一般来说，任何一种阅读方式都会同时用到大脑的几个区域。读纸质书可以帮助你更好地记住信息，听有声读物可能会帮助你在听到叙述者的情绪时培养同理心。本文讨论看书和听书各自的优势。

词汇：reading 阅读

Picture yourself sitting at home in a quiet reading nook, ignoring the world around you, engrossed in a tale. You read the blurb, instantly became intrigued and now you’re in the middle of an absolute page-turner. But, there’s a hot debate – physical books vs. e-books vs. audiobooks. Does the device you’re using to read affect your reaction to the book?

想象一下，你坐在家里一个安静的阅读角落里，无视周围的世界，全神贯注地读一个故事。你读了简介，立刻被吸引住了，现在你正处于绝对引人入胜的页面中间。但是，有一个激烈的争论——实体书、电子书、有声书。你阅读时使用的设备会影响你对书的反应吗?

Generally, reading uses several areas of the brain. There’s attention span, reasoning, reading fluency, memory and language comprehension. Reading is known to strengthen communicative ability, vocabulary and increase emotional intelligence and social perception. So, whichever way you’re reading, there are definitely benefits.

一般来说，阅读使用大脑的几个区域。包括注意力持续时间、推理能力、阅读流畅性、记忆力和语言理解能力。众所周知，阅读可以增强交际能力、词汇量、提高情商和社会感知能力。所以，无论你用哪种方式阅读，都肯定有好处。

But, let’s look at the pros to reading with your eyes – that’s physical books and e-books. They can help to retain information better. This is because when you can actually see the words, your attention is held more closely. Add to this the fact that with physical books you can go back and find any part you missed, especially if your mind wanders, which it likely will at some point or other.

但是，让我们来看看用眼睛阅读的好处——实体书和电子书。它们可以帮助你更好地记住信息。这是因为当你真正看到单词时，你的注意力会更集中。除此之外，有了纸质书，你可以回去找到你错过的任何部分，尤其是当你走神的时候，你很可能会在某个时候走神。

On the other hand, there’s the audiobook. Headphones in, you’re switched off from life and the story really comes alive, almost like watching a film – in your head. From a scientific perspective, listening to an audiobook is likely to help you develop a greater sense of empathy as you hear the emotion of the narrator. We can more easily understand inflection and intonation. Hearing the story engages different parts of the brain, heightening the intensity and imagery, making you enjoy it more. Yet, going back to attention span, with an audiobook it’s true that it’s much harder to go back and listen again.

另一方面，还有有声读物。戴上耳机，你就会与生活隔绝，故事就会栩栩如生，就像在你的脑海里看电影一样。从科学的角度来看，听有声读物可能会帮助你在听到叙述者的情感时培养更强的同理心。我们可以更容易地理解语调变化。听故事涉及到大脑的不同部分，提高强度和图像，使你更享受它。然而，回到注意力广度，使用有声读物确实很难回过头再听一遍。

All in all, it seems that there are advantages to both physical books and audiobooks. Perhaps, next time you find yourself browsing bookshop shelves, also consider the format. It may just change your whole literary experience.

总而言之，纸质书和有声书似乎都有各自的优势。也许，下次你发现自己浏览书店的书架时，也要考虑一下格式。它可能会改变你的整个文学经历。

词汇表

reading nook 读书角
engrossed 全神贯注的，专心致志的
tale 故事
blurb 简介
page-turner 令人爱不释手的书
e-book 电子书籍
audiobook 有声读物
attention span 注意力的持续时间，注意广度
fluency 流畅度
emotional intelligence 情商
social perception 社会知觉
retain 记住
attention is held 注意力集中
wander 走神，开小差
come alive 变得有趣，显得逼真
narrator 讲述者
inflection 音调变化
intonation 语调
imagery 意象，比喻
browse 随意看，浏览
bookshop shelves 书店的书架
literary 文学的

测验与练习

1. 阅读课文并回答问题。

1. What benefits are mentioned in relation to reading in general?

2. Why does reading a physical book help to retain information better?

3. True or false? You feel more empathy towards a character if you read a physical book.

4. Why is it easier to lose focus in an audiobook?

5. Why can listening to a book help you enjoy it more?

2. 选择意思恰当的单词或词组来完成下列句子。

1. He was so _______ by the film, that he didn’t hear me shout.

engrossed                held                       wanders                    emotional

2. My sister really _______ when she danced on stage.

browsed                   retained                 came alive                 engaged

3. I always read the _______ before choosing a book.

nook                         narrator                  blurb                          shelves

4. Children have shorter _______ than adults.

attention spans         fluency                  social perception        imagery

5. When you speak, your _______ will help people understand what you mean.

literary                       intonation              intelligence                 attention span

答案

1. 阅读课文并回答问题。 

1. What benefits are mentioned in relation to reading in general?
It strengthens communicative ability, vocabulary, and increases emotional intelligence and perception.

2. Why does reading a physical book help to retain information better?
Because when you can see the words, your attention is held more closely.

3. True or false? You feel more empathy towards a character if you read a physical book.
False. You feel more empathy towards a character if you listen to an audiobook.

4. Why is it easier to lose focus in an audiobook?
Because it isn’t as easy to go back and listen again, unlike with a physical book.

5. Why can listening to a book help you enjoy it more?
It heightens the intensity and imagery of the story.

2. 选择意思恰当的单词或词组来完成下列句子。

1. He was so engrossed by the film, that he didn’t hear me shout.

2. My sister really came alive when she danced on stage.

3. I always read the blurb before choosing a book.

4. Children have shorter attention spans than adults.

5. When you speak, your intonation will help people understand what you mean.

文章来源BBC，侵权删，本文仅用于英语学习。