The History of Hearing Aids From: IEEE - The Institute - 07/22/2013 By: Sheldon Hochheiser Technology for the hearing impaired has come a long way Devices for the hearing-impaired have a long history. Until the late 19th century, hearing aids were acoustic and offered only modest amplification. They were cartoonish ear trumpets: tubular or funnel-shaped devices supported in one hand that collected sound waves and funneled them to the ear. The development of electrical technologies, however, opened new possibilities for amplification. Read the entire article and view a slide-show at: http://theinstitute.ieee.org/technology-focus/technology-history/the-history-of-hearing-aids Link: Hearing Aids and the History of Electronics Miniaturization http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=5771310