AUDITORY PAREIDOLIA ENGINE
XENOVERSES · DEAF ANTHROPOLOGIST
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This application simulates auditory pareidolia in hearing impairment.
The phenomenon affects an estimated 16–24% of all hearing-impaired individuals.
You hear what the brain adds when sensory input is missing.
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The simulation combines three components:
Low-frequency tinnitus (125 Hz, as in Ménière's disease)
High-frequency hearing loss (simulated through frequency filtering)
Pareidolia algorithms (spectral enrichment, harmonic addition)
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Choose between three everyday scenarios:
Waiting room, City traffic, Silent apartment.
Adjust severity from mild to severe.
Enable/disable individual components.
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Safety disclaimer: This is an experimental demonstration tool.
Keep volume at 50–60% maximum (below 70 dB recommended).
Limit continuous exposure to 15–20 minutes to prevent auditory fatigue.
If you experience discomfort, ringing, or muffled hearing, stop immediately.
APE v2.0
SYSTEM_IDLE
Scenario
Severity
Level MODERATE
Components
Tinnitus (125 Hz) ON
Hearing loss ON
Pareidolia ON
What you hear
Select a scenario to start the simulation.
Neurological mechanism
In deafferentation (reduced input), the auditory cortex generates activity autonomously. The brain uses predictive coding to extract meaning from weak signals – and "hallucinates" patterns in the process.
Clinical relevance
16.2% of hearing-impaired individuals experience auditory hallucinations (Linszen et al., 2019). Low-frequency tinnitus below 500 Hz affects 5–15% of SNHL patients, rising to 50–80% in Ménière's disease.
Share your experience
What do you hear? Does the pareidolia effect work for you?
I'm curious about your perceptual experience with this simulation.

Contact: deaf.anthro@gmail.com
READY
FREQ: — Hz