Midterm 2 - Topic 5

Question 1

Quote about speech perception from Norman Geschwind

Answer 1

Language is something that goes in the ear and comes out of the mouth

Question 2

Name 7 main structures involved in the vocal tract

Answer 2

Palate
Tongue
Teeth
Epiglottis
Larynx
Trachea
Vocal cords

Question 3

How are articulatory gestures made?

Answer 3

By forming shape in vocal apparatus

Question 4

Broadly, how are vocal cords important in the vocal tract?

Answer 4

Vibrate in response to air moving through them (voiced)
Do not vibrate (unvoiced)

Question 5

Name 5 other specific structures involved in the vocal tract

Answer 5

Alveolar ridge
Nasal cavity
Hard palate
Soft palate
Pharynx

Question 6

Formants

Answer 6

Represent sound energy

Question 7

Name four findings of speech spectograms

Answer 7

Phonetic segments overlap
Phoneme’s sound can change depending on what phonemes precede and follow it (coarticulation)
Particular word is not pronounced the same way by specific individuals
Phonemes do not have a single, constant pronunciation

Question 8

Why can learning new languages be so difficult?

Answer 8

Due to speech segmentation issues; harder to discern pauses
Cannot tell when one word ends and another begins

Question 9

What variables are involved in producing vowel sounds?

Answer 9

Part of tongue used
Height of raised portion of tongue

Question 10

What variables are involved in producing consonants?

Answer 10

Manner of articulation
Place of articulation

Question 11

Place of articulation

Answer 11

Where air is coming through

Question 12

Voicing

Answer 12

Vibration of vocal cords

Question 13

VOT and perceived sound limit

Answer 13

Phonetic boundary

Question 14

What two broad perspectives tend to encompass theories of speech perception?

Answer 14

Special mechanism camp
General mechanism camp

Question 15

What does the special mechanism camp believe?

Answer 15

Speech perception depends on a special speech mechanism

Question 16

Why does the special mechanism camp believe what it does?

Answer 16

Speech mechanism is believed to be separated from the general mechanism processing other acoustic information

Question 17

Do those in the special mechanism camp believe that the mechanism is learned or inherited?

Answer 17

Inborn

Question 18

Name of example of a special mechanism theory

Answer 18

Motor theory of speech perception

Question 19

Motor theory of speech perception

Answer 19

Speech perception is a result of the activation of the motor program required to produce a phoneme
To understand speech, you need to understand the underlying articulatory gestures

Question 20

What does the general mechanism camp argue?

Answer 20

No special speech module exists

Question 21

Why does the general mechanism camp believe what it does?

Answer 21

The same mechanism processes speech and nonspeech sounds

Question 22

Do those in the general mechanism camp believe that the mechanism is learned or inherited?

Answer 22

Learned

Question 23

What is the general mechanism camp often labelled as?

Answer 23

Auditory theory of speech perception

Question 24

Explain the auditory theory of speech perception

Answer 24

Essentially, speech sounds are recognized like any other sound, by means of their quality (fundamentals and harmonics) and context
Word recognition processes then takes over

Question 25

Name 6 pieces of evidence for "speech is special"

Answer 25

Categorical perception Linguistic feature detectors Duplex perception Lateralization of language Localization of language Audiovisual integration

Question 26

Name 3 criteria for categorical perception

Answer 26

Peaks in the discrimination function (high discriminability) Troughs in the discrimination function (discriminability near chance) Correspondence between peaks and troughs and identification function

Question 27

2 typical results of a categorical perception study

Answer 27

Sharp identification of speech sounds on a continuum Discrimination poor within a phonetic category

Question 28

Explain the procedure and tasks of an experiment in categorical perception

Answer 28

Procedure: Stimuli are presented through headphones in a random order Tasks: Identify the syllables as beginning with b, d, or g Discrimination using the oddity method

Question 29

What does categorical perception suggest?

Answer 29

Gradations in acoustic properties are discarded in favour of discrete units

Question 30

2 pieces of evidence against categorical perception

Answer 30

Observation that animals without speech ability (e.g., chinchillas) produce categorical perception Non-speech sounds can produce categorical perception

Question 31

Explain the categorical perception study in chinchillas

Answer 31

Trained to run or stay at end points (ba, pa) and tested on intermediate points Changed from run to stay around the same place as the phonetic boundary for humans

Question 32

Explain the categorical perception study with non-speech Result of evidence?

Answer 32

Nonspeech stimuli: Sawtooth waves varying in onset time so that they could be perceived as "bowed" or "plucked" strings of a musical instrument Tasks: Forced choice identification, ABX discrimination Not good evidence

Question 33

Duplex perception

Answer 33

Situation where the same sound can be heard either as speech or as nonspeech If categorical perception occurs only when speech is perceived: Speech is special

Question 34

Lateralization of lanugage

Answer 34

In right-handers, the left hemisphere of the brain is presumed to process speech Dichotic presentation or divided visual field presentation of verbal stimuli generally produce a left hemisphere advantage in right handers

Question 35

What does lateralization of language suggest?

Answer 35

Existence of a special mechanism in the left hemisphere of the brain. Therefore, speech is special! However, the left hemisphere advantage is not obtained for vowels

Question 36

Localization of language

Answer 36

2 areas of the LH are clearly involved in language comprehension and production

Question 37

Name 2 areas of the LH involved in language comprehension and production

Answer 37

Broca's area Wernicke's area

Question 38

Broca's area

Answer 38

Damage to this area results in language production deficits, while language comprehension is intact

Question 39

Wernicke's area

Answer 39

Damage to this area results in deficits in both speech comprehension and speech production

Question 40

Audiovisual integration

Answer 40

Speaker provides two types of info: Audio info is provided by the sounds themselves; visual info is provided by movements of the face and lips Movement cues influence speech perception according to experiments on audiovisual integration: McGurk Effect

Question 41

Does the McGurk Effect posit that audiovisual integration is automatic?

Answer 41

Yes

Question 42

Does the McGurk Effect provide evidence for or against "speech is special"?

Answer 42

Speech is special because it is affected by audiovisual integration, where other sounds are not

Question 43

Broadly, is speech really special? Discuss all lines of evidence.

Answer 43

Contradictory data are found for categorical perception, linguistic feature detectors, and lateralization of language Duplex perception and localization of language are strong sources Audiovisual integration is arguable One might thus say that speech is kind of special!