Turns out, we couldn't have been more wrong.

事實證明，我們錯得離譜。

Learning new languages is an exercise of the mind.

學習新語言是一種思維鍛鍊。

It's the mental equivalent of going to a gym every day.

這就相當於每天去健身房鍛鍊。

In the bilingual brain, all our languages are active, all at the same time.

在雙語大腦中，我們的所有語言都同時處於活躍狀態。

The continual effort of suppressing a language when speaking another, along with the mental challenge that comes with regularly switching between languages, exercises our brain.

在說另一種語言時，要不斷努力壓制自己的語言，同時還要經常在不同語言之間切換，這種心理挑戰鍛鍊了我們的大腦。

It improves our concentration, problem-solving, memory, and in turn, our creativity.

它能提高我們的注意力、解決問題的能力和記憶力，進而提高我們的創造力。

It's now widely accepted that there are huge benefits to being bilingual.

現在，人們普遍認為，掌握雙語好處多多。

A key breakthrough came back in 2007 in Toronto when Ellen Bialystok and her team made a discovery that shook the scientific community and has massive real-world implications.

2007 年，艾倫-比亞利斯托克（Ellen Bialystok）和她的團隊在多倫多取得了一項關鍵性突破，這一發現震動了科學界，並對現實世界產生了巨大影響。

It was the first study which suggested that bilingual people, people who speak more than one language, develop dementia four to four and a half years later than those who don't.

這是第一項表明雙語者（會說一種以上語言的人）比不會說雙語者患痴呆症的時間晚四到四年半的研究。

It was a powerful confirmation of the idea of cognitive reserve.

這有力地證實了認知儲備的觀點。

Now, what is cognitive reserve?

現在，什麼是認知儲備？

Cognitive reserve is the idea that people develop a reserve of thinking abilities and this protects them against losses that can occur through ageing and disease.

認知儲備是指人們發展出一種思維能力儲備，它可以保護人們免受因衰老和疾病而造成的能力損失。

As well as delaying the onset of dementia, bilingual people have been shown to recover significantly better after a stroke.

事實證明，會說兩種語言的人在中風後恢復得更好，而且還能延緩痴呆症的發生。

Learning anything new helps build cognitive reserve, but there's something special about language.

學習任何新事物都有助於建立認知儲備，但語言有其特殊之處。

Language is particularly broad and complex.

語言尤其廣泛而複雜。

It affects ideas and concepts, perception, different sounds.

它影響思想和概念、感知和不同的聲音。

The more complex a certain skill is, the more likely it is to have a positive effect on cognitive reserve.

某種技能越複雜，就越有可能對認知儲備產生積極影響。

So when is the best time to learn a new language?

那麼，什麼時候是學習一門新語言的最佳時機呢？

Well, here's part of the answer.

答案就在這裡。

The brain is a complex set of neural networks.

大腦是一組複雜的神經網絡。

When you're learning a new language as a child, you're building new networks.

當你從小學習一門新語言時，你就在建立新的網絡。

But when you learn a language later in life, you have to modify the existing networks and make more connections.

但是，當你在晚年學習一門語言時，你必須修改現有的網絡，建立更多的聯繫。

Because learning languages later in life can be more challenging, the benefits can also be greater.

因為晚年學習語言可能更具挑戰性，但收益也可能更大。

But a 2023 study at Great Ormond Street suggests this is just part of the story.

但 2023 年在大奧蒙德街進行的一項研究表明，這只是故事的一部分。

So we invited three groups of children that were aged 8 to 10, and we had a group of children who were monolinguals, a group of children who had early exposure to Greek and English from birth, they were our early bilinguals, and finally we had a group who had been exposed to English between the ages of 2 and 5, and they were our later bilinguals.

是以，我們邀請了三組 8 至 10 歲的兒童，其中一組是單語兒童，一組是從出生起就開始接觸希臘語和英語的兒童，他們是我們的早期雙語兒童，最後一組是在 2 至 5 歲期間接觸英語的兒童，他們是我們的後期雙語兒童。

So what we did that no one had done before is that we asked the children to lie in the scanner while doing nothing and just staring at a cross.

是以，我們做了一件前無古人的事，那就是讓孩子們躺在掃描儀裡，什麼也不做，只是盯著一個十字架。

And during this, we measured their brain activity.

在此期間，我們測量了他們的大腦活動。

So what we found that was really exciting for us is that our early bilingual group had the strongest connectivity in the network at rest.

是以，我們發現，令我們非常興奮的是，我們的早期雙語組在靜態網絡中具有最強的連接性。

And this group of regions are regions that light up when we're doing nothing and just mind-wandering.

當我們無所事事、胡思亂想時，這組區域就會亮燈。

A little bit like if you're going to the gym every day, your muscles might look bigger at rest, where similarly your brain might be better connected at rest because you are learning a language early.

這就有點像如果你每天都去健身房鍛鍊，你的肌肉在休息時可能會顯得更大，同樣，你的大腦在休息時可能會因為你提前學習了一門語言而連接得更好。

And this is something no one had found before.

這在以前是沒有人發現過的。

And there's more.

還有更多。

One lesser-known behavioural effect of bilingualism in both children and adults is the ability to see the other people's perspective or to understand that it is possible to have different points of view.

雙語對兒童和成人的一個鮮為人知的行為影響是，他們能夠從他人的角度看問題，或者理解不同的觀點是有可能存在的。

Recent studies have also found that people tend to react more emotionally in their first language and more rationally, in a more abstract way, in the second.

最近的研究還發現，人們在使用第一語言時往往會做出更感性的反應，而在使用第二語言時則會做出更理性、更抽象的反應。

And the way it is usually explained is that the first language is the one which we use to speak with family, with friends, in informal settings.

通常的解釋是，第一語言是我們在非正式場合與家人、朋友交談時使用的語言。

The second language is usually learned at school, at the university, at work.

第二語言通常是在學校、大學和工作中學習的。

Scientists are discovering new upsides to being bilingual all the time.

科學家們不斷髮現掌握雙語的新好處。

And it's not just our brains that benefit.

受益的不僅僅是我們的大腦。

Learning new languages and speaking more than one language is very important not only for individuals but also for societies.

學習新語言和講一種以上的語言不僅對個人，而且對社會都非常重要。

Learning new languages can open doors to new cultural experiences, life opportunities.

學習新語言可以打開通往新文化體驗和生活機遇的大門。

Different people, different communities and different ways of seeing the world.

不同的人，不同的社區，看待世界的方式也不同。

And with that, we'll say a final...

最後，我們要說...

Goodbye!

再見

Bye!

再見！

Bye!

再見！