Eighty percent of parents believe social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter have the ability to take over their children's lives. |
A staggering four out of five parents worry that their children will become addicted to Facebook, according to a study. Eighty percent believe social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter have the ability to take over their children's lives. One in three parents, meanwhile, believes the Internet has the power to 'rewire' brains without a person's knowledge and thinks their children are in danger from the web. The extraordinary findings come from a poll of 1,000 parents carried out by the Nominet Trust, an organisation that promoted internet projects that address social disadvantage. However, Nominet said their findings fly in the face of neurological evidence. The Trust worked with neuroscience and education expert Dr Paul Howard Jones, who analysed research on the internet and society. The report - The Impact of Digital Technologies On Human Wellbeing - concluded that there is no neurological evidence to suggest that the internet is more effective at 'rewiring' our brains than other environmental influences. It also found that the internet is a valuable learning resource and all forms of learning cause changes within the brain. There have been reports that use of the internet with its vast resources of information is changing the way people think and affecting their ability to concentrate. But Nominet said that 'scaremongering and misinformation' about internet use can potentially deny its benefits to people, in particular parents who are worried about the effect on their children's development. The report also found that social networking sites, in themselves, are not a special source of risk to children, and are generally beneficial as they support existing friendships. In addition, playing action video games can improve some visual processing and motor response skills, while computer-based activity provides mental stimulation, and can help slow rates of cognitive decline. (Read by Renee Haines. Renee Haines is a journalist at the China Daily Website.) (Agencies) |
根據一項調查,多達八成父母擔心自己的孩子會沉迷于Facebook不可自拔。 80%的父母認為Facebook和Twitter這樣的社交網站會左右孩子的人生。 此外,還有三分之一的父母認為網絡能在不知不覺下“改裝”一個人的大腦,并認為自己的孩子正遭到來自網絡的威脅。 這一調查是由互聯網慈善機構Nominet基金會開展的,涵蓋了1000名父母。調查結果很令人意外。 不過,Nominet基金會說他們的發現和神經學上的證據是相悖的。 和該基金會合作的神經科學家和教育專家保羅?霍華德?瓊斯博士對這一和網絡和社會相關的調查進行了分析研究。 這一題為《數字技術對人類幸福的影響》的研究報告得出結論說,目前并沒有神經學上的證據表明網絡比其他外界影響力能更有效地“改裝”大腦。 研究還發現,網絡是一個寶貴的學習資源,各種形式的學習導致大腦產生了變化。 曾有報道稱,對網絡豐富的信息資源的利用正在改變人們的思維方式,并影響了他們集中注意力的能力。 但是Nominet機構稱,對于網絡使用的“危言聳聽和不實信息”可能會阻礙網絡造福于人們,特別是那些擔心網絡會對孩子成長產生不利影響的父母。 研究報告還發現,社交網絡本身對于孩子并沒有特別大的風險,而且大體上是有益的,因為社交網絡能夠增進友誼。 此外,打動作網游能夠提升視覺處理能力和運動反應能力,而電腦相關活動可以刺激智力發育,并有助于減緩認知能力的衰退速度。 相關閱讀 (中國日報網英語點津 陳丹妮 編輯:馮明惠) |
Vocabulary: staggering: so large, shocking or surprising that it is difficult to believe (大得驚人的;駭人的;難以想像的) take over: 取而代之;取得主導地位 rewire: to put new electrical wires into a building or piece of equipment 給(建筑物或設備)換新電線。文中是比喻用法。 fly in the face of something: 悍然不顧;公然違抗;與……相悖 scaremongering: spreading stories deliberately to make people frightened or nervous(散布恐怖消息;制造恐慌;危言聳聽) |