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VOA慢速英语2015 一些被误读的青少年大脑发育状况

时间:2015-02-25 22:58来源:互联网 提供网友:nan   字体: [ ]
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Understanding the Misunderstood Teenage Brain 一些被误读的青少年大脑发育状况

From VOA Learning English, this is the Health and Lifestyle Report.

A woman named Frances Jensen is a neuroscientist. She has been studying the human brain for almost all of her career. But even she was not ready for the job of raising two teenage boys. What made this task so difficult? Trying to find out why intelligent and responsible young people still did stupid things.

So, Doctor Jenson did what any neuroscientist would do: she studied years of research on the human brain.

What she found might clear up some myths2, or misinformation about teenagers. Her findings might also provide help for parents, teachers … and anyone hoping to understand the complex mind of a teenager.

Myth1 1 – A teen’s body and brain grow at the same pace

When children reach puberty, their bodies change. Teenagers start to look like adults. You might think that their brains are also becoming more like adult brains.

Not true, says Dr. Jensen.

“The brain is the last organ in the body to mature. And it takes into the mid-20s for it to complete.”

Dr. Jensen says if one compares the brain to a puzzle, the teenage brain has many puzzle pieces still not in place. She says the teen brain has a different structure and chemistry from an adult brain.  

"The teenage brain is indeed different in terms of its chemistry and structure. It's about 80 percent -- I say that loosely -- of the way the adult structure and function."

Dr. Jensen recently wrote a book on teenagers and their brains. The book is called The Teenage Brain: A Neuroscientist’s Survival3 Guide to Raising Adolescents and Young Adults. In it, she explains the strengths and weaknesses of the brain during this time of development. She says the connections, or wiring, of the teen brain is better for learning new things than the adult brain.

First, Dr. Jensen explains how the brain works. She says we are able to learn through synapses4 -- areas where brain cells talk to each other. The chemicals responsible for synapses are found in high levels in children. Then they drop a little in teenagers and drop even lower in adults. Dr. Jensen explains that this is why children learn things like languages so easily.

“The proteins and the chemicals involved in building synapses for learning are at higher levels, very, very high levels in the child, and a little bit less in the adolescent and then come down to sort of adult levels, which is why a child can learn two, three languages flawlessly and a teenager is pretty good, not quite as good as a child, but better than an adult in terms of the rate at which they can learn and absorb information.”

So, the teenage brain has an increased ability to learn but it does not yet have all the connections to make that learning possible. This is one reason why teenager behavior is often difficult to understand.

Dr. Jensen compares this situation to a driver who is able to drive but who does not know yet how to use brakes to stop the car.

Some parts of the teenage brain are simply not yet connected, she explains. These areas are the ones responsible for judgment5, making good decisions, self-control and empathy, or the ability to share someone else's feelings.

Myth 2 - The teenage brain is resilient

Another myth Dr. Jensen put to test is how teenagers are able to recover from a bad experience – what we call being resilient. At times, she says, the teenage brain is resilient. But in other ways it is not. Things like stress and drug and alcohol use can give teens long-term problems.   

"And we always thought, 'Oh they are so resilient.' Well, they are and they aren’t. You know, there are certain things that can affect them life-long. The same amount of experiences like stress or alcohol or pot, an adult may sail through it - for the same exposure - but a teenager will bear a long-term problem based on that.”

Dr. Jensen says drugs and alcoholic6 drinks can have much more serious effects on the teen brain than on an adult brain. She says drugs and alcohol can especially affect a teenager’s Intelligence Quotient, or IQ.

“Your IQ can change up or down between 13 and 17 (years old). We don’t yet quite know what specifically can make an IQ go up or down, but one thing that we know does make IQs go down is certainly exposure to certain drugs, for instance chronic7 pot smoking; the more you smoke the lower your IQ is going to go during that time window."

Myth 3 – Teenagers are lazy

Many studies have shown that sleep is important for learning and memory. But many teens - both boys and girls - often don't get enough sleep. When teenagers stay up late at night and wake up late in the morning, parents may think it is because they are lazy.

This lack of action, Dr. Jensen explains, is another myth about teenagers. She says a teen’s biological clock is set differently than an adult’s. A biological clock controls the body’s waking and sleeping processes. 

She explains that the brain releases a hormone8 to make you sleepy. An adult releases that sleep-causing hormone around 8:30 at night. But a teenager’s brain does not release that chemical until about 11 at night. This leads to a later bedtime, even when the teen has to wake up early the next morning. 

“This is another myth. Their biological clocks are absolutely programed to be 2 to 3 hours later for the sleep start time and wake time than adults. And of course, we wake them up at 6:00 in the morning, which is equivalent9 to about 3:00 in the morning for an adult. It’s probably not the optimal10 time for their brains to be put in a learning environment."

Dr. Jensen says all this new information about the teenage brain can help adults do a better job as teachers and parents. She advises adults to stay connected with teenagers and to be more patient with them.

She says parents should share this information with their children. Knowing how their brains work may help them get through their teen years more happily.

Words in This Story

myth – n. an idea or story that is commonly believed, but not necessarily true

puberty – n. the period of life when a person's sexual11 organs mature and he or she becomes able to have children

empathy – n. the ability to share someone else's feelings; empathetic is the adjective

resilient – adj. able to become strong, healthy, or successful after something bad happens

lazy – adj. not having much activity; causing people to feel that they do not want to be active

biological clock – n. a system in the body that controls natural processes (such as waking , sleeping, and aging)

patient – adj. able to remain calm when waiting for a long time or when dealing with problems or difficult people


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 myth h6BzV     
n.神话,神话故事
参考例句:
  • The story has points of resemblance to a Hebrew myth.这个故事与某个希伯来神话有相似之处。
  • The story is a pure myth.这故事纯属虚构。
2 myths 472f82f79e7bb7e83adf53fcb7fd9c64     
n.神话( myth的名词复数 );杜撰出来的人[事物]
参考例句:
  • They drew the material of their plays chiefly from myths and legends. 他们主要从神话传说中提取剧本的素材。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • Jasper White is one of rare people who believes in ancient myths. 贾斯珀。怀特是少有的相信古代神话的人之一。 来自新概念英语第二册
3 survival lrJw9     
n.留住生命,生存,残存,幸存者
参考例句:
  • The doctor told my wife I had a fifty-fifty chance of survival.医生告诉我的妻子,说我活下去的可能性只有50%。
  • The old man was a survival of a past age.这位老人是上一代的遗老。
4 synapses 866e8ec5e7e57c04ff0daa7921c4d2a5     
n.(神经元的)突触( synapse的名词复数 );染色体结合( synapsis的名词复数 );联会;突触;(神经元的)触处
参考例句:
  • Nerve cells communicate with one another at the synapses, where their membranes almost touch. 神经细胞在突触部位彼此沟通,在这里它们的膜几乎接触到一起了。 来自辞典例句
  • Glutamatergic synapses are common excitatory chemical connections in mammalian central nervous system. 谷氨酸性突触是哺乳动物神经系统的主要兴奋性突触。 来自互联网
5 judgment e3xxC     
n.审判;判断力,识别力,看法,意见
参考例句:
  • The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
  • He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。
6 alcoholic rx7zC     
adj.(含)酒精的,由酒精引起的;n.酗酒者
参考例句:
  • The alcoholic strength of brandy far exceeds that of wine.白兰地的酒精浓度远远超过葡萄酒。
  • Alcoholic drinks act as a poison to a child.酒精饮料对小孩犹如毒药。
7 chronic BO9zl     
adj.(疾病)长期未愈的,慢性的;极坏的
参考例句:
  • Famine differs from chronic malnutrition.饥荒不同于慢性营养不良。
  • Chronic poisoning may lead to death from inanition.慢性中毒也可能由虚弱导致死亡。
8 hormone uyky3     
n.荷尔蒙,激素,内分泌
参考例句:
  • Hormone implants are used as growth boosters.激素植入物被用作生长辅助剂。
  • 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。
9 equivalent ViDzo     
adj.(to)相等的,等价的;n.相等物,等值物
参考例句:
  • Nodding your head is equivalent to saying "yes".点头就等于说“赞同”。
  • You will receive the full equivalent of your money.你将收到与你的款项价值完全同等的物品。
10 optimal zmDzhM     
adj.最适宜的;最理想的;最令人满意的
参考例句:
  • What is the optimal mix of private and public property rights in natural resources?私人和国家的自然资源产权的最适宜的组合是什么?
  • Optimal path planning is a key link for the sailing contest.帆船最优行驶路径规划是帆船比赛取胜的关键环节。
11 sexual YiLzlw     
adj.性的,两性的,性别的
参考例句:
  • He was a person of gross sexual appetites.他是个性欲旺盛的人。
  • It is socially irresponsible to refuse young people advice on sexual matters.拒绝向年轻人提供性方面的建议是对社会不负责任。
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