673：總是記不住東西？別擔心！
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Forgetful? It might actually make you smarter, study says
translation：
Forgetful? It might actually make you smarter, study says
總是記不住東西？研究表明，這也許會讓你更加聰明
By Amanda MacMillan
You know those people who alwaysboastabout having a perfect memory? Maybe they shouldn"t, because having total recall is totally overrated. That"s according to a new paper in the journal Neuron, which concludes that forgetting things is not just normal, it actually makes us smarter.
你認識那些總是吹噓自己擁有完美記憶力的人吧？也許他們不應該如此自吹自擂，因為能記住所有東西也許並不是一件好事，它的意義被高估了。這是《神經元》雜誌上新發表的一篇論文中提出的結論，它認為忘記某些事物不僅僅是正常的，它實際上還會使我們更加聰明。
In the new report, researchers Paul Frankland and Blake Richards of the University of Torontoproposethat the goal of memory is not totransmitthe most accurate information over time. Rather, they say, it"s tooptimizeintelligent decision-making byholding ontowhat"s important and letting go of what"s not.
在新的研究報告中，多倫多大學的研究人員保羅·富蘭克林和布萊克·理查德提出，記憶的目標並不是在經過很長時間後能夠準確提取出過往的信息。相反，它是通過抓住重要的信息和放棄不重要的信息來優化你的最佳決策。
"It"s important that the brain forgets irrelevant details and instead focuses on the stuff that"s going to help make decisions in the real world," says Richards, an associate fellow in the Learning in Machines and Brains program.
「重要的是大腦忘記不相干的細節，而把注意力集中在那些有助於在現實世界中做出決定的東西上，」理查德說，他是機器和大腦學習項目的研究員。
The researchers came to this conclusion after looking at years of data on memory, memory loss, and brain activity in both humans and animals. One of Frankland"s own studies in mice, for example, found that as new brain cells are formed in thehippocampus-- a region of the brain associated with learning new things -- those new connections overwrite old memories and make them harder to access.
研究人員在觀察了多年的有關人類和動物的記憶、記憶喪失以及大腦活動的數據後得出了這個結論。例如，在富蘭克林自己做的一個小鼠研究中，他發現當新的腦細胞在海馬體內形成的時候——一個大腦中有關學習新事物的區域——那些新的連接就會覆蓋舊的回憶，使得它們更難被想起來。
This constantswappingof old memories for new ones can have real evolutionary benefits, they say. For example, it can allow us to adapt to new situations by letting go of outdated and potentially misleading information. "If you"re trying to navigate the world and your brain is constantly bringing up conflicting memories, that makes it harder for you to make an informed decision," says Richards.
他們說這種持續不斷的新舊記憶之間的更迭可能會有真正的進化優勢。比如，通過忘記一些過時的、可能有誤導性的信息，可以讓我們適應新狀況。理查德說：「如果你試圖駕馭世界，（面對複雜情況找到正確方法），而你的大腦不斷地帶來相互衝突的記憶，那麼你就很難做出明智的決定。」
words:
1.boast/bo?st/ v.吹噓；炫耀；誇耀
e.g.Witnesses said Furci boasted that he took part in killing them...
幾位證人聲稱富爾奇曾吹噓自己參與了對他們的屠殺。
2.propose/pr??po?z/ v. 提出；建議；提議
e.g.Britain is about to propose changes to some institutions...
英國將提議對一些機構進行改革。
3.transmit/tr?ns?m?t/ v.傳送;傳遞;播送
e.g.The game was transmitted live in Spain and Italy...
這場比賽在西班牙和義大利進行了現場直播。
4.optimize/?ɑ?pt?ma?z/ v.使最優化；使最有效率；使儘可能完善
e.g.Doctors are concentrating on understanding the disease better, and on optimizing the treatment...
醫生正致力於更好地了解這種疾病，並使治療方法儘可能完善。
5.hippocampus/?h?p??k?mp?s/ n.海馬體（大腦中被認為是感情和記憶中心的部分）
e.g.Unfortunately, the hippocampus is also highly sensitive to negative stimuli.
不幸的是，海馬體也對負面刺激高度敏感。
6.swap/swɑ?p/ v.交換
e.g.Next week they will swap places and will repeat the switch weekly...
下周他們將交換座位，並且以後每周換一次。
phrases:
hold onto抓住
let go of放開
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