What is History of hearing aids?
The first '''[[hearing aid|hearing aids]]''' were made in the 17th century. Since the [[13th century]] people had been making similar devices by [[hollowing]] out the [[Horn (anatomy)|horns]] of animals. Hearing aids did not improve very much until [[electricity]] and the [[telephone]] were created in 1898. This is when the first electric hearing aid was created, but it was not given out to the public to use until later in the 20th century. Over the past century however, the fast development of technology has changed and improved the hearing aid greatly, making new designs and adding new functions to be able to help even more hearing problems. == Ear trumpets == [[File:Tinsmith - Fort Ross State Historic Park - Jenner, California - Stierch.jpg|thumb]] The first hearing aids were called [[ear trumpets]] and were large [[Funnel|funnel-shaped]] devices that were mostly made out of [[metal]], animal horns, [[wood]] and even [[Snail|snail shell]]<nowiki/>s. People would hold them to their ear when they needed to use it to hear. These hearing aids did not make sound louder but collected sound and directed it into the ear which made the sound energy stronger when it hits the [[ear drum]]. Ear trumpets worked by capturing more sound for users, so the best way to make them work was for others to speak into the opening of the trumpet. When used in more public places such as concerts, the ear trumpet would not be as effective. [[Background noise]] could not be blocked and would enter the trumpet along with the sounds that the user is trying to focus on. == Electronic == Late in the 19th century, after the invention of telephones and microphones, the electric hearing aids were created. Though they were made during the 1870s - 1890s, they did not become popular until the early 20th century. The first [[Electronics|electronic]] hearing aid was called an Akouphone, and was invented by [[Miller Reese Hutchinson]]. It used a [[carbon]] [[transmitter]] created by [[Thomas Edison]] which could increase sound by about 15 [[de