Introduction

Abstract

There can be little doubt that a highly diversified auditory system is a primary factor in the development of the species. The complexity of audible communication is perhaps the most discernible way in which humans excel over other animals, spoken language being possibly the most useful accomplishment in the evolution of modern man. Through the auditory channel we also receive a great deal of information about relevant happenings in the environment, but whether the human system is more versatile than other forms in interpreting non-speech sound is not so easily verified.