喬希·賽德斯：教老人玩轉科技的男孩

If you feel frantic1） at just the thought of being digitally disconnected， you're not alone. Find out how your phone is changing the way your brain works. （Sorry， there's no app that can stop it.）

Shaky hands. Sweaty palms. Seventeen-year-old Oliver is restless， can't focus， and keeps reaching into his empty pockets as his heart pounds2） with panic. But why—is he on the run from zombies？ Vampires？ Werewolves3）？ Or all three？ Actually， it's a much more ordinary situation： Oliver accidentally left his phone at home.

Oliver isn't proud of it， but he's the first to admit his dependence： even a five-minute trip to the store without his device is enough to fill him with unease， paranoia4） and fear. But he's not alone in this feeling—the stress and separation anxiety of going phone-free is so common， it's been given a name： nomophobia （short for no-mobile-phone phobia5））.

Yes， technology helps us stay connected and informed. Who can even imagine life without the Internet in their hands or being unable to text Mom to say \"running late， don't worry\"？ When technology does everything， however， it's easy to become dependent on it. And now， scientists are beginning to wonder if our tech addiction is giving us a leg up6）， or putting obstacles （in many cases invisible ones！） in our path.

如果你只要一想到不能使用數碼產品就覺得抓狂，那你并非個例。下面我們一起來看看你的手機是如何改變你的大腦運轉方式的。（抱歉，沒有手機應用軟件可以阻止這種變化。）

雙手顫抖，掌心冒汗。17歲的奧利弗坐立不安，無法集中注意力，還不停地將手伸進空空如也的口袋里，同時內心恐慌，心跳加速。但為什么他會這樣呢？難道他在逃命躲避僵尸？吸血鬼？狼人？還是三者都有？事實上，這只是一個普通得不能再普通的情況：奧利弗不小心把手機落在家里了。

奧利弗不覺得對手機產生依賴值得驕傲，不過他是第一個承認自己依賴手機的：即使只是花五分鐘去趟商店，沒帶手機都足以讓他滿是不安、多疑和恐懼。但是有這種感覺的不止他一個人——人們因為手機沒帶在身邊而產生的那種壓力和分離焦慮太過普遍，甚至已經有了正式的名字：無手機恐懼癥（其英文nomophobia是“no-mobile-phone phobia”的縮寫）。

的確，高科技能夠幫助我們保持與外界的聯系以及信息的暢通。誰又能想象沒有互聯網在手或者不能給媽媽發短信說“晚點回，別擔心”的生活呢？但是，當科技變得無所不能時，我們也很容易對它產生依賴。而現在，科學家正開始為此感到疑惑：我們的科技成癮是在助我們一臂之力，還是在我們前進的道路上設置障礙（很多時候都是無形的障礙！）呢？

Ring the Alarm

With your phone in your hand， you can look up a date for a history paper without cracking a book7） or trucking8） to the library. （Thanks， Wikipedia！） But despite having these shortcuts， students are still spending the same amount of time on homework today as they were 30 years ago. So where's all that time going？ The answer may be at your fingertips. \"I usually keep my phone on the desk or in my pocket while I'm doing homework，\" says Oliver. \"I'll check any notifications9） I get， just as a little break.\"

A \"little break\" may sound harmless， but more is happening during that brief digression10） than you think. Experts say each beep11）， chime12） or chirp13） seizes your attention， triggering your fight-or-flight response14）， which is like a fire alarm for your brain. It's designed to pull your thoughts away from whatever you're doing so you can focus on the \"life-or-death\" situation in front of you. This response is vital if you smell smoke or come across a bear in the woods—but not so much when you get a text that says： \"I'm SOOOOO bored.\" After that 1 alarm pumps adrenaline15） through your body it takes your brain up to 30 minutes to regain focus—if it ever gets focus back at all.

That's why texting-while-homeworking isn't simply a casual distraction16）， it's a major hindrance17） to getting stuff done. With a million apps bleeping18） for your attention， \"you feel frustrated， pressured， stressed，\" says Dr. David Strayer， a leading neuroscientist from the University of Utah. \"It takes 50 percent longer to accomplish a single task， and you make up to 50 percent more errors.\" Yikes19）！

Unwrapping Action

We should just put our phones down when we're busy—but it's not that simple. In fact， the constant alerts are purposefully designed to be irresistible. \"If I hear a buzz or see a notification on my phone， I have to check it，\" says Shane， 15. \"It's not even a choice.\" And that's not an exaggeration. These apps are not only panicking you， they're also triggering your brain's reward center.

Think of each notification as a beautiful present from a relative with terrible taste. The festive ribbons and neat wrapping make your heart beat a little faster—even though you know from bitter experience that what's inside will be a regift at best. The same reaction happens when those enticing20） chimes are beckoning21） you. What awaits is surely a friend asking for the homework or a selfie of your sister， but your brain still jumps with joy because of the more improbable possibilities. \"Hold up！\" it says. \"What if this is Alex asking me out， or Ariana Grande following me on Instagram？\"

That excitement comes from a chemical called dopamine22）， which tells your brain， \"Dude， that felt good—do it again！\" even if it all ends in crushing disappointment. （You think： \"Maybe next time will be different？\"） Teens are the most susceptible23） to this feedback loop—they get a bigger hit of dopamine from the new or exciting， and that feeling can be addictive. To feed your craving24） for this feel-good jolt25）， you download more apps， join more social media networks， and send more texts—trapping you in an endless cycle of joy and letdowns.

Attention Detention

Sometimes it seems like our phones have us in such a tight grip， it's not even clear if we enjoy having them. \"I feel like I'm programmed to always be wondering what's going on，\" says Oliver. Shane agrees， \"It's stressful to be with my phone， but it's stressful to be without it.\" There's pressure to be available 24/7 for fear of missing out on the party， the gossip or simply the connection. But when FOMO26） is overpowering your brain， there's no room for creativity or problem-solving.

So what can you do？ Consider this scenario27）： have you ever stayed up late grappling28） with a tough problem？ You go to sleep and the next morning you're groggy29）. You hop into the shower， and miraculously—somewhere between the shampoo and conditioner30）—you find your answer. Is it magic water？

Yes and no. Showers are a great way to wake you up， but they also force you to put down your phone. And when you're finally free from the phone's feedback loop， your mind can wander31）—often to the answer you were looking for. \"Technology is very addictive and very distracting，\" says Dr. David Greenfield， founder of The Center for Internet and Technology Addiction at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine. \"When you're using it， [it's keeping you from] doing something else.\"

And whether that \"something else\" is homework， hang time with your friends， or anything in-between， it's important to realize that your phone could be getting in the way—maybe even more than it's helping you out.

大腦拉響警報器

只要有手機在手，你不需要打開書本或飛奔去圖書館就可以查到歷史試卷上要填的日期。（謝了，維基百科！）但是，盡管有這些捷徑，學生們今天在做作業上花的時間仍然和30年前一樣多。那么，那些時間都去哪兒了呢？答案或許就在你的指尖。“我做作業的時候經常把手機放在桌子上或揣在口袋里，”奧利弗說，“只要一收到推送通知我就會查看，就當是休息一小會兒。”

“休息一小會兒”可能聽起來沒什么害處，但在那短短一段脫離正軌的時間里發生的事情可比你想象中的更多。專家表示，手機發出的每一聲蜂鳴、鈴聲或鳥鳴聲都會吸引你的注意力，觸發你的應激反應。這種應激反應就像是給你的大腦設的一個火警報警器，其目的是將你的注意力從正在做的任何一件事情上轉移開，好讓你能夠集中精神應對你面前“生死攸關”的情況。如果你聞到了煙味或在森林里遇見了一頭熊，那這種反應就很重要，但如果你只是收到了一條說“我太太太太太無聊了”的短信，那這種反應就沒那么重要了。那條假警報會讓腎上腺素迅速遍布你的全身，之后你的大腦需要多達30分鐘的時間才能重新集中注意力——如果它還能做到的話。

這就是為什么在做作業的時候發短信絕不僅僅是偶爾開個小差，它是你完成作業的主要障礙。聽著上百萬個手機應用軟件不斷作響吸引你的注意力，“你會覺得沮喪，有壓力，焦慮不安，”猶他大學首席神經系統科學家戴維·斯特雷耶博士說，“完成一項任務就要多花50%的時間，而且你還會多犯50%的錯誤。”哎呀！

“拆禮物”行為

我們當然應該在忙的時候就放下手機，但事情沒那么簡單。事實上，經常推送的通知就是故意設計得讓人無法抗拒。“如果我聽到手機響或看到手機上有新通知，我就必須要打開看看，”15歲的沙恩說，“我根本沒得選。”這么說毫不夸張。這些手機應用軟件不僅讓你覺得恐慌，還觸發了你大腦里的獎賞中樞。

你可以把每一條通知想象成是一個品位很差的親戚送給你的一份迷人禮物。充滿節日氣氛的彩帶和整潔的包裝讓你心跳有點加速，盡管根據以往痛苦的經歷你知道里面最多也就是一份二手禮物。每當那些誘人的鈴聲向你發出召喚時，你都會經歷同樣的反應。但等待你的肯定是一個朋友問你作業是什么，或是一張你妹妹的自拍照，但你的大腦仍會因為那些更加不可能發生的可能性而興奮起來。“挺住！”它會說，“萬一是亞歷克斯叫我出去玩呢，又或者是阿里安娜·格蘭德（編注：美國新生代女歌手）在Instagram上關注了我呢？”

這種興奮源于一種叫多巴胺的化學物質，它會告訴你的大腦，“哥們，那種感覺太好了，再來一次吧！”，即使每次到最后你都失望透頂。（你心想：“沒準下一次會不一樣呢？”）十幾歲的孩子最容易受這種反饋環路的影響：新事物或令人興奮的事情會刺激他們分泌更多的多巴胺，那種感覺會令人上癮。為了滿足你對這種“好極了”的強烈感覺的渴望，你就會下載更多的手機應用軟件，加入更多的社交網絡，發送更多的信息，結果讓自己陷入“欣喜—失望”這樣一個無休止的循環之中。

被禁錮的注意力

有時我們好像被我們的手機控制得牢牢的，甚至都不清楚自己是否樂于擁有它們了。“我感覺好像自己被程序化了，總是想知道發生了什么。”奧利弗說。沙恩也這么覺得：“帶著手機我有壓力，但是沒帶手機還是有壓力。”壓力變得無時不在，一周七天、一天24小時地跟著你，你會害怕錯過了聚會，錯過了八卦或者只是錯過了和朋友之間的聯系。如果這種害怕錯過什么的想法控制了你的大腦，那就沒有空間進行創造性活動或解決問題了。

那么你能夠做些什么呢？可以考慮一下這種情況：你是否曾經熬夜處理一個棘手問題？你熬到很晚才去睡覺，第二天早上起來昏昏沉沉的。你跑去沖了個澡，這時奇跡發生了——就在你用過洗發水要用護發素的那一會兒——你找到了解決問題的答案。難道是水有魔力嗎？

可以說是，也可以說不是。沖澡是一種讓你清醒的好方法，但同時也迫使你放下自己的手機。而當你最終擺脫了手機的反饋環路時，你的思路才能自由游走——往往是游向你正在尋找的答案。“高科技是非常容易讓人上癮的，而且也非常容易分散人們的注意力，”康涅狄格大學醫學院網絡及高科技成癮研究中心創始人戴維·格林菲爾德博士說，“你在用高科技時，[它就讓你沒法]做其他事情。”

而無論這“其他事情”是做作業、和朋友共處，還是介于兩者之間的任何事情，重要的是你必須認識到你的手機可能正成為一種阻礙，甚至可能超過它對你的幫助。