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会说外语好处多：双语者大脑反应速度更快
Speaking two languages can actually help offset some effects of aging onthe brain, a new study has found.
一项新研究发现，说两种语言实际上能够帮助消除衰老对大脑的影响。
Researchers tested how long it took participants to switch from onecognitive task to another, something that’s known to take longer for olderadults, said lead researcher, Brian Gold, a neuroscientist at the University ofKentucky. As he spoke to ABCNews.com from his cell phone, he said he was also ina grocery store choosing between gala and granny smith apples — a perfectexample of switching between cognitive tasks in everyday life.
研究者测试了参与者们从一个认知活动转换到另一个需要的时间。主管研究员布莱恩·古尔德是肯塔基大学的神经学家，他表示老年人转换任务需要的时间更长。当他和ABCNews的记者在手机上说话时，他说自己正在一家蔬果店考虑到底是要买小富士苹果还是美国青苹果，这就日常生活中认知活动最典型的例子。
“It has big implications these days because our population is aging moreand more,” Gold said. “Seniors are liv
ing longer, and that’s a good thing, butit’s only a good thing to the extent that their brains are healthy.”
“这个研究有重大的意义，因为我们的人口现在越来越老龄化了，”古尔德说。“老年人活的时间更长了，这是件好事，但是前提是他们的大脑要保持健康。”
Gold’s team compared task-switching speeds for younger and older adults,knowing they would find slower speeds in the older population because ofprevious studies. However, they found that older adults who spoke two languageswere able to switch mental gearsfaster than those who didn’t.
古尔德的团队比较了年轻人和老年人转换任务的速度，基于之前的研究，他们知道将得到的结果是老年人转换任务的速度更慢。然而他们又发现，会说两种语言的老年人转换思维的速度要比只说一种语言的要快。
The study only looked at life-long bilinguals, defined in the study aspeople who had spoken a second language daily since they were at least 10 yearsold.
研究的对象仅为一辈子都说两种语言的人，一辈子说两种语言在这个研究中的定义是：从10岁以前开始每天都使用第二种语言的人。
