In meditation，people sit quietly and focus their attention on their breath. As they breathe in and out, they attend to their feelings. As thoughts go through their minds, they let them go. Breathe. Let go. Breathe. Let go.
According to a recent study at the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts, three months of training in this kind of meditation causes a marked change in how the brain allocates attention. It appears that the ability to let go thoughts that come into mind frees the brain to attend to more rapidly changing things and events in the outside world. Expert mediators are better than other people at catching such fast-changing stimuli, like facial expressions.
The study provides evidence for changes in the workings of the brain with mental training. People can learn and improve abilities of all sorts with practice, everything from driving to playing the piano. The study has shown that meditation is good for the brain. It appears to reduce pressure and promote a sense of well-being.
In an experiment, 17 volunteers with no meditation experience in the experimental group spent three months meditating 10 to 12 hours a day. A control group also with no meditation experience meditated for 20 minutes a day over the same period. Both groups were then given the tests with two numbers in a group of letters. As both group looked for the numbers, their brain activity was recorded.
Everyone could catch the first number. But the brain recordings showed that the less experienced mediators tended to grasp the first number and hang onto it, so they missed the second number. Those with more experience gave less attention to the first number as if letting it go, which led to an increased ability to grasp the second number. This shows that attention can change with practice.
Just ask Daniel Levision, who meditated for three months as part of the study.” I am a much better listener,” he said. “I do not get lost in my own personal reaction to what people are saying.”
BAC
答案解析：
1. Meditations manage their daily tasks better because they ________.
A. are given less pressure
B. allocate their attention better
C. have more stimuli for life
D. practice them more frequently
解析：B正确
冥想可以让人们更好地处理日常事物是因为什么？
It appears that the ability to let go thoughts that come into mind frees the brain to attend to more rapidly changing things and events in the outside world.冥想所能带来的变化在于改变大脑对注意力的分配。 其他选项都是与文章主题无关的。
2. In the experiment volunteers doing meditation for longer hours ________.
A. were more likely to catch both of the numbers
B. were used to memorizing numbers in groups
C. usually ignored the first number observed
D. paid more attention to numbers than to letters
解析：A正确
在这个试验中，冥想训练时间更长的志愿者们怎么样？
这在倒数第二段中有具体说明，冥想训练时间更长的志愿者可以在找到第一个数字后迅速去找下一个数字。
3. The study proves that ________.
A. meditation improves one’s health
B. brain activity can be recorded
C. human attention can be trained
D. mediators have a good sense of hearing
解析：C正确
这个研究证明了什么？
文中有原话：This shows that attention can change with practice.这也是这篇文章的主旨句。
参考译文：
在冥想的状态下，人们安静地坐着，将注意力集中到呼吸上。随着呼出与吸进，他们感受自己的感觉。大脑中出现想法时，就释放出想法。呼吸。释放。呼吸。释放。
根据马萨诸塞州的Barre洞察力冥想协会最新的一项研究显示，经过三个月这样的冥想训练，会使大脑分配注意力产生明显的变化。这看上去就像是释放进入大脑的思想使得大脑能够注意到外界迅速发生变化的事物。冥想专家要比其他人更善于抓住迅速变化的刺激，像是面部表情。
这项研究为进行心理训练时大脑活动的变化提供了证据。人们可以随着不断的练习学会并改善各种能力，包括驾驶汽车和弹钢琴的能力。 研究还表明，冥想对大脑是有益的。它表现在可减缓压力并能提升幸福感。
在一项实验中，１７名没有冥想经历的志愿者为实验组，进行了为期三个月每天都要做１０－１２小时冥想的实验。另一个也没有冥想经历的实验对照组也进行了为期三个月但每天只需做２０分钟冥想的实验。随后两个组都用一组字母中有两个数字进行测试。当这两组人在寻找数字时，他们的大脑活动就会被记录下来。
两组中的每个人都能捕捉到第一个数字,但大脑记录表明：冥想培训时间短的那组人会在捕捉到第一个数字后便停留在这个数字上，因此他们就会漏掉第二个数字。那些培训时间长的人对第一个数字的注意时间就短，就好象不管这个数字一样。这就等于增加了捕捉第二个数字的能力。实验表明：注意力是可以随着不断的练习而改变的。
你不妨问一问作为这次研究一分子而受了三个月冥想培训的Daniel Levison。“我现在是一位更出色的倾听者，”他说，“就我个人的反应能力而言，别人说什么我都不会找不着北。”
词汇及短语：
meditation：冥想
well-being：健康，幸福
allocate：分配
attend to: 注意; 听取; 致力于
例： You must attend to your studies. 你必须注意你的学习。
stimuli：刺激
facial：面孔的，面部用的
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