Where does this come from, and can I check it?

Each inner ear holds canals set at right angles to sense turning in three planes. The figure is taken from Encyclopaedia Britannica, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.

Is this really a human body fact?

Yes. It sits on the Human Body shelf, one of 2,600 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.

What else can I read about it?

The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.

Mondo Knows Facts

Three fluid-filled loops report head rotation

Each inner ear holds canals set at right angles to sense turning in three planes The semicircular canals are bony loops containing fluid and a gelatinous cupula. When the head turns, fluid lags behind and bends hair cells, signalling angular acceleration. Separate otolith organs detect straight-line acceleration and the pull of gravity. It sits in Mondo's human body collection, one of 200 facts that each trace back to the reference below.

Where this comes from

Encyclopaedia Britannica

Facts that can change over time are reviewed and updated. If something here looks wrong, Mondo would rather know than be confidently incorrect.

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Science trivia

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The cerebellum houses over half of the brain neuronsLocated at the base of the skull this dense structure coordinates balance The smallest bone in the human body is inside the earMeasuring just three millimetres long the stapes bone helps transmit sound vibrations The stapedius is the smallest muscle in the human bodyMeasuring barely over one millimetre this tiny muscle protects inner ear hearing Earwax cleans lubricates and protects the auditory canalCerumen traps dust bacteria and dead skin to preserve ear canal health Cochlear hair cells convert mechanical sound waves to nerve signalsMicroscopic sensory cilia vibrate to transduce acoustic frequencies Taste resolves into five basic categoriesSweet, sour, salty, bitter and umami are detected by separate receptor mechanisms

Tags: balance, ear, vestibular

Three fluid-filled loops report head rotation: the short answers

Where does this come from, and can I check it?: Each inner ear holds canals set at right angles to sense turning in three planes. The figure is taken from Encyclopaedia Britannica, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.
Is this really a human body fact?: Yes. It sits on the Human Body shelf, one of 2,600 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.
What else can I read about it?: The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.