These Are the Best Ways to Improve Your Memory
改善你记忆最好的方法
By MARKHAM HEID ︱Jan. 7, 2019
All day every day, your brain is bombarded with new information. Confronted with this tsunami of sensory and cerebral input, it’s no wonder much of it slips through your memory’s grasp. But if you feel like you’re forgetting more than you should—or if you just want to pump up your retention and recall—there are some science-backed ways to improve your memory.
每天，你的大脑都会被新的信息狂轰乱炸。面对这场感官和大脑海啸般的冲击，大部分的信息会从你的记忆中溜走就显得不奇怪了。但是，如果你觉得你忘记的比你想象得要多，或者你是想提高记忆力和回忆能力，一些有科学依据的方法或许可以帮你改善记忆力。
bombarded：轰炸;炮击
Start with exercise. A recent study appearing in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that just 10 minutes of light exercise was enough to increase patterns of brain activity associated with memory improvements.
从锻炼开始。最近发表在《美国国家科学院院院刊》上的一项研究发现，只是10分钟的轻度锻炼，就足以增加与记忆改善相关的大脑活动模式。
This adds to a big pile of evidence linking physical activity with improved memory and overall cognitive functioning. “Our research has shown that significant memory gains emerge when individuals engage in regular aerobic exercise for 50 minutes three times a week,” says Sandra Bond Chapman, a distinguished professor and director of the Center for Brain Health at the University of Texas at Dallas. Exercise improves cerebral blood flow—even after you’ve finished your workout—which aids memory as well as other brain functions, Chapman’s research shows.
这对现有的大量的证据做了补充，证明体育活动与改善记忆和整体认知功能有关。“我们的研究表明，当一个人一周进行三次50分钟的有氧运动时，记忆力会显著增强，”桑德拉·邦德·查普曼说，他是达拉斯德克萨斯大学大脑健康中心的杰出教授和主任。查普曼的研究表明，即使在你完成了有助于记忆和其他大脑功能的锻炼之后，锻炼也能改善大脑的血液流动。
Adequate sleep is another necessary ingredient for a healthy mind and memory. But allowing your mind some free time to ponder new information also seems to be helpful.
充足的睡眠，是健康的头脑和记忆的另一个必要因素。但是让你的大脑有一些空闲时间去思考新的信息，似乎也很有帮助。
A small 2018 study found that when people were allowed to sit quietly and zone out for 10 minutes after looking at a series of photographs, their “fine detail” memory for the photos was superior to the memories of people who were asked to complete an unrelated 10-minute task after viewing the same pictures. Basically, the idle time seemed to bolster people’s memories of the photos.
2018年的一项小型研究发现，当人们在看了一系列照片后，安静地坐着，大脑放空10分钟，他们对照片的“细节”记忆要优于那些在看了相同的照片后被要求花10分钟完成一项无关任务的人的记忆。基本上，放空似乎更能增强人们对照片的记忆。
zone out：走神；浑然无觉
idle time：空闲时间
“The brain continues to process and replay past experiences during immediate post-learning rest periods,” says Lila Davachi, a professor of psychology at Columbia University. “This is like effortless mental rehearsal.”
哥伦比亚大学的心理学教授莉拉·达瓦奇说：“大脑在学习后的短暂休息期间继续运转，并回放刚刚经历的事情。”“这就像轻松的脑力排练。”
Davachi was not involved with the study. But some of her own research suggests that small mental timeouts can assist recall. Even a few seconds of idle time—meaning time when your brain is not being confronted with new or stimulating information—may be enough to strengthen its memory for information you’ve just encountered, she says.
达瓦奇没有参与这项研究。但她自己的一些研究表明，短暂的头脑放空可以帮助回忆。她说，即使是几秒钟的空闲时间，也就是说，当你的大脑没有面对新的或刺激性的信息时，这段时间可能足以增强你对刚遇到的信息的记忆。
If you’re constantly jumping from one mental task to the next without giving your brain a break to squirrel away what its learned, it’s not surprising that those kernels of memory won’t be there when you go searching for them later on.
如果你不断地从一个脑力任务跳到下一个，而不让大脑休息一下，去把学到的东西藏起来，那么当你以后去寻找它们的时候，这些记忆的要点找不到就不足为奇了。
kernels：仁；核；要点
If all this makes you wonder whether checking your email or social feeds during every free moment could be messing with your memory, your head’s in the right place. A 2017 study from Stanford University found that heavy media multitaskers—those who spend a lot of time using multiple forms of media at once, like listening to a podcast while surfing online—tend to do worse on tests of working memory and long-term memory than light media multitaskers. More research finds that relying on your device’s GPS functionality hampers your ability to navigate on your own. You can’t remember something well if you didn’t pay much attention to it in the first place, it seems.
如果这一切都让你怀疑在每一个空闲时间查看电子邮件或社交信息是否会干扰你的记忆，那么你的大脑想得没错。斯坦福大学2017年的一项研究发现，与轻媒体多任务处理者相比，重媒体多任务处理者在工作记忆和长期记忆测试中往往表现得更差，他们同时使用多种形式的媒体，比如在网上冲浪时收听播客。更多的研究发现，依靠设备的GPS功能会阻碍你自己导航的能力。如果你一开始不太注意的话，之后你就记不清什么了。
But there are things you can do. Mindfulness meditation may help beef up your memory. One small 2013 study found that students who took a two-week mindfulness course improved their scores on a test of working memory. They were also better able to block out distraction. “It doesn’t take much mindfulness training to get a temporary boost in performance,” says Michael Mrazek, first author of the study and director of research at the University of California, Santa Barbara’s Center for Mindfulness & Human Potential. “Even eight minutes of mindful breathing can make you a little sharper,” he says.
但有些事情你还是可以做的。正念冥想可以帮助你增强记忆。2013年的一项小型研究发现，参加为期两周的正念课程的学生在工作记忆测试中成绩有所提高。他们也能更好地屏蔽干扰。这项研究的第一作者、加州大学圣巴巴拉正念与人类潜能中心的研究负责人迈克尔·马雷泽克说：“不需要太多的正念训练就能暂时提高表现。”他说：“即使是八分钟的有意识的呼吸也能让你变得更敏锐。”
“It is also important to avoid cruising on automatic pilot,” Chapman says. “Life moves fast, and we often compensate by falling into routine, sticking to the path of least resistance, and letting our thoughts, conversations and activities become stagnant.”
查普曼说：“尽量避免自动巡航也很重要。”“生活节奏很快，我们经常通过陷入常规、选择最小阻力的道路来缓解，这让我们的思想、谈话和活动变得迟钝。”
stagnant：停滞的；不景气的；迟钝的
Your memory and the overall health of your brain are bolstered by novelty and “inspired thinking,” she says. Breaking away from familiar routines and challenging yourself with change is a good way to keep your mind from growing lazy.
她说，你的记忆力和大脑的整体健康受到新奇和“启发性思维”的支持。摆脱熟悉的习惯或用变化来挑战自己，是一个很好的方法，以防止你的思维变得懒惰。
Try this: After reading, watching or listening to something new—whether it’s a news segment or a podcast—try to “think deeply and formulate succinct take-away messages,” she advises. “Take some time to synthesize these new ideas and to update previously held views.”
试着这样做：在阅读、观看或听了一些新的东西之后，不管它是新闻片段还是播客，试着“深入思考，形成简洁的沉淀信息”，她建议。“花些时间综合这些新想法，并更新以前观点。”
succinct：简洁的
Just as physical exercise strengthens your bones and muscles, this sort of mental exercise can build your mind and memory.
正如体育锻炼可以增强你的骨骼和肌肉一样，这种精神锻炼可以强健你的头脑和记忆。
科学家已经发现你究竟需要多少的锻炼，才能减缓心脏的老化。英语读头条（第343期）
做早起的鸟、还是夜猫子是如何改变你的记忆的。听吧（第56期）
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