Working with Your Hands Is Good for Your Brain
动手工作对大脑的好处
来源: https://www.neurocorecenters.com
官方翻译
Do you ever find yourself relaxed while washing dishes or folding laundry?
你有没有发现自己在洗碗或叠洗好的衣服时很放松？
For many of us, these tasks are just chores that need to get done.
对我们许多人来说，这些活儿只不过是需要完成的杂务。
But according to a recent article from CBS News, there's a neurological reason why some people enjoy doing these kinds of activities.
但据哥伦比亚广播公司最近的一篇文章所说，有些人喜欢做这类活动有神经学方面的原因。
Kelly Lambert, a neuroscientist at the University of Richmond, spoke with CBS about this topic.
里士满大学的神经学家凯利·兰伯特就这个话题接受了哥伦比亚广播公司的采访。
"…When we move and we engage in activities, we change the neurochemistry of our brain in ways that a drug can change the neurochemistry of our brain," Lambert says.
兰伯特说：“当我们活动起来的时候，我们改变了大脑中的神经化学物质，就像药物能做到的那样。”
She refers to this idea as "behaviorceuticals" instead of pharmaceuticals.
她把这个想法称为“行为药物”而不是药物。
While Lambert's term is new, the concept behind it has been around for quite some time.
虽然兰伯特提出的术语是新的，但它背后的概念已经存在了相当长的时间。
She says doctors in the 19th century would prescribe knitting to anxiety-ridden women.
她说，19世纪的医生会让焦虑不安的女性做针织活。
Without knowing the exact neuroscience behind it, they did know that knitting somehow relaxed these patients.
在不了解其背后确切的神经科学原理的情况下，他们确实知道做针织活在某种程度上能让这些病人放松。
"…It sounds, 'Oh, that's simplistic.' But when you think about it, okay, repetitive movement is increasing certain neurochemicals.
“……听起来就是，‘哦，这太过简单了。’ 但当你仔细想想，好吧，重复的动作会增加某些神经化学物质。
And then if you produce something — a hat or a scarf — there's a reward," Lambert says.
然后，如果你做出了某个东西——一顶帽子或一条围巾——就会有回报。” 兰伯特说。
Matthew Crawford is a part-time mechanic from Richmond, Virginia who understands this phenomenon first-hand.
马修·克劳福德是来自弗吉尼亚州里士满市的一名兼职机械师，他对这种现象有切身体会。
Once an executive director of a think tank company in Washington, D.C., Crawford doesn't miss his old job.
克劳福德曾经是华盛顿特区一家智库公司的执行董事，他并不怀念以前的工作。
Working in the shop gives Crawford a unique kind of satisfaction that working in an office couldn't provide.
在修理厂工作给了克劳福德一种独特的满足感，这种感觉是在办公室工作无法获得的。
He says at his old job, "There was no amount of coffee that could keep me awake."
他说，做以前的工作时，“再多的咖啡也不能让我保持清醒。”
That 'tuned-in' feeling, Lambert says, is because this kind of activity engages our brains in a more creative way than we're used to — and our brains like that change.
兰伯特说，之所以有这种“适应”的感觉，是因为这种活动让我们的大脑以一种比过去更具创造性的方式参与进来——而且我们的大脑喜欢这种变化。
With so many of us working desk jobs today, Lambert says we might be losing some of our hand-brain connection,
兰伯特说，如今很多人都在办公桌前工作，我们的手和脑的联系可能有所丢失，
and in turn, we could be losing a sense of control over our environment.
反过来，我们可能会失去对环境的控制感。
But the good news is, you don't have to be a car whiz or the next Picaso to trigger the hand-brain connection;
但好消息是，你不必成为一个汽车能手或下一个毕加索来激发手脑联系；
there are all kinds of activities, at varying levels of expertise, that you can explore.
你可以探索各种不同专业水平的活动。
Here are just a few: gardening, journaling, woodworking…
这里就有一些：做园艺，写日志，做木工…
Remember to have fun with your new hobby and who knows — you might surprise yourself and discover a whole new hidden talent, all while helping your brain.
记得要享受你的新爱好，谁知道呢——你可能会给自己一个惊喜，发现一个隐藏的全新天赋，同时还能对你的大脑有好处。