You don't have to be a Monty Python fan to whistle along with Eric Idle as he croons "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life" while contemplating death on a cross.
即使你不是巨蟒剧团的粉丝，当他在思考十字架上的死亡时低声吟唱着“永远要看到生活的光明面”时，你也可以和埃里克·伊德一起吹口哨。
British satire aside, focusing on the upside of life could easily be the theme song for research focusing on a key component of longevity: optimism.
撇开英国讽刺小说不谈，关注生活的积极面很容易成为研究长寿的关键因素的主旋律——乐观主义。
Optimism doesn't mean ignoring life's stressors.
乐观并不意味着忽视生活中的压力。
But when negative things happen, optimistic people are less likely to blame themselves and more likely to see the obstacle as temporary or even positive.
但当消极的事情发生时，乐观的人不太可能责怪自己，而更可能把障碍看作是暂时的，甚至是积极的。
They also believe they have control over their fate and can create opportunities for good things to happen in the future.
他们也相信他们可以控制自己的命运，并为将来的好事创造机会。
A new study published Monday finds men and women with the highest levels of optimism had an 11% to 15% longer life span on average than those who practiced little positive thinking.
周一发表的一项新研究发现，乐观程度最高的男性和女性的平均寿命比那些很少进行积极思考的人长11%到15%。
The highest-scoring optimists also had the greatest odds of living to age 85 or beyond.
得分最高的乐观主义者活到85岁或85岁以上的几率也最大。
The results held true, the study found, even when socioeconomic status, health conditions, depression, smoking, social engagement, poor diet and alcohol use were considered.
研究发现，即使考虑到社会经济地位、健康状况、抑郁、吸烟、社交、不良饮食和饮酒等因素，研究结果依然成立。
"This was the first study to look at the impact of optimism on exceptional longevity, which is defined as living to age 85 or more," said lead author Lewina Lee, assistant professor of psychiatry at Boston University's School of Medicine.
波士顿大学医学院精神病学助理教授、该研究的主要作者利宛娜·李说:“这是第一项研究乐观情绪对长寿影响的研究，长寿的定义是活到85岁或85岁以上。”
The study was published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
这项研究发表在了《美国国家科学院院刊》上。
The study found women with the highest levels of optimism had 1.5 greater odds of living to 85 or beyond, compared to those with the lowest levels of optimism.
研究发现，乐观程度最高的女性活到85岁或85岁以上的几率比乐观程度最低的女性高1.5倍。
Highly optimistic men had 1.7 greater odds of living to that age over the more pessimistic.
高度乐观的人比悲观的人会多活1.7岁。
Again, those relationships remained true even after adjusting for health behaviors.
同样，即使在调整了健康行为之后，这些联系仍然是真实存在的。
How would an optimistic attitude help you live a much longer life?
那么，乐观的态度是如何让你活得更长久的呢?
"Optimistic individuals tend to have goals and the confidence to reach them," Lee said.
“乐观的人往往有目标，并有信心来实现目标，”李教授说道。
"Those goals could include healthy habits that contribute to a longer life."
“这些目标可能就包括有助于长寿的健康习惯。”
Prior research has found a direct link between optimism and healthier diet and exercise behaviors, as well as better cardiac health, a stronger immune system, better lung function, and lower mortality risk, among others.
此前的研究发现，乐观与更健康的饮食和锻炼行为、更健康的心脏、更强的免疫系统、更好的肺功能以及更低的死亡风险等之间存在直接联系。
"Optimism is one important psychological dimension that has emerged as showing some really interesting associations with health," said neuroscientist Richard Davidson, professor of psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the founder and director of the Center for Healthy Minds.
威斯康星大学麦迪逊分校精神病学教授、健康心智中心创始人兼主任、神经科学家理查德·戴维森说:“乐观是一个重要的心理学维度，它显示出与健康之间存在着一些非常有趣的联系。”
"And I would add other positive attributes, such as mindfulness, compassion, kindness, and having a strong sense of purpose in life," Davidson added.
戴维森补充说:“我还会加上其他积极因素，比如正念、同情心、善良以及对生活有强烈的使命感。”
Want to be more optimistic?
你想要更乐观吗?
Studies of twins finds only about 25% of our optimism is programmed by our genes. The rest is up to us and how we respond to life's lemons.
对双胞胎的研究发现，我们的乐观情绪只有大约25%是由基因决定的。剩下的取决于我们自己，以及我们如何应对生活中的酸楚。
If you tend to be a sour puss about the stresses in your life, don't worry.
如果你对生活中的压力总是态度消极，也不要担心。
It turns out you can actually train your brain to be more positive.
事实证明，你可以训练你的大脑变得更加积极。
"There is research which indicates that optimism can actually be enhanced or nurtured through certain kinds of training," Davidson said.
戴维森说:“有研究表明，乐观情绪实际上可以通过某些训练得到培养或增强。”
"So, it does open the possibility that cultivating optimism and other positive attributes may lead to significant improvements in health-related outcomes, including longevity."
“所以，培养乐观精神和其他积极品质确实有可能导致健康相关结果的显著改善，包括寿命。”
At Davidson's Center for Healthy Minds, researchers studied the brains of Tibetan Buddhist monks recruited by the Dali Lama and found startling results: Tens of thousands of hours of meditation had permanently altered the structure and function of the monks' brains.
在戴维森的健康心智中心，研究人员研究了达赖喇嘛招募的藏传佛教僧人的大脑，发现了惊人的结果:数万小时的冥想已经永久性地改变了僧人大脑的结构和功能。
But you don't have to devote your life to meditation to see change, Davidson said.
但你不必把你的生命投入到冥想中才能观察到变化，戴维森说。
He pointed to the results of a randomized controlled trial of people who've never meditated before.
他提到了一项随机对照试验的结果，试验对象是从未冥想过的人。
Using direct measures of brain function and structure, Davidson found it only took 30 minutes a day of meditation practice over the course of two weeks to produce a measurable change in the brain.
通过对大脑功能和结构的直接测量，戴维森发现，在两周的时间里，每天只需30分钟的冥想练习，大脑就会产生可测量的变化。
"When these kinds of mental exercises taught to people, it actually changes the function and the structure of their brain in ways that we think support these kinds of positive qualities," Davidson said.
戴维森说:“当这些脑力练习被传授给人们时，它实际上改变了他们大脑的功能和结构，我们认为正是这种方式支持了这些积极的品质。”
"And that may be key in producing the downstream impact on the body."
“这可能是对人体产生下游影响的关键。”
There are simple mental exercises that any person can do to nurture an optimistic outlook.
每个人都可以做一些简单的心理练习来培养乐观的态度。
One of the most effective ways to increase optimism, according to a meta-analysis of existing studies, is called the "Best Possible Self" method.
根据对现有研究的综合分析，增加乐观情绪最有效的方法之一被称为“最棒的可能的自我”的方法。
Interventions using this approach will ask you to imagine yourself in a future in which you have achieved all your life goals and all of your problems have been resolved.
使用这种方法的干预会让你想象自己在未来实现了所有的人生目标，所有的问题都得到了解决。
One technique, for example, is to write for 15 minutes about a future day in your life in which you have accomplished everything you wish.
例如，有一种方法是，花15分钟写下你未来某一天的生活，在这一天里，你完成了所有你想做的事情。
Then spent five minutes imaging that reality.
然后花五分钟去想象这个现实。
Practicing this daily can significantly improve your positive feelings.
每天这样做可以极大地改善你的积极情绪。
In an 2011 study, students practiced the Best Possible Self exercise for 15 minutes a week for eight weeks.
在2011年的一项研究中，学生们在8周的时间里，每周进行15分钟的“最棒的可能的自我”练习。
Not only did they feel more positive, the feelings lasted for about six months.
他们不仅感觉更积极了，而且这种感觉持续了大约六个月。
Many of us can easily recite a litany of negative things that have happened to us each day.
我们很多人都能轻而易举地列举出每天发生在我们身上的一长串负面的事情。
But ask what went well, and we might stumble.
不过当问到有什么顺心的事时，我们却卡壳了。
That's why keeping a daily journal in which you list the positive experiences you had that day can help shape your outlook.
这就是为什么每天写日记，写下你当天的积极经历可以帮助你塑造你的观点。
Taking a few minutes each day to write down what makes you thankful can improve your outlook on life.
每天花几分钟写下让你感恩的事情可以改善你的人生观。
A number of studies have shown that practicing gratefulness improves positive coping skills by breaking the typical negative thinking style and substituting optimism.
许多研究表明，学会感恩可以通过打破典型的消极思维方式和变得乐观来提高积极的应对技巧。
Counting blessings even lessened problem behavior in adolescents.
感恩甚至减少了青少年的问题行为。
One of Davidson's favorite mindfulness exercises cultivates appreciation.
戴维森最喜欢的正念练习之一就是培养欣赏力。
"Simply to bring to mind people that are in our lives from whom we have received some kind of help," Davidson said.
戴维森说:“这只是为了让我们想起那些在我们生活中帮助过我们的人。”
"Bring them to mind and appreciate the care and support or whatever it might be that these individuals have provided."
“不管他们提供了什么，我们可以把他们记在心里，感谢他们的关心和支持。”
"You can spend one minute each morning and each evening doing this," he said. "And that kind of appreciation is something that can foster a sense of optimism about the future."
“你可以每天早晚花一分钟做这件事，”他说。“这种欣赏可以培养一种对未来的乐观感。”
Like exercise, mindfulness will need to be practiced on a regular basis to keep the brain's positive outlook in good shape, Davidson said.
戴维森说，和锻炼一样，正念也需要经常练习，以保持大脑的积极状态。
But the effort is definitely worth it.
但这样做肯定是值得的。
"This is really about nurturing the mind," he said.
“这真的是在培养思想，”他说。
"And there is ample evidence to suggest that there are real psychological and physical health-related benefits."
“有充分的证据表明，它确实对身心健康有益。”
问题
文中提到学生们进行的是哪一项训练？
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