雙語(yǔ)·痕跡減退：你的記憶隨時(shí)間減退嗎？

Trace decay: Do your memories fade with time?
痕跡減退：你的記憶隨時(shí)間減退嗎？

The most basic explanation of forgetting has to do with the passage of time. Our memory traces are stored in living tissue, which inevitably changes over time. It is a well-known fact that connections between neurons deteriorate over time and as a consequence, the memory traces stored within these connections decay.
關(guān)于遺忘最根本的解釋與時(shí)間的流逝有關(guān)。我們的記憶痕跡存儲(chǔ)在活組織中，因此不可避免地隨時(shí)間而變化。眾所周知，神經(jīng)元之間的聯(lián)結(jié)會(huì)隨時(shí)間而衰退，結(jié)果就是存儲(chǔ)在這些聯(lián)結(jié)中的記憶痕跡隨之變淺。

In addition, there is another possible cause for the decay of our memories. Surprisingly, making new memories may be part of the reason we forget. As new memories are formed, new neurons are produced in the hippocampus (the memory hub), which changes its structure and patterns of connections. As a consequence, older memories are more difficult to retrieve.
此外，記憶的減退還有另一個(gè)可能的原因。令人驚訝的是，記住新東西或許正是導(dǎo)致我們遺忘的部分原因。隨著新的記憶形成，海馬體（大腦的記憶中樞）會(huì)產(chǎn)生新的神經(jīng)元，這會(huì)改變已有聯(lián)結(jié)的結(jié)構(gòu)和模式。結(jié)果，舊的記憶也就更難被檢索到了。

Therefore, if you need to retain old information in memory (for a final exam for instance), it would be a good idea to revise it again while you are studying something new, otherwise the old information might be superseded by the new information.
因此，如果你需要在記憶中保留舊信息（比如為了期末考試），學(xué)了新東西之后再?gòu)?fù)習(xí)一下舊有的內(nèi)容可能會(huì)是個(gè)好主意，否則舊信息可能會(huì)被新信息取代。

We recommend that you establish a schedule of revision of the old material (even a couple of minutes every day should suffice) that is interspersed with the study of the new material. This is especially important if you study several different subjects/topics within one day because you memory cannot yet benefit from protective sleep-induced consolidation processes. There is another reason why studying new things can impair the retrieval of old things and we discuss it in the section “interference”.
我們建議你設(shè)定一個(gè)復(fù)習(xí)舊內(nèi)容的日程表（即使每天只花幾分鐘時(shí)間就夠了），穿插在學(xué)習(xí)新內(nèi)容的過(guò)程中。如果你一天之內(nèi)學(xué)習(xí)好幾個(gè)不同的科目/主題，這樣做就尤其重要了，因?yàn)槟愕挠洃涍€來(lái)不及得到睡眠引發(fā)的固化過(guò)程的保護(hù)。學(xué)習(xí)新東西會(huì)損害對(duì)舊內(nèi)容的檢索還有另一個(gè)原因，我們會(huì)在“干擾”一節(jié)討論。

In summary, we recommend the following
總結(jié)起來(lái)，我們推薦以下做法：

·Spend about 1/10 of your study time revising old material
·花大約十分之一的時(shí)間復(fù)習(xí)舊內(nèi)容。

·Insert brief periods of revision of old material into the study of new material
·在學(xué)習(xí)新內(nèi)容的過(guò)程中，穿插對(duì)舊內(nèi)容的簡(jiǎn)短回顧。

——節(jié)選自《記憶的科學(xué)》