A very interesting viewpoint. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is developing an entirely internal cochlear implant. Users would charge the device wirelessly; the prototype charger plugs into a cell phone and charges the implant in two minutes. This middle-ear technology created by MIT, Harvard University, and the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary has already been tested on a few patients, who were able to hear with it. The University of Utah has also previously worked on a microphone that can be implanted in the middle ear. When venturing into the hearing world, the oral deaf often bump into many who see the cochlear implant (and also the hearing aid) as a “cure” for hearing loss. We have to argue that it isn’t because, while our hearing is improved, we still have difficulty understanding others. We don’t know if this new internal cochlear implant is a “cure.” It probably won’t be. But in the eyes of many hearing people, it already is. Deaf people wearing internal cochlear implants will have trouble validating themselves as deaf to hearing people who don’t see a physical device on their heads. The loss of that visual cue will blur the line between the oral deaf and the hearing.
Posted on: Sat, 17 May 2014 16:19:12 +0000
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