Benjaman Schogler | University of Edinburgh (original) (raw)
Papers by Benjaman Schogler
Nordic Journal of Music Therapy, 1998
Experimental Brain Research, Jun 17, 2008
The sounds in expressive musical performance, and the movements that produce them, offer insight ... more The sounds in expressive musical performance, and the movements that produce them, offer insight into temporal patterns in the brain that generate expression. To gain understanding of these brain patterns, we analyzed two types of transient sounds, and the movements that produced them, during a vocal duet and a bass solo. The transient sounds studied were inter-tone f 0 (t)-glides (the continuous change in fundamental frequency, f 0 (t), when gliding from one tone to the next), and attack intensityglides (the continuous rise in sound intensity when attacking, or initiating, a tone). The temporal patterns of the inter-tone f 0 (t)-glides and attack intensity-glides, and of the movements producing them, all conformed to the mathematical function, s G (t) (called tauG), predicted by General Tau Theory, and assumed to be generated in the brain. The values of the parameters of the s G (t) function were modulated by the performers when they modulated musical expression. Thus the s G (t) function appears to be a fundamental of brain activity entailed in the generation of expressive temporal patterns of movement and sound.
Ashgate eBooks, 2011
Chapter describing the psychobiology of human gesture focusing on form, rhythm, and melody in inf... more Chapter describing the psychobiology of human gesture focusing on form, rhythm, and melody in infants’ movements of narration.
Perception, 2010
Many human and animal tasks are thought to be controlled with the τ informational variable. It is... more Many human and animal tasks are thought to be controlled with the τ informational variable. It is widely accepted that controlling the rate of change of τ (tau) during decelerative tasks, such as when braking or landing, is one common perceptual control strategy. However, many tasks require accelerating before decelerating to a goal, such as reaching. An advancement of τ theory shows how a single action formula may be used to control the full action unit from initiation to peak velocity, and to rest at the goal, with the same perceptual τ information as before and accounting for the same decelerative kinematics as before. Here, we test the theory against data from high-speed video of a hummingbird flying to its flower feeder. We find that the theory accounts for 97% of the variance in the data, and thus supports it.
Frontiers in Psychology
We propose Rhythmic Relating for autism: a system of supports for friends, therapists, parents, a... more We propose Rhythmic Relating for autism: a system of supports for friends, therapists, parents, and educators; a system which aims to augment bidirectional communication and complement existing therapeutic approaches. We begin by summarizing the developmental significance of social timing and the social-motor-synchrony challenges observed in early autism. Meta-analyses conclude the early primacy of such challenges, yet cite the lack of focused therapies. We identify core relational parameters in support of social-motor-synchrony and systematize these using the communicative musicality constructs: pulse; quality; and narrative. Rhythmic Relating aims to augment the clarity, contiguity, and pulse-beat of spontaneous behavior by recruiting rhythmic supports (cues, accents, turbulence) and relatable vitality; facilitating the predictive flow and just-ahead-in-time planning needed for good-enough social timing. From here, we describe possibilities for playful therapeutic interaction, sma...
Frontiers in Psychology, 2022
We propose Rhythmic Relating for autism: a system of supports for friends, therapists, parents, ... more We propose Rhythmic Relating for autism: a system of supports for friends, therapists, parents, and educators; a system which aims to augment bidirectional communication and complement existing therapeutic approaches. We begin by summarizing the developmental significance of social timing and the social-motor-synchrony challenges observed in early autism. Meta-analyses conclude the early primacy of such challenges, yet cite the lack of focused therapies. We identify core relational parameters in support of social-motor-synchrony and systematize these using the communicative musicality constructs: pulse; quality; and narrative. Rhythmic Relating aims to augment the clarity, contiguity, and pulse-beat of spontaneous behavior by recruiting rhythmic supports (cues, accents, turbulence) and relatable vitality; facilitating the predictive flow and just-ahead-in-time planning needed for good-enough social timing. From here, we describe possibilities for playful therapeutic interaction, small-step co-regulation, and layered sensorimotor integration. Lastly, we include several clinical case examples demonstrating the use of Rhythmic Relating within four different therapeutic approaches (Dance Movement Therapy, Improvisational Music Therapy, Play Therapy, and Musical Interaction Therapy). These clinical case examples are introduced here and several more are included in the Supplementary Material (Examples of Rhythmic Relating in Practice). A suite of pilot intervention studies is proposed to assess the efficacy of combining Rhythmic Relating with different therapeutic approaches in playful work with individuals with autism. Further experimental hypotheses are outlined, designed to clarify the significance of certain key features of the Rhythmic Relating approach.
Developmental science, Nov 19, 2018
Prospective motor control moves the body into the future, from where one is to where one wants to... more Prospective motor control moves the body into the future, from where one is to where one wants to be. It is a hallmark of intentionality. But its origin in development is uncertain. In this study, we tested whether or not the arm movements of newborn infants were prospectively controlled. We measured the spatiotemporal organization of 480 full-term neonatal arm movements and 384 arm movements of prematurely born infants at-risk for neurodevelopmental disorder. We found 75% of healthy term-birth neonatal movements and 68% of prematurely born infant movements conformed to the τ -coupling model of prospective sensorimotor control. Prospective coupling values were significantly reduced in the latter (p = .010, r = .087). In both cases prospectively controlled movements were tightly organized by fixed-duration units with a base duration of 218 ms and additional temporal units of 145 ms. Yet distances remained constant. Thus, we demonstrate for the first time a precise prospective spatiot...
Musicae Scientiae, 1999
My research is aimed to explore how two players improvising jazz can co-ordinate the spectrum of ... more My research is aimed to explore how two players improvising jazz can co-ordinate the spectrum of their mental time patterns in such a way as to communicate their performances, and their self-expression, in a single musical narrative. It takes inspiration from studies of the natural history of human action and communication, and assumes that the ability to enter a shared frame of time is at the heart of our communicative nature. It also assumes that, that while time-sharing skills are certainly refined throughout our lives, they are with us from birth. Acoustic analysis of adult-infant interactions confirms that the social world of the infant is fabricated out of the rhythms of a sensitive innate “communicative musicality” (Malloch et al., 1997), as has been claimed by psychologists who have made micro-analytic studies in recent decades of film and video data of mother-infant play. As we develop in skill and knowledge, the intrinsic vital sense of time remains the basis for elaborate...
A user interface device (105) comprising a camera (110, 205) that captures an image of a user'... more A user interface device (105) comprising a camera (110, 205) that captures an image of a user's (115) face and fingers (125) and a processor (210, 230) that determines the spatial location of the user's (115) farcical features (120) and fingers (125) using the captured image, in which the processor (210, 230) further determines where on a screen (130) of the user interface device (105) the user (115) is viewing and in which the processor (210, 230) monitors the user's (115) facial features (120) and fingers (125) for indications of manipulation of on-screen content of the user interface device (105).
This chapter discusses Tau
ISBS-Conference …, 2008
WII, as accelerometer was used to study push-off phase in breaststroke swim turn. The acceleromet... more WII, as accelerometer was used to study push-off phase in breaststroke swim turn. The accelerometer could not be used directly into the water; therefore necessary modifications had to be done in order to use it in water. The results have been compared with the results of Qualisys ...
Music and gesture2. Aldershot, UK: …, 2009
My research is aimed to explore how two players improvising jazz can co-ordinate the spectrum of ... more My research is aimed to explore how two players improvising jazz can co-ordinate the spectrum of their mental time patterns in such a way as to communicate their performances, and their self-expression, in a single musical narrative. It takes inspiration from studiesof the natural history of human action and communication, and assumes that the ability to enter a shared frame of time is at the heart of our communicative nature. It also assumes that, that while time-sharing skills are certainly refined throughout our lives, they are with us from birth. Acoustic analysis of adult-infant interactions confirms that the socialworld of the infant is fabricated out of the rhythms of a sensitive innate "communicative musicality " (Malloch et al., 1997), as has been claimed by psychologists who have made micro-analytic studies in recent decades of film and video data of mother-infant play. As we develop in skill and knowledge. the intrinsic vital sense of time remains the basis for ...
A theory of action control (General Tau Theory) is applied to analyzing normal and abnormal movem... more A theory of action control (General Tau Theory) is applied to analyzing normal and abnormal movements in PD; and to designing and testing the efficacy of a sonic aid for PD. A central aspect of the theory, which is supported by experimental evidence across a variety of actions and species, is that the trajectories of competent skilled actions follow a particular temporal pattern, which is described by the mathematical function, tauG. Since tauG-control of actions can be largely deficient in PD, we designed a device that generates whoop-like sounds, where the fundamental frequency of the sound follows the tauG pattern. Our hypothesis was that by listening to these sounds the nervous system of someone with PD might be helped subsequently to self-generate tauG patterns in their nervous system, which might facilitate movement control in different situations. Five adults with PD, and five age-matched controls, took part in the study. They each listened to the sounds under two conditions:...
Music and Gesture II, 2011
Developmental Science, 2018
Prospective motor control moves the body into the future, from where one is to where one wants to... more Prospective motor control moves the body into the future, from where one is to where one wants to be. It is a hallmark of intentionality. But its origin in development is uncertain. In this study, we tested whether or not the arm movements of newborn infants were prospectively controlled. We measured the spatiotemporal organisation of 480 neonatal arm movements and 384 arm movements of infants prematurely born at-risk for neurodevelopmental disorder. We found 75% of healthy term-birth neonatal movements and 68% of prematurely-born infant movements conformed to the G-coupling model of prospective sensorimotor control. Prospective coupling values were significantly reduced in the latter (p = .010, r = .087). In both cases prospectively controlled movements were tightly organised by fixed-duration units with a base duration of 218 ms and additional temporal units of 145 ms. Yet distances remained constant. Thus, we demonstrate for the first time a precise prospective spatiotemporal organisation of neonatal arm movements and demonstrate at-risk infants exhibit reduced sensorimotor control. Prospective motor control is a hallmark of primary sensorimotor intentionality and gives a strong embodied foundation to conscious motor agency.
Nordic Journal of Music Therapy, 1998
Experimental Brain Research, Jun 17, 2008
The sounds in expressive musical performance, and the movements that produce them, offer insight ... more The sounds in expressive musical performance, and the movements that produce them, offer insight into temporal patterns in the brain that generate expression. To gain understanding of these brain patterns, we analyzed two types of transient sounds, and the movements that produced them, during a vocal duet and a bass solo. The transient sounds studied were inter-tone f 0 (t)-glides (the continuous change in fundamental frequency, f 0 (t), when gliding from one tone to the next), and attack intensityglides (the continuous rise in sound intensity when attacking, or initiating, a tone). The temporal patterns of the inter-tone f 0 (t)-glides and attack intensity-glides, and of the movements producing them, all conformed to the mathematical function, s G (t) (called tauG), predicted by General Tau Theory, and assumed to be generated in the brain. The values of the parameters of the s G (t) function were modulated by the performers when they modulated musical expression. Thus the s G (t) function appears to be a fundamental of brain activity entailed in the generation of expressive temporal patterns of movement and sound.
Ashgate eBooks, 2011
Chapter describing the psychobiology of human gesture focusing on form, rhythm, and melody in inf... more Chapter describing the psychobiology of human gesture focusing on form, rhythm, and melody in infants’ movements of narration.
Perception, 2010
Many human and animal tasks are thought to be controlled with the τ informational variable. It is... more Many human and animal tasks are thought to be controlled with the τ informational variable. It is widely accepted that controlling the rate of change of τ (tau) during decelerative tasks, such as when braking or landing, is one common perceptual control strategy. However, many tasks require accelerating before decelerating to a goal, such as reaching. An advancement of τ theory shows how a single action formula may be used to control the full action unit from initiation to peak velocity, and to rest at the goal, with the same perceptual τ information as before and accounting for the same decelerative kinematics as before. Here, we test the theory against data from high-speed video of a hummingbird flying to its flower feeder. We find that the theory accounts for 97% of the variance in the data, and thus supports it.
Frontiers in Psychology
We propose Rhythmic Relating for autism: a system of supports for friends, therapists, parents, a... more We propose Rhythmic Relating for autism: a system of supports for friends, therapists, parents, and educators; a system which aims to augment bidirectional communication and complement existing therapeutic approaches. We begin by summarizing the developmental significance of social timing and the social-motor-synchrony challenges observed in early autism. Meta-analyses conclude the early primacy of such challenges, yet cite the lack of focused therapies. We identify core relational parameters in support of social-motor-synchrony and systematize these using the communicative musicality constructs: pulse; quality; and narrative. Rhythmic Relating aims to augment the clarity, contiguity, and pulse-beat of spontaneous behavior by recruiting rhythmic supports (cues, accents, turbulence) and relatable vitality; facilitating the predictive flow and just-ahead-in-time planning needed for good-enough social timing. From here, we describe possibilities for playful therapeutic interaction, sma...
Frontiers in Psychology, 2022
We propose Rhythmic Relating for autism: a system of supports for friends, therapists, parents, ... more We propose Rhythmic Relating for autism: a system of supports for friends, therapists, parents, and educators; a system which aims to augment bidirectional communication and complement existing therapeutic approaches. We begin by summarizing the developmental significance of social timing and the social-motor-synchrony challenges observed in early autism. Meta-analyses conclude the early primacy of such challenges, yet cite the lack of focused therapies. We identify core relational parameters in support of social-motor-synchrony and systematize these using the communicative musicality constructs: pulse; quality; and narrative. Rhythmic Relating aims to augment the clarity, contiguity, and pulse-beat of spontaneous behavior by recruiting rhythmic supports (cues, accents, turbulence) and relatable vitality; facilitating the predictive flow and just-ahead-in-time planning needed for good-enough social timing. From here, we describe possibilities for playful therapeutic interaction, small-step co-regulation, and layered sensorimotor integration. Lastly, we include several clinical case examples demonstrating the use of Rhythmic Relating within four different therapeutic approaches (Dance Movement Therapy, Improvisational Music Therapy, Play Therapy, and Musical Interaction Therapy). These clinical case examples are introduced here and several more are included in the Supplementary Material (Examples of Rhythmic Relating in Practice). A suite of pilot intervention studies is proposed to assess the efficacy of combining Rhythmic Relating with different therapeutic approaches in playful work with individuals with autism. Further experimental hypotheses are outlined, designed to clarify the significance of certain key features of the Rhythmic Relating approach.
Developmental science, Nov 19, 2018
Prospective motor control moves the body into the future, from where one is to where one wants to... more Prospective motor control moves the body into the future, from where one is to where one wants to be. It is a hallmark of intentionality. But its origin in development is uncertain. In this study, we tested whether or not the arm movements of newborn infants were prospectively controlled. We measured the spatiotemporal organization of 480 full-term neonatal arm movements and 384 arm movements of prematurely born infants at-risk for neurodevelopmental disorder. We found 75% of healthy term-birth neonatal movements and 68% of prematurely born infant movements conformed to the τ -coupling model of prospective sensorimotor control. Prospective coupling values were significantly reduced in the latter (p = .010, r = .087). In both cases prospectively controlled movements were tightly organized by fixed-duration units with a base duration of 218 ms and additional temporal units of 145 ms. Yet distances remained constant. Thus, we demonstrate for the first time a precise prospective spatiot...
Musicae Scientiae, 1999
My research is aimed to explore how two players improvising jazz can co-ordinate the spectrum of ... more My research is aimed to explore how two players improvising jazz can co-ordinate the spectrum of their mental time patterns in such a way as to communicate their performances, and their self-expression, in a single musical narrative. It takes inspiration from studies of the natural history of human action and communication, and assumes that the ability to enter a shared frame of time is at the heart of our communicative nature. It also assumes that, that while time-sharing skills are certainly refined throughout our lives, they are with us from birth. Acoustic analysis of adult-infant interactions confirms that the social world of the infant is fabricated out of the rhythms of a sensitive innate “communicative musicality” (Malloch et al., 1997), as has been claimed by psychologists who have made micro-analytic studies in recent decades of film and video data of mother-infant play. As we develop in skill and knowledge, the intrinsic vital sense of time remains the basis for elaborate...
A user interface device (105) comprising a camera (110, 205) that captures an image of a user'... more A user interface device (105) comprising a camera (110, 205) that captures an image of a user's (115) face and fingers (125) and a processor (210, 230) that determines the spatial location of the user's (115) farcical features (120) and fingers (125) using the captured image, in which the processor (210, 230) further determines where on a screen (130) of the user interface device (105) the user (115) is viewing and in which the processor (210, 230) monitors the user's (115) facial features (120) and fingers (125) for indications of manipulation of on-screen content of the user interface device (105).
This chapter discusses Tau
ISBS-Conference …, 2008
WII, as accelerometer was used to study push-off phase in breaststroke swim turn. The acceleromet... more WII, as accelerometer was used to study push-off phase in breaststroke swim turn. The accelerometer could not be used directly into the water; therefore necessary modifications had to be done in order to use it in water. The results have been compared with the results of Qualisys ...
Music and gesture2. Aldershot, UK: …, 2009
My research is aimed to explore how two players improvising jazz can co-ordinate the spectrum of ... more My research is aimed to explore how two players improvising jazz can co-ordinate the spectrum of their mental time patterns in such a way as to communicate their performances, and their self-expression, in a single musical narrative. It takes inspiration from studiesof the natural history of human action and communication, and assumes that the ability to enter a shared frame of time is at the heart of our communicative nature. It also assumes that, that while time-sharing skills are certainly refined throughout our lives, they are with us from birth. Acoustic analysis of adult-infant interactions confirms that the socialworld of the infant is fabricated out of the rhythms of a sensitive innate "communicative musicality " (Malloch et al., 1997), as has been claimed by psychologists who have made micro-analytic studies in recent decades of film and video data of mother-infant play. As we develop in skill and knowledge. the intrinsic vital sense of time remains the basis for ...
A theory of action control (General Tau Theory) is applied to analyzing normal and abnormal movem... more A theory of action control (General Tau Theory) is applied to analyzing normal and abnormal movements in PD; and to designing and testing the efficacy of a sonic aid for PD. A central aspect of the theory, which is supported by experimental evidence across a variety of actions and species, is that the trajectories of competent skilled actions follow a particular temporal pattern, which is described by the mathematical function, tauG. Since tauG-control of actions can be largely deficient in PD, we designed a device that generates whoop-like sounds, where the fundamental frequency of the sound follows the tauG pattern. Our hypothesis was that by listening to these sounds the nervous system of someone with PD might be helped subsequently to self-generate tauG patterns in their nervous system, which might facilitate movement control in different situations. Five adults with PD, and five age-matched controls, took part in the study. They each listened to the sounds under two conditions:...
Music and Gesture II, 2011
Developmental Science, 2018
Prospective motor control moves the body into the future, from where one is to where one wants to... more Prospective motor control moves the body into the future, from where one is to where one wants to be. It is a hallmark of intentionality. But its origin in development is uncertain. In this study, we tested whether or not the arm movements of newborn infants were prospectively controlled. We measured the spatiotemporal organisation of 480 neonatal arm movements and 384 arm movements of infants prematurely born at-risk for neurodevelopmental disorder. We found 75% of healthy term-birth neonatal movements and 68% of prematurely-born infant movements conformed to the G-coupling model of prospective sensorimotor control. Prospective coupling values were significantly reduced in the latter (p = .010, r = .087). In both cases prospectively controlled movements were tightly organised by fixed-duration units with a base duration of 218 ms and additional temporal units of 145 ms. Yet distances remained constant. Thus, we demonstrate for the first time a precise prospective spatiotemporal organisation of neonatal arm movements and demonstrate at-risk infants exhibit reduced sensorimotor control. Prospective motor control is a hallmark of primary sensorimotor intentionality and gives a strong embodied foundation to conscious motor agency.