A research team led by scientists of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology scanned the skulls of Neandertals and found the small middle ear ossicles, which are important for hearing.

Early hominin auditory ossicles from South Africa. PNAS, May 13, 2013 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1303375110 ...

Letter Published: 27 January 1962 Homology of Ear Ossicles GUNNAR BERTMAR Nature 193, 393–394 (1962) Cite this article ...

The vertebrate ear is a remarkable structure. Tightly encapsulated within the densest bone of the skeleton, it comprises the smallest elements of the vertebrate skeleton (auditory ossicles) and ...

The middle ear of modern mammals has three auditory ossicles — the malleus, the incus and the stapes — whereas in reptiles, there is only one cylindrical bone.

The vibration of the oval window sets the fluid in the inner ear into wave motion (see part 2). Two tiny muscles attached to the ossicles contract when sound is loud (and potentially damaging to the ...

More information: Alexander Stoessel et al. Morphology and function of Neandertal and modern human ear ossicles, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2016). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1605881113 ...

Ear ossicles of modern humans and Neanderthals: Different shape, similar function Date: September 27, 2016 Source: Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology Summary: Scientists have ...

Since ossicles are not only small but also complex-shaped the researchers compared them by means of three-dimensional analysis that uses a much larger number of measuring points allowing for ...