Chapter 1
The tricks of vision
Chapter 2
The sound of silence
Chapter 3
The fragile vault of memory
Chapter 4
The phantom self
YOUR GOAL
Master of How your brain lies
Ch 2 · The sound of silence
artiteacher The sound of silence
You might think silence is empty, a space in the air, But your brain *hears* that quiet, an illusion to share!
artiteacher Differences in audio frequencies and individual ears can cause people to hear entirely different words.
artiteacher The Shepard tone creates an auditory illusion of a pitch that rises forever.
Fun Fact
The Shepard tone: This auditory illusion is used by film composers to create a feeling of endless, unresolved tension, most famously used in the movie Dunkirk.
Glossary
silence (noun)
The complete absence of sound. In 2023, Johns Hopkins researchers used auditory illusions to prove the human brain hears this sensory absence.
The complete absence of sound. In 2023, Johns Hopkins researchers used auditory illusions to prove the human brain hears this sensory absence.
Quiz
What unique auditory illusion creates the sensation of a sound pitch that rises or falls forever?
Quiz
Who is the cognitive scientist that created the infinite-pitch auditory illusion in 1964?
Quiz
Which researcher is famous for studying phantom words and other musical illusions?
Quiz
What is the term for hearing distinct, meaningful words in repeating loops of chaotic, ambiguous noise?
Quiz
Why did some people hear 'Yanny' and others 'Laurel' in the viral 2018 audio clip?
Quiz
What happens in the McGurk effect when you watch a video of a mouth saying 'ga' but hear the audio sound 'ba'?
Quiz
In which movie did composer Hans Zimmer famously use the Shepard tone to build constant tension?