human ear
- Key People:
- Gabriel Fallopius
- Magnus Gustaf Retzius
- Related Topics:
- inner ear
- hearing
- external ear
- otic capsule
- middle ear
- On the Web:
- OpenStax - Clinical Nursing Skills - Ears (Apr. 21, 2025)
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What are the main parts of the human ear?
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How does the outer ear capture sound?
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What role does the ear canal play in the hearing process?
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How does the eardrum function within the ear?
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What are the small bones in the middle ear called, and what do they do?
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How does the cochlea help process sound in the inner ear?
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What is the role of the semicircular canals in maintaining balance?
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How do the auditory nerves transmit sound signals to the brain?
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What are common issues or diseases that can affect the human ear?
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How does the structure of the human ear contribute to its ability to hear a wide range of sounds?
human ear, organ of hearing and equilibrium that detects and analyzes sound by transduction (or the conversion of sound waves into electrochemical impulses) and maintains the sense of balance (equilibrium).
The human ear, like that of other mammals, contains sense organs that serve two quite different functions: that of hearing and that of postural equilibrium and coordination of head and eye movements. Anatomically, the ear has three distinguishable parts: the outer, middle, and inner ear. The outer ear consists of the visible portion called the auricle, or pinna, which projects from the side of the head, and the short external auditory canal, the inner end of which is closed by the tympanic membrane, commonly called the eardrum. The function of the outer ear is to collect sound waves and guide them to the tympanic membrane. The middle ear is a narrow air-filled cavity in the temporal bone. It is spanned by a chain of three tiny bones—the malleus (hammer), incus (anvil), and stapes (stirrup), collectively called the auditory ossicles. This ossicular chain conducts sound from the tympanic membrane to the inner ear, which has been known since the time of Galen (2nd century ce) as the labyrinth. It is a complicated system of fluid-filled passages and cavities located deep within the rock-hard petrous portion of the temporal bone. The inner ear consists of two functional units: the vestibular apparatus, consisting of the vestibule and semicircular canals, which contains the sensory organs of postural equilibrium; and the snail-shell-like cochlea, which contains the sensory organ of hearing. These sensory organs are highly specialized endings of the eighth cranial nerve, also called the vestibulocochlear nerve.