2024年06月六级第3套仔细阅读 Passage 2 原文翻译及答案解析

Variability is crucially important for learning new skills. Consider learning how to serve in tennis. Should you always practise serving from the exactly same location on the court, aiming at the same spot? Although practising in more variable conditions will be slower at first, it will likely make you a better tennis player in the end. This is because variability leads to better generalisation of what is learned.

变异性对于学习新技能至关重要。以学习网球发球为例。你应该总是从球场上完全相同的位置练习发球，瞄准同一个点吗？尽管在更具变异性的条件下练习起初会较慢，但最终可能会让你成为一名更好的网球运动员。这是因为变异性有助于更好地泛化所学内容。

This principle is found in many domains, including speech perception and learning categories. For instance, infants will struggle to learn the category "dog" if they are only exposed to Chihuahuas, instead of many different kinds of dogs.

这一原则存在于许多领域，包括语音感知和类别学习。例如，如果婴儿只接触吉娃娃，而不是多种不同类型的狗，他们将很难学会“狗”这个类别。

"There are over ten different names for this basic principle," says Limor Raviv, the senior investigator of a recent study. "Learning from less variable input is often fast, but may fail to generalise to new stimuli."

最近一项研究的高级研究员利莫尔·拉维夫说：“这个基本原则有十多个不同的名称。”“从变异较小的输入中学习通常较快，但可能无法泛化到新的刺激。”

To identify key patterns and understand the underlying principles of variability effects, Raviv and her colleagues reviewed over 150 studies on variability and generalisation across fields, including computer science, linguistics, categorisation, visual perception and formal education.

为了识别关键模式并理解变异性效应的潜在原理，拉维夫和她的同事回顾了跨领域（包括计算机科学、语言学、分类、视觉感知和正规教育）的150多项关于变异性和泛化的研究。

The researchers discovered that, across studies, the term variability can refer to at least four different kinds of variability, such as set size and scheduling. "These four kinds of variability have never been directly compared—which means that we currently don't know which is most effective for learning," says Raviv.

研究人员发现，在研究中，术语“变异性”可以指至少四种不同类型的变异性，如集合大小和调度。拉维夫说：“这四种变异性从未被直接比较过——这意味着我们目前不知道哪种对学习最有效。”

The impact of variability depends on whether it is relevant to the task or not. But according to the 'Mr. Miyagi principle', practising seemingly unrelated skills may actually benefit learning of other skills.

变异性的影响取决于它是否与任务相关。但根据“宫城先生原则”，练习看似不相关的技能实际上可能有益于其他技能的学习。

But why does variability impact learning and generalisation? One theory is that more variable input can highlight which aspects of a task are relevant and which are not.

但为什么变异性会影响学习和泛化？一种理论认为，更具变异性的输入可以突出任务中哪些方面是相关的，哪些不是。

Another theory is that greater variability leads to broader generalisations. This is because variability will represent the real world better, including atypical (非典型的) examples.

另一种理论认为，更大的变异性导致更广泛的泛化。这是因为变异性能更好地代表现实世界，包括非典型的例子。

A third reason has to do with the way memory works: when training is variable, learners are forced to actively reconstruct their memories.

第三个原因与记忆的工作方式有关：当训练具有变异性时，学习者被迫主动重建他们的记忆。

"Understanding the impact of variability is important for literally every aspect of our daily life. Beyond affecting the way we learn language, motor skills, and categories, it even has an impact on our social lives," explains Raviv. "For example, face recognition is affected by whether people grew up in a small community or in a larger community. Exposure to fewer faces during childhood is associated with diminished face memory."

拉维夫解释说：“理解变异性的影响对我们日常生活的方方面面都至关重要。除了影响我们学习语言、运动技能和类别的能力外，它甚至对我们的社会生活有影响。”“例如，面部识别受到人们是在小社区还是大社区长大的影响。童年时期接触较少的面部与面部记忆减弱有关。”

"We hope this work will spark people's curiosity and generate more work on the topic," concludes Raviv."Our paper raises a lot of open questions. Can we find similar effects of variability beyond the brain, for instance, in the immune system?"

拉维夫总结道：“我们希望这项工作能激发人们的好奇心，并在该主题上产生更多的研究。”“我们的论文提出了许多开放性问题。我们能否在大脑之外，例如在免疫系统中，找到类似的变异性效应？”