Living things that are good at predicting things don't die as much. There's a good reason why our auditory system is always on, even when we sleep. I suspect the reason for something like an 'earworm' is a system that's eager to predict sounds from the environment.
It's probably better to have a slightly overeager prediction system which sometimes gives false positives than one that isn't as active, because false negatives could lead to your death. That includes things like noticing that birds suddenly stopped singing. Maybe it's nothing, but you can see the use of a subconscious background process that has is eagerly making predictions that would then have an error, that could potentially save your life.
Thinking Fast and Slow has a wonderful example of the veteran firefighter who knew to order people out and then later realised that it was his ears feeling unusually warm (that was the clue to the hidden fire under the floor) that made the area unsafe.
If there are alien life forms out there, I would expect them to have evolved similar systems.
I find it impossible to properly follow two dissimilar tunes at the same time, or to imagine one tune while physically hearing another. So my trick for banishing earworms is to find something else to physically listen to, and then actively engage with trying to sustain the earworm. Lean into it, try to imagine the earworm in full detail, while the ears are telling the brain "hey, process this"
It usually does the trick. I think that trying to engage the earworm activates certain neurons that sustain it, but the imperative of actual sensory input competing for those same neurons disrupts the pattern that's gotten stuck. YMMV
I will never accept the horrifying word "earworm". As an American, it's always been "stuck in my head", and I first learned "earworm" years ago as a Britsh-ism. I hope that parasite stays across the pond, but it seems like it's been gaining traction this past decade or two.
“How does music affect the brain? The answer is, in lots of ways, and on multiple levels. From the most fundamental processes that recognise pure rhythm and beat, to the higher analytical regions that recognise and enjoy complexity and flow. That’s why music can so often be such a rewarding and enriching experience.”
…and this is why AI generated music sounds like shit, because the systems lack those evolved aspects of life, which coupled with emotions, create music.
I absolutely hope the AI sector is forced to pay musicians and writers for copyright infringement whilst trying to put them out of a job and devaluing the economic viability of an already repressed industry. You may disagree with this perspective - I happen to want US copyright reform to correct the overly long terms of protection Disney lobbied for - but I’d like you to present your arguments against my position in response so they can be given consideration.
Also if you’re pro AI music generation without compensation, then show me your playlist and prove to me there’s actually people in this world who listen to that shit. I’m genuinely curious how many pro-AI generated music evangelists actually turn off human music in favor of what they claim to support. Basically arguing against paying artists is a morally bankrupt straw man right now and should be set on fire at every opportunity.
I like earworms, but often I never notice myself with them. When I do notice myself having an earworm, and it becomes a little bit annoying, it's a bit like this article and I ask myself why. Lean into your earworm.
What I try to do is pay more attention to the earworm. If it's lyrics, what are the lyrics saying? (and look them up). If it's instrumental music what are the emotions? What was the time when I last heard it and how was I feeling. What is the purpose of the earworm - what message is it saying? I treat the earworm as if it was my subconscious trying to tell me something. Contemplate and listen properly to your earworm.
Often this strategy happily removes annoying earworms and sometimes it tells me some new useful information. It doesn't give me any deep insights or epiphanies just something like "oh that fun sounding song was actually sad - about a girl who lost her baby, I didn't notice now I do"
Once or twice I've noticed something strange. The earworm actually increases in volume (sometimes at a loud pub level of sound) but only due to or in response to the IRL situation that I find myself in.
As a composer, sometimes I get an earworm that is unique to me (as far as I know. I'll convert it to a saved format as quickly as possible as eventually it may be forgotten-but not always! I have earworms of my own music still since childhood). This study's really exciting especially as it seems we don't know where these come from. Maybe once it's more understood we'll be moving closer to understand creativity, given earworms are usually based on what we're already familiar with so perhaps creativity is a memory glitch on that process.
Interestingly, I can’t recall ever having an ear worm. I’d guess it’s related to my struggles with learning texts verbatim: I have very hard time learning to recite poetry, songs, etc.
There’s a neuro-linguistic programming technique you can try to get rid of an earworm.
Picture a radio playing the song and imagine yourself slowly turning down the volume and the song getting quieter until it has gone.
This used to work for me but over time I’ve had to extend it with imagining switching the radio off at the end, unplugging it, and chucking it out the window so it smashes on the ground so no chance of it turning back on!
I think it's the brain patting itself on the back for predicting how the song goes. Because we're prediction machines.
Just need to vent: there's a NIN song "Sin" that has a repeating effect shsha shsha shsha shsha.... I'm not conveying it clearly in text, but it's prominent in the first five seconds of the song[0] if you want to actually hear it.
Anyway, ever since a certain Lil' Jon song came out in 2009, my brain keeps trying to hear this effect in Sin as, "Shots shots shots shots shots...." It's totally inappropriate for the song, and my brain doesn't actually hear the word, but it's convinced if it keeps listening and focusing, the word will come through clearly.
It's a great illustration of the brain having a weakness for certain patterns and having confirmation bias so strong that it will literally keep looking for confirmation for years without getting it.
> The more you try not to think about something, the more aware of it you become ... earworms ... They're ultimately a bizarre, often annoying, but invariable harmless quick of the human brain.
Harmless? The most annoying kind always come to me when I'm having a bout of migraine or a stress headache, often making them worse.
> What makes for a good earworm? Based on what research there is, the most potent earworms tend to be short, simple, and repetitive. And catchy ...
Pianist Ludovico Einaudi is famous for his minimalist tunes. No wonder most of his pieces are earworm-worthy; ex: I Giorni https://youtube.com/watch?v=Uffjii1hXzU
Came looking for a brain-eating parasite.
Left with a strange desire of lullaby recollections
I don't have an internal monologue and I can't hear anything in my head. Yet I still get earworms. I "hear" the shape of the music, get hints of timbre, and my recognition of the lyrics comes through. It's almost like the volume is really low, but I don't think that's really it. I'm sure it's not nearly as bad as actually hearing it in your head, though. I sympathize for everyone else.
As a musician, this is something I’ve thought about a lot and the conclusion I’ve come to is that music triggers our reward system just like a drug, and just like a monkey given a drug, we want to keep pushing the button to feel that reward over and over. So we play it back in our heads, which isn’t quite as good as the real thing, but is close enough. I really don’t think it’s any more complicated than that.
my strategy for getting rid of these (earworms? had never heard that term until now) is to just play the song in full, _let it finish_ and go to another song (any song). congrats it's now out of your head. you're welcome!
you can stop it by playing the song! try it honestly works .
Caribbean Queen by Billy Ocean
now you'll hear it in your head for the next month
you're welcome!
whoever came up with the name 'earworm' needs to be shot
I suppose that if there are any hard rules for earworms, then an AI would be able to produce them.
Like most pieces of neuroscience writing that frame a "why" question ("Why we sleep", "why we get earworms", "why we like beaches") - the question is literally never answered in the article/book, and the explanations given are things that an 8 year old child could produce. This is, of course, because we have no idea how the brain works to create the complex experiences that we are so familiar with.
Almost all of the explanations here boil down to descriptions of the earworms themselves, rather than an answer to WHY we get them. There are some things about short term memory and the "phonological loop" peppered in to make it sound scientific, but again those just boil down to "it's a short melody that you can hold in your memory". But of course, even after all this, none of these things are actually explanations at all! They are post hoc observations masquerading as explanations, like trying to explain "why" birds migrate by describing how long they fly, and what direction they fly in.