Audition Flashcards
How do we hear?
Through sound waves; changes in air pressure unfolding over time
What does frequency of sound waves correspond to?
Pitch
What does amplitude of sound waves correspond to?
Loudness
What does complexity of sound waves correspond to?
Timbre
What does the outer ear do?
Collects sound
What does the middle ear do?
Transmits vibrations
What does the inner ear do?
Transduces vibrations into neural impulses
What’s the cochlea?
A fluid-filled tube that is the organ of auditory transduction. Divided along its length into the basilar membrane and hair cells.
What is the basilar membrane?
A structure in the inner ear that undulates when vibrations from the ossicles reach the cochlear fluid
What are the hair cells?
Specialized auditory receptor neurons embedded in the basilar membrane
What is conductive hearing loss?
Problem with the outer or middle ear that prevents the sound from being conducted properly
What is sensorineural hearing loss?
Missing or damaged sensory cells (hair cells). Can be treated with cochlear implant.
Where do action potentials in the auditory nerve travel?
To the thalamus and ultimately to the opposite hemisphere of the cerebral cortex
What’s Area A1?
A portion of the temporal lobe that contains the primary auditory cortex
What do the auditory areas in the left hemisphere do?
Process language
