Often these surprising sources of loud sounds come about from a misguided belief that loud means fun—the louder it is, the more festive. The good news? Because the decibel scale is logarithmic, turning it down even a little can help save our hearing a lot.

When thinking about exposure to loud sounds, it is important to take a life-course perspective. That is, the health behaviors developed in childhood and adolescence can shape habits into adulthood.

I know the only way I could hear it is if we all stopped playing and moved up to the net every time someone has something to say.

The team’s analysis uncovered a surprising diversity of supporting cells, the “non-sensory cellular guardians” that surround and protect the sensory hair cells and may facilitate their regeneration

It seems paradoxical that a hearing condition intended to work against me could give me the power to truly understand music, but this battle has taught me more about positivity and hope than any motivational speech could.

Before the HRP, there was no mechanism for data sharing and collaboration, no way to assess gene expression rigorously or to identify relevant patterns, and no examples of new hair cells generated in a post-hearing mammalian cochlea.

Despite decades of research showing the profound impact of hearing health on overall quality of life, most people won't consider their auditory system until problems become undeniable.

The squirrels’ improved ability to hear low frequency sounds is likely a sensory adaptation to life at high elevations, where weather and thin air can reduce how well sound travels. The study highlights how hearing and behavior can evolve together to help animals survive in challenging acoustic environments.

When wearing earplugs earns a reprimand from a master teacher, two high school classical musicians decide it’s time to change the conversation about the risk of hearing loss among their peers. 

Which noises should we be aware of this holiday season?

A practical reference, not a lecture, from a music industry professional on how to protect our first instrument: our hearing.

The next step in this field is the use of powerful modern sequencing technology in order to map gene activity and gene regulation during hair cell regeneration in fish and birds as well as in mammalian balance organs.