Acoustic Rhythms and Beat Precision: Variation across Species, Development and Time

Many species, including humans, communicate acoustically. While spectral features of acoustic signals have been the primary focus of researchers over decades, we are currently witnessing a revolution; more and more studies are now focusing on temporal features or rhythms, tackling new and varied questions that cannot be addressed by investigating spectral parameters alone. Their potential to answer questions on species identity, physiology, cognition, ecology, and behaviour is yet to be fully recognized. This revolution requires the development and thorough testing of new methods and parameters, to achieve set goals. The aim of this project is twofold: First, I will advance the newly developed parameter of “beat precision”, which describes how well an expected time series is matched by a biological signal, to its full strength. Secondly, I will use this method – which has potential applications beyond just acoustic data –on diverse datasets to find the adaptive functions of acoustic rhythms. Specifically, I will test beat precision across three different species and also across ontogeny, contexts, and cultural evolution to find potential drivers for rhythmicality in animals’ acoustic signals.