HUMANS use echoes similar to batsto locate objects, a study by the University of Southampton has found.
A report published in Hearing Research revealed that locating an object by listening to echoes, without moving the head, requires good hearing at high frequencies in both ears.
It adds to research published in 2013 by the team at the University’s Institute of Sound & Vibration Research which showed that some sighted and blind people could use echoes in this way. Lead author of the study, Dr Daniel Rowan, said “We know that hearing echoes is important in daily life for some blind people.We wanted to get some insight into how much those particular forms of hearing loss might affect users of echoes to locate objects. Our results suggest they would struggle.
“Hearing aid services tend to focus on how well a person can hear speech.
Research indicates that those services also need to take into account whether someone needs to hear echoes in their daily life.”
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