John Cassedy, Ph.D.
Research Professor Emeritus
| Degree From: Indiana University - Bloomington |
| Interests: Auditory Brainstem Pathways, Integrative Functions of the Inferior Colliculus |
Contact
Advising
| Do I accept and train new psychology graduate students in general? |
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| No |
Research
My research concerns information processing and neural integration at the auditory midbrain. A major goal of this research is to investigate the role of inhibitory mechanisms in shaping neural responses to the temporal and spectral features of sound. Selectivity for temporal and spectral features of sound is the basis for analysis of all complex sounds, including speech. Current experiments employ the methods of single-cell electrophysiology and pharmacology to address the question of how the biologically important features of sounds are encoded in the auditory midbrain of echolocating bats. The study of echolocating provides a unique opportunity to relate behavior to neural function. The bat uses the echoes from its own vocalizations to navigate in its environment and to detect and capture flying insects. The sounds emitted by the bat vary in predictable ways depending on the bat's behavior. Thus the acoustic structure of echolocation calls provides a precise measure of what sounds are biologically important for the bat.
Research Publications
- Casseday JH, Fremouw T, Covey E (2002) The inferior colliculus: A hub for the central auditory system. In: Oertel D, Fay R, Popper AN (Eds) Integrative Functions in the Mammalian Auditory Pathway, Springer Handbook of Auditory Research, Vol 15, Springer-Verlag, New York, pp. 238-318.
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- Casseday JH, Ehrlich D, Covey E (2000) Neural measurement of sound duration: control by excitatory-inhibitory interactions in the inferior colliculus, J Neurophysiol. 84: 1475-1487.
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- Casseday JH, Covey E (1996) A neuroethological theory of the operation of the inferior colliculus. Brain Behav Evol 47:311-336.
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