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Hearing

Hearing

When we hear a sound, our nervous system is detecting sound waves—pressure waves of mechanical energy traveling through a medium. The frequency of the wave is perceived as pitch, while the amplitude is perceived as loudness.

Anatomy of the Ear

Anatomy of the Ear

Auditory sensation, commonly called hearing, involves the transformation of sonic waves into neural impulses facilitated by the structures of the auditory organ. The prominent, flesh-like structure on the side of the head, called the auricle, directs sound waves towards the auditory canal. The auricle is often mislabeled as the pinna, a term more aligned with mobile structures like a feline's external ear. The auditory canal penetrates the cranium via the external auditory meatus of the...

Sound Waves: Interference

Sound Waves: Interference

Sound waves can be modeled either as longitudinal waves, wherein the molecules of the medium oscillate around an equilibrium position, or as pressure waves. When two identical waves from the same source superimpose on each other, the combination of two crests or two troughs results in amplitude reinforcement known as constructive interference. If two identical waves, that are initially in phase, become out of phase because of different path lengths, the combination of crests with troughs...

The Cochlea

The Cochlea

The cochlea is a coiled structure in the inner ear that contains hair cells—the sensory receptors of the auditory system. Sound waves are transmitted to the cochlea by small bones attached to the eardrum called the ossicles, which vibrate the oval window that leads to the inner ear. This causes fluid in the chambers of the cochlea to move, vibrating the basilar membrane.

Perception of Sound Waves

Perception of Sound Waves

The human ear is not equally sensitive to all frequencies in the audible range. It may perceive sound waves with the same pressure but different frequencies as having different loudness. Moreover, the perception of sound waves depends on the health of an individual's ears, which decays with age. The health of one's ears may also be affected by regular exposure to loud noises.
The pitch of a sound depends on the frequency and the pressure amplitude of the source. Two sounds of the same...

Heart Sounds

Heart Sounds

Heart sounds are generated by the turbulence in blood flow due to the closing of heart valves. These sounds are best perceived slightly away from the valves, where the blood flow disseminates the sound.
Auscultation is the process of listening to these internal body sounds using a stethoscope. The heart produces four types of sounds, but only two—S1 and S2—can usually be heard with a stethoscope.
S1, also known as the "lub" sound, is caused by the closure of atrioventricular (A-V)...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 6, 2026

A Protocol for the Administration of Real-Time fMRI Neurofeedback Training

A Protocol for the Administration of Real-Time fMRI Neurofeedback Training

Published on: August 24, 2017

Does tinnitus "fill in" the silent gaps?

Jennifer Campolo¹, Edward Lobarinas, Richard Salvi

¹Department of Communicative Disorders and Science, Center for Hearing and Deafness, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY; Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA.

|November 16, 2013

Summary

Tinnitus does not fill silent gaps in auditory stimuli, contrary to a common assumption in animal research. This finding suggests tinnitus may affect sensory filtering rather than perception of silence.

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Area of Science:

Auditory Neuroscience
Tinnitus Research
Neuroscience

Background:

Gap pre-pulse inhibition of the acoustic startle reflex (GPIAS) is used to detect tinnitus in animal models.
Tinnitus is hypothesized to fill silent gaps, preventing GPIAS.
This study investigates the perceptual reality of this hypothesis in humans.

Purpose of the Study:

To determine if tinnitus perceptually fills silent intervals in auditory stimuli.
To test the hypothesis that tinnitus interferes with gap detection.
To compare gap detection in individuals with and without tinnitus.

Main Methods:

Hearing-impaired subjects with tinnitus and normal-hearing subjects without tinnitus participated.
Subjects performed a gap detection task with 50 ms silent intervals in narrow-band noise (NBN).
NBN was presented above, below, or at the tinnitus pitch.

Main Results:

All subjects, regardless of hearing status or tinnitus, could detect the silent gaps.
The tinnitus percept did not prevent the detection of 50 ms silent intervals.
This challenges the assumption that tinnitus fills silent gaps in a perceptual task.

Conclusions:

Tinnitus does not perceptually fill silent intervals in a gap detection task.
The findings do not exclude the possibility that tinnitus interferes with pre-attentive sensory filtering in GPIAS.
Further research is needed to understand the mechanisms underlying GPIAS and tinnitus.