NeuroLML @ The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Neurocognition of Language, Music and Learning Lab

External grants

Bilingualism effects on cognitive skills in preschool children with Autism Spectrum Disorder
  1. Source: Faculty Development Scheme (No. UGC/FDS16/H37/24), Research Grants Council, Hong Kong
  2. Amount: HK$768,916
  3. Duration: 2025 – 2026
  4. PI: Haoyan Ge (Co-I: Caicai Zhang)

Movement and Language: an integrated approach to support children with neurodevelopmental disorders
  1. Source: Team-based Research Fund, Hong Kong Metropolitan University
  2. Amount: HK$921,676
  3. Duration: Aug 2024 – Jul 2026
  4. PI: Capio Catherine M. (Co-I: Caicai Zhang, Co-PI: Haoyan Ge)

The effects of auditory cueing during sleep on generalized phonetic learning: The case of non-native lexical tone learning
  1. Source: General Research Fund (No. 15601024), Research Grants Council, Hong Kong
  2. Amount: HK$860,380
  3. Duration: Jan 2025 – Dec 2027
  4. PI: Caicai Zhang

Pitch-based and Rhythm-based Music Training Programs for Improving Phonological and Reading Abilities in Cantonese ESL Kindergarteners: A Randomized Controlled Trial
  1. Source: General Research Fund (No. 17600124), Research Grants Council, Hong Kong
  2. Amount: HK$767,085
  3. Duration: 2025 – 2027
  4. PI: Tsun Man William Choi (Co-I: Caicai Zhang)

The neurocognitive mechanisms of memory consolidation during different sleep stages [不同睡眠阶段记忆巩固的认知神经机制研究]
  1. Source: Natural Science Foundation (General Program) [省自然科学基金面上项目] (No. 2024A1515012667), Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation [广东省基础与应用基础研究基金委员会]
  2. Amount: ¥150,000
  3. Duration: Jan 2024 – Dec 2026
  4. PI: Jing Liu (Co-I: Caicai Zhang)

The efficacy of explicit vs. implicit intervention procedures for Cantonese children with Developmental Language Disorder: A randomized controlled trial
  1. Source: Health and Medical Research Fund, Seed Grant (No. 20211061), Food and Health Bureau, Hong Kong
  2. Amount: HK$499,960
  3. Duration: Jun 2023 – May 2025
  4. PA: Caicai Zhang

Is the mismatch negativity really sensitive to abstract linguistic representations?
  1. Source: General Research Fund (No. 15605620), Research Grants Council, Hong Kong
  2. Amount: HK$748,000
  3. Duration: Jan 2021 – Dec 2023
  4. PI: Caicai Zhang (former PI: Stephen Politzer-Ahles)

Neurocognitive markers for typical language development and language disorders in children: A longitudinal study based on long-term memory, sleep and brain development [儿童语言发展与语言障碍的神经认知标记：一项基于长期记忆、睡眠与脑神经的纵向研究]
  1. Source: MOST “Sci-Tech Innovation 2030 – Brain Science and Brain-like Research Major Project” Young Scientist Scheme [科技创新2030-脑科学与类脑研究重大项目青年科学家项目] (No. 2022ZD0208400), Ministry of Science and Technology
  2. Amount: ¥5,000,000
  3. Duration: Aug 2022 – Jul 2027
  4. PI: Caicai Zhang

Conversational Brains (COBRA)
  1. Source: Horizon 2020 European Commission (No. P0032309)
  2. Amount: HK$509,670
  3. Duration: 2020 – 2024
  4. PI: Chu-Ren Huang (Co-I: Caicai Zhang)

Neural mechanisms for phonological alternation with high and low productivity – a case study on tone sandhi
  1. Source: U. S. National Science Foundation (No. BCS-1826547)
  2. Amount: US$439,770 (Sub-contract to PolyU: HK$892,378)
  3. Duration: Sep 2018 – Feb 2023
  4. PI: Jie Zhang (Co-PI: Caicai Zhang)

The Effect of Overnight Consolidation on the Generalization Across Talkers: A Case Study on Cantonese Tones
  1. Source: Language Learning Early Career Research Grant (No. P0014062), University of Utah
  2. Amount: US$78,441
  3. Duration: May 2019 – Aug 2020
  4. PI: Zhen Qin (Co-I: Caicai Zhang)

Effect of musical disorder on the neural processing of lexical tone
  1. Source: Early Career Scheme (No. 25603916), Research Grants Council, Hong Kong
  2. Amount: HK$817,590
  3. Duration: Jan 2017 – Jun 2020
  4. PI: Caicai Zhang

Brain-coupling impairment and compensation mechanism in social interaction disorders [社交障碍的脑间耦合损伤和补偿机制研究]
  1. Source: Shenzhen Science and Technology Innovation Commission Fundamental Research Program [深圳市科创委基础研究学科布局项目] (No. JCYJ20170413161611534)
  2. Amount: ¥2,000,000
  3. Duration: 2017 – 2020
  4. PI: Nan Yan (Co-I: Caicai Zhang)

Influence of language on speech impairments in Parkinson’s Disease: Adding Cantonese to the FRALUSOPARK project
  1. Source: PROCORE-France/Hong Kong Joint Research Scheme Application for Travel Grants (No. F-PolyU507/16)
  2. Amount: HK$30,600
  3. Duration: 2017 – 2018
  4. PI: Wing-Shan Angel Chan, Serge Pinto (Co-I: Caicai Zhang)

Production and perception of lexical tone and music in Cantonese-speaking amusics
  1. Source: National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 11504400)
  2. Amount: ¥240,000
  3. Duration: 2016 – 2018
  4. PI: Caicai Zhang

Neural mechanism of extrinsic normalization in vowel perception
  1. Source: General Research Fund (No. 14408914), Research Grants Council, Hong Kong
  2. Amount: HK$848,559
  3. Duration: 2014 – 2018
  4. PI: Gang Peng (Co-I: Caicai Zhang)

Internal Grants

Effects of congenital amusia on afflicted individuals’ statistical learning of music and speech
  1. Source: Departmental General Research Fund (No. A0052593), The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
  2. Amount: HK$400,000
  3. Duration: Sep 2024 – Dec 2025
  4. PI: Caicai Zhang (Co-I: Jiaqiang Zhu)

An investigation of the functional neuroanatomy of lexical tone encoding in overt Mandarin word production with functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS)
  1. Source: Departmental General Research Fund (No. P0046373), The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
  2. Amount: HK$250,000
  3. Duration: Sep 2023 – Aug 2025
  4. PI: Caicai Zhang

Emotion Recognition Training based on an integration of Robot and AR technology in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder
  1. Source: Inter-Faculty Collaboration Scheme for FH, FHSS and FENG (No. P0043034), The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
  2. Amount: HK$500,000
  3. Duration: Jan 2023 – Dec 2024
  4. PI: Si Chen (Co-I: Caicai Zhang)

The Statistical Learning Mechanism across Music and Speech in Congenital Amusics
  1. Source: Postdoc Fellowship (No. P0040849), The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
  2. Amount: HK$730,800
  3. Duration: 2022 – 2024
  4. PI: Caicai Zhang

The Mismatch Negativity for abstract linguistic contrasts
  1. Source: Undergraduate Research and Innovation Scheme (URIS), The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
  2. Amount: HK$30,000
  3. Duration: 2021 – 2023
  4. PI: Caicai Zhang (former PI: Stephen Politzer-Ahles)

The effect of auditory cuing during sleep on Cantonese tone-word learning in ethnic minority children: A pilot study
  1. Source: Faculty Reserve, Pilot study for GRF (No. P0038894), The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
  2. Amount: HK$100,000
  3. Duration: Jan 2022 – Dec 2022
  4. PI: Caicai Zhang

The neurocognition of typical and atypical language development: Towards developing early biomarkers
  1. Source: Project of Strategic Importance (No. P0032004), The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
  2. Amount: HK$2,000,000
  3. Duration: Sep 2020 – Aug 2023
  4. PI: Caicai Zhang

Online Processing of Contextual Tonal Variants during Speech Production in Teochew (Chaozhou Min)
  1. Source: Postdoc Fellowship (No. P0033654), The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
  2. Amount: HK$698,040
  3. Duration: 2020 – 2022
  4. PI: Caicai Zhang

Categorical perception of the speech sounds in adults who stutter
  1. Source: Departmental General Research Funds (No. P0014009), The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
  2. Amount: HK$100,000
  3. Duration: May 2019 – Apr 2020
  4. PI: Mehdi Bakhtiar (Co-I: Caicai Zhang)

Impact of acquiring Jyutping on speech processing in Cantonese readers: A combined behavioral and event-related study
  1. Source: Departmental General Research Funds (International Collaboration) (No. P0008738), The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
  2. Amount: HK$199,985
  3. Duration: Sep 2018 – Nov 2020
  4. PI: Caicai Zhang

A pilot study on the neural mechanisms of the encoding of tone sandhi with high vs. low productivity in Chinese dialects
  1. Source: Fund for GRF Project Rated 3.5 (CRG) (No. P0009687), The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
  2. Amount: HK$105,000
  3. Duration: Jan 2018 – Apr 2020
  4. PI: Caicai Zhang

Correlation of congenital amusia and tone merger in Hong Kong Cantonese: An investigation from the individual variation perspective
  1. Source: Departmental General Research Funds (Cross-institutional collaboration) (No. P0001867), The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
  2. Amount: HK$122,000
  3. Duration: 2017 – 2018
  4. PI: Caicai Zhang

Lexical tone and musical tone: Cross-domain influence of musical disorder on the neural processing of lexical tone
  1. Source: University’s Start-up Fund for New Recruits (No. P0000424), The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
  2. Amount: HK$499,995
  3. Duration: 2016 – 2018
  4. PI: Caicai Zhang

Statistical modeling of the phonologization of phonetic effects: A cross-linguistic study
  1. Source: Dean’s Reserve fund for International Research Collaboration (No. P0009715), The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
  2. Amount: HK$500,000
  3. Duration: Apr 2016 – Dec 2018
  4. PI: Si Chen (Co-I: Caicai Zhang)

Transform the classroom: teaching language sciences and cognitive neuroscience in game-based collaborative learning environment
  1. Source: CBS Learning & Teaching grant, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
  2. Amount: HK$99,996
  3. Duration: 2016 – 2017
  4. PI: Caicai Zhang

Teaching the subjects of language and the brain using active learning and blended learning methods
  1. Source: CBS Learning & Teaching grant, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
  2. Amount: HK$99,960
  3. Duration: 2015 – 2016
  4. PI: Caicai Zhang