Five Great Auditory Illusions - No Stereo Needed

  • Thread starter Thread starter wolram
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Sound
Click For Summary

Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around various auditory illusions presented in an article, exploring how different individuals perceive sounds and the effects of auditory stimuli without the need for stereo equipment. Participants share their experiences with specific illusions and express curiosity about the underlying mechanisms of perception.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants express uncertainty about whether the auditory illusions work without stereo equipment, with one participant questioning their own experience.
  • Several participants report hearing different phrases from the auditory illusions, such as "help me help me help me" and "bueno bueno bueno," indicating varied perceptions of the same sound.
  • One participant notes that they only heard sounds from one ear and questions the intended effect of a specific illusion, suggesting they did not experience the expected auditory differences.
  • There is a discussion about whether handedness might influence auditory perception, with one participant sharing their mixed-handedness and its potential relevance.
  • Participants share their experiences with the barber shop illusion, with some finding it particularly effective and others expressing confusion about the scale illusion.
  • One participant mentions that they did not perceive the expected switching of sounds between ears, leading to concerns about their auditory processing.
  • Another participant humorously suggests that mis-wiring of ears could be a reason for differing perceptions, reflecting a light-hearted tone in the conversation.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally share their individual experiences with the auditory illusions, but there is no consensus on how the illusions should be perceived or the reasons behind differing experiences. Multiple competing views on perception remain unresolved.

Contextual Notes

Some participants express confusion regarding the intended effects of certain auditory illusions, indicating that their experiences may depend on personal auditory processing or equipment used. There are also references to the need for specific types of headphones or speakers to fully experience the illusions.

Who May Find This Useful

Individuals interested in auditory perception, psychology of sound, or those who enjoy exploring sensory illusions may find this discussion engaging.

Science news on Phys.org
They're ok. The best one is the barber one. The others I'm too sick to understand what is supposed to happen.
 
hahah that's pretty good. That barber shop is good.
 
that phantom word one is crazy trippy. I keep hearing either "help me help me help me" on the right side and "bueno bueno bueno bueno" (spanish for good or OK) on the left, or "lapiz lapiz lapiz" on the right side (spanish for pencil) and "no way no way no way no way" on the left.

it also turned into "yummy yummy yummy" and "mira mira mira" (spanish for look) on the right at one point.

ha! crazy. thanks for the link, Wolfram, I love weird stuff like that.
 
Funny you should mention that, moe, because I also heard "bueno" on one side an "no way" on the other.
 
the plot thickens...

are you left handed? I wonder if handedness affects what you hear in any way.
 
I only heard something from one ear in those. "No no no no no" repeated for a while, then it switched to "No way no way no way..."

I couldn't figure out at all what that scale one was supposed to do...it just seemed to be a weird little tune. Again, I heard the same with both ears, so not sure what it's trying to explain about hearing something different. I even turned around to make sure it wasn't just that I have one ear better than the other in case I was supposed to hear something different from the other speaker, but then it just switched which ear the sound seemed louder from, but not anything about what I was hearing, so I don't think it was my ears.
 
The scale would go up and down, but actually only one side always goes down, and the other goes up. Use headphones, but not ipod phones. The barber one sounded really, really good.
 
I can almost feel the buzzer.
 
  • #10
moe darklight said:
the plot thickens...

are you left handed? I wonder if handedness affects what you hear in any way.

Somewhat. I write with my left hand, but use right-handed scissors, eat with left hand, throw with right hand.
 
  • #11
Cyrus said:
The scale would go up and down, but actually only one side always goes down, and the other goes up. Use headphones, but not ipod phones. The barber one sounded really, really good.

It said to use external speakers, and I did, but I didn't hear it switching sides like that at all. Both ears still heard it clearly going up and down, though it always seemed a bit louder from the left speaker (regardless if I was facing it or turned away, in which case my right ear heard it louder). I don't think I have any other head phones around anymore. They seem to have walked away on me.

Does this mean my ears are mis-wired? :cry:
 
  • #12
Moonbear said:
It said to use external speakers, and I did, but I didn't hear it switching sides like that at all. Both ears still heard it clearly going up and down, though it always seemed a bit louder from the left speaker (regardless if I was facing it or turned away, in which case my right ear heard it louder). I don't think I have any other head phones around anymore. They seem to have walked away on me.

Does this mean my ears are mis-wired? :cry:

Seems so MoonB, but with a few electronic gizmo's we can fix you up.

Now where did i put my bolster chisel.
 
Last edited:
  • #13
On that phantom voices one it just sounds like the left side is saying "na want to wanna want to wanna" and the right is saying "no whear no whear no whear no whear"

The note melody thing? Sounds so pretty to me at 25%, just as much as at 100%
 
  • #14
Moonbear said:
Does this mean my ears are mis-wired? :cry:

Of course, why should your ears be different than the rest of your brain?
 

Similar threads

  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
1K
  • · Replies 25 ·
Replies
25
Views
3K
  • · Replies 10 ·
Replies
10
Views
2K
  • · Replies 92 ·
4
Replies
92
Views
7K
Replies
2
Views
2K
  • · Replies 11 ·
Replies
11
Views
14K
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
938
  • · Replies 8 ·
Replies
8
Views
2K
  • · Replies 13 ·
Replies
13
Views
4K
  • · Replies 17 ·
Replies
17
Views
10K