A “release” mechanism, which has been experimentally observed as the fast component in
the hair bundle's response to mechanical stimulation, appears similar to common
mechanical relaxation with a damping effect. This observation is puzzling because such a
response is expected to have an amplifying role in the mechanoelectrical transduction
process in hair cells. Here it is shown that a release mechanism can indeed have a role in
amplification, if it is associated with negative stiffness due to the gating of the …