閱讀的10大好處：每天都抽空去讀點書吧！
When was the last time you read a book, or a substantial magazine article? Do your daily reading habits center around tweets or Facebook updates? If you’re one of countless people who don’t make a habit of reading regularly, you might be missing out: reading has a significant number of benefits, and just a few benefits of reading are listed below.
還記得上次看書或是閱讀雜誌文章是什麼時候嗎？你每天是不是總關注着推特或臉書的更新？如果你還沒有養成定期閱讀的習慣，那麼就真的忽略了：閱讀會有很多的好處，下面先一起看看列舉出來的好處吧。
1. Mental Stimulation
刺激神經
Studies have shown that staying mentally stimulated can slow the progress of (or possibly even prevent) Alzheimer’s and Dementia, since keeping your brain active and engaged prevents it from losing power. Just like any other muscle in the body, the brain requires exercise to keep it strong and healthy, so the phrase “use it or lose it” is particularly apt when it comes to your mind. Doing puzzles and playing games such as chess have also been found to be helpful with cognitive stimulation.
研究表明通過保持大腦活力和專注力，可有效防止大腦衰退，這樣的持續精神刺激能夠有效減緩（甚至可能防止）老年癡呆症的發生。正如身體其他部位的肌肉，大腦也需要通過鍛鍊來保持強壯和健康，所以有句話怎麼說來着“不用就失去”，這對腦力尤其適用。猜謎以及玩遊戲如下國際象棋也能有效刺激認知。
2. Stress Reduction
減緩壓力
No matter how much stress you have at work, in your personal relationships, or countless other issues faced in daily life, it all just slips away when you lose yourself in a great story. A well-written novel can transport you to other realms, while an engaging article will distract you and keep you in the present moment, letting tensions drain away and allowing you to relax.
無論工作、人際關係還是其他雜七雜八的日常瑣事中遇到多大的壓力，一個好故事絕對能讓你把這些都拋在腦後。一本優質小說絕對可以帶你進入另一個世界，而一篇好的文章足以把你牢牢吸引無暇顧其他，幫你去除緊張讓你得以放鬆。
3. Knowledge
知識
Everything you read fills your head with new bits of information, and you never know when it might come in handy. The more knowledge you have, the better-equipped you are to tackle any challenge you’ll ever face.
你所閱讀的都會充斥大腦，讓其得到新的信息，你絕對不知道啥時候就會派上用場，知識越多，面對挑戰時你的底氣就越足。
Additionally, here’s a bit of food for thought: should you ever find yourself in dire circumstances, remember that although you might lose everything else—your job, your possessions, your money, even your health—knowledge can never be taken from you.
另外，這是你的精神食糧，哪怕發現自己處在這樣可悲的境地，即使你失去了一切——工作，財產，金錢甚健康——你絕不會失去知識。
bulary Expansion
擴大詞彙量
This goes with the above topic: the more you read, the more words you gain exposure to, and they’ll inevitably make their way into your everyday vocabulary. Being articulate and well-spoken is of great help in any profession, and knowing that you can speak to higher-ups with self-confidence can be an enormous boost to your self-esteem. It could even aid in your career, as those who are well-read, well-spoken, and knowledgeable on a variety of topics tend to get promotions more quickly (and more often) than those with smaller vocabularies and lack of awareness of literature, scientific breakthroughs, and global events.
這和上面的話題其實差不多：你讀的越多，獲得的詞彙就越多，這樣就不可避免的會增加你的日常詞彙量。語言表達流利對任何職業都大有好處，有自信的與上級交流可是對自尊的大大增加，甚至對職業都是個幫助。相比詞彙量小、文學素養匱乏、科技知識小白、不關心國家大事的人而言，那些讀書多、口才好、博學的人似乎升職更快（更頻繁）哦。
Reading books is also vital for learning new languages, as non-native speakers gain exposure to words used in context, which will ameliorate their own speaking and writing fluency.
學習新語言，閱讀也是個不可或缺的。這樣非母語的學生才能瞭解語境中單詞的使用，促使自己在口語和寫作中更加自然流暢。
5. Memory Improvement
提高記憶力
When you read a book, you have to remember an assortment of characters, their backgrounds, ambitions, history, and nuances, as well as the various arcs and sub-plots that weave their way through every story. That’s a fair bit to remember, but brains are marvellous things and can remember these things with relative ease. Amazingly enough, every new memory you create forges new synapses (brain pathways)and strengthens existing ones, which assists in short-term memory recall as well as stabilizing moods. How cool is that?
看書的時候，你需要記住一堆人物，他們的背景、野心、歷史以及細微的差別，以及每個故事中他們的故事脈絡和發展進程。這記起來可不那麼容易，但我們大腦也十分強大，相對的放鬆就能記住這些哦。最驚奇的是，你在新突觸（腦部神經）刻入了新的記憶，舊記憶也得以加強，這樣能幫助短期記憶的回想以及穩定情緒，是不是聽起來很不錯啊！6. Stronger Analytical Thinking Skills
提高分析思考技巧
Have you ever read an amazing mystery novel, and solved the mystery yourself before finishing the book? If so, you were able to put critical and analytical thinking to work by taking note of all the details provided and sorting them out to determine “whodunnit”.
有沒有讀過一個超讚的懸疑小說，在讀完之前就自己解出了謎底？如果是，那麼你真的可以記下提供的所有細節，然後利用自己嚴謹的分析思維設定一個謎底來寫一本自己的“偵探小說” 了哦。
That same ability to analyze details also comes in handy when it comes to critiquing the plot; determining whether it was a well-written piece, if the characters were properly developed, if the storyline ran smoothly, etc. Should you ever have an opportunity to discuss the book with others, you’ll be able to state your opinions clearly, as you’ve taken the time to really consider all the aspects involved.
需要批判某一場景，這種分析細節的能力也可以手到擒來，看看這個寫得好不好，人物設立得怎麼樣，故事脈絡是否連貫等等。當花了時間來考慮這些方方面面，如果有機會和其他人討論這本書，你就可以清楚的闡述自己的觀點了。
7. Improved Focus and Concentration
提高注意力和集中力
In our internet-crazed world, attention is drawn in a million different directions at once as we multi-task through every day. In a single 5-minute span, the average person will divide their time between working on a task, checking email, chatting with a couple of people (via gchat, skype, etc.), keeping an eye on twitter, monitoring their smartphone, and interacting with co-workers. This type of ADD-like behaviour causes stress levels to rise, and lowers our productivity.
在這個網絡時代，每天紛雜的任務讓我們的注意力會被無數的事物所吸引。在短短的5分鐘時段裏，一個人要把它劃分爲完成任務、查看郵件、和一羣人聊天（gchat, skype等等）、刷推特、設置手機、和同事交流等。這種疊加的行爲模式提高了壓力水平，減少了我們的效率。
When you read a book, all of your attention is focused on the story—the rest of the world just falls away, and you can immerse yourself in every fine detail you’re absorbing. Try reading for 15-20 minutes before work (i.e. on your morning commute, if you take public transit), and you’ll be surprised at how much more focused you are once you get to the office.
看書的時候，所有的注意力都集中在故事上——周圍的一切似乎都不存在了，你可以盡情的沉浸在任一細節裏。試着在工作前閱讀15-20分鐘（如果你乘公共交通，那就在早班車上），然後你就會發現進辦公室那一剎那會注意力更加集中。
8. Better Writing Skills
提升寫作水平
This goes hand-in-hand with the expansion of your vocabulary: exposure to published, well-written work has a noted effect on one’s own writing, as observing the cadence, fluidity, and writing styles of other authors will invariably influence your own work. In the same way that musicians influence one another, and painters use techniques established by previous masters, so do writers learn how to craft prose by reading the works of others.
這和擴大詞彙量有着異曲同工之效：多看那些出版的好作品能對一個人的寫作產生重大影響，觀察韻律、流暢度以及其他作家的寫作風格都會深深的影響到你自己。這就和音樂家之間的影響一樣，畫家也會被各類名家的繪畫技巧所感染，所以看別人的書也會影響到作家創作風格。
9. Tranquility
平和
In addition to the relaxation that accompanies reading a good book, it’s possible that the subject you read about can bring about immense inner peace and tranquility. Reading spiritual texts can lower blood pressure and bring about an immense sense of calm, while reading self-help books has been shown to help people suffering from certain mood disorders and mild mental illnesses.
讀一本好書，不僅能放鬆自己，你所讀的主題也許還能帶來內心的平靜和平和。讀那些精神類文章能降低血壓，帶來巨大的平靜，而讀那些激勵型的書籍能有效防止讀者產生情緒失調以及精神疾病。
10. Free Entertainment
免費娛樂
Though many of us like to buy books so we can annotate them and dog-ear pages for future reference, they can be quite pricey. For low-budget entertainment, you can visit your local library and bask in the glory of the countless tomes available there for free. Libraries have books on every subject imaginable, and since they rotate their stock and constantly get new books, you’ll never run out of reading materials.
很多人都樂於購買書籍，做出註解，以便未來查閱之需，它們真的是無價的，而對於低預算的欣賞層面，你可以去當地的圖書館，那裏放了無數本可以免費閱讀的書籍。圖書館囊括了各類主題的書，由於它們要保持庫存，會不斷地引進新書，你永遠不用擔心沒有書看啦。
If you happen to live in an area that doesn’t have a local library, or if you’re mobility-impaired and can’t get to one easily, most libraries have their books available in PDF or ePub format so you can read them on your e-reader, iPad, or your computer screen. There are also many sources online where you can download free e-books, so go hunting for something new to read!
如果你住的地方沒有圖書館，或者交通不便過去不方便，很多圖書館都提供PDF、ePUB格式的書籍，這樣你就可以在電子設備，ipad或是電腦上進行閱讀了。你還可以在網上下載一些免費的電子書，趕緊去找找新的書來看吧！
There’s a reading genre for every literate person on the planet, and whether your tastes lie in classical literature, poetry, fashion magazines, biographies, religious texts, young adult books, self-help guides, or romance novels, there’s something out there to capture your curiosity and imagination. Step away from your computer for a little while, crack open a book, and replenish your soul for a little while.
地球上的每個文化人都有自己的閱讀體裁偏好，無論你喜歡經典文學、詩歌、流行雜誌、傳紀，宗教讀物、青少年讀物、激勵類書籍、或是愛情小說，這些都能夠抓住你的好奇心和想象力。遠離一會兒電腦吧，打開書，淨化一下自己的靈魂吧。
