Initial Reading
Read the following text as quickly as you can, and underline the topic sentences or the key words in order to understand the main ideas of the text. Then complete the exercises that follow.
[1] For centuries, dance manuals and other writings have lauded the health benefits of dancing, usually as physical exercise. More recently we’ve seen research on further health benefits of dancing, such as stress reduction and increased serotonin level, with its sense of well-being. Most recently we’ve heard of another benefit: Frequent dancing apparently makes us smarter.
[2] A major study added to the growing evidence that stimulating one’s mind by dancing can ward off Alzheimer’s disease and other dementia, much as physical exercise can keep the body fit. Dancing also increases cognitive acuity at all ages.
[3] The 21-year study of senior citizens, 75 and older, was led by the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City, funded by the National Institute on Aging, and published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Their method for objectively measuring mental acuity in aging was to monitor rates of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease. The study wanted to see if any physical or cognitive recreational activities influenced mental acuity. They discovered that some activities had a significant beneficial effect. Other activities had none.
[4] They studied cognitive activities such as reading books, writing for pleasure, doing crossword puzzles,playing cards and playing musical instruments. And they studied physical activities like playing tennis or golf, swimming, bicycling, dancing, walking for exercise and doing housework. One of the surprises of the study was that almost none of the physical activities appeared to offer any protection against dementia. There can be cardiovascular benefits of course, but the focus of this study was the mind.There was one important exception: the only physical activity to offer protection against dementia was frequent dancing.
[5] Why is dancing better than other activities for improving mental capabilities? Does this mean all kinds of dancing, or is one kind of dancing better than another? That’s where this particular study falls short.It doesn’t answer these questions as a stand-alone study. Fortunately, it isn’t a stand-alone study.It’s one of many studies, over decades, which have shown that we increase our mental capacity by exercising our cognitive processes.
[6] The cognitive process is considered to be intelligent. As Jean Piaget put it, intelligence is what we use when we don’t already know what to do. The essence of intelligence is making decisions. The best advice, when it comes to improving your mental acuity, is to involve yourself in activities which require split-second rapid-fire decision making, as opposed to rote memory (retracing the same wellworn paths), or just working on your physical style.
[7] One way to do that is to learn something new. Anything new. Don’t worry about the probability that you’ll never use it in the future. Take a class to challenge your mind. It will stimulate the connectivity of your brain by generating the need for new pathways. Difficult classes are better for you, as they will create a greater need for new neural pathways. However, taking a dance class can be even more effective. Why? Because dancing integrates several brain functions at once—kinesthetic, rational,musical, and emotional—further increasing your neural connectivity. (518 words)
New Words and Expressions
manual /
mænjʊəl/ n.手册；说明书
laud /lɔːd/ v.称赞；赞美
serotonin /
serə
təʊnɪn/ n.血清素
serotonin level 血清素的含量
stimulate /
stɪmjuleɪt/ v.刺激
fund /fʌnd/ vt.为……提供资金；积存n.基金；储备
objectively /əb
dʒektɪvli/ adv.客观地
recreational /
rekri
eɪʃənl/ adj.消遣的；娱乐的
significant /sɪɡ
nɪfɪkənt/ adj.有重大意义的
exception /ɪk
sepʃn/ n.例外；除外
essence /
esns/ n.本质，实质；精华
rote /rəʊt/ n.死记硬背；机械的做法
rote memory 机械记忆
connectivity /
kɒnek
tɪvɪti/ n.连通性
generate /
dʒenəreɪt/ vt.形成；造成；引起
pathway /
pɑːθ
weɪ/ n.路，道；途径，路径
neural pathway 神经通路
integrate /
ɪntɪ
ɡreɪt/ v.使结合
kinesthetic /
kaɪnɪs'θetɪk/ adj.感性的
rational /
ræʃnəl/ adj.理性的
Phrases and Expressions
1. ward off 预防；抵挡
2. Alzheimer’s disease 老年痴呆症；阿尔茨海默病
3. musical instruments n.乐器
4. fall short 不足；不合格
5. offer protection against 保护不受……侵入
6. when it comes to 当提到……；说到……
7. involve oneself in 投入；陷入；参与
8. as opposed to 与……相对
Related Information
1. serotonin：血清素，是一种神经递质，用来行使包括控制情绪、睡眠、食欲和肌肉收缩等在内的不同身体功能的作用。研究发现，血清素在认知功能方面（如大脑记忆和学习等方面）扮演着重要角色。由于神经递质能促进中枢神经系统将信息转移到人体其他细胞，所以，血清素也被称为“情绪神经传递素”，它对人类不同情绪负有责任。作为身体重要元素之一，大脑中血清素水平的起伏会诱发各种健康反应。
2. Alzheimer’s disease ：阿尔茨海默病（AD），是一种神经系统退行性疾病。临床上以记忆障碍、失语、失用、失认、视空间技能损害、执行功能障碍以及人格和行为改变等全面性痴呆表现为特征，病因迄今未明。65岁以前发病者，称早老性痴呆；65岁以后发病者，称老年性痴呆。该病可能是一组异质性疾病，在多种因素（包括生物和社会心理因素）的作用下才发病。从目前研究来看，该病的可能因素和假说多达30余种，如家族史、头部外伤、低教育水平、甲状腺病、母育龄过高或过低、病毒感染等。
3. The Albert Einstein College of Medicine：阿尔伯特•爱因斯坦医学院，简称爱因斯坦医学院，是一所私立学院，位于纽约的布朗克斯区。它是美国首屈一指的医学教育、基础研究和临床研究机构，在全美 138 所医学院中名列第 25 位，在糖尿病、癌症等研究领域处于世界顶尖水平，超过9 000名爱因斯坦校友是全美最重要的临床医生、生物医学科学家和医学教育家。
4. Cognitive activity ：认知活动，又称认识活动，是人认识客观事物的过程，即对信息进行加工处理的过程，是人由表及里、由现象到本质地反映客观事物特征与内在联系的心理活动。它由人的感觉、知觉、记忆、思维和想象等认知要素组成。