FeaturedNeurologyNeuroscience·September 27, 2024·8 min readImproving Voice Recognition for People with Speech DisabilitiesA new study shows that automatic speech recognition (ASR) systems trained on speech from people with Parkinson’s disease are 30% more accurate in transcribing similar speech patterns. Researchers collected over 151 hours of recordings from participants with varying degrees of dysarthria, a speech disorder common in Parkinson’s patients, and used the data to train ASR systems.Read More
FeaturedNeuroscience·May 31, 2024·5 min readInfants Hear More Speech Than Music At HomeA new study compared the amount of music and speech infants hear at home. Researchers found that infants are exposed to more speech than music, with the gap increasing as they grow.Read More
FeaturedNeuroscienceOpen Neuroscience Articles·May 29, 2024·4 min readBabies’ Squeals and Growls Show Early Vocal Practice PatternsInfants' vocalizations, like squeals and growls, appear in significant clusters, suggesting active noisemaking play and sound practice. Researchers analyzed recordings from 130 infants and found 40% of squeals and growls clustered significantly.Read More
FeaturedNeuroscience·May 28, 2024·5 min readStuttering Linked to Specific Brain NetworkA new study has identified a common brain network responsible for stuttering, regardless of its cause. Researchers found that strokes causing stuttering and developmental stuttering both affect the same brain areas.Read More
Auditory NeuroscienceFeaturedNeuroscience·May 28, 2024·5 min readHow the Brain Distinguishes Music from SpeechA new study reveals how our brain distinguishes between music and speech using simple acoustic parameters. Researchers found that slower, steady sounds are perceived as music, while faster, irregular sounds are perceived as speech.Read More
FeaturedNeuroscience·March 7, 2024·5 min readBrain Circuit Balances Speech and BreathResearchers identified a brain circuit that harmonizes vocalization with breathing, ensuring that speech occurs predominantly during exhalation. This circuit, which regulates the larynx's narrowing and the act of exhaling, is under the influence of a brainstem area responsible for the breathing rhythm.Read More
FeaturedNeurologyNeuroscience·February 26, 2024·5 min readSpeech Speed May Indicate Aging Brain HealthA new study found that the speed of speech, rather than the difficulty in finding words, is a more accurate indicator of brain health in older adults. The research, involving 125 healthy volunteers aged 18 to 90, utilized AI software to analyze language performance, focusing on speech rate and word-finding pauses.Read More
FeaturedNeuroscience·February 24, 2024·5 min readA Prelude to Speech: How the Brain Forms WordsResearchers made a groundbreaking discovery on how the human brain forms words before speaking. By utilizing Neuropixels probes, they've mapped out how neurons represent speech sounds and assemble them into language.Read More
Auditory NeuroscienceFeaturedNeuroscienceOpen Neuroscience Articles·February 15, 2024·4 min readBrain Mastery Over Echoes Enhances Speech ClarityResearchers have uncovered the human brain's remarkable ability to segregate direct speech from echoes, a challenge that has long perplexed audio engineers. It was discovered through magnetoencephalography (MEG) that despite the distortion caused by echoes, which typically lag by at least 100 milliseconds, the brain processes and understands speech with over 95% accuracy by separating the sound into distinct streams.Read More
FeaturedNeuroscience·August 28, 2023·4 min readAI Turns Brain Waves into Spoken WordsResearchers achieved a breakthrough in converting brain signals to audible speech with up to 100% accuracy. The team used brain implants and artificial intelligence to directly map brain activity to speech in patients with epilepsy.Read More
FeaturedNeuroscience·August 11, 2023·5 min readDopamine Tunes the Brain for Both Singing and SpeechContrary to popular belief, speech and singing use overlapping brain circuits, primarily located in the left hemisphere. This discovery challenges the 50-year notion that the right hemisphere supports the singing ability in aphasia patients.Read More
FeaturedNeuroscience·June 27, 2023·4 min readOrangutans Simultaneously Produce Dual Sounds: A Clue to Human Speech EvolutionOrangutans are capable of simultaneously producing two different sounds, akin to human beatboxers or songbirds. Through observations of vocalising orangutan populations in Borneo and Sumatra, researchers discovered this shared vocal phenomenon.Read More