Songbirds and Vocal Learning: Interview with Dr Stephanie White
Knowing Neurons interviews Dr. Stephanie White, Professor of Integrative Biology and Physiology at UCLA, about her work studying vocal learning in songbirds as well as her role as the Assistant Director for Undergraduate Education at UCLA’s Brain Research Institute. Her lab is interested in how social interactions influence neural plasticity and focuses on the neural basis of vocal learning. Speech requires vocal learning, i.e. the ability to modify innate vocalizations in order to produce new ones. Only a handful of animal groups are known to exhibit this trait, with human speech and songbird song learning being the best-characterized. Presently, the lab uses the zebra finch, a songbird species and a well-established model of vocal learning, to investigate the neural basis of this important trait. Learn more about Dr. White’s research at her lab site and explore courses through the Marine Biological Laboratory, including Dr. White’s course on neural systems and behavior.
In this episode, Knowing Neurons interviews Dr. Stephanie White, Professor of Integrative Biology and Physiology at UCLA, about her research on vocal learning in songbirds, along with her role as Assistant Director for Undergraduate Education at UCLA’s Brain Research Institute.
Take a listen at the link below!
https://open.spotify.com/episode/0ZxSy2rkb2aL5Vz89rX2Fr…
Produced by Elizabeth Burnette and Chaoqun Yin.
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