BBC随身英语:Boredom is good for you 百无聊赖能够提高创造力

Boredom can be a good thing for children, according to Dr Teresa Belton, researcher at the University of East Anglia's School of Education and Lifelong Learning. After interviewing authors, artists and scientists in Britain, she's reached the conclusion that cultural expectations that children should be constantly active could hamper the development of their imagination.

British comedienne and writer Meera Syal grew up in a small mining village with few distractions. The researcher said: "Lack of things to do spurred her to talk to people she wouldn't otherwise have engaged with and try activities she wouldn't, under other circumstances, have experienced, such as talking to elderly neighbours and learning to bake cakes."

Belton added: "Boredom made her write. Meera Syal kept a diary from a young age, filling it with observations, short stories, poems, and diatribe."

The academic didn't ignore the old saying the devil finds work for idle hands, though. Belton pointed out that young people who don't have the interior resources to deal with boredom creatively may end up smashing up bus shelters or taking cars out for a joyride.

How about watching TV and videos on the computer? The academic believes that nothing replaces standing and staring at things and observing your surroundings.

It's the sort of thing that stimulates the imagination, she said, while the screen "tends to short circuit that process and the development of creative capacity".

Dr Belton concluded: "For the sake of creativity, perhaps we need to slow down and stay offline from time to time."

Quiz 测验 1. What didn't Meera Syal's village have much of?

Distractions.

2. What did the writer keep from a young age?

A diary.

3. Is this statement true or false? According to Dr Belton, watching TV stimulates the imagination.

False. The academic says that it interrupts the development of creativity that only standing and staring at the surroundings can encourage.

4. What is Dr Belton's advice for youngsters who like computers?

Stay offline from time to time.

5. Which word in the article means something you are born with?

Innate.

Glossary 词汇表 innate天生的 expectation期待 to hamper妨碍 the imagination想像力 distractions使人分心的事物 to spur去激发 to engage使从事、忙于 circumstances环境 a diatribe酷评 an academic学术界人士 the devil finds work for idle hands游手好闲，造恶之源 interior resources内在方法 to smash up去砸烂 a bus shelter公车候车亭 a joyride（用偷来的车）开快车兜风 to stare凝视，张大眼睛看 the surroundings周围景物事物 to short circuit去短路 for the sake of为了...的缘故或目的 offline线下