Test Your Ear IQ

 

True or False?

1.      Hearing loss is never permanent .
2.     Prolonged exposure to any noise above 85 decibels can cause gradual hearing  
      loss.
3.      Hearing loss is a disease that only affects older individuals.
4.      A head injury can cause hearing loss.
5.      Prolonged use of certain chemicals and drugs can cause hearing loss.
6.      Earplugs should be worn in areas with excessive noise.
7.      Cotton swabs, such as Q-tips, should be used to clean the ear canal after
      bathing.
8.      If exposure to a sound is not causing pain then it isn’t too loud.

9.      Ringing in the ears is a sign of exposure to excessive noise. 

Answers: 1-F, 2-T, 3-F, 4-T, 5-T, 6-T, 7-F, 8-F, 9-T

How Good Are Your Ears

 

What You Need:

• A ticking watch or clock
• Measuring tape or meter stick
• Foam earplugs

Test your ability to locate an object using only your hearing!

1.      Blindfold your subject and occlude one ear by having them insert a foam
      earplug.
2.      Take a watch or clock that ticks and approach the subject from various angles.
3.      Record the distance at which the subject can detect the ticking noise.
4.      Repeat the same experiment with the subject’s other ear occluded and then with
      both ears opened.

What did you observe?

•  What was the average distance for the different ears?
• Compare the average distances for both ears vs. one ear.

 Discussion

•  In general, the farther away that you are able to detect the ticking noise, the more sensitive your ears are to sound.  
• The average distance will vary from person to person depending on personal exposure, family history, and age. The average distance should be similar for both ears; however, distances will not be exactly the same as no two ears are exactly the same.
• You all know the old saying ‘two heads are better than one”; well this also applies for ears! Having two functioning ears is important to our hearing; therefore, the average distance at which you can detect the ticking should be greater when you use both ears.

How Loud Do You Like It

 

What your need:

• A sound level meter (ask your teacher for one).
• A MP3 player or discman with headphones and your favourite music.
• Access to a noisy area, such as a busy cafeteria or gymnasium.

How to use the sound level meter

After you have set the MP3 player to the listening level corresponding to each situation, attach the sound level meter to the headphones and observe the reading in dB A on the screen.

Situation 1

Go to a quiet area and set your MP3 player to your regular listening volume. Then, measure your volume level with a sound level meter.

 Music level in quiet _____________ dB A

 Situation 2

Go to area that has a background noise of ~ 65 dB and adjust your MP3 to a comfortable volume level and measure this level. 

 Music level in noise _____________ dB A

 

 What did you observe?

• How did the background noise affect the level that you set your music? 
• Did the music sound louder when you were listening in noise?  Why?
• What do you expect would have happened if you were wearing sound occluding headphones or noise cancellation headphones?

Discussion

• You will have noticed that the background noise in situation 2 caused you to increase the sound level that you set your music to.
• Despite the increase in sound level, the music itself didn’t seem any louder. This is because the background noise from the environment is interfering with you hearing your music. In other words, you are hearing both the noise and the music as opposed to hearing just the music.
• Sound occluding headphones or noise cancellation headphones block out the unwanted sounds found in a noisy environment. If you were wearing these headphones when you entered situation 2, mostly likely you would not have to increase the sound level of your MP3 player, and if you did increase the sound level, you would definitely perceive the music as being louder.

Ear Identification Game

 

Download the Ear Identification Game

Audiology Word Search

 

Download the Audiology Wordsearch