For cochlear implants to give users a better level of pitch perception, they must deliver information on the fine structure of the sound—the tiny and rapid changes in frequency. Ruffin is working with Jay Rubinstein, director of the Bloedel Center, to test a speech-processing algorithm designed to do just that. Studies in animals show that this algorithm conveys a sound's fine structure to the brain, Rubinstein says. And some people whose implants were reprogrammed with the new algorithm report improved speech perception. Ruffin is developing psychophysical tests to prove that the algorithm is in fact allowing fine structure information to reach the brain.

For the congenitally deaf, says Rubinstein, the earlier they receive an implant, the better. Older children and adults show a great deal of variability in how well they perform with implants. Ruffin still requires assistive listening devices at the movies and to hear lectures in a classroom environment, but he marvels at the changes he's experienced since his implant. "My social circle expanded exponentially after the implant," and, he says, "Now I can converse in the dark with a friend; I don't have to read lips."

Ruffin began working in the field of implant research in 2004 after completing his first year of medical school at Louisiana State University in Shreveport. His investigations took him to the University of Iowa in Iowa City, where he met Rubinstein. When Rubinstein moved to the University of Washington, Ruffin applied for the HHMI fellowship to join him. Although he plans to become a surgeon, Ruffin would also like to do long-term research. "And I decided that if I was going to do research," he says, "it'd be something that I'm interested in."

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