It wasn’t just a job: It was personal!
Dear Friends, As many of you have already read, I have retired from Hearing Health & Technology Matters (HHTM) after four extremely rewarding years as a founding editor. But before leaving the scene, I have some parting words for our readers, whom I have been writing for and about for longer than I could ever have…
Read MoreNPR joins the audiology world in celebrating the life of Marion Downs
DENVER—As 2014 drew to a close, National Public Radio paid tribute to the late Dr. Marion Downs as someone whose life’s story deserved to be better known than it had been. On the December 28 broadcast of the program All Things Considered, the NPR reporter Becky Sullivan noted that until the past 20 years…
Read MoreAs promised, Marion Downs’s legacy in pediatric audiology lives on
SOUTHAMPTON, UK–When Marion Downs died on November 13 at the age of 100, her long-time colleague, friend, and co-author, Jerry Northern, wrote, “She leaves a legacy that will forever be remembered for her many, many contributions to the field of audiology.” The truth of that statement, which was echoed by many other audiologists in…
Read MoreMarion Downs, acclaimed as “mother of pediatric audiology,” dies at 100
By David H. Kirkwood Marion Downs, the beloved and revered audiologist who largely invented the field of pediatric audiology, died on November 13 in Dana Point, California, 10 months after her 100th birthday. Dr. Downs’s trailblazing work, begun in the early 1960s at the University of Colorado School of Medicine (UC School of Medicine), showed the…
Read MoreMueller and Northern close their Trivia Bowl career on a high note
By David H. Kirkwood ORLANDO, FL—As reported earlier on this blog, the 25th annual Audiology Trivia Bowl, held March 29 at AudiologyNOW! 2014 in Orlando, was the last—at least the final one produced and presented by its co-creators, Gus Mueller and Jerry Northern. The popular event, which debuted in 1990 at the second annual convention…
Read MoreSurprise at AudiologyNOW! Mueller and Northern announce it’s their final Trivia Bowl
By David H. Kirkwood ORLANDO, FL—The American Academy of Audiology (AAA) had advised convention-goers that Gus Mueller and Jerry Northern were “sure to have some tricks up their sleeves” for the 25th annual Audiology Trivia Bowl, which was held here today (Saturday, March 29) at AudiologyNOW! 2014. However, until a few days ago not even the Academy…
Read MoreMarion Downs, the First Lady of Audiology, is feted on her 100th birthday
By Jerry Northern More than 600 exuberant attendees gathered in Denver on January 26 to honor and celebrate the 100th birthday of the First Lady of Audiology, Dr. Marion Downs. Marion Downs is the internationally acclaimed audiologist who, among her many significant contributions to helping persons with hearing loss, brought attention to the importance of…
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