The inside of the sound-proof room to study the neural circuits of the auditroy nerve and brain of fish. Neurophysiological experiments on goldfish and other species are carried out using two stimulus and control systems and two, adjacent sound attenuating booths. The array processor communicates to peripheral TDT modules via fiber-optic links. All signals used are digitally synthesized. Underwater sound is measured using calibrated hydrophones.
Neurophysiological testing takes place in two different setups.
The tank rests on vibration-isolated platforms inside an Industrial Acoustics Corporation audiometric booth. Experiments carried out in this setup record single-cell activity in the auditory nerve or brain for experiments requiring sound pressure simulation where the focus is on the neural representation of stimulus features such as intensity, frequency, spectral shape, and temporal pattern. The second setup is specially designed to study neural responses to directional accelerations of the fish's body. This facility is used in Chicago during the academic year and at the Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, MA during the summer months. Anesthetized goldfish or toadfish are secured in a rigid aluminum dish that is accelerated over predetermined pathways using five electrodynamic miniskakers.