Bioacoustic Signal Classification in Cat Auditory Cortex

Abstract : Two of the main objectives of the grant are (a) to determine which functionally significant acoustical parameters and/or physiological response parameters show a systematic spatial organization, as obtained with multiple unit mapping techniques, within the boundaries of the primary auditory cortex (AI) of the cat, and (b) what single neuron response characteristics are underlying the systematic spatial signal representations as obtained with multiple unit measures. Knowledge of these parametric signal representations shall enable us to develop a basic understanding of cortical processing and its implications for the coding/classification of complex signals. Initially, cortical receptive fields for simple signal parameters, such as frequency, bandwidth, and intensity, will be explored before turning to more complex signal properties such as spectral shape or temporal variations.