Remember that stupid black-and-blue dress that divided an entire nation several years ago? Well, there’s now an audio version of the great dress debate.
This week, people on the internet are torn over a viral clip in which a computer-generated voice can be heard saying a two-syllable word. Even though that word is clearly “yanny,” some weirdos out there perceive it as—oh shit, now I hear “laurel.”
Check out the clip below.
What do you hear? Is the voice saying “yanny,” which isn’t an actual word, or is it saying “laurel”? A majority of people claim to hear one or the other, while some insist they can hear both.
So, what the hell is going on? Some have tried to explain the differing perceptions by pointing to factors such as the audio’s volume and bass as well as the listener’s age and hearing health. A number of individuals, like Twitter user Steve Pomeroy, manipulated the voice’s pitch to an attempt to get different sound results.
Until experts can provide us with some hard evidence on the matter, the “yanny” vs. “laurel” debate will rage on.
