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1 - Ear canal: Sound moves through the ear canal and strikes the eardrum.
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2 - Eardrum and bones: Sound waves cause the eardrum to vibrate, sending the bones in the middle ear into motion.
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3 - Inner ear: This motion causes the fluid inside the inner ear (cochlea) to move the hair cells.
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4 - Hearing nerve: Hair cells change the movement into electric impulses, which are sent to the hearing nerve into the brain; you hear sound.