大脑训练游戏可能有用，也可能没用

On the homepage for the brain-training game NeuroNation, there's a spinning, high-tech science-y brain with blinking lights. It says, "Your potential is infinite."

在大脑训练游戏《NeuroNation》的主页上，有一个旋转的高科技大脑，闪烁着灯光。它说，“你的潜力是无限的。”

Brain-training games might be playing mind games with you. (Photo: adike/Shutterstock)

Researchers have been divided over whether brain-training games really work. Some studies have found benefits while others have shown none. That's why a team of seven scientists performed an extensive evaluation of more than 130 studies in scientific literature about brain training and other cognitive games. They found that many of the studies had flaws in the way they were designed.

对于大脑训练游戏是否真的有效，研究人员一直存在分歧。一些研究发现了益处，而另一些则没有。这就是为什么一个由7名科学家组成的团队对130多项有关大脑训练和其他认知游戏的科学文献进行了广泛的评估。他们发现，许多研究在设计方法上存在缺陷。

On the flip side, a new study led by University of California, Irvine, researchers finds that online brain games enable people in their 70s and 80s to multitask cognitively as well as people who are 50 years younger.

另一方面，由加州大学欧文分校领导的一项新研究发现，网络益智游戏能让七八十岁的人和比自己年轻50岁的人一样，在认知上同时处理多项任务。

Similarly, a study published in the journal Alzheimer's & Dementia finds that playing speed decision-making games seems to lower dementia risk. Researchers analyzed the results of a study which followed 1,220 people over 10 years. Participants were divided into four groups. One group was taught memory tricks, one group learned reasoning skills, and one group played a speed-training game on the computer. The last group of people weren’t given anything. Only 5.9 percent of the people in the speed-training group developed dementia; in the other three groups, the figure was around 10 percent.

同样，发表在《阿尔茨海默氏症与痴呆症》杂志上的一项研究发现，玩快速决策游戏似乎可以降低患痴呆症的风险。研究人员分析了一项对1220人进行了10年跟踪调查的结果。参与者被分成四组。一组学习记忆技巧，一组学习推理技巧，一组在电脑上玩速度训练游戏。最后一组人什么都没有得到。在快速训练组中，只有5.9%的人患上了痴呆症;在其他三组中，这个数字大约是10%。

A study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciencesfound that some of the alleged benefits of brain games may be due to placebo effects.

发表在《美国国家科学院院刊》上的一项研究发现，一些所谓的益智游戏的好处可能是由于安慰剂效应。

All of the study participants took an IQ test, then did an hour of brain training — not enough, the researchers point out, to likely boost anyone's intelligence. The next day, the participants took another IQ test. Those who were told of brain-training benefits had a 5-10 point boost in their IQ score, while those who heard nothing of the benefits tested about the same as they did before the training.

所有的研究参与者都接受了智商测试，然后进行了一个小时的大脑训练——研究人员指出，这不足以提高任何人的智商。第二天，参与者又进行了一次智商测试。那些被告知大脑训练益处的人的智商得分提高了5-10分，而那些没有听到任何益处的人的测试结果与他们在训练前的测试结果相同。

4 games to try for fun

尝试4个游戏去获得乐趣

Lumosity

Lumosity games include quickly spotting the bird migrating in the wrong direction. (Photo: Lumosity)

NeuroNation

Math is good for your brain. (Photo: NeuroNation)

Peak

Peak offers encouraging words like, 'Play smart, feel sharp!' (Photo: Peak)

Elevate

Elevate games include error avoidance and brevity. (Photo: Elevate)

One fan of this popular app gushes on the Elevate webpage, "I feel like I'm taking a mental multivitamin." The relatively new training program offers nearly three dozen activities working on things like focus, estimation, spelling, agility, memory, pronunciation, precision and clarity.

这款广受欢迎的应用程序的一名粉丝在lift的网页上滔滔不绝地说，“我感觉自己在服用精神复合维生素。”这个相对较新的培训项目提供了近36项活动，内容涉及注意力、评估、拼写、灵活性、记忆力、发音、精确度和清晰度等。