by Neil Bauman, Ph.D. Has this ever happened to you? You “buried” your cell phone somewhere nearby and because of your poor hearing, you did not hear it ringing or see it blinking. And you didn’t feel it vibrating either. Result? Missed phone calls and/or missed text messages. You depended on your cell phone’s alarm […]
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Do I Need a Loop System and a PockeTalker or Just a PockeTalker?
by Neil Bauman, Ph.D. A lady explained, I don’t know exactly what I need. I have behind-the-ear hearing aids and I’m extremely hard of hearing. My TV is not clear so I might need a loop system. Also, I can’t hear much in the car so I might need the PockeTalker, but your website says […]
Interventions, Cost/Benefit Ratios and Hearing Loss
by Neil Bauman, Ph.D. A concerned daughter wrote, My step-dad has been hard of hearing since the 1990s due to being a gunner in Vietnam. Only in the last 8 years has he decided to not wear his hearing aids even though he got some updated ones just 3 years ago. I have seen the […]
Pacemakers and Loop Systems
by Neil Bauman, Ph.D. © June, 2014 A man asked, Am I able to use the different loop systems or will my pacemaker prevent my using them?” An audiologist questioned, “Have you ever run into a person who can’t use a loop system due to pacemaker issues? We have some clients that have […]
Latest Research on Enlarged Vestibular Aqueducts
by Neil Bauman, Ph.D. Not much was known about enlarged vestibular aqueducts (EVA) when I first wrote about it in 2002. Back then, it was called Large Vestibular Aqueduct Syndrome (LVAS). Now it is more-commonly referred to as EVA, but it is the same condition. In the intervening years, researchers have done a number of […]
Speech Speed vs. Understanding What Was Said
by Neil Bauman, Ph.D. A man wrote, Have you addressed the issue of “speech rate” as a factor in hearing loss and comprehension? As I recall, the “optimal” speech rate is approximately 180 words per minute (wpm). Yet I find that the broadcast industry (radio and TV) are hiring commentators who speak at least 210 […]
Sound Delay When Using Assistive Devices with Your TV
by Neil Bauman, Ph.D. A man asked, All wireless sound systems I have tried to date have a slight delay that creates an echo effect with the TV speaker sound. Does the TV Sound Box have this problem? Not according to my wife. She’s the one that uses the Sound Box in our house. (I […]
Turning on the Captions on TVs in Public Places
by Neil Bauman, Ph.D. Doesn’t it just irk you when you go into a coffee shop and the TV is on, but there are no captions so you can’t understand what is going on? Maybe you are in the breakfast area at a motel and they are showing the weather for the day—but you can’t […]
Removing Ear Protectors Slowly
by Neil Bauman, Ph.D. © May, 2014 A man wrote, I am having to have a MRI scan done this week and when I went to look for ear plugs to wear under the muffs provided by the Imaging Clinic there was a pair that were a reusable gel type that had a protection […]
Visual Triggers That Can Cause Balance Problems in People with Damaged Vestibular Systems
by Neil Bauman, Ph.D. If your balance (vestibular) system has largely been destroyed by taking various ototoxic drugs, by viral attacks on your vestibular system, or from conditions such as Meniere’s disease, you typically have to work hard to keep your balance. However, certain movements, “busy” scenes and other situations can, without warning, […]