简介：
Music Helps You Work Harder
干活儿太累？编首小曲儿哼哼~
Physical labor is often made easier when accompanied by music. But is it merely listening to music that helps, or is it more motivating to participate in the music itself?
音乐会让体力劳动变得更轻松。不过，到底是听的过程本身起的作用，还参与进音乐创作之中更能减轻劳动的负荷呢？
撰文/播音 克里斯蒂•尼克尔森(Christie Nicholson)
翻译 尹秋媛
Music helps us get through hard, physical work. Think of the songs produced by soldiers marching or chain gangs building railroads.
士兵在行军过程中会一起唱歌，修造铁路的囚犯们也会呼喊号子，这都是由于听音乐能帮助减轻重体力劳动的负荷，
But does simply hearing the music account for the effect? Or is there a bigger boost when the workers themselves make the music?
但是，只听听音乐就能产生这样效果吗？又或者，是创作音乐的过程，减轻了体力劳动的痛苦？
To find out, scientists had subjects exercise on a fitness machine under two conditions. In one trial, the volunteers just listened to music. In the second run, the machines were rigged to start playing music only when the participant began to move. And the pace at which the subject exercised determined the speed of the music.
科学家为找到原因，分别让志愿者在两种情况下使用健身器材。第一个试验中的志愿者边运动边放音乐；而在第二次试验中，只有当志愿者使用健身器时才能带动音乐播放，并且，音乐播放的快慢取决于志愿者运动的速度。
Measurements of the participants’ oxygen intake and muscle tension showed that they actually expended less energy when they controlled the music. The participants also rated their perceived level of exertion as being lower when their actions dictated the sound. The study is in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
研究人员测量了志愿者的耗氧量和肌张力，发现第二个试验中的那些能够控制音乐速度志愿者消耗的能量更少，这些志愿者自己也认为他们并没有感到有多疲劳。这项研究的结果发表在PNAS上。
So next time you’re working the elliptical at the gym, perhaps make your own music. You could simply sing along to whatever’s playing on the loudspeakers. Unless it’s Blurred Lines. Work it. Don’t twerk it.
所以，下次你到健身房踩椭圆机的时候，试试自己编首歌唱唱吧。只要没遇上Blurred Lines 这首歌，你都可以尝试跟着扩音器播放的音乐哼唱。专心哼唱！别走神了哦！
(题图来源：http://cdn2.hubspot.net/)
