Speech Science Flashcards
Speech Science
Study of:
Articulation and physiology of speech production
The acoustical characteristics of speech
The processes by which listeners perceive speech
Important Because it Allows us to:
Understand normal speech production and perception
Develop instruments for studying speech and hearing
Disseminate results of research to benefit colleagues and students
Speech
Primary mode of communication
It is efficient
It is redundant
Genetically endowed
Human Vocal Tract
Extends from back of mouth down through trachea to lungs
Vocal folds/cords
Near top of human vocal tract (lower in non-humans)
Primary purpose is to protect lungs
Extend from Adam’s apple to back of larynx to act as barrier to foreign objects entering lungs
Reflexive cough activated when anything other than air comes in contact with vocal folds
Secondary purpose of vocal folds
To produce speech
Air supply in lungs moves upward to vocal folds
Upper movement of air results in vibration of vocal folds
Vibration results in sound (voice)
Air sent to oral cavity (mouth)
Epiglottis
flap that covers trachea during swallowing
Larynx
(voice box)
top part of windpipe with folds of membrane that vibrate during speech (vocal folds)
Trachea
windpipe to lungs
in front of esophagus that goes to stomach
Lungs
not technically part of tract but necessary for air supply for speech
Primary purpose of human vocal tract
To protect lungs
epiglottis
vocal folds
trachea
All close to prevent foreign objects from entering the lungs
Cough Reflex activates when these fail
Language
A rule governed communication system composed of meaningful elements that can be combined in many ways to produce sentences, some of which are novel.
The ability to express thoughts in spoken or written language and the ability to comprehend the thoughts expressed by other people either in speech or in writing.
It is unique to humans
It is essentially similar in all humans
Foreign Language
Sounds complex
Difficult
Talk faster
We don’t recognize the sounds, the words or the rules governing the language
Language Definition
The comprehension and/or use of spoken, written and/or other symbol systems.
Language involves:
Form (phonology, morphology, syntax)
Content (semantics)
Function (pragmatics)
Form of Language
Phonology
Morphology
Syntax
Phonology
the sound system of a language and the rules that govern the sound combinations
Syntax
the system governing the order and combination of words to form sentences, and the relationships among the elements within a sentence.
Morphology
the system that governs the structure of words and the construction of word forms
Content of Language
Semantics
Semantics
the system that governs the meanings of words and sentences
Function of Language
Pragmatics
Pragmatics
the system that combines the above language components in functional and socially appropriate communication.
Language Characteristics
Not synonymous with “speech”
Requires the use of speech or gestures or visual icons
Cannot be taught to other species
(see information on birds and chimpanzees)
Has universal features that occur in all languages, i.e. grammar: Nouns, verbs, adjectives, etc
Develops in similar sequence in all similar languages: Individual differences in development occur but sequence remains same for typical development
Thought
An internal representation of experiences
Can be in the form of images (visual), action (kinesthetic), or language (auditory)
Can be independent of language: ex Aphasia
Deaf children
Piaget concluded that cognition develops on its own: Language interacts with cognition, but does not determine the thinking
Behavioral/Learning Theory of Language Acquisition
Focuses on the observable and measurable aspects of language behavior
Emphasize performance over competence (function of language)
Language is a skill learned like any other behavior
Empiricist view – learned behavior molded by the environment
B.F. Skinner – environment shapes behavior – speech is not rule governed, but shaped by stituations
Behavioral Learning Approaches
Classical conditioning – process of forming associations between stimuli and response
Operant conditioning – behaviors are rewarded or punished
Linguistic/Innate Language Acquisition Theory
Language is innate: Noam Chomsky
Genetically determined language capacity and similar across the human species
Universal grammar
Language acquisition device (LAD) – innate language component – cannot be “learned”
Children are programmed to learn language
Biased towards the structural and nativist positions
Proof – infants focus on linguistically significant sounds
Overgeneralization rule – “I taked the cookie.”
Critical period (Lenneberg’s theory)
Hermann Von Helmholtz
Developed the mathematics of resonance
That puffs of air emitted between the vibrating vocal folds are the acoustic source of voice
That the harmonics of the voice are resonated in the pharynx and oral cavities
That vowels are recognized because of distinctive resonances
Henry Sweet
Served as the model for Shaw’s Henry Higgins
Transcription system was precursor of the ITPA
Alexander Graham Bell
Inventor of the telephone
Teacher of the deaf
R.H. Stetson
Developed and refined objective methods for measuring the movements of the respiratory mechanism and the articulators in speech production
Palatography – measures points of contact between the tongue and the roof of the mouth
Homer W. Dudley
Electrical engineer
Pioneer in speech synthesis
Voder – synthesized continuous speech by electric circuits
Focused on the acoustics of speech more so than the articulation of sounds
His ideas form the basis for modern conceptualizations of the speech production process
Cooper, Liberman, Delattre
Speech perception Pattern playback See the entire acoustic pattern Hear how it sounded Modify it
