Course Schedule
While the following courses are primarily intended for CSD students pursuing theory-based or therapeutic objectives in the speech and hearing sciences, they will also be appealing to psychology, cognitive science, engineering, and computer science students interested in research on the perception of speech by humans and machines.
SPA 3003 Articulatory, Acoustic, & Auditory Phonetics
Offered every year. Prerequisite: COM 1000. Masapollo, M.
This undergraduate course introduces students to the nature of human speech production, acoustics, and perception from both a cognitive science and clinical perspective. The instructional goals are: (1) To build an integrated understanding of the physiology, acoustics, and perception of speech. We will study the vocal tract structures capable of generating and modifying speech signals, and the underlying brain mechanisms responsible for commanding the musculature of the vocal tract. We will also study the mechanisms by which listeners map the resulting acoustic signal onto phonological units. (2) To explore contemporary theories and experimental investigations of normal and disordered control of the vocal tract in the production of sound segments and syllables. (3) To introduce students to state-of-the-art measurement tools for dynamic imaging of speech movements. Live demonstrations and mini experiments will provide hands-on training in measuring speech movements and their acoustic correlates, and reinforce fundamental principles about how the sounds of speech are generated. (4) To provide intensive training in classifying sound segments and transcribing acoustic data using the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA).
Topics: measurement of speech movements; measurements of pressures and airflows in speech production; source-filter theory of speech production; computer-aided waveform analysis and spectral analysis of speech; perception of speech sounds; phonetic transcription; models for speech motor control and perception; speech development; and speech disorders.
SPA 4930: Speech Perception in Phonetics
Will be offered in the Spring 2022 term. Recommended prerequisites: SPA 3003; 3011; 3032; 3101. Masapollo, M.
The study of normal and disordered speech communication necessitates acquiring a highly integrated understanding of articulation, acoustics, and perception. Building on students’ basic knowledge of linguistic-phonetic principles, this undergraduate course provides a more in-depth study of speech perception, current perception models, the neural processing of speech, and the processing of speech versus non-speech signals. The course begins by investigating the nature of the input speech signal, and how listeners interpret properties of that signal (acoustic, visual, haptic) as linguistic information. We will then turn to experimental work on speech perception and consider contemporary models and theoretical issues that have driven speech perception research over the years. We will also explore aspects of perceptual development and speech impairments. Throughout, the course will introduce students to a wide range of methodologies and tools for dynamic imaging of speech movements, as well as techniques for assessing perception of the multisensory signal that arises from those movements. Live demonstrations and mini lab experiments will provide hands-on training in measuring speech movements and their acoustic correlates. Basic phonetic principles will be reinforced through these assignments, which will provide training in articulatory and acoustic analysis, and perceptual testing.
Topics: measurement of speech movements; source-filter theory of speech production; computer-aided waveform analysis and spectral analysis of speech; perception of speech and non-speech sounds by humans and animals; models for speech motor control and perception; speech development; speech disorders; and recognition of speech by machine.
Motor Control of Speech (Course Code and Schedule TBD)
Will be offered every year in the spring term. Prerequisites: Permission of instructor. Masapollo, M.
This PhD-level seminar will explore the underlying control variables and mechanisms involved in human speech production.
Topics: Measuring speech movements; speech motor “targets”; survey of experiments on sensory feedback control; speech motor sequencing