The Neuroscience of Speech, Language & Music | Dr. Erich Jarvis

About this video

Dr. Erich Jarvis, a professor at Rockefeller University, joins Huberman to discuss the neuroscience of speech, language and music, based on his laboratory’s work on vocal learning, speech disorders and the relationship between language, music and movement, especially dance. His research spans genomics in vocal-learning species such as songbirds and parrots through to the neural circuits for learning and producing sounds and coordinated movements, and up to cognition. Huberman highlights a striking point from Dr. Jarvis: as we read, we generate very low-level motor activity in the throat, effectively speaking the words below the level of audible sound. In the middle excerpt Dr. Jarvis recounts moving from dance into brain research and explains the discovery that only vocal-learning species can learn to dance, and that vocal-learning pathways in birds and humans are embedded within circuits controlling learned movement, supporting a motor theory of vocal learning origin.

Key takeaways

• Dr. Jarvis studies vocal learning in birds and humans as a model for language.
• Huberman highlights Dr. Jarvis’s finding that reading produces low-level throat motor activity.
• Dr. Jarvis explains only vocal-learning species can learn to dance.
• Dr. Jarvis describes vocal-learning pathways as embedded in movement-learning circuits.
• Huberman frames the episode as relevant to stutter, multilingual learning and communication.

Episode details: published August 29, 2022 · 313.6K views · 1:54:20 long. Summary written by Self Growth Videos from the episode itself. The science and protocols described are Andrew Huberman’s, presented for education — not medical advice. Consult a qualified professional before changing your own health practices.

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