Artificial grammar learning by humans and animals: behavioral process and brain functioning

2013 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 23240033
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (A)
• Allocation Type: Single-year Grants
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Cognitive science
• Research Institution: The University of Tokyo
• Principal Investigator: OKANOYA Kazuo 東京大学, 総合文化研究科, 教授 (30211121)
• Project Period (FY): 2011-04-01 – 2014-03-31
• Keywords: 人工文法 / トリ / ヒト / オペラント条件付け / パターン / プロソディ / 集団符号化

Research Abstract

We tested whether birds (Bengalese finches) are able to demonstrate the capacity to extract a simple rule from examples at a behavioral and a neural level. In the behavioral experiment, birds were tested by an operant go-nogo procedure to discriminate between two groups of sounds that differed on the pattern of sound intensity. Of eight birds tested only one learned the discrimination. This bird demonstrated the generalization of the learned rule through probe tests. In the neural experiment, single-unit auditory responses were recorded in the higher auditory area NCM in anesthetized birds. An odd-ball task showed that about 30% of neurons showed habituation-dishabituation property. Among these, 7% showed generalized response property suggesting the extraction of the rule.

Research Products

• [Journal Article] Local structure sensitivity in auditory information processing in avian song nuclei (2014)
  • Author(s): Koumura, T., Seki, Y., & Okanoya, K
  • Journal Title: Neuroreport Volume: 25(8) Pages: 562-568
  • DOI: 10.1097/WNR.0000000000000136
  • Peer Reviewed
• [Journal Article] The integration hypothesis of human language evolution and the nature of contemporary languages (2014)
  • Author(s): Miyagawa, S., Ojima, S., Berwick, R. C., & Okanoya, K
  • Journal Title: Frontiers in Psychology Volume: 5-564 Pages: 1-6
  • DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00564
  • Peer Reviewed
• [Journal Article] The non-hierarchical nature of the Chomsky hierarchy-driven artificial-grammar learning (2014)
  • Author(s): Ojima, S., & Okanoya, K.
  • Journal Title: Biolinguistics Volume: 8 Pages: 163-180
  • URL: http://www.biolinguistics.eu
  • Peer Reviewed
• [Journal Article] Interaction between musical emotion and facial expression as measured by event-related potentials (2013)
  • Author(s): Kamiyama, K., Abla, D., Iwanaga, K., & Okanoya, K.
  • Journal Title: Neuropsychologia Volume: 51 Pages: 500-505
  • DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2012.11.031
  • Peer Reviewed
• [Journal Article] A simple explanation for the evolution of complex song syntax in Bengalese finches (2013)
  • Author(s): Katahira, K., Suzuki, K., Kagawa, H., & Okanoya, K
  • Journal Title: Biology Letters Volume: 9(6) Pages: 20130842
  • DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2013.0842
  • Peer Reviewed
• [Journal Article] Stepwise acquisition of vocal combinatorial capacity in songbirds and human infants (2013)
  • Author(s): Lipkind, D., Marcus, G. F., Bemis, D. K., Sasahara, K., Jacoby, N., Takahasi, M., Suzuki, K., Feher, O., Ravbar, P., Okanoya, K., & Tchernichovski, O
  • Journal Title: Nature Volume: 498 Pages: 104-109
  • DOI: 10.1038/nature12173
  • Peer Reviewed
• [Journal Article] The emergence of hierarchical structure in human language (2013)
  • Author(s): Miyagawa, S., Berwick, R. C., & Okanoya, K.
  • Journal Title: Frontiers in Psychology Volume: 4 Pages: 1-6
  • DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00071
  • Peer Reviewed
• [Journal Article] Songbirds and humans apply different strategies in a sound sequence discrimination task (2013)
  • Author(s): Seki, Y., Suzuki, K., Osawa, A. M., & Okanoya, K.
  • Journal Title: Frontiers in Psychology Volume: 4 Pages: 447
  • DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00447
  • Peer Reviewed
• [Journal Article] Neural correlates of abstract rule learning : An event-related potential study (2012)
  • Author(s): Sun, F., Hoshi-Shiba, R., Abla, D., & Okanoya, K
  • Journal Title: Neuropsychologia Volume: 50 Pages: 2617-2624
  • DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2012.07.013
  • Peer Reviewed
• [Journal Article] Revisiting the syntactic abilities of non-human animals : natural vocalizations and artificial grammar learning (2012)
  • Author(s): ten Cate, C., & Okanoya, K.
  • Journal Title: Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Volume: 367 Pages: 1984-1994
  • DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2012.0055
  • Peer Reviewed
• [Journal Article] Songs to syntax : the linguistics of birdsong (2011)
  • Author(s): Berwick, R. C., Okanoya, K., Beckers, G. J. L., & Bolhuis, J. J.
  • Journal Title: Trends in Cognitive Sciences Volume: 15(3) Pages: 113-121
  • DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2011.01.002
  • Peer Reviewed
• [Presentation] Extraction and construction of rules in birds and humans (2014)
  • Author(s): Okanoya, K., Osawa, A., Ono, A., & MacCrohon, L
  • Organizer: The syntax of mind "language, music, art", University of Vienna
  • Place of Presentation: Austria
  • Year and Date: 2014-04-17
• [Presentation] Auditory pattern learning in birds and humans, Workshop on the comparative biology of artificial grammar learning (2014)
  • Author(s): Okanoya, K
  • Organizer: 10th International Conference on the Evolution of Language(EvolangX)
  • Place of Presentation: Vienna, Austria
  • Year and Date: 2014-04-14
• [Presentation] Auditory responses in the avian song nuclei to the own song with the systematic modification (2014)
  • Author(s): Koumura,T., Seki, Y., & Okanoya, K
  • Organizer: 脳と心のメカニズム第14回冬のワークショップ
  • Place of Presentation: 留寿都リゾート, 北海道
  • Year and Date: 2014-01-08
• [Presentation] Stimulus- and subject-specific effects on the behavioural habituation/dishabituation test in Bengalese finches (2013)
  • Author(s): Ono, S., & Okanoya, K
  • Organizer: Behaviour 2013
  • Place of Presentation: Newcastle, UK
  • Year and Date: 20130804-08
• [Presentation] Bird song as a musical protolanguage (2013)
  • Author(s): Okanoya, K
  • Organizer: International Summerschool on Agent-based Models of Creativity
  • Place of Presentation: Cortona, Italy
  • Year and Date: 2013-09-05
  • Invited
• [Presentation] 'The dog bites the men' or 'the man bites the dog'? Evolution of relation discriminating system of language through iterated learning (2013)
  • Author(s): 大澤歩美, 岡ノ谷一夫
  • Organizer: Human Behavior & Evolution Society 2013
  • Place of Presentation: Miami, USA
  • Year and Date: 2013-07-18
• [Presentation] ジュウシマツの馴化・脱馴化による歌弁別には刺激特異性が高い (2012)
  • Author(s): 小野聡子, 香川紘子, 高橋美樹, 関義正, 岡ノ谷一夫
  • Organizer: 日本動物行動学会第31回大会
  • Place of Presentation: 奈良女子大学, 奈良
  • Year and Date: 20121123-25
• [Presentation] 鳥類歌神経核の活動の固体内比較 (2012)
  • Author(s): 上村卓也, 関義正, 岡ノ谷一夫
  • Organizer: 第35回日本神経科学大会
  • Place of Presentation: 名古屋
  • Year and Date: 20120918-21
• [Presentation] 同期タッピングが聴覚記憶痕跡の形成に与える影響 (2012)
  • Author(s): 上山景子, 岡ノ谷一夫
  • Organizer: 第35回日本神経科学大会
  • Place of Presentation: 名古屋
  • Year and Date: 20120918-21
• [Presentation] Failure of operant discrimination learning of simple algebraic concept in a songbird (2012)
  • Author(s): Okanoya, K., Suzuki, K., & Seki, Y
  • Organizer: Paper presented at the 9th International Conference on the Evolution of Language (EvolangIX)
  • Place of Presentation: Kyoto, Japan
  • Year and Date: 20120313-16
• [Presentation] 進化言語学の現状と課題 : Evolang9報告 (2012)
  • Author(s): 岡ノ谷一夫
  • Organizer: 日本進化学会第14回東京大会
  • Place of Presentation: 八王子
  • Year and Date: 2012-08-21
• [Book] 「つながり」の進化生物学-はじまりは,歌だった (2013)
  • Author(s): 岡ノ谷一夫
  • Total Pages: 296
  • Publisher: 朝日出版社
• [Book] The Cambridge Handbook of Biolinguistics (2013)
  • Author(s): Okanoya, K.
  • Total Pages: 431-459
  • Publisher: Cambridge University Press