Edward Large

Department of Psychology

Florida Atlantic University

Dynamics of auditory perception and attention.

In this talk, I consider the perception of pulse and meter in music from the point of view of nonlinear dynamical systems. Nonlinear oscillation is a ubiquitous in neural systems, and although many different types of oscillatory processes exist, they share certain universal properties that can be revealed by dynamical analysis. These include self-sustained oscillation, entrainment and higher-order resonance. I will show how these properties map onto psychological properties that are generally attributed to pulse and meter. I will review recent evidence testing the hypothesis that pulse and meter arise as endogenous neural oscillations entrain to exogenous periodic stimuli, and that pulse a meter are modes of dynamic attending. I will show how this evidence points to a significant revision of current dynamical models. If time permits, I will show how dynamical models of rhythm perception relate to recent theories of cochlear function and pitch perception.