翻译者的多彩世界

标签： 英文汉译  黄金时代  大脑  智慧  创造 

人生的起起落落似乎无法预先计划。但科学家认为几乎所有的人都共有非常固定的人生模式。即使人已经度过了自己的“黄金时代”，人将来还会体验黄金时代。其中某些重要的黄金时代似乎在生命后期达到顶峰。

人什么时候最聪明？根据智商测验分数，在18到25岁；但随着年龄的增加，人更聪明，更有经验。

在20多岁时，人是最聪明的；30岁左右时，记忆力开始减退，尤其是人的数学计算能力会减退。但是，人完成其它艰难工作的智商会增高。例如，在45岁时，人的词汇量是大学毕业时的三倍。60岁时，人的大脑处理的信息量几乎是21岁时所处理的四倍。

这个聪明度和智慧之间的平衡导致心理学家们建议对成年人采用“成熟商”。

人什么时候最幸福？从15岁到24岁，人有自己最好的生理感觉；最好的事业感觉在40至49岁。

24岁以前，人们相信自己最幸福的时光还没有到来，30多岁时，人们相信幸福已经过去。一项《国家健康调查》认为：30岁以后，人们“变得更现实，而且不将幸福完全地看成目标，如果人们保持自己的健康，达到事业和情感的目标，那么人们感觉幸福将会跟随而来”。

什么时候人最有创造性？总的来说在30至39岁，但创造性的顶峰年龄随职业的不同而不同。

到8岁时，莫扎特已写了一部交响曲和四首奏鸣曲，门德尔松在17岁时为最著名的歌剧《仲夏夜之梦》作了曲，但大多数人伟大的音乐作品由作者在33和39岁之间写成。

虽然许多领域的顶峰时期出现得很早，但诺贝尔奖获得者在接近30岁和30多岁时完成了他们的尖端科研---具有创造力的人们在整个生命过程中持续做出高质量的工作。对于 “状况良好的头脑”，永远没有年龄上限。

The ups and downs of life may seem to have no predictable plan. But scientists know there are very definite patterns that almost all people share. Even if you've passed some of your "prime", you still have other prime years to experience in the future. Certain important primes seem to peak later in life.

When are you smartest? From 18-25, according to I.Q. scores; but you're wiser and more experienced with increasing age.

You're sharpest in your 20's; around 30, memory begins to decline, particularly your ability to perform mathematical computations. But your I.Q. for other tasks climbs. Your vocabulary at age 45, for example, is three times as great as when you graduated from college. At 60, your brain possesses almost four times as much information as it did at age 21.

This trade-off between sharpness and wisdom has led psychologists to suggest that "maturity quotients" (M.Q.) be adopted for adults.

When are you happiest? You have the best physical sense of yourself from 15 to 24; the best professional sense from 40 to 49.

Before age 24, we believe that our happiest years are yet to come; over 30, we believe that they're behind us. A National Health Survey agrees: After age 30, we "become more realistic and do not view happiness as a goal in itself. If we maintain our health, achieve professional and emotional goals, then happiness, we feel, will follow".

When are you most creative? Generally between 30 and 39, but the peak varies with different professions.

Mozart wrote a symphony and four sonatas by age eight, and Mendelssohn composed his best known work A Midsummer Night's Dream, at 17, but most of the great music was written by men between 33 and 39.

Though the peak in most fields comes early-most, Nobel prizewinners did their top research in their late 20's and 30's-creative people continue to produce quality work throughout their lives. For the "well-conditioned mind", there is no upper limit.

Source of the English text（英文来源）：

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/language_tips/2007-03/06/content_820429.htm