| Definition: |
A nerve in the head that carries signals from the cochlea of the inner ear to the brain. It is part of the vestibulocochlear nerve, the 8th cranial nerve which is found in higher vertebrates; the other portion of the 8th cranial nerve is the vestibular nerve which carries spatial orientation information from the semicircular canals. The cochlear nerve is a sensory nerve, one which conducts to the brain information about the environment, in this case acoustic energy impinging on the tympanic membrane. The cochlear nerve arises from within the cochlea and extends to the brainstem, where its fibers make contact with the cochlear nucleus, the next stage of neural processing in the auditory system[WP]. |