prenatal auditory localization PS (Richard Parncutt )


Subject: prenatal auditory localization PS
From:    Richard Parncutt  <richard.parncutt(at)uni-graz.at>
Date:    Wed, 25 Aug 2004 11:38:03 +0200

PS My question about prenatal auditory localization was a bit unclear about physical cues. Of course the (small!) fetal head will cast no acoustic shadow at such low frequencies, so intensity differences are no use. But it is possible that the fetus could perceive the time difference between the arrival of the wavefront at the two ears in much the same way that adults do. A possible problem is that this time difference is even smaller for the fetus (since the head is smaller). Conversely, the fetal brain may not be as fast as an adult brain at processing such short time intervals. But if babies can do it, then there seems to be no physical reason why the fetus could not do it too. -- Richard Parncutt, Ph.D., Professor of Systematic Musicology Department of Musicology, University of Graz Mozartgasse 3, A-8010 Graz (Austria/Europe) Tel +43 316 380-2409 or -2405 Fax +43 316 380-9755 <lastname>(at)uni-graz.at http://www-gewi.uni-graz.at/muwi/parncutt


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