Kenneth Iverson, MD, (left) and Brian McKinnon, MD, have shown that a cochlear implant with more electrodes and a thinner, more flexible wire that can be inserted further into the inner ear may work better for patients.

Photo from Medical College of Georgia.

May is Speech and Hearing Awareness Month. Many of us take our abilities to hear and speak for granted but as Hosea Ballou said, "every word spoken within the hearing of little children tends towards the formation of character." Communication skills are vital to our fundamental development and the function of our everyday lives, yet millions of Canadians and their families live with the challenges of speech, language and hearing disorders.

Rising from the top surface of each of the specialized receptor cells in our inner ears is a bundle of sensory cilia that responds to the movement of sound. As sensitive as they are fragile, these cilia can move to wisps of sound no larger than a molecule - but can shear at sounds that are larger than life.

A fascinating event looking at sign language research is to be held at University College London on 20 March as part of the Economic and Social Research Council's (ESRC) Festival of Social Science (21-21 March). The vast majority of research studies on language and thought are based on languages which are spoken and heard, so this event will provide an innovative and fresh approach.

Now you can take an active part in any conversation.

Oticon Agil

allows you to make intuitive sense of your surroundings – even in situations where many sounds compete for your attention. And Oticon Agil lets you do all this while demanding less of you.