This Might Be Our Biggest Earworm

The experts have figured out exactly why songs get stuck in our heads, and what makes them refuse to leave.

This song might be the biggest earworm song ever, and here's why.

Lady Gaga's Bad Romance is #1, after a study by Durham University ranked the biggest earworm songs of all time.  Maroon 5, Katy Perry, Kyle Minogue, and Gotye have songs in the top ten too.

I had "Who Let the Dogs Out" in my head this morning, and I think it was because I had just let the dogs out to pee.  Sometimes there are certain triggers for these songs.

So what makes it stick?  Earworm songs have certain qualities they tell us. They're generally fast, with fairly basic and familiar melodies, and the study says they usually have some unusual intervals, like jumps or an unexpected number of repeated notes.

This Gaga video has 745 million views, so maybe repetitive listening makes it stick too.

How do we get rid of the earworm?  Mashable says the best thing to do is find another activity that has us so engrossed we'll forget all about that song that's on a loop in our heads.  Or, we can find another catchy song that takes the place of the first one.  That sounds kinda like a vicious cycle to me.

Ninety-two percent of us get a song stuck in our heads at least once a week, and some songs are more fun to have stuck in our heads than others.  What's the worst?