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Hearing is a complex system, the first of the five senses to develop in the fetus. The ear picks up sound vibrations and translates them into electric impulses. The impulses are then transmitted via nerve fibers to the brain where they are read and interpreted. Here’s how it works.
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1. The Outer Ear
Sounds travel from the outer ear to the ear canal to the thin membrane of the eardrum. When sounds reach the membrane, they’re translated into vibrations which are transmitted to the middle ear.
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2. Middle Ear
Within one square centimeter are the three smallest bones in the human body – the hammer, anvil and stirrup. Set in motion by the eardrum, their movements are amplified 20 times which transmits everything to the inner ear – from a single note to a full orchestra.
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3. Inner Ear
Here in the cochlea, there are 40 thousand hair cells (20 thousand per ear) that divide up their tasks. Some work with loud sounds, others with soft. They translate the sounds from vibrations to electric impulses that travel along the fine fibers of the auditory nerve to the brain where they are read and interpreted. |
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