You are a first-year pediatric resident working in an after-hours clinic. Your first case of the day is a 4-year-old boy, Jeremiah, who began complaining about muffled hearing the week before. Jeremiah had never shown any sign of hearing loss prior to this time and previous well-child visits to the doctor were unremarkable. Upon examination, you note a small, soft object lodged in Jeremiah's left ear. After some manipulation, you are able to remove a small foam ball from Jeremiah's ear and restore his hearing. You explain that Jeremiah was experiencing conductive hearing loss in his left ear due to the foreign object blocking the auditory canal. Future hearing problems would not be an issue as long as the canal remains clear.1) Explain to Jeremiah's mother, in detail, the step in the hearing process that was affected by the presence of the foam ball in Jeremiah's ear. Using proper anatomical terms, be sure to explain what wasn't working and why.