Sonic Exploration of Physiological Control

Supervisor: Dr Tony Stockman

Research group(s): Centre for Digital Music, Cognitive Science

Physiological signals such as Heart Rate Variability (HRV), Finger Capillary Blood Flow (FCBF) and Respiration (r) provide a means of examining the health and reactivity of our bodily control mechanisms, such as the influence of R on HRV. Traditionally, analysis of these systems has used visualisations of individual signals or signals in combination. This project will explore what data sonification methods can bring to the analysis of physiological control systems, either in compliment to visual analysis or on its own. The specific focus of any one PhD project may be as narrow as the detailed investigation of variations in one signal, such as HRV, in response to controlled forcing frequency inputs, such as controlled breathing rates, or may focus on a specific control mechanism involving multiple signals, such as the baroreflex control of the cardiovascular system, that is relevant to the analysis and modelling of cardiovascular oscillations and regulation.