ABSTRACT
The mammalian organ of Corti is one of the most remarkable structures in all of the vertebrates. Our perception of the full spectrum of sounds — from simple tones through highly complex components of speech and music — is mediated through a structure that is comprised of only approximately 500,000 to 600,000 cells, of which only 3500 (the inner hair cells) are actually listening. By comparison, the mammalian retina contains six million cone photoreceptors and an additional 100 million rod photoreceptors.
