Chapter 11: Hearing & Equilibrium

Chapter 11. Hearing & Equilibrium

A 9-year-old girl complained of ear pain due to an inflammation and build-up of fluids in the middle ear. She was diagnosed with a middle ear infection, acute otitis media of bacterial origin, and she was treated with an antibiotic. The middle ear contains

A. hair cells that mediate linear acceleration.

B. the membranous labyrinth containing endolymph.

C. the bony labyrinth containing perilymph fluid.

D. cochlear hair cells that mediate hearing.

E. the auditory ossicles and the tensor tympani and stapedius muscles.

A 2-year-old girl was diagnosed with a type of sensorineural deafness. After being evaluated by an audiologist, she was determined to be a good candidate for a cochlear implant. A cochlear implant is comprised of

A. a microphone, transmitter, and receiver that converts sound into vibrating waves.

B. artificial hair cells that are able to replace damaged hair cells in the inner ear.

C. a microphone, amplifier, and speaker that can convert sound waves into electrical signals.

D. a microphone, speech processor, transmitter, and receiver that converts sound into electrical impulses.

E. a microphone, transmitter, and receiver that converts sound into numerical codes that provide information about pitch or loudness.

After playing the violin for the Boston Symphony Orchestra for 18 years, a 40-year-old man was given the opportunity to follow the dream he had as a child to be a physician like his father. Compared to other students in his medical school class, what distinctive features might be expressed in his auditory system?

A. The pitch of his conversational voice will be about 120 Hz compared to his younger male classmates whose voices are likely to have a pitch of about 250 Hz.

B. When presented with musical tones, a larger area of his auditory cortex will be activated compared to the area activated in the cortex of his classmates who are not musically inclined.

C. As a musician, he will be better able to localize sound than most of his classmates.

D. The Wernicke area on the left side of his brain will be more concerned with melody, pitch, and sound.

E. He will be able to distinguish about 2000 pitches; in contrast, his younger classmates will be able to distinguish ...