Abstract
Vocal development is usually studied from the perspective of neuroscience. In this issue, Zhang and Ghazanfar propose a way in which body growth might condition the process. They study the vocalizations of marmoset infants with a wide range of techniques that include computational models and experiments that mimic growth reversal. Their results suggest that the qualitative changes that occur during development are rooted in the nonlinear interaction between the nervous system and the biomechanics involved in respiration. This work illustrates how an integrative approach enriches our understanding of behavior.
Highlights
Is it possible that the changes that occur in the biomechanics during development affect qualitatively some aspects of vocal development? This is the question that Zhang and Ghazanfar address in “Vocal development through morphological computation” [5], a study of the vocalizations produced by marmoset monkeys in their first two months of life, in what constitutes the first approach to investigate this topic in a nonhuman mammalian species
In the study of locomotion, in which neural circuits generate patterns that are coupled to the environment by the body–limb system, the importance of the biomechanics involved is clear [2]
Zhang and Ghazanfar show that marmoset monkeys undergo changes in their vocalizations, which can be explained in terms of how the nervous system and the body interact [5]
Summary
OPEN ACCESS Citation: Mindlin GB (2018) Towards an integrated view of vocal development. Vocal development is usually studied from the perspective of neuroscience. In this issue, Zhang and Ghazanfar propose a way in which body growth might condition the process. They study the vocalizations of marmoset infants with a wide range of techniques that include computational models and experiments that mimic growth reversal. Their results suggest that the qualitative changes that occur during development are rooted in the nonlinear interaction between the nervous system and the biomechanics involved in respiration. This work illustrates how an integrative approach enriches our understanding of behavior
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