關於睡眠狀態下的人類大腦活動仍有許多待我們研究的地方，不過夢也許能給我們提供一些相關線索。本文探討大腦學習外語的方式及夢裡用外語交流對語言學習有何意義。
詞匯：language learning 語言學習
It is often said that if we dream in a foreign language, it’s a sign that we are making progress in learning that language. But is it true?
Before we can look at multilingual dreams, first we need to look at sleep. The link between sleep and language can be applied to how we learn any language, including our mother tongue. Even adults still learn about one new word every two days in their first language, but, if we are going to have a firm grasp of that new word, we need to link it to our existing knowledge. And in order to do that, we ‘need to have some sleep’, says Gareth Gaskell, a psychology professor at the University of York.
It’s during sleep that the integration of old and new knowledge happens. At night, one part of our brain – the hippocampus – takes whatever new information it soaked up in the day, and passes it on to other parts of the brain to be stored. The role that dreams play in this night-time learning process is still being studied, but ‘it’s entirely possible that during multilingual dreams, the brain is trying to connect two languages’, says Marc Züst, researcher at the University Hospital of Old Age Psychiatry and Psychotherapy in Bern, Switzerland.
So having multilingual dreams could mean that our brain is trying to master a new word or phrase, for example, but it could also have an emotional significance. Danuta Gabryś-Barker, a professor of psycholinguistics at the University of Silesia in Poland, suggests that multilingual dreams can express ‘fears and desires‘ around learning a foreign language, including the wish to be a native-like speaker or to be accepted within a certain community.
We clearly still have a lot to learn about multilingual dreams, but one thing seems certain: if you’re trying to learn a new language, you should definitely sleep on it.
詞匯表
make progress 進步
multilingual 使用多種語言的
apply to 適用
mother tongue 母語
existing knowledge 已有知識
integration 融合
hippocampus 海馬體
soak up 吸收（信息）
store 儲存
learning process 學習過程
master 學習，掌握
significance 重要意義
express 表達
desire 渴望，願望
native-like 像母語人士一樣的，地道的
sleep on it “睡一覺再考慮”，考慮清楚再決定
測驗與練習
1. 閱讀課文並回答問題。
1. How often do adults learn a new word in their mother tongue?
2. What needs to happen if we are going to have a firm grasp of a new word?
3. True or False? Integration of old and new knowledge happens when we’re asleep.
4. What does Marc Züst think is happening during multilingual dreams?
5. Could multilingual dreams tell us something about our emotions?
2. 選擇意思恰當的單詞或詞組來完成下列句子。
1. The skills you learn in this job, you will be able to _______ future jobs, too.
link apply to soak up store
2. Can you help me understand this sentence? I don’t have a _______ it yet.
mother tongue firm grasp of integration learning process
3. It’s not a good idea to only _______ your work locally on your computer. Try to have a backup as well.
soak up store master express
4. How long did it take you to _______ the piano? You play beautifully.
make progress link firm grasp of master
5. Words can’t _______ how excited I am!
multilingual mother tongue express native-like
答案
1. 閱讀課文並回答問題。
1. How often do adults learn a new word in their mother tongue?
Adults learn about one new word every two days in their first language.
2. What needs to happen if we are going to have a firm grasp of a new word?
To have a firm grasp of a new word, we need to link it to our existing knowledge.
3. True or False? Integration of old and new knowledge happens when we’re asleep.
True. It’s during sleep that the hippocampus passes new information on to other parts of the brain to be stored.
4. What does Marc Züst think is happening during multilingual dreams?
Marc Züst thinks that it’s possible the brain is trying to connect two languages during multilingual dreams.
5. Could multilingual dreams tell us something about our emotions?
Yes. Danuta Gabryś-Barker suggests that multilingual dreams can express ‘fears and desires’ around learning a foreign language.
2. 選擇意思恰當的單詞或詞組來完成下列句子。
1. The skills you learn in this job, you will be able to apply to future jobs, too.
2. Can you help me understand this sentence? I don’t have a firm grasp of it yet.
3. It’s not a good idea to only store your work locally on your computer. Try to have a backup as well.
4. How long did it take you to master the piano? You play beautifully.
5. Words can’t express how excited I am!
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