Stockton, Haley2024-11-052024-11-052024-05-19https://repository.tcu.edu/handle/116099117/66780The philosophical concept of free will is often highly debated. Benjamin Libet, an academic in experimental philosophy, discovered through recordings of cerebral activity that there is neural activity that correlates with a decision prior to our conscious declaration of that decision (Libet et al., 1983). In songbirds, previous studies have begun to show an increase in neuronal and respiratory activity in the seconds prior to song production, indicating preparatory action before performing this learned behavior (Daliparthi et al., 2019). In this study, the preparation for the learned motor behavior (song production) is compared against an unlearned control (defecation) in zebra finches. Electromyography (EMG) of respiratory muscles is employed as an additional technique to provide more detailed exploration of preparatory motor activity compared to previous studies. Our analysis of EMG recordings focused on the six expirations that occur prior to song production, because previous research has shown that there is an acceleration of the respiratory rhythm occurring in the last three respiratory cycles before song (Méndez, 2022). By measuring the electrical activity in the muscle, we hope to provide a more detailed understanding of how birds prepare for their upcoming song. Overall, this study aims to explore motor responses to determine whether expiratory muscular activation is preparatory for and predictive of an upcoming behavioral event. The larger goal of this study is to be able to, read a bird's mind by establishing physiological models for predicting behavior before the decision has occurred.