考研英語題源閱讀3

1.Theapplescometogether（BusinessWeekFeb5,2007）The30-yearlegalbattlebetweenthetwocompaniesknownasApple—theCaliforniamakerofcomputersandiPods,andtheLondonguardianofthemusicallegacyoftheBeatles—hascometoaclose.HavingfoughtintermittentlyovertheappropriatewaytodividetherightstotheApplenameoneachofitsproducts,thetwocompaniessaytheyhavereachedanamicablesettlementthatwillassignalltrademarkstoAppleInc.(AAPL).ThedealcallsforcertaintrademarkstobelicensedbacktoAppleCorpsforcontinueduse.Financialtermswerenotdisclosed,butthetwocompaniessayeachwillpayitsownlegalfees,whichhaveamountedtoaround$6million.RumorshavebeenflyinginrecentweeksthatasettlementoftheirlatestlegalspatmaypavethewayforthearrivaloftheBeatles’musicalcatalogonApple’siTunesStore,butnodetailswerereleasedonwhetherthatdebutwasimminent.Duringthetrial,NeilAspinall,headofAppleCorps,disclosedthatthecompanywasintheprocessofremasteringtheBeatlescatalogfordigitaldistribution.Apple’siTuneswouldappeartobethemostlikelycandidatetomaximizesales.However,RealNetworks(RNWK)hassecuredtherightstodistributethesoloworksofJohnLennon.ButbringingthemusictoiTunesisn’tasclearapropositionasitmightseemonfirstglance.ManyofthedistributionandpublishingrightstothesongsarecontrolledbySony/ATV,aholdingcompanythathadbeenpartiallycontrolledbythesingerMichaelJackson.Lastyear,JacksongaveSonytheoptiontopurchasehisportionoftheSony/ATVjoint-venture.SonyhasyettodecidewhethertobuyJackson’sstake.Meanwhile,theclockistickingontherightstoBeatlesmusic.Additionally,onlysixyearsremainonBritishcopyrightprotectiononthefirstbatchofBeatlestunesreleasedin1963,unlesstheBritishgovernmentreversesitspositiononextendingcopyrightsbeyond50yearsafterawork’srelease.Ifleftunchanged,ItappearsthatthetimetocashinondigitalsalesviaserviceslikeiTunesisstartingtoevaporate,especiallyifthemusicissettostartleakingintothepublicdomaininthecountrywhereitwasoriginallyproduced.SpeculationhasbeenrifeaboutwhatApplemightdowereittosignadealtoaddtheBeatlescatalogtoiTunes.ClearlyApple’shigh-impactadvertisingmachinecouldstructureacampaigndesignedtomakeanApple-Appledigitalmusictieupamajorevent.What’smore,adigitalmediaalliancewiththeBeatlesmightnotonlyentailmusic,butagooddealofvideocontent.TheBeatlesstarredinseveralfeaturefilms.Inadditiontomovies,thereareseveralconcertperformancesandTVappearancesthatcouldbereleasedoniTunesifrightsagreementsarereached.In2003some500tapescontainingapproximately80hoursofunreleasedBeatlesmaterialstoleninthe1970swererecoveredintheNetherlands.Clearly,thelongandwindingroadconnectingthetwoAppleshasn’tcometoanend.考研詞匯disclosev.揭示，泄露［真題例句］63.TheexampleofPasteurinthepassageisusedto.［1994年閱讀4］［A］predictthatthesecretofcancerwillbedisclosedinadecade［例句精譯］63本文中引用巴斯德的例子是為了。［A］ 預(yù)言在十年內(nèi)會揭開癌癥之謎candidaten.①候選人，候補(bǔ)者；②報考者，應(yīng)試者［真題例句］Suchcharacteristicsmakethemperfectcandidates(①)forDr.Brosnan’sandDr.deWaal’sstudy.［2005年閱讀1］［例句精譯］因?yàn)檫@些特點(diǎn)，它們(猴子)成為Brosnan和deWaal博士的最佳研究“候選人”。［真題例句］65.Theselectionofmedicalprofessionalsiscurrentlybasedon.［1995年閱讀4］［A］candidates(②)sensitivity［例句精譯］65目前，選擇醫(yī)學(xué)專業(yè)者是建立于的基礎(chǔ)上的。［A］報考者的敏感性maximumn.最大值，極限；a.最大的，最高的venturev.①冒險，拼；②敢于；③大膽表示；n.①冒險事業(yè)，拼，闖；②商業(yè)投機(jī)［真題例句］55.Towhichofthefollowingistheauthorlikelytoagree?［2004年閱讀3］［D］Themoreventures(n.①),themorechances.［例句精譯］55作者可能同意下面哪項(xiàng)？［D］風(fēng)險越多，機(jī)會也就越多。［真題例句］53.Whenmentioning“the$4millionto$10millionrange”(Lines3-4,Paragraph3)theauthoristalkingabout.［2004年閱讀3］［D］venture(n.②)investment.［例句精譯］53提到“4百萬美元到1千萬美元的區(qū)間”作者是在談?wù)?。［D］風(fēng)險投資evaporatev.(使)蒸發(fā)entailvt.①需要，伴隨；②限定繼承背景常識介紹代表披頭士商業(yè)利益的蘋果音樂公司一直拒絕與包括iTunes在內(nèi)的在線音樂服務(wù)進(jìn)行合作。而蘋果電腦公司的邀請也因?yàn)樗c代表披頭士商業(yè)利益的蘋果音樂公司的商標(biāo)爭議而擱淺。今年2月，喬布斯的蘋果電腦公司和披頭士的蘋果公司就蘋果商標(biāo)和名字的使用達(dá)成和解，從而為雙方的合作打下了基礎(chǔ)。參考譯文兩家蘋果公司和解兩大著名的公司，加利福尼亞州電腦和ipods的制造商蘋果電腦公司與披頭士音樂遺產(chǎn)倫敦監(jiān)護(hù)公司(披頭士的蘋果有限公司)，長達(dá)30年的法律糾紛結(jié)束了。兩家公司在其各自產(chǎn)品如何合理分配使用蘋果名稱的權(quán)利上爭議不斷，現(xiàn)在他們稱已經(jīng)獲得友好的解決，將所有的商標(biāo)權(quán)利轉(zhuǎn)讓給蘋果電腦公司。這一交易要求許可蘋果有限公司繼續(xù)使用特定的商標(biāo)。金錢條款未被公開，但是兩家公司都稱會支付各自的訴訟費(fèi)用，大約是600萬美元。近幾周內(nèi)有謠言稱他們最近的法律糾紛的解決可能會為披頭士音樂進(jìn)入蘋果在線商店iTunes鋪平道路，但是對于這一情況是否會出現(xiàn)沒有披露任何細(xì)節(jié)。在審判中，披頭士的蘋果有限公司的經(jīng)理尼爾·阿斯皮納爾公開說公司正在重新獲得披頭士音樂的數(shù)字銷售權(quán)。蘋果電腦公司的在線商店iTunes最有可能實(shí)現(xiàn)最大銷售量。但是，RealNetworks卻確保了銷售約翰·列儂單曲作品的權(quán)利。但是在iTunes銷售披頭士音樂并不像乍看上去那樣是個明確的提議。歌曲的許多發(fā)行銷售權(quán)是由索尼/ATV公司所享有，它是邁克爾·杰克遜持有部分股票的控股公司。去年，邁克爾·杰克遜給了索尼公司收購它所持有的股份的選擇，然而索尼公司尚未決定是否購買他的股份。同時，披頭士音樂的權(quán)利保護(hù)期限即將到期。此外，英國對披頭士1963年發(fā)行的第一張唱片的版權(quán)保護(hù)僅剩6年的時間，除非英國改變版權(quán)保護(hù)期限為作品發(fā)表后50年的立場。如果不改變，則通過諸如iTunes乘機(jī)利用數(shù)字銷售賺錢的時代可能開始消亡了，尤其是當(dāng)音樂在其最初發(fā)表的國家已經(jīng)進(jìn)入公共領(lǐng)域時。充滿了蘋果公司將可能簽訂協(xié)議將披頭士作品在iTunes銷售的猜測。清楚的是，蘋果公司具有廣泛影響力的廣告宣傳機(jī)器將使Apple-Apple數(shù)字音樂連接運(yùn)動成為一件重大的事情。而且，與披頭士的數(shù)字媒體聯(lián)盟不僅包括音樂，而且還有大量的視頻作品。披頭士主演了幾部電影。如果達(dá)成權(quán)利協(xié)議，這些電影，還有一些音樂演唱會和電視節(jié)目均可以在iTunes發(fā)行。2003年在荷蘭發(fā)現(xiàn)了大約500盤磁帶，長達(dá)80小時，內(nèi)容是從未披露過的披頭士資料，它們在20世紀(jì)70年代被盜。很明顯，兩家蘋果公司合作的漫長而曲折的道路并未走到盡頭。2.Theflavorofmemories（TIMEJan18,2007）Memoryandemotionareintimatelylinkedbiochemically,withhormoneslikeadrenalineactivelyinvolvedinformingtheneurologicalpatternswecallmemories.“Anykindofemotionalexperiencewillcreateastrongermemorythanotherwisewouldbecreated,”saysJamesMcGaugh,aneurobiologistattheUniversityofCalifornia.Onthefaceofit,thatdoesn’tseemespeciallysurprising:wefeelstrongemotionatimportantevents,whichareobviouslymorememorablethanordinarymoments.Buttheconnectionismuchdeeperthanthatanddatesbacktoourdeepestevolutionarypast.“Themajorpurposeofmemory,”observesMcGaugh,“istopredictthefuture.”Ananimalthatcanrememberthesignificanceofthatlarge,nasty-lookingthingwiththebigteethandsharpclawswillsurvivelongerandproducemoreoffspring.Norepinephrinedoestwoimportantthings.First,itkicksthebody’sautonomicnervoussystemintooverdrive:theheartbeatsfaster,respirationquickens,andthemusclestenseinanticipationofaburstofphysicalexertion.Second,evenasit’skick-startingthebody,theamygdalasendsoutacrackleofsignalstotherestofthebrain.Someofthemputthesensesonhighalert,readytodealwithathreat.Butthesesignalsalsotelltheneuronsthatanymemoriesrecordedinthenextfewminutesneedtobeespeciallyrobust.Onepieceofevidenceforthisscenario:LawrenceCahill,acolleagueofMcGaugh’s,showedsubjectsemotionallyarousingfilmclips,simultaneouslygaugingtheactivityoftheiramygdalaeusingpositron-emissiontomography(PET)scans.Threeweekslater,hegavethesubjectsasurprisememoryquiz.Theamountofamygdalaactivitypredictedwithgreataccuracyhowwelltheyrememberedthefilmclips.Imagingstudiesalsomakeclearthatitisn’tjustdangersortragiceventsthatcementmemoryformation.Positiveemotions,whicharealsomediatedthroughtheamygdala,havethesameeffect.Again,that’saperfectlyreasonableevolutionarydevelopment.Ifeatingorhavingsexmakesyouhappy,you’llrememberthatanddoitagain,keepingyourselfhealthyandpassingonyourgenesaswell.Thisisanoversimplification,ofcourse.Otherneurotransmitters,andevenplainglucose—thesugarthebrainusesforenergy—mayalsoplayapart.Andthenthere’sthepeculiarcaseofawomanwhocontactedMcGaughbecausesheremembersabsolutelyeverything.Thestress-hormonemodeldoesnotappeartoapplyinhercase.SaysMcGaugh:“AtonepointIaskedifsheknewwhoBingCrosbywas.She’s40,soBingCrosbydoesn’tloomlargeinherlife,butsheknewhediedonagolfcourseinSpain,andshegavemethedate,justlikethat.”Imagingresearchersareworkingtodeterminewhetherthewoman’sbrainisstructurallydifferentfromeveryoneelse’s.考研詞匯intimatea.親密的，密切的［真題例句］“Insteadofintimateshopscateringtoaknowledgeableelite.”thesewerestores“anyonecouldenter,regardlessofclassorbackground.Thisturnedshoppingintoapublicanddemocraticact.”［2006年閱讀1］［例句精譯］“不像那些個人商店那樣，只滿足有學(xué)識的精英人士的需求”，這些商店“不論階級與背景，任何人都能進(jìn)入。這推動了購物大眾化和民主化的進(jìn)程?！眕redictv.預(yù)言，預(yù)測，預(yù)告［真題例句］Oneofthefederalgovernment’sstudies(9：predicts)thatthenumberofthehomelesswillreachnearly19millionbytheendofthisdecade.［2006年完形］［例句精譯］聯(lián)邦政府的一項(xiàng)研究預(yù)測，在本十年結(jié)束之前，無家可歸者的數(shù)量將接近1900萬。offspringn.①子孫，后代；②結(jié)果，產(chǎn)物［真題例句］Personalityistoalargeextentinherent—A-typeparentsusuallybringaboutA-typeoffspring(①).［1995年閱讀4］［例句精譯］性格在很大程度上是先天形成的—A型性格的父母會有A型性格的后代。exertionn.盡力,努力,發(fā)揮,行使,運(yùn)用cracklen.劈啪響,裂紋vi.(使)發(fā)劈啪聲peculiara.①古怪的，異常的；②特殊的，特有的［真題例句］(74)Thereisnoagreementwhethermethodologyreferstotheconceptspeculiar(②)tohistoricalworkingeneralortotheresearchtechniquesappropriatetothevariousbranchesofhistoricalinquiry.［1999年翻譯］［例句精譯］(74)所謂方法是指在一般的歷史研究中的特有概念，還是指歷史探究中各個具體領(lǐng)域適用的研究手段，人們對此意見不一。背景常識介紹記憶力是什么?所謂記憶力，是指曾經(jīng)歷過的事情，不管什么時候都能記住，在必要時能想出來(再生)，或感覺曾經(jīng)經(jīng)歷過(再認(rèn)),這就是我們所說的記憶力,那么記憶力又分為幾種呢?粗略來說,記憶力分為兩種：記憶力的一類是透過傾聽別人的談話或閱讀，用耳朵來記憶的聽覺性記憶；記憶力的另一類是透過眼睛來看，用眼睛記憶的視覺性記憶。記憶的方法因人而異，擅長用耳朵來記憶的稱為聽覺型，擅長用眼睛來記憶的稱為視覺型。參考譯文記憶的特點(diǎn)從生物化學(xué)的角度講，記憶和感情和參與構(gòu)成我們稱之為記憶的神經(jīng)類型的腎上腺素的荷爾蒙有著緊密的聯(lián)系?！叭魏畏N類的情感方面的經(jīng)歷形成的記憶比別的方面形成的記憶都要強(qiáng)烈，”JamesMcGaugh,一位加利福尼亞大學(xué)的神經(jīng)生物學(xué)家說。表面上，那似乎不會使我們特別吃驚：在重要的事件上我們會感到強(qiáng)烈的感情沖擊，這種感情明顯地比普通時刻的記憶深刻。“記憶的主要目的，”McGaugh說，“是去預(yù)測將來?！币环N動物只有記住那只長有巨大牙齒和鋒利爪子且長相丑惡的龐然大物，才能生存長久并繁殖更多的后代。去甲腎上腺素有兩個重要的作用。第一，它驅(qū)使身體自動的緊張系統(tǒng)負(fù)擔(dān)過度運(yùn)動：在預(yù)期到身體突然發(fā)動就會心臟跳動過快，呼吸加快，肌肉緊張。第二，正巧在發(fā)動身體的時候扁桃體會給其他的腦部發(fā)出聲音信號。它們一部分會對這種感覺給予高度的警惕，準(zhǔn)備處理這一危機(jī)。但這些信號也告訴神經(jīng)細(xì)胞：接下來幾分鐘要記錄的任何記憶特別需要精力充沛。該假定的一個證據(jù)是：McGaugh的同事LawrenceCahill給受測試者測試由電影短片引起的情緒，同時用正電子放射測影儀測量他們的扁桃腺的活動。三周后，他給受測試者一個突如其來的記憶測試。扁桃體的活動總量預(yù)示出他們對于電影短片的記憶具有高度的準(zhǔn)確性。成像研究也明確的表示，不僅僅危險或悲劇的事件與記憶形成有關(guān)系。積極的情緒，也通過扁桃體得到調(diào)解，也有同樣的功效。那又是一個完全合理的進(jìn)化發(fā)展。如果吃飯或做愛會使你感到快樂，你會記得它并再一次去做，以保持自己健康，并把這一基因遺傳下去。當(dāng)然這是一個過度簡化的過程。其他的神經(jīng)傳遞素，甚至是普通的葡萄糖——大腦使用的能量——也起到一定的作用。有一個和McGaugh接觸的婦女是一個特例。因?yàn)?，她幾乎記得每一件事。?yīng)激激素模型對她并不適用。McGaugh說：“我問她是否知道誰是BingCrosby，她是40歲，所以BingCrosby在她的生活的過程中并不突出。但是她知道他死在西班牙的高爾夫球場上，并說出了正確的日期?！背上裱芯空哒铝τ谘芯窟@個女人的大腦是否與其他人的大腦不同。3.Themysteryofconsciousness(TIMEJan19,2007)Theyoungwomanhadsurvivedthecarcrash,afterafashion.Inthefivemonthssincepartsofherbrainhadbeencrushed,shecouldopenhereyesbutdidn’trespondtosights,soundsorjabs.Inthejargonofneurology,shewasjudgedtobeinapersistentvegetativestate.Incruelereverydaylanguage,shewasavegetable.SopicturetheastonishmentofBritishandBelgianscientistsastheyscannedherbrainusingakindofMRIthatdetectsbloodflowtoactivepartsofthebrain.Whentheyrecitedsentences,thepartsinvolvedinlanguagelitup.Whentheyaskedhertoimaginevisitingtheroomsofherhouse,thepartsinvolvedinnavigatingspaceandrecognizingplacesrampedup.Andwhentheyaskedhertoimagineplayingtennis,theregionsthattriggermotionjoinedin.Indeed,herscanswerebarelydifferentfromthoseofhealthyvolunteers.Thewoman,itappears,hadglimmeringsofconsciousness.Itshouldn’tbesurprisingthatresearchonconsciousnessisalternatelyexhilaratinganddisturbing.Noothertopicislikeit.AsRenéDescartesnoted,ourownconsciousnessisthemostindubitablethingthereis.Foreachofus,consciousnessislifeitself,thereasonWoodyAllensaid,“Idon’twanttoachieveimmortalitythroughmywork.Iwanttoachieveitbynotdying.”WHATREMAINSISNOTONEPROBLEMABOUTCONSCIOUSNESSBUTtwo,whichthephilosopherDavidChalmershasdubbedtheEasyProblemandtheHardProblem.Callingthefirstoneeasyisaninjoke:itiseasyinthesensethatcuringcancerorsendingsomeonetoMarsiseasy.Thatis,scientistsmoreorlessknowwhattolookfor,andwithenoughbrainpowerandfunding,theywouldprobablycrackitinthiscentury.TheEasyProblem,then,istodistinguishconsciousfromunconsciousmentalcomputation,identifyitscorrelatesinthebrainandexplainwhyitevolved.TheHardProblem,ontheotherhand,iswhyitfeelslikesomethingtohaveaconsciousprocessgoingoninone’shead.Notonlydoesagreenthinglookdifferentfromaredthing,remindusofothergreenthingsandinspireustosay,“That’sgreen”(theEasyProblem),butitalsoactuallylooksgreen:itproducesanexperienceofsheergreennessthatisn’treducibletoanythingelse.AsLouisArmstrongsaidinresponsetoarequesttodefinejazz,“Whenyougottoaskwhatitis,younevergettoknow.”

TheHardProblemisexplaininghowsubjectiveexperiencearisesfromneuralcomputation.Theproblemishardbecausenooneknowswhatasolutionmightlooklikeorevenwhetheritisagenuinescientificprobleminthefirstplace.Andnotsurprisingly,everyoneagreesthatthehardproblem(ifitisaproblem)remainsamystery.FrancisCrickcalledit“theastonishinghypothesis”—theideathatourthoughts,sensations,joysandachesconsistentirelyofphysiologicalactivityinthetissuesofthebrain.ConsciousnessdoesnotresideinanetherealsoulthatusesthebrainlikeaPDA;consciousnessistheactivityofthebrain.考研詞匯fashionn.①流行式樣(或貨品)，風(fēng)尚，風(fēng)氣；②樣子，方式；vt.形成，制作，塑造［真題例句］Morerecently,astheWebprovedtobemorethanafashion(n.①),companieshavestartedtobuyandsellproductsandserviceswithoneanother.［1999年閱讀2］［例句精譯］最近，隨著證明網(wǎng)絡(luò)不止是一種時尚而已，公司間便開始(在網(wǎng)上)交易產(chǎn)品和服務(wù)。［真題例句］Hiscolleague,MichaelBeer,saysthatfartoomanycompanieshaveappliedreengineeringinamechanisticfashion(n.②),choppingoutcostswithoutgivingsufficientthoughttolong-termprofitability.［1998年閱讀2］［例句精譯］他的同事邁克·比爾說，太多的企業(yè)用機(jī)械的方式進(jìn)行重組機(jī)構(gòu)，在沒有充分考慮到長期效益的情況下就降低了成本。［真題例句］IftheAdministrationwonttakethelegislativeinitiative,Congressshouldhelptobeginfashioning(vt.)conservationmeasures.［2005年閱讀2］［例句精譯］假如行政部門沒有采取司法行動，議會就應(yīng)該協(xié)助來推廣環(huán)保措施。scanv.①細(xì)看，審視；②瀏覽；③掃描；n.掃描navigationn.①航海，航空；②導(dǎo)航，領(lǐng)航sheera.①純粹的，十足的，全然的；②陡峭的，險峻的sensationn.①感覺，知覺；②激動，轟動，轟動一時的事情背景常識介紹世界不僅是包含意識的世界，而且還是包含時間、空間、運(yùn)動、價值、數(shù)量和形式的世界；萬物不僅是包含意識的萬物，而且還是包含時間、空間、運(yùn)動、價值、數(shù)量、形式的萬物。不包含意識的世界和萬物，同不包含物質(zhì)的世界和萬物在現(xiàn)實(shí)中都是不存在的。4.Timetravelinthebrain(TIMEJan19,2007)Whatareyoudoingwhenyouaren’tdoinganythingatall?Ifyousaid“nothing”,thenyouhavejustpassedatestinlogicandflunkedatestinneuroscience.Whenpeopleperformmentaltasks—addingnumbers,comparingshapes,identifyingfaces—differentareasoftheirbrainsbecomeactive,andbrainscansshowtheseactiveareasasbrightlycoloredsquaresonanotherwisedullgraybackground.Butresearchershaverecentlydiscoveredthatwhentheseareasofourbrainslightup,otherareasgodark.Thisdarknetworkisoffwhenweseemtobeon,andonwhenweseemtobeoff.IfyouclimbedintoanMRImachineandlaytherequietly,waitingforinstructionsfromatechnician,thedarknetworkwouldbeasactiveasabeehive.Butthemomentyourinstructionsarrivedandyourtaskbegan,thebeeswouldfreezeandthenetworkwouldfallsilent.Whenweappeartobedoingnothing,weareclearlydoingsomething.Butwhat?Theanswer,itseems,istimetravel.Thehumanmindcanmovethroughtimeinanydirectionandatanyspeeditchooses.Wearearaceoftimetravelers,unfetteredbychronologyandcapableofvisitingthefutureorrevisitingthepastwheneverwewish.Ifourneuraltimemachinesaredamagedbyillness,ageoraccident,wemaybecometrappedinthepresent.Alzheimer’sdisease,forinstance,specificallyattacksthedarknetwork,strandingmanyofitsvictimsinanendlessnow,unabletoremembertheiryesterdaysorenvisiontheirtomorrows.

Whydidevolutiondesignourbrainstogowanderingintime?Perhapsit’sbecauseanexperienceisaterriblethingtowaste.Movingaroundintheworldexposesorganismstodanger,soasaruletheyshouldhaveasfewexperiencesaspossibleandlearnasmuchfromeachastheycan.Althoughsomeoflife’slessonsarelearnedinthemoment(“Don’ttouchahotstove”),othersbecomeapparentonlyafterthefact(“NowIseewhyshewasupset.Ishouldhavesaidsomethingabouthernewdress”).Timetravelallowsustopayforanexperienceonceandthenhaveitagainandagainatnoadditionalcharge,learningnewlessonswitheachrepetition.Whenwearebusyhavingexperiencesthedarknetworkissilent,butassoonasthoseexperiencesareover,thenetworkisawakened,andwebeginmovingacrossthelandscapeofourhistorytoseewhatwecanlearn—forfree.Perhapsthemoststartlingfactaboutthedarknetworkisn’twhatitdoesbuthowoftenitdoesit.Scientistsrefertoitasthebrain’sdefaultmode,whichistosaythatwespendmoreofourtimeawayfromthepresentthaninit.Peopletypicallyoverestimatehowoftentheyareinthemomentbecausetheyrarelytakenoticewhentheytakeleave.Itisonlywhentheenvironmentdemandsourattention—adogbarks,achildcries,atelephonerings—thatourmentaltimemachinesswitchthemselvesoffanddeposituswithabumpinthehereandnow.WestayjustlongenoughtotakeamessageandthenweslipoffagaintothelandofElsewhen,ourdarknetworksawashinlight.GilbertandBucknerareprofessorsofpsychologyatHarvard.Gilbert’sStumblingonHappinesswaspublishedlastMay.參考譯文頭腦中的時間旅行當(dāng)你什么都不做時問你在做什么？如果你說“沒有事情”，那么你剛剛經(jīng)歷了一個邏輯測試且在神經(jīng)系統(tǒng)學(xué)領(lǐng)域中你沒有及格。當(dāng)人們進(jìn)行精神測試時——加數(shù)字，比較形狀，確定外貌——是他們大腦的不同部位在活動，而大腦掃描顯示這些活動區(qū)域像在一個暗灰色背景里的有明亮色彩的方形。但是研究人員最近發(fā)現(xiàn)，當(dāng)我們頭腦里的這些區(qū)域點(diǎn)亮?xí)r，其他的區(qū)域就變暗。當(dāng)我們看起來像是開著時，這暗網(wǎng)是關(guān)閉的；當(dāng)我們看起來是關(guān)閉時，它是開著的。如果你進(jìn)入核磁共振儀器里，安靜躺下，等待技術(shù)人員的指示，這個暗網(wǎng)會像蜂箱一樣活躍。但是此刻，你的指令到達(dá)，測試開始，蜜蜂會冰凍而網(wǎng)會陷入一片寂靜。當(dāng)我們表現(xiàn)的好像什么都沒做時，大腦清晰地顯示我們正在做一些事。但是什么呢？答案似乎是，時間旅行。人們的思想可以通過時間向任何方向以任何速度運(yùn)動。我們是一個時間旅行的種族，只要我們愿意可以通過年代表隨意地訪問未來或重訪過去。如果我們的神經(jīng)系統(tǒng)的機(jī)制被疾病，年老或事故破壞，我們可能將被現(xiàn)在所困。比如星平性癡呆病，尤其是暗網(wǎng)受到傷害時，許多受害者陷入無盡的現(xiàn)在之中，不能記起他們的昨天或想象明天什么樣子。為什么進(jìn)化會使我們的頭腦在時間中漫游？也許那是因?yàn)槔速M(fèi)經(jīng)驗(yàn)是一件可怕的事。在世界中運(yùn)動，生物體容易有危險，所以通常他們應(yīng)該盡可能少的經(jīng)歷而盡可能多的學(xué)習(xí)。盡管有些生活教訓(xùn)可以及時地學(xué)習(xí)(不要碰熱的火爐)，其他則很明顯只能在事實(shí)之后才能明白(現(xiàn)在我知道她為什么不安了，我應(yīng)該說些有關(guān)她的新衣服的話)。時間旅行使我們付出一次經(jīng)歷之后便可以一次次的免費(fèi)使用，并在每次的重復(fù)中學(xué)習(xí)新經(jīng)驗(yàn)。當(dāng)我們重復(fù)經(jīng)驗(yàn)時，暗網(wǎng)是靜寂的，但是一旦那些經(jīng)驗(yàn)結(jié)束，暗網(wǎng)就會被喚醒，我們開始穿過歷史的地域?qū)ふ椅覀兛梢詫W(xué)習(xí)之事——為了自由?；蛟S最令人吃驚的有關(guān)暗網(wǎng)的事實(shí)不是它做的，而是它多長時間做一次?？茖W(xué)家指出因?yàn)轭^腦的缺失模式，也就是說我們花費(fèi)更多的時間遠(yuǎn)離現(xiàn)在而不是置于現(xiàn)在之中。具有代表性的是人們通常過高的估計他們處于現(xiàn)在狀態(tài)的頻率，因?yàn)楫?dāng)他們離開時他們很少注意到。只有當(dāng)環(huán)境需要我們的注意——狗在吠，孩子哭，電話鈴響——我們的精神時間機(jī)制自動關(guān)閉，且讓我們在此時此地受到一擊。我們停留足夠長的時間獲得信息，然后我們就會到達(dá)其他時間的地域，這時我們的暗網(wǎng)被點(diǎn)亮。Gilbert和Buckner是哈佛的心理學(xué)教授。Gilbert的“無意中發(fā)現(xiàn)幸?！庇谌ツ晡逶鲁霭?。5.Venturecapital’sgrowingaspirations(BusinessWeekFeb5,2007)Someofthebiggestventurecapitalfirmsareraisinglargefunds,targetingmoreestablishedcompanies,andincreasinglysettingtheirsightsabroad.That’sthefindingofrecentresearchbyDowJones(DJ)VentureOne.OakInvestmentPartnersandNewEnterpriseAssociatesraisedthetwolargestventurefundseverlastyear—at$2.56billionand$2.5billion,respectively,accordingtoVentureOne.Overall,thepercentageoffundsthatclosedlastyearworth$500millionto$1billiondoubledfrom2005,to12.1%.And4.4%offundsraisedlastyeartopped$1billion,upfromjust1.6%theprecedingyear.Considerthepercentageofnewfundsunder$100million:Itdroppedto34%lastyearfrom71%in2002.Themedianfundsizewas$200.5millionlastyear,comparedwith$153millionin2004.Theupshot?Someventurecapitalistsarestartingtoresembleprivateequityinvestors,lookingforfastgrowthfromtheirmoreestablishedportfoliocompaniesinsteadofdoingthespadeworkofassemblingamanagementteam,evangelizingaproduct,andbuildingamarket—tasksoftenassociatedwithnurturingthefledglingcompaniesthatVCstypicallytarget.Theconcernforsomeisthatinnovationwillbeunderminedasinvestorsshunriskinfavorofsurerbets.Theevolutionispartlyaresponsetothetepidmarketforinitialpublicofferingsandlowertechstockpricesthathampertheabilitytomergeandacquire.Italsoreflectstheboominprivateequityinvestments,whichreachedarecord$660billionlastyear.Atatimewhenprivateequityfirmsarecleaningup,someVCswantabitoftheluster.Biggerfundsalsocanmeanlargerinvestments.Thesweetspotforstakestakenbyfirmswiththelargestfundsisnowbetween$20millionand$50million,comparedwiththe$1millionto$10millioninvestmentsVCstraditionallytakeinstartups,saysVenrock’sRoberts.Noneofthisistosayseedlingcompaniesaren’tluringcash.Butpickingwinnersamongstartupsisharderthanever,andsomefirmsareincreasinglylookingabroad.DraperFisherJurvetsonmanagesalittlemorethan$4billion,butit’sspreadacross19fundsandrunoutof33officesfromBostontoBeijing.Regionalmanagerscanoftenspotopportunitiesmorequicklythanthoseinchargeof“monolithicfunds”,saysRaviBelani,anassociateatDFJ.Thehuntformorecapital-intensive,later-stageinvestmentsandpromisingstartupsintheboomingmarketsofIndiaandChinaiscausingfundmanagerstomaketoughchoices.Ventu