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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 19 records
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Effects of Long Duration Space Flight on Low Frequency Hearing

Pure tone hearing threshold data has been collected on astronauts since the early days of spaceflight. Between 1981 and 2001 (STS-1 thru 108) it was found that of the 608 shuttle astronauts, 17% returned home with a significant hearing threshold shift, and of that 6% had permanent changes in the high frequencies. Believed to be due to prolonged noise exposure on the space crafts. (Hart, 2006) As NASA aimed for longer duration missions the uncertainty about the effects of month-long noise exposure needed to be addressed. To avoid constraining crewmembers to constant earplug usage, and satisfying budget demands, a focused effort on overcoming the issues began. Noise monitoring systems were introduced onto the International Space Station (ISS) and astronauts were given education on the noise environment aboard the ISS, the hazards of noise induced hearing loss, hearing conservation principles, and countermeasure strategies (earplugs, noise cancellation headsets). As well as being trained on a new countermeasure effort that had been in trial testing on prior shuttle missions (STS-6 thru 8), On-Orbit Hearing Assessment (OOHA). (Hart, 2006) OOHA was implemented to routinely monitor the hearing thresholds of crewmembers who are on orbit for longer than 30 days. Flight Surgeons on ground monitor these test for significant hearing changes while aboard. Between 2000 and 2021 the ISS OOHA system (EarQ) recorded changes in the low frequency hearing thresholds. Low frequency hearing changes are not typically caused by noise exposure, and it was initially believed that these changes were due to environmental noise interference. In 2021 an ISS software upgrade (KUDUwave) allowed for a more comprehensive hearing assessment. The new testing system allowed for additional tests that helped describe the type of hearing loss being experienced and determine the influence of ambient noise or other environmental factors. OOHA Data indicates a low frequency hearing shift in 40% of all tests and 60% of all crewmembers. Since 2021, OOHA results (using the KUDUwave) suggest that these shifts are sensorineural and are not the result of ambient noise. While hearing shifts are seen at both 250 and 500 Hz, metrics tracking these shifts have only used 500 Hz data. The lack of 250 Hz has prevented accurate reporting of low frequency hearing shift recovery. The aim of this study is to capture 250 Hz data and accurately present low frequency hearing loss recovery.

hearing↗
NASA NTRS2001

Hearing loss in space

BACKGROUND: Temporary and, in some cases, permanent hearing loss has been documented after long-duration spaceflights. METHODS: We examined all existing published data on hearing loss after space missions to characterize the losses. RESULTS: Data from Russian missions suggest that the hearing loss, when it occurs, affects mainly mid to high frequencies and that using hearing protection often might prevent the loss. Several significant questions remain about hearing loss in space. While the hearing loss has been presumed to be noise-induced, no clear link has been established between noise exposure and hearing loss during spaceflight. In one documented case of temporary hearing loss from the Shuttle-Mir program, the pattern of loss was atypical for a noise-induced loss. Continuous noise levels that have been measured on the Mir and previous space stations, while above engineering standards, are not at levels usually associated with hearing loss in ground-based studies (which have usually been limited to 8-10 h exposure periods). Attempts to measure hearing in space using threshold-based audiograms have been unsuccessful in both the American and Russian programs due to noise interference with the measurements. CONCLUSIONS: The existing data highlight the need for reliable monitoring of both hearing and noise in long-duration spaceflight.

manned↗
DOE OSTI2022

Hearing impairment and tinnitus among older construction workers employed at DOE facilities

Few studies have defined the risk of hearing impairment and tinnitus after retirement. This report measures hearing impairment and tinnitus prevalence among older construction trades workers. The study cohort included 21,340 participants in a national medical screening program. Audiometric hearing impairment was classified according to the Global Burden of Disease Study. Tinnitus was determined by self-report. An internal subcohort of nonconstruction trades workers served as a reference group. Stratified analyses and multivariate analyses were used to measure the prevalence of hearing impairment and tinnitus by age, sex, and job category. Prevalence of any hearing impairment was 55.2% (males, 57.7%; females, 26.8%) and increased rapidly with age. Construction trades workers were 40% more likely to have hearing impairment than the reference group. The overall prevalence of tinnitus was 46.52% and followed patterns similar to hearing impairment. Workers with hearing impairment were more likely to also have tinnitus, but tinnitus was frequently reported in the absence of measured hearing impairment. Hearing impairment and tinnitus prevalence were much higher in this study than in previous research. A significant reason for the difference is that BTMed follows participants after they have retired. To draw conclusions about the risk for work-related chronic diseases and disorders it is important to monitor workers through their lifetimes. Also, tinnitus by itself should be given greater significance. We report the findings reinforce the need to promote noise reduction and hearing conservation in construction.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2025

Unraveling the Noise: An Investigation Plan for Signal Interference in Hearing Aids

Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) has revolutionized the performance of hearing aids with functionalities like seamless audio streaming and enhanced auditory functions. However, BLE operates within the highly congested 2.4 GHz frequency band, making it susceptible to signal interference that can degrade performance, reduce audio quality, and impact user experience. This paper documents interference patterns in BLE communication and introduces practical mitigation techniques aimed at improving the reliability of hearing aids. Attack vectors associated with Bluetooth enabled hearing aids include communication jamming, the interception of data between target devices, and GATT handle exploitation. Attackers could also use the vulnerabilities to block communications or intercept sensitive audio streams, posing significant security and privacy risks. These threats compromise two critical components of the CIA triad: (1) availability, by causing persistent connectivity issues, and (2) integrity, by enabling unauthorized data modifications. It is necessary to deal with these problems to ensure hearing aids work well and safely. This study investigates the impact of BLE signal interference on hearing aids, using tools such as HackRF [1], a Python tool to simulate interference scenarios, and Ubertooth [2] to sniff Bluetooth traffic between hearing aids and the device with the application. This paper investigates testing of BLE traffic in search of specific interference patterns that would impact the functionality of hearing aids, including jamming and flooding. This research focuses on developing robust mitigation techniques with the aim of securing BLE-enabled hearing aids against those vulnerabilities.

Baldwin, David [Savannah River National Laboratory↗
NASA NTRS2002

Hearing Aid Assembly

Progress in hearing aids has come a long way. Yet despite such progress hearing aids are not the perfect answer to many hearing problems. Some adult ears cannot accommodate tightly fitting hearing aids. Mouth movements such as chewing, talking, and athletic or other active endeavors also lead to loosely fitting ear molds. It is well accepted that loosely fitting hearing aids are the cause of feedback noise. Since feedback noise is the most common complaint of hearing aid wearers it has been the subject of various patents. Herein a hearing aid assembly is provided eliminating feedback noise. The assembly includes the combination of a hearing aid with a headset developed to constrict feedback noise.

Grugel, Richard N.↗
DOE OSTI2021

VEGFA165 gene therapy ameliorates blood-labyrinth barrier breakdown and hearing loss

Millions of people are affected by hearing loss. Hearing loss is frequently caused by noise or aging and often associated with loss of pericytes. Pericytes populate the small vessels in the adult cochlea. However, their role in different types of hearing loss is largely unknown. Using an inducible and conditional pericyte depletion mouse model and noise-exposed mouse model, we show that loss of pericytes leads to marked changes in vascular structure, in turn leading to vascular degeneration and hearing loss. In vitro, using advanced tissue explants from pericyte fluorescence reporter models combined with exogenous donor pericytes, we show that pericytes, signaled by VEGF isoform A165 (VEGFA165), vigorously drive new vessel growth in both adult and neonatal mouse inner ear tissue. In vivo, the delivery of an adeno-associated virus serotype 1–mediated (AAV1–mediated) VEGFA165 viral vector to pericyte-depleted or noise-exposed animals prevented and regenerated lost pericytes, improved blood supply, and attenuated hearing loss. These studies provide the first clear-cut evidence that pericytes are critical for vascular regeneration, vascular stability, and hearing in adults. The restoration of vascular function in the damaged cochlea, including in noise-exposed animals, suggests that VEGFA165 gene therapy could be a new strategy for ameliorating vascular associated hearing disorders.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2025

Effect of bisphosphonate treatment on the oim mouse middle ear ossicles' structure, composition and hearing

Hearing loss is common in people with osteogenesis imperfecta (OI or brittle bone disease). Bisphosphonates are commonly used to treat long bone fragility in children with OI. However, its impact on the bone quality of the middle ear ossicles and hearing remains unknown. This study determines whether bisphosphonates treatment itself may contribute to hearing loss in OI by evaluating its effects in the oim/oim mouse model of severe OI having normal auditory function. Specifically, this study reports the effects of alendronate (ALN), a nitrogen-containing bisphosphonate, on ossicle morphology, porosity, and elemental composition in 14-week-old oim/oim mice treated weekly, starting at 2 weeks of age. The ossicles were examined using synchrotron microtomography and X-ray fluorescence microscopy (XFM). Hearing was assessed longitudinally until 26 weeks of age by determining auditory brainstem response (ABR) thresholds in another group of mice also treated weekly starting at 2 weeks of age. ALN treatment further reduces in size the already small oim/oim ossicles, specifically in female mice. Porosity, bone composition, and hearing function, however, were generally not affected by the ALN treatment. Furthermore, ALN does not prevent joint fusions, excessive bone formations, or enlarged joint spaces in WT or oim/oim experimental groups. One ALN-treated oim/oim mouse with a bone formation in the interior of the footplate, and one ALN-treated WT mouse with a fixed footplate had frequency-specific hearing loss. Since footplate abnormalities are not observed in PBS-treated mice in this study, it remains unclear whether ALN fails to prevent these changes or contributes to their development. Future studies should investigate the mechanisms of ossicular abnormalities and bisphosphonates modulatory role in the ossicles.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

Provider Perspectives: Identification and Follow-up of Infants who Are Deaf or Hard of Hearing

Objective Without timely screening, diagnosis, and intervention, hearing loss can cause significant delays in a child's speech, language, social, and emotional development. In 2019, Texas had nearly twice the average rate of loss to follow-up (LFU) or loss to documentation (LTD; i.e., missing documentation of services received) among infants who did not pass their newborn hearing screening compared to the United States overall (51.1 vs. 27.5%). We aimed to identify factors contributing to LFU/LTD among infants who do not pass their newborn hearing screening in Texas. Study Design Data were collected through semistructured qualitative interviews with 56 providers along the hearing care continuum, including hospital newborn hearing screening program staff, audiologists, primary care physicians, and early intervention (EI) program staff located in three rural and urban public health regions in Texas. Following recording and transcription of the interviews, we used qualitative data analysis software to analyze themes using a conventional content analysis approach. Results Frequently cited barriers included problems with family access to care, difficulty contacting patients, problems with communication between providers and referrals, lack of knowledge among providers and parents, and problems using the online reporting system. Providers in rural areas more often mentioned problems with family access to care and contacting families compared to providers in urban areas. Conclusion These findings provide insight into strategies that public health professionals and health care providers can use to work together to help further increase the number of children identified early who may benefit from EI services. Key Points

Obstetrics & Gynecology↗
NASA NTRS1977

Hearing aid malfunction detection system

A malfunction detection system for detecting malfunctions in electrical signal processing circuits is disclosed. Malfunctions of a hearing aid in the form of frequency distortion and/or inadequate amplification by the hearing aid amplifier, as well as weakening of the hearing aid power supply are detectable. A test signal is generated and a timed switching circuit periodically applies the test signal to the input of the hearing aid amplifier in place of the input signal from the microphone. The resulting amplifier output is compared with the input test signal used as a reference signal. The hearing aid battery voltage is also periodically compared to a reference voltage. Deviations from the references beyond preset limits cause a warning system to operate.

Kessinger, R. L.↗
NASA NTRS2003

Hearing is Believing

This paper presents a discussion on the cochlear implant. This device was developed by Adam Kissiah, who suffers from hearing loss. Driven by his own hearing problem and three failed corrective surgeries, Kissiah started working in the mid-1970s on this surgically implantable device that provides hearing sensation to persons with severe-to-profound hearing loss who receive little or no benefit from hearing aids. Uniquely, the cochlear implant concept was not based on theories of medicine, as Kissiah had no medical background whatsoever. Instead, he utilized the technical expertise he learned while working as an electronics instrumentation engineer at NASA s Kennedy Space Center for the basis of his invention. This took place over 3 years, when Kissiah would spend his lunch breaks and evenings in Kennedy s technical library, studying the impact of engineering principles on the inner ear. In April of 2003, Kissiah was inducted into the Space Foundation's U.S. Space Technology Hall of Fame for his invention

Source record↗
NASA NTRS1978

Hearing Aid Tester

Hearing aids often develop malfunctions that are not detected by the wearer. This is particularly true when the wearers are school-age children. Studies of selected groups showed that from 30 to more than 50 percent of school children were not getting adequate benefit from their hearing aids because of unrecognized malfunctions, usually low or dead batteries. This can be serious because hearing impairment retards a child's educational progress. NASA technology incorporated in the Hearing Aid Malfunction Detection Unit (HAMDU), the device pictured, is expected to provide an effective countermeasure to the childrens' hearing aid problem. A patent license has been awarded to a minority-owned firm, Hopkins International Company, a subsidiary of H. H. Aerospace Design Co., Inc., Elmford, New York. The company plans early commercial availability of its version of the device.

Source record↗
DOE OSTI2024

Course #2430: Hearing Conservation [Slides]

Occupational hearing loss is one of the most common work-related illnesses in the United States (US). According to OSHA, 22 million US workers are exposed to hazardous noise levels at work, and 25% of these workers will develop permanent hearing loss. Hearing loss from noise is slow and painless, and you can have a disability before you notice it. This course presents the hazards associated with workplace noise, the purpose and elements of the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) Hearing Conservation Program (HCP), and controls that are available to reduce your exposure to hazardous levels of noise.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS1984

Noise-induced hearing impairment and handicap

A permanent, noise-induced hearing loss has doubly harmful effect on speech communications. First, the elevation in the threshold of hearing means that many speech sounds are too weak to be heard, and second, very intense speech sounds may appear to be distorted. The whole question of the impact of noise-induced hearing loss upon the impairments and handicaps experienced by people with such hearing losses was somewhat controversial partly because of the economic aspects of related practical noise control and workmen's compensation.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS2012

Data Acquisition, Management, and Analysis in Support of the Audiology and Hearing Conservation and the Orbital Debris Program Office

My internship at Johnson Space Center, Houston TX comprised of working simultaneously in the Space Life Science Directorate (Clinical Services Branch, SD3) in Audiology and Hearing Conservation and in the Astromaterials Research and Exploration Sciences Directorate in the Orbital Debris Program Office (KX). The purpose of the project done to support the Audiology and Hearing Conservation Clinic (AuHCon) is to organize and analyze auditory test data that has been obtained from tests conducted onboard the International Space Station (ISS) and in Johnson Space Center's clinic. Astronauts undergo a special type of auditory test called an On-Orbit Hearing Assessment (OOHA), which monitors hearing function while crewmembers are exposed to noise and microgravity during long-duration spaceflight. Data needed to be formatted to assist the Audiologist in studying, analyzing and reporting OOHA results from all ISS missions, with comparison to conventional preflight and post-flight audiometric test results of crewmembers. Orbital debris is the #1 threat to manned spacecraft; therefore NASA is investing in different measurement techniques to acquire information on orbital debris. These measurements are taken with telescopes in different parts of the world to acquire brightness variations over time, from which size, rotation rates and material information can be determined for orbital debris. Currently many assumptions are taken to resolve size and material from observed brightness, therefore a laboratory (Optical Measurement Center) is used to simulate the space environment and acquire information of known targets suited to best model the orbital debris population. In the Orbital Debris Program Office (ODPO) telescopic data were acquired and analyzed to better assess the orbital debris population.

Dicken, Todd↗
DOE OSTI2022

Outsourced hearing in an orb-weaving spider that uses its web as an auditory sensor

Hearing is a fundamental sense of many animals, including all mammals, birds, some reptiles, amphibians, fish, and arthropods. The auditory organs of these animals are extremely diverse in anatomy after hundreds of millions of years of evolution, yet all are made up of cellular tissue and are morphologically part of the bodies of animals. Here, we show that hearing in the orb-weaving spider Larinioides sclopetarius is not constrained by the organism’s body but is extended through outsourcing hearing to its extended phenotype, the proteinaceous, self-manufactured orb web. We find that the wispy, wheel-shaped orb web acts as a hyperacute acoustic antenna to capture the sound-induced air particle movements that approach the maximum physical efficiency better than the acoustic responsivity of all previously known eardrums. By sensing the motion of web threads, the spider remotely detects and localizes the source of an incoming airborne acoustic wave, such as those emitted by approaching prey or predators. By outsourcing its acoustic sensors to its web, the spider is released from body size constraints and permits the araneid spider to increase its sound-sensitive surface area enormously, up to 10,000 times greater than the spider itself. The spider also enables the flexibility to functionally adjust and regularly regenerate its external "eardrum" according to its needs. The outsourcing and supersizing of auditory function in spiders provides unique features for studying extended and regenerative sensing and designing novel acoustic flow detectors for precise fluid dynamic measurement and manipulation.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

Assessment methods for determining small changes in hearing performance over time

Although the behavioral pure-tone threshold audiogram is considered the gold standard for quantifying hearing loss, assessment of speech understanding, especially in noise, is more relevant to quality of life but is only partly related to the audiogram. Metrics of speech understanding in noise are therefore an attractive target for assessing hearing over time. However, speech-in-noise assessments have more potential sources of variability than pure-tone threshold measures, making it a challenge to obtain results reliable enough to detect small changes in performance. Here, this review examines the benefits and limitations of speech-understanding metrics and their application to longitudinal hearing assessment, and identifies potential sources of variability, including learning effects, differences in item difficulty, and between- and within-individual variations in effort and motivation. We conclude by recommending the integration of non-speech auditory tests, which provide information about aspects of auditory health that have reduced variability and fewer central influences than speech tests, in parallel with the traditional audiogram and speech-based assessments.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2024

Sound-localization-related activation and functional connectivity of dorsal auditory pathway in relation to demographic, cognitive, and behavioral characteristics in age-related hearing loss

Background Patients with age-related hearing loss (ARHL) often struggle with tracking and locating sound sources, but the neural signature associated with these impairments remains unclear. Materials and methods Using a passive listening task with stimuli from five different horizontal directions in functional magnetic resonance imaging, we defined functional regions of interest (ROIs) of the auditory “where” pathway based on the data of previous literatures and young normal hearing listeners ( n = 20). Then, we investigated associations of the demographic, cognitive, and behavioral features of sound localization with task-based activation and connectivity of the ROIs in ARHL patients ( n = 22). Results We found that the increased high-level region activation, such as the premotor cortex and inferior parietal lobule, was associated with increased localization accuracy and cognitive function. Moreover, increased connectivity between the left planum temporale and left superior frontal gyrus was associated with increased localization accuracy in ARHL. Increased connectivity between right primary auditory cortex and right middle temporal gyrus, right premotor cortex and left anterior cingulate cortex, and right planum temporale and left lingual gyrus in ARHL was associated with decreased localization accuracy. Among the ARHL patients, the task-dependent brain activation and connectivity of certain ROIs were associated with education, hearing loss duration, and cognitive function. Conclusion Consistent with the sensory deprivation hypothesis, in ARHL, sound source identification, which requires advanced processing in the high-level cortex, is impaired, whereas the right–left discrimination, which relies on the primary sensory cortex, is compensated with a tendency to recruit more resources concerning cognition and attention to the auditory sensory cortex. Overall, this study expanded our understanding of the neural mechanisms contributing to sound localization deficits associated with ARHL and may serve as a potential imaging biomarker for investigating and predicting anomalous sound localization.

Wu, Junzhi↗
NASA NTRS1977

Hearing-aid tester

Hearing aids are automatically checked by circuit that applies half-second test signal every thirty minutes. If hearing-aid output is distorted, too small, or if battery is too low, a warning lamp is activated. Test circuit is incorporated directly into hearing-aid package.

Kessinger, R.↗