考研精選晨讀美文雙語

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　　考研精選晨讀美文：背景音樂很糟糕

　　Studying for an exam while listening to music is not smart, because background music can impair your ability to perform memory tasks, new research has found.

　　最新研究發現，邊聽音樂邊複習功課並非明智之舉：因為背景音樂會降低你完成與記憶力相關的任務的能力。

　　Study participants were asked to recall a list of eight consonants in the order they were presented. They did this while in five different sound environments: quiet surroundings; music they liked; music they disliked; changing state ***a sequence of random digits***; and steady state ***a sequence of steady digits such as “3, 3, 3, 3”***.

　　參與調查者聽到8 個子音字母，他們必須按照播放順序進行復述。他們聽的時候，分別處在5 種不同的背景聲音中：安靜環境、喜歡的背景音樂、不喜歡的背景音樂、數字不斷變化的響聲，數字不變的響聲***例如：3，3，3，3***。

　　The participants’ recall ability was poorest when listening to music, regardless of whether they liked or disliked it, and in changing-state conditions. The most accurate recall occurred when participants performed the task in steady-state environments, according to the study published online in the journal Applied Cognitive Psychology.

　　結果顯示，無論他們喜歡還是不喜歡背景音樂，在播放音樂和數字不斷變化的聲音環境裡，被調查者的記憶力都最差。該研究發現刊登在《應用認知心理學》上，研究指出人在安靜環境下記憶力最好。

　　“ The poorer performance of the music and changing-state sounds are due to the acoustical variation within those environments. This impairs the ability to recall the order of items, via rehearsal, within the presented list, ” explained lead researcher Nick Perham, a lecturer in the School of Psychology at the University of Wales Institute in Cardiff, in a news release from the journal’s publisher.

　　威爾士大學卡地夫學院的首席研究員尼克·珀罕在該期刊的新聞釋出會上說：“音樂與不斷變化的聲音影響了人們的表現，這是因為那些環境聲音變化會影響人們複述測試內容的能力。”

　　“Mental arithmetic also requires the ability to retain order information in the short-term via rehearsal, and may be similarly affected by their performance in the presence of changing-state, background environments,” he added.

　　“心算也需要通過練習在短時間內記住資訊的順序，因此也可能受到背景環境的影響，”珀罕補充道。

　　When performing a challenging mental task, do it in silence, Perham recommended.

　　珀罕建議人們應該找一個安靜的環境來完成一項具有挑戰性的腦力勞動。

　　考研精選晨讀美文：外國人眼中的孔子

　　I first met Confucius in a friend’ s living room, nearly 10 years ago. OK, so it wasn’ t really the bearded Chinese philosopher. It was a collection of his most famous lines, printed and bound and resting on a coffee table. As I scanned the pages, a vision of the man began to form in my mind.

　　大約 10 年前，我在一個朋友的起居室裡第一次“見到”了孔子。當然了，我見到的並不是那位蓄著鬍子的中國古代哲學家本人，而是一本收錄了他的名言警句的小冊子，裝訂得整整齊齊，放在茶几上。隨手翻閱了幾頁之後，孔子的形象便在我的腦海中形成了。

　　It wasn’ t until last Saturday, though, that I finally had a chance to put a name to the face-that of Hong Kong star Chow Yun-fat, who plays the sage in the new biopic Confucius. I went to see the film knowing very little of Confucius’ personal story.

　　直到上週六，我終於有機會把“孔子”這個名字和一張人臉對應起來——香港明星周潤發在新影片《孔子》中出演這一聖人角色。雖然對孔子的生平並不太瞭解，我還是去這部電影。

　　In the movie, we see a man who is all at once humble and wise and humorous and intelligent and disciplined and firm and clever. Even when Zhou’ s character all but throws herself on Confucius, the philosopher walks away with barely a trace of desire on his face.

　　影片中，我看到的是一個集謙恭、博學、幽默、智慧、守紀、嚴格於一身的聖人形象。即便是周迅所扮演的南子主動投懷送抱的時候，他也平靜地走開了，臉上幾乎看不到一絲慾望。

　　If this is, indeed, the real man, meeting him would be, all at once, an incredibly exhilarating experience-and also a very depressing one. In the movie, Confucius talks of changing oneself from within. This is certainly a noble goal. Based upon my own experience, though, it is much easier said than done. For example, I cannot imagine walking away from the temptress without the assistance of a supernatural power-no matter how many of the sage’ s proverbs I had internalize.

　　如果孔子真是這樣一個人的話，那麼與他見面將是一件十分令人興奮的事情—但同時也會讓人沮喪。影片中，孔子教導人們要從內心深處改變自己。這確實是個高尚的目標，但從我的個人經歷來看，這事說起來容易，做起來卻很難。例如：我很難想象自己能夠在不借助任何超自然力量的前提下從這麼一個性感女性身邊坦然地走過——就算記再多的聖人格言也無濟於事。

　　In this sense, I am more in awe of Confucius than ever before. A person’ s words take on far more significance when he or she actually lives them out. If Confucius really was the man that Chow portrays, he was indeed one for the ages.

　　從這點上來講，我對孔子的敬畏達到了從未有過的高度。一個人說道做到的人很值得尊敬。如果孔子真如周潤發所演繹的那樣，那他真是個名副其實的聖人。

　　考研精選晨讀美文：天價手機

　　On Wednesday at the Berry Hill Galleries on the Upper East Side, the latest Vertu smartphone, the Constellation Quest, was launched. It comes in a few metal varieties. There is the pink or black sapphire, which will set you back a mere $7,900. One in yellow gold retails for about $25,000.

　　最近，最新款韋圖智慧手機Constellation Quest的釋出會在紐約上東城的柏利希爾畫廊舉行。這款手機有幾種不同的金屬外殼。粉色或黑色藍寶石螢幕款售價為7900美元，還有一款金黃色的則在25,000美元左右。

　　‘That’ s how much it costs?’ asked the actor Adrian Grenier, who was trying one out.‘Does it drive for you?’‘If it could type for me and think for me and get the dry cleaning, I would consider it,’said the fashion designer Peter Som.‘It is very pretty, and I could see wearing it as a brooch.’

　　“這玩意兒要這麼貴嗎?”演員格雷尼爾一邊擺弄著手機，一邊問道，“難道它能幫你開車?” “如果這手機能為我打字，幫我思考問題，幫我把衣服拿去幹洗，我可能會考慮買一部。 ”時裝設計師索姆說， “它很漂亮，可以用作胸針。 ”

　　‘What’ s the concept of a Vertu phone?’asked the financier Dennis Paul.‘To own the most expensive thing that ever lived? Maybe it’ s a status symbol in the Middle East or China, but I don’ t fit that. I’ m one of those people who are cheap. My friends will tell you that.’

　　“韋圖手機的理念是什麼?”金融家保羅問道， “就是讓你擁有最昂貴的奢侈品?也許在中東或者中國這是一個地位的象徵，可它不適合我。我習慣用便宜貨，我的朋友都知道。 ”

　　Casey Gorman, the managing director for Vertu in the Americas, took a reporter for a tour of the less expensive model.‘Look at the sapphire keys, the sapphire screen,’Ms. Gorman said. She then went on to discuss the device’s concierge features, which are free for the first year and $2,000 per annum following.

　　戈爾曼，韋圖美洲區總經理拉著記者去看一款比較便宜的手機。 “看看這些藍寶石按鍵、藍寶石螢幕。她接著又介紹了手機的禮賓服務功能，這項服務第一年免費，之後每年收費2000美元。 ”

　　‘For instance, it’ s location aware. You type that you’ re in New York and it lets you know where to go. ’ Mingling nearby was Perry Oosting, the company ’ s president. He explained that Vertu has sold 300,000 units in eight years. He was asked why anyone would buy one.‘Luxury is not about rational, it’ s about the emotional. Luxury is the liberty of choice. ’One person who understands that choice is, apparently, the pop musician Seal. He has gone through six Vertu phones and is the company’ s new U.S. brand ambassador. He was drinking a glass of water in an adjacent room.‘I’ m attracted to passion and courage, ’ Seal explained, fondling the Constellation Quest he was given earlier in the evening.

　　“這手機有地圖功能。你輸入你在紐約，手機就會告訴你有哪些地方可去。 ”站在他們身旁的是韋圖公司總裁烏斯汀。他說， “我們在八年時間裡售出了 30 萬部韋圖手機。 ”別人問他為什麼會有人買這種手機，他的回答是：奢侈和理性無關，這是個情感方面的問題。奢侈就是選擇的自由。能夠理解這種所謂的“選擇的自由”的人非流行歌手希爾莫屬了。他買過六部韋圖手機，如今是該公司新任的美國品牌大使。他正在隔壁房間裡喝水。 “吸引我的是其中蘊含的激情和勇氣” ，希爾一邊溫柔地擺弄著當晚早些時候拿到的Constellation Quest手機一邊說。