Current status of theories of hearing.
Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data
Biophysical modeling, mechanistic theory, and bench/preparatory animal and tissue research.
PubMed 13324083 · doi:10.1126/science.123.3201.779
What was done
The author synthesized the mechanical foundations of four major theories of hearing and examined basilar membrane vibration patterns by modeling two elastic parameters: coupling between adjacent sections and absolute elasticity. The behavior was evaluated against observations in living animals, fresh human ear preparations, and a scaled physical cochlear model paired with human arm skin to simulate sensory nerve responses.
What was found
The abstract reports no quantitative values or statistical metrics. Qualitatively, adjusting elasticity parameters to physiological levels produced traveling waves along the basilar membrane with frequency-dependent maximal displacement locations that determine pitch. In the enlarged physical model, neural inhibitory mechanisms sharpened these broad mechanical maxima into distinct, localized sensory perceptions across different vibration frequencies.
Why it matters
This work unified competing historical hearing theories under a single mechanical framework governed by membrane elasticity, explaining how physical traveling waves and subsequent neural processing jointly enable frequency discrimination.
Limits
The abstract provides no sample sizes, numerical parameters, or error estimates. The findings rely on idealized physical models, skin-analogs for cochlear innervation, and post-mortem or animal tissue preparations, which may not fully replicate intact in vivo human hearing physiology.
Cited by
- supports Georg von Békésy discovered the place-frequency map of the cochlea (high frequencies stimulating the base and low frequencies stimulating the apex) using experiments in human temporal bones.