Editing Cochlea (section)

=== Pathway to the brain ===
To transmit the sensation of sound to the brain, where it can be processed into the perception of ''hearing'', hair cells of the cochlea must convert their mechanical stimulation into the electrical signaling patterns of the nervous system. Hair cells are modified [[neuron]]s, able to generate action potentials which can be transmitted to other nerve cells. These action potential signals travel through the [[vestibulocochlear nerve]] to eventually reach the anterior [[Medulla oblongata|medulla]], where they [[synapse]] and are initially processed in the [[Cochlear nucleus|cochlear nuclei]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Martin |first=John Harry |title=Neuroanatomy: Text and Atlas |publisher=McGraw Hill |year=2021 |isbn=978-1-259-64248-7 |edition=5th |location=New York |language=English |chapter=Chapter 8: The Auditory System}}</ref>

Some processing occurs in the cochlear nuclei themselves, but the signals must also travel to the [[superior olivary complex]] of the [[pons]] as well as the [[Inferior colliculus|inferior colliculi]] for further processing.<ref name=":0" />