Ohio University alum Ning Zhou ’05M, ’10PhD will receive a 2014 “new investigators award from the American Auditory Society for her research with cochlear implants,” reports East Carolinian reporter Edward Boseman.
Dr. Ning Zhou
Zhou, now a faculty member with the department of Health Communication and Science at East Carolina University, earned an M.A. in Linguistics from the College of Arts & Sciences and a Ph.D. in Hearing Science from the College of Health Science and Professions.
The award is presented to researchers who have made consistent and productive articles to the organizations journal, “Ear and Hearing Journal.”
Her submission titled “Integration of Electrical Pulses by Listeners with Cochlear Implants” explores how to better improve the implants for better hearing and acuity.
“When you are deaf, it does not mean you have lost the nerves but rather you have lost inner ear function, you have lost the hair cells,” said Zhou.
Cochlear implants work by surgically implanting an electrical stimulus directly to the auditory nerve. A receiver and mini-computer translate sound waves to digital signals to apply to certain regions of the nerve.
“Figuring out the regions where neuron survival is better or where it is worse and the roles they have is the focus,” said Zhou. “Furthermore, we look at the quality rather than the quantity and the role it plays.”
Comments