Concepts and control in speech production. While humans produce speech fluently in the course of everyday conversation, comparatively little is understood about the underlying mental processes and brain mechanisms. The overall aim of this project is to investigate how the human brain conceives and controls speech output by using state-of-the-art neuroimaging and brain stimulation techniques. The research aims to contribute novel insights into a key human ability with particular relevance for spe ....Concepts and control in speech production. While humans produce speech fluently in the course of everyday conversation, comparatively little is understood about the underlying mental processes and brain mechanisms. The overall aim of this project is to investigate how the human brain conceives and controls speech output by using state-of-the-art neuroimaging and brain stimulation techniques. The research aims to contribute novel insights into a key human ability with particular relevance for speech disorders such as aphasia, while the methods developed for brain stimulation during imaging of speech production aim to expand Australia's capability and technical innovation in the cognitive neuroscience of language.Read moreRead less
How the brain produces speech: Neuronal oscillations to neuromodulation. Speech is crucial for facilitating human communication through language, yet there is a lack of clarity about where, when and what type of activity occurs in the brain during key stages of production. This project will use intracranial recordings to characterise neuronal oscillations in combination with direct electrical stimulation, functional neuroimaging and non-invasive brain stimulation to establish critical areas and ....How the brain produces speech: Neuronal oscillations to neuromodulation. Speech is crucial for facilitating human communication through language, yet there is a lack of clarity about where, when and what type of activity occurs in the brain during key stages of production. This project will use intracranial recordings to characterise neuronal oscillations in combination with direct electrical stimulation, functional neuroimaging and non-invasive brain stimulation to establish critical areas and their timecourses with millisecond resolution. The outcome will be a better theoretical account of the brain mechanisms involved in spoken production. The benefit of this new theoretical account will be a better basis for prevention of post-surgical language impairment and neuromodulatory treatments after brain injury.Read moreRead less
A computational and experimental investigation into the organisation of letters in reading. In alphabetical languages, people need to learn to organise individual letters into groups so that they can read efficiently. This project will develop a model of this process, which will allow great insight into this key aspect of reading in terms of what the most efficient way of doing this is and what may go wrong and cause reading problems.
Enhancing Language Learning in Ageing With Exercise. This project aims to determine if exercise improves language learning and consolidation in ageing. There is now compelling evidence for the benefits of exercise on cognition in older adults, however, it is unclear whether exercise improves age-related language problems. The project plans to examine exercise-induced changes in brain activity and biomarkers in an innovative set of studies that seeks to identify the brain mechanisms involved. The ....Enhancing Language Learning in Ageing With Exercise. This project aims to determine if exercise improves language learning and consolidation in ageing. There is now compelling evidence for the benefits of exercise on cognition in older adults, however, it is unclear whether exercise improves age-related language problems. The project plans to examine exercise-induced changes in brain activity and biomarkers in an innovative set of studies that seeks to identify the brain mechanisms involved. The findings are expected to contribute to theories of word learning and cognitive ageing and should advance our understanding of how exercise may be harnessed to optimise language and cognition. This would have practical applications in a range of populations with language and learning difficulties.Read moreRead less
A more sound approach to the neurobiology of language. How does the brain attain spoken language? Current neurobiological models assume either implicitly or explicitly that there is no relationship between a word's sound and its meaning. Yet considerable evidence shows this strong assumption about the arbitrariness of language is invalid. This project will use a combination of behavioural, neuroimaging and computational studies to characterise how the brain processes statistical regularities in ....A more sound approach to the neurobiology of language. How does the brain attain spoken language? Current neurobiological models assume either implicitly or explicitly that there is no relationship between a word's sound and its meaning. Yet considerable evidence shows this strong assumption about the arbitrariness of language is invalid. This project will use a combination of behavioural, neuroimaging and computational studies to characterise how the brain processes statistical regularities in sound-to-meaning correspondences as probabilistic cues to attain spoken language. The outcome will be a better neural account of language comprehension and production. The benefit of this new account will be a stronger basis for assessment and treatment of developmental and acquired language impairments.Read moreRead less
Phonological effects on the development of inflectional morphology. This project investigates the mechanisms underlying typically developing children's variable omission of inflectional morphemes (for example, plural, past tense). The results will have significant implications for the evaluation and design of interventions for language-delayed populations where serious problems of communication persist.
Does word similarity across languages help or hinder bilingual speakers? This project aims to understand in more detail how bilinguals can accurately speak in both their languages. Speaking is a complex skill, particularly if you have two languages to choose from, which will be true for over half of Australia’s population by 2025. This project aims to investigate the factors that influence speech production in both monolinguals and bilinguals including those with language impairment, and develop ....Does word similarity across languages help or hinder bilingual speakers? This project aims to understand in more detail how bilinguals can accurately speak in both their languages. Speaking is a complex skill, particularly if you have two languages to choose from, which will be true for over half of Australia’s population by 2025. This project aims to investigate the factors that influence speech production in both monolinguals and bilinguals including those with language impairment, and develop a better bilingual theory. The benefit of this new theory will be to provide a clear basis for diagnosis and treatment for children in bilingual households who have problems learning to speak, and for bilingual people with language problems after a stroke or dementia.Read moreRead less
Developmental trajectory of tongue control for speech with real-time MRI. This project aims to evaluate the developmental trajectory of tongue control during speech, relating dynamic 3D vocal tract modelling to the acoustic signal. By optimising real-time MRI technology to capture and model articulatory movements, the project expects to accelerate understanding of how tongue control for speech is developed, mastered, and perturbed by factors such as rapid growth and foreign accent. Expected outc ....Developmental trajectory of tongue control for speech with real-time MRI. This project aims to evaluate the developmental trajectory of tongue control during speech, relating dynamic 3D vocal tract modelling to the acoustic signal. By optimising real-time MRI technology to capture and model articulatory movements, the project expects to accelerate understanding of how tongue control for speech is developed, mastered, and perturbed by factors such as rapid growth and foreign accent. Expected outcome is a new understanding of how different speakers' vocal tracts change and how speech is reshaped, informed by real physiological data. Significant benefits will be realised through refined methods and theory development for diverse fields e.g. linguistics, speech science, and automatic speech recognition/synthesis. Read moreRead less
Brain structure and function of neonates at risk for stuttering. The aim of the project is to determine whether the brain abnormalities that have been found in people who stutter are present at birth. The hypothesis is that the brains of neonates who subsequently start to stutter will differ significantly from those who do not. This is the first project to investigate the brains of infants before they start to stutter.