The sensations of touch and hearing are among the least well understood, with the receptors invovled only just begining to be identified. Exactly how diverse mechanical stimuli can be converted into electrical impulses to be interpreted by the brain reamins to be elucidated. This project aims to examine the piezo family of proteins, recently shown to respond to touch snd sheer flow. Using computational modelling we aim to appreciate how forces within or outside the membrane are used to open an ion channel, thus initiating nerve impulses.