3.6 : 听觉感知

The auditory system in the ear facilitates sound perception.

Sound waves enter the outer ear and transmit through the ear canal, causing the eardrum to vibrate.

These vibrations are passed to the middle ear, where three tiny bones – the malleus, incus, and stapes – amplify the sound and transmit the waves to the cochlea in the inner ear.

The cochlea, a fluid-filled, spiral-shaped structure, transforms these vibrations into electrical signals through the movement of hair cells.

Electrical signals travel to the auditory nerve and are sent to the brain's auditory cortex. The brain processes these signals to interpret and understand sound.

Besides its role in hearing, the inner ear also aids in detecting body position and balance.

The three fluid-filled semicircular canals sense equilibrium and help maintain body balance by transmitting vestibular information to the brain stem, which controls eye muscles and coordinates eye and head movements through reflexes.

This vestibular information also reaches the cerebellum, which manages bodily responses to restore balance during falls.