摘要：无论你喜欢贝多芬还是杀手乐队，有一件事我想我们都认同：音乐让生活更美好。但这种说法不只是我们自己这么觉得，是有科学证明依据的。

Whether you favor Beethoven or Slayer, there is one thing I think we can all agree on: music makes life better. But here is the proof as science would have it, and it’s not just in the ways we think.

1. Listening To Music Reduces Stress

A lot of us intuitively turn to relaxing music when we are feeling stressed or tired. Perhapsunsurprisingly, we’re not just imagining things. Significant research backs it up. In particular,slow, quiet classical music is suggested to have the most soothing effect.

无论你喜欢贝多芬还是杀手乐队，有一件事我想我们都认同：音乐让生活更美好。但这种说法不只是我们自己这么觉得，是有科学证明依据的。

听音乐可以减压

当我们感到紧张或疲倦时，我们很多人都直观地选择听音乐这种放松方式。也许这并不奇怪，我们不只是想象而已。有深入性研究表明这种说法有道理。具体而言，建议听速度慢偏安静风格的古典音乐，具有让人感觉最舒缓的效果。

So if you have a hard time dealing with stress, compiling a playlist of some fitting classicalsongs could be a good idea. Or try listening to a relaxing, classical-style movie soundtrack.

所以，如果你很难排解压力，弄一个古典歌曲的播放列表可能会是个好主意，或尝试听些让人放松的古典风格电影配乐。

2. Listening To Music Improves Endurance

听音乐增强耐力

Do you work out? Have you always felt like you perform better when you listen to music? Oddas it might seem, there has actually been a lot of research done on this subject. And sureenough, one study shows that music can increase endurance by 15%.

你锻炼身体吗?你是不是一直觉得自己在听音乐时的表现更好一些?听起来可能有些怪，但其实关于这个课题已经进行了很多研究。一项研究表明，音乐可以增加15%的耐力。

One theory is that the continuity of a classical piece helps you focus, which in turn allows youto persevere longer. However, another study suggests that it’s not the type of music, butrather the speed of the music—the beats per minute (bpm)—that matter. According to thestudy, the optimal speed would be 125–140 bpm.

一种理论认为，古典音乐的连续性有助于你集中专注力，这样可以让你坚持更长时间。还有另一项研究表明，不是音乐的风格类型，而是音乐速度——每分钟节拍数在起作用。根据这项研究，最佳速度是125-140节拍。

3. It Can Make You Healthier

听音乐可以使你更加健康

It might seem too good to be true, but some research suggests that there are measurablehealth benefits from simply listening to music. Listening to music can also release dopamine,often dubbed “the pleasure chemical”. You could perhaps substitute the pleasure achievedthrough eating your comfort foods by indulging in your favorite music, with none of thenegative health repercussions.

听起来似乎好得令人难以置信，但据一些研究表明，只听音乐就对健康有很大的益处。听音乐也会释放“快乐化学剂”多巴胺，沉浸在自己喜欢的音乐中的你获得的乐趣，可以替代你吃慰藉食物时的快乐感觉，而且音乐对健康没有任何负面影响作用。

4. Singing With A Group Of People Makes You Happier

和一群人一起合唱会让你更快乐

Ever thought people that sing in a choir look a bit…too happy? Well, as it turns out, it’s notjust your imagination. Science actually explains what makes them so happy. And the best partof it is, even less-than-great singers experienced the same positive effects.

有没有想过合唱团的人看起来有点儿......太欢乐了?嗯，事实证明，它不只是你的想象而已。其实科学可以解释是什么让他们如此高兴欢乐。并且最好的部分在于：即使对不那么出色的歌手也同样有积极的影响效果。

What does this mean for you? Hopefully, that the next time you get the chance to have a sing-along with someone else, you take it, instead of worrying about how you will be received. It’svery likely to cheer you up! One of the studies listed also suggest that singing togetherincreases bonding. And don’t worry, if you feel like you’re just too shy, you can stick to singingin the shower. But just make sure you do it a bit more often.

这对于你而言又意味着什么呢?如果下次有人邀请你一起唱，你要欣然接受这样一个难得的机会，别再担心你是否合拍的问题啦，合唱会让你很开心!另外还有研究表明，一起唱歌可以拉近亲密度。不要担心，如果你觉得自己在大家面前羞于开口唱歌，你可以在淋浴时自己唱歌，但你要坚持做下去。

5. Learning To Play An Instrument As A Kid Makes You More Successful Later

从小学乐器会让你日后生活更成功

Research shows a noticeable correlation between learning to play an instrument as a child,and becoming successful later in life. So if you were always upset with your parents for forcingyou to play the violin—or like me, the piano—take a minute to be grateful. I just thanked myfather. One of my biggest regrets these days is that I never actually tried to learn to play thepiano properly.

研究表明，从小学乐器与以后成功的生活之间有着明显的相关性。所以，如果你总反感你的父母强迫你拉小提琴，或像我一样厌烦弹钢琴，感恩一下父母的激励督促吧。我真的很感谢我的父亲。现在我的一个最大遗憾就是我从来没有真正地尝试着去认真地学弹钢琴。

6. It Improves Your Memory

音乐会提高记忆力

The interesting part about the research is that it shows music helps your brain develop inmultiple areas, one of the most significant being your memory. So if you’re troubled by a badmemory, learning to play an instrument is something you should consider.

有关研究的最有趣部分是：研究表明音乐有助于开发大脑在多个领域的智力，其中效果最明显的是你的记忆力提高了。所以，如果你被记性不好这个问题所困扰，你应该考虑学一门乐器了。

生命是什么?这是个见仁见智的问题。在作者的眼中，生命在四季变换中流转演绎，一季有一季的风情。或许春有骤雨连绵，夏有骄阳似火，秋有落叶寂寥，冬有风雪凛冽……

Life ... What is it?

See it in the colors of autumn,

A gentle snowfall in winter,

A sudden shower in spring,

The radiance of a summer day.

Behold it in the laughter

Of the young and the old.

Know of it in a surge of hope,

The blessings that are bountiful(丰富的).

What is life?

It is joy, awareness,

And the music within.

生命……是什么?

看呀，生命是绚烂的秋色，

轻盈的冬雪，

春天的骤雨，

夏日的暖阳。

瞧呀，生命是童叟的欢笑。

体味生命，

怀着满心的希望，

带着丰盛的祝福。

生命是什么?

是喜乐，是领悟，

是心灵深处的音乐。