Name: The beautiful, mysterious science of how you hear
Uploaded: 2020-03-13T14:57:05Z
Duration: 15 min 32 s
Description: Have you ever wondered how your ears work? In this delightful and fascinating talk, biophysicist Jim Hudspeth demonstrates the wonderfully simple yet astonishingly powerful mechanics of hair cells, the microscopic powerhouses that make hearing possible -- and explains how, when it's really quiet, your ears will begin to beam out a spectrum of sounds unique to you.

Jim Hudspeth: The beautiful, mysterious science of how you hear

The beautiful, mysterious science of how you hear

Have you ever wondered how your ears work? In this delightful and fascinating talk, biophysicist Jim Hudspeth demonstrates the wonderfully simple yet astonishingly powerful mechanics of hair cells, the microscopic powerhouses that make hearing possible -- and explains how, when it's really quiet, your ears will begin to beam out a spectrum of sounds unique to you.

Hearing relies on tiny hair cells in the ear that can detect air pressure changes smaller than a billionth of atmospheric pressure. These hair cells not only convert vibrations into electrical signals for the brain but also actively amplify and fine-tune sounds, letting people distinguish subtle differences in pitch and tolerate an immense range of volumes. Remarkably, in silence, most ears actually emit their own unique tones. Understanding and potentially restoring these cells could transform treatments for hearing loss.