Explain It to Me Is your brain lying to you?
Dec 21, 2025
Noam Hassenfeld, host of Vox's Unexplainable and reporter on scientific mysteries, dives into the puzzling world of tinnitus. He shares Kelly's harrowing experience with this condition, highlighting how standard hearing tests often miss hidden issues. The discussion unveils how our brains create phantom sounds as a response to lost input. Hassenfeld and experts reveal that perception is not only about sound but all senses, explaining how the brain prioritizes survival over absolute truth, urging a humble trust in our sensory experiences.
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Listener's Tinnitus Story
- Kelly developed relentless tinnitus at ~25 and it wrecked her sleep, work, and social life.
- She described hearing distinct high pitches in each ear that made her withdraw from friends and leave her job.
Hidden Hearing Loss Explains Silent Damage
- Hidden hearing loss damages nerve fibers for loud sounds while standard tests only check soft-sound fibers.
- That mismatch can leave normal test results despite trouble in noisy places and risk tinnitus.
Brain Fills Missing Sound Like A Thermostat
- The brain raises internal 'gain' when auditory input drops, creating phantom sounds to restore expected activity.
- Researchers compare tinnitus to phantom limb pain driven by neural sensitization and failed regulation.