Presentation Details
| Is Grammar Sexy? Studying a preference for structure in Savannah sparrow songs. Kate Swann1, Heather Williams1, Katie Montovan2, Julie Blackwood1. 1Williams College, Williamstown, MA, USA.2Bennington College, Bennington, VT, USA |
Abstract
Savannah sparrow (Passerculus sandwichensis) songs are socially learned and undergo cultural evolution. The song’s middle segment usually consists of 1-3 syllables. In a well-studied population, middle segments follow a power-law distribution. Random copying models can predict a power-law distribution, but cultural transmission can also give rise to such a distribution. We used Bayesian Iterated Learning Models to test two hypotheses: whether Savannah sparrows copy middle segments randomly, or select segments with a regular structure that facilitates learning. In our model, the prior distribution encodes juvenile Savannah sparrows’ biases about how syllables may be combined. The songs they hear generate a posterior distribution. They then sing one of the middle segments from the posterior distribution, which in turn influences the next generation. The ability to predict middle segment patterns and compare them to empirical data allows us to evaluate our hypotheses about song learning.
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No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author.
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