The human brain has an incredible capacity for processing information, from sensory data, to casual conversations, to everything we hear and read — in fractions of seconds. Not only that, our brains make sense of it all, allowing us to learn, work, form relationships, and navigate the world. On this episode, we take a closer look at how this all works — and why it sometimes doesn’t. We hear stories about listening instead of reading — and test the limits of speed listening; we’ll find out why reading comprehension tests in schools may be misguided; and why some people who think they’re hard of hearing might actually have a different issue going on.

Also heard on this week’s episode: