‘Laurel’ or ‘Yanny’ is the new viral controversy driving our ears crazy
May 16, 2018, 11:30 AM | Updated: 5:46 pm
(Screengrab)
(Screengrab)
Remember “the dress” that tore apart the internet in 2015? There’s a new viral web controversy that has people questioning their senses — and the senses of others.
It seems simple enough, but an audio clip of a robotic voice of has listeners taking sides over whether they hear the word “Laurel” or “Yanny.”
What do you hear?! Yanny or Laurel pic.twitter.com/jvHhCbMc8I
— Cloe Feldman (@CloeCouture) May 15, 2018
It all started when Cloe Feldman, under the handle @CloeCouture, posted the clip to Twitter on Monday.
By Wednesday morning, it had more than 10 million views, the post had been retweeted more than 48,000 times and #Laurel was a top trending topic in the United States.
Explanations and think pieces about the phenomenon by the national media flooded the internet, including takes by CNN, the New York Times, Fox News, The Atlantic and Vox.
Feldman posted a video to YouTube on Tuesday explaining that her sister found the clip on a Reddit thread, but original creator was unknown.
Like with the infamous dress three years ago, which some people saw as white and gold and others swore was blue and black, people were incredulous that anybody could hear the clip any differently than they heard it.
Two area police departments, Gilbert and Avondale, were #TeamLaurel.
Our investigation is complete, it is #Laurel all the way! #YannyVSLaurel #WednesdayWisdom #LifeInGilbert https://t.co/QoUHCtIOKq
— Gilbert Police Dept. (@GilbertPolice) May 16, 2018
It’s Laurel #Laurel
— Avondale Police (@avondalepolice) May 16, 2018
But former Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer wasn’t having it.
Vetoing Laurel. Definitely Yanny!! pic.twitter.com/aiEWYYA1Gi
— Jan Brewer (@GovBrewer) May 16, 2018
She had some powerful company, the U.S. Department of Defense.
"I said it's #Yanny, recruit, not #Laurel!"
A @USMC Drill Instructor corrects a recruit after completing the rappel tower on Parris Island, #SouthCarolina. #KnowYourMil #Marines pic.twitter.com/XRhmsB4KiG
— U.S. Dept of Defense (@DeptofDefense) May 16, 2018
It wasn’t hard to figure out which sound musician Yanni heard.
I only hear Yanni 😉 hahaha https://t.co/WrMMVvl8iX
— Yanni (@Yanni) May 15, 2018
— Yanni (@Yanni) May 16, 2018
So what’s causing the discrepancy? It apparently has something to do with people being attuned to different frequencies, which affects how the sound is interpreted.
you can hear both when you adjust the bass levels: pic.twitter.com/22boppUJS1
— Earth Vessel Quotes (@earthvessquotes) May 15, 2018
But no scientific explanation is going to convince you that it says “Yanny” when you hear “Laurel,” or the other way around.
Let us know in the comments what you heard.
