Preliminary study of discrimination of human vocal commands in walrus (Odobenus rosmarus divergens)

Walruses seem to use various acoustic signals in social context. So, the auditory faculty is seems to be important for walruses. Can walruses understand another animals' vocal information using auditory sense? This study tested whether a male walrus could discriminate human vocal words and perform different actions corresponding to each one under various conditions. The subject, a male walrus (Odobenus rosmarus) named Pou, was set on the ground, and the experimenter spoke one of the ten words to the subject under the following conditions; (1) The experimenter stood close to the subject and spoke each vocal stimulus wearing a black cloak and goggles so that the experimenter's eye and body movements would not influence the subject's behavior, (2) A wooden board was placed between the experimenter and the subject so that the subject could not see the experimenter, (3) A wooden board was placed between the experimenter and the subject so that the subject could not to see the experimenter, and the experimenter uttered each vocal stimulus through an audio speaker. Under each condition, when the subject performed the correct action corresponding to the vocal stimulus, he was rewarded with a piece of fish. As a result, the subject responded correctly to almost all the human vocal stimuli in every condition, including when the speaker was not visible. This means that he was indeed responding to the vocal words and not the experimenter's cues. This study demonstrated that walruses can hear and identify human vocal words using their auditory sense and can form correspondence between vocal words and their meanings

Vocal Imitation of Human Speech, Synthetic Sounds and Beluga Sounds, by a Beluga (Delphinapterus leucas)

We tested the ability of a beluga (Delphinapterus leucas) to imitate sounds presented to it. During the training session, we presented the subject three recorded sounds that were emitted by the subject, and the subject was trained to imitate them. The subject learned to correctly imitate the sounds. During the test session, two novel computer-generated artificial sounds were presented through an audio speaker. In addition, nine arbitrary vocal sounds produced by the experimenter were presented to the subject, and the subject was required to imitate them. Seven persons, who were not involved in the experiment, were presented the sample sounds and imitated calls; subsequently, they judged whether both sounds were similar to each other. In addition, sound spectrums of the sample sounds and imitated calls were analyzed. As a result, some components of the sound spectrums were similar, and most of imitated calls possess spectral features similar to the sample sounds. These results demonstrated that the beluga was able to correctly imitate novel sounds and spontaneously displayed aptitude for imitation

Vocal Imitation of Human Speech, Synthetic Sounds and Beluga Sounds, by a Beluga (Delphinapterus leucas)

We tested the ability of a beluga (Delphinapterus leucas) to imitate sounds presented to it. During the training session, we presented the subject three recorded sounds that were emitted by the subject, and the subject was trained to imitate them. The subject learned to correctly imitate the sounds. During the test session, two novel computer-generated artificial sounds were presented through an audio speaker. In addition, nine arbitrary vocal sounds produced by the experimenter were presented to the subject, and the subject was required to imitate them. Seven persons, who were not involved in the experiment, were presented the sample sounds and imitated calls; subsequently, they judged whether both sounds were similar to each other. In addition, sound spectrums of the sample sounds and imitated calls were analyzed. As a result, some components of the sound spectrums were similar, and most of imitated calls possess spectral features similar to the sample sounds. These results demonstrated that the beluga was able to correctly imitate novel sounds and spontaneously displayed aptitude for imitation

Do belugas send sound cues? -Experimental verification of blindfolded imitation among beluga-

Dolphins are able to successfully coordinate their behavior using audio signals. Therefore, the current study tested whether or not belugas can use sound to exchange information in a cooperative task and verified the mechanisms of the transmission of information during trials. The subjects are two male belugas, Nack and Duke. Nack was trained to rotate its body when the experimenter turns a hand in a circular motion (rotation cue) or to take a vertical position on the spot of the pool when the experimenter turned on a light toward the subject (headstand cue). Duke was required to do the same behavior as Nack but was blindfolded. During the test trials, the experimenter presented both cues toward Nack in random order. The result indicated that Nack responded correctly to both cues, and Duke behaved similarly to Nack. Moreover, Nack emitted different sounds in response to the cues, which indicates that Nack spontaneously transmitted information to Duke by emitting sounds, which led Duke to provide correct responses. Although Duke displayed the same behaviors as Nack did despite the lack of training to do so, Duke’s performance was due to learning by hearing sounds instead of training

Divergent Synthesis of Polymethoxylated 4‑Aryl-2-quinolones

Polymethoxylated 4-aryl-2-quinolones were synthesized from the corresponding (<i>o</i>-amino­phenyl)­propiolates via Cu-catalyzed hydroarylation and subsequent deprotection/lactam formation. Selective iodination of the C3 position of the product followed by coupling reactions of the resulting 3-iodinated 4-aryl-2-quinolone afforded 3-substituted-4-aryl-2-quinolones. Moreover, the <i>N</i>-benzyl protecting group was successfully replaced with other polyoxygenated benzyl groups