Useful study hacks proven by science. 六個有科學替你撐腰的讀書小撇步，據說真的能提升學習效率喔！

 Hack  這個字很有意思，很類似我們常說的「實用小撇步」或「助人更有效率達成目標的捷徑」。今天教練跟大家分享一些透過科學證實有用的念書小撇步，學英文之餘，也可以找出一些能提升學習效率的好方式。

1. Learn by "chunking." 訊息切小塊好消化

The theory is that people tend to remember things better when they learn related ideas in small chunks, rather than simply trying to cram all the details of a topic into their heads at once.

Research has demonstrated that subjects(受測者) tend to remember more items on a list when they relate certain items on the list with others.

把繁瑣或大量的訊息先切塊再消化，可以大幅提升學習效率。如果你能在切塊之後再做訊息或資料的分類，並且建立訊息與訊息之間的關聯性，那麼學起來就會更得心應手。填鴨式的學習cramming效果是暫時的，但切塊/消化/訊息連結後，就不用擔心考完試馬上忘得一乾二淨了。

之前教練在托福閱讀課程就有推薦過chunking的好處。腦袋在處理大量或比較艱難的訊息時，不容易吸收，死背浪費時間因為效果差。如果將文章拆解再消化，效果一定比較好(當時我還用戰斧牛排與骰子牛肉做比喻)。如果整理筆記，將相同的訊息歸類，或是把內容系統化編整，讀起來就更舒服且容易理解記憶。

2. Exercise before you study 念書前先運動

Exercise has both long and short-term effects on cognition認知能力.It’s even been demonstrated that exercise can lead to neurogenesis 神經生成.

In addition, a brain structure called the hippocampus 海馬迴 is stimulated during exercise. Research has shown that the hippocampus is important for reasoning推理 and memory.

念書前先運動好處多，因為適量的運動能提升認知能力。過去認為幾乎不可能的神經生成(大腦內神經細胞重新長出來)，現在也有研究顯示，透過運動確實可以活化大腦的神經細胞。運動的另外一個好處，是海馬迴能受到刺激。研究顯示，活躍的海馬迴活動可以增進推理與記憶能力。

3. Study before you go to sleep 睡前念書效率好

A collaborative study published by researchers from Notre Dame and Harvard found that research subjects tended to remember unrelated word pairs better if they had learned them shortly before a good night’s sleep, rather than in the morning. Interestingly, it seems that being awake does the exact opposite–creating interference in our memories and causing us to forget some of what we’ve learned.

This just serves as more evidence it’s best not to pull an all-nighter. 徹夜不睡 Try to get 7-8 hours of sleep consistently, and possibly schedule a study session before bedtime.

研究顯示，睡前念書，然後睡飽七至八個小時，有助於我們記得睡前學過的東西。白天醒著的時候因為周遭干擾多，所以反而無助於記憶。因此下回面對大考的時候不要徹夜不睡，熬夜不會提升考試成績。睡前可以念書，然後記得要上床睡飽睡好。

4. Break up long study sessions for better focus 

長時間念書要記得適時休息，有助於重新聚焦

You may be tempted to commit yourself to hours-long study sessions. There’s nothing wrong with having the occasional study-athon馬拉松式的念書方式, just make sure that you give yourself shorts breaks while you work.

Research has shown that when people try to focus on a single task for a long period of time, their minds start to wander.腦袋會開始神遊(注意力不集中) It’s the same phenomenon you experience when you hear the same sound over and over again–you become habituated 適應/習慣to it, and it becomes background. The idea is the same for a task you’re trying to focus on. In essence, you start going through the motions 敷衍了事/裝裝樣子 without actually thinking about what you’re doing.

長時間苦讀不要忘了給自己一點休息時間。研究顯示，長時間把注意力放在一個工作上，腦袋會開始神遊，思緒飄忽，且注意力也會不集中。所以每30到50分鐘就休息十分鐘很重要。

5. Choose the right ink color when writing your notes. 

寫筆記墨水顏色很重要

A 2009 color study from the University of British Columbia revealed that the color red "boosted performance on detail-oriented tasks such as memory retrieval 記憶檢索and proofreading 校對 by as much as 31 percent compared to blue.  Red is a color often associated with danger and mistakes, prompting people to be more cautious and attentive 謹慎與專注 of the task at hand. Likewise, writing notes in red ink is expected to increase attention level,強化注意力 therefore, increasing the chances of information being stored for longer. 

The same study from UBC found that the color blue enhances cognitive performance when it comes to creative tasks such as brainstorming, 腦力激盪 but falls short 不足 compared to red in detailed oriented 細節導向的 tasks. Writing notes in blue ink won't have a huge impact on your retention保留; however, blue notes will be memorable because blue is known to be a trustworthy 值得信賴的 color that resonates 引發共鳴within people.  

Notes written in black ink don't stimulate much thought or attention. When taking notes, it may be best to write general information in black ink and opt for other colors when recording important details. 

研究顯示，紅色墨水是最能引發警覺性與引人注意的顏色。所以對於細節導向的陳述內容，紅色可以提升注意力與記憶度。我們批改校正的時候慣用紅色也是同樣道理。紅色墨水比藍色墨水更能喚醒記憶，校正提示的效果也最好。

不過藍色墨水對於腦力激盪比較有效，所以儘管藍色的筆記內容對於記憶的保留retention沒有太大幫助，但因為藍色是一個普遍被信賴的顏色，很容易引發感性共鳴，所以對記憶力的幫助，還是比黑色墨水來得好。

因此寫筆記的時候，一般陳述可以使用黑色墨水。需要激發想像力或創意的內容，藍色更容易讓人放鬆或信賴，進而刺激創設力。紅色則用來記下重點或重要細節，因為腦袋對紅色的反應最強烈。

6. Chocolate rules! 提升腦袋效能巧克力是寶

According to studies done at Loma Linda University, eating chocolate with a higher concentrations濃度 of cacao can significantly reduce your stress levels. Chocolate boosts your mood and and rejuvenate 恢復活力 your memory and immune system.免疫系統 

Increased blood flow to the brain at the right time has the ability to boost activity on the brain for a period of time, depending on how long the increased blood flow lasts. In a study conducted at Harvard Medical School, it was shown that 2 cups of hot chocolate improved flow to the brain for about 2-3 hours. 

A compound found in chocolate known as flavonoid 可可黃烷醇(一種抗氧化成分) has been proven to help increase blood flow 促進大腦血液循環(血流量)to the brain and this will also:

• boost memory and attention span提升記憶與專注力時間
• improve reaction time 加快反應時間
• improve problem solving skills 提升解題技巧

高濃度可可成分的巧克力富含可可多酚，可以幫我們減壓，提升記憶力與免疫功能。哈佛醫學院研究顯示，兩杯熱巧克力能夠促進大腦血液循環兩至三個小時。

教練補充：

這份研究針對六十位沒有失智，且平均年齡為73的長者進行一個連續三十天的研究，每天讓受測老人喝兩杯不含糖與脂肪的熱可可，再對他們的記憶與思考做測試，測試的同時，也用超聲波測量這些老人的腦部血流量。結果發現，受測者的腦部血液循環改善8.3%，記憶力測試也從平均167秒完成縮短完116秒。

以前教練做同步口譯訓練的時候，老師有放過一個影片給我們看，影片中日本的同步口譯員隨身都會攜帶濃度超過70%的巧克力片，這些口譯員宣稱，巧克力能幫助他們放鬆，去除緊張的情緒，並且提升專注與記憶力。當年我還以為這些日本女生是愛吃巧克力才故意找理由這麼說，現在明白原來真的如此。同步口譯的壓力很大，也很需要強大的短期記憶力，所以吃巧克力還真的一個好選擇呢。