A neural oscillator model of auditory attention

Abstract

A model of auditory scene analysis is proposed, which incorporates an attentional mechanism and is implemented using a network of neural oscillators. The core of the model is a two-layer neural oscillator network which performs stream segregation and selection on the basis of oscillatory correlation. A stream is represented by a sychronised oscillator population, whereas different streams are represented by desynchronised oscillator populations. The output of the model is an ‘attentional stream’ describing which parts of the auditory scene are in the attentional foreground. The model simulates a number of perceptual phenomena including two tone streaming and the capture of a tone from a harmonic complex.