Learning by imitation is essential for transmitting many aspects of human culture, including
speech, language, art, and music. How the human brain enables imitation remains a …

Vocalization is an ancient vertebrate trait essential to many forms of communication, ranging
from courtship calls to free verse. Vocalizations may be entirely innate and evoked by sexual …

Abstract Language as a computational cognitive mechanism appears to be unique to the
human species. However, there are remarkable behavioral similarities between song …

Biological constraints often impose restrictions on plasticity rules such as locality and reward-
based rather than supervised learning. Two learning rules that comply with these restrictions …

Mirror neurons are theorized to serve as a neural substrate for spoken language in humans,
but the existence and functions of auditory–vocal mirror neurons in the human brain remain …

Birdsong has long been a subject of extensive research in the fields of ethology as well as
neuroscience. Neural and behavioral mechanisms underlying song acquisition and …

Interacting with relatives provides opportunities for fitness benefits via kin-selected
cooperation, but also creates potential costs through kin competition and inbreeding …

Learning and maintaining the sounds we use in vocal communication require accurate
perception of the sounds we hear performed by others and feedback-dependent imitation of …

Female songbirds use male song to discriminate among individuals and evaluate their
quality as potential mates. Previous behavioral experiments in many species, including the …

Sensorimotor integration is the process through which the nervous system creates a link
between motor commands and associated sensory feedback. This process allows for the …