Practice 1

2025年09月26日

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Practice 1

Read the title and the headings of the passage and try to guess what the general statements are after each heading.

pagenumber_ebook=55,pagenumber_book=46

Read the passage again and do the exercises that follow.

Becoming Smarter by Dancing

What kind of dancing?

[1] We have known that dancing can increase people’s mental acuity. But do all kinds of dancing lead to increased mental acuity? No, not all forms of dancing will produce the same benefit, especially if they only work on style, or merely retrace the same memorized paths. Making as many split-second decisions as possible, is the key to maintaining our cognitive abilities. Remember: intelligence is what we use when we don’t already know what to do.

[2] We wish that 25 years ago the Albert Einstein College of Medicine thought of doing side-by-side comparisons of different kinds of dancing, to find out which was better. But we can figure it out by looking at who they studied: senior citizens 75 and older, beginning in 1980. Those who danced in that particular population were former Roaring Twenties dancers (back in 1980) and then former Swing Era dancers (today), so the kind of dancing most of them continued to do in retirement was what they began when they were young: freestyle social dancing—basic foxtrot, waltz, swing, and maybe some rumba and cha cha.

[3] I’ve been watching senior citizens dance all of my life, from my parents, to retirement communities,to the Roseland Ballroom in New York. I almost never see memorized sequences or patterns on the dance floor. I mostly see easygoing, fairly simple social dancing—freestyle lead and follow. But freestyle social dancing isn’t that simple! It requires a lot of split-second decision-making, in both the Lead and Follow roles.

[4] At this point, I want to clarify that I’m not demonizing memorized sequence dancing, or style-focused pattern-based ballroom dancing. Although they don’t have much influence on cognitive reserve, there are stress-reduction benefits of any kind of dancing, cardiovascular benefits of physical exercise, and even further benefits of feeling connected to a community of dancers. So all dancing is good.

[5] But when it comes to preserving (and improving) our mental acuity, then some forms are significantly better than others. While all dancing requires some intelligence, I encourage you to use your full intelligence when dancing, in both the Lead and Follow roles. The more decision-making we can bring into our dancing, the better.

Full engagement

[6] Those who fully utilize their intelligence in dancing, at all levels, love the way it feels. Spontaneous leading and following both involve entering a flow state. Both leading and following benefit from a highly active attention to possibilities.

[7] That’s the most succinct definition I know for intelligent dancing: a highly active attention to possibilities. And I think it’s wonderful that both the Lead and Follow role share this same ideal.

[8] The best Leads appreciate the many options that the Follow must consider every second, and respect and appreciate the Follow’s input into the collaboration of partner dancing. The Follow is finely attuned to the here-and-now in relaxed responsiveness, and so is the Lead.

[9] Once this highly active attention to possibilities, flexibility, and alert tranquility are perfected in the art of dance partnering, dancers find it even more beneficial in their other relationships, and in everyday life.

Dance often

[10] The study made another important suggestion: do it often. Seniors who did crossword puzzles four days a week had a measurably lower risk of dementia than those who did the puzzles once a week. If you can’t take classes or go out dancing four times a week, then dance as much as you can. More is better.

[11] And do it now, the sooner the better. It’s essential to start building your cognitive reserve now. Some day you’ll need as many of those stepping stones across the creek as possible. Don’t wait—start building them now. (643 words)

New Words and Expressions

acuity /ə pagenumber_ebook=57,pagenumber_book=48 kjuːəti/ n.敏锐；敏锐度