Science Helps Us "Find Better Solutions"
In 1987-1990 RTI, M White, UCSF (i.e., Pat Leake), and scientists from other
labs teamed-up to
obtain funding to better understand the basic neurophysiology,
psychophysics, and anatomy of the deaf auditory system. M White
authored the sections of the program project grant related to neural
and psychophysical modeling of the effects of
stochastic neural responses. All 5 projects in the proposal were eventually funded in
1990 after 2 submissions and a Site Visit. -- $4,500,000 was requested over 5 years;
however, it was initially funded for only 4 years.
For the associated excerpts and complete project documents, follow the links at
the bottom of this page. This planning and proposal-writing significantly
improved RTI's understanding and appreciation that high-pulse-rate electrical
stimulation would not necessarily cause "neurons to be driven to 'anywhere near' saturation
spike rates." As previously noted, this hard-won understanding had a
profound impact on which processors and parameter values were tested by RTI.