The three smallest bones in the human body are found in your ear, where they vibrate in response to sound

Saturday, March 29, 2014 by: David Gutierrez, staff writer
Tags: ear, auditory ossicles, hearing

(NaturalNews) The three smallest bones in your body are all found inside your ear, and you would be completely deaf without them.

Known formally as the malleus, incus and stapes (and informally as the hammer, anvil and stirrup, after their approximate shapes), all three of these tiny bones could fit easily on a penny at the same time. They sit in the middle ear, between the external structures of the outer ear and the fluid-filled cochlea, which sends signals directly to the brain. Together, these three bones are called the ossicles.

When a sound wave (vibration in the air) strikes your ear, the conical shape of the outer ear focuses that wave and funnels it into the middle ear.

The tiny ossicles are so sensitive that, when struck by these sound waves, they vibrate and strike a thin membrane called the oval window. This step is essential in allowing the sound waves to be transmitted from the air to the fluid of the cochlea.

Sources:

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