Sabia, composition of Tom Jobim and Chico Buarque. Mobilizes different series of sources in order to reconstruct historically the boo to the performance of the song during the III International Song Festival, held in 1968 in the city of Rio de Janeiro. Seeks to highlight how this episode catalyzed the existence of different expectations on the popular song and its role as a vehicle for ideals of modernity amid the interference of the authoritarian environment in the cultural and political field. Then, based on the analysis of the constitutive parameters of the song, suggests possibilities for understanding its musical and poetic construction in critical dialogue with its reverberations in cultural terms.

  10. Fixed differences in the paralytic gene define two lineages within the Lutzomyia longipalpis complex producing different types of courtship songs.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rachel M M A Lins

    Full Text Available The sand fly Lutzomyia longipalpis (Diptera: Psychodidae: Phlebotominae, the most important vector of American visceral leishmaniasis, is widely distributed in Latin America. There is currently a consensus that it represents a species complex, however, the number and distribution of the different siblings is still uncertain. Previous analyses have indicated that Brazilian populations of this vector can be divided into two main groups according to the type of courtship song (Burst vs. Pulse males produce during copulation. Nevertheless, no diagnostic differences have been observed between these two groups with most molecular markers used to date. We analyzed the molecular divergence in a fragment of the paralytic (para gene, a locus involved in the control of courtship songs in Drosophila, among a number of Lu. longipalpis populations from Brazil producing Burst and Pulse-type songs. Our results revealed a very high level of divergence and fixed differences between populations producing the two types of songs. We also compared Lu. longipalpis with a very closely related species, Lutzomyia cruzi, which produces Burst-type songs. The results indicated a higher number of fixed differences between Lu. cruzi and the Pulse-type populations of Lu. longipalpis than with those producing Burst-type songs. The data confirmed our previous assumptions that the presence of different sibling species of the Lu. longipalpis complex in Brazil can be divided into two main groups, one representing a single species and a second more heterogeneous group that probably represents a number of incipient species. We hypothesize that para might be one of the genes directly involved in the control of the courtship song differences between these two groups or that it is linked to other loci associated with reproductive isolation of the Brazilian species.

  11. Difficulties when assessing birdsong learning programmes under field conditions: a re-evaluation of song repertoire flexibility in the great tit.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rivera-Gutierrez, Hector F; Pinxten, Rianne; Eens, Marcel

    2011-01-17

    There is a remarkable diversity of song-learning strategies in songbirds. Establishing whether a species is closed- or open-ended is important to be able to interpret functional and evolutionary consequences of variation in repertoire size. Most of our knowledge regarding the timing of vocal learning is based on laboratory studies, despite the fact that these may not always replicate the complex ecological and social interactions experienced by birds in the wild. Given that field studies cannot provide the experimental control of laboratory studies, it may not be surprising that species such as the great tit that were initially assumed to be closed-ended learners have later been suggested to be open-ended learners. By using an established colour-ringed population, by following a standardized recording protocol, and by taking into account the species' song ecology (using only recordings obtained during peak of singing at dawn), we replicated two previous studies to assess song repertoire learning and flexibility in adult wild great tits elicited by social interactions. First, we performed a playback experiment to test repertoire plasticity elicited by novel versus own songs. Additionally, in a longitudinal study, we followed 30 males in two consecutive years and analysed whether new neighbours influenced any change in the repertoire. Contrary to the previous studies, song repertoire size and composition were found to be highly repeatable both between years and after confrontation with a novel song. Our results suggest that great tits are closed-ended learners and that their song repertoire probably does not change during adulthood. Methodological differences that may have led to an underestimation of the repertoires or population differences may explain the discrepancy in results with previous studies. We argue that a rigorous and standardized assessment of the repertoire is essential when studying age- or playback-induced changes in repertoire size and composition

  12. Fixed Differences in the paralytic Gene Define Two Lineages within the Lutzomyia longipalpis Complex Producing Different Types of Courtship Songs

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lins, Rachel M. M. A.; Souza, Nataly A.; Brazil, Reginaldo P.; Maingon, Rhayza D. C.; Peixoto, Alexandre A.

    2012-01-01

    The sand fly Lutzomyia longipalpis (Diptera: Psychodidae: Phlebotominae), the most important vector of American visceral leishmaniasis, is widely distributed in Latin America. There is currently a consensus that it represents a species complex, however, the number and distribution of the different siblings is still uncertain. Previous analyses have indicated that Brazilian populations of this vector can be divided into two main groups according to the type of courtship song (Burst vs. Pulse) males produce during copulation. Nevertheless, no diagnostic differences have been observed between these two groups with most molecular markers used to date. We analyzed the molecular divergence in a fragment of the paralytic (para) gene, a locus involved in the control of courtship songs in Drosophila, among a number of Lu. longipalpis populations from Brazil producing Burst and Pulse-type songs. Our results revealed a very high level of divergence and fixed differences between populations producing the two types of songs. We also compared Lu. longipalpis with a very closely related species, Lutzomyia cruzi, which produces Burst-type songs. The results indicated a higher number of fixed differences between Lu. cruzi and the Pulse-type populations of Lu. longipalpis than with those producing Burst-type songs. The data confirmed our previous assumptions that the presence of different sibling species of the Lu. longipalpis complex in Brazil can be divided into two main groups, one representing a single species and a second more heterogeneous group that probably represents a number of incipient species. We hypothesize that para might be one of the genes directly involved in the control of the courtship song differences between these two groups or that it is linked to other loci associated with reproductive isolation of the Brazilian species. PMID:22970200

  13. Rules of song development and their use in vocal interactions by birds with large repertoires.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Geberzahn, Nicole; Hultsch, Henrike

    2004-06-01

    Songbirds are well known for settling their disputes by vocal signals, and their singing plays a dominant role. Most studies on this issue have concentrated on bird species that develop and use small vocal repertoires. In this article we will go farther and focus on examples of how species with large song repertoires make use of their vocal competence. In particular, we will outline the study of interaction rules which have been elucidated by examining time- and pattern-specific relationships between signals exchanged by territorial neighbors. First we present an inquiry into the rules of song learning and development. In birds with large song repertoires, the ontogeny of such rules proceeds along a number of trajectories which help in understanding the often remarkable accomplishments of adult birds. In both approaches, our model species will be the Common Nightingale Luscinia megarhynchos that has been investigated intensively in the field and in the laboratory.

  14. The Effectiveness of Song Technique in Teaching Paper Based TOEFL (PBT’S Listening Comprehension Section

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Heri Kuswoyo

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available Among three sections that follow the Paper-Based TOEFL (PBT, many test takers find listening comprehension section is the most difficult. Thus, in this research the researcher aims to explore how students learn PBT’s listening comprehension section effectively through song technique. This sounds like a more interesting and engaging way to learn language because music is a very powerful motivational tool for learning language. To reach the goal of this study, the researcher applied the grammar approach. It is an appropriate approach since the main idea of grammar-based listening exercises is to analyze the language by its components and reconstruct an incomplete text. Besides, the researcher employed an English song as the media the researcher uses the top- down model for the Listening Process.  In this research, the writer tries to share his experience in teaching listening in English department of Teknokrat College by implementing song technique.

  15. Myosin heavy-chain isoforms in the flight and leg muscles of hummingbirds and zebra finches.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Velten, Brandy P; Welch, Kenneth C

    2014-06-01

    Myosin heavy chain (MHC) isoform complement is intimately related to a muscle's contractile properties, yet relatively little is known about avian MHC isoforms or how they may vary with fiber type and/or the contractile properties of a muscle. The rapid shortening of muscles necessary to power flight at the high wingbeat frequencies of ruby-throated hummingbirds and zebra finches (25-60 Hz), along with the varied morphology and use of the hummingbird hindlimb, provides a unique opportunity to understand how contractile and morphological properties of avian muscle may be reflected in MHC expression. Isoforms of the hummingbird and zebra finch flight and hindlimb muscles were electrophoretically separated and compared with those of other avian species representing different contractile properties and fiber types. The flight muscles of the study species operate at drastically different contraction rates and are composed of different histochemically defined fiber types, yet each exhibited the same, single MHC isoform corresponding to the chicken adult fast isoform. Thus, despite quantitative differences in the contractile demands of flight muscles across species, this isoform appears necessary for meeting the performance demands of avian powered flight. Variation in flight muscle contractile performance across species may be due to differences in the structural composition of this conserved isoform and/or variation within other mechanically linked proteins. The leg muscles were more varied in their MHC isoform composition across both muscles and species. The disparity in hindlimb MHC expression between hummingbirds and the other species highlights previously observed differences in fiber type composition and thrust production during take-off. Copyright © 2014 the American Physiological Society.

  16. The roles of vocal and visual interactions in social learning zebra finches: A video playback experiment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guillette, Lauren M; Healy, Susan D

    2017-06-01

    The transmission of information from an experienced demonstrator to a naïve observer often depends on characteristics of the demonstrator, such as familiarity, success or dominance status. Whether or not the demonstrator pays attention to and/or interacts with the observer may also affect social information acquisition or use by the observer. Here we used a video-demonstrator paradigm first to test whether video demonstrators have the same effect as using live demonstrators in zebra finches, and second, to test the importance of visual and vocal interactions between the demonstrator and observer on social information use by the observer. We found that female zebra finches copied novel food choices of male demonstrators they saw via live-streaming video while they did not consistently copy from the demonstrators when they were seen in playbacks of the same videos. Although naive observers copied in the absence of vocalizations by the demonstrator, as they copied from playback of videos with the sound off, females did not copy where there was a mis-match between the visual information provided by the video and vocal information from a live male that was out of sight. Taken together these results suggest that video demonstration is a useful methodology for testing social information transfer, at least in a foraging context, but more importantly, that social information use varies according to the vocal interactions, or lack thereof, between the observer and the demonstrator. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  17. Increased Fos expression among midbrain dopaminergic cell groups during birdsong tutoring.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nordeen, E J; Holtzman, D A; Nordeen, K W

    2009-08-01

    During avian vocal learning, birds memorize conspecific song patterns and then use auditory feedback to match their vocal output to this acquired template. Some models of song learning posit that during tutoring, conspecific visual, social and/or auditory cues activate neuromodulatory systems that encourage acquisition of the tutor's song and attach incentive value to that specific acoustic pattern. This hypothesis predicts that stimuli experienced during social tutoring activate cell populations capable of signaling reward. Using immunocytochemistry for the protein product of the immediate early gene c-Fos, we found that brief exposure of juvenile male zebra finches to a live familiar male tutor increased the density of Fos+ cells within two brain regions implicated in reward processing: the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc). This activation of Fos appears to involve both dopaminergic and non-dopaminergic VTA/SNc neurons. Intriguingly, a familiar tutor was more effective than a novel tutor in stimulating Fos expression within these regions. In the periaqueductal gray, a dopamine-enriched cell population that has been implicated in emotional processing, Fos labeling also was increased after tutoring, with a familiar tutor again being more effective than a novel conspecific. As several neural regions implicated in song acquisition receive strong dopaminergic projections from these midbrain nuclei, their activation in conjunction with hearing the tutor's song could help to establish sensory representations that later guide motor sequence learning.

  18. Analysis of Children's Songs in Terms of Values

    Science.gov (United States)

    Keray Dinçel, Betül

    2017-01-01

    Children's songs inspire the love of music in children and improve their musical skills and at the same time, teach national values and societal rules, contribute to their personality development, make children feel happier, foster interpersonal communication and particularly contribute to the cognitive and linguistic development of children at…

  19. Teaching English to Young Learners Through Songs

    OpenAIRE

    Yuliana, Yuliana

    2003-01-01

    Teaching English to Young Learners has become a trend nowadays. In every school, English is taught as one of the main subjects. In teaching young learners is not like teaching adults, children have their own way of learning. Since children like to play and have fun, the learning and teaching process should be suited with the nature of the children themselves. One of the forms of fun activities for children is through music, and songs are the common form of music that children know. Through th...

  20. A Study of Ben Okri's Songs of Enchantment and Infinite Riches

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    DrNneka

    its values as the quality of its contribution to man's freedom” (Qtd. in Onuekwusi ... the faces of three white women with disheveled blonde hair and dolphine eyes and .... In Songs of Enchantment, Dad single-handedly fights vices in the society.