Stereocilia

• Zebrafish regenerate them all the time.
• You have them in your ear.
• Loud noises break them.
• They are small hair-like cells.
• You have about 16,000 of the in your left ear.
• The respond to vibrations to help you keep your balance and to determine where a sound is coming from.
• Can you tell where a sound is coming from as well as ever?
• Soft noises cause these hair cells to shift at their bases.
• Loud sounds can cause them to break.
• Once they are gone, they never grow back in humans.
• Stereocilia damage is a cause of tinnitus.