Sitting in traffic can expose a driver to intense irritation, as well as a range of sound frequencies. Humming engines typically emit low-frequency sounds, while car horns release high-frequency blasts. Emergency vehicle sirens are high-pitched, and the rumblings from large trucks are lower-pitched.
For most people, their ears are able to process these wide-ranging sounds and make sense of them. However, scientists don’t have a full sense of why this happens because they are still working to understand the mechanics of the inner ear.
A team of physicists recently took a novel approach to understanding how the cochlea processes different frequencies. They uncovered new intricacies that may explain how the ear is able to hear the softest of sounds.
