Re: Why is the cochlea in our ears shaped like a spiral?


"Sam Wormley" <swormley1@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:yplRf.820688$x96.109621@xxxxxxxxxxxx
Inner-ear mystery solved
http://physicsweb.org/articles/news/10/3/8/1

13 March 2006

Why is the cochlea in our ears shaped like a spiral? According to new
work by scientists in the US, the spiral shape makes us more sensitive
to low frequency sounds. Daphne Manoussaki of Vanderbilt University in
Nashville, Tennessee, together with Emilios Dimitriadis and Richard
Chadwick at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland,
have calculated that the spiral shape can affect the wave mechanics
that take place inside the cochlea. It increases the strength of
vibrations produced by sound waves, especially at low pitch (Phys. Rev.
Lett. 96 088701).

The cochlea is a small seashell-shaped organ in the inner part of the
ear where sound vibrations are converted into nerve impulses. These are
then sent to the brain as electrical signals. The human cochlea
occupies a volume of about 1 cubic centimetre and operates at
frequencies between 20 hertz and 20 kilohertz. It can detect sounds
over a range of 120 decibels.

See: http://physicsweb.org/articles/news/10/3/8/1

Sheesh, what a silly question. If the cochlea wasn't shaped like a spiral
seashell, there wouldn't be an opening large enough for the Babel fish to
attach itself to.


.

Relevant Pages

  • Cochlea and Lateral Line relationship?
    ... I've been googling for over an hour, and coming from a background of ... "Why is our cochlea, the key organ of hearing, curled into a spiral? ... focuses sound waves at the spiral's outer edge, ... Evolution Research Blog: ...
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  • Why is the cochlea in our ears shaped like a spiral?
    ... Why is the cochlea in our ears shaped like a spiral? ... have calculated that the spiral shape can affect the wave mechanics ... vibrations produced by sound waves, ... ear where sound vibrations are converted into nerve impulses. ...
    (sci.physics)
  • Re: Why is the cochlea in our ears shaped like a spiral?
    ... | that take place inside the cochlea. ... | vibrations produced by sound waves, ... | ear where sound vibrations are converted into nerve impulses. ... to the human cochlea. ...
    (sci.physics)