- Published on
荧幕时间对孩子们有什么影响？(What is screen time doing to children?)
- Authors
现在她们的群组“无手机童年”拥有6万多名粉丝，一起讨论如何让孩子远离恶魔般的电子设备。
双语精读
Two months ago Daisy Greenwell and Clare Fernyhough set up a WhatsApp group to discuss how to stave off their young children's demands for smartphones. After they posted about their plans on Instagram, other parents wanted in.
两个月前，黛西·格林威尔和克莱尔·费尼霍夫创建了一个WhatsApp群组，讨论如何降低孩子对智能手机的需求。当她们在Instagram上发布计划后，其他家长也想加入。
Now their group, Smartphone-Free Childhood, has more than 60,000 followers debating how to keep their children away from the demon devices - a debate they are naturally conducting on smartphones of their own.
现在她们的群组“无手机童年”拥有6万多名粉丝，一起讨论如何让孩子远离恶魔般的电子设备，讨论自然也是在她们自己的智能手机上进行的。
This group, based in Britain, is not the only one worried about children's screen time. Last month the state of Florida passed a law banning social media for under-14s. Britain's government is reportedly considering a ban on mobile-phone sales to under-16s.
担心儿童荧幕时间的并非只有这一个位于英国的群组。上个月，佛罗里达州通过了一项法律，禁止14岁以下的青少年使用社交媒体。据报道，英国政府正在考虑禁止向16岁以下的青少年销售手机。
The concerns are summed up by a recent book by Jonathan Haidt, "The Anxious Generation", which argues that smartphones, and especially the social networks accessed through them, are causing a malign "rewiring of childhood".
乔纳森·海特最近出版的《焦虑的一代》一书总结了这些担忧，该书认为智能手机，尤其是通过智能手机访问的社交网络，正在造成恶性的“童年重塑”。
In a contentious debate two things are fairly clear. First, smartphones and social media have become a big part of childhood. By the age of 12 nearly every child has a phone, according to research in Britain.
在一场有争议的讨论中，有两点是相当清楚的。首先，智能手机和社交媒体已成为童年的重要组成部分。英国有研究表明，到12岁时，几乎每个孩子都拥有一部手机。
Once they get one, social media is how they spend most of their screen time. American teens spend nearly five hours a day on social apps, according to polls by Gallup. YouTube, TikTok and Instagram are most popular (Facebook, the world's largest social network, is a distant fourth).
一旦他们有了手机，他们的大部分荧幕时间就会用在社交媒体上。盖洛普民意调查显示，美国青少年每天在社交应用上花费近五个小时。YouTube、TikTok和Instagram最受欢迎（全球最大的社交网络Facebook排名第四，与前三名差距很大）。
Second, most agree that in much of the rich world there has been a decline in mental health among the young. The share of American teenagers reporting at least one "major depressive episode" in the past year has increased by more than 150% since 2010.
其次，大多数人都认为，在许多富裕国家，年轻人的心理健康状况一直在下降。自2010年以来，报告称在过去一年中至少有过一次“重度抑郁发作”的美国青少年比例增加了150%以上。
Perhaps such terms have simply become less taboo, sceptics suggest. But it is more than talk. Across 17 mostly rich countries, there has been a sharp rise in suicide among teenage girls and young women, though their suicide rate remains the lowest of any cohort.
持怀疑态度的人认为，也许“重度抑郁发作”之类的说法已经变得不那么说不出口了。但这不仅仅是说说而已。在17个富裕国家中，少女和年轻女性的自杀率急剧上升，尽管她们的自杀率仍然是所有群体中最低的。
Are the phenomena linked? The timing is suggestive: mental health began to slide just as smartphones and social apps took off, in the 2010s.
这些现象之间有联系吗？其中的时机能说明一些事情：人们的心理健康状况在2010年代开始下滑，正是智能手机和社交应用程序流行起来的时候。
Some studies also suggest that children who spend more time on social media have poorer mental health than lighter users. But such correlations do not prove causation: it may be, for instance, that depressed, lonely children choose to spend more time doom-scrolling than happy ones do.
一些研究还表明，花更多时间在社交媒体上的孩子比轻度使用社交媒体的孩子心理健康状况更差。但这种相关性并不能证明因果关系：例如，抑郁、孤独的孩子可能比快乐的孩子选择花更多时间刷手机，浏览大量负面内容。
词汇预习
fairly [高考]
美[ˈferli] | 英[ˈfeəli]
adv. 公正地；相当地
media [高考]
美[ˈmiːdiə] | 英[ˈmiːdiə]
n. 传播媒介；(medium的复数)媒体；新闻媒介
rate [高考]
美[reɪt] | 英[reɪt]
n. 比率；速度；价格；费用；等级 v. 认为；估价；定等级；值得；怒斥；责骂
decline [高考]
美[dɪˈklaɪn] | 英[dɪˈklaɪn]
v. 下降；减少；变弱；拒绝；倾斜 n. 减少，衰退
mental [高考]
美[ˈmentl] | 英[ˈmentl]
adj. 思想的；心理的；精神的；脑力的 n. 精神病患者
debate [高考]
美[dɪˈbeɪt] | 英[dɪˈbeɪt]
n. 辩论；讨论 vt. 争论；思考 vi. 辩论
ban [高考]
美[bæn] | 英[bæn]
v. 禁止；剥夺权利 n. 禁令；禁止
distant [高考]
美[ˈdɪstənt] | 英[ˈdɪstənt]
adj. 疏远的；遥远的；远房的；陌生的；远行的
episode [高考]
美[ˈepɪsoʊd] | 英[ˈepɪsəʊd]
n. 一段情节；片段；轶事；插曲
remains [高考]
美[rɪˈmeɪnz] | 英[rɪˈmeɪnz]
n. 剩余物；遗迹；遗体
suicide [高考]
美[ˈsuːɪsaɪd] | 英[ˈsuːɪsaɪd]
n. 自杀；自杀者；自取灭亡的行为 adj. 自杀性的
taboo [高考]
美[təˈbuː] | 英[təˈbuː]
n. 禁忌；禁止接近；禁止使用 adj. 禁忌的 vt. 禁忌
mobile [高考]
美[ˈmoʊbl] | 英[ˈməʊbaɪl]
adj. 移动的；易变的；活动的 n. [美]汽车；可动雕塑；悬挂饰物；活动物体
worried [高考]
美[ˈwɜːrid] | 英[ˈwʌrid]
adj. 担心的；烦恼的
stave [四级]
美[stev] | 英[steɪv]
n. 桶板；窄板；诗句；诗节；五线谱表 v. 敲破；穿孔；挡开；避开；快步走动
doom [四级]
美[duːm] | 英[duːm]
n. 毁灭；厄运；判决；死亡 vt. 注定；判定
decline in [四级]
美 | 英
在……方面的减少；下降
rise in [四级]
美 | 英
在……方面的增加；上涨
considering [四级]
美[kənˈsɪdərɪŋ] | 英[kənˈsɪdərɪŋ]
prep. 鉴于； 考虑到 conj. 就 ... 而言
according [专四]
美[ə'kɔrdɪŋ] | 英[ə'kɔːdɪŋ]
adj. 相符的；相应的；一致的 v. 给予；符合，一致；正式协议（accord的现在分词）
suggestive [专八]
美[səɡˈdʒɛstɪv, səˈdʒɛs-] | 英[səˈdʒestɪv]
adj. 提示性的；影射的；暗示的；挑逗性的
lighter [专八]
美[ˈlaɪtɚ] | 英[ˈlaɪtə(r)]
n. 打火机，点火器；点火者，点灯者；驳船 v. 用驳船运，驳运 adj. light的形容词/副词比较级
malign [专八]
美[məˈlaɪn] | 英[məˈlaɪn]
adj. 有害的；恶性的；有恶意的 v. 诽谤；中伤；说坏话
terms [雅思]
美[tɜːrmz] | 英[tɜːmz]
n. 条件；条款；关系；措辞
重点讲解
Two months ago Daisy Greenwell and Clare Fernyhough set up a WhatsApp group to discuss how to stave off their young children's demands for smartphones. After they posted about their plans on Instagram, other parents wanted in.
两个月前，黛西·格林威尔和克莱尔·费尼霍夫创建了一个WhatsApp群组，讨论如何降低孩子对智能手机的需求。当她们在Instagram上发布计划后，其他家长也想加入。
stave off 暂时挡住；推迟
【例】She ate a small snack to stave off hunger until dinner.
她吃了点小零食来充充饥，等之后再吃晚饭。
to stave off an attack 挡住一波攻击
to stave off sleepiness 赶走瞌睡
【拓展】stave n. 棍子
-free suffix. 无……的
【例】a smoke-free area 无烟区
a sugar-free beverage 无糖饮料
【反义词】-rich suffix. 富含……的
【例】a vitamin-rich fruit 富含维生素的水果
Now their group, Smartphone-Free Childhood, has more than 60,000 followers debating how to keep their children away from the demon devices — a debate they are naturally conducting on smartphones of their own.
现在她们的群组“无手机童年”拥有6万多名粉丝，一起讨论如何让孩子远离恶魔般的电子设备，讨论自然也是在她们自己的智能手机上进行的。
stave off 暂时挡住；推迟
【例】She ate a small snack to stave off hunger until dinner.
她吃了点小零食来充充饥，等之后再吃晚饭。
to stave off an attack 挡住一波攻击
to stave off sleepiness 赶走瞌睡
【拓展】stave n. 棍子
-free suffix. 无……的
【例】a smoke-free area 无烟区
a sugar-free beverage 无糖饮料
【反义词】-rich suffix. 富含……的
【例】a vitamin-rich fruit 富含维生素的水果
This group, based in Britain, is not the only one worried about children's screen time. Last month the state of Florida passed a law banning social media for under-14s. Britain's government is reportedly considering a ban on mobile-phone sales to under-16s.
担心儿童荧幕时间的并非只有这一个位于英国的群组。上个月，佛罗里达州通过了一项法律，禁止14岁以下的青少年使用社交媒体。据报道，英国政府正在考虑禁止向16岁以下的青少年销售手机。
malign adj. 恶性的
【例】a malign tumor 恶性肿瘤
a malign influence 恶性影响；有害影响
【反义词】benign adj. 良性的
【拓展】malicious adj. 恶毒的；恶意的
benefit n. 益处
rewire v. 更换电线；改变结构或形式
【例】After the accident, he had to rewire his brain to learn how to walk again.
发生事故后，他必须重新激活大脑，去学习如何走路。
to rewire the house 重装房子里的电线
【拓展】be wired to... 天生……
【例】She's wired to be an early riser; even on weekends, she's up at dawn.
她天生地爱早起，就算是周末，她也天刚亮就起床了。
The concerns are summed up by a recent book by Jonathan Haidt, "The Anxious Generation", which argues that smartphones, and especially the social networks accessed through them, are causing a malign "rewiring of childhood".
乔纳森·海特最近出版的《焦虑的一代》一书总结了这些担忧，该书认为智能手机，尤其是通过智能手机访问的社交网络，正在造成恶性的“童年重塑”。
malign adj. 恶性的
【例】a malign tumor 恶性肿瘤
a malign influence 恶性影响；有害影响
【反义词】benign adj. 良性的
【拓展】malicious adj. 恶毒的；恶意的
benefit n. 益处
rewire v. 更换电线；改变结构或形式
【例】After the accident, he had to rewire his brain to learn how to walk again.
发生事故后，他必须重新激活大脑，去学习如何走路。
to rewire the house 重装房子里的电线
【拓展】be wired to... 天生……
【例】She's wired to be an early riser; even on weekends, she's up at dawn.
她天生地爱早起，就算是周末，她也天刚亮就起床了。
In a contentious debate two things are fairly clear. First, smartphones and social media have become a big part of childhood. By the age of 12 nearly every child has a phone, according to research in Britain.
在一场有争议的讨论中，有两点是相当清楚的。首先，智能手机和社交媒体已成为童年的重要组成部分。英国有研究表明，到12岁时，几乎每个孩子都拥有一部手机。
contentious adj. 有争议的；引起争论的
【例】The proposal to cut funding for the arts has been highly contentious.
削减艺术资金的提议引起了很多争议。
【近义词】controversial adj. 引起争议的
【拓展】contend v. 主张；认为
contention n. 争论；观点
distant adj. 遥远的
【例】a distant hope 遥不可及的希望
a distant event 久远的往事
a distant look 心不在焉的神情
【反义词】close adj. 接近的
【例】a close second 与第一名差距很小的第二名
Once they get one, social media is how they spend most of their screen time. American teens spend nearly five hours a day on social apps, according to polls by Gallup. YouTube, TikTok and Instagram are most popular (Facebook, the world's largest social network, is a distant fourth).
一旦他们有了手机，他们的大部分荧幕时间就会用在社交媒体上。盖洛普民意调查显示，美国青少年每天在社交应用上花费近五个小时。YouTube、TikTok和Instagram最受欢迎（全球最大的社交网络Facebook排名第四，与前三名差距很大）。
contentious adj. 有争议的；引起争论的
【例】The proposal to cut funding for the arts has been highly contentious.
削减艺术资金的提议引起了很多争议。
【近义词】controversial adj. 引起争议的
【拓展】contend v. 主张；认为
contention n. 争论；观点
distant adj. 遥远的
【例】a distant hope 遥不可及的希望
a distant event 久远的往事
a distant look 心不在焉的神情
【反义词】close adj. 接近的
【例】a close second 与第一名差距很小的第二名
Second, most agree that in much of the rich world there has been a decline in mental health among the young. The share of American teenagers reporting at least one "major depressive episode" in the past year has increased by more than 150% since 2010.
其次，大多数人都认为，在许多富裕国家，年轻人的心理健康状况一直在下降。自2010年以来，报告称在过去一年中至少有过一次“重度抑郁发作”的美国青少年比例增加了150%以上。
episode n. 剧集；一小段经历
【例】a rebellious episode in teenage years
青春期的叛逆期
an important episode in modern Chinese history
中国现代史中的重要一段
【近义词】period n. 时期
Perhaps such terms have simply become less taboo, sceptics suggest. But it is more than talk. Across 17 mostly rich countries, there has been a sharp rise in suicide among teenage girls and young women, though their suicide rate remains the lowest of any cohort.
持怀疑态度的人认为，也许“重度抑郁发作”之类的说法已经变得不那么说不出口了。但这不仅仅是说说而已。在17个富裕国家中，少女和年轻女性的自杀率急剧上升，尽管她们的自杀率仍然是所有群体中最低的。
cohort n. 有相同特点的一群人
【例】the 1999 birth cohort 出生于1999年的群体
【近义词】group/demographic n. 群体
Are the phenomena linked? The timing is suggestive: mental health began to slide just as smartphones and social apps took off, in the 2010s.
这些现象之间有联系吗？其中的时机能说明一些事情：人们的心理健康状况在2010年代开始下滑，正是智能手机和社交应用程序流行起来的时候。
take off
1. 起飞
【例】The plane took off.
飞机起飞了。
【反义词】land v. 降落
2. 受欢迎；成功
【例】The new restaurant really took off after a positive review on social media.
社交媒体上有一篇好评之后，这家新餐厅迅速火了起来。
His career took off after the deal was made.
这桩交易做成后，他的事业就腾飞了。
light adj. 少量的；程度低的
【例】light traffic 车流量少
light coffee 味道淡的咖啡
light work 轻松的工作
a light eater 饭量小的人
【反义词】heavy adj. 重度的
Some studies also suggest that children who spend more time on social media have poorer mental health than lighter users. But such correlations do not prove causation: it may be, for instance, that depressed, lonely children choose to spend more time doom-scrolling than happy ones do.
一些研究还表明，花更多时间在社交媒体上的孩子比轻度使用社交媒体的孩子心理健康状况更差。但这种相关性并不能证明因果关系：例如，抑郁、孤独的孩子可能比快乐的孩子选择花更多时间刷手机，浏览大量负面内容。
take off
1. 起飞
【例】The plane took off.
飞机起飞了。
【反义词】land v. 降落
2. 受欢迎；成功
【例】The new restaurant really took off after a positive review on social media.
社交媒体上有一篇好评之后，这家新餐厅迅速火了起来。
His career took off after the deal was made.
这桩交易做成后，他的事业就腾飞了。
light adj. 少量的；程度低的
【例】light traffic 车流量少
light coffee 味道淡的咖啡
light work 轻松的工作
a light eater 饭量小的人
【反义词】heavy adj. 重度的
课后练习
What prompted the formation of the Smartphone-Free Childhood group?
A. A law passed by the state of Florida banning social media for under-14s.
B. The British government's consideration of a ban on mobile-phone sales.
C. Parents' concerns about their young children's demands for smartphones.
D. A widespread belief that many children are addicted to smartphones.
What is one significant aspect of childhood today?
A. Most children prefer the virtual online world to the real world.
B. Teens spend most of their screen time on social media apps.
C. Children explore a wide range of apps and online activities.
D. Facebook has become the most popular social network among teens.
What trend regarding mental health among the young in the rich world is highlighted in the text?
A. A decline in mental health issues due to better awareness and education.
B. A significant increase in major depressive episodes among teenagers since 2010.
C. A reduction in the stigma surrounding mental health due to social media sharing.
D. A growing attention on suicide rates among teenage girls and young women.
What issue does the text raise about the relationship between smartphone usage and mental health?
A. It suggests that smartphone usage is unrelated to mental health issues.
B. It reveals that mental health issues cause heavy usage of smartphones .
C. It lists the evidence to prove the effect of smartphone usage on mental health.
D. It is skeptical about the causal link between smartphone usage and declining mental health.