We humans are the only primates that can flexibly control the pitch of our voices. This melodic control is not just important for our singing abilities: Fluctuating pitch also conveys critical information during speech—including the speaker’s mood, words of emphasis, or whether a sentence is a statement or a question. Some tonal languages, like Mandarin […]
Tokyo passes strict anti-smoking laws ahead of Olympics
Tokyo’s city government Wednesday passed strict new anti-smoking rules ahead of the 2020 Olympics, leapfrogging national legislation on lighting up that has been watered down after opposition from pro-smoking MPs. Japan has long been an outlier in the developed world, considered a smoker’s paradise where lighting up is allowed in most restaurants and bars. The […]