Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

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.

Auditory Perception

Auditory Perception

The auditory system is essential for sound perception, utilizing various critical structures. When sound waves enter the outer ear, they travel through the ear canal and cause the eardrum to vibrate. These vibrations are then transmitted to the middle ear, where three tiny bones – the malleus, incus, and stapes – amplify the sound. This amplification is crucial, as it ensures that the sound vibrations are strong enough to be conveyed to the inner ear. These vibrations then reach the...

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.

Auditory Pathway

Auditory Pathway

Auditory pathways constitute the complex neural circuits responsible for transmitting and interpreting auditory information from the peripheral auditory system to the brain. Sound waves are initially captured by the outer ear, funneled through the ear canal, and reach the tympanic membrane (eardrum). These vibrations are transmitted via the middle ear's ossicles to the inner ear's cochlea.
When viewed cross-sectionally, the cochlea reveals the scala vestibuli and scala tympani flanking...

The Auditory Ossicles

The Auditory Ossicles

The auditory ossicles of the middle ear transmit sounds from the air as vibrations to the fluid-filled cochlea. The auditory ossicles consist of two malleus (hammer) bones, two incus (anvil) bones, and two stapes (stirrups), one on each side. These bones develop during the fetal stage and are the ones to ossify first. They are fully mature at birth and do not grow afterward.
The aptly named stapes look very much like a stirrup. The three ossicles are unique to mammals, and each plays a role in...

Perceiving Loudness, Pitch, and Location

Perceiving Loudness, Pitch, and Location

The human brain perceives pitch through two primary mechanisms reflected in place theory and frequency theory. Each mechanism describes how sound waves are interpreted as specific pitches by the brain, offering insights into the intricate processes of auditory perception.
Place theory, or place coding, suggests that different pitches are heard because various sound waves activate specific locations along the cochlea's basilar membrane. The brain determines the pitch of a sound by...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Prostate Cancer Staging MRI: Prospective Value of Structured Reports With Defined Extraprostatic Extension Grading System.

Journal of computer assisted tomography·2026

Same author

Symptom burden and treatment patterns in primary biliary cholangitis: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Hepatology communications·2026

Same author

Synchronization of two active ears via binaural coupling.

Hearing research·2026

Same author

Integrated immune, hormonal, and transcriptomic profiling reveals sex-specific dysregulation in long COVID patients with ME/CFS.

Cell reports. Medicine·2025

Same author

Severe fatigue is associated with diminished lung function and elevated Galectin-9 levels in early systemic sclerosis.

Frontiers in immunology·2025

Same author

Reliable reconstruction of cricket song from biophysical models and preserved specimens.

Royal Society open science·2025

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Dec 29, 2025

Sound Source Localization Testing in Single-sided Deafness Following Bone Conduction Intervention

Sound Source Localization Testing in Single-sided Deafness Following Bone Conduction Intervention

Published on: December 20, 2024

Evidence supporting synchrony between two active ears due to interaural coupling.

Christopher Bergevin¹, Andrew Mason², Natasha Mhatre³

¹Department of Physics and Astronomy, York University, Toronto, Ontario M3J1P3, Canada.

The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America

|February 3, 2020

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Lizard ears can synchronize through acoustic coupling in their mouths, enabling better low-level sound localization. This study measured otoacoustic emissions in lizard mouths, confirming active ear synchronization.

More Related Videos

Inter-Brain Synchrony in Open-Ended Collaborative Learning: An fNIRS-Hyperscanning Study

Inter-Brain Synchrony in Open-Ended Collaborative Learning: An fNIRS-Hyperscanning Study

Published on: July 21, 2021

A Method to Study Adaptation to Left-Right Reversed Audition

A Method to Study Adaptation to Left-Right Reversed Audition

Published on: October 29, 2018

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Dec 29, 2025

Sound Source Localization Testing in Single-sided Deafness Following Bone Conduction Intervention

Sound Source Localization Testing in Single-sided Deafness Following Bone Conduction Intervention

Published on: December 20, 2024

Inter-Brain Synchrony in Open-Ended Collaborative Learning: An fNIRS-Hyperscanning Study

Inter-Brain Synchrony in Open-Ended Collaborative Learning: An fNIRS-Hyperscanning Study

Published on: July 21, 2021

A Method to Study Adaptation to Left-Right Reversed Audition

A Method to Study Adaptation to Left-Right Reversed Audition

Published on: October 29, 2018

Area of Science:

Comparative Bioacoustics
Auditory Neuroscience
Reptilian Physiology

Background:

Recent research suggests interaural coupling enables ear synchronization in non-mammals.
The oral cavity's acoustic properties may facilitate interaural coupling.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate otoacoustic emissions in the oral cavity of lizards.
To explore the mechanism of active ear synchronization via acoustic coupling.
To assess implications for low-level sound localization.

Main Methods:

Otoacoustic measurements were performed within the oral cavity of lizards.
Spontaneous otoacoustic emissions (SOAEs) were recorded.
Finite element modeling simulated interaural acoustics using tympanic membrane vibrational data.

Main Results:

Spontaneous otoacoustic emissions were successfully measured in the lizard oral cavity.
The oral cavity, contiguous with the interaural airspace, supports acoustic coupling.
Simulations corroborated the synchronization of two active ears.

Conclusions:

Data support the hypothesis of two active ears synchronizing through acoustic coupling.
This synchronization mechanism has potential implications for sound localization in lizards at low sound levels.