HCS 6367 – Speech Perception – Fall 2010 `

Instructor: Dr. Peter Assmann Office: GR 4.126

Course: Speech Perception Course number: HCS/ACN 6367.501
Class meetings: Thu 7:00-9:45 PM Office hours: Wed 11:00 AM - 12:00 noon
Classroom: GR 4.204 Tel: 972-883-2435
Email: assmann@utdallas.edu Web: http://www.utdallas.edu/~assmann/hcs6367/

Course description:
Listeners can extract information from speech produced under extreme conditions: for example, when the
speaking rate is 400 words per minute; in high levels of background noise; and when the identity of the
speaker is unknown. This course considers the foundations of speech perception by examining the
auditory, perceptual, cognitive and neural processes that intervene between the production of speech and
its recognition. Topics include: acoustic correlates of phonetic categories; auditory processing of speech
in background noise and the "cocktail party" problem; the problem of lexical access; the development of
speech perception in infancy; the auditory analysis of speech and its breakdown in hearing impairment;
audio-visual speech perception; neural coding of speech and models of speech perception.
Readings: The primary readings are journal articles and book chapters. Most are available online and
will be assigned 1-2 weeks before they are covered in class. All readings must be completed prior to the
class in which they are discussed.
Recommended texts:
 Kent, R.D. & Read, C. (2001). The Acoustic Analysis of Speech. (Singular).
 Stevens, K.N. (1999). Acoustic Phonetics (Current Studies in Linguistics). M.I.T. Press.
Course requirements:
 Two class presentations (15%).
 Written reports on class presentations (15%).
 Take-home midterm exam (20%).
 Term project (50%).
Class presentation and report: Pick two topics from the assigned list. For each topic, pick one of the
assigned readings (or a related, approved substitute). Your job will be to present a brief summary of the
paper to the class (10-15 minutes) and lead class discussion of the paper. A written report (recommended
length 3-5 pages) on the topic of the paper is due two weeks after the oral presentation.
Term project: Write a review paper or a research report on a topic in the field of speech perception. The
expected length of the paper is 15-20 (double-spaced) pages. Topics must be approved by the instructor.

Learning objectives
After completing the course, students should be able to:
(1) Demonstrate an understanding of basic speech acoustics, and the perceptual and neural
mechanisms involved in the recognition of different classes of speech sounds;
(2) Demonstrate an understanding of the fundamental problems of invariance and segmentation, the
effects of noise and distortion, the separation of speech from interfering sounds, the development
of speech perception in infancy, and models of speech perception;
(3) Apply this knowledge to analyze specific problems arising in the current literature on speech
perception.
Dates *** Lecture topic Topics Readings/assignments

Thu Aug 19 Speech acoustics Pick presentation Develop term paper topic
dates/topics

Thu Aug 26 Vowel production and perception Pick presentation Develop term paper topic
dates/topics

Thu Aug 30 Consonant production and Presentations begin Submit term project topic
perception

Thu Sep 2 Suprasegmentals and prosody

Thu Sep 9 Speech perception in noise

Thu Sep 16 Auditory grouping and segregation Take-home midterm

assigned

Thu Sep 23 Speech perception and hearing loss

Thu Oct 7 Cochlear implants and speech

coding

Thu Oct 14 Development of speech perception Take-home midterm due

Thu Oct 21 Second language acquisition

Thu Oct 28 Audiovisual speech perception

Thu Nov 4 Neural coding of speech

Thu Nov 11 Models of speech perception

Thu Nov 18 NO CLASS (Acoustical Society meeting)

Thu Nov 25 NO CLASS Thanksgiving Holiday

Thu Dec 2 Last class **** Crossfire session **** Everyone participates!

Thu Dec 9 Term paper due

*** Subject to revision. Online updates will be posted weekly to

http://www.utdallas.edu/~assmann/hcs6367/schedule.html
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