Why Songs Get Stuck in Our Heads, and How to Stop Them

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1. 01Why Songs Get Stuck in Our Heads

   Good afternoon, everyone. Has a song ever played in your head again and again, even though you wanted it to stop? That happened to me all last week. Today, I'll explain what's going on, and what might help.

   大家午安。你們有沒有過這樣的經歷：一首歌在腦子裡一遍又一遍地播放，就算你想讓它停下來也停不了？我上週一整週都是這樣。今天，我來解釋一下這是怎麼回事，以及什麼辦法可能有幫助。

2. 02Meet the Earworm

   This experience has a name: an earworm. It's a piece of music that repeats in your mind without you choosing it. Usually, it's not the whole song, just a short, catchy part, like the chorus.

   這種經歷有一個名字，叫「耳蟲」。它是一段不由你選擇、卻在腦海裡不斷重複的音樂。通常不是整首歌，而只是短短的一段朗朗上口的部分，比如副歌。

3. 03When Do Earworms Appear?

   From my own experience, earworms often appear after I've heard a song many times, or when my mind is relaxed, like when I'm walking or taking a shower.

   根據我自己的經驗，耳蟲常常出現在我把一首歌聽了很多遍之後，或者在我頭腦放鬆的時候，比如散步或洗澡的時候。

4. 04Why It's a Problem

   Most of the time, earworms are harmless. But when you're trying to study or fall asleep, a song that won't stop can be really annoying.

   大多數時候，耳蟲是無害的。但當你想學習或者想睡覺時，一首停不下來的歌真的會讓人很煩。

5. 05An Experiment With Chewing Gum

   Here's an interesting finding. In 2015, researchers at the University of Reading published a study showing that chewing gum reduced the number of unwanted musical thoughts people had. Their idea is that chewing interferes with the mouth movements we use when we silently "sing" in our heads.

   有一個很有意思的發現。2015年，英國雷丁大學的研究人員發表了一項研究，結果顯示嚼口香糖可以減少人們腦中不想要的音樂念頭。他們的想法是，咀嚼會干擾我們在腦子裡默默「唱歌」時所用的口部動作。

   Source: Beaman, Powell & Rapley, "Want to block earworms from conscious awareness? B(u)y gum!" Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology (2015)

6. 06Other Things You Can Try

   Besides chewing gum, a few other tricks work for me. Sometimes I listen to the whole song once, so my brain gets an ending. Other times, I do something that needs my full attention, like a puzzle.

   除了嚼口香糖，還有幾個小技巧對我有用。有時我會把整首歌完整地聽一遍，讓大腦聽到結尾。有時我會做一些需要全神貫注的事情，比如拼圖。

7. 07A Word of Caution

   However, one study is not the final answer. The gum experiments were done in a lab, so the effect may not be the same for everyone in daily life. It's worth trying, but don't expect magic.

   不過，一項研究並不是最終答案。口香糖實驗是在實驗室裡做的，所以在日常生活中，效果不一定對每個人都一樣。值得一試，但別期待奇蹟。

8. 08Conclusion

   To conclude, earworms are a normal part of how our brains handle music. They're usually harmless, and when they're not, a piece of gum might help. Thank you, and I'm sorry if a song is stuck in your head now.

   最後，耳蟲是我們大腦處理音樂的一種正常現象。它們通常是無害的，如果真的讓你困擾，嚼一塊口香糖也許會有幫助。謝謝大家，如果現在有首歌卡在你腦子裡了，真不好意思。