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Neuroscience > Lecture 11 - structure and function of the auditory system > Flashcards

Lecture 11 - structure and function of the auditory system Flashcards

1
Q

What are sound waves?

A

vibrations in the air that cause particles in the air to compress together.

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2
Q

What are frequency units (Hz)?

A

cycles (or repetitions) per second.

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3
Q

What is sound intensity measured in?

A

decibels - a logarithmic scale (if a sound is 10dB there is 10x the power, if the sound is 100dB there is 100x the power.

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4
Q

What does the fundamental frequency correspond to?

A

the repetition rate of the sound

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5
Q

Describe what makes up the outer ear and what the function is.

A

pinna and ear canal
collects and focuses sound waves

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6
Q

Describe what makes up the middle ear and what the function is.

A

tympanic membrane and ossicles
transmission of vibrations to cochlea

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7
Q

Describe what makes up the inner ear and what the function is.

A

cochlea
amplification of vibrations (outer hair cells)
transduction of mechanical vibrations to electrical nerve signals (inner hair cells)

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8
Q

What are the 3 ossicles?

A

malleus (hammer)
incus (anvil)
stapes (stirrup)

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9
Q

How many rows of outer hair cells are there?

A

3

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10
Q

What do outer hair cells do?

A

actively move
amplifies membrane vibrations and enhances the sensitivity of inner hair cells

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11
Q

What do inner hair cells do?

A

get sound into the brain
displaced passively by vibrations
turn mechanical displacements of hairs into electrical signals

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12
Q

Where on the basilar membrane are low frequency sounds located?

A

apex

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13
Q

Where on the basilar membrane are high frequency sounds located?

A

base

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14
Q

What are otoacoustic emissions?

A

activity of outer hair cells causing physical vibrations
vibrations propagate back to the tympanic membrane and into the air
can be spontaneous or sound-evoked
useful in clinical tests for cochlear health

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15
Q

What 2 types of coding does the auditory pathway have?

A
  1. spectral (frequency) coding
  2. temporal (timing) coding
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16
Q

Describe the 5 steps of the auditory pathway?

A
  1. cochlear nuclei (dCN, vCN)
  2. superior olivary complex (SOC)
  3. Inferior colliculus (IC).
  4. medial geniculate body (MGB)
  5. auditory complex
17
Q

What does the superior olivary complex do?

A

helps localise where sounds are by comparing the time delay between the sound input from the left and right ear

18
Q

How is the auditory pathway organised and what does this mean?

A

tonotopically organised
organised by frequency

19
Q

What is intensity coding?

A

the dynamic range for human hearing
similar to frequency and temporal coding

20
Q

What is the loudness discomfort threshold?

A

110dB

21
Q

What is the pain threshold?

A

130dB

22
Q

What are the 2 types of auditory nerve fibres?

A
  1. low spontaneous rate fibres
  2. high spontaneous rate fibres
23
Q

Describe low spontaneous rate fibres.

A
  • high threshold for activation
  • used to being occasionally active
  • needed for signal in noise processing
24
Q

Describe high spontaneous rate fibres.

A
  • low threshold for activation
  • used to being active for long periods of time
  • necessary for hearing quiet sounds inn quiet environments
  • basis of pure tone audiogram
25
Q

What is the function of the descending auditory pathway?

A

inhibition
filtering of relevant stimuli
selective attention
auditory predictions
adaptation

26
Q

Determining the localisation of sounds - what is the left to right axis?

A
  • intramural time delay
  • processed mainly by superior olivary complex
  • lower contribution of intramural level difference
  • accurate
27
Q

Determining the localisation of sounds - what is the front/back and top/bottom?

A
  • less accurate
  • more prone to error
  • head/pinna related transfer
28
Q

How does the auditory complex exist?

A

bilaterally in temporal lobes

29
Q

What are the 2 parts of the auditory complex?

A
  1. primary auditory complex
  2. non-primary auditory complex
30
Q

Describe the primary auditory complex.

A
  • Herschl’s gyrus
  • tucked away in the Sylvian fissure
  • basic and early auditory responses
31
Q

Describe the non-primary auditory complex.

A
  • various fields, still debated
  • exists in superior temporal gyrus and plan temporale
  • more complex sound features
32
Q

What is the left hemisphere more optimised to process?

A

temporal processing relevant to speech

33
Q

What is the right hemisphere more optimised to process?

A

pitch processing relevant to music

34
Q

What are the 2 types of electrical brain responses to hearing?

A
  1. subcortical brain responses (ABR)
  2. cortex brain responses (EEG)

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