Final answer:
Auditory information from the cochlea is processed along the auditory pathway and sent to the thalamus and auditory cortex in the temporal lobe of the brain.
Step-by-step explanation:
Information from the cochlea through the auditory nerve is sent primarily to the thalamus and the auditory cortex in the brain for processing. The sensory pathway for auditory information travels from the cochlea along the vestibulocochlear nerve and reaches several nuclei in the brainstem, where initial processing including sound localization occurs. From the brainstem, the pathway continues on to the midbrain's inferior colliculus. Axons from the inferior colliculus project to two critical areas: the medial geniculate nucleus of the thalamus and the superior colliculus. The auditory information then goes to the auditory cortex located in the temporal lobe.