Scientists Induce Sense of Balance Electronically

Johns Hopkins researchers are working on a BIONIC EAR -- not the part of the ear that hears, but the part that gives you a sense of balance. This prototype can "measure and transmit 3-D balance information to the brain through multiple electrodes connected to the vestibular nerve." Scientists hope the research will lead to a multichannel vestibular prosthesis -- an artificial inner ear -- within a few years. Some 30,000 Americans suffer from a loss of inner ear balance.