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Keeping hungry jumbos at bay

Elephant soundscapes tested for effectiveness in deterring night-time raids on farmland in southern India, with results showing 90% success rate using tiger sounds and 73% using leopard sounds. The study's findings suggest a potential solution to the growing problem of human-elephant conflict in agriculture.

SourceUniversity of Nottingham·JournalOryx·DateMar 31, 2015

Alarming old and young drivers

A study published in the International Journal of Human Factors and Ergonomics found that an in-car alarm can cut crash rates for drivers over 60 by 50%, but had little effect on younger drivers. The team also discovered that female drivers under 35 responded safely to alarms, while males did not.

SourceInderscience Publishers·JournalInternational Journal of Human Factors and Ergonomics·DateMar 10, 2015

A bodyguard for your ears

Researchers at Northwestern University have found a secret bodyguard for the ears - a newly discovered connection from the cochlea to the brain that warns of intense incoming noise. This novel pain system protects the ear from very loud or damaging noise, which may be why people jam their fingers in their ears when exposed to loud soun...

SourceNorthwestern University·JournalNature Reviews Neuroscience·DateFeb 18, 2015

Crowdsourcing a valid option for gathering speech ratings

A study by New York University's Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development found that crowdsourcing using Amazon Mechanical Turk can produce high levels of agreement among listeners, even when individual responses are not highly accurate. With samples of nine or more AMT users, performance converges with that of ex...

SourceNew York University·JournalJournal of Communication Disorders·DateFeb 17, 2015

So, you think you can clap to the beat?

Researchers discovered that beat-deafness is a problem of synchronizing with sounds, not just motor skills. Beat-deaf individuals can perceive rhythms but struggle when moving to the beat, indicating deficits in biological rhythms.

SourceMcGill University·JournalPhilosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London (B )·DateNov 9, 2014

Try, try again? Study says no

A recent study suggests that adults' more highly developed cognitive skills can actually interfere with their ability to learn certain elements of a second language. This 'effort paradox' is thought to occur when adults try to analyze too much information at once, leading to difficulties in learning the morphology of an artificial lang...

We speak as we feel -- we feel as we speak

A team of researchers found that the articulation of vowels systematically influences our feelings and vice versa. The study revealed that words containing the long 'i' vowel tend to occur in positive emotional contexts, while those with the long 'o' vowel are associated with negative emotions.

SourceUniversity of Cologne·JournalEmotion·DateJun 26, 2014

People with tinnitus process emotions differently from their peers, researchers report

People with tinnitus process emotions differently in the brain from those with normal hearing, according to a study led by University of Illinois professor Fatima Husain. The study found that patients with tinnitus showed more activity in two brain regions associated with emotion, while having lower activity in the amygdala.

UT Dallas study sheds light on how infants understand speech

A new UT Dallas study explores how infants process degraded speech with cochlear implants, revealing they need more complete speech information to maximize communication outcomes. Infants can distinguish between familiar and new sounds, but require less distortion and more frequency information than older children and adults.

SourceUniversity of Texas at Dallas·JournalThe Journal of the Acoustical Society of America·DateMay 19, 2014

Universal syllables

A new study by SISSA researchers found that newborns' brains react differently to words starting with common and uncommon sounds, supporting the idea of universal language preferences. This suggests a possible biological basis for language acquisition, shaping the sound of words from birth.

SourceInternational School of Advanced Studies (SISSA)·JournalProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences·DateApr 1, 2014

Would you believe your hand could turn into marble?

Researchers induce a bodily illusion where participants' hands feel stiffer and heavier, showing the brain can quickly update its perception of body material. This study reveals multisensory integration can alter perceived body properties, which may help explain how tools and prostheses integrate into our body schemas.

SourceBielefeld University·JournalPLOS ONE·DateMar 24, 2014

Humans have a poor memory for sound

Researchers at the University of Iowa found that humans tend to forget sounds they hear, rather than visual or tactile information. The study suggests that our brain may use separate pathways to process auditory information, and that alternative strategies like increased mental repetition may be needed to improve memory.

SourceUniversity of Iowa·JournalPLOS ONE·DateFeb 26, 2014

What does compassion sound like?

A study published in Health Expectations identified key markers of compassion in doctor-patient conversations, including recognition of suffering, emotional resonance, and movement towards addressing suffering. The researchers aim to create a behavioral taxonomy that will guide medical training and education.

SourceUniversity of Rochester Medical Center·JournalHealth Expectations·DateDec 26, 2013

What a Formula 1 race does to your eardrums

Researchers measured sound levels at a Formula 1 track and found that without protection, spectators could reach 234% or 85.85 dB of their daily allowed noise dosage going by Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards. The study suggests wearing good hearing protection is essential to avoid permanent damage.

Sounding tall

Researchers found that listeners can accurately determine the relative heights of speakers just by listening to them talk, thanks to specific sounds produced in the lower airways. The key clue lies in subglottal resonances, which become progressively lower with increasing height.

Universals of conversation

A cross-linguistic study found that words signaling problems with understanding, such as 'Huh?', have similar form and function in languages worldwide. This discovery sheds light on the evolution of human communication and the role of universal linguistic devices.

SourceMax-Planck-Gesellschaft·JournalPLOS ONE·DateNov 8, 2013

Learning dialects shapes brain areas that process spoken language

A new study from RIKEN Brain Science Institute found that the pitch-accent in words pronounced in standard Japanese activates different brain hemispheres depending on whether the listener speaks standard Japanese or one of the regional dialects. Native speakers who acquire a second language later in life process pitch changes similarly...

SourceRIKEN·JournalBrain and Language·DateOct 18, 2013

JCI early table of contents for Oct. 15, 2013

Researchers developed a sound preconditioning protocol that protected mice from drug-induced hearing loss and increased expression of heat shock proteins in the inner ear. This finding suggests that sound therapy may protect hearing in patients requiring treatment with ototoxic drugs.

SourceJCI Journals·JournalJournal of Clinical Investigation·DateOct 15, 2013