时代周刊:听音乐有益健康吗?

Is listening to music good for your health?

听音乐有益健康吗?

If you’re looking for an easy way to shift your mind-set, cue the music.

如果你正在找既简单又能改变你情绪状态的办法，那就听听音乐吧。

Studies have shown that music can buoy¹ mood, fend² off depression and improve sleep.

研究表明，音乐可以提振情绪，抵御抑郁，改善睡眠。

It can also ease pain and lower levels of stress-related hormones³ like cortisol.

还能减轻疼痛，降低皮质醇等与压力有关的激素的水平。

How can listening to music do so much good?

听音乐何以会有这么多好处呢?

Music seems to “selectively activate” neurochemical systems and brain structures

音乐似乎可以“选择性地激活”

associated with positive mood, emotion regulation, attention and memory,

与积极情绪，情绪调节，注意力和记忆有关的神经化学系统和大脑结构，

says Kim Innes, a professor of epidemiology at West Virginia University’s School of Public Health.

西弗吉尼亚大学公共卫生学院的流行病学教授金·英尼斯说到。

But choose your tunes⁴ carefully.

但选择歌曲的时候还是要谨慎。

A song’s rhythm can influence heart rate and brain activity,

歌曲的节奏会影响心率和大脑活动，

says Daniel Levitin, a psychology⁵ professor at McGill University in Canada.

加拿大麦吉尔大学的心理学教授丹尼尔·列维京说。

And research shows that listening to music that agitates⁶ or unsettles you can trigger stress, anger and sadness.

研究表明，听那些让人烦躁不安的音乐会引发压力、愤怒和悲伤。

“There’s no one piece of music that will do the same thing for everyone,” Levitin says,

“没有哪首音乐会对大家产生同样的作用，”列维京说，

but tracks with a slow tempo⁷, gradual chord progressions and drawn-out notes tend to be calming,

但慢节奏，和弦循序渐进，以及的音符一般都有让人平静的效果，

while chaotic⁸, up-tempo tunes tend to have the opposite effect.

而混乱，快节奏的曲调往往有相反的效果。

1 buoy   

n.浮标；救生圈；v.支持，鼓励

参考例句：

• The party did little to buoy up her spirits.这次聚会并没有让她振作多少。
• The buoy floated back and forth in the shallow water.这个浮标在浅水里漂来漂去。

2 fend   

v.照料（自己），（自己）谋生，挡开，避开

参考例句：

• I've had to fend for myself since I was 14.我从十四岁时起就不得不照料自己。
• He raised his arm up to fend branches from his eyes.他举手将树枝从他眼前挡开。

3 hormones   

n. 荷尔蒙，激素 名词hormone的复数形式

参考例句：

• This hormone interacts closely with other hormones in the body. 这种荷尔蒙与体內其他荷尔蒙紧密地相互作用。
• The adrenals produce a large per cent of a man's sex hormones. 肾上腺分泌人体的大部分性激素。

4 tunes   

n.曲调，曲子( tune的名词复数 )v.调音( tune的第三人称单数 )；调整；（给收音机、电视等）调谐；使协调

参考例句：

• a potpourri of tunes 乐曲集锦
• When things get a bit too much, she simply tunes out temporarily. 碰到事情太棘手时，她干脆暂时撒手不管。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 psychology   

n.心理，心理学，心理状态

参考例句：

• She has a background in child psychology.她受过儿童心理学的教育。
• He studied philosophy and psychology at Cambridge.他在剑桥大学学习哲学和心理学。

6 agitates   

搅动( agitate的第三人称单数 )； 激怒； 使焦虑不安； （尤指为法律、社会状况的改变而）激烈争论

参考例句：

• A cement mixer agitates the cement until it is ready to pour. 水泥搅拌机把水泥搅动得可以倒出来用为止。
• He agitates for a shorter working-day. 他鼓动缩短工作时间。

7 tempo   

n.(音乐的)速度；节奏，行进速度

参考例句：

• The boss is unsatisfied with the tardy tempo.老板不满于这种缓慢的进度。
• They waltz to the tempo of the music.他们跟着音乐的节奏跳华尔兹舞。

8 chaotic   

adj.混沌的，一片混乱的，一团糟的

参考例句：

• Things have been getting chaotic in the office recently.最近办公室的情况越来越乱了。
• The traffic in the city was chaotic.这城市的交通糟透了。