Making mosquitoes' love songs fall on deaf ears

A team of researchers from the Group of Neural Circuit in the Graduate School of Science at Nagoya University in central Japan have developed a new method that may help control mosquito populations. The annoying buzzing sound ...

Dopamine plays key role in songbird mating

In humans, the dopamine system has been tied to rewards and pleasurable sensations. As well as to memory and learning. A recent study from McGill University, published in Current Biology, suggests that dopamine may also play ...

Physics at the threshold of hearing

(Phys.org) —The mammalian auditory system is one of the most sensitive detectors found in nature. Two kinds of cells, the inner and outer hair cells, work together to transduce mechanical vibrations into action potentials. ...

Researcher finds gender differences in seasonal auditory changes

Auditory systems differ between sexes in sparrows depending on the season, a Georgia State University neuroscientist has found. The work adds to our knowledge of how the parts of the nervous system, including that of humans, ...

Chicks dig certain types of music

(PhysOrg.com) -- What accounts for the sounds we like to hear? Is it something about the properties of our auditory systems or brains? Or are such tastes learned? Two-month-old human infants show a preference for consonant, ...

It's not over when it's over: Storing sounds in the inner ear

Research shows that vibrations in the inner ear continue even after a sound has ended, perhaps serving as a kind of mechanical memory of recent sounds. In addition to contributing to the understanding of the complex process ...

Hearing assistance comes to the home (w/ Video)

(PhysOrg.com) -- European researchers have combined state-of-the-art technologies to help end the isolation suffered by the hearing impaired. End users are eager to get their hands on the suite of tools.