Exam 3_Audition

Question 1

What is frequency?

Answer 1

How often do the sound waves compress?
The greater the frequency, the higher the pitch
The highest notes humans are able to hear is around 20,000Hz.
Low frequency sounds are the deep rumbles of bass

Question 2

What is amplitude?

Answer 2

How much do the waves move the medium from baseline?
The larger the amplitude of wave, or the greater distance between the peak and the trough of the signal, the louder the sounder is. Loudness is measured in decibel.
A rock concert or a lawnmower is between 100 and 110 dB, which is right around the pain threshold.

Question 3

What is the difference in the amplitude?

Answer 3

The loud intensity is shown when the top and the bottom are kind of far from each other.
The soft intensity is shown when the top and the bottom are really close to each other.

Question 4

What is the difference between the frequency?

Answer 4

For the low pitch, the top to another top of the pack are far from on another.
For the high peach, they are close to each other.

Question 5

What is the difference between the complexity of the timbre?

Answer 5

For simple timbre, the graph is only one line.
For complex timbre, the graph is overlap on another graph.

Question 6

Draw a visual representation of the difference that we have between the amplitude (loudness), frequency(pitch) and complexity (timbre)

Answer 6

Will do

Question 7

What consist of the outer ear?

Answer 7

The outer ear consists of the pinna, the auditory canal, and the tympanic membrane.

Question 8

What does the pinna do?

Answer 8

The pinna acts as a funnel to direct sound waves into the auditory canal.

Question 9

What is the role of the tympanic membrane?

Answer 9

It separates the auditory canal from the middle ear.

Question 10

What is the auditory canal?

Answer 10

It is between the pinna and the tympanic membrane.

Question 11

Define the middle ear?

Answer 11

The middle ear is an air filled chamber that contains three small interconnected ossicles(bones): the malleus, incus, and stapes.

Question 12

What is the structure of the malleus(hammer), the incus and stapes?

Answer 12

The malleus is physically attached to the tympanic membrane. The malleus then connects to the incus (mallet), and the incus connects to the stapes.
The stapes (stirrup) and is connected to the oval window that separates the middle ear from the inner ear.

Question 13

What is the function of the tympanic membrane and the ossicles?

Answer 13

The tympanic membrane and the ossicles function to amplify incoming sounds, generally by a tendfold difference:
The ossicles act in a lever-like fashion to amplify the movements of the tympanic membrane to the oval window.
The inner ear is filled with liquid rather than air, and sound waves do not travel very well when moving from air into a denser medium- think about how muffled sounds are when you submerge your head underwater.

Question 14

How is the inner ear structured?

Answer 14

The inner ear has two structures: the semicircular canals, and the spiral-shaded cochlea.
The structures of the inner ear are filled with fluid. They are separated from the air-filled middle ear by two membranes.

Question 15

What is the composition of the semicircular canals?

Answer 15

The ampulla (flask) to the posterior semicircular canal showing the Cristal, hair bundles and cupula. The cupula is distorted by the fluid in the membranous canal when the head rotates.

Question 16

The composition of the cochlea

Answer 16

The basilar membrane changes thickness from front to back of the membrane
Base is stiff, vibrates only with high frequency sound waves
Apex is wider, more flexible, vibrates at low frequencies
Different frequencies do the sound affect different areas of the basilar membrane, the basilar membrane is what is referred to as tonotopically organized.

Question 17

What is embedded within the basilar membrane?

Answer 17

Embedded within the basilar membrane is a structure called Organ of Corti.
The organ of corti is lined with layers of “hair cells”, these are not neurons.

Question 18

What is the function of the hair cells?

Answer 18

The mechanical bending of the hair cells by different frequencies of the sound waves are converted into a neural signal.
Hair cells synapse on the spiral ganglion cells(neurons). The axons of the spiral ganglion cells make up the auditory nerve, which will project into the cochlea nuclei of the medulla.
“Inner hair cells” on the Organ of Corti carry most auditory info to spiral ganglion cells.

Question 19

What result to conductive hearing loss?

Answer 19

Conductive hearing loss is a result of changes to the auditory system up to the oval window, such as a tumor in the ear canal, a perforation of the tympanic membrane, or changes in middle ear pressure (such as how everything sounds muffled while changing altitudes when an airplane takes off, for example)

Question 20

What result to sensorineural hearing loss?

Answer 20

Sensorineural hearing loss results from changes at the level of the inner ear or further up in the neural pathway, such as hair cell damage, a brain tumor, bacterial or viral infections, or exposure to various toxins or drugs.

Question 21

What is the most common cause of hearing loss?

Answer 21

The moss common cause of hearing loss is excessive noise exposure. Although the acoustic reflex is capable of dampening the intensity of the incoming vibrations, prolonged exposure to high amplitude sound waves can still cause damage.