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This TED talk has a great example where the same sound sounds different to you based on what you expect to hear, if you need to prove this to yourself [1]. His

This TED talk has a great example where the same sound sounds different to you based on what you expect to hear, if you need to prove this to yourself [1]. His thesis is also that the brain is a prediction machine. 1. https://youtu.be/lyu7v7nWzfo?t=365 https://youtu.be/lyu7v7nWzfo?t=365

tasty_freeze 5y ago
Michael Shermer played Stairway to Heaven backwards and it mostly sounds like gibberish. But when he displays the 'translation' as text and plays it again, the words seem pretty clear. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYG2oZXSvdE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYG2oZXSvdE
- jodrellblank 5y ago
  In 1985 two young men attempted suicide, and the family sued the British rock band Judas Priest, accusing them of hiding subliminal messages in the music that said "Do It!" when listened to backwards. From memory, part of the trial was the defence taking a song, suggesting what words the court would hear in it played backwards, and then playing it backwards. e.g. this clip https://youtu.be/uyIsu93zAoM?t=1123 https://youtu.be/uyIsu93zAoM?t=1123 and showing that you hear the suggested words out of the noise. The trial was thrown out, after deciding there were words and they were subliminal, but were not deliberate. The whole situation included: "In a pre-trial motion, the judge ruled that subliminal messages were incapable of being protected speech under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, since they were by definition not noticeable and thus could not form part of a dialogue." Documentary - https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0104140/ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0104140/
- rgoulter 5y ago
  One more demonstration like this is in Matt Parker's "Clutching at Random Straws" lecture. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sf5OrthVRPA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sf5OrthVRPA
_Microft 5y ago
Here is a sound that sounds like either brainstorm or green needle, depending on which words you focus. Try own word combinations. I have no trouble hearing brain needle or green storm, for example. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1okD66RmktA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1okD66RmktA
- shard 5y ago
  Hmm no matter how hard I try, I can't get storm. Closest I can get is brain needle. It's just too clear to me that there are three syllables, and I can't map storm to the second half.
  - kibwen 5y ago
    And no matter how hard I try, I can't get "needle". There's an "s" sound in there, how does anyone get "needle" out of that? :P
  - AnIdiotOnTheNet 5y ago
    I had trouble hearing it too, so I closed my eyes to remove the flashing light as input and, I shit you not, just straight up told myself "you will hear brain storm". It was interesting not only in that that worked, but that my perception of the word was so completely different that it sounded nothing like green needle.
- andrewfromx 5y ago
  That is incredible. Every time I try to hear it one way I do, and then I try and hear it the other way and I do, clear as day. I even started backing up the playback bar and repeating the exact same part of the audio and it's BOTH!
eevilspock 5y ago
did Grover drop an f-bomb? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mU7t9GZ9Os https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mU7t9GZ9Os

tasty_freeze 5y ago

Michael Shermer played Stairway to Heaven backwards and it mostly sounds like gibberish. But when he displays the 'translation' as text and plays it again, the words seem pretty clear. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYG2oZXSvdE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYG2oZXSvdE

jodrellblank 5y ago
In 1985 two young men attempted suicide, and the family sued the British rock band Judas Priest, accusing them of hiding subliminal messages in the music that said "Do It!" when listened to backwards. From memory, part of the trial was the defence taking a song, suggesting what words the court would hear in it played backwards, and then playing it backwards. e.g. this clip https://youtu.be/uyIsu93zAoM?t=1123 https://youtu.be/uyIsu93zAoM?t=1123 and showing that you hear the suggested words out of the noise. The trial was thrown out, after deciding there were words and they were subliminal, but were not deliberate. The whole situation included: "In a pre-trial motion, the judge ruled that subliminal messages were incapable of being protected speech under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, since they were by definition not noticeable and thus could not form part of a dialogue." Documentary - https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0104140/ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0104140/
rgoulter 5y ago
One more demonstration like this is in Matt Parker's "Clutching at Random Straws" lecture. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sf5OrthVRPA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sf5OrthVRPA

_Microft 5y ago

Here is a sound that sounds like either brainstorm or green needle, depending on which words you focus. Try own word combinations. I have no trouble hearing brain needle or green storm, for example. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1okD66RmktA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1okD66RmktA

shard 5y ago
Hmm no matter how hard I try, I can't get storm. Closest I can get is brain needle. It's just too clear to me that there are three syllables, and I can't map storm to the second half.
- kibwen 5y ago
  And no matter how hard I try, I can't get "needle". There's an "s" sound in there, how does anyone get "needle" out of that? :P
- AnIdiotOnTheNet 5y ago
  I had trouble hearing it too, so I closed my eyes to remove the flashing light as input and, I shit you not, just straight up told myself "you will hear brain storm". It was interesting not only in that that worked, but that my perception of the word was so completely different that it sounded nothing like green needle.
andrewfromx 5y ago
That is incredible. Every time I try to hear it one way I do, and then I try and hear it the other way and I do, clear as day. I even started backing up the playback bar and repeating the exact same part of the audio and it's BOTH!

eevilspock 5y ago

did Grover drop an f-bomb? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mU7t9GZ9Os https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mU7t9GZ9Os