AirPods are about to become the best low-cost hearing aids around

"When the world's most valuable company held its latest glitzy event this past week, Apple offered a peek at its highly anticipated AI tools and the next iPhone.

And one more thing that could quietly turn out to be the most important release of them all.

It wasn't a new product. In fact, it's a product you might already own. The company showed off a feature that will transform the most popular wireless earbuds into something else altogether -- something that Apple believes will meaningfully, almost magically improve the lives of millions of people.

A hearing aid.

As soon as it rolls out the software update this fall, Apple will instantly make the AirPods Pro 2 into a medical device, essentially turning every pair of the company's top-selling headphones into over-the-counter hearing aids.

Audiologists expect it will be the best low-cost option for most Americans who need hearing aids but don't wear them.

It's meant for people with perceived mild to moderate levels of hearing loss. And those are exactly the people who might never otherwise get a hearing aid.

Whether it's because of price, stigma or their refusal to admit they're getting older, people with the least severe hearing problems are the ones most reluctant to seek help. Most feel it's not worth their money, time and energy to find a solution. Some don't even know they have a problem.

But walking around with something in your ear has become so completely normalized -- even cool! -- that medical professionals believe people who might not wear a hearing aid will feel perfectly comfortable popping in AirPods.

And this past week, when it authorized Apple's tech as the first over-the-counter hearing-aid software, the Food and Drug Administration called it an advance for "the availability, accessibility and acceptability of hearing support."

One of the audiologists I called after the Apple announcement was Nicholas Reed, an associate professor at NYU Langone Health's Optimal Aging Institute. As it turns out, he was the right person to call.

"I'm a pure Android person," Reed said. "I don't own Apple stuff."

Still, he told The Wall Street Journal a few years ago that AirPods as hearing aids could be a potential game-changer, since their mainstream appeal, plus the convenience and consumer trust in Apple, would reduce stigma and improve uptake. I wanted to know if he still felt that way. "I do think this is a game-changer," he said.

It was one that took years of work from the usual team of Apple software engineers and designers and a more unusual collection of acoustic engineers, clinicians and audiologists. The older you get, the worse your hearing gets, but the company says this is a product for all consumers.

"It's something you should care about at every age," said Dr. Sumbul Desai, Apple's vice president of health.

AirPods might not be as good as prescription hearing aids for people with profound hearing loss. But for people with mild to moderate hearing loss, they are plenty good enough. And there are lots of those people.

There are roughly 30 million Americans who could benefit from hearing aids, according to the U.S. government, and the World Health Organization says 1.5 billion people globally are living with hearing loss.

And the only thing more surprising than how many people could use a hearing aid is how many of those people don't actually have one.

In fact, 75% of people with hearing loss let it go untreated, according to the Apple Hearing Study, a project run with the University of Michigan. In case you don't trust medical statistics from a trillion-dollar company trying to sell you something, the audiologists I consulted told me that number sounded right.

Here's the upshot: The overwhelming majority of people with some kind of hearing loss are not buying devices that would help them.

Which is understandable. Because until recently, the only way to obtain a hearing aid was to visit a clinic, get a prescription and then pay up.

But two years ago, the FDA decided to allow hearing aids to be sold directly to consumers over the counter. That one decision cleared the way for more competition and more innovation -- and for devices that are more affordable.

Today, prescription hearing aids still cost thousands of dollars. OTC devices cost significantly less. The generic preset ones sell for roughly $100 and the more personalized self-fitting ones around $1,000. 

The hearing aid from Apple will essentially perform like the expensive devices for the price of the cheaper ones at $249. And for those who already own the AirPods Pro 2, it won't cost anything extra.

Other hearing aids have longer battery life and look nearly invisible, but Apple is also introducing several features meant to prevent, measure and assist with hearing loss. They include a hearing test that takes about five minutes and requires just an iPhone or iPad and these AirPods, which is useful, since Apple says 80% of U.S. adults have not had their hearing checked in the past five years.

The audiologists I called were optimistic that all of this will lead to improvements in our ear health -- and our overall health. That's because even minimal decreases in hearing ability have been linked with increased depression, cognitive decline and social isolation.

Of course, Apple isn't funding scientific research and running clinical trials just because it might be good for consumers. It also happens to be good business.

Apple sold nearly 80 million pairs of earwear last year, according to market-research firm IDC. The company doesn't break out AirPods sales, but its wearables category, which includes headphones and smartwatches, has grown to $40 billion a year -- more annual revenue than all of Starbucks or Netflix.

The market for hearing aids is currently dominated by a small number of companies that Americans have never heard of, but Apple's announcement pummeled their stock prices and wiped out billions of dollars in market value.

Even people who aren't the biggest fans of Apple gadgets are huge fans of the company getting into OTC hearing aids. Reed, the Android-using hearing professional, says it should boost the quality of these devices across the board and kill off the crummy ones that actually end up being counterproductive.

"If someone's great-grandma buys a $200 device off Amazon and it doesn't work, they're not coming back, and we've lost that person to hearing care," he said. "We make the world worse when we do that."

But that great-grandma is more likely to buy this $249 device because she trusts that a product made by Apple will just work.

Maybe she uses FaceTime to see her great-grandchildren. Or she visits the Genius Bar when she has iPhone issues her grandchildren can't fix. Or she relies on the Apple Watch for heart monitoring, fall detection and so many other health applications that it's her doctor's favorite medical device.

She's not the first customer who comes to mind as the target audience of Apple product launches, but she might just be the one with the most to gain from this one. Hear, hear." [1]

1. EXCHANGE --- Science of Success: Apple's Most Useful New Product Launch --- AirPods are about to become the best low-cost hearing aids around. Cohen, Ben.  Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y.. 14 Sep 2024: B.1.

 

JAV naujienos: „klaidingi“, anot, valdžios ištroškusių, demokratų, teiginiai, kad imigrantai valgo naminius gyvūnus, sukelia chaosą --- Springfildas, Ohajo valstija, grumiasi su nuopuoliais, kai Trumpas pakartojo interneto gandus

 

Kaip galėtumėte įrodyti, kad tai melas? Kaip įrodyti, kad niekas iš 15 000 žmonių visame mieste nesuvalgė katę?

 

 „Klaidingas“, pasak, valdžios ištroškusių, demokratų, respublikonų pokalbių teiginys, sukelia chaosą mažame Springfildo mieste, Ohajo valstijoje.

 

 59 000 gyventojų turintis, miestas už Kolumbo sulaukė daugybės grasinimų bombomis ir nepageidaujamo dėmesio, nes buvęs prezidentas Donaldas Trumpas praėjusią savaitę pakartojo socialinės žiniasklaidos teiginį, kad imigrantai ten valgo naminius gyvūnus. Springfildas evakavo mokyklas ir laikinai uždarė miesto rotušę. Miesto pareigūnai ne kartą paneigė teiginį apie naminių gyvūnėlių valgymą ir bando skleisti melagingą žinią, kad naminiai gyvūnai yra saugūs Springfilde.

 

 Kraštutinės dešinės atstovai pavaizdavo Springfildą, kaip miestą, užgrobtą Haičio migrantų, plėšančių šunis, kates ir antis. Miestas neturi patikimų pranešimų apie naminių gyvūnėlių paėmimą ir valgymą, sakė Springfildo meras Robas Rue. Jis sakė, kad buvo apmaudu žiūrėti, kaip politikai skleidžia „netikrus“, pagal, valdžios ištroškusius, demokratus, gandus.

 

 „Tai sukėlė siautulį mūsų bendruomenėje ir buvo labai sunku“, – sakė jis. „Nacionalinis politikas, turintis nacionalinę platformą ir besinaudojantis mikrofonais, turi suprasti, kaip jų žodžiai gali pakenkti tokiam miestui, kaip mūsų.

 

 Springfildo gyventojai yra ant ribos. Dvi pradinės mokyklos penktadienį buvo evakuotos, o viena vidurinė laikinai uždaryta dėl grasinimų. Rotušė ketvirtadienį buvo uždaryta, gavus grasinimą bomba. Buvo grasinama vietiniam Motorinių transporto priemonių biurui. Miesto pareigūnai teigė nenustatę, ar grasinimai, kurie buvo pateikti el. paštu, buvo iš vietinės teritorijos, ar iš už jos ribų.

 

 Nuo 2020 m. į Springfildą persikėlė apie 15 000 haitiečių, daugelis iš jų naudojasi programa, kuri laikinai apsaugo juos nuo deportacijos.

 

 Kongresas sukūrė programą 1990 m., siekdamas suteikti imigracijos pareigūnams teisę suteikti teisinę apsaugą imigrantams iš šalių, kurios laikomos pernelyg pavojingomis, kad į kurias sugrįžtų.

 

 Dėl antplūdžio miesto ištekliai buvo apkrauti. Springfildo meras anksčiau šiais metais per Fox News ragino suteikti federalinę paramą. Miestas netrukus atsidūrė dėmesio centre, bet ne tokio, kokio tikėjosi.

 

 Gyvūnų valgymo sąmokslas išplito kraštutiniame dešiniajame interneto kampe. Ohajo respublikonai, įskaitant senatorių JD Vance'ą, kuris yra Trumpo kandidatas, ir atstovą Jimą Jordaną, paskelbė apie tai socialinėje žiniasklaidoje. Miestas, kadaise geriausiai žinomas, kaip buvęs gamybos miestelis, dabar tapo anti-imigracijos plakatas.

 

 Netrukus pokalbiai pasiekė ir Trumpą.

 

 Antradienį vykusiuose, debatuose dėl prezidento posto, daugiau, nei 57 milijonams, žiūrovų, Trumpas sakė: „Springfilde jie valgo šunis, žmonės, kurie atėjo. Jie valgo kates. Jie valgo žmonių augintinius, tų žmonių, kurie ten gyvena“.

 

 Tuo Trumpas įtraukė Springfildą į nacionalinį pokalbį. Jis pavertė imigraciją – o kartu ir Springfildą – pagrindiniu jo kampanijos akcentu ir, pasak, valdžios ištroškusių, demokratų, dažnai dalijasi „klaidinga“ informacija apie migrantus. Teiginys apie naminių gyvūnėlių valgymą yra naujas posūkis jo ilgame bandyme pavaizduoti imigrantus, kaip pavojingus.

 

 Rue, Springfildo meras, sakė, kad miesto darbuotojai buvo įtempti kovodami su rezultatais, įskaitant grasinimus bombomis.

 

 „Deja, dabar turime sutelkti dėmesį į tai, o ne į tai, ką mūsų miesto darbuotojai buvo pasamdyti: judėti į priekį“, – sakė jis.

 

 Dezinformaciją internete sekanti, bendrovė „NewsGuard“ teigė, kad "gandus" socialiniame tinkle „Facebook“ paskelbė moteris, kuri citavo kaimynės pasakojimą apie katę, kuri buvo išdarinėta, kad ją suvalgytų prie namų, kuriuose gyveno haitiečiai. Įraše nebuvo nurodyta, kas mėsinėjo katę.

 

 Kalbos apie naminius gyvūnėlius sukėlė siautulį. Per tris dienas nuo diskusijų X, anksčiau buvusioje „Twitter“, buvo daugiau, nei 1,1 mln. įrašų apie valgomus augintinius, teigia internetines diskusijas stebinti bendrovė „PeakMetrics“. Elonas Muskas, X savininkas ir Trumpo šalininkas, paskelbė apie tai. Trumpas paskelbė apie valgomas kates ir antis. Vance'as ne kartą kalbėjo apie Springfildą.

 

 Trumpo kampanija taip pat aptarė 11-mečio Springfieldo berniuko, žuvusio per avariją, kurioje dalyvavo imigrantas iš Haičio, 2023 m. Berniuko tėvas Nathanas Clarkas paragino Trumpo kampaniją liautis naudoti sūnaus mirtį, siekiant politinės naudos.

 

 Kai kurie demokratai pasijuokė iš viso to "absurdiškumo". Kiti pabrėžė, kokią žalą haitiečiams šis reikalavimas padarė Springfilde.

 

 Prezidentas Bidenas penktadienio kalboje Baltųjų rūmų juodaodžių bendruomenės lyderiams užsiminė apie situaciją Springfilde, sakydamas, kad Haičio amerikiečiai yra „bendruomenė, kuri šiuo metu mūsų šalyje puolama, tai tiesiog neteisinga. Amerikoje tam nėra vietos. Tai turi sustoti, ką jis daro, tai turi sustoti“, – sakė Bidenas.

 

 Trumpas penktadienį per spaudos konferenciją sakė, kad planuoja atlikti didelius deportavimus iš Springfildo. Paklaustas apie grasinimus susprogdinti mieste, jis atsakė: „Tikroji grėsmė yra tai, kas vyksta prie mūsų sienos“.

 

 Rue sakė, kad jo miestas ėmėsi atsargumo priemonių,  pavyzdžiui, padidinti saugumą tose srityse, kurioms iškilo grėsmė. Ohajo valstijos kariai padeda patruliuoti gatvėse.

 

 "Springfildas yra graži bendruomenė, - sakė jis, - bet mes turime tam tikrų rūpesčių, kuriuos įveiksime."" [1]

 

 Nieko nepadarysi. Žmonės myli gyvūnėlius. Ypač bevaikės moterys myli kates. Tiesiog nustokite kates valgyti.

 

1. U.S. News: “False” Claim That Immigrants Are Eating Pets Stirs Chaos --- Springfield, Ohio, grapples with fallout after Trump repeated internet rumor. Lukpat, Alyssa.  Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y.. 14 Sep 2024: A.3.

U.S. News: “False” According to Power-Hungry Democrats Claim That Immigrants Are Eating Pets Stirs Chaos --- Springfield, Ohio, grapples with fallout after Trump repeated internet rumor

 

 

How could you prove that it is false?  How do you prove that nobody of 15 000 people ate a cat in a whole city?

 

"A “false” according to power-hungry Democrats Republican talking point is causing chaos in the small city of Springfield, Ohio.

The city of 59,000 outside Columbus has faced a torrent of bomb threats and unwanted attention since former President Donald Trump repeated the social-media claim this past week that immigrants there were eating pets. Springfield has evacuated schools and temporarily closed its city hall. City officials have repeatedly debunked the pet-eating claim and are trying to spread the word that pets are safe in Springfield.

The far-right has portrayed Springfield as a city overrun by Haitian migrants snatching dogs, cats and ducks. The city has no credible reports of pets being taken and eaten, said Springfield Mayor Rob Rue. He said it's been frustrating to watch politicians spread the “false” according to power-hungry Democrats rumor.

"It stirred up a frenzy in our community and it's been very difficult," he said. "A national politician that has a national platform and takes mics needs to understand how their words can hurt a city like ours."

Springfield residents are on edge. Two elementary schools were evacuated Friday and a middle school was temporarily closed because of threats. City hall was closed Thursday after receiving a bomb threat. A local Bureau of Motor Vehicles office was threatened. City officials said they haven't determined if the threats, which were made over email, came from inside or outside of the area.

About 15,000 Haitians have moved to Springfield since 2020, many using a program that temporarily protects them from deportation. 

Congress created the program in 1990 to give immigration officials the authority to provide legal protections to immigrants from countries deemed too dangerous to return to.

The influx put a strain on city resources. Springfield's mayor went on Fox News earlier this year to call for federal support. The city was soon thrust into a spotlight, but not the one it hoped for.

The pet-eating conspiracy spread through the far-right corner of the internet. Ohio Republicans -- including Sen. JD Vance, who is Trump's running mate, and Rep. Jim Jordan -- posted about it on social media. A city once best known as a former manufacturing town was now a poster child for anti-immigration.

The chatter soon reached Trump.

At the presidential debate on Tuesday, before more than 57 million viewers, Trump said, "In Springfield, they're eating the dogs, the people that came in. They're eating the cats. They're eating the pets of the people that live there."

With that, Trump dragged Springfield into the national conversation. He has made immigration -- and by extension, Springfield -- a centerpiece of his campaign and frequently shares “false” according to power-hungry Democrats information about migrants. The pet-eating claim is a new twist on his long attempt to paint immigrants as dangerous.

Rue, the Springfield mayor, said city employees have been strained as they deal with the fallout, including bomb threats.

"This is what we have to unfortunately focus on now rather than what our city staff was hired to do: to move our city forward," he said.

NewsGuard, a company that tracks online misinformation, said the rumor was started by a woman on Facebook who cited a neighbor's third-hand account of a cat getting carved up to be eaten outside a home where Haitians lived. The post didn't say who was handling the cat.

The talk about pets has reached a frenzy. In the three days since the debate, there were more than 1.1 million posts on X, formerly Twitter, about pets being eaten, according to PeakMetrics, a company that tracks online discussions. Elon Musk, X's owner and a Trump supporter, has posted about it. Trump posted about cats and ducks being eaten. Vance has repeatedly talked about Springfield.

The Trump campaign has also discussed the 2023 death of an 11-year-old Springfield boy killed in a crash involving a Haitian immigrant. Nathan Clark, the boy's father, called on the Trump campaign to stop using his son's death for political gain.

Some Democrats have poked fun at the absurdity of it all. Others have highlighted the toll the claim has taken on Haitians in Springfield.

President Biden, in a Friday address to leaders from the Black community at the White House, referenced the situation in Springfield, saying Haitian-Americans were "a community that's under attack in our country right now, it's simply wrong. There's no place in America -- this has to stop, what he's doing, it has to stop," Biden said.

Trump said at a news briefing Friday that he planned to do large deportations from Springfield. When asked about the bomb threats in the city, he said, "The real threat is what's happening at our border."

Rue said his city has taken precautions like adding security to areas that have been threatened. Ohio state troopers are helping patrol the streets.

"Springfield is a beautiful community," he said, "but we have some concerns we will conquer and get through."" [1]

You can't do anything. People love animals. Especially childless women who love cats. Just stop eating cats.

1. U.S. News: “False” Claim That Immigrants Are Eating Pets Stirs Chaos --- Springfield, Ohio, grapples with fallout after Trump repeated internet rumor. Lukpat, Alyssa.  Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y.. 14 Sep 2024: A.3.