PBS高端访谈:如何延长你的注意力集中时间

JUDY WOODRUFF: The international bestselling author Ann Patchett has written seven novels and three nonfiction books. She contributes essays and criticism to an array of newspapers and journals. And she owns a bookstore in her hometown of Nashville, Tennessee. A lot on her plate? Well, most would think so. But it's not a matter of juggling¹. Tonight, in our essay, In My Humble² Opinion, the case for doing one thing at a time.

ANN PATCHETT, Owner, Parnassus Books: In my 30s, I decided³ to get serious about baking. I bought cookbooks and went to work. It was shocking how often my attempts failed. My cakes were flat, dry, sunken, flavorless. You name it. After taking careful inventory⁴ of my equipment and ingredients, I was forced to call myself into question: Was I reading the recipe carefully? Was I following directions? Not exactly. I had done most of what was required, but never all of it. So, I baked a cake while paying full attention to nothing but the cake, and it came out perfectly⁶. It looked like the cake in the book. Baking turned out to be a lesson in what we used to call reading comprehension. I hadn't been paying attention to the text, which might have been because I was talking on the phone while folding the wet and dry ingredients, or I was folding the laundry while running the mixer, or making a note to myself in the margins⁷ of the cookbook to write a piece about cakes. Behold⁸, the confidence it takes to glance at a recipe from the corner of one eye and think it will all turn out fine, or behold the confidence it takes to drive a car while sending a text message, though, if you're going to try and fail at multitasking, it's better do it in the kitchen than on the interstate. People like to ask me the secret to writing novels. For me, it's the ability to stay focused. Admitting that I'm incapable⁹ of multitasking was the important first step. In order to write a novel, I have to show up to work fully⁵ present and concentrate on one thing. It turns out this is also the secret to baking a cake, and being in a successful relationship, and being a good parent and a good friend. If your attention span has shrunken like a sweater accidentally thrown in the dryer¹⁰, and you want to stretch it out again, then reading a book can serve the same purpose as writing one. Like baking, reading books can be the antidote¹¹ to fragmentation and distraction¹². Chapter by chapter, you can retrain yourself to pay attention for longer periods of time. Books are also a great source of entertainment, education, and empathy. They're available for free at your local library, and are for sale at your local independent bookstore for a fraction of the cost of a new iPhone. I was told this essay should be three minutes' long, that three minutes is the length of time people would pay attention. So, read some more books, and next time, we will talk for longer.

朱蒂·伍德瑞夫：国际畅销书作家安·帕契特完成了七部小说和三部非小说作品。她为很多报刊杂志撰写文章和评论。她在家乡田纳西州纳什维尔开了一家书店。真是什么都让她占了？嗯，多数人会这样认为。但这可不是什么变戏法。今晚，在我们的文章《管见所及》中，有一个一次只做一件事的案例。

安·帕契特，Parnassus Books店主：在我三十多岁时，我决定认真对待烘焙这件事。我买了烹饪书，去做。我的尝试失败了，这让我大为震惊。我做的蛋糕乏善可陈，干燥，凹陷，食之无味。随你说吧。在仔细盘点了我的设备和配料后，我不得不扪心自问：我之前有没有好好阅读食谱？我是按照指导步骤来的吗？不完全。大部分需要做的事，我都做了，但从未完全。所以，我（再）烤蛋糕时，除了蛋糕，心无旁骛，最后结果相当完美。那蛋糕看起来就像书中所描述的那样。结果，烘焙给我们所谓的阅读理解，上了一课。我之前从未专注于我手中的文本，可能是因为那时我一边讲着电话，一边手里摆弄着干湿配料，或者搅拌机在工作的时候，我（顺便）叠下衣服，或者在食谱的页边空白处给自己写点关于蛋糕的只言片语。瞧，用眼角瞥一下食谱就想当然地认为它很不错的信心，或瞧那一边发信息一边开车的信心，但如果你尝试同时处理多项任务，结果却失败了，你最好还是让这一切发生在厨房里吧，可别发生在洲际公路上。人们总喜欢问我写小说的秘密。对我来说，那就是保持专注的能力。承认我不能同时完成多项任务，是重要的第一步。为了写一部小说，我必须身心临在，全神贯注于一件事。事实证明，这也是烤蛋糕及维系良好关系的秘诀，也是成就一个好父母和好朋友的秘诀。如果你的注意时长缩短了，就像一件毛衣不小心甩到干衣机里一样，你想把它延长，那么读书和写作都可以达到相同的目的。和烘焙一样，阅读书籍可以成为矫正碎片化和分心的良方。一章一节，你可以训练自己长期专注。书籍也是娱乐、教育和产生共鸣的重要源泉。你当地的图书馆可以免费提供书籍，当地也有进行独立销售的书店，这些花销也就是你那新iPhone的九牛一毛。有人告诉我，我这篇文章应该控制在三分钟的长度，这三分钟是人们专注的时长。所以，多读一些书，下次我们再聊。

1 juggling   

n. 欺骗, 杂耍(=jugglery) adj. 欺骗的, 欺诈的 动词juggle的现在分词

参考例句：

• He was charged with some dishonest juggling with the accounts. 他被指控用欺骗手段窜改账目。
• The accountant went to prison for juggling his firm's accounts. 会计因涂改公司的帐目而入狱。

2 humble   

adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低

参考例句：

• In my humble opinion,he will win the election.依我拙见，他将在选举中获胜。
• Defeat and failure make people humble.挫折与失败会使人谦卑。

3 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

4 inventory   

n.详细目录，存货清单

参考例句：

• Some stores inventory their stock once a week.有些商店每周清点存货一次。
• We will need to call on our supplier to get more inventory.我们必须请供应商送来更多存货。

5 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

6 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

7 margins   

边( margin的名词复数 )； 利润； 页边空白； 差数

参考例句：

• They have always had to make do with relatively small profit margins. 他们不得不经常设法应付较少的利润额。
• To create more space between the navigation items, add left and right margins to the links. 在每个项目间留更多的空隙，加左或者右的margins来定义链接。

8 behold   

v.看，注视，看到

参考例句：

• The industry of these little ants is wonderful to behold.这些小蚂蚁辛勤劳动的样子看上去真令人惊叹。
• The sunrise at the seaside was quite a sight to behold.海滨日出真是个奇景。

9 incapable   

adj.无能力的，不能做某事的

参考例句：

• He would be incapable of committing such a cruel deed.他不会做出这么残忍的事。
• Computers are incapable of creative thought.计算机不会创造性地思维。

10 dryer   

n.干衣机，干燥剂

参考例句：

• He bought a dryer yesterday.他昨天买了一台干燥机。
• There is a washer and a dryer in the basement.地下室里有洗衣机和烘干机。

11 antidote   

n.解毒药，解毒剂

参考例句：

• There is no known antidote for this poison.这种毒药没有解药。
• Chinese physicians used it as an antidote for snake poison.中医师用它来解蛇毒。

12 distraction   

n.精神涣散，精神不集中，消遣，娱乐

参考例句：

• Total concentration is required with no distractions.要全神贯注，不能有丝毫分神。
• Their national distraction is going to the disco.他们的全民消遣就是去蹦迪。