A behavioral study on electrical stimulation of the cochlea and central auditory pathways of the cat

Abstract

This behavioral study on cats has shown stimulus generalization for acoustic to electrical stimulation of the cochlea at frequencies from 100 to 8,000 pulse/sec. Response thresholds were determined for electrical stimulation of the apical and basal turns of the cochlea. The results show a linear increase in response threshold with rate of electrical stimulation up to a frequency of 2,000 pulse/sec. The response threshold was also lower for electrical stimulation of the basal rather than the apical electrode. Difference limen measurements for electrical stimulation of the cochlea were similar to those obtained for acoustic stimuli at 100 and 200 Hz, but were greater at higher rates of stimulation. The difference limen was also lower for electrical stimulation of the apical rather than the basal electrode. The results of this study show that electrical stimulation of the cochlea may produce pitch sensation for rates of stimulation up to 200 pulse/sec. The results also emphasize the importance of the volley theory in the coding of low frequencies.