The oval window connects the last of the tiny ear bones - the stapes, to the cochlea, where the pressure wave is converted into neurochemical impulses which can be interpreted as sound. Because the area of the oval window is about 1/25 that of the eardrum the energy is concentrated into a smaller per unit area. The pressure waves applied to the oval window are therefore much greater in magnitude. This is important due to the fact that the liquid inside the cochlea is greater than air and increased force is necessary to transmit sound effectively.