*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).
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Monday, February 3, 2020.
With Roku set to possibly lose Fox channel by the end of Friday, Cheddar looks into alternate ways owners can still watch the Super Bowl on Sunday.
This Sunday, the hip hop legend will appear in a Super Bowl ad spot for Cheetos that plays on the snack food’s famous messiness.
From Wall Street to Silicon Valley, these are the top stories that moved markets and had investors, business leaders, and entrepreneurs talking this week on Cheddar.
U.S. stocks fell broadly in midday trading on Wall Street amid ongoing uncertainty about the potential economic impact of the virus outbreak that originated in China.
American Airlines says it is suspending flights beginning Friday through March 27. Delta says its suspension will not take effect until Feb. 6 to ensure that customers looking to exit China can do so.
The NFL has teamed up with Goldman Global Arts to infuse the championship game with works from local artists, which can be seen both inside the arena and throughout the city.
The Committee met twice last week but held off making the designation that allows the organization to ramp up the international response to the coronavirus.
The attorneys for advice columnist E. Jean Carroll say they want to determine whether Trump's genetic material is on a dress she says she wore during the encounter. They served a legal notice Thursday to one of Trump's lawyers demanding the sample.
Despite beating the Street's expectations, Facebook shares went down more than 7 percent in after-hours trading. While the company is still growing, the numbers could signify a slowdown ahead with more digital advertising platforms entering the market as well as looming regulation.
