Simulating neurobiological localization of acoustic signals based on temporal and volumetric differentiations

Abstract

The localization of sound sources by the human brain is computationally simulated from a neurobiological perspective. The simulation includes the neural representation of temporal differences in acoustic signals between the ipsilateral and contralateral ears for constant sound intensities (angular localization), and of volumetric differences in acoustic signals for constant azimuthal angles (radial localization). The transmission of the original acoustic signal from the environment, through each significant stage of intermediate neurons, to the primary auditory cortex, is also simulated. The errors that human brains make in attempting to localize sounds in evolutionarily uncommon environments (such as when one ear is in water and one ear is in air) are then mathematically predicted. A basic overview of the physiology behind sound localization in the brain is also provided.