OAEs in Big Cats
This project is led and coordinated by Ed Walsh and JoAnn McGee at Boystown National Research Hospital (BTNRH). Christopher Shera (Eaton-Peabody Laboratories, MEEI) and Chris Bergevin (who studies cross-species differences in OAEs and cochlear mechanics; York University, Toronto, Canda) have recorded SFOAEs in Bengal tigers as part of this same project. In these photographs, we are recording stimulus frequency OAEs in Clouded Leopards at the Nashville Zoo.
Aging and Loudness Growth
As part of the Continuum of Maturation and Aging project we measure DPOAE Input/Output functions as an indirect metric of cochlear compression during aging. Postdoc, Amanda Ortmann, has begun to measure loudness growth in aging ears as a perceptual measure known to correlate with DPOAE I/O functions (Rasetshwane et al., 2013; JASA 134, 369-383). We are interested in whether compression features and loudness growth will be correlated during the aging with or without hearing loss.
Spontaneous OAEs Across the Human Lifespan
Over the 20 years we have been studying cochlear function, we have tested hundreds of newborns and adults, sometimes longitudinally to track maturation across months. We have recorded spontaneous otoacoustic emissions (SOAEs) in nearly all of these subjects and have amassed quite a data set of SOAEs from birth through senescence. We have begun to analyze this rich and ample data set to learn about changing cochlear properties across the human lifespan.
