A sound engineer monitors a concert with noise-canceling headphones. Why does prolonged exposure to frequencies exceeding 110 dB cause permanent hearing loss despite the noise cancellation?

💡 Explanation

Prolonged exposure to high decibel sound levels causes physical damage to the stereocilia within the cochlea through mechanoelectrical transduction, even with noise cancellation, because the hair cells' structural integrity is compromised by the intense vibrations; therefore, permanent hearing loss occurs due to irreversible stereocilia damage, rather than merely nerve overstimulation or changes in fluid viscosity.

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