*By Alisha Haridasani*
It’s the most divisive question since the blue and black dress (or was it white and gold?!): Do you hear Yanny or Laurel?
Technically, the answer is "Laurel." But some people swear it's "Yanny."
The question, which is ripping the internet apart, revolves around an audio clip [reportedly](https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/15/science/yanny-laurel.html) posted on Reddit by a student who found it on a vocabulary website when researching a school project under the word "laurel." The clip went viral, leaving many listeners questioning what they heard ー and maybe their sanity.
The discrepancy in what people hear could be due to circumstance, said Brad Story, professor of speech, language, and hearing at the University of Arizona.
“It really is going to depend on the information that you have in terms of your bias toward listening to it at that moment in time," said Story. "That’s what we call ‘top-down information’ ー trying to make sense of any kind of pattern that's present.”
The two words share very similar acoustic characteristics that your brain could selectively hear it one way or the other, he said.
The bass, frequency, and volume of the audio clip can also influence what someone hears. Some people posted videos on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/JFLivesay/status/996585941241401346) where the audio levels were adjusted, changing how the clip could be heard.
So, whatever the *technical* answer to the question is, in reality, it can be both.
For the full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/yanny-vs-laurel).
Investors are dumping stocks again as fears spread that the growing coronavirus outbreak will weigh down the global economy.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Thursday, February 27, 2020.
Lyft, which bought out the bike-share system in 2018, recalled the first batch of e-bikes in April 2019 due to a braking problem that caused multiple injuries and lawsuits.
Relying on crowdfunding and provisions of the 2012 JOBS Act, founder Vanessa Bryant is expanding her brand into teas and cafes.
Travel website Trivago's CEO Axel Hefer told Cheddar Tuesday the company has seen "quite a significant effect" on its markets across Asia.
Stocks rose solidly in early trading as investors regained an appetite for risk after two days of heavy losses. The sharp drops, which wiped out the market's gains for the year, were brought on by worries over economic fallout from the virus outbreak that originated in China.
Self-described "far-left," 26-year-old truck driver Joshua Collins is hoping to utilize the user base to support his run for Congress.
Investors plowed money into bonds, sending the yield on the 10-year Treasury to a record low. Mastercard joined a growing list of companies warning that the outbreak would hurt its finances.
Disney has named Bob Chapek CEO, replacing Bob Iger, effective immediately. The surprise announcement Tuesday makes Iger executive chairman. Chapek was most recently chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products.
Gloria Guevara, president and CEO of the World Travel & Tourism Council, told Cheddar Tuesday the U.S. is losing an average of $6,000-7,000 for each would-be Chinese visitor who opts not to, or is not allowed to, travel.
