英语四级阅读之做梦竟能增记忆

People who enjoy a dream-filled sleep are significantly better at recalling information and making links between facts when they wake, scientists found.
科学家发现，那些睡觉时梦境连连的⼈们，醒来时记忆⼒和关联事物的能⼒都会显著增强。

But recharging with a shallow nap offers no such mental boost, the research suggests.
但同时该研究显⽰，如果仅仅是打个⼩盹，不会对脑⼒产⽣如此奇效。

The results of the study add to the growing body of evidence that Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep is crucial to the brain’s ability to lay down and consolidate memories.
此前不断有证据表明，快速眼动睡眠对⼤脑巩固记忆的能⼒⾄关重要，⽽这⼀研究结果再次印证了该说法。

An average night’s repose includes four or five spells of REM sleep, but these bursts tend to be lengthier towards the end of the night.
夜间睡眠通常包括四到五个周期的快速眼动睡眠，但直到天亮之前，快速眼动睡眠间隔周期呈逐渐延长的趋势。

This means that adults who get less than the recommended seven to eight hours a night – and therefore insufficient REM sleep – may be damaging their mind’s ability to form strong memories.
这意味着，睡眠时间不⾜7-8⼩时的成年⼈形成牢固记忆的能⼒受到严重影响，因为他们⽆法保障充分的快速眼动睡眠时间。

Although REM sleep is not classified as a type of deep sleep, it is only reached after the brain has passed through deep sleep stages.
尽管快速眼动睡眠并不属于深度睡眠的范畴，但只有在经过深度睡眠后，⼤脑才能进⼊快速眼动睡眠状态。

For the most recent study, participants were shown groups of three words – such as “cookie”, “heart” and “sixteen” – and asked to find another word that can be associated with all three words.
在最新研究中，研究⼈员向参与者展⽰三个单词——譬如“cookie（曲奇）”、“heart（爱⼼）”以及“sixteen(16)”，同时他们需要找到与这三个词语相关的⼀个词。

In this example, the answer would have been "sweet”. 外语教育￥
在这个例⼦中，正确答案应该是“sweet（甜蜜）”这个词。

Participants were tested once in the morning and then given the same task again in the afternoon. In between, some were allowed a nap with REM sleep, some a nap without REM sleep, while the others had a quiet rest period.
参与者在早上和下午各进⾏了同样的测试。

⽽在两次测试的中间，⼀些⼈进⾏了短暂的快速眼动睡眠；⼀些⼈虽然⼩睡但并未进⼊快速眼动睡眠状态；还有⼀部分⼈只是安静地休息了⼀会⼉。

The quiet rest and non-REM sleep groups showed no improvement in their test results, but the REM sleep proup improved on their morning performance by an average of almost 40 per cent.
对于分别进⾏简单休息和⽆快速眼动睡眠⼩憩的两组参与者，他们实验结果并没有任何进步；⽽进⼊快速眼动睡眠的⼀组测试者，他们早上的测试成绩提⾼了近40%。

Dr Sara Mednick, a sleep researcher at the University of California in San Diego who led the study, believes that the formation of connections between previously unassociated information in the brain – which leads to creative problem-solving – is encouraged by neurological changes which occur during REM sleep.
该研究负责⼈，加州⼤学圣地亚哥分校睡眠研究院萨拉·梅德尼克认为，⼤脑把之前储存的信息联系在⼀起，并最终形成创造性的解决问题的⽅案，这整个过程的催化剂便是快速眼动睡眠中发⽣的神经变化。

Scientists have been working on connections between sleep, dreams and brain activity since the REM state was first identified in 1953 by US researchers.
⾃1953年美国研究⼈员⾸次确认快速眼动睡眠状态以来，科学家⼀直致⼒于研究睡眠、梦境以及⼤脑活动三者之间的联系。

They found that people woken while their closed eyes made jerking movements recalled much more colourful and elaborate dreams than people woken during other stages of sleep.
他们发现相对那些从其它睡眠状态中醒来的⼈，从快速眼动睡眠状态中醒来的⼈更善于记住那些丰富多彩的梦境。

It is now believed that sleep acts as a sort of mental filing system, enabling the brain to sort relevant information that needs to be retained from useless information which can be discarded. This process take place as memories are shifted from one part of the brain to others.
现在⼈们坚信，睡眠过程就像是⼀种记忆的归档系统。

随着储存的记忆在⼤脑中进⾏位置转移，⼤脑从⽽对相关信息进⾏区分——摒弃⽆⽤信息，保留有⽤信息。