Shapiro has a good ear for the quote bites of contemporary celebrity culture, and the courage to set out on this endless sea.

NEWYORKER: Notable Quotables

The writer, Michael Arndt, and the husband-and-wife directing team of Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris, narrowly avoid the family-comedy pitfalls of whimsy and mush, but Arndt has a good ear for domestic irritations and the acting is just tough enough to keep us off balance.

NEWYORKER: Little Miss Sunshine

Having grabbed the national ear with a good performance in Los Angeles, Gore has been bending it relentlessly with his strength: policy details.

CNN: Tighten your saddles! Now it's a horse race

My right ear, the good one.

NEWYORKER: Littlefoot, 34

In a good apartment, alone with a good wine and the lady speaking in our ear, yes.

NPR: The Most Captivating Voice in the World

He also has a fine ear for speech, and a good sense of what feels real, even when chronicling the surreal.

ECONOMIST: New fiction 1

Howard Levine, an ear, nose and throat surgeon in Cleveland, claims good results from 25 patients.

FORBES: Balloon Therapy