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 countless¹ 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.

还记得上次看书或是阅读杂志文章是什么时候吗？你每天是不是总关注着推特或脸书的更新？如果你还没有养成定期阅读的习惯，那么就真的忽略了：阅读会有很多的好处，下面先一起看看列举出来的好处吧。

1. Mental Stimulation²

刺激神经

Studies have shown that staying mentally stimulated³ 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 cognitive⁴ stimulation.

研究表明通过保持大脑活力和专注力，可有效防止大脑衰退，这样的持续精神刺激能够有效减缓（甚至可能防止）老年痴呆症的发生。正如身体其他部位的肌肉，大脑也需要通过锻炼来保持强壮和健康，所以有句话怎么说来着“不用就失去”，这对脑力尤其适用。猜谜以及玩游戏如下国际象棋也能有效刺激认知。

2. Stress Reduction

减缓压力

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.

无论工作、人际关系还是其他杂七杂八的日常琐事中遇到多大的压力，一个好故事绝对能让你把这些都抛在脑后。一本优质小说绝对可以带你进入另一个世界，而一篇好的文章足以把你牢牢吸引无暇顾其他，帮你去除紧张让你得以放松。

3. Knowledge

知识

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.

你所阅读的都会充斥大脑，让其得到新的信息，你绝对不知道啥时候就会派上用场，知识越多，面对挑战时你的底气就越足。

Additionally, here’s a bit of food for thought: should you ever find yourself in dire⁶ 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，这是你的精神食粮，哪怕发现自己处在这样可悲的境地，即使你失去了一切——工作，财产，金钱甚健康——你绝不会失去知识。

4.Vocabulary Expansion

扩大词汇量

This goes with the above topic: the more you read, the more words you gain exposure to, and they’ll inevitably⁷ 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 knowledgeable⁸ on a variety of topics tend to get promotions⁹ more quickly (and more often) than those with smaller vocabularies and lack of awareness¹⁰ of literature, scientific breakthroughs, and global events.

这和上面的话题其实差不多：你读的越多，获得的词汇就越多，这样就不可避免的会增加你的日常词汇量。语言表达流利对任何职业都大有好处，有自信的与上级交流可是对自尊的大大增加，甚至对职业都是个帮助。相比词汇量小、文学素养匮乏、科技知识小白、不关心国家大事的人而言，那些读书多、口才好、博学的人似乎升职更快（更频繁）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 fluency¹¹.

学习新语言，阅读也是个不可或缺的。这样非母语的学生才能了解语境中单词的使用，促使自己在口语和写作中更加自然流畅。

5. Memory Improvement

提高记忆力

When you read a book, you have to remember an assortment¹² 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 synapses¹³ (brain pathways)and strengthens existing ones, which assists in short-term memory recall as well as stabilizing¹⁴ moods. How cool is that?

看书的时候，你需要记住一堆人物，他们的背景、野心、历史以及细微的差别，以及每个故事中他们的故事脉络和发展进程。这记起来可不那么容易，但我们大脑也十分强大，相对的放松就能记住这些哦。最惊奇的是，你在新突触（脑部神经）刻入了新的记忆，旧记忆也得以加强，这样能帮助短期记忆的回想以及稳定情绪，是不是听起来很不错啊！

6. Stronger Analytical¹⁵ 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”.

有没有读过一个超赞的悬疑小说，在读完之前就自己解出了谜底？如果是，那么你真的可以记下提供的所有细节，然后利用自己严谨的分析思维设定一个谜底来写一本自己的“侦探小说” 了哦。

That same ability to analyze¹⁶ 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 smoothly¹⁷, 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.

需要批判某一场景，这种分析细节的能力也可以手到擒来，看看这个写得好不好，人物设立得怎么样，故事脉络是否连贯等等。当花了时间来考虑这些方方面面，如果有机会和其他人讨论这本书，你就可以清楚的阐述自己的观点了。

7. Improved Focus and Concentration

提高注意力和集中力

In our internet-crazed world, attention is drawn¹⁸ 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.

在这个网络时代，每天纷杂的任务让我们的注意力会被无数的事物所吸引。在短短的5分钟时段里，一个人要把它划分为完成任务、查看邮件、和一群人聊天（gchat, skype等等）、刷推特、设置手机、和同事交流等。这种叠加的行为模式提高了压力水平，减少了我们的效率。

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 commute¹⁹, if you take public transit), and you’ll be surprised at how much more focused you are once you get to the office.

看书的时候，所有的注意力都集中在故事上——周围的一切似乎都不存在了，你可以尽情的沉浸在任一细节里。试着在工作前阅读15-20分钟（如果你乘公共交通，那就在早班车上），然后你就会发现进办公室那一刹那会注意力更加集中。

8. Better Writing Skills

提升写作水平

This goes hand-in-hand with the expansion of your vocabulary: exposure to published, well-written work has a noted²⁰ effect on one’s own writing, as observing the cadence²¹, 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.

这和扩大词汇量有着异曲同工之效：多看那些出版的好作品能对一个人的写作产生重大影响，观察韵律、流畅度以及其他作家的写作风格都会深深的影响到你自己。这就和音乐家之间的影响一样，画家也会被各类名家的绘画技巧所感染，所以看别人的书也会影响到作家创作风格。

9. Tranquility

平和

In addition to the relaxation²² 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 disorders²³ and mild mental illnesses.

读一本好书，不仅能放松自己，你所读的主题也许还能带来内心的平静和平和。读那些精神类文章能降低血压，带来巨大的平静，而读那些激励型的书籍能有效防止读者产生情绪失调以及精神疾病。

10. Free Entertainment

免费娱乐

Though many of us like to buy books so we can annotate²⁴ them and dog-ear pages for future reference, they can be quite pricey. For low-budget entertainment, you can visit your local library and bask²⁵ 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.

很多人都乐于购买书籍，做出注解，以便未来查阅之需，它们真的是无价的，而对于低预算的欣赏层面，你可以去当地的图书馆，那里放了无数本可以免费阅读的书籍。图书馆囊括了各类主题的书，由于它们要保持库存，会不断地引进新书，你永远不用担心没有书看啦。

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 format⁵ 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!

如果你住的地方没有图书馆，或者交通不便过去不方便，很多图书馆都提供PDF、ePUB格式的书籍，这样你就可以在电子设备，ipad或是电脑上进行阅读了。你还可以在网上下载一些免费的电子书，赶紧去找找新的书来看吧！

There’s a reading genre²⁶ for every literate²⁷ 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 replenish²⁸ your soul for a little while.

地球上的每个文化人都有自己的阅读体裁偏好，无论你喜欢经典文学、诗歌、流行杂志、传纪，宗教读物、青少年读物、激励类书籍、或是爱情小说，这些都能够抓住你的好奇心和想象力。远离一会儿电脑吧，打开书，净化一下自己的灵魂吧。