双语阅读 | Your Brain Was Made For Walking 走路产生智慧

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本文节选自Reader's Digest USA读者文摘(2020-11)。

Here's what Friedrich Nietzsche wrote: "It is only ideas gained from walking that have any worth." Researchers have discovered numerous connections between walking and producing ideas. A Stanford University study found that participants were 81 percent more creative when walking in contrast with sitting.

弗里德里希·尼采写道：“只有从走路中获得的思想才有价值。”研究人员发现了走路和产生思想之间的许多联系。斯坦福大学的一项研究发现，与坐着相比，参与者在走路时更有创造力81%。

The movement aspect of walking is obviously key. You've probably heard the phrase "exercise your creativity", which refers to the brain as muscle. Our creative mindset is triggered by physical movement, which is exactly why walking-with your dog, a friend, or alone-feeds creative thinking.

步行的运动方面显然是关键。你可能听说过“锻炼你的创造力”这个短语，它把大脑比作肌肉。我们的创造性思维通过身体运动激发，这正是为什么与你的狗、朋友或独自散步会激发创造性思维的原因。

But the scenery is almost as important as the sweat. The National Human Activity Pattern Survey indicates that Americans spend 87 percent of their time indoors. Being inside, you're more prone to stagnation, the opposite of energy. Without energy, you can't wonder or create. Just by going outside, you are stepping out of your habitual surroundings and your comfort zone, which is necessary if you want to open your mind to new possibilities.

但风景几乎和汗水一样重要。全国人类活动模式调查显示，美国人87%的时间都在室内。在室内，你更容易停滞，能量的反面。没有能量，你就不能创造奇迹。只要走出去，你就走出了习惯性的环境和舒适区。如果你想敞开心扉，接受新的可能性，这是必要的。

Our brains work harder to process in different environments, so walking outside develops our ability to learn new ideas, to take in new sights, sounds, smells, and flavors. Shinrin-yoku, or "forest bathing," is a common form of relaxation and medicine in Japan. It was developed in 1982, and recent studies show that being in the forest and walking among the trees lowers your stress levels. But you don't have to live near a forest to receive the psychological benefits. Research has shown that being in nature, and the disconnection from multimedia and technology, increased performance on a creative problem-solving task by a full 50 percent in a group of hikers.

我们的大脑在不同的环境中更难处理，所以在户外行走可以培养我们学习新想法、接受新景象、声音、气味和味道的能力。Shinrin yoku，或“森林浴”，是日本一种常见的放松和药物形式。它是1982年开发的，最近的研究表明，在森林里和在树间行走可以降低你的压力水平。但你不必住在森林附近就能获得心理上的好处。研究表明，在一群徒步旅行者中，置身于大自然中，切断多媒体和技术，使他们在创造性解决问题的任务中的表现提高了整整50%。

So instead of setting a fitness goal, why not set a creativity goal that starts with walking? Engage more closely with your surroundings for the next four weeks. Turn off your phone and give yourself the chance to be present in the world, to hear conversations and natural sounds, to notice the way people move, the way the sun reflects in a puddle. Walk not just for exercise. Walk for wonder.

那么，与其设定一个健身目标，为什么不设定一个从走路开始的创造性目标呢？在接下来的四个星期，与周围环境更紧密地接触。关掉你的手机，让自己有机会在这个世界上，听到对话和自然的声音，注意人们的移动方式，太阳在水坑里反射的方式。走路不仅仅是为了锻炼，为奇迹而行走。

阅读理解

32.What does the author stress in Paragraph 2?

A. Physical activity contributes to mental production.

B. People release their creativity in company.

C. Walking dogs promotes creative thinking

D. Brain will develop with regular use