I recently came across this press release and found it quite interesting.
It seems that scientists at the University of Utah used infrared radiation to stimulate inner ear hair cells -- which sent signals to the brain.
They are predicting that this could improve cochlear technology.
Take a look at the article here :
http://bit.ly/dH2uSvThanks for the link ... article was a good read
Existing cochlear implants convert sound into electrical signals, which typically are transmitted to eight electrodes in the cochlea, a part of the inner ear where sound vibrations are converted to nerve signals to the brain. Eight electrodes can deliver only eight frequencies of sound, Rabbitt says.
"A healthy adult can hear more than 3,000 different frequencies. With optical stimulation, there's a possibility of hearing hundreds or thousands of frequencies instead of eight. Perhaps someday an optical cochlear implant will allow deaf people to once again enjoy music and hear all the nuances in sound that a hearing person would enjoy."
