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Inner Ear Hair Cell Bundle Mechanics
Published in Joseph D. Bronzino, Donald R. Peterson, Biomedical Engineering Fundamentals, 2019
Hair cells are the sensory receptors in the inner ear. Auditory hair cells in the cochlea detect pressure waves to mediate hearing. Vestibular hair cells in semicircular canals, utricule, and saccule detect head movement and orientation. e hair cells are named so because of their characteristic structure at the apical surface of the cell called the hair bundle (see Figure 25.1). Mechanical stimuli such as sound pressure, acceleration, or gravity arrive through the extracellular structure at the hair bundle where it is turned into neural spike-train signals. How dierent mechanical stimuli are captured, ampli-ed, and encoded by hair cells is an important question in the inner ear science. e hair bundles have sophisticated structure and characteristic shapes depending on dierent inner ear organs (Figure 25.1). Even within the same sensory organ, the hair bundle shapes vary considerably and systematically. Considering such diverse and systematically arranged bundle shapes, it is logical to assume that the hair bundle mechanics play a crucial role on the hair cell’s function.
Communication: Language and Speech
Published in Frank H Hawkins, Harry W Orlady, Human Factors in Flight, 2017
Frank H Hawkins, Harry W Orlady
The degree of annoyance created by noise and its control are complex questions and they have been well studied. However, the subject is beyond the scope of this chapter and we suggest reference elsewhere for those interested (e.g. McCormick et al., 1983). One point, however, is relevant here. In noisy environments-, ear protection by means of ear muffs or ear plugs is essential to avoid permanent damage to the hair cells of the inner ear. In some cases, personnel avoid taking such precautions in the belief that they would be less able to hear someone speaking when there is noise. Under most noisy conditions, ear protection worn by a listener does not degrade speech intelligibility because the signal-noise ratio remains the same. In certain cases, such as with intense noise, speech intelligibility is actually improved. When both the speaker and listener are wearing ear protection some reduction in intelligibility is possible and so special attention must then be given to ensuring the clarity of speech (Howell et al., 1975). When the speaker is in an intense noise field, his microphone should be protected by a noise shield.
Fundamentals of human response to sound
Published in Frank Fahy, John Walker, Fundamentals of Noise and Vibration, 2003
First, an incoming sound wave enters the ear canal leading to corresponding deflections of the ear drum. A system of small bones transmits these vibrations across the middle-ear cavity into the fluid filled inner-ear cavity known as the cochlea. The cochlea is a spiral organ located within the lower part of the skull which is divided into upper and lower chambers by the basilar membrane. The basilar membrane contains many thousands of sensitive hair cells disposed along its length. Different hair cells arc stimulated by different frequencies of sound to transmit nerve impulses along the auditory nerve to the brain. There are numerous reflex connections along the way and there is also considerable evidence that the basilar membrane can 'tune in' to certain sounds through a feedback mechanism involving some of the hair cells. The information progresses along the auditory pathways as more or less complex patterns of nerve impulses until it reaches the auditory cortex where the highest level of perceptual processing takes place.
Biological function simulation in neuromorphic devices: from synapse and neuron to behavior
Published in Science and Technology of Advanced Materials, 2023
Hui Chen, Huilin Li, Ting Ma, Shuangshuang Han, Qiuping Zhao
As with retina and tactile neurons, auditory neuron is also one of the most important and efficient sensory system for our human beings that can detect, process and store the acoustic signal. In the auditory pathway (Figure 10(a-i)), auricle collects the external acoustic signal and then causes the eardrum to vibrate. After amplified by the ossicular chain, the vibrate is transmitted to the inner ear. When sound or vibration reaches the cochlea, it is converted into electrical signal by the hair cells. After that, the electrical signal is transferred to the neural center that integrates, analyses and stores the massive information [136,137]. The pathway for the acoustic signal in biological system will inspire us to exploit the artificial auditory neurons. For example, Wan et al. [112] reported a series of capacitively coupled multiterminal neuro-transistors based on the proton-conducting solid-state electrolyte film to realize spatiotemporal information processing by mimicking the dendritic discriminability of different spatiotemporal input sequences. Resulting from this processing, sound location functionality of the human brain was also emulated on the multiterminal neuro-transistors. Wu et al. [138] developed a neural network architecture based on HfOx memristor array with the function of handling complete sound signals received by two artificial ears.
“Do You See What I Hear?”: Designing for Collocated Patient–Practitioner Collaboration in Audiological Consultations
Published in Human–Computer Interaction, 2018
Yngve Dahl, Geir Kjetil Hanssen
Hearing aids are the most common treatment option for a person with sensorineural hearing loss, i.e., reduced hearing that results from damage to sensory cells (hair cells) in the inner ear. A hearing aid is an electronic sound amplification device that can be attached in or behind the ear, and that has the potential to compensate for impaired hearing by amplifying specific segments of the sound spectrum, and other forms of advanced corrections. While there are many different types of hearing aids, modern hearing aids consist of three basic electronic components: a microphone, an amplifier, and a loudspeaker (Elberling & Worsoe, 2006). The hearing aid receives sound waves through the microphone, which converts them to electrical signals, and transmits them to the amplifier. The amplifier increases the power of the signals and sends them, via a speaker, to the inner ear. The amplified sound is then detected by intact hair cells and converted into electrical signals, which are conveyed by the auditory nerve to the brain. The brain then interprets the signals as meaningful sound.
Assessment of Occupational Exposure to Noise among Sawmill Workers in the Timber Processing Factories
Published in Applied Artificial Intelligence, 2022
High levels of noise in the environment is one of the most common global occupational health hazard (Nandi and Dhatrak 2008; Nelson et al. 2005; Rabinowitz 2000; Themanna and Masterson 2019). Workers in the mining, construction, manufacturing and agricultural sector are exposed to high noise levels which may impair their hearing (Concha-Barrientos, Campbell-Lendrum, and Steenland 2004; Gerges et al. n.d.; Nelson et al. 2005; Nandi and Dhatrak 2008; Tikka et al. 2017). Previous studies have indicated that exposure to loud noise for a longer duration can damage the hair cells of the cochlear in the inner ear leading to irreversible sensorineural hearing loss (Azizi 2010; Basner et al. 2014; Hong et al. 2013; Nandi and Dhatrak 2008).