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Science Quickly

Computers Predict Pop Chart Success

Science Quickly

Scientific American

Science

4.2639 Ratings

🗓️ 24 May 2018

⏱️ 3 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

An evolutionary analysis of pop tunes revealed that over the past 30 years songs have grown sadder—but the big hits buck that trend. Christopher Intagliata reports.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

Understanding the human body is a team effort. That's where the Yachtel group comes in.

0:05.8

Researchers at Yachtolt have been delving into the secrets of probiotics for 90 years.

0:11.0

Yacold also partners with nature portfolio to advance gut microbiome science through the global grants for gut health, an investigator-led research program.

0:19.6

To learn more about Yachtolt, visit yawcult.co.

0:22.7

.jp. That's Y-A-K-U-L-T.C-O.J-P. When it comes to a guide for your gut, count on Yacult.

0:33.6

This is Scientific American's 60-second science. I'm Christopher in Taliatta.

0:40.0

Many parents are no doubt familiar with their teenager's musical taste.

0:44.8

But very few are probably inspired enough by them to launch an experiment.

0:48.9

I listened to some of the music that my oldest teenage daughter is listening to.

0:54.9

And I was surprised at how different that music was from what I used to listen to.

0:59.8

Natalia Komarova, an applied mathematician at UC Irvine.

1:03.4

Since I'm interested in evolution in general and in mathematical description of evolution,

1:08.3

I thought that studying the evolution of music would be a good idea.

1:11.9

Komarova and her team analyzed half a million songs, released in the UK between 1985 and

1:17.6

2015, using online databases that describe songs musical characteristics, like rhythm, mood, and

1:24.2

danceability. Here's a song that was high on the charts in 2014

1:28.7

that has a high danceability index,

1:31.3

so it's a very danceable song.

1:33.0

Shake It Off by Taylor Swift.

1:38.3

Here's a 2014 song that has a low happiness index.

1:42.9

Stay with me by Sam Smith. song that has a low happiness in it.

1:47.8

Stay with me by Sam Smith.

...

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