所指导的研究生的本科背景:心理学、医学、生物学、电子工程学、信息科学、生物医学工程学、计算机科学、自动化科学、理论物理学、英文文学。 研究兴趣: 李量教授的实验室在国家自然科学基金重点项目、面上项目、国际合作项目、主任基金,985计划,教育部博士点基金,以及国家“973”项目的支持下,正在深入而系统化地研究以下五个方面的问题。同时,对这些问题的研究还扩展到言语通讯、跨语言比较(如中英文的比较)、人工耳蜗、儿童心理发育、听觉老年过程、以及精神分裂症等应用领域。所使用的实验技术包括心理物理学(实验心理学)测量、核磁共振脑成像、多导脑磁记录、多导头皮电活动记录、动物行为模型、动物神经电生理、动物神经光学脑成像等。 (一)初始听觉记忆 视觉系统的一个重要的信号加工策略是以降低时间分辨率(如眼球颤动的功能)为代价来增强加工的空间分辨率,但听觉系统则要处理在时间序列上的信息输入并具有极高的时间分辨率。因此,声音信号中的原始精细结构在脑内的暂存是在时间整合基础上的听觉客体(auditory object)形成所不可缺少的。这种所谓的“初始听觉记忆”发生在传统的感觉记忆之前,并具有容量大、抗干扰性强以及持续时间短等重要特征。我们最新的心理物理学实验和脑电实验结果表明,对噪音精细结构的初始听觉记忆的保持时间在人类听者之间有很大的差异,可以从几毫秒到二十几毫秒,并与噪音中的频率成分有关。再进一步,因为在有回声的声学环境中,听觉系统对直达声与反射声的知觉整合极大地依赖于直达声的信息在初始听觉记忆中的保持,因此这种原始性的听觉记忆形式是实现声音信号的跨时间的相关性计算所必要的,并与人类听者的抗掩蔽能力有密切的关系。进一步探究这种初始听觉记忆的特性、功能以及相应的神经机制将是听觉领域中的一个重要课题。初始听觉记忆的工作容量有多大?初始听觉记忆能够保持多久?这种记忆形式是否有可塑性?老年被试的这种记忆保持时间有无减少? 两个宽带声音信号的相关性神经计算是如何实现的?这些都是我们实验室目前所研究的几个具体的问题。 (二)听觉的双耳加工 听觉系统是动物最重要的“早期警报系统”,不仅能探察趋近的捕食者或被掠物发出的声音,还能确定其方向。对外在目标进行空间定位,是视觉与听觉的主要功能之一。然而,与视觉系统空间感知的神经机制不同,听觉感受器仅编码声音频率,不编码声源位置。精确的声源定位,必须由听觉中枢通过比较声音输入双耳所诱发的神经信号才能实现。声源空间线索主要包括声音到达双耳的时间差(interaural time difference, ITD)和双耳间声强差(interaural level difference, ILD)。但听觉系统如何用双耳线索来进行声源定位还是一个未解之谜。 (三)“鸡尾酒会”问题 在嘈杂的声学环境中,如果目标声音和干扰声音都是言语,目标声音所受到的干扰影响可以分成能量掩蔽(energetic masking)和信息掩蔽(informational masking)。能量掩蔽发生在听觉系统的外周部分。当掩蔽声音和目标声音同时出现,尤其两者在频谱上重叠时,听觉系统对目标声音的动态反应就会下降,进而觉察和辨认目标声音所需要的信噪比被提高。能量掩蔽使进入高级中枢的目标信息有实质性的缺失,而这种缺失是任何高级中枢的加工所不能补偿的。然而,信息掩蔽是另外一种更复杂、发生在高级中枢阶段的掩蔽作用。当掩蔽声音和目标声音在某些信息维度上有一定的相似性时,例如当目标声音与掩蔽声音都是言语时,一些神经/心理资源就会被用于对掩蔽声音的加工,目标声音和掩蔽声音之间就会在高级加工层次上出现竞争与混淆,从而使目标信号受到了掩蔽作用。从信号加工的观点来看,分离目标言语成分与掩蔽言语成分,并对目标言语成分进行组合是一个非常困难的任务。尽管近年来信息科学和计算机技术有了快速的发展,但到目前为止还没有任何计算机言语识别系统能在有干扰言语的环境下实现对目标言语的有效识别。然而,在有干扰言语的环境下,具有正常听力的人却能在相当的程度上理解所关注的语句的内容,这是为什么呢?就是在半个世纪前由Cherry (1953) 所提出的著名的“鸡尾酒会”问题。 我们近期的工作表明,在嘈杂的“鸡尾酒会”环境中,当目标语句本身的一些特性能保持一定的稳定性时,听者可以利用这些与目标语句相关的各种知觉线索来觉察、捕捉和追随目标语句流,以达到减少信息掩蔽的目的。这些知觉线索包括, 目标语句与掩蔽刺激的主观空间分离、与目标语句有动态相关性的视觉刺激、对目标嗓音和目标语句部分内容的熟悉程度等。 这也表明,在“鸡尾酒会”这个重要的问题中,人类高级认知加工过程起了关键的作用。对各种知觉线索的利用是一个复杂的动态过程。在不同情况下,各个线索的显现程度会随时间发生波动,因而听者会在不同的条件下选择利用不同的线索组合来减少信息掩蔽。这样,认识各个线索之间所存在着复杂的交互作用是破解“鸡尾酒会”问题的关键所在。 (四)精神分裂症的动物模型 由强感觉刺激所引起的惊反射是一种建立在简单中枢环路基础上的对威胁性刺激的全身性反射活动,具有重要的生态学意义,但也能干扰认知活动。中枢系统也具有能抑制惊反射的机制。前脉冲抑制(prepulse inhibition, PPI)是出现在惊反射刺激之前的弱感觉刺激(前脉冲刺激)对惊反射所产生的抑制作用。Graham的“加工-保护”理论(the Protection-of-Processing Theory)认为,前脉冲刺激除了引发对该刺激的中枢加工外,也引发了一个门控过程以削弱对随后强干扰刺激的加工,以此来保护对前脉冲信号的加工。PPI实际上是通过运动系统的活动来反映脑内信息加工的门控过程。尽管PPI环路位于包括下丘、上丘深层、以及桥脑脚被盖核的脑干部位,但它与感觉皮层、运动系统、上行激活系统以及边缘系统有广泛的神经联系并受到复杂的调节作用。PPI在精神分裂症病人中有显著的缺失,而抗精神药物在缓解症状的同时也减少PPI的缺失。因此,PPI的缺失与精神分裂症之间的关系成为了当今国际上研究精神分裂症的神经和心理机制的一个重要题目。动物实验研究也证实,药物性调节或损毁与精神分裂症有关的某些脑区以及引入早期不良刺激都可以造成大鼠PPI的缺失。 更重要的是,对前脉冲刺激的注意和认知加工可以显著地调节PPI,而有情绪内容的前脉冲刺激(如令人恐惧的图片)所引起的PPI也显著地强于由中性前脉冲刺激所引起的PPI。已有丰富的研究报告显示,在精神分裂症病人中,不但基线PPI有缺失,而注意对PPI的调节作用也有显著的缺失,而只有注意对PPI调节作用的缺失才与精神分裂症的几种特异性症状之间有显著的相关。因此,研究对PPI的认知调节不仅可以将对PPI的研究扩展到认知层次,而且可以使对精神分裂症机制的认识更加深入化,还可以为发展新的精神分裂症的动物模型供依据。我们实验室在国际上首次报告了大鼠的听觉情绪学习可以显著地增强PPI,即当前脉冲刺激经过与足底电击的结合而被恐惧条件化进而具有了生态学意义后,大鼠对该刺激的注意程度增高,从而强化了中枢对前脉冲刺激的加工。然而,大鼠的隔离饲养能破坏听觉恐惧条件化对PPI的增强作用。这就为建立新一代的精神分裂症的工作模型提供了重要的前期工作基础。 (五)情绪学习的神经生物学机制 杏仁核接受听觉系统和躯体感觉系统的神经输入,并在听觉情绪学习中起着关键的作用。由杏仁核所中介的情绪学习在惊反射和惊反射的前脉冲抑制上均有显著的行为表达。本实验室利用对前脉冲抑制的听觉条件化作为恐惧情绪学习的行为模型,来研究情绪学习及其表达的神经生物学机制。
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