Researchers who study how the brain processes sound have discovered the common practice of using artificial tones in perception experiments could mean scientists are overlooking important and interesting discoveries in the field of brain research.

The research, published recently in the journal Scientific Reports, is the culmination of a decade of rigorous analysis, in which the team reviewed one thousand auditory experiments published in several leading journals.

They found nearly 90 per cent of sounds used in these experiments have no connection to the natural world.

«Many theories and models derived from the use of artificial tone beeps in research experiments fail to describe the actual listening processes,» says Michael Schutz, lead author and associate professor of Music Cognition and Percussion at McMaster.

Schutz’s interdisciplinary background plays an important role in this project. A percussionist by training, he directs the McMaster University Percussion Ensemble and is an active performing musician. This regular immersion in professional music-making has tuned his ears to the complexities of sound — and the lack thereof in artificial tones.

His research team in the MAPLE lab team has repeatedly shown crucial differences in the processing of natural versus artificial sounds, raising questions about the degree to which tone beeps can actually properly test the auditory system.

Story Source:
Materials provided by McMaster University. Original written by Michelle Donovan. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.