# Hearing with a cut-off ear
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hearing-with-a-cut-off-ear/374032
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [September 25, 2006, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hearing-with-a-cut-off-ear/374032 "2006-09-25T05:41:50Z")
**Posts on this page:** 6
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@hksj](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hksj)
#### Post date: [September 25, 2006, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hearing-with-a-cut-off-ear/374032/1 "2006-09-25T05:41:50Z")
If the exterior cartilage on the ear were to be lost (sheer face), how would hearing be affected? Are there prosthetics?
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### Author:  [@Harmonix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonix)
#### Post date: [September 25, 2006, 7:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hearing-with-a-cut-off-ear/374032/2 "2006-09-25T07:45:29Z")
> [@hksj](#):
>
> If the exterior cartilage on the ear were to be lost (sheer face), how would hearing be affected? Are there prosthetics?
IANAD but I imagine i’d mute hearing quite a bit. The exterior cartilage acts like a sound wave collector, and without it you’d just have the ear canal.
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### Author:  [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)
#### Post date: [September 25, 2006, 8:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hearing-with-a-cut-off-ear/374032/3 "2006-09-25T08:21:08Z")
It’s a shame Van Gogh was never a Doper. This would have been his time to shine.
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### Author:  [@bluezooky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bluezooky)
#### Post date: [September 25, 2006, 8:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hearing-with-a-cut-off-ear/374032/4 "2006-09-25T08:34:02Z")
Choppa says he can hear, I’m not gonna argue with [him](http://www.chopperread.com/)
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### Author:  [@spingears](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spingears)
#### Post date: [September 25, 2006, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hearing-with-a-cut-off-ear/374032/5 "2006-09-25T13:48:46Z")
> [@hksj](#):
>
> If the exterior cartilage on the ear were to be lost (sheer face), how would hearing be affected? Are there prosthetics?
Your ability to identify location of sound sources will be impaired.
Somebody somewhere is more that likely in the business of making sytthetic ear flaps!
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### Author:  [@awldune](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/awldune)
#### Post date: [September 25, 2006, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hearing-with-a-cut-off-ear/374032/6 "2006-09-25T14:09:36Z")
> [@spingears](#):
>
> Somebody somewhere is more that likely in the business of making sytthetic ear flaps!
I’ve certainly seen them before, although I’m sure their primary function is aesthetic.
While we wait for an ENT or ear amputee to show up, I would guess that outdoor breezes would disrupt hearing more for the earless.