Editor's note

Have you listened to the audio clip that has social media in a tizzy? How can a single soundbite be heard as two totally different words – Yanny or Laurel – depending on who’s doing the listening? Case Western Reserve University’s Jennell Vick describes the quirks of the human auditory system that explain this tricky phenomenon.

As the writing world says farewell to the late Tom Wolfe, Boston University journalism professor William McKeen discusses what made him a pioneer of a new writing style, a thorn in the side of the literary establishment, and ultimately a towering figure of American letters.

And, if you’re looking forward to even faster mobile internet, Jan Rabaey at the University of California, Berkeley, explains the hoopla around 5G and how it’s different from 3G and 4G.

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Maggie Villiger

Science + Technology Editor

Top stories
You heard it say what? Roman Stetsyk/Shutterstock.com

Yanny or Laurel? It's your brain not your ears that decides

Jennell Vick, Case Western Reserve University

Where you come down on the latest internet hullabaloo depends on how your brain fills in gaps in the sounds you hear.
Tom Wolfe, in 2010, fired up and holding forth. AP Photo/Tina Fineberg

Tom Wolfe elevated journalism into enduring literature

William McKeen, Boston University

A journalism scholar and biographer of Tom Wolfe looks back at a literary great's life of challenging cultural standards.
How fast will mobile data get? alphaspirit/Shutterstock.com

What is all the fuss about 5G?

Jan Rabaey, University of California, Berkeley

In this Speed Read, learn the difference between 3G, 4G and 5G, and why it matters.

Health + Medicine

  • Diet soda may be hurting your diet

    Eunice Zhang, University of Michigan

    Mounting evidence suggests that artificial sweeteners are linked to chronic health problems like obesity and diabetes. Should there be a tax on these foods?

Politics + Society

  • The Iran nuclear deal could still be saved, experts say

    Jaganath Sankaran, University of Maryland; Steve Fetter, University of Maryland

    It would be a heavy lift, but revising the Iran nuclear deal would have some significant upsides, according to scholars at the University of Maryland.

  • Donald Glover and the state of 'black genius'

    Phillip L. Cunningham, Quinnipiac University

    Glover and hip-hop are reaching their apex at the same time, giving Glover an avenue to enter the ranks of creative geniuses. But does his race matter?

Ethics + Religion

Education

Arts + Culture

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Today’s quote

“Movies from the 1930s show how far back perverse values go, and how integral they were to Hollywood’s imagining of women’s lives.”
 

#MeToo on the 1930s silver screen
 

Marsha Gordon

North Carolina State University

 Marsha Gordon