讀書好還是聽書好?這是個問題

We often think how fast we learn something is a function of how smart we are. If your brain is soaking in material quickly, you're intelligent; if not, well, that doesn't say great things about your IQ. But science shows context and technique actually play a huge role in how fast we learn, and even small changes — like the format you use to read — can make a huge difference.

我們經常認爲我們學東西的速度取決於我們有多聰明。如果你的大腦很快就沉浸在物質中，你就很聰明；如果不是，那麼，這並不能說明你的智商有多高。但科學表明，環境和技術實際上對我們學習的速度起着巨大的作用，即使是小的變化-像你用來閱讀的格式-也會產生巨大的變化。

Intelligence Isn't the Problem

與智力無關

Audiobooks have plenty of advantages; you can enjoy them anywhere, even in the car, and not printing books saves trees. Less fluent readers also often find them more accessible and absorbing. But according to the latest research, if your goal isn't to pass the time in traffic or on the treadmill, but instead to learn something difficult, you should definitely choose a physical book.

有聲讀物有很多優點，你可以在任何地方享受它們，即使是在車裏，而不印刷書籍可以節省樹木。不太流利的讀者也常常發現他們更容易接觸和吸引人。但是根據最新的研究，如果你的目標不是在交通和跑步機上消磨時間，而是爲了學習一些困難的東西，你應該選擇一本實體書籍。

In a recent opinion piece in the New York Times, psychology professor Daniel T. Willingham cited a 2010 study where 48 students either read or listened to an article about child psychology. Although the students spent the same amount of time with their material and did about the same number of distracting activities while they absorbed the information, they scored very differently on a 10-item quiz later: On average, the readers scored 81 percent whereas the listeners scored 59 percent.

在《紐約時報》最近的一篇評論文章中，心理學教授DT引用了2010年的一項研究，研究中48名學生閱讀或聽一篇關於兒童心理學的文章。當吸收信息的時候，儘管學生們在材料上花費相同的時間，並且做相同數量的精力分散活動，但他們在隨後的10項測驗後得分差別很大：平均而言，讀者得分爲81％而聽衆得分爲59％。

The difference between 81 percent and 59 percent is the difference between a B- and an F, so that's not small potatoes. Why does listening versus reading material have such a massive impact on learning?

81%和59%之間的差別是B和F之間的差別，所以這不是小問題。爲什麼聽和讀材料對學習有如此巨大的影響？

Willingham explains two factors are likely at play. First, most of us read more slowly than we listen (especially when pausing and rereading is factored in), and when you're trying to absorb new information, slower tends to be better. "About 10 to 15 percent of eye movements during reading are actually regressive — meaning [the eyes are] going back and re-checking," he explained to TIME. "This happens very quickly, and it's sort of seamlessly stitched into the process of reading a sentence."

Willingham解釋道，有兩個因素可能起作用。首先，我們大多數人的閱讀速度比聽的慢(特別是當停頓和重讀被考慮在內時)，當你試圖吸收新的信息時，慢點會更好。“在閱讀過程中，大約10%到15%的眼球運動實際上是倒退的-這意味着(眼睛)會返回並重新檢查，”他向《時代》雜誌解釋道。“這種情況發生得非常快，而且在讀句子的過程中也是無縫的。”

Second, books offer visual cues that help our brains organize and understand new information. Things like chapter breaks, subheadings, and lists aid us in making sense of the material and understanding how it fits together. You lose all that when you go the audio route.

其次，書籍提供視覺線索，幫助我們的大腦組織和理解新信息。分章，副標題和列表之類的東西有助於我們理解材料並理解它如何組合在一起。當你採用音頻方式時，你會失去這些東西。

The bottom line is simple: Don't feel guilty about passing your commute with an audiobook — that's certainly preferable to spending it swearing at some jerk who just cut you off. However, be aware of audio's limitations when it comes to studying, and seriously consider opting for good old-fashioned reading instead.

最重要的是：不要因爲使用有聲讀物來通勤而感到愧疚 - 這比把時間花在咒罵打斷你思路的混蛋聲中度過更爲可取。但是，要注意音頻在學習方面的侷限性，並認真考慮選擇好的老式閱讀。

What About E-Readers?

電子閱讀怎麼樣？

In fact, you might want to go even one more step more old fashioned still and actually opt for a physical book over your iPad or Kindle. Another recent study out of Norway found that those who read a story from a book remembered details and the order of events better than those who read in on a screen. Yet more research showed those using screens read faster and were more confident in their comprehension, but actually performed worse on a quiz after. This could be due to Willingham's second point: e-readers give you some visual cues, but not as many as a paper book. It's not as easy to know how far along you are, for example.

事實上，你可能還想再走一步，在iPad或Kindle上選擇一本實體書。挪威最近的另一項研究發現，那些從一本書中讀到故事的人比那些在屏幕上讀故事的人更能記住細節和事件的順序。然而，更多的研究表明，那些使用屏幕的人閱讀速度更快，對自己的理解更有信心，但在測試之後的表現卻更差。這可能是由於威靈漢的第二點：電子閱讀器給你一些視覺暗示，但沒有紙質書那麼多。例如，要知道你走了多遠並不容易。

This science isn't yet conclusive, but it appears that audio and print each have their place. If you want to get some light reading in during a commute or a workout, obviously opt for audio. But if you want to make it as easy as possible to learn something hard, you might want to try reading like it's 1999. Opt for the most old-fashioned option of all, a straight up paper book, and you might be surprised how fast you grasp the material.

這門科學至今沒有定論，但看起來有聲閱讀和書面閱讀都有自己的位置。如果你想在上下班或鍛鍊期間輕鬆閱讀，顯然選擇有聲閱讀。但是如果你想盡可能的讓複雜的知識容易吸收，你可以想嘗試一下就像1999年的閱讀。最老式的選擇，一本直接的紙質書，你可能會爲你掌握材料信息的快速而驚訝。