This Is Your Brain On Multitasking

我们以前讨论过一心多用是围绕工作和家庭生活的打拼中必不可少的一部分。但我最近了解到，真正的一心多用其实并不存在。Associated Press人类大脑的一心多用潜力究竟有多大?神经学家说，一心多用并不是同时进行多项事情，实际上我们的注意力是在不同任务之间极其迅速地切换。这个说法来自美国国家公共电台(NPR)有关这个话题的系列节目中的一部分。（听这个节目的时候，我还同时在给儿子喂饭给他准备午餐以及浏览报纸。）此外，随着年龄的增长，一心多用的效果也会发生变化。对大脑进行的研究发现，人类的一心多用能力在二三十岁的时候达到最高点，但过了这个年纪以后这种能力会下降。NPR系列节目中的另外一期节目说，出现下降的原因是年纪大的人脑子里会想更多的事情，从日常琐事到比较抽象的想法都有。脑子里转的念头越多，就越难专注于手头的任务并在任务之间切换；对年纪大的人进行的脑部扫描表明，他们想的事情比年轻人多得多。（这里有一个很好玩的测试，可以测试你的专注力和一心多用能力。）NPR的报导说，小孩子其实还不能一心多用。相反，他们通常会一次关注一件事情，不会分心，然后再关心另一件任务。他们很难一次处理一件以上的任务。正因为这样，当我1岁大的儿子正要喝狗食盆里的水时，我常常可以很容易引开他的注意力，让他进行另外的更有益的活动。对于现在的青少年来说，他们在一心多用方面已经有丰富经验了；你可能会发现他们在网上玩游戏的同时给朋友发消息，还开着震耳欲聋的音乐和电视，而这一切都是在做微积分作业的时候进行的。但大脑研究人员说，他们在每件任务上的表现可能会受到影响。NPR的另一则报导说，青少年的大脑正在发育，他们一心多用会导致大脑“断电”……因为没有足够的能量供应。大脑处理每桩任务的能力会暂时减弱，就像电力超负荷时电灯会变暗一样。读者们，你自己或者你的孩子的一心多用能力随年龄增长有什么变化？有没有一些窍门让自己的注意力不会太分散，比如说涂鸦或者放点背景音乐什么的？Rachel Emma Silverman


We have discussed before how multitasking is an integral part of the juggle. But, as I learned just recently, true multitasking is a myth.Instead of doing multiple things simultaneously, we actually switch our attention from task to task extremely quickly, say neuroscientists. This is according to a report on NPR, part of a series the radio program did on the topic (which I listened to while trying to feed my son, prepare his lunch and flip through the paper.)What's more, multitasking prowess changes as we age. Brain researchers have found that humans' ability to multitask reaches a peak when we are in our 20s and 30s, but decreases as we age further.One reason for the decline, according to another segment from the NPR series, is that older people have more 'internal chatter' in their brains, which can range from mundane to-do lists or more abstract thoughts. The more thoughts swirling around in the brain, the harder it is to focus on tasks and to switch between them; brain scans of older people show much more internal chatter than the young. (Here's a cool test to see how well you're able to focus and multitask.)Young children, meanwhile, can't really multitask, according to the NPR report. Instead, they usually focus on one thing at a time, without distraction, and then move onto another task. They have trouble handling more than one task at a time. That's why it's often easy for me to redirect my 1-year-old son when he's about to, say, drink out of the dog's bowl, to another, more beneficial activity.Today's teens, for their part, are experienced multitaskers; they can be found texting their friends while playing a game online, with music and TV blaring in the background, all while trying to knock off their calculus homework. But their performance at each individual task may be suffering, say brain researchers. Multitasking in teens' developing brains, according to another NPR report, 'causes a kind of brownout in the brain…because there just isn't enough power to go around.' The brain's ability to handle each task weakens temporarily, just like dimming lights.Readers, how has your or your children's ability to multitask changed with age? Any good tips, such as doodling or background music, to keep your brain from getting too distracted?Rachel Emma Silverman