美国国家公共电台 NPR As Brains Mature, More Robust Information Networks Boost Self-Control

 

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When a toddler gets angry, it's not unusual to see hitting, stomping¹ or biting. That's because of what's happening in the child's brain. It's just beginning to develop the circuits that control impulsive² behavior. Now scientists think they know how those circuits take shape. NPR's Jon Hamilton has the story.

JON HAMILTON, BYLINE³: A child's brain has to learn a lot - how to recognize faces, grasp objects, control emotions. And Danielle Bassett of the University of Pennsylvania says these abilities don't improve at the same pace.

DANIELLE BASSETT: A child's ability to run or to see is very well-developed by the time they're 8. However, their ability to inhibit⁴ inappropriate responses is not something that's well developed until well into the 20s.

HAMILTON: That's probably because impulse control is so complicated. The brain has to figure out what to do, so an area behind the forehead starts making calculations based on information from many other areas - memory, the senses, emotions. Then it has to make a decision. And Bassett says this has to happen really fast.

BASSETT: Being able to inhibit inappropriate behavior requires you to quickly stop yourself from doing something that you might naturally do.

HAMILTON: It's all part of something called executive function, which also helps us plan and focus. Bassett was part of a team that wanted to know how executive function develops. So they studied the brains of nearly 900 young people from 8 to 22. Bassett says the team used a special kind of MRI to reveal the fibers⁵ that make up the brain's information highways.

BASSETT: What we're interested in asking is whether that pattern of highway structure changes as children grow and whether those changes are related to the emergence⁶ of executive function.

HAMILTON: Bassett says the answer to both questions is yes.

BASSETT: There are two very salient changes in the patterns of these highways.

HAMILTON: One is that the highways tend to cluster in areas of the brain that perform specialized⁷ functions, like impulse control. Bassett says it's like seeing more roads appear in each community.

BASSETT: But in addition, we also see the strengthening of connections between those communities.

HAMILTON: Which is a bit like adding lanes to the interstate. The result, described in the journal Current Biology, is a network in which information flows more efficiently⁸ both within specialized areas and also between those areas. And that's exactly what the brain needs to stifle⁹ the impulse to smack¹⁰ an annoying sibling¹¹ or send an angry text.

Joshua Gordon directs the National Institute of Mental Health, which helped fund the research. He says understanding the brain changes associated with executive function could shed light on a range of problems that often show up during adolescence¹².

JOSHUA GORDON: All kinds of nurse neuropsychiatric disorders¹³ - substance abuse disorders, schizophrenia, depression.

HAMILTON: And Gordon says there may be distinctive¹⁴ connection patterns associated with each of these problems.

GORDON: This could help in terms of identifying individuals who are at high risk of later developing psychiatric disorders so we can follow them more closely.

HAMILTON: Gordon says brain scans might also someday show whether a particular treatment is working. Jon Hamilton, NPR News.

1 stomping   

v.跺脚，践踏，重踏( stomp的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He looked funny stomping round the dance floor. 他在舞池里跺着舞步，样子很可笑。 来自辞典例句
• Chelsea substitution Wright-Phillips for Robben. Wrighty back on his old stomping to a mixed reception. 77分–切尔西换人：赖特．菲利普斯入替罗本。小赖特在主场球迷混杂的欢迎下，重返他的老地方。 来自互联网

2 impulsive   

adj.冲动的，刺激的；有推动力的

参考例句：

• She is impulsive in her actions.她的行为常出于冲动。
• He was neither an impulsive nor an emotional man,but a very honest and sincere one.他不是个一冲动就鲁莽行事的人，也不多愁善感.他为人十分正直、诚恳。

3 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

4 inhibit   

vt.阻止，妨碍，抑制

参考例句：

• Don't let ego and greed inhibit clear thinking and hard work.不要让自我和贪婪妨碍清晰的思维和刻苦的工作。
• They passed a law to inhibit people from parking in the street.他们通过一项法令以阻止人们在街上停车。

5 fibers   

光纤( fiber的名词复数 )； （织物的）质地； 纤维，纤维物质

参考例句：

• Thesolution of collagen-PVA was wet spined with the sodium sulfate as coagulant and collagen-PVA composite fibers were prepared. 在此基础上，以硫酸钠为凝固剂，对胶原-PVA共混溶液进行湿法纺丝，制备了胶原-PVA复合纤维。
• Sympathetic fibers are distributed to all regions of the heart. 交感神经纤维分布于心脏的所有部分。

6 emergence   

n.浮现，显现，出现，（植物）突出体

参考例句：

• The last decade saw the emergence of a dynamic economy.最近10年见证了经济增长的姿态。
• Language emerges and develops with the emergence and development of society.语言是随着社会的产生而产生，随着社会的发展而发展的。

7 specialized   

adj.专门的，专业化的

参考例句：

• There are many specialized agencies in the United Nations.联合国有许多专门机构。
• These tools are very specialized.这些是专用工具。

8 efficiently   

adv.高效率地，有能力地

参考例句：

• The worker oils the machine to operate it more efficiently.工人给机器上油以使机器运转更有效。
• Local authorities have to learn to allocate resources efficiently.地方政府必须学会有效地分配资源。

9 stifle   

vt.使窒息；闷死；扼杀；抑止，阻止

参考例句：

• She tried hard to stifle her laughter.她强忍住笑。
• It was an uninteresting conversation and I had to stifle a yawn.那是一次枯燥无味的交谈，我不得不强忍住自己的呵欠。

10 smack   

vt.拍，打，掴；咂嘴；vi.含有…意味；n.拍

参考例句：

• She gave him a smack on the face.她打了他一个嘴巴。
• I gave the fly a smack with the magazine.我用杂志拍了一下苍蝇。

11 sibling   

n.同胞手足(指兄、弟、姐或妹)

参考例句：

• Many of us hate living in the shadows of a more successful sibling.我们很多人都讨厌活在更为成功的手足的阴影下。
• Sibling ravalry has been common in this family.这个家里，兄弟姊妹之间的矛盾很平常。

12 adolescence   

n.青春期，青少年

参考例句：

• Adolescence is the process of going from childhood to maturity.青春期是从少年到成年的过渡期。
• The film is about the trials and tribulations of adolescence.这部电影讲述了青春期的麻烦和苦恼。

13 disorders   

n.混乱( disorder的名词复数 )；凌乱；骚乱；（身心、机能）失调

参考例句：

• Reports of anorexia and other eating disorders are on the increase. 据报告，厌食症和其他饮食方面的功能紊乱发生率正在不断增长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The announcement led to violent civil disorders. 这项宣布引起剧烈的骚乱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 distinctive   

adj.特别的，有特色的，与众不同的

参考例句：

• She has a very distinctive way of walking.她走路的样子与别人很不相同。
• This bird has several distinctive features.这个鸟具有几种突出的特征。