00:08A recent Twitter poll found that 47% of people hear Yanny, while 53% hear Laurel.
00:15Clearly, this has created an internet argument that is dividing the nation.
00:19So, what is the science behind the madness?
00:22One of the first aspects is priming.
00:24If you were to play this clip without providing the option of Yanny or Laurel, you may have heard neither of these words.
00:31But by reading them, you're primed to hear one or the other.
00:34Secondly, when you speak, you are producing sound waves, which propagate through the air.
00:39This is a visual depiction of the sound waves of the original Yanny slash Laurel recording, created by Brad Story, a professor of speech, language, and hearing.
00:49Here is the depiction of him saying Laurel.
00:52You can see that the acoustic features are very similar.
00:55Here is a depiction of him saying Yanny.
00:58The acoustic features are also similar.
01:00So, the words Yanny and Laurel audibly are more similar than you might think.
01:05Whether you're listening on a laptop, phone, or headphones will influence what you hear based on sound quality.
01:12But what if you are listening through the same device, but you hear different things with someone next to you?
01:17It might have to do with the age of your ears.
01:19The sounds in Yanny play at a higher frequency than the sounds in Laurel.
01:24As we age, our ears are less able to hear higher frequencies.
01:27So, if you are hearing Yanny, you might have younger ears.
01:31Luckily, with the help of the internet, we can hear both.
01:35Brilliant Twitter user at XXV posted audio of the pitch brought both down and up.
01:40When you listen to it brought down 30%, you will hear Yanny.
01:45Really?
01:46Really?
01:47But when you listen to it with the pitch brought up 30%, you will likely hear Laurel.
01:53Laurel.
01:54Laurel.
01:55Your brain has so much stimulus at all times that it uses existing information and precise neurological pathways to focus its attention.
02:03This is why at a loud party, you can listen to your friend beside you, but pop your attention into another convo if need be.
02:10Similarly, your brain is unconsciously choosing which frequencies in the recording to pay attention to.
02:16So, what is the final answer?
02:20If you heard Laurel, you are correct.
02:22The original recording is saying Laurel, but with higher frequencies overlaid, creating ambiguity.
02:28Love learning about amazing and interesting things in the world?
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02:54We'll leave some links below.
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