Scientists have developed a pair of battery-powered spectacles which double up as hearing aids. Unlike conventional hearing aids, the new device, launched this month in Holland, intensifies sounds from the front, while dampening surrounding noise. The wearer chooses what they hear by looking in the relevant direction.

"It allows people to hear naturally and clearly in the direction in which they are looking, even in noisy rooms", says audio specialist Martin de Jong, who has been involved in early tests.

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