Chapter 9 Summary

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1.   Sounds are fluctuations of pressure. Sound waves are defined by the frequency, intensity (amplitude), and phase of fluctuations. Sound frequency and intensity correspond to our perceptions of ----- loudness pitch and ----- loudness pitch , respectively.
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2.   Sound is funneled into the ear by the ----- inner middle outer ear, made more intense by the middle ear, and transformed into neural signals by the ----- inner middle outer ear.
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3.   In the inner ear, cilia on the tops of ----- inner outer hair cells pivot in response to pressure fluctuations in ways that provide information about frequency and intensity to the auditory nerve and the brain. Auditory nerve fibers convey information through both the rate and the timing patterns with which they fire.
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4.   Different characteristics of sounds are processed at multiple places in the brain stem before information reaches the cortex. Information from both ears is brought together very ----- early late in the chain of processing. At each stage of auditory processing, including primary auditory cortex, neurons are organized in relation to the frequencies of sounds (tonotopically).
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5.   Humans and other mammals can hear sounds across ----- an enormous a very limited range of intensities. Not all sound frequencies are heard as being equally loud, however. Hearing across such a wide range of intensities is accomplished by the use of many auditory neurons. Different neurons respond to different levels of intensity. In addition, more neurons overall respond when sounds are more intense.
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6.   Series of (or filters) process sounds within bands of frequency. Depending on frequency, these channels vary in how wide (many frequencies) or narrow they are. Consequently, it is easier to detect differences between some frequencies than between others. When energy from multiple frequencies is present, ----- higher lower -frequency energy makes it relatively more difficult to hear ----- higher lower frequencies.
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7.   Hearing loss is caused by damage to the of the middle ear, to the hair cells in the cochlea, or to the neurons in the auditory nerve. Although hearing aids are helpful to listeners with hearing impairment, they cannot restore hearing as well as glasses can improve vision.
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