Download 2.-Hearing

2. Hearing
Sensation and Perception
How is hearing different in
animals and humans?
• Animals tend to hear MUCH
better than humans, however…
–Humans use sound to
CREATE MEANING more
extensively than any other
species
Anatomy of the Ear
How do we hear?
1. Sound waves strike the eardrum,causing
vibration.
2. The hammer, anvil and stirrup hit each
other, carrying the vibration to the inner ear
3. Vibrations trigger fluid in the cochlea
• The cochlea is divided lengthwise by the
basilar membrane, which houses the
receptor cells for hearing
• These receptor cells send the message to
the brain to HEAR through the sensory
nerves
Hearing Loss as we Age
• 28,000,000 Americans suffer hearing
loss
– Top 3 causes of hearing loss:
1. Untreated childhood ear infections
2. Long-term exposure to loud noise
(air traffic controllers and
machinists, etc)
3. SMOKING- yes, it is bad for you!
Love Language- The Jubilee
Project
Deaf Culture and the NAD
• Cochlear Implants have corrected hearing loss in
millions, however, the National Association for the
Deaf does NOT support medical reversal of hearing
loss
– NAD believes hearing loss is an example of
human diversity, which contains its own unique
culture
– Doctors should NOT reverse hearing loss
• Usually supported by deaf parents of deaf
children, but not by hearing parents of deaf
children