Picture yourself sitting at home in a quiet reading nook, ignoring the world around you, engrossed in a tale. You read the blurb, instantly became intrigued and now you’re in the middle of an absolute page-turner. But, there’s a hot debate – physical books vs. e-books vs. audiobooks. Does the device you’re using to read affect your reaction to the book?

Generally, reading uses several areas of the brain. There’s attention span, reasoning, reading fluency, memory and language comprehension. Reading is known to strengthen communicative ability, vocabulary and increase emotional intelligence and social perception. So, whichever way you’re reading, there are definitely benefits.

But, let’s look at the pros to reading with your eyes – that’s physical books and e-books. They can help to retain information better. This is because when you can actually see the words, your attention is held more closely. Add to this the fact that with physical books you can go back and find any part you missed, especially if your mind wanders, which it likely will at some point or other.

On the other hand, there’s the audiobook. Headphones in, you’re switched off from life and the story really comes alive, almost like watching a film – in your head. From a scientific perspective, listening to an audiobook is likely to help you develop a greater sense of empathy as you hear the emotion of the narrator. We can more easily understand inflection and intonation. Hearing the story engages different parts of the brain, heightening the intensity and imagery, making you enjoy it more. Yet, going back to attention span, with an audiobook it’s true that it’s much harder to go back and listen again.

All in all, it seems that there are advantages to both physical books and audiobooks. Perhaps, next time you find yourself browsing bookshop shelves, also consider the format. It may just change your whole literary experience.

翻译

想象一下，你坐在家里一个安静的阅读角落里，无视周围的世界，沉浸在一个故事中。你读了简介，立刻就被吸引住了，现在你正处在读一本引人入胜的书。但是，有一场激烈的辩论 – 实体书与电子书与有声书。你用来阅读的设备是否影响你对书的反应？

一般来说，阅读会用到大脑的几个区域。有注意力，推理，阅读流畅度，记忆和语言理解力。众所周知，阅读可以加强交际能力、词汇量，提高情商和社会感知力。因此，无论你以哪种方式阅读，肯定都有好处。

但是，让我们看看用眼睛阅读的好处--那就是实体书和电子书。它们可以帮助更好地保留信息。这是因为当你能真正看到这些文字时，你的注意力就会被牢牢抓住。此外，对于实体书，你可以回过头来寻找你错过的任何部分，尤其是当你的思绪游离时，它很可能会在某些时候出现。

另一方面，有声书也是如此。戴上耳机，你就从生活中抽离出来，故事就真的活了，几乎就像看电影一样--在你的脑海中。从科学的角度来看，听有声书可能会帮助你发展出更大的同理心，因为你听到了叙述者的情感。我们可以更容易地理解转折和语调。听故事会调动大脑的不同部分，提高强度和想象力，使你更喜欢它。然而，回到注意力的问题上，有声书确实更难回去再听一遍。

总而言之，似乎实体书和有声书都有优势。也许，下次你发现自己在浏览书店的书架时，也要考虑一下格式。它可能会改变你的整个文学体验。

词汇表

测验与练习

1. 阅读课文并回答问题。

1. What benefits are mentioned in relation to reading in general?
2. Why does reading a physical book help to retain information better?
3. True or false? You feel more empathy towards a character if you read a physical book.
4. Why is it easier to lose focus in an audiobook?
5. Why can listening to a book help you enjoy it more?

2. 选择意思恰当的单词或词组来完成下列句子。

1. He was so ________ by the film, that he didn’t hear me shout.
   A. engrossed
   B. held
   C. wanders
   D. emotional
2. My sister really ________ when she danced on stage.
   A. browsed
   B. retained
   C. came alive
   D. engaged
3. I always read the ________ before choosing a book.
   A. nook
   B. narrator
   C. blurb
   D. shelves
4. Children have shorter ________ than adults.
   A. attention spans
   B. fluency
   C. social perception
   D. imagery
5. When you speak, your ________ will help people understand what you mean.
   A. literary
   B. intonation
   C. intelligence
   D. attention span

答案

1. 阅读课文并回答问题。

1. What benefits are mentioned in relation to reading in general?
   It strengthens communicative ability, vocabulary, and increases emotional intelligence and perception.
2. Why does reading a physical book help to retain information better?
   Because when you can see the words, your attention is held more closely.
3. True or false? You feel more empathy towards a character if you read a physical book.
   False. You feel more empathy towards a character if you listen to an audiobook.
4. Why is it easier to lose focus in an audiobook?
   Because it isn’t as easy to go back and listen again, unlike with a physical book.
5. Why can listening to a book help you enjoy it more?
   It heightens the intensity and imagery of the story.

2. 选择意思恰当的单词或词组来完成下列句子。

1. He was so engrossed by the film, that he didn’t hear me shout.
2. My sister really came alive when she danced on stage.
3. I always read the blurb before choosing a book.
4. Children have shorter attention spans than adults.
5. When you speak, your intonation will help people understand what you mean.

来源 https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/chinese/features/take-away-english/ep-220711