[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 We reviewed and descriptively analyzed the unpublished complete medical records of 100 male cases treated by Professor Xu Fu-song with his TCM protocols from 1978 to 1992.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.

Divergence in male cricket song and female preference functions in three allopatric sister species.

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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.

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...

Nonpasserine bird produces soft calls and pays retaliation cost

OpenAIRE

Paweł Ręk; Tomasz S. Osiejuk

2011-01-01

Low-amplitude vocalizations produced during aggressive encounters, courtship, or both (quiet/soft songs) have been described for many species of song-learning passerines; however, such signals have not been studied among nonlearning birds. During aggressive interactions, apart from using the broadcast call, male corncrakes (Crex crex) produce a low-amplitude, gurgling--mewing call, which appears to be equivalent to soft songs of songbirds. Previous studies have shown that low-amplitude vocali...

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

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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.

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.

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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.

How do "mute" cicadas produce their calling songs?

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Changqing Luo

Full Text Available Insects have evolved a variety of structures and mechanisms to produce sounds, which are used for communication both within and between species. Among acoustic insects, cicada males are particularly known for their loud and diverse sounds which function importantly in communication. The main method of sound production in cicadas is the tymbal mechanism, and a relative small number of cicada species possess both tymbal and stridulatory organs. However, cicadas of the genus Karenia do not have any specialized sound-producing structures, so they are referred to as "mute". This denomination is quite misleading, as they indeed produce sounds. Here, we investigate the sound-producing mechanism and acoustic communication of the "mute" cicada, Karenia caelatata, and discover a new sound-production mechanism for cicadas: i.e., K. caelatata produces impact sounds by banging the forewing costa against the operculum. The temporal, frequency and amplitude characteristics of the impact sounds are described. Morphological studies and reflectance-based analyses reveal that the structures involved in sound production of K. caelatata (i.e., forewing, operculum, cruciform elevation, and wing-holding groove on scutellum are all morphologically modified. Acoustic playback experiments and behavioral observations suggest that the impact sounds of K. caelatata are used in intraspecific communication and function as calling songs. The new sound-production mechanism expands our knowledge on the diversity of acoustic signaling behavior in cicadas and further underscores the need for more bioacoustic studies on cicadas which lack tymbal mechanism.

How do "mute" cicadas produce their calling songs?

Science.gov (United States)

Luo, Changqing; Wei, Cong; Nansen, Christian

2015-01-01

Insects have evolved a variety of structures and mechanisms to produce sounds, which are used for communication both within and between species. Among acoustic insects, cicada males are particularly known for their loud and diverse sounds which function importantly in communication. The main method of sound production in cicadas is the tymbal mechanism, and a relative small number of cicada species possess both tymbal and stridulatory organs. However, cicadas of the genus Karenia do not have any specialized sound-producing structures, so they are referred to as "mute". This denomination is quite misleading, as they indeed produce sounds. Here, we investigate the sound-producing mechanism and acoustic communication of the "mute" cicada, Karenia caelatata, and discover a new sound-production mechanism for cicadas: i.e., K. caelatata produces impact sounds by banging the forewing costa against the operculum. The temporal, frequency and amplitude characteristics of the impact sounds are described. Morphological studies and reflectance-based analyses reveal that the structures involved in sound production of K. caelatata (i.e., forewing, operculum, cruciform elevation, and wing-holding groove on scutellum) are all morphologically modified. Acoustic playback experiments and behavioral observations suggest that the impact sounds of K. caelatata are used in intraspecific communication and function as calling songs. The new sound-production mechanism expands our knowledge on the diversity of acoustic signaling behavior in cicadas and further underscores the need for more bioacoustic studies on cicadas which lack tymbal mechanism.

Acoustic courtship songs in males of the fruit fly Anastrepha ludens (Diptera: Tephritidae associated with geography, mass rearing and courtship success

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R.D Briceño

2009-11-01

Full Text Available The Sterile Insect Technique (SIT has been used successfully to control or eradicate fruit flies. The commonly observed inferiority of mass-reared males, compared with wild males, when they are paired with wild females, is apparently due to their inadequate courtship. Anastrepha ludens males produce two types of wing vibration during courtship and mating, the "calling sound" and the "premating or precopulatory sound". There were clear differences in the calling songs between successful and unsuccessful courtships in sterile (irradiated and fertile Mexican flies. Among sterile flies, successful males produce longer buzzes, shorter interpulses and a higher power spectrum in the signal. Fertile flies showed the same trend. For mating songs a significant difference occurred in two parameters: power spectrum between sterile and fertile flies with respect to the type of song, and the signal duration and intensity were greater in non-irradiated flies. Calling songs of wild flies compared with laboratory grown flies from Mexico had shorter interpulses, longer pulses, and a greater power spectrum. However, in the case of premating songs, the only difference was in the intensity, which was significantly greater in wild males. An unexpected result was not observing pulses during pheromone deposition in wild males from Costa Rica. Comparing the premating songs of wild flies from Costa Rica and Mexico, no significant differences were observed in the duration, and the intensity of the signal was slightly greater in flies from Mexico. Rev. Biol. Trop. 57 (Suppl. 1: 257-265. Epub 2009 November 30.La técnica estéril del insecto (SIT se ha utilizado con éxito para controlar o para suprimir las moscas de fruta y su impacto en los cultivos. La inferioridad comúnmente observada de machos criados masivamente, comparada con los machos silvestres, cuando se aparean con las hembras silvestres es al parecer debido a su inadecuado cortejo. Los machos de Anastrepha

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

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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.

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.

How Do “Mute” Cicadas Produce Their Calling Songs?

Science.gov (United States)

Luo, Changqing; Wei, Cong; Nansen, Christian

2015-01-01

Insects have evolved a variety of structures and mechanisms to produce sounds, which are used for communication both within and between species. Among acoustic insects, cicada males are particularly known for their loud and diverse sounds which function importantly in communication. The main method of sound production in cicadas is the tymbal mechanism, and a relative small number of cicada species possess both tymbal and stridulatory organs. However, cicadas of the genus Karenia do not have any specialized sound-producing structures, so they are referred to as “mute”. This denomination is quite misleading, as they indeed produce sounds. Here, we investigate the sound-producing mechanism and acoustic communication of the “mute” cicada, Karenia caelatata, and discover a new sound-production mechanism for cicadas: i.e., K. caelatata produces impact sounds by banging the forewing costa against the operculum. The temporal, frequency and amplitude characteristics of the impact sounds are described. Morphological studies and reflectance-based analyses reveal that the structures involved in sound production of K. caelatata (i.e., forewing, operculum, cruciform elevation, and wing-holding groove on scutellum) are all morphologically modified. Acoustic playback experiments and behavioral observations suggest that the impact sounds of K. caelatata are used in intraspecific communication and function as calling songs. The new sound-production mechanism expands our knowledge on the diversity of acoustic signaling behavior in cicadas and further underscores the need for more bioacoustic studies on cicadas which lack tymbal mechanism. PMID:25714608

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).

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.

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...

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.

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.

Examining the effectiveness of discriminant function analysis and cluster analysis in species identification of male field crickets based on their calling songs.

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Ranjana Jaiswara

Full Text Available Traditional taxonomy based on morphology has often failed in accurate species identification owing to the occurrence of cryptic species, which are reproductively isolated but morphologically identical. Molecular data have thus been used to complement morphology in species identification. The sexual advertisement calls in several groups of acoustically communicating animals are species-specific and can thus complement molecular data as non-invasive tools for identification. Several statistical tools and automated identifier algorithms have been used to investigate the efficiency of acoustic signals in species identification. Despite a plethora of such methods, there is a general lack of knowledge regarding the appropriate usage of these methods in specific taxa. In this study, we investigated the performance of two commonly used statistical methods, discriminant function analysis (DFA and cluster analysis, in identification and classification based on acoustic signals of field cricket species belonging to the subfamily Gryllinae. Using a comparative approach we evaluated the optimal number of species and calling song characteristics for both the methods that lead to most accurate classification and identification. The accuracy of classification using DFA was high and was not affected by the number of taxa used. However, a constraint in using discriminant function analysis is the need for a priori classification of songs. Accuracy of classification using cluster analysis, which does not require a priori knowledge, was maximum for 6-7 taxa and decreased significantly when more than ten taxa were analysed together. We also investigated the efficacy of two novel derived acoustic features in improving the accuracy of identification. Our results show that DFA is a reliable statistical tool for species identification using acoustic signals. Our results also show that cluster analysis of acoustic signals in crickets works effectively for species

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.

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.

Vocal Communication: Decoding Sexy Songs.

Science.gov (United States)

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.

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.

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...

Cranking up the heat: relationships between energetically costly song features and the increase in thorax temperature in male crickets and katydids.

Science.gov (United States)

Erregger, Bettina; Kovac, Helmut; Stabentheiner, Anton; Hartbauer, Manfred; Römer, Heinrich; Schmidt, Arne K D

2017-07-15

Sexual displays of acoustically signalling insects are used in the context of mate attraction and mate choice. While energetic investment in sound production can increase the reproductive success of the sender, this entails metabolic costs. Resource allocation to sexually selected, reproductive traits can trade off against allocation to naturally selected traits (e.g. growth, immunity) when individuals' energy budgets are limited. Estimating the magnitude of the costs invested in acoustic signalling is necessary to understand this trade-off and its influence on fitness and life history. To compare the costs associated with acoustic signalling for two ensiferan species, we simultaneously took respiratory measurements to record the rate of CO 2 production and used infrared thermography to measure the increase in thorax temperature. Furthermore, to identify what combinations of acoustic parameters were energetically costly for the sender, we recorded the calling songs of 22 different cricket and katydid species for a comparative analysis and measured their thorax temperature while they sang. Acoustic signalling was energetically costly for Mecopoda sp. and Anurogryllus muticus , requiring a 12- and 16-fold increase over resting levels in the CO 2 production rate. Moreover, calling increased thorax temperature, on average by 7.6 and 5.8°C, respectively. We found that the song intensity and effective calling rate, not simply the chirp/trill duty cycle or the pulse rate alone, were good predictors for the thorax temperature increase in males. © 2017. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

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....

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.

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

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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.

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

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

Evolution of advertisement calls in African clawed frogs

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Tobias, Martha L.; Evans, Ben J.; Kelley, Darcy B.

2014-01-01

Summary For most frogs, advertisement calls are essential for reproductive success, conveying information on species identity, male quality, sexual state and location. While the evolutionary divergence of call characters has been examined in a number of species, the relative impacts of genetic drift or natural and sexual selection remain unclear. Insights into the evolutionary trajectory of vocal signals can be gained by examining how advertisement calls vary in a phylogenetic context. Evolution by genetic drift would be supported if more closely related species express more similar songs. Conversely, a poor correlation between evolutionary history and song expression would suggest evolution shaped by natural or sexual selection. Here, we measure seven song characters in 20 described and two undescribed species of African clawed frogs (genera Xenopus and Silurana) and four populations of X. laevis. We identify three call types — click, burst and trill — that can be distinguished by click number, call rate and intensity modulation. A fourth type is biphasic, consisting of two of the above. Call types vary in complexity from the simplest, a click, to the most complex, a biphasic call. Maximum parsimony analysis of variation in call type suggests that the ancestral type was of intermediate complexity. Each call type evolved independently more than once and call type is typically not shared by closely related species. These results indicate that call type is homoplasious and has low phylogenetic signal. We conclude that the evolution of call type is not due to genetic drift, but is under selective pressure. PMID:24723737

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.

Bowhead whale songs sung by females in Disko Bay, Greenland

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Tervo, Outi; Christoffersen, Mads; FØrasier, Timothy

2011-01-01

, and more rarely mate attraction. In the North Atlantic right whale, Eubalaena glacialis, a closely related species to the bowhead whale, the female produces simple calls during sexual interactions that attract other males to mating groups. We suggest that our results may indicate that the elaborate songs...... of female bowhead whales may function for mate attraction and represent a novel example of partial courtship role reversal in mammals....

Acoustic structure of male loud-calls support molecular phylogeny of Sumatran and Javanese leaf monkeys (genus Presbytis

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Meyer Dirk

2012-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The degree to which loud-calls in nonhuman primates can be used as a reliable taxonomic tool is the subject of ongoing debate. A recent study on crested gibbons showed that these species can be well distinguished by their songs; even at the population level the authors found reliable differences. Although there are some further studies on geographic and phylogenetic differences in loud-calls of nonhuman primate species, it is unclear to what extent loud-calls of other species have a similar close relation between acoustic structure, phylogenetic relatedness and geographic distance. We therefore conducted a field survey in 19 locations on Sumatra, Java and the Mentawai islands to record male loud-calls of wild surilis (Presbytis, a genus of Asian leaf monkeys (Colobinae with disputed taxanomy, and compared the structure of their loud-calls with a molecular genetic analysis. Results The acoustic analysis of 100 surili male loud-calls from 68 wild animals confirms the differentiation of P.potenziani, P.comata, P.thomasi and P.melalophos. In a more detailed acoustic analysis of subspecies of P.melalophos, a further separation of the southern P.m.mitrata confirms the proposed paraphyly of this group. In concordance with their geographic distribution we found the highest correlation between call structure and genetic similarity, and lesser significant correlations between call structure and geographic distance, and genetic similarity and geographic distance. Conclusions In this study we show, that as in crested gibbons, the acoustic structure of surili loud-calls is a reliable tool to distinguish between species and to verify phylogenetic relatedness and migration backgrounds of respective taxa. Since vocal production in other nonhuman primates show similar constraints, it is likely that an acoustic analysis of call structure can help to clarify taxonomic and phylogenetic relationships.

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...

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).

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.

A new, morphologically cryptic bush-cricket discovered on the basis of its song in the Carpathian Mountains (Insecta, Orthoptera, Tettigoniidae

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Ionuţ Ştefan Iorgu

2017-06-01

Full Text Available A new, morphologically cryptic species of phaneropterine bush-crickets is described from the grasslands of the Romanian Eastern Carpathians. Despite the morphological and acoustic similarities with the recently described Isophya nagyi Szövényi, Puskás & Orci, I. bucovinensis sp. n. is characterized by a peculiar male calling song, with faster syllable repetition rate (160–220 syllables per minute, at 22–27°C and less complex syllable structure (composed of only two elements instead of three observable in I. nagyi. The morphological description of the new species is supplemented with an oscillographic and spectrographic analysis of the male calling song and male–female pair-forming acoustic duet. An acoustic signal-based identification key is provided for all the presently known species of the Isophya camptoxypha species group, including the new species.

Impaired recovery of syllable repertoires after unilateral lesions of the HVC of male domesticated canaries.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Halle, F; Gahr, M.; Kreutzer, M.

2003-01-01

Particular features of the song of adult male canaries such as a large syllable repertoire resulting in a great diversity of song phrases and special so-called 'complex' syllables enhance various features of female reproductive behaviour. These features are produced in a species or strain dependent

"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 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

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

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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

Photoperiodic differences in a forebrain nucleus involved in vocal plasticity: enkephalin immunoreactivity reveals volumetric variation in song nucleus lMAN but not NIf in male European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris).

Science.gov (United States)

Stevenson, Tyler J; Ball, Gregory F

2010-09-15

Seasonal variation in the volume of various song control nuclei in many passerine species remains one of the best examples of naturally occurring adult neuroplasticity among vertebrates. The lateral portion of the magnocellular nucleus of the anterior nidopallium (lMAN) is a song nucleus that is important for song learning and seems to be critical for inducing variability in the song structure that is later pruned via a feedback process to produce adult crystallized song. To date, lMAN has not been shown to exhibit seasonal changes in volume, probably because it is difficult to resolve the boundaries of lMAN when employing histological methods based on Nissl staining. Here, lMAN(core) volumes were examined in intact photostimulated (i.e., breeding), castrated photostimulated and photorefractory (i.e., nonbreeding) male starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) to investigate the degree of seasonal variation in brain morphology. We present data demonstrating that the volumes of the total MAN and lMAN(core) delineated by enkephalin immunoreactivity are greater in photostimulated male starlings as compared to photorefractory males. Moreover, two other regions associated with the song system that have not been investigated previously in the context of seasonal plasticity namely (i) the medial portion of MAN (mMAN), and (ii) the nucleus interfacialis (NIf) did not display significant volumetric variation. We propose that greater lMAN(core) volumes are associated with the increase in vocal plasticity that is generally observed prior to production of stereotyped song.

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

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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.

“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

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...

Individual differences and repeatability in vocal production: stress-induced calling exposes a songbird's personality

Science.gov (United States)

Guillette, Lauren M.; Sturdy, Christopher B.

2011-11-01

Recent research in songbirds has demonstrated that male singing behavior varies systematically with personality traits such as exploration and risk taking. Here we examine whether the production of bird calls, in addition to bird songs, is repeatable and related to exploratory behavior, using the black-capped chickadee ( Poecile atricapillus) as a model. We assessed the exploratory behavior of individual birds in a novel environment task. We then recorded the vocalizations and accompanying motor behavior of both male and female chickadees, over the course of several days, in two different contexts: a control condition with no playback and a stressful condition where chick-a-dee mobbing calls were played to individual birds. We found that several vocalizations and behaviors were repeatable within both a control and a stressful context, and across contexts. While there was no relationship between vocal output and exploratory behavior in the control context, production of alarm and chick-a-dee calls in the stressful condition was positively associated with exploratory behavior. These findings are important because they show that bird calls, in addition to bird song, are an aspect of personality, in that calls are consistent both within and across contexts, and covary with other personality measures (exploration).

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

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

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.

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.

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...

The Structure and Function of Male Thomas Langur Loud Calls

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wich, Serge Alexander

2002-01-01

This study has addressed the acoustical structure of male loud calls and their function in Thomas langur social organisation. Thomas langurs are medium sized primate that lives in Sumatra, Indonesia. Ome of the characteristics of this species is the loud call of males. Several functions for loud

GENDER ROLES IN PAKISTANI-URDU WEDDING SONGS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

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.

Shrinking wings for ultrasonic pitch production: hyperintense ultra-short-wavelength calls in a new genus of neotropical katydids (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae.

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Fabio A Sarria-S

Full Text Available This article reports the discovery of a new genus and three species of predaceous katydid (Insecta: Orthoptera from Colombia and Ecuador in which males produce the highest frequency ultrasonic calling songs so far recorded from an arthropod. Male katydids sing by rubbing their wings together to attract distant females. Their song frequencies usually range from audio (5 kHz to low ultrasonic (30 kHz. However, males of Supersonus spp. call females at 115 kHz, 125 kHz, and 150 kHz. Exceeding the human hearing range (50 Hz-20 kHz by an order of magnitude, these insects also emit their ultrasound at unusually elevated sound pressure levels (SPL. In all three species these calls exceed 110 dB SPL rms re 20 µPa (at 15 cm. Males of Supersonus spp. have unusually reduced forewings (<0.5 mm(2. Only the right wing radiates appreciable sound, the left bears the file and does not show a particular resonance. In contrast to most katydids, males of Supersonus spp. position and move their wings during sound production so that the concave aspect of the right wing, underlain by the insect dorsum, forms a contained cavity with sharp resonance. The observed high SPL at extreme carrier frequencies can be explained by wing anatomy, a resonant cavity with a membrane, and cuticle deformation.

Individual and contextual variation in Thomas langur male loud calls

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wich, S.A.; Koski, S.; Vries, Han de; Schaik, Carel P. van

2003-01-01

Individual and contextual differences in male loud calls of wild Thomas langurs (Presbytis thomasi) were studied in northern Sumatra, Indonesia. Loud calls were given in the following contexts: morning calls, vocal responses to other groups, between-group encounter calls and alarmcalls. Loud

Chemical cues from females trigger male courtship behaviour in grasshoppers.

Science.gov (United States)

Finck, Jonas; Kuntze, Janine; Ronacher, Bernhard

2016-05-01

Gomphocerine grasshoppers use species-specific calling songs for sex recognition and mate attraction. In two closely related species, Chorthippus biguttulus and C. mollis, acoustic communication is the only experimentally characterized communication channel that elicits male courtship behaviour. However, courtship in these species involves extensive close-range interactions that are likely to be mediated by other signalling modalities, in particular chemical cues. We developed a bioassay to determine if female cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) act as chemical cues that induce courtship behaviour, and if males assess variation in CHCs to determine whether or not to court a female. The results of this approach provide evidence that grasshopper males use species- and sex-specific information from CHC signals and respond with a courtship song to the CHC profile of conspecific females but not to the CHC profile of heterospecific females and conspecific males. We conclude that males of C. biguttulus and C. mollis use multimodal channels for mating decisions, based on both acoustic and olfactory cues. We discuss various factors that might favour the evolution of male choosiness in grasshoppers.

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...

Genetics of sexual isolation based on courtship song between two sympatric species: Drosophila ananassae and D. pallidosa.

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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.

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....

Responses of male cricket frogs (Acris crepitans) to attenuated and degraded advertisement calls.

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Venator, Kurt R; Ryan, Michael J; Wilczynski, Walter

2017-05-01

We examined the vocal and non-vocal responses of male cricket frogs ( Acris crepitans ) to conspecific advertisement calls that had been attenuated or degraded by reducing the depth of amplitude modulation (AM). Both are characteristic of changes to the call as it is transmitted through natural habitats. As stimulus calls became more intense or less degraded, male cricket frogs gradually decreased their call rate and increased the number of call groups and pulse groups in their calls, changes indicative of increased aggressive interactions. At the higher intensities and lower degradation levels, the probability that males would shift to one of two non-vocal behavioral responses, attacking the perceived intruder or ceasing calling and abandoning the call site, gradually increased. The results show that differences in signal attenuation and AM degradation levels are perceived by males and trigger both vocal and non-vocal behavioral responses consistent with their use in evaluating the distance to a challenging male. Furthermore, the results indicate that the male responses are graded, increasing as intensity rises and degradation falls, and hierarchical, with vocal responses preceding behavioral responses over the range of intensities and degradation levels presented.

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

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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.

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

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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.

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

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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.

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...

How females of chirping and trilling field crickets integrate the 'what' and 'where' of male acoustic signals during decision making.

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Gabel, Eileen; Gray, David A; Matthias Hennig, R

2016-11-01

In crickets acoustic communication serves mate selection. Female crickets have to perceive and integrate male cues relevant for mate choice while confronted with several different signals in an acoustically diverse background. Overall female decisions are based on the attractiveness of the temporal pattern (informative about the 'what') and on signal intensity (informative about the 'where') of male calling songs. Here, we investigated how the relevant cues for mate choice are integrated during the decision process by females of five different species of chirping and trilling field crickets. Using a behavioral design, female preferences in no-choice and choice situations for male calling songs differing in pulse rate, modulation depth, intensities, chirp/trill arrangements and temporal shifts were examined. Sensory processing underlying decisions in female field crickets is rather similar as combined evidence suggested that incoming song patterns were analyzed separately by bilaterally paired networks for pattern attractiveness and pattern intensity. A downstream gain control mechanism leads to a weighting of the intensity cue by pattern attractiveness. While remarkable differences between species were observed with respect to specific processing steps, closely related species exhibited more similar preferences than did more distantly related species.

Causes and consequences of song amplitude adjustment in a territorial bird: a case study in nightingales

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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.

The effects of unrelated offspring whistle calls on capybaras (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris

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E Dos Santos

Full Text Available Parent-offspring vocal communication, such as the isolation call, is one of the essential adaptations in mammals that adjust parental responsiveness. Thus, our aim was to test the hypothesis that the function of the capybara infants' whistle is to attract conspecifics. We designed a playback experiment to investigate the reaction of 20 adult capybaras (seven males and 13 females to pups' whistle calls – recorded from unrelated offspring – or to bird song, as control. The adult capybaras promptly responded to playback of unrelated pup whistles, while ignoring the bird vocalisation. The adult capybaras took, on average, 2.6 ± 2.5 seconds (s to show a response to the whistles, with no differences between males and females. However, females look longer (17.0 ± 12.9 s than males (3.0 ± 7.2 s toward the sound source when playing the pups' whistle playback. The females also tended to approach the playback source, while males showed just a momentary interruption of ongoing behaviour (feeding. Our results suggest that capybara pups' whistles function as the isolation call in this species, but gender influences the intensity of the response.

Male blue monkeys alarm call in response to danger experienced by others

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Papworth, Sarah; Böse, Anne-Sophie; Barker, Jessie

2008-01-01

Male blue monkeys (Cercopithecus mitis stuhlmanni) of Budongo Forest, Uganda, produce two acoustically distinct alarm calls: hacks to crowned eagles (Stephanoaetus coronatus) and pyows to leopards (Panthera pardus) and a range of other disturbances. In playback experiments, males responded...... to leopard growls exclusively with a series of pyows and to eagle shrieks predominantly with hacks. Responses to playbacks of these alarm call series matched the responses to the corresponding predators, suggesting that the calls conveyed something about the nature of the threat. When responding to a series...... of hacks, indicating an eagle, males responded predominately with hacks, but produced significantly more calls if their group members were close to the playback stimulus than far away, regardless of their own position. When responding to a series of pyows, indicating a range of disturbances, males...

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

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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.

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

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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.

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

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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.

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

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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.

Five new species of grass cicadas in the genus Graminitigrina (Hemiptera: Cicadidae: Cicadettinae: Cicadettini) from Queensland and Northern Territory, Australia: comparative morphology, songs, behaviour and distributions.

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Ewart, A; Popple, L W; Hill, K B R

2017-02-07

Five new species of small grass cicadas belonging to the genus Graminitigrina Ewart and Marques are described, together with detailed analyses of their calling songs. Four species occur in Queensland, G. aurora n. sp. from eastern central Queensland near Fairbairn Dam; G. flindensis n. sp. from central Queensland between Hughenden northwards for at least 108 km; G. einasleighi n. sp. from near The Lynd, Einasleigh River, northeastern Queensland; G. selwynensis n. sp. from the Selwyn Range, northwestern Queensland, at locations about 40 km east of Mount Isa and 25 km southwest of Cloncurry, this latter here transferred from G. bowensis Ewart and Marques; G. uluruensis n. sp. from Uluru and the Olgas in southwestern Northern Territory, extending northwards through Tennant Creek and apparently further north to near Larrimah, a linear distance of approximately 1190 km. These new species bring the known Graminitigrina species to ten, all superficially similar in colour and morphology. A key to male specimens is provided for the 10 species. Additional distribution records and additional aural song recordings are presented for G. bowensis, these requiring the transfer of populations previously identified as G. bowensis from Croydon and Georgetown, northern Gulf region, to G. karumbae Ewart and Marques. Detailed comparative analyses, including NMDS analyses, of the songs of all 10 species are provided, which show that the song parameters are appropriate to distinguish the species, although some partial overlap is noted in the waveform plots between the songs of G. uluruensis n. sp. and G. flindensis n. sp. Regional variations of song parameters are noted in the calling songs of most of the species described.

New species of Simona Moulds, 2012 and Chelapsalta Moulds, 2012 cicadas (Cicadidae: Cicadettinae: Cicadettini) from Australia: comparative morphology, songs, behaviour and distributions.

Science.gov (United States)

Ewart, A; Popple, L W; Marshall, D C

2015-08-20

In 2012, Moulds established the morphologically similar cicada genera Simona and Chelapsalta, each with one Australian species (sancta Distant and puer Walker, respectively). In this paper, two new species are described within the genus Simona Moulds 2012, S. erema sp. nov. and S. retracta sp. nov., and one within the genus Chelapsalta Moulds 2012, C. myoporae sp. nov. The type species of Simona (female holotype), S. sancta (Distant, 1913), is redescribed based on a contemporary male, nominated a plesiotype, held in the Australian National Insect Collection. Melampsalta subgulosa Ashton 1914 is supported as a junior synonym of S. sancta. The species within the two genera of Simona and Chelapsalta are morphologically very similar. S. erema occurs widely through the arid regions of inland Australia, extending west from western Queensland through the Northern Territory, to central-western Western Australia, a linear distance of approximately 2200 km. S. retracta is known from a single semi-arid locality in southern inland Queensland. C. myoporae occurs widely through southeast, central and southwest Queensland, extending southwards into inland and western N.S.W. and southeastern South Australia. It tends to occur most commonly within vegetation associated with seasonal riverine floodplains, and in some areas of poorly drained and clay-rich soils. The calling songs of these three species, together with those of S. sancta and C. puer, are described. Detailed comparisons made of the songs of S. erema and C. myoporae, each from three widely separated locations, clearly exhibit structural consistency in their calling songs across their distributions. The Simona songs are complex and contain multiple elements; the species are very mobile and wary, and inhabit low dense shrubland. The songs of the two Chelapsalta species, both relatively sedentary in behaviour, in contrast consist of relatively uniform chirping and buzzing elements. It is suggested that, although the two

Female field crickets incur increased parasitism risk when near preferred song.

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Cassandra M Martin

2010-03-01

Full Text Available Female animals often prefer males with conspicuous traits because these males provide direct or indirect benefits. Conspicuous male traits, however, can attract predators. This not only increases the risk of predation for conspicuous males but also for the females that prefer them. In the variable field cricket, Gryllus lineaticeps, males that produce preferred song types provide females with greater material benefits, but they are also more likely to attract lethal parasitoid flies. First, we conducted a field experiment that tested the hypothesis that females have a greater risk of fly parasitism when in association with preferred high chirp rate males. Females were nearly twice as likely to be parasitized when caged with high chirp rate song than when caged with low chirp rate song. Females may thus be forced to trade off the quality of the benefits they receive from mating with preferred males and the risk of being killed by a predator when near these males. Second, we assessed female parasitism rates in a natural population. Up to 6% of the females were parasitized in field samples. Because the females we collected could have become parasitized had they not been collected, this provides a minimum estimate of the female parasitism rate in the field. In a laboratory study, we found no difference in the proportion of time parasitized and unparasitized females spent hiding under shelters; thus, differences in activity patterns do not appear to have biased our estimate of female parasitism rates. Overall, our results suggest that female association costs have the potential to shape the evolution of female mating preferences.

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...

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...

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

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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.

A Study on the Music Features of Guizhou Yi’s Traditional Love Song (Qugu)

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Chen Ran; Lei Rui

2016-01-01

( ceremonies ) . For example, at the very beginning, certain clan elders or prestig-ious singers would offer wine and water to the‘heavens and earth ’ . After this offering, ‘the soul of the song’ was invited. The Yi people tradi-tionally worship nature and believe in animism, so indeed a ‘Qugu’ also has its own ‘soul’ . There-fore, when the singing festival would commence, they would invite the ‘soul of the song’ to come;this custom is called ‘Guyexi’ in the Yi language. The nextritual would be the ‘Guyidai ’ ( in Yi) , which means‘the settling down of the soul of the song’ at the particular singing site. There are lyrics like:‘If there is no settling down of the soul of the song, then when the next spring comes the sil-ver flowers will sever their roots, the golden flowers will sever their roots, and the singing sites cannot be set up ’ . After the settling down of the soul of the song, the next ceremony would be the ‘Gukoupu’ ( in Yi) or ‘opening of the mouth of the song ’:this basically means the ‘opening of the door of love’ and also indicates the formal beginning of‘Qugu’ activity. All of this shows indeed that the rite of‘Qugu’ is not as solemn as other rites, as in fact the lyrics of ‘Qugu ’ are mostly about love af-fairs and romance. When the‘Gukoupu’ ends, the young people can start to freely sing. There are indeed lyrics like: ‘Three young chaps brought three axes and went into three directions of the universe; they chopped three pine trees, sawed off three boards, made three chairs, and placed these facing three di-rections. They invited girls to take a seat; the girls sat down and sang. The girls invited the chaps to take a seat;the chaps sat down and sang’ . When this‘free singing’ begins, an ‘antiph-onal group singing’ starts at the singing site (‘Gu-ji ’ ); males and females take part in this and stand/sit separately as they all sing in antiphonal style. In the middle there is a �

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

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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.

An environmentally relevant endocrine-disrupting antiandrogen, vinclozolin, affects calling behavior of male Xenopus laevis.

Science.gov (United States)

Hoffmann, Frauke; Kloas, Werner

2010-09-01

Vinclozolin (VIN) is an antiandrogenic model substance as well as a common fungicide that can affect the endocrine system of vertebrates. The objective of this study was to investigate how VIN affects mate calling behavior of South African clawed frogs (Xenopus laevis) and whether it is effective at environmentally relevant concentrations. Male X. laevis were injected with human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) to stimulate their androgen-controlled mate calling behavior and were treated with VIN at concentrations of 10(-6), 10(-8) and 10(-10)M. VIN at 10(-6)M reduced calling activity. Furthermore, the vocalization composition of VIN-treated X. laevis was altered. The call types advertisement calls and chirping are uttered by reproductively active males, whereas the call types growling, ticking, and rasping indicate a sexually unaroused state of a male. VIN at any of the tested concentrations led to a decrease in utterance of calls, which indicate a sexually aroused state of the males, and an increase in relative proportions of calls, indicating a sexually unaroused state of the males. Additionally, the mean duration of clicks and the number of accentuated clicks during the advertisement calls decreased at all concentrations of VIN. No significant differences were observed in any other temporal or spectral calling parameters between the treatments. This study illustrates that exposure to the antiandrogen VIN might result in a reduced reproductive success by altering mate calling behavior of X. laevis. Moreover, it suggests that the behavioral parameters examined in this study can be used as sensitive biomarkers for detecting antiandrogenic endocrine disrupting compounds in amphibians. Copyright (c) 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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

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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.

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.

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.

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.

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...

Male Music Frogs Compete Vocally on the Basis of Temporal Sequence Rather Than Spatial Cues of Rival Calls

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Fan JIANG; Guangzhan FANG; Fei XUE; Jianguo CUI; Steven E BRAUTH; Yezhong TANG

2015-01-01

Male-male vocal competition in anuran species may be influenced by cues related to the temporal sequence of male calls as well by internal temporal, spectral and spatial ones. Nevertheless, the conditions under which each type of cue is important remain unclear. Since the salience of different cues could be reflected by dynamic properties of male-male competition under certain experimental manipulation, we investigated the effects of repeating playbacks of conspecific calls on male call production in the Emei music frog (Babina daunchina). In Babina, most males produce calls from nest burrows which modify the spectral features of the cues. Females prefer calls produced from inside burrows which are defined as highly sexually attractive (HSA) while those produced outside burrows as low sexual attractiveness (LSA). In this study HSA and LSA calls were broadcasted either antiphonally or stereophonically through spatially separated speakers in which the temporal sequence and/or spatial position of the playbacks was either predictable or random. Results showed that most males consistently avoided producing advertisement calls overlapping the playback stimuli and generally produced calls competitively in advance of the playbacks. Furthermore males preferentially competed with the HSA calls when the sequence was predictable but competed equally with HSA and LSA calls if the sequence was random regardless of the availability of spatial cues, implying that males relied more on available sequence cues than spatial ones to remain competitive.

Reading the Song of Songs through a spiritual direction lens

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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.

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

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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

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!

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…

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.

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, ...

Identification of Chemicals Emitted by Calling Males of the Sapote Fruit Fly, Anastrepha serpentina (Diptera: Tephritidae)

Science.gov (United States)

Emissions from sexually active Anastrepha serpentine males were collected by solid-phase microextraction. Calling behavior of wild-type males showed no clear peak during the day, except that it was evident less frequently immediately after daybreak and just before dark. Calling by laboratory males...

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.

Identification of chemicals emitted by calling males of the Sapote fruit fly, Anastrepha serpentina.

Science.gov (United States)

Robacker, David C; Aluja, Martin; Bartelt, Robert J; Patt, Joseph

2009-05-01

Emissions from sexually active Anastrepha serpentina males were collected by solid-phase microextraction. Calling behavior of wild-type males showed no clear peak during the day, except that it was evident less frequently immediately after daybreak and just before dark. Calling by laboratory males was highest between 8 and 11 h after onset of the photophase, and mating by wild flies occurred mostly between 6 and 10 h after onset of the photophase. Two major components of male emissions were identified as 2,5-dimethylpyrazine (DMP) and 3,6-dihydro-2,5-dimethylpyrazine (DHDMP). DHDMP was synthesized, and the identity of the natural product confirmed by comparison of gas chromatographic retention times and mass spectrum. Emissions of DMP and DHMP were greatest during peak calling behavior, with males emitting up to 1.8 and 3.3 microg/h of DMP and DHDMP, respectively. A minor component, which did not vary with time of day, was identified as 2,3,5-trimethylpyrazine. To our knowledge, this is the first report of 3,6-dihydro-2,5-dimethylpyrazine in nature.

Do females invest more into eggs when males sing more attractively? Postmating sexual selection strategies in a monogamous reed passerine.

Science.gov (United States)

Krištofík, Ján; Darolová, Alžbeta; Majtan, Juraj; Okuliarová, Monika; Zeman, Michal; Hoi, Herbert

2014-04-01

Maternal investment can play an important role for offspring fitness, especially in birds, as females have to provide their eggs with all the necessary nutrients for the development of the embryo. It is known that this type of maternal investment can be influenced by the quality of the male partner. In this study, we first verify that male song is important in the mate choice of female Eurasian reed warblers, as males mate faster when their singing is more complex. Furthermore, female egg investment varies in relation to male song characteristics. Interestingly, clutch size, egg weight, or size, which can be considered as an high-cost investment, is not influenced by male song characteristics, whereas comparably low-cost investment types like investment into diverse egg components are adjusted to male song characteristics. In line with this, our results suggest that female allocation rules depend on investment type as well as song characteristics. For example, egg white lysozyme is positively correlated with male song complexity. In contrast, a negative correlation exists between-song speed and syllable repetitiveness and egg yolk weight as well as egg yolk testosterone concentration. Thus, our results suggest that female egg investment is related to male song performance in several aspects, but female investment patterns regarding various egg compounds are not simply correlated.

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.

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

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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.

Frequency tuning and directional sensitivity of tympanal vibrations in the field cricket Gryllus bimaculatus

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lankheet, Martin J.; Cerkvenik, Uroš; Larsen, Ole Næsbye

2017-01-01

Female field crickets use phonotaxis to locate males by their calling song. Male song production and female behavioural sensitivity form a pair of matched frequency filters, which in Gryllus bimaculatus are tuned to a frequency of about 4.7 kHz. Directional sensitivity is supported by an elaborate...... play a major role in tuning directional sensitivity to the calling song frequency, by measuring tympanal vibrations as a function of sound direction and frequency. Rather than sharp frequency tuning of directional sensitivity corresponding to the calling song, we found broad frequency tuning......, with optima shifted to higher frequencies. These findings agree with predictions from a vector summation model for combining external and internal sounds. We show that the model provides robust directional sensitivity that is, however, broadly tuned with an optimum well above the calling song frequency. We...

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.

The song of Iopas

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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.

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…

Investigating the Role of Pop Songs on Vocabulary Recall, Attitude and Retention of Iranian EFL Learners: The Case of Gender

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Pouya Shakerian

2016-04-01

Full Text Available 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 adult EFL learners based on their gender. In so doing a language placement test (Quick Oxford Placement Test was administered to 100 male and female language learners studying English at different language institutes in Esfahan, Iran. Ultimately, 60 advanced learners (30 males - 30 females were selected by leaving out the students of other levels of proficiency and randomly divided into two relatively homogenous groups as musical and non-musical groups. While the students of musical group (=30 were taught the new vocabulary in the syllabus through 60 different pop songs chosen by themselves through a questionnaire, the students of the non-musical group (n=30 were taught new vocabulary without using the songs. The participants were examined based on an English vocabulary test developed by the researchers, which probed into the learners’ vocabulary recall. A questionnaire was also used to investigate the attitude of the learners towards the instruction. A month later the vocabulary test was re-administered as a delayed retention test and obtained data were statistically analyzed. The results of t-tests demonstrated that the musical group outscored the non-musical group on vocabulary recall and retention. The results also showed the male learners perform better than the females. Keywords: incidental vocabulary, pop songs, vocabulary recall, attitude, retention

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

OpenAIRE

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

2017-01-01

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 m...

Using Songs in Developing Intercultural Competence

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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.

Genome size variation affects song attractiveness in grasshoppers: evidence for sexual selection against large genomes.

Science.gov (United States)

Schielzeth, Holger; Streitner, Corinna; Lampe, Ulrike; Franzke, Alexandra; Reinhold, Klaus

2014-12-01

Genome size is largely uncorrelated to organismal complexity and adaptive scenarios. Genetic drift as well as intragenomic conflict have been put forward to explain this observation. We here study the impact of genome size on sexual attractiveness in the bow-winged grasshopper Chorthippus biguttulus. Grasshoppers show particularly large variation in genome size due to the high prevalence of supernumerary chromosomes that are considered (mildly) selfish, as evidenced by non-Mendelian inheritance and fitness costs if present in high numbers. We ranked male grasshoppers by song characteristics that are known to affect female preferences in this species and scored genome sizes of attractive and unattractive individuals from the extremes of this distribution. We find that attractive singers have significantly smaller genomes, demonstrating that genome size is reflected in male courtship songs and that females prefer songs of males with small genomes. Such a genome size dependent mate preference effectively selects against selfish genetic elements that tend to increase genome size. The data therefore provide a novel example of how sexual selection can reinforce natural selection and can act as an agent in an intragenomic arms race. Furthermore, our findings indicate an underappreciated route of how choosy females could gain indirect benefits. © 2014 The Author(s). Evolution © 2014 The Society for the Study of Evolution.

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.

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.

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 ...

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...

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

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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.

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)

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.

On the distinctive call of a threatened phenotype of Allobates femoralis (Anura: Aromobatidae and its recognition by allopatric conspecific males

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Emerson Pontes-da-Silva

2017-10-01

Full Text Available ABSTRACT The brilliant-thighed frog [Allobates femoralis (Boulenger, 1884]; is distributed across the Amazon basin and aggregates several allopatric evolutionary lineages, some of which present variation in their advertisement calls. In 2009, an unregistered call phenotype was discovered in the region of Altamira and Vitória do Xingu, State of Pará, Brazil, where males emit advertisement calls formed by six notes, differing from the typical four-note calls described for other A. femoralis populations. In this study, we describe in detail these untypical calls. Additionally, we test whether the aggressive responses of males of a 4-note reference population (Reserva Ducke - RFAD, in Manaus, State of Amazonas is differential towards the 6-note calls of males recorded in Altamira (Pará State, and towards 4-note calls recorded in one location at the Tapajós-Xingu interfluve (Belterra, Pará State, and in RFAD. Playback experiments were conducted between 2011-2012, and used standardized stimuli produced from natural call recordings. A total of 30 independent experiments were conducted, 10 for each stimuli class. We measured the phonotaxis of focal males in relation to the loudspeaker, considering the time to orientation and the time to approach the loudspeaker. We found that not all A. femoralis males at RFAD promptly recognize calls from males recorded in Altamira. However, when considering only males who approached the loudspeaker, differences in aggressive reactions were not seen between stimuli classes. Our findings show that the ability to recognize calls from Altamira as belonging to co-specific males is not universal among males at RFAD. The new A. femoralis phenotype occurs in areas potentially impacted by the Belo Monte hydroelectric complex and complementary studies indicate that no gene flow exists between this group and A. femoralis from adjacent regions. Hence, developments in Altamira may put this incipient speciation process at risk.

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.

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'...

Do male birds intercept and use rival courtship calls to adjust paternity protection behaviours?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Matessi, Giuliano; McGregor, Peter Kenneth; Peake, Thomas More

2005-01-01

Abstract: We tested whether male rock sparrows (Petronia petronia) change behaviours directed at their females when played back courtship display calls simulating a potential cuckolding event in the vicinity of their nests. We compared the behaviour of males before, during and after such playback...

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

BUILDING VOCABULARY USING POP SONGS

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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

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.

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...

SECRETS OF SONG VIDEO

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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.

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

Science.gov (United States)

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

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.

Highly Structured Duets in the Song of the South American Hornero

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Laje, Rodrigo; Mindlin, Gabriel B.

2003-12-01

The South American Hornero (Furnarius rufus) is a suboscine bird widely known for its mud-made, oven-looking nest. Beyond their architectural skills, the male and female Horneros sing in highly structured duets. The analysis of field recordings reported in this work reveals that as the male increases the note production rate the female responds by switching to different locking states: the ones predicted by the theory of nonlinear forced oscillators. This gives the duet a most appealing rhythm, and unveils the nonlinear nature of the underlying brain activity needed to generate the song.

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.

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

Science.gov (United States)

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).

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

Science.gov (United States)

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…

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

Students’ acceptance of song lyrics containing national characters

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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.

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.

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

The Effect of Listening to English Songs on Iranian EFL Pre-intermediate Learners’ Listening Comprehension

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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.

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.

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…

Do male birds intercept and use rival courtship calls to adjust paternity protection behaviours?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Matessi, Giuliano; McGregor, Peter Kenneth; Peake, Thomas More

2005-01-01

Abstract: We tested whether male rock sparrows (Petronia petronia) change behaviours directed at their females when played back courtship display calls simulating a potential cuckolding event in the vicinity of their nests. We compared the behaviour of males before, during and after such playback...... and communication strategies, and extend our knowledge of how the social environment can affect within-pair dynamics....

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.

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.

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.

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...

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

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.

Sexual dimorphism in the volume of song control nuclei in European starlings: assessment by a Nissl stain and autoradiography for muscarinic cholinergic receptors.

Science.gov (United States)

Bernard, D J; Casto, J M; Ball, G F

1993-08-22

Previous studies have found that the volume of several song control nuclei is larger in male songbirds than in female songbirds. The degree of this volumetric sex difference within a given species appears to be systematically related to the degree of the behavioral sex difference. The largest volumetric differences have been reported in species in which the male sings and the female sings little, if at all, and the smallest sex differences in volume have been reported in species in which males and females both sing in nearly equal amounts. We compared the volume of three song control nuclei in male and female European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris), a species in which females are known to sing, though at a much lower rate than males. We investigated the volume of hyperstriatum ventrale, pars caudale, nucleus robustus archistriatalis, and area X of the lobus parolfactorius as defined with the use of a Nissl stain. In addition, we measured the volume of area X as defined by the density of muscarinic cholinergic receptors visualized by in vitro receptor autoradiographic methods. The volumes of all three of the song nuclei, as defined by Nissl staining, are significantly larger in males than in females. For area X, Nissl staining and receptor autoradiography indicate the same significant volumetric sex difference. The three nuclei are approximately one and one half to two times larger in males than in females, a degree of dimorphism that is intermediate to those reported for other species. Previous investigations of sex differences in the avian vocal control system have used only Nissl stains to define nuclear volumes. We demonstrate in this paper that receptor autoradiography can be used to assess dimorphisms in nuclear volume. Broad application of this approach to a number of neurotransmitter receptor systems will better characterize the dimorphisms in the song system, and therefore will provide greater insight into the neuroanatomical and neurochemical control of

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

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…

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.

EEG Correlates of Song Prosody: A New Look at the Relationship between Linguistic and Musical Rhythm

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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

EEG correlates of song prosody: A new look at the relationship between linguistic and musical rhythm

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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.

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.

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.

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.

Context effects on tempo and pleasantness judgments for Beatles songs.

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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.

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.

Gender messages in contemporary popular Malay songs

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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.

Song forms from Kustilj and neighbouring villages

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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.

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

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.

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.

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.

The effect of preferred music genre selection versus preferred song selection on experimentally induced anxiety levels.

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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.

Variation between seated and standing/walking postures among male and female call centre operators

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Toomingas Allan

2012-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The dose and time-pattern of sitting has been suggested in public health research to be an important determinant of risk for developing a number of diseases, including cardiovascular disorders and diabetes. The aim of the present study was to assess the time-pattern of seated and standing/walking postures amongst male and female call centre operators, on the basis of whole-shift posture recordings, analysed and described by a number of novel variables describing posture variation. Methods Seated vs. standing/walking was recorded using dichotomous inclinometers throughout an entire work shift for 43 male and 97 female call centre operators at 16 call centres. Data were analysed using an extensive set of variables describing occurrence of and switches between seated and standing/walking, posture similarity across the day, and compliance with standard recommendations for computer work. Results The majority of the operators, both male and female, spent more than 80% of the shift in a seated posture with an average of 10.4 switches/hour between seated and standing/walking or vice versa. Females spent, on average, 11% of the day in periods of sustained sitting longer than 1 hour; males 4.6% (p = 0.013. Only 38% and 11% of the operators complied with standard recommendations of getting an uninterrupted break from seated posture of at least 5 or 10 minutes, respectively, within each hour of work. Two thirds of all investigated variables showed coefficients of variation between subjects above 0.5. Since work tasks and contractual break schedules were observed to be essentially similar across operators and across days, this indicates that sedentary behaviours differed substantially between individuals. Conclusions The extensive occurrence of uninterrupted seated work indicates that efforts should be made at call centres - and probably in other settings in the office sector - to introduce more physical variation in terms of standing

Variability of female responses to conspecific vs. heterospecific male mating calls in polygynous deer: an open door to hybridization?

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Megan T Wyman

Full Text Available Males of all polygynous deer species (Cervinae give conspicuous calls during the reproductive season. The extreme interspecific diversity that characterizes these vocalizations suggests that they play a strong role in species discrimination. However, interbreeding between several species of Cervinae indicates permeable interspecific reproductive barriers. This study examines the contribution of vocal behavior to female species discrimination and mating preferences in two closely related polygynous deer species known to hybridize in the wild after introductions. Specifically, we investigate the reaction of estrous female red deer (Cervus elaphus to playbacks of red deer vs. sika deer (Cervus nippon male mating calls, with the prediction that females will prefer conspecific calls. While on average female red deer preferred male red deer roars, two out of twenty females spent more time in close proximity to the speaker broadcasting male sika deer moans. We suggest that this absence of strict vocal preference for species-specific mating calls may contribute to the permeability of pre-zygotic reproductive barriers observed between these species. Our results also highlight the importance of examining inter-individual variation when studying the role of female preferences in species discrimination and intraspecific mate selection.

Italian validation of the Purpose In Life (PIL) test and the Seeking Of Noetic Goals (SONG) test in a population of cancer patients.

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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.

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...

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

READING TEXT POPULAR SONG INDONESIA: STUDY SEMIOTIC-HEURISTIC

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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

The vocal repertoire of the African Penguin (Spheniscus demersus): structure and function of calls.

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Favaro, Livio; Ozella, Laura; Pessani, Daniela

2014-01-01

The African Penguin (Spheniscus demersus) is a highly social and vocal seabird. However, currently available descriptions of the vocal repertoire of African Penguin are mostly limited to basic descriptions of calls. Here we provide, for the first time, a detailed description of the vocal behaviour of this species by collecting audio and video recordings from a large captive colony. We combine visual examinations of spectrograms with spectral and temporal acoustic analyses to determine vocal categories. Moreover, we used a principal component analysis, followed by signal classification with a discriminant function analysis, for statistical validation of the vocalisation types. In addition, we identified the behavioural contexts in which calls were uttered. The results show that four basic vocalisations can be found in the vocal repertoire of adult African Penguin, namely a contact call emitted by isolated birds, an agonistic call used in aggressive interactions, an ecstatic display song uttered by single birds, and a mutual display song vocalised by pairs, at their nests. Moreover, we identified two distinct vocalisations interpreted as begging calls by nesting chicks (begging peep) and unweaned juveniles (begging moan). Finally, we discussed the importance of specific acoustic parameters in classifying calls and the possible use of the source-filter theory of vocal production to study penguin vocalisations.

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.

Moths are not silent, but whisper ultrasonic courtship songs

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nakano, R; Takanashi, T; Fujii, T

2009-01-01

) were recently shown to whisper extremely low-intensity ultrasonic courtship songs close to females. Since low sound levels will prevent eavesdropping by predators, parasites and conspecific rivals, we predicted low intensity ultrasound communication to be widespread among moths. Here we tested 13...... species of moths including members of the Noctuidae, Arctiidae, Geometridae and Crambidae. Males of nine species, 70%, produced broadband ultrasound close to females. Peak frequencies ranged from 38 to above 100 kHz. All sounds were of low intensity, 43-76 dB SPL at 1 cm [64+/-10 dB peSPL (mean +/- s......Ultrasonic hearing is widespread among moths, but very few moth species have been reported to produce ultrasounds for sexual communication. In those that do, the signals are intense and thus well matched for long distance communication. By contrast, males of the Asian corn borer moth (Crambidae...

Love songs, bird brains and diffusion tensor imaging.

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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

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…

Proximal mechanisms for sound production in male Pacific walruses

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Larsen, Ole Næsbye; Reichmuth, Colleen

2012-01-01

features more similar to those found in industrial work places than in nature. The patterned knocks and bells that comprise male songs are not thought to be true vocalizations, but rather, sounds produced with structures other than the vocal tract and larynx. To determine how male walruses produce and emit......The songs of male walruses during the breeding season have been noted to have some of the most unusual characteristics that have been observed among mammalian sounds. In contrast to the more guttural vocalizations of most other carnivores, their acoustic displays have impulsive and metallic...... anatomical origins of knocking and bell sounds and gained a mechanistic understanding of how these sounds are generated within the body and transmitted to the environment. These pathways are illustrated with acoustic and video data and considered with respect to the unique biology of this species....

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

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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.

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.

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

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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.

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. ...

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.

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.

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.

Song degradation in the hole-nesting pied flycatcher Ficedula hypoleuca: Implications for polyterritorial behaviour in contrasting habitat-types

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lampe, Helene M.; Larsen, Ole Næsbye; Pedersen, Simon Boel

2007-01-01

In the hole-nesting pied flycatcher, Ficedula hypoleuca, a male may become polyterritorial after attracting a primary female. However, the female may recognize her mate's song and attack other females that associate with him. Differences in sound degradation amongst different habitats and within ...

Acoustic Structure and Contextual Use of Calls by Captive Male and Female Cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus).

Science.gov (United States)

Smirnova, Darya S; Volodin, Ilya A; Demina, Tatyana S; Volodina, Elena V

2016-01-01

The vocal repertoire of captive cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus) and the specific role of meow vocalizations in communication of this species attract research interest about two dozen years. Here, we expand this research focus for the contextual use of call types, sex differences and individual differences at short and long terms. During 457 trials of acoustic recordings, we collected calls (n = 8120) and data on their contextual use for 13 adult cheetahs (6 males and 7 females) in four Russian zoos. The cheetah vocal repertoire comprised 7 call types produced in 8 behavioural contexts. Context-specific call types (chirr, growl, howl and hiss) were related to courting behaviour (chirr) or to aggressive behaviour (growl, howl and hiss). Other call types (chirp, purr and meow) were not context-specific. The values of acoustic variables differed between call types. The meow was the most often call type. Discriminant function analysis revealed a high potential of meows to encode individual identity and sex at short terms, however, the vocal individuality was unstable over years. We discuss the contextual use and acoustic variables of call types, the ratios of individual and sex differences in calls and the pathways of vocal ontogeny in the cheetah with relevant data on vocalization of other animals.

Acoustic Structure and Contextual Use of Calls by Captive Male and Female Cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus.

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Darya S Smirnova

Full Text Available The vocal repertoire of captive cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus and the specific role of meow vocalizations in communication of this species attract research interest about two dozen years. Here, we expand this research focus for the contextual use of call types, sex differences and individual differences at short and long terms. During 457 trials of acoustic recordings, we collected calls (n = 8120 and data on their contextual use for 13 adult cheetahs (6 males and 7 females in four Russian zoos. The cheetah vocal repertoire comprised 7 call types produced in 8 behavioural contexts. Context-specific call types (chirr, growl, howl and hiss were related to courting behaviour (chirr or to aggressive behaviour (growl, howl and hiss. Other call types (chirp, purr and meow were not context-specific. The values of acoustic variables differed between call types. The meow was the most often call type. Discriminant function analysis revealed a high potential of meows to encode individual identity and sex at short terms, however, the vocal individuality was unstable over years. We discuss the contextual use and acoustic variables of call types, the ratios of individual and sex differences in calls and the pathways of vocal ontogeny in the cheetah with relevant data on vocalization of other animals.

Investigation of musicality in birdsong

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Rothenberg, D.; Roeske, T.C.; Voss, H.U.; Naguib, M.; Tchernichovski, O.

2014-01-01

Songbirds spend much of their time learning, producing, and listening to complex vocal sequences we call songs. Songs are learned via cultural transmission, and singing, usually by males, has a strong impact on the behavioral state of the listeners, often promoting affiliation, pair bonding, or

Perception of words and pitch patterns in song and speech

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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.

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...

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

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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.

Fixed differences in the paralytic gene define two lineages within the Lutzomyia longipalpis complex producing different types of courtship songs.

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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.

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

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

Red shift, blue shift: investigating Doppler shifts, blubber thickness, and migration as explanations of seasonal variation in the tonality of Antarctic blue whale song.

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Brian S Miller

Full Text Available The song of Antarctic blue whales (Balaenoptera musculus intermedia comprises repeated, stereotyped, low-frequency calls. Measurements of these calls from recordings spanning many years have revealed a long-term linear decline as well as an intra-annual pattern in tonal frequency. While a number of hypotheses for this long-term decline have been investigated, including changes in population structure, changes in the physical environment, and changes in the behaviour of the whales, there have been relatively few attempts to explain the intra-annual pattern. An additional hypothesis that has not yet been investigated is that differences in the observed frequency from each call are due to the Doppler effect. The assumptions and implications of the Doppler effect on whale song are investigated using 1 vessel-based acoustic recordings of Antarctic blue whales with simultaneous observation of whale movement and 2 long-term acoustic recordings from both the subtropics and Antarctic. Results from vessel-based recordings of Antarctic blue whales indicate that variation in peak-frequency between calls produced by an individual whale was greater than would be expected by the movement of the whale alone. Furthermore, analysis of intra-annual frequency shift at Antarctic recording stations indicates that the Doppler effect is unlikely to fully explain the observations of intra-annual pattern in the frequency of Antarctic blue whale song. However, data do show cyclical changes in frequency in conjunction with season, thus suggesting that there might be a relationship among tonal frequency, body condition, and migration to and from Antarctic feeding grounds.

Two new genera and five new species of Mugadina-like small grass cicadas (Hemiptera: Cicadidae: Cicadettini) from Central and Eastern Australia: comparative morphology, songs, behaviour and distributions.

Science.gov (United States)

Ewart, A

2018-04-20

Moulds (2012) established the genus Mugadina for two small cicadas, M. marshalli (Distant) and M. emma (Goding and Froggatt), both grass inhabiting species known from Queensland and New South Wales. Both species are notable for their relatively simple 'ticking' songs. Moulds further noted that there were at least two superficially similar genera of cicadas, but each with different genitalia. This paper describes two new genera of small (9-15 mm body lengths) and distinctive grass cicadas with genitalia that are very similar to those of Mugadina, but possess clear morphological, colour and calling song differences. The new genera are: Heremusina n. gen. with two known species namely H. udeoecetes n. sp. and H. pipatio n. sp.; the second new genus is Xeropsalta n. gen., containing four known species, X. thomsoni n. sp., X. aridula n. sp., X. rattrayi n. sp., and X. festiva n. comb. Heremusina n. gen. species are described from the Alice Springs area of Northern Territory and the Cloncurry area of northwest Queensland, from arid to semi arid habitats. The Xeropsalta n. gen. species are described from western, southwest and central Queensland, and from the Simpson and Strzelecki Deserts in northeastern South Australia and northwestern New South Wales, respectively, all locations in very arid to arid habitats, but close to seasonal (often irregular) rivers and lakes. X. festiva n. comb. occurs in semi arid habitats in southern and southeastern Australia.        Detailed taxonomic descriptions are provided of the new species, together with distributions, habitats, and the calling songs. The Heremusina species emit songs with short repetitive buzzing echemes, the echeme durations differing between each species. The Xeropsalta songs are notable for their complexity, containing multiple elements with rapid changes of amplitudes and temporal structures, rather atypical of the songs of most small grass dwelling cicadas. Detailed song structures distinguishing each of

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

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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.

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

The Steppengrille (Gryllus spec./assimilis: selective filters and signal mismatch on two time scales.

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Matti Michael Rothbart

Full Text Available In Europe, several species of crickets are available commercially as pet food. Here we investigated the calling song and phonotactic selectivity for sound patterns on the short and long time scales for one such a cricket, Gryllus spec., available as "Gryllus assimilis", the Steppengrille, originally from Ecuador. The calling song consisted of short chirps (2-3 pulses, carrier frequency: 5.0 kHz emitted with a pulse period of 30.2 ms and chirp rate of 0.43 per second. Females exhibited high selectivity on both time scales. The preference for pulse period peaked at 33 ms which was higher then the pulse period produced by males. Two consecutive pulses per chirp at the correct pulse period were already sufficient for positive phonotaxis. The preference for the chirp pattern was limited by selectivity for small chirp duty cycles and for chirp periods between 200 ms and 500 ms. The long chirp period of the songs of males was unattractive to females. On both time scales a mismatch between the song signal of the males and the preference of females was observed. The variability of song parameters as quantified by the coefficient of variation was below 50% for all temporal measures. Hence, there was not a strong indication for directional selection on song parameters by females which could account for the observed mismatch. The divergence of the chirp period and female preference may originate from a founder effect, when the Steppengrille was cultured. Alternatively the mismatch was a result of selection pressures exerted by commercial breeders on low singing activity, to satisfy customers with softly singing crickets. In the latter case the prominent divergence between male song and female preference was the result of domestication and may serve as an example of rapid evolution of song traits in acoustic communication systems.

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.

The songbird as a percussionist: syntactic rules for non-vocal sound and song production in Java sparrows.

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Masayo Soma

Full Text Available Music and dance are two remarkable human characteristics that are closely related. Communication through integrated vocal and motional signals is also common in the courtship displays of birds. The contribution of songbird studies to our understanding of vocal learning has already shed some light on the cognitive underpinnings of musical ability. Moreover, recent pioneering research has begun to show how animals can synchronize their behaviors with external stimuli, like metronome beats. However, few studies have applied such perspectives to unraveling how animals can integrate multimodal communicative signals that have natural functions. Additionally, studies have rarely asked how well these behaviors are learned. With this in mind, here we cast a spotlight on an unusual animal behavior: non-vocal sound production associated with singing in the Java sparrow (Lonchura oryzivora, a songbird. We show that male Java sparrows coordinate their bill-click sounds with the syntax of their song-note sequences, similar to percussionists. Analysis showed that they produced clicks frequently toward the beginning of songs and before/after specific song notes. We also show that bill-clicking patterns are similar between social fathers and their sons, suggesting that these behaviors might be learned from models or linked to learning-based vocalizations. Individuals untutored by conspecifics also exhibited stereotypical bill-clicking patterns in relation to song-note sequence, indicating that while the production of bill clicking itself is intrinsic, its syncopation appears to develop with songs. This paints an intriguing picture in which non-vocal sounds are integrated with vocal courtship signals in a songbird, a model that we expect will contribute to the further understanding of multimodal communication.

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

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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)

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

Melos: a Rhetoric Proof in Songs in Semiotic Perspective

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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.

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

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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.

The language of poetic texts in contemporary Tuvan pop songs

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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

Stereotypic and complex phrase types provide structural evidence for a multi-message display in humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae).

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Murray, Anita; Dunlop, Rebecca A; Noad, Michael J; Goldizen, Anne W

2018-02-01

Male humpback whales produce a mating display called "song." Behavioral studies indicate song has inter- and/or intra-sexual functionality, suggesting song may be a multi-message display. Multi-message displays often include stereotypic components that convey group membership for mate attraction and/or male-male interactions, and complex components that convey individual quality for courtship. Humpback whale song contains sounds ("units") arranged into sequences ("phrases"). Repetitions of a specific phrase create a "theme." Within a theme, imperfect phrase repetitions ("phrase variants") create variability among phrases of the same type ("phrase type"). The hypothesis that song contains stereotypic and complex phrase types, structural characteristics consistent with a multi-message display, is investigated using recordings of 17 east Australian males (8:2004, 9:2011). Phrase types are categorized as stereotypic or complex using number of unit types, number of phrase variants, and the proportion of phrases that is unique to an individual versus shared amongst males. Unit types are determined using self-organizing maps. Phrase variants are determined by Levenshtein distances between phrases. Stereotypic phrase types have smaller numbers of unit types and shared phrase variants. Complex phrase types have larger numbers of unit types and unique phrase variants. This study supports the hypothesis that song could be a multi-message display.

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.

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

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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.

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

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...

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....

Tula song folklore: genre-stylistic and dialectic peculiarities

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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.

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.

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 ...

Acoustic foundations of the speech-to-song illusion.

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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).

Using participatory risk analysis to develop a song about malaria for young children in Limpopo Province, South Africa.

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Anderson, Chad M; McCrindle, Cheryl M E; Kruger, Taneshka; McNeill, Fraser

2018-04-27

In 2015, malaria infected over 212 million people and killed over 429,000 individuals, mostly children under 5 years of age, with 90% of malaria cases occurring in sub-Saharan Africa. The aim was to develop an age and culturally appropriate song for Tshivenda-speaking children under 5 years of age to decrease the risk of malaria in Limpopo Province, South Africa. Document review was used to identify appropriate disease determinants to decrease risk in children develop lyrics and music for a song about malaria in line with the principles of participatory risk analysis. The age and cultural appropriateness of the song as well as disease determinants chosen were reviewed using a modified Delphi technique, by 10 purposively selected experts in malaria (4), Vhavenda music (3) and early childhood education (3). Thereafter, the song was translated into Tshivenda and reviewed by two focus groups living in the study area, one including female caregivers and pre-school teachers (n = 7) and a second comprising of male community based malaria control personnel (n = 5). The experts surveyed and both focus groups strongly supported the inclusion of knowledge about the link between mosquitoes and malaria and that children should know the signs of malaria to facilitate early diagnosis. Although the expert group felt that bed nets should not be mentioned, both focus groups suggested the inclusion of bed nets and it was observed that community members were purchasing their own nets. Focus group members also felt that young children should not be involved in internal residual spraying initiatives. It was concluded that although risk communication on malaria prevention and treatment in young children should be aimed at caregivers, an age and culture appropriate song about malaria could be developed to help young children protect themselves. This song focused on understanding the link between mosquitoes and malaria, preventing exposure and recognising signs of disease.

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

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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.

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

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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

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

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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].

Avoiding escalation from play to aggression in adult male rats: The role of ultrasonic calls.

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Burke, Candace J; Kisko, Theresa M; Pellis, Sergio M; Euston, David R

2017-11-01

Play fighting is most commonly associated with juvenile animals, but in some species, including rats, it can continue into adulthood. Post-pubertal engagement in play fighting is often rougher and has an increased chance of escalation to aggression, making the use of play signals to regulate the encounter more critical. During play, both juvenile and adult rats emit many 50-kHz calls and some of these may function as play facilitating signals. In the present study, unfamiliar adult male rats were introduced in a neutral enclosure and their social interactions were recorded. While all pairs escalated their playful encounters to become rougher, only the pairs in which one member was devocalized escalated to serious biting. A Monte Carlo shuffling technique was used for the analysis of the correlations between the overt playful and aggressive actions performed and the types and frequencies of various 50-kHz calls that were emitted. The analysis revealed that lower frequency (20-30kHz) calls with a flat component maybe particularly critical for de-escalating encounters and so allowing play to continue. Moreover, coordinating calls reciprocally, with either the same call mimicked in close, temporal association or with complementary calls emitted by participants as they engage in complementary actions (e.g., attacking the nape, being attacked on the nape), appeared to be ways with which calls could be potentially used to avoid escalation to aggression and so sustain playful interactions. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

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

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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.

Kin Signatures Learned in the Egg? Red-Backed Fairy-Wren Songs Are Similar to Their Mother's In-Nest Calls and Songs

OpenAIRE

Dowling, Jenélle L.; Colombelli-Négrel, Diane; Webster, Michael S.

2016-01-01

Many vocal animals recognize kin using vocal cues, in territorial contexts and in rearing young, but little is known about the developmental and evolutionary mechanisms that produce vocal kin recognition systems. In the cooperatively breeding red-backed fairy-wren (Malurus melanocephalus), females give specific “in-nest calls” while incubating their eggs. Elements from these calls are incorporated into chicks' begging calls, and appear to be used by parents for recognition. This is likely a r...

Singing-Related Activity in Anterior Forebrain of Male Zebra Finches Reflects Courtship Motivation for Target Females

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Iwasaki, Mai; Poulsen, Thomas M.; Oka, Kotaro; Hessler, Neal A.

2013-01-01

A critical function of singing by male songbirds is to attract a female mate. Previous studies have suggested that the anterior forebrain system is involved in this courtship behavior. Neural activity in this system, including the striatal Area X, is strikingly dependent on the function of male singing. When males sing to attract a female bird rather than while alone, less variable neural activity results in less variable song spectral features, which may be attractive to the female. These characteristics of neural activity and singing thus may reflect a male's motivation for courtship. Here, we compared the variability of neural activity and song features between courtship singing directed to a female with whom a male had previously formed a pair-bond or to other females. Surprisingly, across all units, there was no clear tendency for a difference in variability of neural activity or song features between courtship of paired females, nonpaired females, or dummy females. However, across the population of recordings, there was a significant relationship between the relative variability of syllable frequency and neural activity: when syllable frequency was less variable to paired than nonpaired females, neural activity was also less variable (and vice-versa). These results show that the lower variability of neural activity and syllable frequency during directed singing is not a binary distinction from undirected singing, but can vary in intensity, possibly related to the relative preference of a male for his singing target. PMID:24312344

Masonic Song in Scotland: Folk Tunes and Community

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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.

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

On the composition of modal structures of Tuvan traditional songs

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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.

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

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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.

The Linguistic Path of “Romance”: A Systemic- Functional Analysis and Gender Comparison of Songs of the 1950s and the 2000s

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Ramiro Nieto Álvaro

2013-01-01

Full Text Available This paper brings to the realm of linguistics a set of forty love songs in English and Spanish by male and female singers from two different decades: the 1950s and the 2000s. The main objective is to show that ideology is linguistically encoded in songs. Through the qualitative and quantitative analysis of mental and material processes expressed by verbs in the lyrics, the differences in the construction of ‘romance’ and relationships between the two decades will be presented. The findings show that, in the 2000s, love songs are much more material than six decades ago (commonly mental. The study also reveals that in the 50s men were active and seducers whereas women were passive and ‘objectified’. However, in the 21st century two trends for each gender can be distinguished: women as the active ones or just as wild and independent. Men are portrayed either as sensitive or louts.

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...

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

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.

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).

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 ...

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 ...

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

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).

Interspecific semantic alarm call recognition in the solitary Sahamalaza sportive lemur, Lepilemur sahamalazensis.

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Melanie Seiler

Full Text Available As alarm calls indicate the presence of predators, the correct interpretation of alarm calls, including those of other species, is essential for predator avoidance. Conversely, communication calls of other species might indicate the perceived absence of a predator and hence allow a reduction in vigilance. This "eavesdropping" was demonstrated in birds and mammals, including lemur species. Interspecific communication between taxonomic groups has so far been reported in some reptiles and mammals, including three primate species. So far, neither semantic nor interspecific communication has been tested in a solitary and nocturnal lemur species. The aim of this study was to investigate if the nocturnal and solitary Sahamalaza sportive lemur, Lepilemur sahamalazensis, is able to access semantic information of sympatric species. During the day, this species faces the risk of falling prey to aerial and terrestrial predators and therefore shows high levels of vigilance. We presented alarm calls of the crested coua, the Madagascar magpie-robin and aerial, terrestrial and agitation alarm calls of the blue-eyed black lemur to 19 individual Sahamalaza sportive lemurs resting in tree holes. Songs of both bird species' and contact calls of the blue-eyed black lemur were used as a control. After alarm calls of crested coua, Madagascar magpie-robin and aerial alarm of the blue-eyed black lemur, the lemurs scanned up and their vigilance increased significantly. After presentation of terrestrial alarm and agitation calls of the blue-eyed black lemur, the animals did not show significant changes in scanning direction or in the duration of vigilance. Sportive lemur vigilance decreased after playbacks of songs of the bird species and contact calls of blue-eyed black lemurs. Our results indicate that the Sahamalaza sportive lemur is capable of using information on predator presence as well as predator type of different sympatric species, using their referential

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.

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.

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

Analysis of within subjects variability in mouse ultrasonic vocalization: pups exhibit inconsistent, state-like patterns of call production

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Michael Adam Rieger

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Mice produce ultrasonic vocalizations (USV in multiple communicative contexts, including adult social interaction (e.g., male to female courtship, as well as pup calls when separated from the dam. Assessment of pup USV has been widely applied in models of social and communicative disorders, dozens of which have shown alterations to this conserved behavior. However, features such as call production rate can vary substantially even within experimental groups and it is unclear to what extent aspects of USV represent stable trait-like influences or are vulnerable to an animal's state. To address this question, we have employed a mixed modeling approach to describe consistency in USV features across time, leveraging multiple large cohorts recorded from two strains, and across ages/times. We find that most features of pup USV show consistent patterns within a recording session, but inconsistent patterns across postnatal development. This supports the conclusion that pup USV is most strongly influenced by state-like variables. In contrast, adult USV call rate and call duration show higher consistency across sessions and may reflect a stable trait. However, spectral features of adult song such as the presence of pitch jumps do not show this level of consistency, suggesting that pitch modulation is more susceptible to factors affecting the animal's state at the time of recording. Overall, the utility of this work is threefold. First, as variability necessarily affects the sensitivity of the assay to detect experimental perturbation, we hope the information provided here will be used to help researchers plan sufficiently powered experiments, as well as prioritize specific ages to study USV behavior and to decide which features to consider most strongly in analysis. Second, via the mouseTube platform, we have provided these hundreds of recordings and associated data to serve as a shared resource for other researchers interested in either benchmark data for

Religious Values In Song Lyrics Tingkilan

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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.

Calling behavior of mass-reared and wild Anastrepha serpentina (Diptera: Tephritidae).

Science.gov (United States)

Castrejón-Gómez, Victor R; Lascares, Shaila; Malo, Edi A; Toledo, Jorge; Rojas, Julio C

2007-08-01

The calling behavior of mass-reared and wild males of Anastrepha serpentina (Wiedemann) (Diptera: Tephritidae) was studied both in the laboratory and in field cage tests. In the laboratory, density (1, 5, and 10 males per container), age, and hour of day significantly affected calling behavior. Mass-reared males called independently of density, whereas wild males only called at densities of 5 and 10 individuals. Males of both strains started calling when they were 5-7 d old. The daily pattern of male calling was similar in both strains, starting at 0730 hours, and reaching a peak at 1330-1630 hours. Field cage tests showed that mass-reared males started calling when they were 5d old; the period of peak calling was when males were 8-9 d old. In contrast, wild males began calling when they were 10 d old, reaching peaks when males were 13, 15, and 18 d old. Wild males tended to form leks to call during each day of the experiment, whereas mass-reared males only formed leks during 2 d, both strains displaying very low levels. During field cage tests, males, independently of strain, displayed two calling peaks, one peak in the morning and one peak in the afternoon, whereas males observed in the laboratory only showed a single calling peak. The results are discussed in view of the effects of mass rearing A. serpentina males in relation to potential use of the sterile insect technique.

Peafowl antipredator calls encode information about signalers.

Science.gov (United States)

Yorzinski, Jessica L

2014-02-01

Animals emit vocalizations that convey information about external events. Many of these vocalizations, including those emitted in response to predators, also encode information about the individual that produced the call. The relationship between acoustic features of antipredator calls and information relating to signalers (including sex, identity, body size, and social rank) were examined in peafowl (Pavo cristatus). The "bu-girk" antipredator calls of male and female peafowl were recorded and 20 acoustic parameters were automatically extracted from each call. Both the bu and girk elements of the antipredator call were individually distinctive and calls were classified to the correct signaler with over 90% and 70% accuracy in females and males, respectively. Females produced calls with a higher fundamental frequency (F0) than males. In both females and males, body size was negatively correlated with F0. In addition, peahen rank was related to the duration, end mean frequency, and start harmonicity of the bu element. Peafowl antipredator calls contain detailed information about the signaler and can potentially be used by receivers to respond to dangerous situations.

TEACHING ENGLISH TO YOUNG LEARNERS THROUGH SONGS

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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.

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;…

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.

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...

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.

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

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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.

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.

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

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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.

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

Individual differences in the motivation to communicate relate to levels of midbrain and striatal catecholamine markers in male European starlings.

Science.gov (United States)

Heimovics, Sarah A; Salvante, Katrina G; Sockman, Keith W; Riters, Lauren V

2011-11-01

Individuals display dramatic differences in social communication even within similar social contexts. Across vertebrates dopaminergic projections from the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and midbrain central gray (GCt) strongly influence motivated, reward-directed behaviors. Norepinephrine is also rich in these areas and may alter dopamine neuronal activity. The present study was designed to provide insight into the roles of dopamine and norepinephrine in VTA and GCt and their efferent striatal target, song control region area X, in the regulation of individual differences in the motivation to sing. We used high pressure liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection to measure dopamine, norepinephrine and their metabolites in micropunched samples from VTA, GCt, and area X in male European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris). We categorized males as sexually motivated or non-sexually motivated based on individual differences in song produced in response to a female. Dopamine markers and norepinephrine in VTA and dopamine in area X correlated positively with sexually-motivated song. Norepinephrine in area X correlated negatively with non-sexually-motivated song. Dopamine in GCt correlated negatively with sexually-motivated song, and the metabolite DOPAC correlated positively with non-sexually-motivated song. Results highlight a role for evolutionarily conserved dopaminergic projections from VTA to striatum in the motivation to communicate and highlight novel patterns of catecholamine activity in area X, VTA, and GCt associated with individual differences in sexually-motivated and non-sexually-motivated communication. Correlations between dopamine and norepinephrine markers also suggest that norepinephrine may contribute to individual differences in communication by modifying dopamine neuronal activity in VTA and GCt. Copyright © 2011. Published by Elsevier Inc.

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.

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

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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.

Tokoh Kabayan Sebagai Inspirasi Torotot Heong the Song of Kabayan

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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.

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.

Singing by male and female Kloss gibbons (Hylobates klossii) in the Peleonan Forest, Siberut Island, Indonesia.

Science.gov (United States)

Dooley, Helen M; Judge, Debra S; Schmitt, Lincoln H

2013-01-01

Kloss gibbons (Hylobates klossii) are endemic to the Mentawai Islands in Indonesia and are one of only two gibbon species in which mated pairs do not sing duets. This is the first long-term study of the factors influencing the singing activity of Kloss gibbons within a northern Siberut Island population and follows two previous studies in central Siberut nearly 30 years ago. We collected data on the presence/absence of male and female singing within the study area on 198 days and within a focal group on 47 days. Rainfall during the time period in which they normally sing inhibits singing in both males and females. Our study supports the hypothesis that male and female songs function in intrasexual resource defence, as singing is associated with singing by same-sex neighbours, and same-sex choruses are more likely to occur after one or more days of silence (from that sex), suggesting there is pressure for individuals to communicate with same-sex neighbours regularly. Singing was not coordinated within a mated pair, suggesting that vocal coordination of the pair has been lost with the loss of the duet and that Kloss gibbon songs do not convey information to neighbours about the strength of the pair bond. On days when males sang predawn, females were more likely to sing after dawn and earlier in the morning. Additionally, the number of groups singing in female choruses was positively associated with the number of males that had sung in the predawn male chorus. We suggest that female songs have an intersexual territory defence as well as an intrasexual function.

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)

Odour-mediated foraging by yellowjacket wasps (Hymenoptera: Vespidae): predation on leks of pheromone-calling Mediterranean fruit fly males (Diptera: Tephritidae).

Science.gov (United States)

Hendrichs, J; Katsoyannos, B I; Wornoayporn, V; Hendrichs, M A

1994-09-01

Predation is probably the most important male mortality factor in insect species with courtship displays that render males performing them conspicuous targets of predators. Sexually active Mediterranean fruit fly males, Ceratitis capitata (Wied.), aggregate in leks, where they participate in agonistic encounters and engage in visual, acoustic and pheromone-calling displays to attract receptive females. The objective of this study was to assess: a) whether sexually displaying C. capitata males in leks inside host and non-host foliage are subject to predation by the most prominent predators yellow-jacket wasps, Vespula germanica (F.), and if so, b) whether olfactory, visual or auditive stimuli are used by foraging wasps in locating male C. capitata prey. Studies were carried out in a citrus orchard and surroundings on the island of Chios, Greece. Observations were conducted using perforated containers hung within mulberry, fig or citrus foliage. Living C. capitata flies of different sex and either mature or immature were placed inside. Our results show that the yellowjacket wasps have learned to associate the presence of sexually active medfly males aggregated in leks with their prey's pheromone (kairomone). Foraging wasps, flying through the crowns of host trees, responded to the odour source of C. capitata male pheromone by approaching from downwind. Even inside dense citrus tree foliage, wasps keyed in on aggregations of pheromone-calling males using olfactory stimuli. Stimuli of visual and acoustic male signalling were only used at close range, after having followed the pheromone plume close to its source. Visual cues played a greater role in directing wasp foraging under more open and exposed host foliage conditions. Odour-based foraging of wasps inside host foliage in the mid-morning hours, when medfly male lekking activities peak, shifted gradually to a more visual-based host fruit patrolling in the afternoons to capture ovipositing and feeding medfly females

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

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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.

Ecosystem scale acoustic sensing reveals humpback whale behavior synchronous with herring spawning processes and re-evaluation finds no effect of sonar on humpback song occurrence in the Gulf of Maine in fall 2006.

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Zheng Gong

Full Text Available We show that humpback-whale vocalization behavior is synchronous with peak annual Atlantic herring spawning processes in the Gulf of Maine. With a passive, wide-aperture, densely-sampled, coherent hydrophone array towed north of Georges Bank in a Fall 2006 Ocean Acoustic Waveguide Remote Sensing (OAWRS experiment, vocalizing whales could be instantaneously detected and localized over most of the Gulf of Maine ecosystem in a roughly 400-km diameter area by introducing array gain, of 18 dB, orders of magnitude higher than previously available in acoustic whale sensing. With humpback-whale vocalizations consistently recorded at roughly 2000/day, we show that vocalizing humpbacks (i were overwhelmingly distributed along the northern flank of Georges Bank, coinciding with the peak spawning time and location of Atlantic herring, and (ii their overall vocalization behavior was strongly diurnal, synchronous with the formation of large nocturnal herring shoals, with a call rate roughly ten-times higher at night than during the day. Humpback-whale vocalizations were comprised of (1 highly diurnal non-song calls, suited to hunting and feeding behavior, and (2 songs, which had constant occurrence rate over a diurnal cycle, invariant to diurnal herring shoaling. Before and during OAWRS survey transmissions: (a no vocalizing whales were found at Stellwagen Bank, which had negligible herring populations, and (b a constant humpback-whale song occurrence rate indicates the transmissions had no effect on humpback song. These measurements contradict the conclusions of Risch et al. Our analysis indicates that (a the song occurrence variation reported in Risch et al. is consistent with natural causes other than sonar, (b the reducing change in song reported in Risch et al. occurred days before the sonar survey began, and (c the Risch et al. method lacks the statistical significance to draw the conclusions of Risch et al. because it has a 98-100% false-positive rate

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 ...

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

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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.

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.

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...

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.

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

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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.

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.

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

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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.

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…

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

Science.gov (United States)

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.

Habitat use and movements of breeding male Boreal Owls (Aegolius funereus) in northeast Minnesota as determined by radio telemetry

Science.gov (United States)

William H. Lane; David E. Andersen; Thomas H. Nicholls

1997-01-01

To determine habitat use and movements of male Boreal Owls (Aegolius funereus) in northeast Minnesota, we monitored 10 radio-equipped owls from 1990-1992. We used mist nets, bal-chartris, and the taped playback recording of the primary song of the male Boreal Owl to trap territorial male owls during the springtime breeding season.

Living, Breathing Songs: Singing Along with Bob Dylan

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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.

MEMORY SONGS DECREASE DEPRESSION FOR STROKE PATIENTS

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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.

Music Activities for "Little Wolf's Song"

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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.

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

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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.

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

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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.

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...

"The Song of the Plants", from Rabbi Nachman from Breslav to Naomi Sherzer

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Sarah Kaminski

2016-12-01

Full Text Available In the Jewish tradition, the Tu Bishvat, or “Festivity of the Trees”, at the end of January is the occasion to challenge the harshness of winter, celebrate nature’s vitality and fruitfulness, and to admire the articulate relationship between man and environment. All those aspects, related to the mythical and spiritual concept of the sacredness of the Land of Israel, are rooted in an antique tradition expressed in Deuteronomy: 20, 19 “When thou shalt besiege a city […], thou shalt not destroy the trees”. A similar concept is announced hundreds years later in a mysterious text, called Perek Shira, imbedded as part of the Tu Bishvat synagogue recitation. At the beginning of the 19th century, the famous Hassidic Rebbe, Nachman from Breslav, meditated intensely about the insolvable bonds existing between human being and the plant’s world. In his book Likkutei Moharan he persuades his disciples: “You should know that every plant and plant/ has its own and specific melody”. In the seventies, this Nigun becomes a very popular and beloved song by the talented Israeli chansonnière Naomi Shemer, born in kibbutz Degania, near the Lake of Galilee. The song is sung in public, at the Shabbat table, in religious and secular occasions, embracing biblical memory, spiritual history and a new musical approach.

Variation in the gonadotrophin-releasing hormone-1 and the song control system in the tropical breeding rufous-collared sparrow (Zonotrichia capensis) is dependent on sex and reproductive state.

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Stevenson, Tyler J; Small, Thomas W; Ball, Gregory F; Moore, Ignacio T

2012-08-01

Seasonal breeding in temperate zone vertebrates is characterised by pronounced variation in both central and peripheral reproductive physiology as well as behaviour. In contrast, many tropical species have a comparatively longer and less of a seasonal pattern of breeding than their temperate zone counterparts. These extended, more "flexible" reproductive periods may be associate with a lesser degree of annual variation in reproductive physiology. Here we investigated variation in the neuroendocrine control of reproduction in relation to the changes in the neural song control system in a tropical breeding songbird the rufous-collared sparrows (Zonotrichia capensis). Using in situ hybridization, we show that the optical density of GnRH1 mRNA expression is relatively constant across pre-breeding and breeding states. However, males were found to have significantly greater expression compared to females regardless of breeding state. Both males and females showed marked variation in measures of peripheral reproductive physiology with greater gonadal volumes and concentrations of sex steroids in the blood (i.e. testosterone in males; estrogen in females) during the breeding season as compared to the pre-breeding season. These findings suggest that the environmental cues regulating breeding in a tropical breeding bird ultimately exert their effects on physiology at the level of the median eminence and regulate the release of GnRH1. In addition, histological analysis of the song control system HVC, RA and Area X revealed that breeding males had significantly larger volumes of these brain nuclei as compared to non-breeding males, breeding females, and non-breeding females. Females did not exhibit a significant difference in the size of song control regions across breeding states. Together, these data show a marked sex difference in the extent to which there is breeding-associated variation in reproductive physiology and brain plasticity that is dependent on the reproductive

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.

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."

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.

Using Songs To Support Vocabulary Learning For Grade Four Pupils

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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.

AHP 12: Silence in the Valley of Songs

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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

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...

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 ...

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 ...

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.

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.

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…

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

The fifth day of the Fifth lunar month is the traditional Duanwu Festival of China . There are various opinions regarding the origin of this festival .The first is that it is a way to com-memorate historical figures . The second opinion on the origin is that it is derived from the taboo of the “Evil Month and Evil Date”.Ancient Chinese people believed that the fifth day of the fifth lunar month was the evil month and evil date . There-fore, on this day, people began the custom of driv-ing away evil and praying for luck .The third opin-ion is that this festival is related to the worship of the dragon totem .Modern archaeological discover-ies have verified that there is a Neolithic culture found in the middle and lower reaches of the Yan-gtze River whose remains are characterized by pot-tery with geometric-patterns.The experts believe that these relics belong to the Bai Yue people who took the dragon as their totem , and who regarded themselves as the descendants of dragon .The Du-anwu festival was the festival for worshipping their ancestors .The fourth opinion is that it is related to the day King Gou Jian ( King of the Yue Kingdom from 496-464 B.C.) drilled his navy .In addi-tion , some people believe that the Duanwu Festival is rooted in the Summer Solstice . During the long process of its history , the folk culture of the Duanwu festival became increasingly enriched .Many customs developed , such as eating Zongzi ( traditional Chinese sticky rice dumpling wrapped in leaves ) , drinking realgar wine , racing dragon-boats, hanging perfume satchels , hanging wormwood etc .Many of these customs are strongly influenced by Taoism and have a strong Taoist col-or.This article tries to explore the Taoist implica-tions found in the Duanwu festival by taking Song dynasty as the example . 1 .Taoist Deities and the Custom of the Duan-wu Festival in the Song Dynasty The Taoist deities related to Duanwu Festival in the Song dynasty mainly include Wenshen ( God of Plague

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

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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.

"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.

The cost of assuming the life history of a host: acoustic startle in the parasitoid fly Ormia ochracea.

Science.gov (United States)

Rosen, M J; Levin, E C; Hoy, R R

2009-12-01

In the obligatory reproductive dependence of a parasite on its host, the parasite must trade the benefit of 'outsourcing' functions like reproduction for the risk of assuming hazards associated with the host. In the present study, we report behavioral adaptations of a parasitic fly, Ormia ochracea, that resemble those of its cricket hosts. Ormia females home in on the male cricket's songs and deposit larvae, which burrow into the cricket, feed and emerge to pupate. Because male crickets call at night, gravid female Ormia in search of hosts are subject to bat predation, in much the same way as female crickets are when responding to male song. We show that Ormia has evolved the same evasive behavior as have crickets: an acoustic startle response to bat-like ultrasound that manifests clearly only during flight. Furthermore, like crickets, Ormia has a sharp response boundary between the frequencies of song and bat cries, resembling categorical perception first described in the context of human speech.

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)

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...

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

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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.

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…

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.

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.

Muslim Poetic: Songs to the Beloved Woman. Muahmmud Ibn Al-Mahad

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Reyna Carretero Rangel

2015-02-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this article is to share the discovery of the mystical songs of muslim poet Muahmmud Ibn Al-Mahad. His poems disclose our poetic and mystical ancestral wealth, since the Muslim legacy, as well as the Greek and Hebrew,are part of our civilization matrix. The uruguayan poet Saúl Ibargoyen through the narrative identity of Al-Mahad, whom unveils as one Other on himself, has configured a very special kind of poetic mirror, close to a palimpsest sui géneriswhere we find the signs of an eternal scripture, which approach us to the Beloved woman’s beauty and the desert as images of the mystical experience. Inthe Al-Mahad’ songs we find out the profound traces of the well-known Sufi poet Yalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi, who expressed in his verses the union with his beloved (tawhid the Perfect One. Also we perceive on his poems the delicate fragrance of Ibn ‘Arabî, called al Shaykh al-Akbar, “The Great Master”, whogaves us the gift of the “unity of the divine Essence”. The Real Being is incomparable and transcendent, but unveils itself as divine manifestation (tajallí in allthings. Thus, Al-Mahad’s verses configure this relation between love and unity to express with all subtleness the passion for the Beloved woman, as we appreciate in this poem: “In the book came from the Highest, is written also the silence ofthe zeal that cross your heart. Love the Beloved woman with that silence and the book will have new words for you”.

Subsistence Songs: Haitian téat Performances, Gendered Capital, and Livelihood Strategies in Jean Makout, Haiti

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Timothy T. Schwartz

2008-12-01

Full Text Available Examines how sexual and gender values in rural Haiti are expressed through 'téat', theatrical, songs and performances among girls from 10 to 20 years. Author describes how these sexual values relate to a concept of gendered capital, or what he calls a "sexual-moral economy", whereby men who want sex with women need to provide material rewards for this sexual access. He explains how this combines with certain gender socializations and views of men, unlike women, really needing sex, and socialized toward this, also by women, and thus from an early age to aggressively pursue women, and women on the other hand toward restraint, and to require material rewards. Author illustrates, through examples, how téat songs reflect and refer to these values, often through sexual metaphors. In addition, he shows how they relate to the wider social and gender context of matrifocality and subsistence strategies, notably the household, wherein women tend to be dominant over men, who supplied the house as expected price for her sex, manages production and reproduction of her daughters in it, instilling them also with the said sexual values, and with children seen as necessary for household work, as the women also engage in market activities outside of the house.

Degradation of song in a species using nesting holes: the Pied Flycatcher Ficedula hypoleuca

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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.

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.

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.

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.

THE CORRELATION BETWEEN STUDENTS’ FREQUENCY OF LISTENING TO ENGLISH SONGS AND THEIR LISTENING ACHIEVEMENT

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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

A PHONETIC CONTRASTIVE ANALYSIS OF ENGLISH WORDS IN THREE JAPANESE SONGS BY AKB48

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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.

Carotenoids, birdsong and oxidative status: administration of dietary lutein is associated with an increase in song rate and circulating antioxidants (albumin and cholesterol and a decrease in oxidative damage.

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Stefania Casagrande

Full Text Available Despite the appealing hypothesis that carotenoid-based colouration signals oxidative status, evidence supporting the antioxidant function of these pigments is scarce. Recent studies have shown that lutein, the most common carotenoid used by birds, can enhance the expression of non-visual traits, such as birdsong. Nevertheless, the underlying physiological mechanisms remain unclear. In this study we hypothesized that male European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris fed extra lutein increase their song rate as a consequence of an improved oxidative status. Although birdsong may be especially sensitive to the redox status, this has, to the best of our knowledge, never been tested. Together with the determination of circulating oxidative damage (ROMs, reactive oxygen metabolites, we quantified uric acid, albumin, total proteins, cholesterol, and testosterone, which are physiological parameters potentially sensitive to oxidation and/or related to both carotenoid functions and birdsong expression. We found that the birds fed extra lutein sang more frequently than control birds and showed an increase of albumin and cholesterol together with a decrease of oxidative damage. Moreover, we could show that song rate was associated with high levels of albumin and cholesterol and low levels of oxidative damage, independently from testosterone levels. Our study shows for the first time that song rate honestly signals the oxidative status of males and that dietary lutein is associated with the circulation of albumin and cholesterol in birds, providing a novel insight to the theoretical framework related to the honest signalling of carotenoid-based traits.

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.

Hippocampal sclerosis affects fMR-adaptation of lyrics and melodies in songs

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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.

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...

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

Science.gov (United States)

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.

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

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-.

Isamaalaulud ja okupatsioonirežiim – nostalgia, utoopia ja reaalsus. Estonian Patriotic Songs and the Occupational Regime – Nostalgia, Utopia and Reality

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kanni Labi

2012-04-01

Full Text Available Estonian knowledge of history emanates from the fact that constituting an independent nation has for the most part been nothing but a utopia, and was a reality for a relatively short time. When it comes to selfidentification though, the expression ’a singing people’ is often used by the Estonians to describe themselves. Nostalgia for freedom is reflected in the Estonian culture of almost all periods and is carried on by the singing tradition, where patriotic songs emerge independent of different musical tastes within a particular generation and form an important part of a common Estonian repertoire. Patriotic songs occupy a central place in several fields of Estonian culture: besides music culture also in popular culture,and literary history – the works of poetry which have gained the most popularity are those which when put to music have been the most widely spread among the people. The main part of the most popular Estonian patriotic songs are choral songs from the national awakening at the end of the 19th century. Despite the national programmes aiming to wipe out ‘bourgeois nationalism’, they were sung at the song festivals in the Soviet era and were published in song books, expressing the people’s nostalgia for freedom lost. After the end of the Second World War, there was an attempt at launching a kind of patriotic new creation, where patriotism was merged with Soviet pathos; the aim was to show that the people’s utopia was in fact communism, but not a single one of those songs made it into the people’s common repertoire. Only the patriotic songs composed in the 1980s during the so-called new national awakening reached a popularity comparable to that of the old songs. The discourse on ’Estonianness’ and the shaping of a matching repertoire under imperial Russian rule took place under very different circumstances than its preservation and development in the second half of the 20th century under Soviet occupation, but

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

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.

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...

[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.

Individual, contextual, and age-related acoustic variation in Simakobu (Simias concolor loud calls.

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Wendy M Erb

Full Text Available Primate loud calls have the potential to encode information about the identity, arousal, age, or physical condition of the caller, even at long distances. In this study, we conducted an analysis of the acoustic features of the loud calls produced by a species of Asian colobine monkey (simakobu, Simias concolor. Adult male simakobu produce loud calls spontaneously and in response to loud sounds and other loud calls, which are audible more than 500 m. Individual differences in calling rates and durations exist, but it is unknown what these differences signal and which other acoustic features vary among individuals. We aimed to describe the structure and usage of calls and to examine acoustic features that vary within and among individuals. We determined the context of 318 loud calls and analyzed 170 loud calls recorded from 10 adult males at an undisturbed site, Pungut, Siberut Island, Indonesia. Most calls (53% followed the loud call of another male, 31% were spontaneous, and the remaining 16% followed a loud environmental disturbance. The fundamental frequency (F0 decreased while inter-unit intervals (IUI increased over the course of loud call bouts, possibly indicating caller fatigue. Discriminant function analysis indicated that calls were not well discriminated by context, but spontaneous calls had higher peak frequencies, suggesting a higher level of arousal. Individual calls were distinct and individuals were mainly discriminated by IUI, call duration, and F0. Loud calls of older males had shorter IUI and lower F0, while middle-aged males had the highest peak frequencies. Overall, we found that calls were individually distinct and may provide information about the age, stamina, and arousal of the calling male, and could thus be a way for males and females to assess competitors and mates from long distances.

Digital Games, Songs and Flashcards and their Effects on Vocabulary Knowledge of Iranian Preschoolers

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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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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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.

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

Description of a new genus and two new species of high frequency cicada from New Caledonia (Insecta: Hemiptera, Cicadoidea, Cicadidae).

Science.gov (United States)

Delorme, Quentin; Mille, Christian; Jourdan, Hervé

2016-06-21

The new genus Murmurillana Delorme gen. nov., is described within the tribe Cicadettini Buckton, 1889, designating Murmurillana inaudibilis Delorme sp. nov., as the type species. Murmurillana inaudibilis Delorme sp. nov. and Murmurillana paenetacita Delorme sp. nov. are described from New Caledonia. They are respectively found in mid altitude dense Niaouli shrub (Melaleuca quinquenervia, Myrtaceae) vegetation, mixed with dense fern cover (Pteridium sp., Dennstaedtiaceae) on the Massif of Aoupinié (800 m) and on foothills of the Mont Panié (570 m). Male calling songs of the two new species are described from field recordings. These calling songs exhibit unusually high dominant frequencies. A key to the species of Murmurillana Delorme gen. nov., is also provided.

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…

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)

Call intercalation in dyadic interactions in natural choruses of Johnstone's whistling frog Eleutherodactylus johnstonei (Anura: Eleutherodactylidae).

Science.gov (United States)

Tárano, Zaida; Carballo, Luisana

2016-05-01

Communal signaling increases the likelihood of acoustic interference and impairs mate choice; consequently, mechanisms of interference avoidance are expected. Adjustment of the timing of the calls between signalers, specifically call alternation, is probably the most efficient strategy. For this reason, in the present study we analyzed call timing in dyads of males of E. johnstonei in six natural assemblages. We addressed whether males entrain their calls with those of other males at the assemblage and if they show selective attention in relation to perceived amplitude of the other males' calls, inter-male distance, or intrinsic call features (call duration, period or dominant frequency). We expected males to selectively attend to closer or louder males and/or to those of higher or similar attractiveness for females than themselves, because those would be their strongest competitors. We found that most males intercalated their calls with those of at least one male. In assemblages of 3 individuals, males seemed to attend to a fixed number of males regardless of their characteristics. In assemblages of more than 3 individuals, the perceived amplitude of the call of the neighboring male was higher, and the call periods of the males were more similar in alternating dyads than in the non-alternating ones. At the proximate level, selective attention based on perceived amplitude may relate to behavioral hearing thresholds. Selective attention based on the similarity of call periods may relate to the properties of the call oscillators controlling calling rhythms. At the ultimate level, selective attention may be related to the likelihood of acoustic competition for females. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

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.      

[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.

American Minimalism: The Western Vernacular in Norman Mailer’s The Executioner’s Song.

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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.

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

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…

Science Song Project: Integration of Science, Technology and Music to Learn Science and Process Skills

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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.

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…

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

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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

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

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

When phonetics matters: creation and perception of female images in song folklore

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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.

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…

On-call duty effects on sleep-state physiological stability in male medical interns.

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Yu-Hsuan Lin

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: On-call duty among medical interns is characterized by sleep deprivation and stressful working conditions, both of which alter cardiac autonomic modulation. We hypothesized that sleep stability decreased in medical interns during on-call duty. We used cardiopulmonary-coupling (CPC analysis to test our hypothesis. METHODS: We used electrocardiogram (ECG-based CPC analysis to quantify physiological parameters of sleep stability in 13 medical interns during on-call and on-call duty-free periods. There were ten 33.5-h on-call duty shifts per month for interns, each followed by 2 on-call duty-free days, over 3 months. Measurements during sleep were collected before, during, and after an on-call shift. Measurements were repeated 3 months later during an on-call duty-free period. RESULTS: The medical interns had significantly reduced stable sleep, and displayed increased latency to the first epoch of stable sleep during the on-call night shift, compared to the pre-call and on-call duty-free nights. Interns also had significantly increased rapid-eye-movement (REM sleep during the on-call night shift, compared to the pre-call and on-call duty-free nights. CONCLUSION: Medical interns suffer disrupted sleep stability and continuity during on-call night shifts. The ECG-based CPC analysis provides a straightforward means to quantify sleep quality and stability in medical staff performing shift work under stressful conditions.

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.

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.)

Alarm pheromone does not modulate 22-kHz calls in male rats.

Science.gov (United States)

Muyama, Hiromi; Kiyokawa, Yasushi; Inagaki, Hideaki; Takeuchi, Yukari; Mori, Yuji

2016-03-15

Rats are known to emit a series of ultrasonic vocalizations, termed 22-kHz calls, when exposed to distressing stimuli. Pharmacological studies have indicated that anxiety mediates 22-kHz calls in distressed rats. We previously found that exposure to the rat alarm pheromone increases anxiety in rats. Therefore, we hypothesized that the alarm pheromone would increase 22-kHz calls in pheromone-exposed rats. Accordingly, we tested whether exposure to the alarm pheromone induced 22-kHz calls, as well as whether the alarm pheromone increased 22-kHz calls in response to an aversive conditioned stimulus (CS). Rats were first fear-conditioned to an auditory and contextual CS. On the following day, the rats were either exposed to the alarm pheromone or a control odor that was released from the neck region of odor-donor rats. Then, the rats were re-exposed to the aversive CS. The alarm pheromone neither induced 22-kHz calls nor increased 22-kHz calls in response to the aversive CS. In contrast, the control odor unexpectedly reduced the total number and duration of 22-kHz calls elicited by the aversive CS, as well as the duration of freezing. These results suggest that the alarm pheromone does not affect 22-kHz calls in rats. However, we may have found evidence for an appeasing olfactory signal, released from the neck region of odor-donor rats. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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…

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.

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

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.

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...

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.

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.

Co-localization patterns of neurotensin receptor 1 and tyrosine hydroxylase in brain regions involved in motivation and social behavior in male European starlings.

Science.gov (United States)

Merullo, Devin P; Spool, Jeremy A; Zhao, Changjiu; Riters, Lauren V

2018-04-01

Animals communicate in distinct social contexts to convey information specific to those contexts, such as sexual or agonistic motivation. In seasonally-breeding male songbirds, seasonal changes in day length and increases in testosterone stimulate sexually-motivated song directed at females for courtship and reproduction. Dopamine and testosterone may act in the same brain regions to stimulate sexually-motivated singing. The neuropeptide neurotensin, acting at the neurotensin receptor 1 (NTR1), can strongly influence dopamine transmission. The goal of this study was to gain insight into the degree to which seasonal changes in physiology modify interactions between neurotensin and dopamine to adjust context-appropriate communication. Male European starlings were examined in physiological conditions that stimulate season-typical forms of communication: late summer/early fall non-breeding condition (low testosterone; birds sing infrequently), late fall non-breeding condition (low testosterone; birds produce non-sexually motivated song), and spring breeding condition (high testosterone; males produce sexually-motivated song). Double fluorescent immunolabeling was performed to detect co-localization patterns between tyrosine hydroxylase (TH; the rate-limiting enzyme in dopamine synthesis) and NTR1 in brain regions implicated in motivation and song production (the ventral tegmental area, medial preoptic nucleus, periaqueductal gray, and lateral septum). Co-localization between TH and NTR1 was present in the ventral tegmental area for all physiological conditions, and the number of co-localized cells did not differ across conditions. Immunolabeling for TH and NTR1 was also present in the other examined regions, although no co-localization was seen. These results support the hypothesis that interactions between NTR1 and dopamine in the ventral tegmental area may modulate vocalizations, but suggest that testosterone- or photoperiod-induced changes in NTR1/TH co

Complex coevolution of wing, tail, and vocal sounds of courting male bee hummingbirds.

Science.gov (United States)

Clark, Christopher J; McGuire, Jimmy A; Bonaccorso, Elisa; Berv, Jacob S; Prum, Richard O

2018-03-01

Phenotypic characters with a complex physical basis may have a correspondingly complex evolutionary history. Males in the "bee" hummingbird clade court females with sound from tail-feathers, which flutter during display dives. On a phylogeny of 35 species, flutter sound frequency evolves as a gradual, continuous character on most branches. But on at least six internal branches fall two types of major, saltational changes: mode of flutter changes, or the feather that is the sound source changes, causing frequency to jump from one discrete value to another. In addition to their tail "instruments," males also court females with sound from their syrinx and wing feathers, and may transfer or switch instruments over evolutionary time. In support of this, we found a negative phylogenetic correlation between presence of wing trills and singing. We hypothesize this transference occurs because wing trills and vocal songs serve similar functions and are thus redundant. There are also three independent origins of self-convergence of multiple signals, in which the same species produces both a vocal (sung) frequency sweep, and a highly similar nonvocal sound. Moreover, production of vocal, learned song has been lost repeatedly. Male bee hummingbirds court females with a diverse, coevolving array of acoustic traits. © 2018 The Author(s). Evolution © 2018 The Society for the Study of Evolution.

The Folklore - Nationalism Relationship in the Balkans. Case Study “Whose Is This Song?” by Adela Peeva

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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.

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

Sex differences in the representation of call stimuli in a songbird secondary auditory area.

Science.gov (United States)

Giret, Nicolas; Menardy, Fabien; Del Negro, Catherine

2015-01-01

Understanding how communication sounds are encoded in the central auditory system is critical to deciphering the neural bases of acoustic communication. Songbirds use learned or unlearned vocalizations in a variety of social interactions. They have telencephalic auditory areas specialized for processing natural sounds and considered as playing a critical role in the discrimination of behaviorally relevant vocal sounds. The zebra finch, a highly social songbird species, forms lifelong pair bonds. Only male zebra finches sing. However, both sexes produce the distance call when placed in visual isolation. This call is sexually dimorphic, is learned only in males and provides support for individual recognition in both sexes. Here, we assessed whether auditory processing of distance calls differs between paired males and females by recording spiking activity in a secondary auditory area, the caudolateral mesopallium (CLM), while presenting the distance calls of a variety of individuals, including the bird itself, the mate, familiar and unfamiliar males and females. In males, the CLM is potentially involved in auditory feedback processing important for vocal learning. Based on both the analyses of spike rates and temporal aspects of discharges, our results clearly indicate that call-evoked responses of CLM neurons are sexually dimorphic, being stronger, lasting longer, and conveying more information about calls in males than in females. In addition, how auditory responses vary among call types differ between sexes. In females, response strength differs between familiar male and female calls. In males, temporal features of responses reveal a sensitivity to the bird's own call. These findings provide evidence that sexual dimorphism occurs in higher-order processing areas within the auditory system. They suggest a sexual dimorphism in the function of the CLM, contributing to transmit information about the self-generated calls in males and to storage of information about the

Sex differences in the representation of call stimuli in a songbird secondary auditory area

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nicolas eGiret

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Understanding how communication sounds are encoded in the central auditory system is critical to deciphering the neural bases of acoustic communication. Songbirds use learned or unlearned vocalizations in a variety of social interactions. They have telencephalic auditory areas specialized for processing natural sounds and considered as playing a critical role in the discrimination of behaviorally relevant vocal sounds. The zebra finch, a highly social songbird species, forms lifelong pair bonds. Only male zebra finches sing. However, both sexes produce the distance call when placed in visual isolation. This call is sexually dimorphic, is learned only in males and provides support for individual recognition in both sexes. Here, we assessed whether auditory processing of distance calls differs between paired males and females by recording spiking activity in a secondary auditory area, the caudolateral mesopallium (CLM, while presenting the distance calls of a variety of individuals, including the bird itself, the mate, familiar and unfamiliar males and females. In males, the CLM is potentially involved in auditory feedback processing important for vocal learning. Based on both the analyses of spike rates and temporal aspects of discharges, our results clearly indicate that call-evoked responses of CLM neurons are sexually dimorphic, being stronger, lasting longer and conveying more information about calls in males than in females. In addition, how auditory responses vary among call types differ between sexes. In females, response strength differs between familiar male and female calls. In males, temporal features of responses reveal a sensitivity to the bird’s own call. These findings provide evidence that sexual dimorphism occurs in higher-order processing areas within the auditory system. They suggest a sexual dimorphism in the function of the CLM, contributing to transmit information about the self-generated calls in males and to storage of

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.

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.

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.

Mechanisms of avian songs and calls

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Larsen, Ole Næsbye

2008-01-01

The avian vocal organ, the syrinx, is a specialized structure located rather inaccessibly in an air sac close to the heart where the trachea bifurcates into the two primary bronchi. The syrinx of different avian taxa varies so much in position and morphology that it has been used for taxonomy. It...

Coloured leg bands affect male mate-guarding behaviour in the bluethroat

Science.gov (United States)

Johnsen; Lifjeld; Rohde

1997-07-01

Artificial traits such as coloured leg bands may affect an individual's mating success, as shown for some birds. One explanation is that colour-matching with a sexual ornament affects the individual's sexual attractiveness. This study reports a colour-band experiment with free-living bluethroats, Luscinia s. svecicaa species where males have a distinct blue and chestnut throat and upper breast. There was no apparent difference in pairing success between males with ornament-matching colour bands (blue and orange) and males with non-ornamental colour bands. However, males with ornamental bands guarded their mates less intensely and spent more time singing, performing song flights and intruding into neighbours' territories than males with non-ornamental bands. We conclude that colour bands affect the trade-off between mate guarding and advertisement behaviour in a way that is consistent with the hypothesis that bands with ornamental colours improve a male's attractiveness. The results are in concordance with a previous study of the same population, showing that males with experimentally reduced attractiveness guarded their mates more closely and advertised less for additional mates, than non-manipulated males.

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.

Quotations from the songs about Servant of Yahwe in Synoptic Gospels

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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.

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...

European Blackbirds Exposed to Aircraft Noise Advance Their Chorus, Modify Their Song and Spend More Time Singing

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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

Acoustic satellite behaviour in the Australian bushcricket Elephantodeta nobilis (Phaneropterinae, Tettigoniidae, Orthoptera).

Science.gov (United States)

Bailey; Field

2000-02-01

Male and female Elephantodeta nobilis duet with the female responding to the male's long and complex call. The duetting male's call consisted of four parts, described here as parts A, B, C and D. We found that the female replied 570 ms after the male's D pulse, which followed the extended part B and short click of part C. Noncalling males were attracted to the duet and often used satellite tactics by inserting a volley of clicks 200 ms before the alpha male's D pulse. Satellite males used part C of the alpha male song to cue their own call and this inserted call induced females to reply earlier compared with the alpha male call alone. Alpha males often extended their calls with additional D-type calls and so we examined the effectiveness of these calls as countermeasures to satellite calling. There was no influence of this alpha strategy on the satellite's propensity to call although more calls from the alpha male did cause the female to reply more frequently. We also examined the effect of relative intensity of alpha and satellite calls on the female's reply. Reduced satellite intensity increased the variance in the timing of the female response. Finally, we tested the effectiveness of the satellite's call on female phonotaxis within a two-speaker arena. Although females preferred the alpha male they were nevertheless attracted to the satellite calls regardless of the latter's relative intensity. We discuss the possible role of satellite calling as a novel conditional strategy. Copyright 2000 The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour.

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.

Attracting, Recruiting and Retaining Male Teachers: Policy Issues in the Male Teacher Debate

Science.gov (United States)

Mills, Martin; Martino, Wayne; Lingard, Bob

2004-01-01

Frequent calls for more male teachers are being made in English-speaking countries. Many of these calls are based upon the fact that the teaching profession has become (even more) 'feminized' and the presumption that this has had negative effects for the education of boys. The employment of more male teachers is sometimes suggested as a way to…

Do females invest more into eggs when males sing more attractively? Postmating sexual selection strategies in a monogamous reed passerine

OpenAIRE

Krištofík, Ján; Darolová, Alžbeta; Majtan, Juraj; Okuliarová, Monika; Zeman, Michal; Hoi, Herbert

2014-01-01

Maternal investment can play an important role for offspring fitness, especially in birds, as females have to provide their eggs with all the necessary nutrients for the development of the embryo. It is known that this type of maternal investment can be influenced by the quality of the male partner. In this study, we first verify that male song is important in the mate choice of female Eurasian reed warblers, as males mate faster when their singing is more complex. Furthermore, female egg inv...

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.

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.

Social status affects the degree of sex difference in the songbird brain.

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Cornelia Voigt

Full Text Available It is thought that neural sex differences are functionally related to sex differences in the behaviour of vertebrates. A prominent example is the song control system of songbirds. Inter-specific comparisons have led to the hypothesis that sex differences in song nuclei size correlate with sex differences in song behaviour. However, only few species with similar song behaviour in both sexes have been investigated and not all data fit the hypothesis. We investigated the proposed structure-function relationship in a cooperatively breeding and duetting songbird, the white-browed sparrow weaver (Plocepasser mahali. This species lives in groups of 2-10 individuals, with a dominant breeding pair and male and female subordinates. While all male and female group members sing duet and chorus song, a male, once it has reached the dominant position in the group, sings an additional type of song that comprises a distinct and large syllable repertoire. Here we show for both types of male-female comparisons a male-biased sex difference in neuroanatomy of areas of the song production pathway (HVC and RA that does not correlate with the observed polymorphism in song behaviour. In contrast, in situ hybridisation of mRNA of selected genes expressed in the song nucleus HVC reveals a gene expression pattern that is either similar between sexes in female-subordinate male comparisons or female-biased in female-dominant male comparisons. Thus, the polymorphic gene expression pattern would fit the sex- and status-related song behaviour. However, this implies that once a male has become dominant it produces the duetting song with a different neural phenotype than subordinate males.

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.

Winter behavior and ecology of the Alder Flycatcher (Empidonax alnorum) in Peru

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Foster, M.S.

2007-01-01

The winter ecology and behavior of Alder Flycatchers (Empidonax alnorum) were studied along the Manu, a white-water meander river in Manu National Park, Madre de Dios, Peru during October and November, 1993 to 1997. The birds occupied territories in primary-succession habitats on growing point bars. They were most common in mixed stands of Tessaria integrifolia (Asteraceae) and Gynerium sagittatum (Gramineaceae) interspersed with bare sand areas. The uneven height of the Tessaria canopy, which resulted in openings in the vegetation large enough for the birds to flycatch, was an important habitat feature. Birds obtained insects, which formed about 96% of the diet, by aerial hawking (91%), perch gleaning (6%), and hover gleaning (3%). They also fed on fruit. Territory sizes ranged from 0.04 to 0.25 ha. Of nine territories that we observed closely, six were occupied by two birds each, two by one bird each, and one by three birds. Every territory had one dominant individual who was primarily responsible for territory defense; the other birds were associates. Vocalizations given included the fee-bee-o song, a two-syllable song, and the pit note, which are also given on the breeding grounds. A series of pits given increasingly rapidly signaled a territorial interaction. In aggressive encounters, the birds (1) interacted vocally, remaining on their territories and counter calling or exchanging agitated calls; (2) moved toward a common territorial boundary and engaged in a vocal duel; or (3) the dominant chased intruders out of the territory. Chases were most common when a wave of new birds entered the area. Dominant birds, which sang the full song, were probably adult males. Immature males do not sing a full song, and females are not known to sing in nature. Associate individuals were likely females or young males.

The Role of Songs in First-Graders’ Oral Communication Development in English

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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.

THE ANALYSIS OF SONG-TEXT COLLECTION BELONGS TO THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY: Bodleian Library of Oxford University With The Number of 127 and 128

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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

Vocal competition in male Xenopus laevis frogs

OpenAIRE

Tobias, Martha L.; Corke, Anna; Korsh, Jeremy; Yin, David; Kelley, Darcy B.

2010-01-01

Male Xenopus laevis frogs produce underwater advertisement calls that attract gravid females and suppress calling by male competitors. Here we explore whether groups of males establish vocal ranks and whether auditory cues alone suffice for vocal suppression. Tests of male–male pairs within assigned groups reveal linear vocal dominance relations, in which each male has a defined rank. Both the duration over which males interact, as well as the number of competitive opportunities, affect linea...

Transition of Greek art song from the national school to modernism

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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.

Mössbauer study of the Ru porcelain of Chinese Song Dynasty and Yuan Dynasty

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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.

Rethinking Eurovision Song Contest as a Clash of Cultures

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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.

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

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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.

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 ...

Unity and Difference in Andean Songs

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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.”

Teaching and Learning Science Through Song: Exploring the experiences of students and teachers

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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.

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

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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.

A Song in the Dark. Francis of Assisi’s Canticle of Brother Sun

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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.

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....

Alors, la chanson francaise? (And So, the French Song?)

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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)

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…

'Song of Life': music therapy in terminally ill patients with cancer.

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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.

Wing stridulation in a Jurassic katydid (Insecta, Orthoptera) produced low-pitched musical calls to attract females.

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Gu, Jun-Jie; Montealegre-Z, Fernando; Robert, Daniel; Engel, Michael S; Qiao, Ge-Xia; Ren, Dong

2012-03-06

Behaviors are challenging to reconstruct for extinct species, particularly the nature and origins of acoustic communication. Here we unravel the song of Archaboilus musicus Gu, Engel and Ren sp. nov., a 165 million year old stridulating katydid. From the exceptionally preserved morphology of its stridulatory apparatus in the forewings and phylogenetic comparison with extant species, we reveal that A. musicus radiated pure-tone (musical) songs using a resonant mechanism tuned at a frequency of 6.4 kHz. Contrary to previous scenarios, musical songs were an early innovation, preceding the broad-bandwidth songs of extant katydids. Providing an accurate insight into paleoacoustic ecology, the low-frequency musical song of A. musicus was well-adapted to communication in the lightly cluttered environment of the mid-Jurassic forest produced by coniferous trees and giant ferns, suggesting that reptilian, amphibian, and mammalian insectivores could have also heard A. musicus' song.

The Effect of English Verbal Songs on Connected Speech Aspects of Adult English Learners’ Speech Production

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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

Songs about Cancer, Gene Expression, and the Biochemistry of Photosynthesis

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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.

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).

Frogs Call at a Higher Pitch in Traffic Noise

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Kirsten M. Parris

2009-06-01

Full Text Available Male frogs call to attract females for mating and to defend territories from rival males. Female frogs of some species prefer lower-pitched calls, which indicate larger, more experienced males. Acoustic interference occurs when background noise reduces the active distance or the distance over which an acoustic signal can be detected. Birds are known to call at a higher pitch or frequency in urban noise, decreasing acoustic interference from low-frequency noise. Using Bayesian linear regression, we investigated the effect of traffic noise on the pitch of advertisement calls in two species of frogs, the southern brown tree frog (Litoria ewingii and the common eastern froglet (Crinia signifera. We found evidence that L. ewingii calls at a higher pitch in traffic noise, with an average increase in dominant frequency of 4.1 Hz/dB of traffic noise, and a total effect size of 123 Hz. This frequency shift is smaller than that observed in birds, but is still large enough to be detected by conspecific frogs and confer a significant benefit to the caller. Mathematical modelling predicted a 24% increase in the active distance of a L. ewingii call in traffic noise with a frequency shift of this size. Crinia signifera may also call at a higher pitch in traffic noise, but more data are required to be confident of this effect. Because frog calls are innate rather than learned, the frequency shift demonstrated by L. ewingii may represent an evolutionary adaptation to noisy conditions. The phenomenon of frogs calling at a higher pitch in traffic noise could therefore constitute an intriguing trade-off between audibility and attractiveness to potential mates.

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

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.

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.

The Book of Ruth and Song of Songs in the First Hebrew Translation of The Taming of the Shrew

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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.

Adult meerkats modify close call rate in the presence of pups

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Megan T.WYMAN; Pearl R.RIVERS; Coline MULLER; Pauline TONI; Marta B.MANSER

2017-01-01

In animals,signaling behavior is often context-dependent,with variation in the probability of emitting certain signals dependent on fitness advantages.Senders may adjust signaling rate depending on receiver identity,presence of audiences,or noise masking the signal,all of which can affect the benefits and costs of signal production.In the cooperative breeding meerkat Suricata suricatta,group members emit soft contact calls,termed as "close calls",while foraging in order to maintain group cohesion.Here,we investigated how the close calling rate during foraging was affected by the presence of pups,that produce continuous,noisy begging calls as they follow older group members.Adults decreased their overall close call rate substantially when pups were foraging with the group in comparison to periods when no pups were present.We suggest this decrease was likely due to a masking effect of the loud begging calls,which makes the close call function of maintaining group cohesion partly redundant as the centrally located begging calls can be used instead to maintain cohesion.There was some support that adults use close calls strategically to attract specific pups based on fitness advantages,that is,as the philopatric sex,females should call more than males and more to female pups than male pups.Dominant females called more than dominant males when a pup was in close proximity,while subordinates showed no sex-based differences.The sex of the nearest pup did not affect the calling rate of adults.The study shows that meerkats modify their close call production depending on benefits gained from calling and provides an example of the flexible use of one calling system in the presence of another,here contact calls versus begging calls,within the same species.

Adult meerkats modify close call rate in the presence of pups.

Science.gov (United States)

Wyman, Megan T; Rivers, Pearl R; Muller, Coline; Toni, Pauline; Manser, Marta B

2017-06-01

In animals, signaling behavior is often context-dependent, with variation in the probability of emitting certain signals dependent on fitness advantages. Senders may adjust signaling rate depending on receiver identity, presence of audiences, or noise masking the signal, all of which can affect the benefits and costs of signal production. In the cooperative breeding meerkat Suricata suricatta , group members emit soft contact calls, termed as "close calls", while foraging in order to maintain group cohesion. Here, we investigated how the close calling rate during foraging was affected by the presence of pups, that produce continuous, noisy begging calls as they follow older group members. Adults decreased their overall close call rate substantially when pups were foraging with the group in comparison to periods when no pups were present. We suggest this decrease was likely due to a masking effect of the loud begging calls, which makes the close call function of maintaining group cohesion partly redundant as the centrally located begging calls can be used instead to maintain cohesion. There was some support that adults use close calls strategically to attract specific pups based on fitness advantages, that is, as the philopatric sex, females should call more than males and more to female pups than male pups. Dominant females called more than dominant males when a pup was in close proximity, while subordinates showed no sex-based differences. The sex of the nearest pup did not affect the calling rate of adults. The study shows that meerkats modify their close call production depending on benefits gained from calling and provides an example of the flexible use of one calling system in the presence of another, here contact calls versus begging calls, within the same species.

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),

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...

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.

Effectiveness of the Call in Beach Volleyball Attacking Play

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Künzell Stefan

2014-12-01

Full Text Available In beach volleyball the setter has the opportunity to give her or his hitter a “call”. The call intends that the setter suggests to her or his partner where to place the attack in the opponent’s court. The effectiveness of a call is still unknown. We investigated the women’s and men’s Swiss National Beach Volleyball Championships in 2011 and analyzed 2185 attacks. We found large differences between female and male players. While men called in only 38.4% of attacks, women used calls in 85.5% of attacks. If the male players followed a given call, 63% of the attacks were successful. The success rate of attacks without any call was 55.8% and 47.6% when the call was ignored. These differences were not significant (χ2(2 = 4.55, p = 0.103. In women’s beach volleyball, the rate of successful attacks was 61.5% when a call was followed, 35% for attacks without a call, and 42.6% when a call was ignored. The differences were highly significant (χ2(2 = 23.42, p < 0.0005. Taking into account the findings of the present study, we suggested that the call was effective in women’s beach volleyball, while its effect in men’s game was unclear. Considering the quality of calls we indicate that there is a significant potential to increase the effectiveness of a call.

Predicting Variation of Folk Songs: A Corpus Analysis Study on the Memorability of Melodies

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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.

The Song of the Sabia in the 3rd. Festival Internacional da Canção: boo and sunset of the Tom Jobim bossa nova`s aesthetics