四级阅读提到霉霉

今天，2024上半年全国大学英语四六级考试笔试开考。

听说，四级长篇阅读提到了泰勒·斯威夫特（Taylor Swift），我们一起来学习一下原文。

🤔️小作业：

1. According to Hershfield's research, how does the brain perceive the Future Self?

A) Similar to the Current Self.

B) Similar to a stranger.

C) More favorably than the Current Self.

D) As an extension of the Current Self.

2. What is the main topic discussed in the passage?

A) The differences in brain activity when thinking about oneself versus others.

B) The neurological reasons behind people's reluctance to save for the future.

C) The impact of retirement savings rates on the economy.

D) Hal Hershfield's career and contributions to psychology.

无注释原文：

Present Bias: Why You Don't Give a Damn About Your Future Self

From: Todoist

Hal Hershfield, a psychologist at the UCLA Anderson School of Management, wanted to know why people weren't saving for retirement.

Across the board, people are living longer. Logically, they'll need more money to live comfortably in their post-work years. And yet, savings rates in the US have gone down in recent decades, not up. The average American within 15 years of retirement age saves at only one-third of the rate required to maintain their current standard of living. Why do people spend today at the expense of their future well-being?

To help explain this seemingly irrational behavior, Hershfield and his team scanned the brains of study participants while asking them to what degree various traits — like “honorable” or “funny” — applied to their current self, their future self, a current other, or a future other.

As participants answered, Hershfield's team recorded which parts of their brains lit up.

Unsurprisingly, people's brains were most active when thinking about their current selves and least active when thinking about a current other. (Humans tend to be a self-oriented bunch, after all.) It was in comparing these brain scans to those taken while thinking about the Future Self where things got interesting.

Hershfield's team found that participants' brain activity while considering their Future Selves more closely resembled brain activity while thinking about a current other rather than the current self.

Put in practical terms, when thinking of yourself in a month or a year or a decade, your brain registers that person in ways similar to how it would registerTaylor Swiftor the mailman or the lady driving the car in the next lane over. Understood in that way, saving for retirement is the neurological equivalent of giving money away to someone else entirely. Acting in your own self-interest (as your brain so narrowly defines it), it becomes perfectly logical to not save for retirement.

For the chronic procrastinators of the world (myself very much included), Hershfield's findings are both comforting and horrifying. It's definitive proof our tendency to put things off isn't a moral failing but a neural one — our brains are wired to put our Present Selves first. (You have my blessing to use that sentence on your boss the next time you miss a deadline.)

On the other hand, the problem of working toward long-term goals feels more insurmountable than ever. We're not just fighting our willpower (or lack thereof), but our neurological wiring.

In light of Hershfield's study and others like it, I wanted to answer one simple question: Is it possible to make our Present Selves give a damn about our Future Selves? The answers I found were anything but simple.（节选）

- ◆ -

注：完整题目见本文开头；中文文本为机器翻译并非一一对应，仅供参考

含注释全文：

Present Bias: Why You Don't Give a Damn About Your Future Self

From: Todoist

Hal Hershfield, apsychologistat the UCLA Anderson School of Management, wanted to know why people weren't saving for retirement.

加州大学洛杉矶分校安德森管理学院（UCLA Anderson School of Management）心理学家哈尔·赫什菲尔德（Hal Hershfield）想知道人们为什么不为退休存钱。

psychologist

psychologist /saɪˈkɒl.ə.dʒɪst/ 表示“心理学家”，英文解释为“someone who studies the human mind and human emotions and behaviour, and how different situations have an effect on people”如：a child psychologist 儿童心理学家。

Across the board, people are living longer. Logically, they'll need more money to live comfortably in their post-work years. And yet, savings rates in the US have gone down in recent decades, not up. The average American within 15 years of retirement age saves at only one-third of the rate required to maintain their current standard of living. Why do people spend today at theexpenseof their future well-being?

从整体上看，人们的寿命越来越长。按理说，人们需要更多的钱来安度晚年。然而，近几十年来，美国的储蓄率不升反降。距离退休年龄还有15年的美国人平均储蓄率仅为维持当前生活水平所需储蓄率的三分之一。为什么人们宁愿现在花钱，也不愿为未来的福祉存钱？

across the board

across the board /əˌkrɒs.ðəˈbɔːd/ 表示“影响到各个领域和阶层的；全面的”，英文解释为“happening or having an effect on people at every level and in every area”举个🌰：The improvement has been across the board, with all divisions either increasing profits or reducing losses. 情况全面好转，所有的部门不是盈利增加就是亏损减少。

at the expense of sb/sth

at sb's expense = at the expense of sb 表示“以...为代价；在...受损的情况下；捉弄，戏弄；拿…开心”，英文解释为“If you do one thing at the expense of another, doing the first thing harms the second thing.”举个🌰：He had no need to protect their reputation at the expense of his own. 他没有必要为了保护他们的名誉而牺牲自己的。Would you stop making jokes at my expense? 你别再拿我开玩笑了，好不好？

To help explain this seeminglyirrationalbehavior, Hershfield and his team scanned the brains of study participants while asking them to what degree varioustraits— like “honorable” or “funny” — applied to their current self, their future self, a current other, or a future other.

为了帮助解释这种看似不合理的行为，赫什菲尔德和他的团队扫描了研究参与者的大脑，同时询问他们各种特质（如“正直”或“有趣”）在多大程度上适用于“当前的自己”、“未来的自己”、“当前的他人”或“未来的他人”。

irrational

irrational /ɪˈræʃ.ən.əl/ 表示“不理智的，没有理性的”，英文解释为“not using reason or clear thinking”举个🌰：It's totally irrational, but I'm frightened of mice. 这很荒唐，但我的确害怕老鼠。

trait

trait /treɪt/ 表示“（个人的）特征，特性，品质”，英文解释为“a particular characteristic that can produce a particular type of behaviour”举个🌰：His sense of humour is one of his better traits. 具有幽默感是他更讨人喜欢的特点之一。

honorable

英式 honourable /ˈɒn.ər.ə.bəl/ 美式 honorable 表示“品德高尚的，值得尊敬的”，英文解释为“honest and fair, or deserving praise and respect”如：an honourable person 品德高尚的人。

As participants answered, Hershfield's team recorded which parts of their brains lit up.

当参与者回答时，赫什菲尔德的团队记录下他们大脑的活跃区域。

Unsurprisingly, people's brains were most active when thinking about their current selves and least active when thinking about a current other. (Humans tend to be aself-oriented bunch, after all.) It was in comparing these brain scans to those taken while thinking about the Future Self where things got interesting.

不出所料，人们的大脑在思考“当前的自己”时最为活跃，而在思考“当前的他人”时则最不活跃。（毕竟，人类往往是以自我为导向的。）而当将这些大脑扫描结果与思考“未来的自己”时的大脑扫描结果进行比较后，事情变得有趣起来。

self-oriented

表示“自我导向”，英文解释为“thinking mainly about yourself and your own needs and wants rather than those of other people”

bunch

bunch /bʌntʃ/ 1）表示“串；束；扎”，英文解释为“a number of things of the same type fastened together or in a close group”如：a bunch of flowers/grapes/bananas/keys 一束花/一串葡萄/一串香蕉/一串钥匙。

2）a bunch (of sth)表示“大量；大批”，英文解释为“a large amount of sth; a large number of things or people”举个🌰：I have a whole bunch of stuff to do this morning.我今天上午有一大堆活儿。

Hershfield's team found that participants' brain activity while considering their Future Selves more closelyresembledbrain activity while thinking about a current other rather than the current self.

赫什菲尔德的团队发现，参与者在思考“未来的自己”时的大脑活动更像是在思考“当前的他人”，而非“当前的自己”。

resemble

resemble /rɪˈzem.bəl/ 作动词，表示“像；看起来像；与…相似”，英文解释为“to look like or be like someone or something”举个🌰：You resemble your mother very closely. 你长得很像你妈妈。

Put in practical terms, when thinking of yourself in a month or a year or a decade, your brainregistersthat person in ways similar to how it would register Taylor Swift or themailmanor the lady driving the car in the nextlaneover. Understood in that way, saving for retirement is theneurological equivalentof giving money away to someone else entirely. Acting in your own self-interest (as your brain so narrowly defines it), it becomes perfectly logical to not save for retirement.

换句话说，当你思考一个月、一年或十年后的自己时，你的大脑会以类似于思考当前的泰勒·斯威夫特（Taylor Swift）、邮递员或隔壁车道上开车的女士的方式来处理。从这个角度理解，为退休存钱在神经学上就相当于把钱完全捐给了别人。从自身利益出发（你的大脑对自身利益的定义如此狭隘），不为退休存钱就变得完全合乎逻辑。

register

register /ˈredʒ.ɪ.stər/ 1）熟词僻义，表示“显示（读数）；记录”，英文解释为“if a measuring instrument registers an amount or sth registers an amount on a measuring instrument, the instrument shows or records that amount”举个🌰：The thermometer registered 25°C. 温度计显示读数为25摄氏度。

2）我们常见的含义是“（尤指把姓名）登记，注册”，英文解释为“to put information, especially your name, into an official list or record”举个🌰：I registered the car in my name. 我把车登记在我的名下。

3）表示“流露出；显得；表达出”，英文解释为“to show or express a feeling”举个🌰：Her face registered disapproval. 她脸上流露出不赞同的神色。

📍政府工作报告中经常会出现这个词，比如2020年报告Part 1中提到的：先进制造业、现代服务业较快增长。Advanced manufacturing and modern services registered rapid growth. 以及2018年报告Part 1中提到的：国内生产总值从54万亿元增加到82.7万亿元，年均增长7.1%，China's gross domestic product (GDP) has risen from 54 trillion to 82.7 trillion yuan, registering average annual growth of 7.1 percent; 都有“显示；指示；表达”的含义（to record, show, or express something）。

mailman

mailman /ˈmeɪl.mæn/ 表示“邮递员，投递员”，英文解释为“a man whose job is to deliver and collect letters, etc. that are sent by mail”

lane

lane /leɪn/ 1）表示“乡间小路；小巷，小街，胡同”，英文解释为“a narrow road in the countryside or in a town”举个🌰：He drives so fast along those narrow country lanes. 在那些狭窄的乡间小路上他把车开得飞快。

2）表示“车道；（田径比赛的）跑道；泳道”，英文解释为“a special strip of a road, sports track, or swimming pool that is used to keep vehicles or competitors separate”如：a bus/bike/cycle lane 公共汽车/自行车车道。

neurological

neurological /ˌnjʊərəˈlɒdʒɪkəl/ 表示“神经系统的；神经（病）学的”，英文解释为“Neurological means related to the nervous system.”

🎬电影《奇异博士》（Doctor Strange）中的台词提到：I'm talking tonight at a neurological society dinner. 我要在今晚神经学学会晚宴上演讲。

equivalent

equivalent /ɪˈkwɪv.əl.ənt/ 1）作形容词，表示“（价值、数量、意义、重要性等）相等的，相同的”，英文解释为“equal in value, amount, meaning, importance, etc.”举个🌰：Eight kilometres is roughly equivalent to five miles. 八公里约等于五英里。

2）作名词，表示“相等的东西；等量；对应词”，英文解释为“a thing, amount, word, etc. that is equivalent to sth else”。

比如，提到Weibo时候会介绍为中国版的Twitter，常见的有几种说法：

🧣Weibo, China's Twitter-like service (SCMP)

🧣Weibo, the Chinese equivalent to Twitter (NPR NEWS)

🧣Twitter-like Weibo (Reuters)

🧣Weibo, a Twitter-like platform (NYT)

For thechronic procrastinatorsof the world (myself very much included), Hershfield's findings are both comforting and horrifying. It'sdefinitive proofour tendency to put things off isn't a moral failing but a neural one — our brains arewiredto put our Present Selves first. (You have my blessing to use that sentence on your boss the next time you miss adeadline.)

对于世界上长期有拖延症的人（包括我自己）来说，赫什菲尔德的发现既令人欣慰又令人恐怖。这充分证明，我们的拖延倾向并不是道德上的缺陷，而是神经系统的问题——我们的大脑天生就把“当前的自己”放在第一位。（下次你错过截止日期时，可以把这句话告诉你的老板。）

chronic

chronic /ˈkrɒnɪk/ 1）表示“（疾病）慢性的，长期的”，英文解释为“a chronic disease or illness is one that continues for a long time and cannot be cured”，如：chronic arthritis表示“慢性关节炎”。

2）表示“（问题）长期的”，英文解释为“a chronic problem is one that continues for a long time and cannot easily be solved”举个🌰：There is a chronic shortage of teachers. 长期存在师资短缺的问题。

3）还有一种解释是用来形容人“积习难改的”，如“长期酗酒/沉迷赌博等的人”我们就可以用chronic alcoholic/gambler表示。

procrastinator

procrastinator /prəˈkræs.tɪ.neɪ.tər/ 表示“拖延者，有拖延症的人”，英文解释为“someone who keeps delaying things that must be done”举个🌰：I never buy my gifts until Christmas Eve because I'm a procrastinator. 我真是有拖延症，从来都是在圣诞前日才买礼物。

definitive proof

表示“确凿的证据：指能够证明某件事情或观点的证据，不容置疑”，英文解释为“a fact or piece of information that shows something is true in a way that cannot be doubted”

be wired to

表示“与生俱来，生来……；天生，自然就会”，英文解释为“used to say that someone does or does not have a natural tendency to behave in a certain way, to like something, etc.”

📍2017年考研英语（二）阅读真题中有这么一句话：Infants are wired to look at parents’ faces to try to understand their world, and if those faces are blank and unresponsive—as they often are when absorbed in a device—it can be extremely disconcerting for the children. 婴儿天生会靠观察父母的面孔来理解世界，如果父母面无表情、毫无反应——当他们沉浸于电子设备时经常会这样——这会让孩子们感到非常不安。

类似的：

📍hard-wired表示“天生的，固有的；（能力、方法、活动类型等）基本固定的”，英文解释为“If an ability, approach, or type of activity is hardwired into the brain, it is a basic one and cannot be changed.”举个🌰：Others think that the rules for what is "musical" are hardwired in our brains to some degree. 其他人认为，我们的大脑对什么东西是“悦耳的”在某种程度上有其内在的标准。

📍he和be到底是什么意思？文中提到：This shows that the attraction to the final moments of an experience is hard wired in our brains, said the study, which was published in the Journal Of Neuroscience. 这项研究发表在《神经科学杂志》上，它表明，对经验的最后时刻的吸引在我们的大脑中是天生固有的。

deadline

deadline /ˈded.laɪn/ 表示“最后期限；截止日期”，英文解释为“a time or day by which something must be done”举个🌰：There's no way I can meet that deadline. 我根本无法在那个期限内完成。

On the other hand, the problem of working toward long-term goals feels moreinsurmountablethan ever. We're not just fighting ourwillpower(or lack thereof), but our neurologicalwiring.

另一方面，为实现长期目标而努力的问题似乎比以往任何时候都更加难以克服。我们不仅要与自己的意志力（或缺乏意志力）作斗争，还要与自己的神经系统作斗争。

insurmountable

insurmountable /ˌɪn.səˈmaʊn.tə.bəl/ 表示“（尤指问题或困难）难以克服的，不可逾越的”，英文解释为“(especially of a problem or a difficulty) so great that it cannot be dealt with successfully”如：insurmountable difficulties 难以克服的困难。

willpower

willpower /ˈwɪl.paʊər/ 表示“意志力；毅力”，英文解释为“the ability to control your own thoughts and the way in which you behave”举个🌰：It took a lot of willpower to stay calm. 要有很强的意志力才能保持平静。

wiring

表示“（给建筑物或机器供电的）线路”，英文解释为“the system of wires that is used for supplying electricity to a building or machine”，在这里“wiring”指的是大脑的神经连接或结构。它描述了大脑中神经元之间的连接方式和功能，从而影响我们的行为和决策。

In light of Hershfield's study and others like it, I wanted to answer one simple question: Is it possible to make our Present Selves give a damn about our Future Selves? The answers I found were anything but simple.

鉴于赫什菲尔德的研究和其他类似研究，我想回答一个简单的问题：有没有可能让我们的“当前的自己”关心“未来的自己”？我找到的答案并不简单。

- 词汇盘点 -

psychologist、 across the board、 at the expense of sb/sth、 irrational、 trait、 honorable、 self-oriented、 bunch、 resemble、 register、 mailman、 lane、 neurological、 equivalent、 chronic、 procrastinator、 definitive proof、 be wired to、 deadline、 insurmountable、 willpower、 wiring

- 词汇助记 By ChatGPT -

A psychologist discovered a neurological trait resembling procrastination in a bunch of mailmen, wired for irrational delays across the board at the expense of deadlines. Definitive proof showed their brains registered deadlines as insurmountable, not due to lack of willpower but to self-oriented wiring.

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