Connecting the auditory brain stem to sensory, motor, and limbic systems, the inferior colliculus is a critical midbrain station for auditory processing. Winer and Schreiner's The Inferior Colliculus, a critical, comprehensive reference, presents the current knowledge of the inferior colliculus from a variety of perspectives, including anatomical, physiological, developmental, neurochemical, biophysical, neuroethological and clinical vantage points. Written by leading researchers in the field, the book is an ideal introduction to the inferior colliculus and central auditory processing for clinicians, otolaryngologists, graduate and postgraduate research workers in the auditory and other sensory-motor systems.

There has been substantial progress in understanding the contributions of the auditory forebrain to hearing, sound localization, communication, emotive behavior, and cognition. The Auditory Cortex covers the latest knowledge about the auditory forebrain, including the auditory cortex as well as the medial geniculate body in the thalamus. This book will cover all important aspects of the auditory forebrain organization and function, integrating the auditory thalamus and cortex into a smooth, coherent whole. Volume One covers basic auditory neuroscience. It complements The Auditory Cortex, Volume 2: Integrative Neuroscience, which takes a more applied/clinical perspective.

Neuronal Networks in Brain Function, CNS Disorders, and Therapeutics, edited by two leaders in the field, offers a current and complete review of what we know about neural networks. How the brain accomplishes many of its more complex tasks can only be understood via study of neuronal network control and network interactions. Large networks can undergo major functional changes, resulting in substantially different brain function and affecting everything from learning to the potential for epilepsy. With chapters authored by experts in each topic, this book advances the understanding of: - How the brain carries out important tasks via networks - How these networks interact in normal brain function - Major mechanisms that control network function - The interaction of the normal networks to produce more complex behaviors - How brain disorders can result from abnormal interactions - How therapy of disorders can be advanced through this network approach This book will benefit neuroscience researchers and graduate students with an interest in networks, as well as clinicians in neuroscience, pharmacology, and psychiatry dealing with neurobiological disorders. - Utilizes perspectives and tools from various neuroscience subdisciplines (cellular, systems, physiologic), making the volume broadly relevant - Chapters explore normal network function and control mechanisms, with an eye to improving therapies for brain disorders - Reflects predominant disciplinary shift from an anatomical to a functional perspective of the brain - Edited work with chapters authored by leaders in the field around the globe – the broadest, most expert coverage available

During the last decades, investigations on the olivo-cerebellar system have attained a high level of sophistication, which led to redefinitions of several structural and functional properties of neurons, synapses, connections and circuits. Research has expanded and deepened in so many directions and so many theories and models have been proposed that an ensemble review of the matter is now needed. Yet, hot topics remain open and scientific discussion is very lively at several fronts. One major question, here as well as in other major brain circuits, is how single neurons and synaptic properties emerge at the network level and contribute to behavioural regulation via neuronal plasticity. Other major aspects that this Research Topic covers and discusses include the development and circuit organization of the olivo-cerebellar network, the established and recent theories of learning and motor control, and the emerging role of the cerebellum in cognitive processing. By touching on such varied and encompassing subjects, this Frontiers Special Topic aims to highlight the state of the art and stimulate future research. We hope that this unique collection of high-quality articles from experts in the field will provide scientists with a powerful basis of knowledge and inspiration to enucleate the major issues deserving further attention.

This is a graduate-level text on the neurobiology of hearing, covering the structure and function of the central auditory pathway of all mammals.

The Superior Colliculus: New Approaches for Studying Sensorimotor Integration discusses new experimental and theoretical approaches to investigating how the brain transforms sensory signals into the motor commands that are used to shift the direction of gaze. The material includes the potential models for sensorimotor integration in the primate bra

A summary of how the electrical signals used to represent sounds are encoded and interpreted through the integrated roles of various nuclei. This volume builds on the information about the anatomy and physiology of the auditory pathway found in volumes 1 and 2 of the SHAR series. While the first two volumes describe the structure and function of auditory pathways, this one explains how these pathways lead to an animal's ability to localize and interpret sounds.

Harmony is an integral part of our auditory environment. Resonances characterised by harmonic frequency relationships are found throughout the natural world and harmonic sounds are essential elements of speech, communication and, of course, music. Providing neurophysiological data and theories that are suitable to explain the neural code of pitch and harmony, the author demonstrates that musical pitch is a temporal phenomenon and musical harmony is a mathematical necessity based on neuronal mechanisms. Moreover, he offers new evidence for the role of an auditory time constant for speech and music perception as well as for similar neuronal processing mechanisms of auditory and brain waves. Successfully relating current neurophysiological results to the ancient ideas of Pythagoras, this unique title will appeal to specialists in the fields of neurophysiology, neuroacoustics, linguistics, behavioural biology and musicology as well as to a broader audience interested in the neural basis of music perception.

Handbook of Ultrasonic Vocalization: Window into the Mammalian Brain, Volume 25, is an exhaustive resource on ultrasonic vocalizations in vertebrates, providing full coverage of all aspects of these vocalizations. The book also demonstrates the usefulness of ultrasonic vocalizations in studies of animal communication, sociobiological states, and in mammalian models of affective disorders, addictions and neurodevelopmental disorders, making it an indispensable resource for researchers using animal models. The book begins with the evolution of vocal communication before discussing mechanisms of ultrasound production, perception and the brain systems involved in emotional arousal that are responsible for the generation of vocalization and emotional states. In addition, the book covers studies of neuroactive agents and sociopsychological conditions that can regulate the outcome of ultrasonic vocalization and provide clues about animals' internal states. Critically, the book also includes thorough coverage of pharmacological investigations using ultrasonic vocalizations, increasingly being utilized for studies in affective disorders, psychoses, addiction and alcoholism. No other book provides such extensive coverage of this rapidly growing field of study. - Represents a multidisciplinary approach that incorporates evolution, communication, behavioral homeostasis, emotional expression and neuropsychiatric dysfunction - Provides a systematic review of ultrasonic vocalizations in major groups of rodents widely used in laboratory research - Discusses numerous other species across vertebrates that emit ultrasounds

Scientific investigations of a descriptive nature involve in creasingly refined definitions of a problem. An idea is trans formed after initial experiments into a working hypothesis that has a number of testable consequences. Rarely in the neurosci ences do such tests completely falsify the hypothesis; more commonly they lead to a modified, more general hypothesis. One could argue that in order to define a scientific problem, one must first understand it. This monograph is an attempt to draw together knowledge and understanding from various disciplines, collected from studies carried out over more than 80 yr, of the functions of the auditory midbrain. This part of the brain has been of continuing interest to me, from my days as a postgraduate student in the mid-1960s to the present time, because so many ideas about central auditory organization and function have developed from studies of this region. This book is dedicated to Jerzy E. Rose, Professor Emer itus of Neurophysiology at the University of Wisconsin. His intellect and clarity of mind have been responsible for many of the modern ideas of auditory neurophysiology. These ideas have been incorporated into a series of classic papers on audi tory neuroscience that will be important for a long time to corne. In addition, Jerzy Rose has been an inspired teacher whose precepts of brain structure and function have been a major influence on his students, including the author.