Cochlear implants were never on our radar, and the topic arose what felt like out of the blue while talking to his audiologist who said hearing aids could no longer improve his ability to better understand speech.

There’s a lot of overlap between managing tinnitus and dealing with the challenges of aging. Socializing, paying active attention, learning new things, and physical activity are all things that can help with both.

Even within the d/Deaf and hard of hearing umbrella, our access needs and identities vary widely. That in-between space can feel like nowhere—not “hearing enough” for the hearing world, not “Deaf enough” for Deaf spaces.

Because the very small blood vessels in the inner ear can be narrowed by the presence of an increase in blood glucose, the function of the inner ear hair cells can be affected. The first symptom might be tinnitus or an inability to hear words clearly.

My focus is studying pathologies following noise overexposure. This includes noise-induced hearing loss and pain hyperacusis. I specifically look at how the immune system interacts with the neurons of the ear after noise.

Living without the sense of hearing may bring barriers, but it does not mean living without independence or success. Our role, as people with typical hearing, is to listen, support, and work to improve the systems that are built around us.

This study shows that a single variant in the Foxg1 gene can affect how the brain processes sounds and lead to a heightened sensitivity to noise.

At the time of his death, Hudspeth was pursuing new approaches to restoring hearing through hair cell regeneration, and his lab had recently published work demonstrating the first method for keeping a mammalian cochlea alive outside of the body—an innovation that will provide future researchers with an unprecedented means for studying the cochlea’s live biomechanics.

While the cochlear implant was mapped to set sound frequencies, I heard a soft, staticky noise. I later learned I was hearing a rain downpour and thunder coming from outside the clinic.

Research has not yet fully explained the mechanisms behind efficient hair cell regeneration in birds, but recent discoveries have sparked multiple promising research directions that might bring us closer to developing treatments for humans. 

For someone with a hidden disability, being held to standards of behavior that you cannot meet simply because someone cannot see your disability is a constant challenge. 

Multiple key guitars from Les Paul’s collection are in The Les Paul House of Sound. Hands-on activities guide visitors to explore the science of sound.