Faculty

Research Interests

Professor Gentner's research examines the neural mechanisms that govern the sensory, perceptual, and cognitive processing of natural sounds, especially animal communication signals. Research topics address question of neural coding, representational plasticity during learning and memory, higher-level decision mechanisms, and the regulation of natural behaviors. Researchers in the lab draw as needed on a range of experimental techniques, including electrophysiology, neuroanatomy, immunohistochemistry, animal learning and behavior, and computational neuroscience. Many experiments integrate several techniques to study behaving animals.

Selected Publications

Gentner TQ. (2004)  Neural mechanisms for vocal recognition in songbirds. In Ziegler  P, Marler, P (Eds.) Behavioral Biology of Birdsong. New York Academy of Science, New York.

Gentner TQ, Margoliash D (2003) Neuronal Populations and single cells representing learned auditory objects.  Nature, 424, 669-674.

Gentner TQ, Margoliash D (2002) The neuroethology of vocal communication:  perception  and cognition.  In Simmons A, Popper AN Fay R (Eds.) Springer Handbook of Auditory Research, vol. 16. Springer-Verlag,  pp. 324 - 386.

Gentner TQ, Hulse SH, Duffy D, Ball GF. (2001) Response biases in auditory forebrain regions of female songbirds following exposure to sexually relevant variation in male song.  Journal of Neurobiology, 46(1), 48-58.

Gentner TQ, Hulse SH. (2000) Perceptual classification based on the component structure of song in European starlings.  Journal of the Acoustical Society of America,  107(6), 3369 - 3381.

Gentner TQ, Hulse SH. (1998)  Perceptual mechanisms for individual recognition in European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris).  Animal Behaviour, 56, 579 - 594.