Laura Dilley

Laura Dilley is an Adjunct Associate Professor in the Department of Communicative Sciences and Disorders at Michigan State University. She holds a Ph.D. in Speech and Hearing Biosciences and Technology from MIT and Harvard (2005) and a B.S. in Brain and Cognitive Sciences from MIT (1997). Her research focuses on phonetics, prosody, and speech processing, with significant work on cochlear implants, infant-directed speech, and the cognitive mechanisms of spoken language understanding.

• Education:
  • B.S., Brain and Cognitive Sciences, MIT (1997)
  • Ph.D., Speech and Hearing Biosciences and Technology, MIT and Harvard (2005)

Her publications span prosodic transcription systems, auditory rhythm discrimination, cochlear implant-related speech processing, and AI applications in clinical practice. Recent work explores generative AI risks and QAnon propaganda as information warfare. Earlier studies examine speech segmentation, perceptual isochrony, and acoustic variability in infant-directed speech.

Laura’s research integrates neuroscience, linguistics, and technology to address challenges in language development and speech intelligibility. She actively investigates the interplay between distal speech rate, prosodic cues, and contextual predictability in spoken communication.