How Does the Ear Work?

The ear has three main parts: the outer ear (including the external auditory canal), middle ear, and inner ear. The outer ear (the part you can see) opens into the ear canal. The eardrum (tympanic membrane) separates the ear canal from the middle ear. Attached to the other side of the eardrum, in a small space of air, are three tiny bones which then attach to a fluid-filled structure called the cochlea of the inner ear which changes sound into neurological signals and the auditory (hearing) nerv