Sound travels through a complex biological pathway to reach the brain. Although it is well-established how damage to the ear and other peripheral auditory structures affect hearing, it is less clear how neural changes resulting from aging or from conditions such as Parkinson’s disease or anxiety disorders influence auditory perception. Prof. DiNino studies the relationship between biological processing of sound and one’s ability to hear. In particular, she focuses on processes that support perception of speech, such as one’s ability to attend to a certain voice or perceive various acoustic cues.

• DiNino, M., Crowell, J., Kloiber, I., Polonenko, M.J. (2025). The relationship between auditory brainstem responses, cognitive ability, and speech-in-noise perception among young adults with normal hearing thresholds. Hearing Research, 460, 109243. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heares.2025.109243.
• DiNino, M. (2024). Age and masking effects on acoustic cues for vowel categorization. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America – Express Letters, 4, 006001. doi: https://doi.org/10.1121/10.0026371.
• Kloiber, I. & DiNino, M. (2024). Auditory neural processing and cognitive predictors of speech-in-noise understanding. Neuroscience 2024, the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience, Chicago, IL. LBA004.050/LBA49.
• Harden, T. & DiNino, M., (2024). Extended high-frequency hearing thresholds and self-reported listing abilities. American Academy of Audiology annual conference. Atlanta, GA. Research Session, poster #124.
• Polonenko, M., DiNino, M., Maddox, R. (2023). Subcortical measures of multi-talker speech processing. 185^th Meeting of the Acoustical Society of America. Sydney, Australia. 5aPP1.
• DiNino, M., Holt, L.L., Shinn-Cunningham, B.G. (2022). Cutting through the noise: Noise-induced cochlear synaptopathy and individual differences in speech understanding among listeners with normal audiograms. Ear and Hearing, 43(1), 9-22. doi: https://doi.org/10.1097/AUD.0000000000001147.

• CDS 387: Psychoacoustic Science
• CDS 503: Audiology Research Methods
• CDS 428/528: Neural Basis of Communication