[Perception features of emotional intonation of short pseudowords].

Reaction time and recognition accuracy of speech emotional intonations in short meaningless words that differed only in one phoneme with background noise and without it were studied in 49 adults of 20-79 years old. The results were compared with the same parameters of emotional intonations in intelligent speech utterances under similar conditions. Perception of emotional intonations at different linguistic levels (phonological and lexico-semantic) was found to have both common features and certain peculiarities. Recognition characteristics of emotional intonations depending on gender and age of listeners appeared to be invariant with regard to linguistic levels of speech stimuli. Phonemic composition of pseudowords was found to influence the emotional perception, especially against the background noise. The most significant stimuli acoustic characteristic responsible for the perception of speech emotional prosody in short meaningless words under the two experimental conditions, i.e. with and without background noise, was the fundamental frequency variation.

[Influence of human personal features on acoustic correlates of speech emotional intonation characteristics].

Comparative study of acoustic correlates of emotional intonation was conducted on two types of speech material: sensible speech utterances and short meaningless words. The corpus of speech signals of different emotional intonations (happy, angry, frightened, sad and neutral) was created using the actor's method of simulation of emotions. Native Russian 20-70-year-old speakers (both professional actors and non-actors) participated in the study. In the corpus, the following characteristics were analyzed: mean values and standard deviations of the power, fundamental frequency, frequencies of the first and second formants, and utterance duration. Comparison of each emotional intonation with "neutral" utterances showed the greatest deviations of the fundamental frequency and frequencies of the first formant. The direction of these deviations was independent of the semantic content of speech utterance and its duration, age, gender, and being actor or non-actor, though the personal features of the speakers affected the absolute values of these frequencies.

[Recognition of classes of noise-like signals by dolphins Tursiops truncatus].

The ability of the auditory system to perceive and to classify the noise-like signals imitating natural sea noises has been studied in dolphins Tursiops truncatus. Results of the studies carried out in a sea bay at free movement of the animals have shown that dolphins are able to determine noise-like signals and to ascribe them to a certain class by using invariant characters, such as rhythmical sequence of impulses, regardless of the frequency-time scale of the signal presentation.

Age-related features of the interaction of learning success and characteristics of auditory operative memory.

The characteristics of the interaction between learning success and measures of auditory operative memory were studied by psychoacoustic testing of 42 medical workers aged 20-65 years trained to work in areas new to them (information science). Three age groups were identified: 20-35 years, 36-50 years, and 51-65 years. The acoustic test consisted of a single presentation via headphones of 12 sequential target words from information science with subsequent presentation of 12 target and 12 masking words in random order. The subjects' task was to recognize the target words. Stepwise linear regression analysis identified a relationship between the efficiency with which the new material was learned and measures of auditory operative memory, whose role in learning success increased with age. Since subjects older than 35 years showed a reduction in remembering efficiency, it was suggested that age-related changes in the characteristics of auditory operative memory are one of the major reasons for degradation of the ability to learn new material.

[Age-related changes in the relationship between learning progress and auditory working memory characteristics].

In order to explore the relationship between learning progress and working memory characteristics, the psychoacoustic testing of 42 persons (20-65 years old) of medical staff taught a novel science (informatics) was carried out. The subjects were divided into three age groups: 20-35, 36-50, and 51-65-year-olds. Acoustical test consisted of a set of 12 target words (professional informatics terms) presented through headphones and subsequent presentation of a random succession of 12 target and 12 masking words (all of them being professional informatics terms). Listeners had to recognize the target words. The stepwise linear regression analysis revealed a link between the progress in acquisition of the new material and characteristics of acoustical working memory, whose role in learning progress increased with age. Because the memory efficiency reduction was found in subjects older than 35 years, it was supposed that age-related changes in characteristics of the acoustical working memory were responsible for the decline in ability to learn novel material.

Mechanisms by which dolphins identify target movement characteristics and their technical use in hydrolocation and radiolocation.

The ability of the localizing system of the dolphin Tursiops truncatus to discriminate the dynamic characteristics of an object being located (a radially moving target) was studied. Measurements were made of the thresholds of the animals' sensitivity to the target speed (2.6 cm/sec) and acceleration (0.6 cm/sec(2)). For location of a target moving at constant speed, dolphins were found to use probe signals consisting of two impulses, while accelerating targets were located using probe signals consisting of three impulses. These characteristics were used to propose new and highly effective technical methods for hydrolocation and radiolocation.

Ontogenetic features of the psychophysiological mechanisms of perception of the emotional component of speech in musically gifted children.

The cerebral mechanisms underlying musical-artistic ability were addressed by studying psychophysical measures of the perception of emotional information contained in speech in musically gifted children. Studies involved 46 schoolchildren and 48 young musicians, in three age groups: 7-10, 11-13, and 14-17 years. A test sentence was presented with three emotional intonations (joy, anger, and unemotional) via headphones; subjects' responses identifying the type of emotion were recorded. Dispersion analysis revealed age and gender characteristics in the mechanisms of recognition of emotions: thus, boy musicians led their classmates in the development of these mechanisms by 4-6 years, while girl musicians led by 1-3 years. In girls, musical training facilitated increases in the role of the left hemisphere in processing the emotional intonation of speech, while in boys, the initially marked dominance of the left hemisphere was not retained during further training.

[Mechanisms of determining target locator velocity by dolphins and technical applications in hydrolocation and radiolocation].

Dolphin's (Tursiops truncatus) capacity to discriminate between dynamic characteristics of the object location (the target moving radially) was studied. The dolphin sensitivity thresholds for target velocity (2.6 cm/s) and for target acceleration (0.6 cm/s2) were measured. It has been shown that the animal emits two-pulse probe signal to locate the target moving with constant velocity, or three-pulse probe signal--to locate the accelerated target. New highly efficient technical methods of hydro- and radiolocation were suggested on the basis of these peculiarities.

[Ontogenetic features of psychophysiological mechanisms of perception of speech emotional component in musically gifted children]. / Ontogeneticheskie osobennosti psikhofiziologicheskikh mekhanizmov vospriyatiia émotsional'nogo komponenta rechi u muzykal'no odarennykh detei.

Cerebral mechanisms of musical abilities were explored in musically gifted children. For this purpose, psychophysiological characteristics of perception of emotional speech information were experimentally studied in samples of gifted and ordinary children. Forty six schoolchildren and forty eight musicians of three age groups (7-10, 11-13 and 14-17 years old) participated in the study. In experimental session, a test sentence was presented to a subject through headphones with two emotional intonations (joy and anger) and without emotional expression. A subject had to recognize the type of emotion. His/her answers were recorded. The analysis of variance revealed age- and gender-related features of emotional recognition: boys musicians led the schoolchildren of the same age by 4-6 years in the development of mechanisms of emotional recognition, whereas girls musicians were 1-3 years ahead. Musical education in girls induced the shift of predominant activities for emotional perception in the left hemisphere; in boys, on the contrary, initial distinct dominance of the left hemisphere was not retained in the process of further education.

[Ontogeny-specific interaction of psychophysiological mechanisms of emotional perception and educational achievement in students]. / Ontogeneticheskie osobennosti vzaimosviazi psikhofiziologicheskikh mekhanizmov vospriiatiia émotsii i uspevaemosti u shkol'nikov.

In order to explore the process of adaptation of children to school environment psychophysiological characteristics of perception of emotional speech information and school progress were experimentally studied. Forty-six schoolchildren of three age groups (7-10, 11-13, and 14-17 years old) participated in the study. In experimental session, a test sentence was presented to a subject through headphones with two emotional intonations (joy and anger) and without emotional expression. A subject had to recognize the type of emotion. His/her answers were recorded. School progress was determined by year grades in Russian, foreign language, and mathematics. Analysis of variance and linear regression analysis showed that ontogenetic features of a correlation between psychophysiological mechanisms of emotion recognition and school progress were gender- and subject-dependent. This correlation was stronger in 7-13-year-old children than in senior children. This age boundary was passed by the girls earlier than by the boys.