課文精講
Controlling your concentration
CONCENTARATION IS CENTERING YOUR ATTENTION
Psychologically defined， concentration is the process of centering one‘ s attention over a period of time. In practical application， however， concentration is not as simple to deal successfully with as the definition may imply. For this reason， it is helpful to keep the following points in mind.⑴
1.For this reason， it is helpful to keep the following points in mind.
be helpful to …。 對… 很有益；
keep …。 in mind 把… 記在心里；
譯文：因此，記住下列幾點是很有幫助的。
Your attention span varies
Even with the greatest effort， our span of attention fluctuates. You can demonstrate for yourself this fluctuation of attention. In a quiet room， place a watch so that it can just scarcely be heard. ⑵Listen carefully and notice how the ticking increases in apparent intensity， fades to a point where it cannot be heard， and then increases again.⑶ This phenomenon reveals how our span of attention fluctuates， for the intensity of the ticking is actually constant.
2.In a quiet room， place a watch so that it can just scarcely be heard.
該句主句是祈使句 place a watch
so that 引導(dǎo)目的狀語從句
譯文：在一個安靜的房間里，放一塊表，表的聲音幾乎剛剛能聽見。
3.Listen carefully and notice how the ticking increases in apparent intensity， fades to a point where it
cannot be heard， and then increases again.
where it cannot be heard 是定語從句修飾 point
譯文：注意聽表的走動聲，并且注意表的嘀嗒聲怎樣明顯增大，然后小到聽不見，然后又變大。
You pay attention to one thing at a time
Evidence to date indicates that you attend to one idea at a time. It is possible for your attention to shift so rapidly that it seems that you attend to several concepts at once.⑷ But apparently this is only an illusion. In high concentration the shift from the focus of attention is of short duration and relatively infrequent.
4.It is possible for your attention to shift so rapidly that it seems that you attend to several concepts at once.
so …that…結(jié)果狀語從句
全句意為：你的注意有可能轉(zhuǎn)移得十分迅速，以至于好像你同時能夠?qū)Ｐ挠趲讉€想法。
An illustration of periods of high， moderate， and low attention
High attention has long periods of attending and short distraction periods. In low attention the periods of attending are short and the distraction periods long. In moderate attention there is a mixture of the extremes. Thus it is easy to see that it is highly unlikely that the student who has most of his attention centered on fancying at large will be able to recall even the major points of a lecture.⑸
Thus it is easy to see that it is highly unlikely that the student who has most of his attention centered on
fancying at large will be able to recall even the major points of a lecture.
see 之后是一個由that引導(dǎo)的賓語從句，在 that 引導(dǎo)的賓語從句中， 含有一個who引導(dǎo)的定語從句
修飾the student
譯文：這樣我們可以很容易地看到，如果一個學(xué)生的大部分注意力用于自由幻想，即使是講課要點，他也不可能回想起來。
Lack of concentration is a symptom， not the cause， of difficulty. When a student says “I can‘t concentrate”， what he is really saying is， “I can’t attend to the task at hand because my distractors are too strong.”
DISTARCTORS ARE OF TWO SORTS -PSYCHOLOGICAL AND PHYSICAL
A distractor is anything which causes attention to vary from a central focal point. In the study situation distractors may be thought of as either psychological or physical in nature. ⑹Both types of distractors must be understood before the student can attempt to remedy his lack of concentration.
In the study situation distractors may be thought of as either psychological or physical in nature.
thought of as 把…看作，認為…
譯文：在學(xué)習(xí)的情況下，干擾物實際上可以被認為是心理的或者是物質(zhì)的。
Emotions are the most powerful distractors
The angry man forgets the pain of injury， the fearful man finds it difficult to enjoy pleasure and the tense or anxious person may react violently to the smallest of matters.⑺ In the student‘s life there are many psychological pressures and tensions which block effective productivity. The fears about making the grade， the doubts of the friendliness of a friend’s behaviour and the pressures of limited friendliness of a friend‘s behaviour and the pressures of limited finances - these are only a few of the emotional forces which affect the student.
7.The angry man forgets the pain of injury， the fearful man finds it difficult to enjoy pleasure and the tense of anxious person may react violently to the smallest of matters.
react … to 對…有反應(yīng)
全句大意：憤怒的人會忘記傷痛，人害怕的時候很難享受快樂，人在緊張或焦慮的時候可能對非常小的事情做出強烈的反應(yīng)。
Emotional reaction varies greatly from person to person.⑻ Some person gain goal and direction from their tensions and actually do better because of them . Others fall apart under pressure ，while a few people do well despite the pressure.
Controlling your concentration
CONCENTARATION IS CENTERING YOUR ATTENTION
Psychologically defined， concentration is the process of centering one‘ s attention over a period of time. In practical application， however， concentration is not as simple to deal successfully with as the definition may imply. For this reason， it is helpful to keep the following points in mind.⑴
1.For this reason， it is helpful to keep the following points in mind.
be helpful to …。 對… 很有益；
keep …。 in mind 把… 記在心里；
譯文：因此，記住下列幾點是很有幫助的。
Your attention span varies
Even with the greatest effort， our span of attention fluctuates. You can demonstrate for yourself this fluctuation of attention. In a quiet room， place a watch so that it can just scarcely be heard. ⑵Listen carefully and notice how the ticking increases in apparent intensity， fades to a point where it cannot be heard， and then increases again.⑶ This phenomenon reveals how our span of attention fluctuates， for the intensity of the ticking is actually constant.
2.In a quiet room， place a watch so that it can just scarcely be heard.
該句主句是祈使句 place a watch
so that 引導(dǎo)目的狀語從句
譯文：在一個安靜的房間里，放一塊表，表的聲音幾乎剛剛能聽見。
3.Listen carefully and notice how the ticking increases in apparent intensity， fades to a point where it
cannot be heard， and then increases again.
where it cannot be heard 是定語從句修飾 point
譯文：注意聽表的走動聲，并且注意表的嘀嗒聲怎樣明顯增大，然后小到聽不見，然后又變大。
You pay attention to one thing at a time
Evidence to date indicates that you attend to one idea at a time. It is possible for your attention to shift so rapidly that it seems that you attend to several concepts at once.⑷ But apparently this is only an illusion. In high concentration the shift from the focus of attention is of short duration and relatively infrequent.
4.It is possible for your attention to shift so rapidly that it seems that you attend to several concepts at once.
so …that…結(jié)果狀語從句
全句意為：你的注意有可能轉(zhuǎn)移得十分迅速，以至于好像你同時能夠?qū)Ｐ挠趲讉€想法。
An illustration of periods of high， moderate， and low attention
High attention has long periods of attending and short distraction periods. In low attention the periods of attending are short and the distraction periods long. In moderate attention there is a mixture of the extremes. Thus it is easy to see that it is highly unlikely that the student who has most of his attention centered on fancying at large will be able to recall even the major points of a lecture.⑸
Thus it is easy to see that it is highly unlikely that the student who has most of his attention centered on
fancying at large will be able to recall even the major points of a lecture.
see 之后是一個由that引導(dǎo)的賓語從句，在 that 引導(dǎo)的賓語從句中， 含有一個who引導(dǎo)的定語從句
修飾the student
譯文：這樣我們可以很容易地看到，如果一個學(xué)生的大部分注意力用于自由幻想，即使是講課要點，他也不可能回想起來。
Lack of concentration is a symptom， not the cause， of difficulty. When a student says “I can‘t concentrate”， what he is really saying is， “I can’t attend to the task at hand because my distractors are too strong.”
DISTARCTORS ARE OF TWO SORTS -PSYCHOLOGICAL AND PHYSICAL
A distractor is anything which causes attention to vary from a central focal point. In the study situation distractors may be thought of as either psychological or physical in nature. ⑹Both types of distractors must be understood before the student can attempt to remedy his lack of concentration.
In the study situation distractors may be thought of as either psychological or physical in nature.
thought of as 把…看作，認為…
譯文：在學(xué)習(xí)的情況下，干擾物實際上可以被認為是心理的或者是物質(zhì)的。
Emotions are the most powerful distractors
The angry man forgets the pain of injury， the fearful man finds it difficult to enjoy pleasure and the tense or anxious person may react violently to the smallest of matters.⑺ In the student‘s life there are many psychological pressures and tensions which block effective productivity. The fears about making the grade， the doubts of the friendliness of a friend’s behaviour and the pressures of limited friendliness of a friend‘s behaviour and the pressures of limited finances - these are only a few of the emotional forces which affect the student.
7.The angry man forgets the pain of injury， the fearful man finds it difficult to enjoy pleasure and the tense of anxious person may react violently to the smallest of matters.
react … to 對…有反應(yīng)
全句大意：憤怒的人會忘記傷痛，人害怕的時候很難享受快樂，人在緊張或焦慮的時候可能對非常小的事情做出強烈的反應(yīng)。
Emotional reaction varies greatly from person to person.⑻ Some person gain goal and direction from their tensions and actually do better because of them . Others fall apart under pressure ，while a few people do well despite the pressure.