How the Internet may be changing the brain

互联网如何改变大脑

An international team of researchers from Western Sydney University, Harvard University, Kings College, Oxford University and University of Manchester have found the Internet can produce both acute and sustained alterations in specific areas of cognition, which may reflect changes in the brain, affecting our attentional capacities, memory processes, and social interactions.

来自西悉尼大学、哈佛大学、国王学院、牛津大学以及曼彻斯特大学的国际研究团队发现，互联网会对特定的认知区域产生剧烈以及持续的改变。这一影响可能体现在大脑的变化方面。大脑的改变会影响我们的注意力、记忆力以及社交能力。

In a first of its kind review, published in World Psychiatry -- the world's leading psychiatric research journal, the researchers investigated leading hypotheses on how the Internet may alter cognitive processes, and further examined the extent to which these hypotheses were supported by recent findings from psychological, psychiatric and neuroimaging research.

在首篇出版于全球领先的精神病学研究期刊-《世界精神病学》的报告中，研究人员调查了有关互联网如何改变认知过程的主要假设并进一步详细研究了最近的心理学、精神病学以及神经成像研究报告与这些假设的符合程度。

The extensive report, led by Dr Joseph Firth, Senior Research Fellow at NICM Health Research Institute, Western Sydney University and Honorary Research Fellow at The University of Manchester, combined the evidence to produce revised models on how the Internet could affect the brain's structure, function and cognitive development.

由西悉尼大学NICM健康研究院高级研究员、曼彻斯特大学荣誉研究员Dr. Joseph Firth教授牵头的、涉及范围广泛的报告将证据组合起来并对互联网如何影响大脑结构、功能以及认知发展的模型进行修改。

"The key findings of this report are that high-levels of Internet use could indeed impact on many functions of the brain. For example, the limitless stream of prompts and notifications from the Internet encourages us towards constantly holding a divided attention -- which then in turn may decrease our capacity for maintaining concentration on a single task," said Dr Firth.

Firth博士表示：“报告的关键研究结果是，大量的互联网使用确实可以影响大脑的许多功能。比如，互联网中无限的提示和通知会鼓励我们不断分散注意力并反过来会削弱我们持久专心做一件事的能力。”

"Additionally, the online world now presents us with a uniquely large and constantly-accessible resource for facts and information, which is never more than a few taps and swipes away.

“此外，仅仅通过敲击几下键盘并滑动鼠标，互联网就可以为我们呈现异常丰富且能够持续获取的事实和信息资源。”

"Given we now have most of the world's factual information literally at our fingertips, this appears to have the potential to begin changing the ways in which we store, and even value, facts and knowledge in society, and in the brain."

“鉴于现在只要动动手指，我们就可以获得全球绝大多数的信息，这似乎有可能开始改变我们储存，甚至评价社会以及大脑中事实和知识的方法。”

The recent introduction and widespread adoption of these online technologies, along with social media, is also of concern to some teachers and parents. The World Health Organization's 2018 guidelines recommended that young children (aged 2-5) should be exposed to one hour per day, or less, of screen time. However, the report also found that the vast majority of research examining the effects of the Internet on the brain has been conducted in adults -- and so more research is needed to determine the benefits and drawbacks of Internet use in young people.

在线技术的引入以及广泛应用，再加上社交媒体，也会让部分老师和家长产生顾虑。世界卫生组织2018年的指南建议，年龄在2-5岁的幼儿每天观看屏幕的时间应该为1小时或更少。但是，报告还发现，绝大多数研究互联网对大脑影响的研究主要针对成年人进行-因此需要更多研究来检测互联网使用对于儿童的益处和不利影响。

Dr Firth says although more research is needed, avoiding the potential negative effects could be as simple as ensuring that children are not missing out on other crucial developmental activities, such as social interaction and exercise, by spending too much time on digital devices.

Firth博士表示，尽管需要更多的研究，但是避免潜在不利影响可以和保证孩子不会因为在电子设备上花太多时间而错过其他重要成长活动，比如社交和锻炼一样简单。

"To help with this, there are also now a multitude of apps and software programs available for restricting Internet usage and access on smartphones and computers -- which parents and carers can use to place some 'family-friendly' rules around both the time spent on personal devices, and also the types of content engaged with," he said.

“为了实现这一目的，现在有大量的限制上网和使用智能手机和电脑的app和软件程序。家长和监护人可以使用这些app和软件程序来针对上网时间和所浏览的内容类型设定一些家庭规则。”

"Alongside this, speaking to children often about how their online lives affect them is also important -- to hopefully identify children at risk of cyberbullying, addictive behaviours, or even exploitation -- and so enabling timely intervention to avoid adverse outcomes."

“除了这些，经常告诉孩子上网将如何对他们产生影响也非常重要-识别遭受网络欺凌、有成瘾行为或甚至非法使用的孩子，并从而及时干预以避免产生不良后果。”

Professor Jerome Sarris, Deputy Director and Director of Research at NICM Health Research Institute, Western Sydney University and senior author on the report, is concerned over some of the potential impacts of increasing Internet use on the brain.

Jerome Sarris教授，西悉尼大学NICM健康研究院研究主任兼副主任，报告的资深作者对不断扩大的互联网使用对大脑所产生的部分潜在影响十分关切。

"The bombardment of stimuli via the Internet, and the resultant divided attention commonly experienced, presents a range of concerns," said Professor Sarris.

Sarris教授表示：“互联网中连珠炮似的刺激以及所导致的注意力分散引起大量的担忧。”

"I believe that this, along with the increasing #Instagramification of society, has the ability to alter both the structure and functioning of the brain, while potentially also altering our social fabric.

“我认为，这一现象，再加上社会不断加强的社交媒体现象都可以改变大脑的结构和功能，并同时会对社会结构产生潜在影响。”

"To minimise the potential adverse effects of high-intensity multi-tasking Internet usage, I would suggest mindfulness and focus practice, along with use of 'Internet hygiene' techniques (e.g. reducing online multitasking, ritualistic 'checking' behaviours, and evening online activity, while engaging in more in-person interactions)," said Professor Sarris.

Sarris教授表示：“为了在最大程度减少高强度多重任务的互联网使用所带来的潜在不利影响，我建议正念和专注练习，并同时采用‘互联网卫生’技巧（比如减少线上多重任务、仪式化的‘检查’行为，甚至是在线活动，同时进行更多的面对面互动）”。

Co-author and director of the digital psychiatry program at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and a clinical fellow at Harvard Medical School, Dr John Torous added: "The findings from this paper highlight how much more we have to learn about the impact of our digital world on mental health and brain health. There are certainly new potential benefits for some aspects of health, but we need to balance them against potential risks."

贝斯以色列女执事医疗中心数字精神病学项目的合著者兼主任，哈佛大学医学院的临床研究员John Torous博士补充表示：“这一研究报告的结果强调了我们还需要了解的、数字世界对精神健康以及大脑健康的影响。数字世界对于健康的某些方面肯定有潜在的益处，但是我们也需要在潜在益处和潜在危害之间保持平衡。”

Oxford research fellow and study co-author, Dr Josh Firth added: "It's clear the Internet has drastically altered the opportunity for social interactions, and the contexts within which social relationships can take place. So, it's now critical to understand the potential for the online world to actually alter our social functioning, and determine which aspects of our social behaviour will change, and which won't."

牛津研究学者和研究合著者Josh Firth教授补充表示：“显然，互联网给社交机遇以及社交关系形成的背景带来了巨大的改变。因此，了解互联网世界实际改变我们社交功能的潜能并判断我们的哪些社会行为会发现改变以及哪些不会十分重要。”

文章来源：科学日报   编辑：上海译锐翻译Susan