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ERNEST GLEN WEVER; MERLE LAWRENCE; KENDON R. SMITH

Arch Otolaryngol. 1948;48(1):19-35.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

THE PRIMARY function of the middle ear is one of mechanical efficiency. This structure aids in transmitting vibrations from the air to the fluid of the cochlea, in which the sensory cells are placed. Its service in this regard became a practical necessity when in the course of evolution certain of the vertebrates left the sea and appeared on land. Their water ears, which were simple sacs buried deep below the surface of the head, then became nearly useless, just as must be true for a modern fish when brought above the surface. The reason derives from a simple principle of sound transmission.

Sound waves in one medium will not readily enter another medium of different acoustic resistance. Rather, they are reflected back from the boundary. The transmission is easily calculated because it depends on the ratio of the acoustic resistance, and the acoustic resistance of a medium depends only . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

Author Affiliations
PRINCETON, N. J.

From the Psychological Laboratory, Princeton University.

Footnotes
This work was carried out under contract with the Office of Naval Research as Contract N6 onr-270 Task Order III.

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