- Place theory (hearing)
Place theory is a
theory of hearing which states that our perception of sound depends on where each componentfrequency producesvibrations along thebasilar membrane . By this theory, the pitch of a musical tone is determined by the places where the membrane vibrates, based on frequencies corresonding to thetonotopic organization of the primary auditory neurons.cite book | title = Foundations of perception | author = George Mather | publisher = Psychology Press | year = 2006 | isbn = 0863778348 | url = http://books.google.com/books?id=oUNfSjS11ggC&pg=PA123&dq=pitch+%22place+theory%22&lr=&as_brr=3&ei=SgW-SIOmBoSasgO6h-DqBw&sig=ACfU3U1aK3zCJdAK8pYkff2R2dRRYWyzPg#PPA123,M1 ] cite book | title = An introduction to the psychology of hearing | author = Brian C. J. Moore | publisher = Emeraldn Group Publishing | year = 2003 | isbn = 0125056281 | url = http://books.google.com/books?id=tkbOivKH2HkC&pg=PA196&dq=pitch+%22temporal+theory%22+places+tonotopic+%22place+theory%22+alternative&lr=&as_brr=3&ei=OAe-SM-KMY-4swOf89HqBw&sig=ACfU3U0gtJ_tYKv2mg4j2fmjqFu217KRDg ]More generally, schemes that base attributes of auditory perception on the neural firing rate as a function of place are known as rate–place schemes. [cite book | chapter = Auditory Neural Processing of Speech | title = The Handbook of Phonetic Sciences | author = Bertrand Delgutte | editor = William J. Hardcastle and John Laver | publisher = Blackwell Publishing | year = 1999 | isbn = 063121478X | url = http://books.google.com/books?id=VrMEG-lKcaEC&pg=PA515&dq=rate+place+theory+hearing+spectrum&lr=&as_brr=3&ei=AQC-SP2BDpKmtAPw0ODqBw&sig=ACfU3U0mmV3-zLGzCjYGsE4gQ-kTkH4BbQ ]
The main alternative to the place theory is the
temporal theory , also known as timing theory. These theories are closely linked with the volley principle orvolley theory ,cite book | title = Essentials of Audiology | author = Stanley A. Gelfand | publisher = Thieme | year = 2001 | isbn = 1588900177 | url = http://books.google.com/books?id=UqXS8CLJML4C&pg=PA72&dq=%22temporal+theory%22+%22volley+theory%22&lr=&as_brr=3&ei=OQi-SJKiNYmGtAPo5ODqBw&sig=ACfU3U2QdHzlGf6l4d-zKX2oKkFD09RbsQ ] a mechanism by which groups of neurons can encode the timing of a sound waveform. In all cases, neural firing patterns in time determine the perception of pitch. The combination known as the place–volley theory uses both mechanisms in combination, primarily coding low pitches by temporal pattern and high pitches by rate–place patterns. It is now generally believed that there is good evidence for both mechanisms. [cite book | chapter = Pitch Perception Models | author = Alain d'Cheveigné | title = Pitch | editor = Christopher J. Plack, Andrew J. Oxenham, Richard R. Fay, and Arthur N. Popper | publisher = Birkhäuser | year = 2005 | isbn = 0387234721 | url = http://books.google.com/books?id=n6VdlK3AQykC&pg=PT214&dq=place+pitch++volley+theory++believed&lr=&as_brr=3&ei=nQm-SKjEIom6tQPwv6XqBw&sig=ACfU3U2OVgellLwHhDDfIb0jiFYckfWq_A ]The place theory is usually attributed to
Helmholtz , though it was widely believed much earlier. [cite book | title = Practical Acoustics | author = Charles Lightfoot Barnes | pages = p.160 | publisher = Macmillan | year = 1897 | url = http://books.google.com/books?id=6TQIAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA160&dq=cochlea+Corti+Helmholtz+intitle:acoustics&lr=&as_brr=1&ei=plO9SJLeN5HiiwGm38nzBw ] [cite book | title = The Young Gentleman and Lady's Philosophy: In a Continued Survey of the Works of Nature and Art by Way of Dialogue | author = Benjamin Martin | publisher = W. Owen | year = 1781 | url = http://books.google.com/books?id=UHgKAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA415&dq=Corti+cochlea+%22experienced%22+intitle:philosophy+inauthor:benjamin+inauthor:martin&lr=&as_brr=1&ei=qgO-SIeKNoPWsgPpjODqBw ]References
External links
* [http://www.phys.unsw.edu.au/~jw/Fearnetal.html The dependence of pitch perception on the rate and place of stimulation of the cochlea: a study using cochlear implants.]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
