system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5 why do we hear "s" sounds so well when someone whispers, but other sounds are harder to hear?
gpt
In normal circumstances, the S sound is made in the mouth without vibrating the vocal cords in the throat. Contrast that to the Z sound which differs in that it is voiced. During whispering, the movement of the vocal cords is suppressed, which reduces the loudness of all voiced sound and makes them very similar to unvoiced. But unvoiced sounds remain at their previous level that we are accustomed to hearing.