Mind-reading1 Machine

    A team of researchers in California has developed a way to predict what kinds of objects people are looking at by scanning what’s happening in their brains.

    When you look at something, your eyes send a signal about that object to your brain. Different regions of the brain process the information your eyes send. Cells in your brain called neurons are responsible for this processing.

    The fMRI (functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging)2 brain scans could generally match electrical activity in the brain to the basic shape of a picture that someone was looking at.

    Like cells anywhere else in your body, active neurons use oxygen. Blood brings oxygen to the neurons, and the more active a neuron is, the more oxygen it will consume. The more active a region of the brain, the more active its neurons, and in turn, the more blood will travel to that region. And by using fMRI, scientists can visualize3 which parts of the brain receive more oxygen-rich blood — and therefore, which parts are working to process information.

    An fMRI machine is a device that scans the brain and measures changes in blood flow to the brain. The technology shows researchers how brain activity changes when a person thinks, looks at something, or carries out an activity like speaking or reading. By highlighting the areas of the brain at work when a person looks at different images, fMRI may help scientists determine specific patterns of brain activity associated with different kinds of images.

    The California researchers tested brain activity by having two volunteers view hundreds of pictures of everyday objects, like people, animals, and fruits. The scientists used an fMRI machine to record the volunteers’ brain activity with each photograph they looked at. Different objects caused different regions of the volunteers’ brains to light up on the scan, indicating activity. The scientists used this information to build a model to predict how the brain might respond to any image the eyes see.

    In a second test, the scientists asked the volunteers to look at 120 new pictures. Like before, their brains were scanned every time they looked at a new image. This time, the scientists used their model to match the fMRI scans to the image. For example, if a scan in the second test showed the same pattern of brain activity that was strongly related to pictures of apples in the first test, their model would have predicted the volunteers were looking at apples.

 

词汇：

scan /skAn/ v. &n. 扫描

neuron /5njuErCn/ n. 神经元

visualize /5vIzjJElaIz/ v.使可见；设想

 

注释:

1. Mind-reading: 能读出（猜出）人的想法的。 mind-read: 可做动词，如， As a successful salesman, he is able to mind-read his customers.

2. FMRI（functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging）：功能性磁振造影。这是一种新兴的神经影像学方式，其原理是利用磁振造影来测量神经元活动所引发之血液动力的改变。

3. visualize: 意为 make（something）visible to the eye，即“使可见，使显现 ”。

 “Highlighting the areas of the brain at work” means

A:“marking the parts of the brain that are processing information” B:“giving light to the parts of the brain that are processing information” C:“putting the parts of the brain to work” D:“stopping the parts of the brain from working”

The brain works much more efficiently when ______.

A:both sides of the brain are used equally B:the left side is fully developed C:scientists work on it D:the right side is fully developed

A team of researchers in California has developed a way to predict what kinds of objects people are looking at by scanning what’s happening in their brains.
When you look at something, your eyes send a signal about that object to your brain. Different regions of the brain process the information your eyes send cells in your brain called neurons are responsible for this processing.
The fMRI (functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging) brain scans could generally match electrical activity in the brain to the basic shape of a picture that someone was looking at.
Like cells anywhere else in your body, active neurons use oxygen. Blood brings oxygen to the neurons, and the more active a neuron is, the more oxygen it will consume. The more active a region of the brain, the more active its neurons, and in turn, the more blood will travel to that region. And by using fMRI, scientists can visualize which parts of the brain receive more oxygen-rich blood--and therefore, which parts are working to process information.
An fMRI machine is a device that scans the brain and measures changes in blood flow to the brain. The technology shows researchers how brain activity changes when a person thinks, looks at something, or carries out an activity like speaking or reading. By highlighting the areas of the brain at work when a person looks at different images, fMRI may help scientists determine specific patterns of brain activity associated with different kinds of images.
The California researchers tested brain activity by having two volunteers view hundreds of pictures of everyday objects, like people, animals, and fruits. The scientists used an fMRI machine to record the volunteers’ brain activity with each photograph they looked at. Different objects caused different regions of the volunteers’ brains to light up on the scan, indicating activity. The scientists used this information to build a model to predict how the brain might respond to any image the eyes see.
In a second test, the scientists asked the volunteers to look at 120 new pictures. Like before, their brains were scanned every time they looked at a new image. This time, the scientists used their model to match the fMRI scans to the image. For example, if a scan in the second test showed the same pattern of brain activity that was strongly related to pictures of apples in the first test, their model would have predicted the volunteers were looking at apples.
What is responsible for processing the information sent by your eyes

A:A small region of the brain. B:The central part of the brain. C:Neurons in the brain. D:Oxygen-rich blood

A team of researchers in California has developed a way to predict what kinds of objects people are looking at by scanning what’s happening in their brains.
When you look at something, your eyes send a signal about that object to your brain. Different regions of the brain process the information your eyes send cells in your brain called neurons are responsible for this processing.
The fMRI (functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging) brain scans could generally match electrical activity in the brain to the basic shape of a picture that someone was looking at.
Like cells anywhere else in your body, active neurons use oxygen. Blood brings oxygen to the neurons, and the more active a neuron is, the more oxygen it will consume. The more active a region of the brain, the more active its neurons, and in turn, the more blood will travel to that region. And by using fMRI, scientists can visualize which parts of the brain receive more oxygen-rich blood--and therefore, which parts are working to process information.
An fMRI machine is a device that scans the brain and measures changes in blood flow to the brain. The technology shows researchers how brain activity changes when a person thinks, looks at something, or carries out an activity like speaking or reading. By highlighting the areas of the brain at work when a person looks at different images, fMRI may help scientists determine specific patterns of brain activity associated with different kinds of images.
The California researchers tested brain activity by having two volunteers view hundreds of pictures of everyday objects, like people, animals, and fruits. The scientists used an fMRI machine to record the volunteers’ brain activity with each photograph they looked at. Different objects caused different regions of the volunteers’ brains to light up on the scan, indicating activity. The scientists used this information to build a model to predict how the brain might respond to any image the eyes see.
In a second test, the scientists asked the volunteers to look at 120 new pictures. Like before, their brains were scanned every time they looked at a new image. This time, the scientists used their model to match the fMRI scans to the image. For example, if a scan in the second test showed the same pattern of brain activity that was strongly related to pictures of apples in the first test, their model would have predicted the volunteers were looking at apples.
"Highlighting the areas of the brain at work" means______.

A:"marking the parts of the brain that are processing information" B:"giving light to the parts of the brain that are processing information" C:"putting the parts of the brain to work" D:"stopping the parts of the brain from working"

Some drugs taken in large quantities cause permanent brain damage.（　）

A:temporary B:intermittent C:lasting D:instant

Some drugs taken in large quantities cause {{U}}permanent{{/U}} brain damage.

A:temporary B:intermittent C:lasting D:instant

The brain controls the other body activities through

A:medical devices. B:small electrodes. C:the nerve cells. D:the brain waves.

第三篇Wayne Beno 　　Wayne Beno was a true outdoorsman.Fishing,boating,hunting,walking through the woods with his three dogs,Wayne loved and did it all.Then life changed dramatically.Wayne was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease(帕金森氏病). 　　“For the next thirteen years I took 28 pills a day,had horrible side effects,and even with all those pills I still had lots of shaking and tremors(颤抖).I only went out during peak times,when I was looking and feeling my best.But that wasn’t often and I really couldn’t do much of anything.I felt like the life I loved was over,”said Wayne. 　　Then Wayne’s doctor in Green Bay suggested he consider a breakthrough surgical option being offered at Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin called Deep Brain Stimulation(刺激)(DBS).DBS is a surgical option used to treat disabling movement disorders related to Parkinson’s disease,essential tremor and more.It is not a cure,but significant improvement is seen in most movement disorder cases,with relatively low risk to the patient. 　　In addition to his doctor’s recommendation,Wayne had a neighbor and fishing friend who had the DBS procedure at Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin.His friend’s experience convinced Wayne that the 180-mile trip from his home in Crivitz,Wisconsin could be well worth the effort. 　　And was it ever. 　　“It was the best thing I ever did.I’m down to zero pills a day and I don’t shake at all,”reports Wayne.“Before the surgery,I felt bad every single day.Now I feel like my old self.I’m back to business as usual,which for me means fishing,fishing,and more fishing,every day of the year.Things just couldn’t be any better!” Deep Brain Stimulation is most effective for

A:mental disorders. B:chronic diseases. C:permanent brain injuries. D:disabling movement disorders.

第三篇

Wayne Beno
"Wayne Beno was a true outdoorsman. Fishing, boating, hunting, walking through the woods with his three dogs, Wayne loved and did it all. Then life changed dramatically. Wayne was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease (帕金森氏病).
"For the next thirteen years I took 28 pills a day, had horrible side effects, and even with all those pills I still had lots of shaking and tremors(颤抖). I only went out during peak times, when I was looking and feeling my best. But that wasn’t often and I really couldn’t do much of anything. I felt like the fife I loved was over," said Wayne.
Then Wayne’s doctor in Green Bay suggested he consider a breakthrough surgical option being offered at Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin called Deep Brain Stimulation (刺激) (DBS). DBS is a surgical option used to treat disabling movement disorders related to Parkinson’s disease, essential tremor and more. It is not a cure, but significant improvement is seen in most movement disorder cases, with relatively low risk to the patient.
In addition to his doctor’s recommendation, Wayne had a neighbor and fishing friend who had the DBS procedure at Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin. His friend’s experience convinced Wayne that the 180-mile trip from his home in Crivitz, Wisconsin could be well worth the effort.
And was it ever.
"It was the best thing I ever did. I’m down to zero pills a day and I don’t shake at all," reports Wayne. "Before the surgery, I felt bad every single day. Now I feel like my old self. I’m back to business as usual, which for me means fishing, fishing, and more fishing, every day of the year. Things just couldn’t be any better!"

Deep Brain Stimulation is most effective for （）

A:mental disorders B:chronic diseases C:permanent brain injuries D:disabling movement disorders