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Evolution of Hearing and Balance

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Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science

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Synonyms

Evolution of mammalian hearing; Sound perception; The traveling sound; The peripheral and central auditory system; Vestibular system

Definition

The evolution of the human ear, the auditory system, and balance.

Introduction

To have a solid understanding of the capacity to hear and listen to sounds, there must be an education of how the sound firstly travels from its source to our brain. Therefore, there will be a brief discussion of the direction of sounds, followed by an evolutionary standpoint of the middle ear’s ossicles based on Reichert-Gaupp’s theory and more research on the evolution of the mammalian ear.

Next will be a brief discussion of the anatomical structures of the peripheral auditory system, namely the outer (external) ear, the middle ear, and the inner ear, along with its inner most important structures, the cochlea and the otoliths.

Important for keeping balance and movement is the role of the semicircular canals. Also, there will be a brief discussion on the...

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Nicosia, Nicosia, Cyprus

    Michael Khalil

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  1. Michael Khalil
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Oakland University, Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Todd K. Shackelford

  2. Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Viviana A. Weekes-Shackelford

Section Editor information

  1. University of Nicosia, Nicosia, Cyprus

    Menelaos Apostolou

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Khalil, M. (2018). Evolution of Hearing and Balance. In: Shackelford, T., Weekes-Shackelford, V. (eds) Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_981-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_981-1

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