Laurel or Yanni… Yanni or Laurel? Tis one of the most pressing questions facing us all in these times. It’s being pondered everywhere: the Twitterverse, in Jimmy Kimmel‘s studio, laboratories full of sound scientists, coffee shops full of philosophers ruminating on perception and reality. Same goes for Premium Sign Solutions! We’re on it too! Trust us, we’ll get to the bottom of this, one way or another.

The Tribe Has Spoken

So we’ve decided to solve the matter in the fairest way possible – democratically!

The votes have been cast. So far it’s shaping up to be the men vs. the women. 6 for Laurel. 1 for Yanni. That settles the Yanni or Laurel matter. But rest assured, we’re pooling money for Stephanie to get a hearing test. After all, we are a considerate sign company of caring, compassionate and totally sharp-eared and tone-sensitive sign makers! That’s what our ear protection equipment’s for. Yup.

Interesting Question

While this is just all silly fun, “Yanni or Laurel” does pose a curious question. How can people perceive a single sound (or dress) in two entirely different ways? And how do our senses, in this case hearing, affect our view of reality? And vice versa. Maybe two sounds, one of higher pitch than the other, were spliced together. But that doesn’t explain why some hear Yanni and others hear Laurel. Are differing interpretations because of different mindsets? Or maybe some people should just turn down their headphones a little bit?

It’s interesting, particularly for lines of work dealing with catching people’s attentions. Like advertisers, marketers and sign makers. Sure, this one doesn’t involve visuals, but the question’s all the same. What shapes how people see or hear things? While there might not be a single definitive answer, maybe merely knowing that it’s something subjective can help people be more creative and perceptive.