?Can you listen? Can you hear me? A talk about audition?

MOGLIE, MARCELO JAVIER; CASTAGNOLA, TAIS; GALLINO, SOFIA; DI GUILMI, MARIANO; BOERO, LUIS; CARPANETO FREIXAS, AGUSTIN EDUARDO

Villa Carlos Paz

Congreso; XXXIV Reunión Anual SAN 2019; 2019

Sociedad Argentina de investigación en Neurociencias

Acoustic trauma has become a worldwide problem affecting thousands of people on a daily basis. Generating awareness about this situation is necessary to prevent hearing loss, especially among the young population. In this context, we decided to reach out to primary and middle-school students, not only because they are at a higher risk of harmful noise exposure but also because they can still change their habits into a healthier lifestyle. The project consisted on visiting two schools (Instituto Ramón L. Falcón and Colegio Nacional Buenos Aires) and a music conservatory (Coro Nacional de Niños) and giving a brief interactive talk (20-40 minutes approximately). We decided it was best to start by explaining the basis of the auditory sensory system; namely how sound stimuli are processed at a periferic level and then communicated to the central nervous system. In addition, we tried to demonstrate how harmful some everyday noises might be and the potential risks that being exposed to them brings. We believe that with a clear understanding of the basis of hearing it is possible to understand the importance of taking care of such a vital sensory system and encourage the population to avoid exposure to high sounds and protect themselves.