为2023考研人加油

“考研备考，就像黑屋子里洗衣服，你不知道洗干净了没有，只能一遍一遍地去洗。等到上了考场那一刻，灯光亮了。你发现，只要你认真洗过了，那件衣服光亮如新。而你以后，每次穿这件衣服都会想起那段岁月。”

明天，一年一度的考研日。愿你所有的努力都不被辜负愿你所经历的苦楚让你成为更好的自己。最好的祝福，给最好的你。

每年这个时候，我都会翻一翻上一年的留言区，看着一个个熟悉又陌生的ID和头像，就好像班主任送走了一届又一届的学生，感慨万千，时间总是那么快。谢谢一路相伴，未来还有更广阔的天空等着你！梦想成真，一研为定！

🤔️小作业：

1. in the run-up是什么意思？

2. sit在文中是什么意思？

3. 给考研er留下你的祝福或者建议吧。

无注释原文：

Anxiety does not cause bad results in exams

From: The Economist

The problem is in the run-up, not the main event

Exams are nerve-racking, especially for those already of an anxious disposition. The silence of the hall; the ticking of the clock; the beady eye of the invigilator; the smug expression of the person sitting at the neighbouring desk who has finished 15 minutes early. It therefore seems hardly surprising that those who worry about taking tests do systematically worse than those who do not. What is, perhaps, surprising, according to research published recently in Psychological Science by Maria Theobald at the Leibniz Institute for Research and Information in Education and her colleagues, is that it is not the pressure of the exam hall which causes the problem. It is the pressure of revision.

Dr Theobald theorised that if anxiety was truly interfering with a student’s ability to transfer known information from brain to paper via pen, then those with high levels of it would perform worse in a real exam, when it actually mattered, than in either a mock beforehand or during online practice sessions. Moreover, she expected this performance-drop to correlate with levels of self-reported exam nerves.

She therefore worked with 309 German medical students who were preparing for their final state exam, the most important that they take. This test consists of 230 questions split into three five-hour sessions over three days.

During the 100 days before the actual papers, all her volunteers used a digital-learning platform which presented them with old exam questions and logged their performance. They also sat a mock examination, clearly presented to them as such, 40 days before the real thing. To assess their levels of anxiety, they were asked, every day for 40 days in the run up to the real exam and also on the day of that exam, to respond on a five-point scale to statements like, “I feel tense and nervous”. On the day of the mock they were similarly asked to rate statements like, “I worry whether I have studied enough”.

What Dr Theobald found was not what she expected. Anxiety on the day of the test did not predict exam performance at all. What did predict it was the level of knowledge a student displayed in the mock exam and the earlier digital-learning activities. Those who performed well in these also did well in the real thing, regardless of how anxious they were on the day.

What actually hampered students, it turned out, were high levels of anxiety during the weeks before the exam took place. The greater a student’s anxiety in the days before the exam, the lower his or her knowledge-gain was during that period, leaving that student with less material to regurgitate during the exam itself.

And this, paradoxically, is a positive discovery, for it suggests a change of approach to revision by the anxious might help improve their results. Dr Theobald notes that test-anxiety is at its worst when students have low expectations of success and simultaneously know that passing the exam is exceedingly important. To reduce this anxiety, she proposes a two-fold strategy for students to consider as they revise. First, they can raise their belief in their own abilities by reminding themselves of just how much they know. Second, they can diminish the significance of the test by reminding themselves that, while it is important, it is not a life or death situation. It really isn’t. Really…

This article appeared in the Science & technology section of the print edition under the headline "High anxiety" (Nov 2nd 2022)

- ◆ -

注：中文文本为机器翻译仅供参考，并非一一对应

含注释全文：

Anxiety does not cause bad results in exams

From: The Economist

The problem is in the run-up, not the main event

关键在于备考阶段，而不是考场上

run-up表示“（重要事件的）前夕，前奏，前期，准备阶段”，英文解释为“the run-up to sth the period of time just before an important event”，如：in the run-up to Christmas 圣诞节前夕；

📍 run-up也可以指“（踢球、跳高等之前的）助跑，助跑距离”，英文解释：the act of running, or the distance that you run, before you kick a ball, jump over a pole etc.

📍 runner-up 表示“亚军，第二名”，英文解释为“A runner-up is someone who has finished in second place in a race or competition.”注意，复数形式为runners-up，举个🌰：

The ten runners-up will receive a case of wine. 那10名亚军将得到一箱葡萄酒。

Exams are nerve-racking, especially for those already of an anxious disposition. The silence of the hall; the ticking of the clock; the beady eye of the invigilator; the smug expression of the person sitting at the neighbouring desk who has finished 15 minutes early. It therefore seems hardly surprising that those who worry about taking tests do systematically worse than those who do not. What is, perhaps, surprising, according to research published recently in Psychological Science by Maria Theobald at the Leibniz Institute for Research and Information in Education and her colleagues, is that it is not the pressure of the exam hall which causes the problem. It is the pressure of revision.

考试让人紧张，尤其是对于那些本来就有焦虑情绪的人来说。考场上的寂静，钟声的嘀嗒，监考人员的紧盯，坐在邻桌的人提前15分钟交卷的得意表情，无不让人紧张。因此，那些担心考试的人通常比不担心的人考得更不好，这似乎不足为奇。但是，根据莱布尼茨教育和信息研究所的玛丽亚·泰奥博尔德（Maria Theobald）最近在《心理科学》（Psychological Science）杂志上发表的研究，或许令人惊讶的是，影响考试成绩的并不是考场上的压力，而是复习的压力。

nerve-racking /ˈnɜːvˌræk.ɪŋ/ 表示“伤脑筋的；使人心烦的”，英文解释为“Something that is nerve-racking is difficult to do and causes a lot of worry for the person involved in it.”举个🌰：

Her wedding was the most nerve-racking thing she has ever experienced. 她的婚礼是她经历过的最伤脑筋的事情。

disposition /ˌdɪs.pəˈzɪʃ.ən/ 1）表示“性格，性情”，英文解释为“the particular type of character that a person naturally has”举个🌰：

She is of a nervous/cheerful/sunny disposition. 她神经质/性情开朗/性格阳光。

2）示“倾向；意向”，英文解释为“a natural tendency to do something, or to have or develop something”如：a disposition to deceive 欺骗倾向。

1）表示“（钟表）发出嘀嗒声；滴答地走”，英文解释为“When a clock or watch ticks, it makes a sound every second.”举个🌰：

In the silence we could hear the clock ticking. 寂静中，我们能听到钟表滴答作响。

2）表示“进展，进步；正常运转”，英文解释为“to operate as a functioning mechanism”

beady /ˈbiː.di/ 表示“（眼睛）珠子般亮晶晶的；（尤指像鸟的眼睛）小而明亮的；机警的”，英文解释为“(of eyes) small and bright, especially like a bird's eyes”举个🌰：

His beady little eyes were fixed on the money I held out. 他那双贼亮的小眼睛盯着我拿出来的钱。

invigilator /ɪnˈvɪdʒ.ə.leɪ.tər/ 表示“监考人员”，英文解释为“a person whose job is to watch people taking an exam in order to check that they do not cheat”举个🌰：

If you need more paper, please ask the invigilator. 如果你需要更多纸张，请询问监考人员。

表示“沾沾自喜的，自鸣得意的”，英文解释为“too pleased or satisfied about something you have achieved or something you know”如：a smug grin 洋洋得意的笑。

revision /rɪˈvɪʒ.ən/ 1）表示“修正；修改”，英文解释为“a change that is made to something, or the process of doing this”举个🌰：

These proposals will need a lot of revision. 这些提案需要进行大刀阔斧的修改。

2）表示“复习；温习”，英文解释为“study of work you have done, in order to prepare for an exam”举个🌰：

She did no revision, but she still got a very high mark. 她没有复习，但是仍然考了很高的分数。

Dr Theobald theorised that if anxiety was truly interfering with a student’s ability to transfer known information from brain to paper via pen, then those with high levels of it would perform worse in a real exam, when it actually mattered, than in either a mock beforehand or during online practice sessions. Moreover, she expected this performance-drop to correlate with levels of self-reported exam nerves.

泰奥博尔德博士推断，如果焦虑真的会干扰学生通过笔将已知信息从大脑中呈现到答卷上的能力，那么焦虑程度较高的学生在实际考试中（尤其是重要的考试）的成绩应该比在模拟考试或在线练习中的成绩更不好。此外，她预计这种成绩下降与自我报告的考试紧张程度相关。

英式 theorise 美式 theorize /ˈθɪə.raɪz/ 表示“建立理论；从理论上说明；推理”，英文解释为“to develop a set of ideas about something”举个🌰：

It's easy to theorize about what might have happened. 对于原本可能发生的事情作理论上的推测是很容易的。

表示“妨碍，干扰”，英文解释为“to prevent something from working effectively or from developing successfully”举个🌰：

Even a low level of noise interferes withmyconcentration.即使很低的噪声也会分散我的注意力。

作形容词，表示“假的；仿制的；假装的”，英文解释为“not real but appearing or pretending to be exactly like something”如：mock cream 人造奶油，mock leather 人造革，mock surprise 假装出来的惊讶。

作动词，表示“嘲笑；（为了取笑）模仿”，英文解释为“If someone mocks you, they show or pretend that they think you are foolish or inferior, for example by saying something funny about you, or by imitating your behaviour.”举个🌰：

I thought you were mocking me.

我以为你在嘲笑我。

🎬电影《消失的爱人》（Gone Girl）中的台词提到：If you need to mock somebody, mock me. 如果你们要嘲弄什么人，嘲弄我。

表示“相互关系；联系；相关”，英文解释为“If two or more facts, numbers, etc. correlate or are correlated, there is a relationship between them.”举个🌰：

Stress levels and heart disease are strongly correlated (= connected). 压力程度和心脏病密切相关。

session /ˈseʃ.ən/ 1）表示“（议会等机构的）会议；（法庭的）开庭”，英文解释为“a formal meeting or series of meetings of an organization such as a parliament or a law court”举个🌰：

The parliamentary session is due to end on 10 November.

议会会议将于11月10日结束。

2）表示“（从事某项活动的）一段时间（或集会）；一场；一节”，英文解释为“a period of time or meeting arranged for a particular activity”举个🌰：

The runner twisted his ankle in a training session.

这位赛跑运动员在训练时扭伤了脚踝。

3）表示“学年；学期；上课时间”，英文解释为“at a college, any of the periods of time that a teaching year or day is divided into, or the teaching year itself”举个🌰：

He taught a class during the summer session. 在夏季开学期间他教了一堂课。

She therefore worked with 309 German medical students who were preparing for their final state exam, the most important that they take. This test consists of 230 questions split into three five-hour sessions over three days.

因此，她与309名准备参加期末国家考试的德国医学生合作，这是他们参加的最重要的考试，这次考试一共有230道题，分为三场，每场五个小时，为期三天。

During the 100 days before the actual papers, all her volunteers used a digital-learning platform which presented them with old exam questions and logged their performance. They also sat a mock examination, clearly presented to them as such, 40 days before the real thing. To assess their levels of anxiety, they were asked, every day for 40 days in the run up to the real exam and also on the day of that exam, to respond on a five-point scale to statements like, “I feel tense and nervous”. On the day of the mock they were similarly asked to rate statements like, “I worry whether I have studied enough”.

在正式考试前的100天里，所有志愿者都使用一个线上学习平台，该平台提供了往年试题，并记录了他们的成绩。他们还在正式考试前40天参加了一场模拟考试，并明确告诉他们这是模拟考试。为了评估他们的焦虑程度，他们被要求在正式考试前40天的每一天里以及正式考试当天对“我感到焦虑和紧张”等表述进行五分制的打分。在模拟考试当天，他们同样被要求对“我担心我是否已经复习到位”等表述进行打分。

1）表示“行驶，行进（若干距离或时间）”，英文解释为“to travel a particular distance or for a particular length of time”举个🌰：

The pilot has logged 1000 hours in the air. 这位飞行员有1000 小时的飞行记录。

2）表示“正式记录，记载”，英文解释为“to officially record something”举个🌰：

The Better Business Bureau has logged more than 100 complaints. 商务改进局已经记录下了100多条投诉。

熟词僻义，1）表示“参加考试”，英文解释为“to do an exam”举个🌰：

Candidates will sit the examinations in July. 考生将在七月参加考试。

🎬电影《阿里的婚礼》（Ali's Wedding）中的台词提到：My father makes me sit the exam.

2）表示“成为（官方组织的）成员；（在…中）任职”，英文解释为“to be a member of an official group”举个🌰：

I'm going to be sitting on the committee for one more year. 我将再任一年的委员会委员。

What Dr Theobald found was not what she expected. Anxiety on the day of the test did not predict exam performance at all. What did predict it was the level of knowledge a student displayed in the mock exam and the earlier digital-learning activities. Those who performed well in these also did well in the real thing, regardless of how anxious they were on the day.

泰奥博尔德博士的研究发现与她的预期不同。考试当天的焦虑程度根本不能对考试成绩进行预判。真正能对考试成绩进行预判的是学生在模拟考试和早期线上学习过程中表现出的知识水平。无论在考试当天有多焦虑，在模拟考试和早期线上学习过程中表现出色的学生在正式考试中也会发挥出色。

What actually hampered students, it turned out, were high levels of anxiety during the weeks before the exam took place. The greater a student’s anxiety in the days before the exam, the lower his or her knowledge-gain was during that period, leaving that student with less material to regurgitate during the exam itself.

事实证明，真正阻碍学生的是考试前几周的高度焦虑。学生在考试前几天的焦虑程度越高，他或她在此期间的知识积累就越少，从而使该学生在正式考试期间能够派上用场的知识就越少。

表示“阻碍，妨碍”，英文解释为“to prevent someone doing something easily”举个例子：

Fierce storms have been hampering rescue efforts. 猛烈的暴风雨妨碍了救援工作的进行。

🎬电影《降临》（Arrival）中的台词提到：Trying to answer this in any meaningful way is hampered by the fact that... 试图从任何有意义的角度来回答 都困难重重，

regurgitate /rɪˈɡɜː.dʒɪ.teɪt/ 1）表示“（不加思考地）重复；照搬；照本宣科”，英文解释为“If you regurgitate facts, you just repeat what you have heard without thinking about it.”举个🌰：

Many students simply regurgitate what they hear in lectures. 很多学生只会鹦鹉学舌般地重复从课堂上听来的东西。

2）表示“（使）（咽下的食物）返回到口中；反刍”，英文解释为“to bring back swallowed food into the mouth”举个🌰：

Owls regurgitate partly digested food to feed their young. 猫头鹰将半消化的食物吐出来喂幼鸟。

And this, paradoxically, is a positive discovery, for it suggests a change of approach to revision by the anxious might help improve their results. Dr Theobald notes that test-anxiety is at its worst when students have low expectations of success and simultaneously know that passing the exam is exceedingly important. To reduce this anxiety, she proposes a two-fold strategy for students to consider as they revise. First, they can raise their belief in their own abilities by reminding themselves of just how much they know. Second, they can diminish the significance of the test by reminding themselves that, while it is important, it is not a life or death situation. It really isn’t. Really…

而看似矛盾的是，这是一项有建设性的发现，因为它表明焦虑的人改变复习方法可能有助于提高他们的成绩。泰奥博尔德博士指出，当学生对自己通过考试没有信心，同时又知道通过考试是极其重要时，考试焦虑程度最为严重。为了减少这种焦虑，她为备考学生提出了一个双重策略。首先，可以通过提醒自己已掌握了多少知识，来提高对自己能力的信心。其次，可以通过暗示自己，尽管考试很重要但并非生死攸关，来淡化考试的重要性。考试真的并非生死攸关。真的……

paradoxically /ˌpær.əˈdɒk.sɪ.kəl.i/ 表示“似乎互相抵触地，看似互为矛盾地”，英文解释为“in a way that seems impossible or difficult to understand because of containing two opposite facts or characteristics”举个🌰：

The big thing in video equipment is, paradoxically, sound. 矛盾的是，视频设备中最重要的是声音。

simultaneously /ˌsɪmlˈteɪniəsli/ 表示“同时地”，英文解释为“in a way that is simultaneous (= happening or being done at exactly the same time)”。

exceedingly /ɪkˈsiː.dɪŋ.li/ 表示“非常；特别；极其”，英文解释为“to a very great degree”举个🌰：

He was clever, handsome, and exceedingly rich. 他聪明、英俊，且非常富有。

fold /fəʊld/ 表示“由…部分组成；…倍”，英文解释为“having the stated number of parts, or multiplied by the stated number”如：threefold 3倍，fourfold 4倍，举个🌰：

The problems are twofold - firstly, economic, and secondly, political. 这些问题是双重的：第一，经济上的；第二，政治上的。

1）表示“减少；（使）减弱，缩减；降低”，英文解释为“to become or to make sth become smaller, weaker, etc.”举个🌰：

His influence has diminished with time. 随着时间的推移，他的影响已不如从前了。

2）表示“贬低；贬损；轻视”，英文解释为“to make sb/sth seem less important than they really are”举个🌰：

I don't wish to diminish the importance of their contribution. 我并不想贬低他们所作贡献的重要性。

life-or-death = life-and-death 表示“生死攸关的（有人可能会丧生的；非常重要的，非常严肃的）”，英文解释为“involving the possibility that someone will die”如：a life-and-death matter 生死攸关的事，举个🌰：We were now in a life-and-death situation. 我们现在处于生死攸关的情形下。

This article appeared in the Science & technology section of the print edition under the headline "High anxiety" (Nov 2nd 2022)

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