Laurel or Yanny? BU hearing sciences expert explains the viral phenomenon

Professor Tyler Perrachione spoke with WIRED about why some people hear one thing and others hear another

Some people are better at hearing high frequencies than others, explains Boston University hearing sciences professor Tyler Perrachione. This may explain whether you hear “Laurel” or “Yanny” in the audio clip that has taken the internet by storm.

The different speech sounds we hear depend on the frequency of the noise being made, Perrachione says. He explains that “Laurel” is a low frequency sound, and “Yanny” is a high frequency sound.

An Instagram poll asking users to vote on which word they hear.

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