Worst Noises in the World

The worst noises in the world: Why we recoil at unpleasant sounds

In a study published in the Journal of Neuroscience and funded by the Wellcome Trust, Newcastle University scientists reveal the interaction between the region of the brain that processes sound, the auditory cortex, and the amygdala, which is active in the processing of negative emotions when we hear unpleasant sounds.

Brain imaging has shown that when we hear an unpleasant noise the amygdala modulates the response of the auditory cortex heightening activity and provoking our negative reaction.

"It appears there is something very primitive kicking in," says Dr Sukhbinder Kumar, the paper's author from Newcastle University. "It's a possible distress signal from the amygdala to the auditory cortex."

Researchers at the Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging at UCL and Newcastle University used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to examine how the brains of 13 volunteers responded to a range of sounds. Listening to the noises inside the scanner they rated them from the most unpleasant - the sound of knife on a bottle – to pleasing - bubbling water. Researchers were then able to study the brain response to each type of sound.

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Professor Tim Griffiths from Newcastle University, who led the study, says: "This work sheds new light on the interaction of the amygdala and the auditory cortex. This might be a new inroad into emotional disorders and disorders like tinnitus and migraine in which there seems to be heightened perception of the unpleasant aspects of sounds."

MOST UNPLEASANT SOUNDS

Rating 74 sounds, people found the most unpleasant noises to be:

1. Knife on a bottle

2. Fork on a glass

3. Chalk on a blackboard

4. Ruler on a bottle

5. Nails on a blackboard

6. Female scream

7. Anglegrinder

8. Brakes on a cycle squealing

9. Baby crying

10. Electric drill

LEAST UNPLEASANT SOUNDS

1. Applause

2. Baby laughing

3. Thunder

4. Water flowing

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-10/nu-twn101212.php

Students with hearing loss face educational barriers

American deaf and hard of hearing K-12 students face major barriers and challenges while trying to get an education, says a new report by the Laurent Clerc National Deaf Education Center at Gallaudet University. 

The five barriers identified were: 

1.A lack of knowledge about hearing loss among professionals, caregivers and the public

2.A lack of collaboration between these groups

3.Unqualified professionals and service providers

4.A lack of accommodation in the school system

5.Not enough focus on the child's self-development

read more here:

http://audiology.advanceweb.com/News/News-Watch/K-12-Students-with-Hearing-Loss-Face-Educational-Barriers.aspx

Major psychiatric disorders share common genetic risk factors

For the first time, scientists have discovered that five major psychiatric disorders—autism, attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder and schizophrenia—share several common genetic risk factors.  In particular, variations in two genes involved in the balance of calcium in brain cells are implicated in several of these disorders and could be a target for new treatments. The findings from the largest ever genetic study of psychiatric illness, published Online First in The Lancet, may help to one day reclassify these disorders on the basis of causes rather than descriptive syndromes.
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According to Smoller, “Significant progress has been made in understanding the genetic risk factors underlying psychiatric disorders. Our results provide new evidence that may inform a move beyond descriptive syndromes in psychiatry and towards classification based on underlying causes. These findings are particularly relevant in view of the imminent revision of classifications in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) and the International Classification of Diseases (ICD).”*

Writing in a linked Comment, Alessandro Serretti and Chiara Fabbri from the University of Bologna in Italy say, “the present study might contribute to future nosographic [classification] systems, which could be based not only on statistically determined clinical categories, but also on biological pathogenic factors that are pivotal to the identification of suitable treatments.”

They add, “genetics…can contribute to prediction and prevention of psychiatric diseases, along with the identification of molecular targets for new generations of psychotropic drugs.”

Read full story here:

http://www.audiologyonline.com/releases/lancet-largest-study-its-kind-11763

The 120/60 Rule

Source: Google Images

   

Here is a simple rule to follow when using your iPod to ensure that you are listening at safe volume levels. Listening to your iPod for 120 minutes per day at 60% volume level is a good rule of thumb to follow. These guidelines are easy to follow and still allow you to listen to music at a safe level. If we keep our ears safe consistently while using this basic rule, we can continue to enjoy music for many years to come.

How Many Hours a Day Does a Child Need to Hear?

by Jane Maddell at HHTM:


We know, for sure, that kids need to hear all day long in order to learn language, and to be ready to read. Typical hearing kids hear 24 hours a day. Children with hearing loss hear only when they have their technology on.

Here is what else we know:

• Typical children hear 46 million words by age 4 years
• Children need 20,000 hours of listening to learn to read. (That would mean listening for 12 hour days for 1,667 days)
• Children with hearing loss require three times the exposure to learn new words and concepts.

So, what does this mean for a child with hearing loss?
If a child wears hearing aids 4 hours a day, it will take 6 years for the child to hear what a typical child who does not need hearing aids hears in one year. That means that the child with hearing loss will have significantly less auditory input, resulting in less language exposure, which will result in poorer language and poorer reading. What can we do to change this outcome? We need to help families to keep hearing aids and other technology on their child’s head. For children with hearing loss, time is of the essence. There is no turning back. We cannot make up for lost listening time when the child is older. When children do not receive sufficient auditory exposure, the auditory portion of the brain will shrink and the visual cortex will expand to take over the area usually associated with audition.

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Read the full story at: http://hearinghealthmatters.org/hearingandkids/2013/how-many-hours-a-day-does-a-child-need-to-hear/#utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=how-many-hours-a-day-does-a-child-need-to-hear

Ear Infections in Children

What is an ear infection?

An ear infection is an inflammation of the middle ear, usually caused by bacteria, that occurs when fluid builds up behind the eardrum. Anyone can get an ear infection, but children get them more often than adults. Three out of four children will have at least one ear infection by their third birthday. In fact, ear infections are the most common reason parents bring their child to a doctor.

How can I tell if my child has an ear infection?

Image Source: www.nidcd.nih.gov

Most ear infections happen to children before they’ve learned how to talk. If your child isn’t old enough to say “My ear hurts,” here are a few things to look for:

• Tugging or pulling at the ear(s)
• Fussiness and crying
• Trouble sleeping
• Fever (especially in infants and younger children)
• Fluid draining from the ear
• Clumsiness or problems with balance
• Trouble hearing or responding to quiet sounds

http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/hearing/Pages/earinfections.aspx

How loud is your iPod?

In the era of smart phones and wireless technology, we are increasingly putting headphones in our ears to listen to music and other media. How do you know when the music you are listening to through your headphones is too loud?

One way to test to ensure that your device is not set too loud is to hold the headphones at arm's length away, if you can hear the music it is too loud. If you have a  friend or family member sitting next to you, you could ask them if they can hear the music, if the answer is yes, the music is to loud. These are some quick and easy strategies to ensure that your hearing is protected even while enjoying your favorite band. Some smart phones come with applications that monitor the decibel level of the music you are listening to, if you have this application aim to keep the music level below 80 decibels. We often forget how easy it can be to damage our hearing while doing something as simple as using an iPod or smart phone, however, over time this can have a signifiant impact on hearing health. Next time you are streaming music from your phone or iPod, try one of the simple tests discussed above and you may be surprised as to how much the volume needs to be reduced in order to be at safe listening levels.

Source: Google images