UNIT 3: Human biology and health Behind the eardrum is a cavity filled with air. This cavity contains three tiny bones and forms the middle ear. The three tiny bones ~ called the malleus (hammer), the incus (anvil) and the stapes (stirrup) because of their shape ~ are the smallest bones in your body. They form joints with one another, with the malleus attached to the eardrum and the stapes to the oval window. The cavity of the middle ear is connected to your throat by a tube called the Eustachian tube. This is usually closed but when the pressure in the middle ear increases ~ when you are flying, for example - the tube opens until the air pressure in the middle ear is equal to that in the throat and therefore to the atmosphere. ‘Atone end of the middle ear, opposite to the eardrum, there aretwo Bn et penings: one of them is oval in shape and hence iis called the oval. figure 3.26 The pinna plays window. The other is round and is called the round window. The gn important role for these openings are covered by very thin membranes. “antelope, allowing them both to The inner ear consists of a cavity filled with a fluid, two sac-like pick up sounds very easily and structures called the sacculus and utriculus, three semicircular also to find out which direction canals and a coiled tube called the cochlea. the sound is coming from. “The sacculus, utriculus, semicircular canals and the cochlea are filled with a liquid. A cross section of the cochlea reveals that itis 7 made up of three tubes in one (figure 3.28). ‘The floor of the middle [/uall subaru cus tube is lined with sensory cells linked to affector neurons. These You will need: nerve fibres join to form the auditory nerve which leads to the . beats © a model of a mammalian ear wed 1. How can you use your ears to help you find where a sound is. 1, Examine the external. coming from? part of the ear of your oval semicircular neighbour. Note its shape ear ossicles / stapes window canals and texture, pinna ; i. 2, Examine a model of a mammalian ear. Note the shape of the various parts. 3. Make a drawing of the A aucitory model. nerve 4, Compare your diagram with that in figure 3.27. \ ear ear eustachian round —_cochlea (partly canal drum tube window — uncoiled) Figure 3.27 The structure of the idle ear Inner ear human ear, Outer ear ‘You have had a look at the structure of the ear. Now you need to look at how the ear works. ‘The pinna collects sound waves and directs them to the eardrum through the ear canal, When sound waves hit the eardrum. it vibrates. This magnifies the vibrations.