Biology
How much information does speech carry per second?
Human speech conveys about 39 bits of information per second in every language studied. Fast-spoken languages pack less into each syllable.
Source: Coupé et al. (2019), Science Advances.
Context
About 39 bits per second, in every language Coupé and colleagues measured in 2019. Languages differ in how fast people speak and how much each syllable carries, and the two cancel out.
Spanish and Japanese are spoken fast with less information per syllable. Vietnamese and Thai are slower and denser. The rate of information to the listener comes out about the same.
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