Harry Steven Colburn
Boston University
Project start date: 2000-09-26
Project end date: 2015-12-31
Sponsored Links Excellgen http://Excellgen.com
Harry Steven Colburn, Professor
Boston University 881 Commonwealth Avenue Boston, Ma 02215
Grant 5P30DC004663-05 from National Institute On Deafness And Other Communication Disorders IRG: ZDC1
Abstract: Faculty who do research in hearing science and its applications came together from several schools and colleges to form the Hearing Research Center (HRC) at Boston University. This proposal requests support for research core facilities that will support ongoing funded research, stimulate interactions among HRC faculty in different laboratories, and allow more efficient collaboration and utilization of resources. The requested core support is designed to promote integrative, multi- disciplinary collaborations involving auditory physiology, psychophysics, and modeling. Support for three core facilities is requested a sound-field laboratory facility, a scientific core faculty, and an engineering core facility. The sound-field facility would provide a controlled, reverberant environment and allow common setups and stimuli in psychoacoustic measurements. The scientific core facility would provide specialized support from a histologist and an animal care specialist. The histologist would support the faculty and students in all of the physiology laboratories, and the animal care specialist would provide assistance with lab animals, including transportation and specialized care, and allow the creation of a quiet environment in the existing campus-wide animal care facility. The engineering core facility would allow the archiving and analysis of data from groups working in different disciplines, the integration of modeling efforts that are distributed across different laboratories in different disciplines, the integration of modeling efforts that are distributed across different laboratories and at different levels of the auditory pathways, and provide general computer and technical support to all faculty and laboratories in the Center. These cores and the support they will provide were designed specifically to remove impediments to efficient collaborations.
Keywords: biomedical facility, hearing
Project start date: 2000-09-26
Project end date: 2006-01-15
5P30DC004663-05 (2004): $328217
5P30DC004663-04 (2003): $318657
5P30DC004663-03 (2002): $309374
5P30DC004663-02 (2001): $182392
5P30DC004663-07 (2007): $180174
5P30DC004663-10 (2010): $479802
Grants awarded to Harry Steven Colburn
Harry Steven Colburn
Boston University, 881 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, Ma 02215
Grant 5R01DC000100-35 from National Institute On Deafness And Other Communication Disorders
Abstract: This proposal requests five-years of support for studies of binaural (two-ear) processing, with particular emphasis on listening to speech in multisource and reverberant environments. The primary motivation for this work is the difficulty some people experience when listening to speech in noisy environments. The work is primarily concerned with cases when multiple talkers are speaking at the same time as the target speaker and/or cases that have significant reflections off surfaces. It is often observed that abilities in these environments are compromised when one or both ears are not fully functioning and with the advancement of age; thus, the focus on the binaural hearing contributions to our abilities in difficult environments and the effects of aging. The proposed work includes a blend of experimental measurements and computational modeling of the binaural and spatial advantages in this "cocktail party environment." The measurement program is designed to separate the multiple factors that affect performance in this complex task, and the modeling both determines the degree to which current understanding of two-eared processing can explain empirical abilities and attempts to extend our understanding. Thus, we will be exploiting our history of binaural modeling at the signal-processing or black-box level as well as at the neurophysiological level. Work in all of these areas will include both normal hearing and impaired hearing measurements and models and will include the measurement and analysis of performance with hearing aids. This study includes specific attention to the distinctive difficulties that are often observed in elderly listeners. This work should lead to improved hearing aids as well as better understanding of the process of hearing in complex environments. This project studies the perception of speech in complex environments where there are multiple sources, reflections from surfaces, and sounds that interfere with our understanding of speech from desirable sources. Specifically, we focus on the contribution of our abilities to operate in these environments using the small differences in the sounds reaching our two ears. These environments are difficult for hearing- impaired and elderly listeners and this work is designed to help to overcome these difficulties
Keywords: Affect; Age; Aged 65 and Over; Aging; Area; Attention; Boxing; Brain Stem; Brainstem; Categories; Cell Communication and Signaling; Cell Signaling; Cells; Center Core Grants; Complex; Comprehension; Computer Simulation; Computerized Models; Confusion; Confusional State; Cues; Decision Making; Detection; Development; Diagnostic Method; Diagnostic Procedure; Diagnostic Technique; Ear; Ear structure; Elderly; Elderly, over 65; Environment; Environment and Public Health; Frequencies (time pattern); Frequency; Goals; Hearing; Hearing Aids; Hearing Loss; History; Human; Human, General; Hypoacuses; Hypoacusis; Impairment; Individual; Intracellular Communication and Signaling; Lead; Location; Man (Taxonomy); Man, Modern; Masks; Mathematical Model Simulation; Mathematical Models and Simulations; Measurement; Measures; Mental Confusion; Mesencephalon; Metric; Mid-brain; Midbrain; Midbrain structure; Modeling; Models, Computer; Motivation; Nerve Cells; Nerve Unit; Nervous; Neural Cell; Neurocyte; Neurons; Noise; Output; P30 Mechanism; P30 Program; Pattern; Pb element; Performance; Physiologic; Physiological; Population; Process; Programs (PT); Programs [Publication Type]; Psychology, Physiologic; Psychology, Physiological; Psychophysiological; Psychophysiology; RFP; Recording of previous events; Request for Proposals; Science of neurophysiology; Senescence; Signal Transduction; Signal Transduction Systems; Signaling; Simulation, Computer based; Sound; Sound - physical agent; Source; Spatial Distribution; Speech; Speech Discrimination; Speech Intelligibilities; Speech Intelligibility; Speech Perception; Stimulus; Sum; Surface; System; System, LOINC Axis 4; Testing; Theoretical Studies; Time; Variant; Variation; Work; adult youth; advanced age; age effect; aging effect; base; binaural hearing; biological signal transduction; cognitive function; computational modeling; computational models; computational simulation; computer based models; computerized data processing; computerized modeling; computerized simulation; data processing; design; designing; elders; experience; experiment; experimental research; experimental study; geriatric; hearing impairment; hearing perception; heavy metal Pb; heavy metal lead; improved; in silico; information processing; interest; late life; later life; neural; neural model; neuronal; neurophysiology; older adult; older person; programs; psycho-physiological; public health relevance; relating to nervous system; research study; response; senescent; senior citizen; signal processing; sound; sound perception; speech recognition; virtual; virtual simulation; young adult
Relevance: This project studies the perception of speech in complex environments where there are multiple sources, reflections from surfaces, and sounds that interfere with our understanding of speech from desirable sources. Specifically, we focus on the contribution of our abilities to operate in these environments using the small differences in the sounds reaching our two ears. These environments are difficult for hearing- impaired and elderly listeners and this work is designed to help to overcome these difficulties
Project start date: 1988-04-01
Project end date: 2014-08-31
Budget start date: 1-SEP-2010
Budget end date: 31-AUG-2011
PFA/PA: PA-07-070
5R01DC000100-35 (2010): $587037
2R01DC000100-34A1 (2009): $577523
5R01DC000100-21 (1995): $367595
2R01DC000100-20 (1994): $389948
Core Center -- NIDCD Research Core Center P30
Harry Steven Colburn, Professor
Boston University 881 Commonwealth Avenue Boston, Ma 02215
Grant 3P30DC004663-07S1A1 from National Institute On Deafness And Other Communication Disorders IRG: ZDC1
Abstract: This application is a supplemental request to fund the Engineering Core of the Boston University Core Center. The renewal of this core will provide critical assistance for the sharing of facilities, support personnel, equipment, and expertise; for the development of mechanisms for sharing data and models across laboratories; and for the promotion of scientific interactions among faculty in different laboratories at B.U. and other institutions in the area. Since the year 2000, a P30 Core Center grant has supported two cores a Sound-Field Laboratory Core and an Engineering Core. The P30 Core Center grant, with the Sound-Field Laboratory, was renewed for five years starting January 16, 2006. This is a application to support the Engineering Core. The requested core support is designed to promote integrative, multidisciplinary collaborations involving auditory physiology, psychoacoustics, and computational modeling. The engineering core facility allows the archiving and analysis of data from groups working in different disciplines, the integration of modeling efforts that are distributed across different laboratories and at different levels of the auditory pathway, and provides general computer and technical support to all faculty and laboratories in the Core Center. This core and the support it provides are designed specifically to use resources efficiently, to promote collaboration, and to develop resources of general use to the hearing research community. Faculty who do research in hearing science and its applications came together from several schools and colleges in 1995 to form the Hearing Research Center (HRC) at B.U. for "the development and dissemination of knowledge that will improve the nation s auditory health and allow the fullest utilization of the sense of hearing." The work supported by the proposed core allows the full use and sharing of our resources and staff and extends our capability to use more complex data sets and more complex models of physiology and perception. These areas are critical for the understanding of hearing in complex environments, an area of great difficulty for listeners with hearing impairments or cochlear implants. Center Administration Program Director Steven H. Colburn, Ph.D.
Project start date: 2000-09-26
Project end date: 2010-12-31
3P30DC004663-07S1A1 (2007): $203415
Harry Steven Colburn, Professor
Boston University 881 Commonwealth Avenue Boston, Ma 02215
Grant 5R01DC000100-28 from National Institute On Deafness And Other Communication Disorders IRG: ZRG1
Abstract: The overall goal of this study is an integrated understanding of the processing of sound by the two ears and the application of this understanding to improving the functional hearing abilities of people with hearing losses or neurological disorders. The auditory system is specialized to take advantage of the differences between the pressure signals at the two ears, and these differences are used to create a perceptual map of the acoustic environment. The best known reflections of this binaural processing are the localization of sound sources and the ability to listen to one talker in the presence of other talkers (the "cocktail party effect"). We believe that some of the difficulties experienced in noisy environments by listeners with hearing losses are related to an incomplete utilization of binaural differences, and a part of our study is directed toward testing the hypotheses with speech intelligibility experiments both in sound fields and using headphones. The specific aims of the proposed work include the development of computational models of binaurally sensitive neurons in the auditory brainstem and midbrain, psychophysical experimentation and modeling that relates psychophysical abilities to physiological responses, measurement of speech intelligibility and localization abilities in reverberant environments and in the presence of multiple sound sources, and the development of techniques for testing listeners with and without hearing aids in simulated complex environments.
Keywords: binaural hearing, neural information processing, psychoacoustics, sensorineural hearing loss, speech recognition, auditory discrimination, brain stem, computer simulation, hearing aid, model design /development, noise, perceptual masking, sound perception, speech, clinical research, human subject
Project start date: 1988-04-01
Project end date: 2004-03-31
5R01DC000100-28 (2003): $455160
5R01DC000100-27 (2002): $441983
5R01DC000100-26 (2001): $429189
5R01DC000100-25 (2000): $422409
2R01DC000100-24A1 (1999): $415059
Sponsored Links Excellgen http://Excellgen.com
5R01DC000100-19 (1993): $369269
5R01DC000100-18 (1992): $367814
5R01DC000100-33 (2008): $608701
5R01DC000100-32 (2007): $598947
5R01DC000100-31 (2006): $599059
5R01DC000100-30 (2005): $595808
2R01DC000100-29 (2004): $589618
Harry Steven Colburn, Professor
Boston University 881 Commonwealth Avenue Boston, Ma 02215
Grant 1P30DC004663-01 from National Institute On Deafness And Other Communication Disorders IRG: ZDC1
Abstract: Faculty who do research in hearing science and its applications came together from several schools and colleges to form the Hearing Research Center (HRC) at Boston University. This proposal requests support for research core facilities that will support ongoing funded research, stimulate interactions among HRC faculty in different laboratories, and allow more efficient collaboration and utilization of resources. The requested core support is designed to promote integrative, multi- disciplinary collaborations involving auditory physiology, psychophysics, and modeling. Support for three core facilities is requested a sound-field laboratory facility, a scientific core faculty, and an engineering core facility. The sound-field facility would provide a controlled, reverberant environment and allow common setups and stimuli in psychoacoustic measurements. The scientific core facility would provide specialized support from a histologist and an animal care specialist. The histologist would support the faculty and students in all of the physiology laboratories, and the animal care specialist would provide assistance with lab animals, including transportation and specialized care, and allow the creation of a quiet environment in the existing campus-wide animal care facility. The engineering core facility would allow the archiving and analysis of data from groups working in different disciplines, the integration of modeling efforts that are distributed across different laboratories in different disciplines, the integration of modeling efforts that are distributed across different laboratories and at different levels of the auditory pathways, and provide general computer and technical support to all faculty and laboratories in the Center. These cores and the support they will provide were designed specifically to remove impediments to efficient collaborations.
Keywords: biomedical facility, hearing
Project start date: 2000-09-26
Project end date: 2005-08-31
1P30DC004663-01 (2000): $409584
Sponsored Links Excellgen http://Excellgen.com
2P30DC004663-06 (2006): $239859