Clyw Corff Cymru

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-Every single second of every day...

-..our senses gather information

-about our environment.

-The senses connect us

-to our surroundings.

-I'm Dr Anwen Rees,

-a Physiology lecturer...

-..at Cardiff Metropolitan

-University.

-I'm Dr Katie Hemer, a Bioarchaeology

-specialist at Sheffield University.

-We will look at the way the brain

-uses information...

-..to create

-a unique picture of the world.

-We will look at familiar

-and unfamiliar senses...

-..and how they collaborate.

-And how to trick them.

-HEARING

-The modern world is noisy.

-The auditory system

-must listen to everything...

-..so how does it decide

-what's important and what to ignore?

-How important is hearing

-in our everyday lives?

-Most of the ear

-is inside the head.

-When we hear a sound,

-the outer ear - the pinna...

-..captures and channels the sound

-from the air into the ear canal.

-Sound travels along the canal

-until it reaches the ear drum.

-The sound causes the ear drum

-to vibrate.

-These vibrations are then

-amplified by the ossicles...

-..the smallest bones in the body.

-The hammer

-is attached to the ear drum.

-As it vibrates, it hits the incus...

-..which hits the stapes

-against the cochlea.

-The cochlea

-looks like a snail's shell...

-..and it's full of fluid and

-thousands of cells covered in hairs.

-Vibrations make waves travel through

-the fluid and move the hairs.

-This sends nerve signals

-down the auditory nerve...

-..to the auditory cortex

-in the brain.

-It's like a computer,

-deciphering signals as sounds.

-One in six people in Wales

-has a hearing problem.

-How does someone with

-hearing problems sense the world?

-The Audiology Department

-at Singleton Hospital...

-..will create a pair of plugs for me

-which replicate hearing loss.

-I can hear my voice in my head.

-Hearing loss is a gradual process

-which we rarely notice.

-These plugs

-won't block out all sound.

-They're the equivalent

-of me losing 25% of my hearing.

-I'll try out these plugs

-in the middle of Swansea.

-What happens to sound

-once it reaches the brain?

-With so many different noises

-around us...

-..the brain decides what

-to listen to and what to ignore.

-How does the brain do this?

-What factors affect our ability

-to focus our hearing?

-I've come to Bangor University to

-take part in some special research.

-Dr Patricia Bestelmeyer

-and her team...

-..look at how the brain copes

-with different accents.

-My research is on voice perception.

-I'm interested in

-how somebody conveys...

-..the emotional state of a speaker,

-in vocal attractiveness...

-..and in accents.

-I'm particularly interested in what

-the sound of our voice tells us...

-..about that person.

-To find out what happens in my brain

-when I hear accents...

-..I must wear a special cap.

-We place gel in the holes...

-..to help the electrodes read the

-brainwaves which come off the scalp.

-The gel is cold,

-so it may feel strange.

-Yes, it is cold!

-It's horrible!

-I really don't like that feeling.

-It feels like someone cracked eggs

-all over my head.

-This technique is called EEG

-and it looks at brain activity.

-Some 126 electrodes

-are attached to the cap.

-Each electrode

-records a different signal.

-The readings will give

-the researchers an idea...

-..of which parts of my brain respond

-and when.

-What you see is your brainwaves,

-which we read from the electrodes.

-Look at the screen and you'll see

-a white cross in the middle.

-When the cross changes

-from white to red...

-..press the space bar

-as quickly as possible.

-Looking at the cross

-should keep me alert.

-I must listen to the word 'pamphlet'

-being said hundreds of times...

-..in different accents.

-That was interesting.

-I heard three strong accents -

-English, a Caernarfon accent...

-..and someone who sounded like

-an old school friend of mine.

-That's the accent to which

-I responded most strongly.

-The research is in its infancy.

-It's based on the results

-of Dr Bestelmeyer's previous work.

-We found increased activation

-to their own accents...

-..but decreased activation

-to the other accents.

-We found an interaction

-between where the person's from...

-..and the accent they listened to.

-We're not sure if it happens...

-..because your own accent

-is more attention-grabbing...

-..or if you like what you hear

-better in your own accent.

-The brain seems to react positively

-to a familiar accent...

-..but less so to other accents.

-The hearing and the part of the

-brain which deals with emotion...

-..seem to be linked

-when we hear a familiar accent.

-Oh!

-We'll let Katie wash her hair while

-I get used to my plugs in Swansea.

-These plugs mimic a hearing loss.

-I'm in a busy square and

-I can hear a TV, water gushing...

-..traffic and people talking.

-These plugs have changed the sounds.

-I can still hear the water

-and the TV...

-..but the traffic is very muffled...

-..and I can't really hear

-people talking.

-Now I'll see how it feels

-to be in a busy indoor market...

-..trying to do some shopping.

-SILENCE

-Hi! A small tub of cockles, please.

-Thank you.

-Rhubarb and custard

-and pear drops, please.

-It was OK.

-I can hear my voice in my head,

-although it feels like I'm mumbling.

-Every other voice seems muffled too

-but I can understand them.

-I'm here to meet Glenys Jones

-from Action On Hearing Loss Cymru...

-..to see how my experiences

-compare to people with hearing loss.

-There are different levels

-of hearing loss.

-Mild, moderate, severe

-and profound deafness.

-I think your hearing loss

-was between mild and moderate.

-Unfortunately,

-hearing deteriorates with age...

-..and it gets worse as we get older.

-When I had those moulds in my ears,

-my hearing was impaired instantly.

-In reality,

-deterioration in hearing happens...

-..over a period of months or years.

-Yes, and it depends

-on the individual.

-Some people take up to ten years

-to do something about their hearing.

-Are increasing numbers of people

-suffering hearing loss?

-Yes, and we're now

-targeting youngsters...

-..because we predict they'll suffer

-hearing loss at a younger age.

-They listen to loud music and that

-really isn't good for the hearing.

-How can we tell from which direction

-sound is coming?

-The brain cancels out

-all the echoes...

-..so that we only hear

-the accurate version of the noise.

-The University Of Nottingham

-has a special room...

-..which eliminates echoes.

-It's known as an anechoic chamber.

-Any noise sounds hollow, flat

-and dead in this room.

-I'm here to see

-how well I can locate sound.

-The brain works out

-the direction of a sound...

-..by measuring

-the time difference...

-..between the moment

-sound reaches both ears.

-If the sound comes from over here,

-it will reach this ear first...

-..then it will reach my other ear.

-The brain uses this information

-to calculate the sound's direction.

-In this test, sound is played...

-..and I move the red dot

-to where I think it originated.

-I was close!

-Very good.

-In the chamber, they can mimic how

-noise sounds in a room of any size.

-In the test,

-I hear two different noises.

-One sound seems to come from

-an ordinary living room...

-..and the other is very echoey,

-like a cathedral.

-I don't know.

-It came from everywhere!

-I'll go over here.

-Ah! The other side.

-Oh, dear!

-I may have a problem with my ears.

-This test isn't easy.

-No! The other side again.

-I'm not doing very well!

-I'm struggling because,

-in an ordinary room...

-..the brain distinguishes between

-the original sound and an echo.

-In a large space,

-like a cathedral...

-..the sound and the echoes

-reach the ear at the same time.

-That's why the brain struggles

-to locate the original sound.

-This is hard!

-I found it difficult but there's

-nothing wrong with my hearing.

-We're rarely in a situation where

-there are so many echoes around us.

-Studying the way we locate sound

-helps people who struggle to do it.

-People such as those

-who have had cochlea implants.

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-The hearing system starts to work

-before we're born.

-Fetuses start to listen to voices

-and sounds when they're in the womb.

-Generally, humans hear frequencies

-of between 20Hz and 20,000Hz.

-This is known

-as the pitch of the sound.

-As we get older, our capacity to

-hear higher frequencies diminishes.

-The intensity of a sound

-is measured in decibels.

-Our ears are very sensitive.

-They pick up everything, from

-rustling leaves to police sirens.

-Anything which is louder than this

-can damage the hearing.

-The Eustachian tube...

-..connects the middle ear

-to the back of the throat.

-It maintains normal air pressure

-in the middle ear.

-When that pressure changes,

-for example in water...

-..holding your nose and blowing

-gets it back to normal.

-Playing football without using your

-sight sounds impossible to me...

-..but, using their hearing, the boys

-behind me make it look easy.

-This special centre in Hereford...

-..is where the England

-Blind Football team trains.

-The players rely on their hearing.

-The ability to focus

-on different sounds is vital.

-The ball rattles, and

-acoustic boards around the pitch...

-..help players determine their

-own position and locate each other.

-As players go in for a tackle,

-they must shout, "Voy!"

-In addition, they listen for

-instructions from the goalkeeper...

-..the coach on the touchline

-and the manager.

-I invited former Wales international

-footballer, Iwan Roberts...

-..to have a go at playing the game.

-Iwan, what did you make of

-that training session?

-These lads are incredible.

-They run at pace,

-keeping the ball under control.

-I'm nervous but I look forward

-to taking part in the session.

-Put these over your eyes.

-I can't see a thing.

-You look great!

-The first step is to get used to

-the size of the pitch.

-In other words,

-the distance between the boards.

-Iwan is ready

-to train with the ball.

-Put your head above the ball.

-You're leaning back.

-Keryn Seal from Bridgend

-is the captain.

-When I was partially sighted,

-hearing was my secondary sense.

-When I went to being a blind

-footballer, it was a huge jump.

-It's not like

-your hearing gets any better.

-It's not like you can hear

-a pin drop from 1,000 yards.

-You learn to use it better...

-..so it's able to process

-three, four, five stimuli at once.

-It's hard to get used to because

-you're trying to focus on the ball.

-But now, I process

-the information around me...

-..and the ball is secondary to that

-because I practise skills so much.

-To be fair, Iwan seems to be

-picking it up quickly.

-The experience

-of watching the boys train...

-..was better

-than when I first took part!

-I couldn't see where I was going.

-I knew there were boards

-on the side of the pitch...

-..and my arm came out, as I

-wasn't sure where the boards were.

-I was worried about those boards.

-Would you like to take part

-in a game?

-No!

-The tempo of their play

-is incredible.

-They have speed on the ball

-and the tackles do come flying in!

-I'll leave them to it.

-The sun has set in

-the Swansea University gardens...

-..and we're looking for bats.

-Dr Gethin Thomas will show me

-how bats use their hearing...

-..in a very special way.

-Gethin, what is that device

-you're holding?

-It's a device which makes it

-possible for us to hear bats.

-The frequency of bat calls is

-too high for human ears to hear.

-What will we hear from the bats?

-What will we hear from the bats?

-

-A series of clicks.

-The sound we'll hear from this will

-be a click, click, click, click.

-We may also hear

-a faster sequence...

-..which sounds like

-blowing a raspberry!

-CLICKING

-We're hearing a sonic attack.

-The bat is only a centimetre or two

-away from the butterfly...

-..and this sonic attack

-stuns the butterfly...

-..making it easier to catch.

-Are we hearing

-bats echolocating here?

-Yes, that's right.

-Bats use sound in the same way

-as aeroplanes use radar.

-They emit sound,

-then they listen for echoes.

-That echo helps them work out

-what's around them.

-With practise,

-people can also echolocate.

-HE CLICKS HIS TONGUE

-Robert Williams went to America

-to learn this technique.

-Passive echolocation...

-..is something people use daily

-without thinking about it.

-I learned to click

-and it's a more direct method.

-The noise stops here,

-so I know the post is here.

-I'll go out again.

-Another post.

-Every noise we make creates echoes

-and we hear them all the time.

-We don't think about it.

-It just happens naturally.

-If you're at home and you hear

-the front door open.

-You don't see the front door.

-You just hear it.

-That's echolocation.

-Being in America made me more aware

-of it but I've used it all my life.

-Robert says anyone

-can learn this technique...

-..so he'll give me

-an echolocating lesson.

-Shh.

-Can you hear the difference?

-Can you hear the difference?

-

-Yes.

-Hiss without your hand there.

-Shh.

-It now sounds hollow.

-Yes, it's obvious that there's

-an empty space in front of me.

-If I stand right in front of you,

-you'll hear a difference again.

-Shh.

-Yes - it's very clear.

-Yes - it's very clear.

-

-You know there's a big lump ahead!

-Next, you must learn

-to make a better sound than shh!

-The usual way

-is to click the tongue.

-You're producing two sounds.

-It's like a classic clip-clop sound!

-Move your tongue further back

-and click faster.

-That's better. It's a bit sharper.

-Next, I'll use my click...

-..to work out on which side

-of my head Robert has put his arm.

-SHE CLICKS HER TONGUE

-The left side.

-The left side.

-

-Well done.

-Correct!

-I think it's the left again.

-Oh! The right.

-No arm at all!

-How do you use echolocation

-in your everyday life?

-I couldn't do without it

-but my stick is more important.

-There are times when I do use

-echolocation to help me.

-Sometimes on the street when there

-are lots of lamp posts around.

-Echolocation helps me

-in those situations.

-Robert shows me an example

-of the way distance changes echoes.

-What can you hear?

-What can you hear?

-

-There's something in front of me.

-How close is it?

-Around half a metre away.

-Carry on.

-Will I walk into a wall?

-Will I walk into a wall?

-

-Stop!

-How close is it now?

-Really close.

-Really close.

-

-Touch it.

-I knew there was something there.

-SHE GIGGLES

-Stop!

-Go!

-I'm facing outside.

-I'm facing outside.

-

-Well done.

-Very good.

-Today was a good start...

-..but I needs lots of practise

-if I'm going to master echolocation.

-One thing's for certain - I'll

-listen more carefully from now on.

-How important is hearing to you?

-Hearing is everything to me.

-Everything.

-I can't imagine life

-without hearing.

-It's part of everything I do.

-I'm a musician and I love to talk!

-I use my hearing

-to get around the country.

-Hearing is incredibly important

-to me.

-We're surrounded by sound

-in the modern world.

-The brain must recognize the sound

-and decide if it's important...

-..and get rid of echoes

-so we can locate it.

-Learning to listen

-changes the way we hear the world.

-Next time, we find out

-about our sense of touch...

-..and we feel pain.

-S4C subtitles by Eirlys A Jones

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