首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
外语
Why We Are Touched By The Sound of Music From simple folksongs to the complex sound of a symphony orchestra, music has been
Why We Are Touched By The Sound of Music From simple folksongs to the complex sound of a symphony orchestra, music has been
admin
2010-08-04
53
问题
Why We Are Touched By The Sound of Music
From simple folksongs to the complex sound of a symphony orchestra, music has been created by every known society. Almost every pivotal event in life can be signposted with music, whether it’s a joyful occasion like a wedding or a sad one such as a funeral. Music, which consistently merges in surveys as the most popular form of art, can be used not only to tap into an emotion a person is already feeling, but to manipulate it in a powerful way. Yet the existence of music mystifies scientists. It’s not a primary means of communication, unlike language. While human beings are the only species to make musical instruments, music does not seem to help us to live longer or pass on our genes more efficiently. So what purpose does it serve?
Participants at the American Association or the Advancement of Science recently attended a performance of the kind of music Neanderthal man might have heard. Working from fragments of musical instruments found alongside Neanderthal relics in Slovenia in 1995, Dr Jelle Atema from Boston University crafted a flute from the 50,000-year-old leg-bone of a bear. His replica showed the flute was not a sophisticated instrument in fact, it had a range of less than one octave--but it was an instrument nonetheless. Dr Atema’s guess is that cavemen used the instrument to attract prospective mates. Although some psychologists feel this is somewhat feeble and doesn’t really explain why a cavewoman should find a caveman flautist more appealing than a tone-deaf rival, the question remains. After all, something must explain why our ancestors were creating music 200,000 years ago.
Psychologists are united in one belief--that music speaks to the heart. What is more, the evidence that music elicits emotion is startlingly direct. A Cornell University study showed recently that certain pieces of music induce physiological changes in the body that correspond to certain emotions. "Sad" pieces caused the pulse to slacken, the blood pressure to rise and the temperature to drop, which is exactly what happens when a sense of sadness sets in. "Happy" songs did the opposite, inducing a cheery feeling. Somehow, music can tap into sensitive emotional circuits.
Geoffrey Miller, a scientist at University College, London, thinks it is clear that music has all the hallmarks of an adaptive behaviour, meaning it was a factor in selecting a mate. "It is universal across cultures, and kids are motivated spontaneously to learn how to play music around the age of puberty," says Dr Miller. He recently conducted an intriguing study of 3,000 jazz albums. The peak age of the performers was 30, and there were ten male performers for every one female. "That’s the same age at which other cultural displays peak, such as painting, poetry and philosophy," Dr Miller points out.
Musical talent, he says, can indicate ninny desirable qualities in a mate: the mental competence to learn notes and lyrics; the social intelligence required to be part of an orchestra and co-operate, literally harmoniously, with other people; creativity and energy. But just because musical competence may have once signalled a good mate doesn’t necessarily mean that every modern woman is searching for that quality--human beings have come to differ in their preferences.
Dr Adrian North, ,a music psychologist at I,eicester University, surveyed Staffordshire teenagers last year about what kind of music they listen to and why. "’lane findings were almost too stereotypical to be true," says Dr North. "While the girls listened to infiuence their mood, boys used music as a way of impressing their friends. Boys seem to like rock and rap because it shows how cool, trendy and macho they are. Boys use music as a badge of identity; it’s a way of telling people about who you are." He also adds that an individual’s choice of music directly influences attractiveness. However, Dr North shies away from saying that music has evolved as a mechanism for mate selection.
Stephen Pinker, the American psychologist, does not subscribe to the view that music has evolved as a way of showing off to prospective mates. "Compared with language, vision, social reasoning and physical know-how, music could vanish from our species and the rest of our lifestyle would be virtually unchanged," the writes in How the Mind Works. Directly contradicting Dr Miller, he concludes: "Music shows the clearest signs of not being an adaptation."
So if music confers no survival advantage, why does it exist7 Pinker calls it "auditory cheese- cake", a confection of sounds put together to tickle faculties that our brain already possesses. In his view, songs with lyrics appeal to a brain already attuned to language; the ear is sensitive to harmonies, and sounds in the natural world, such as birdsong and even thunder, echo such harmonies; we derive pleasure from patterns and rhythm, and repetitive sounds appeal to the ear in the same way that a repeated doodle appeals to the eye.
But how does music "move" us? Last week scientists from the University of Manchester revealed that loud music stimulates a part of the inner ear called the sacculus, which is connected to the hypothalamus, the brain’s "pleasure center". This could explain why music is so evocative. Interestingly, the sacculus exists only in fish and human beings ( it came from a common ancestor). That might shed light on why human beings alone attach such importance to making music. The sacculus responds only to music, which suggests one reason why music, rather than any other form of sound, in- spires such delight.
Music is twice as popular as painting as a form of art.
选项
A、Y
B、N
C、NG
答案
C
解析
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/PQA7777K
0
大学英语四级
相关试题推荐
Weareallnaturallyattractedtopeoplewithideas,beliefsandinterestsliketheirown.Similarly,wefeelcomfortablewithp
Withoptimismcharacteristicofallindustrializedcountries,______(我们逐渐接受了每个人都适合接受教育的观点).
Writeacompositiononmyviewonproducingnuclearweapons.Yourcompositionshouldbemorethan120words.1.陈述你的观点。
A、Helpingafriendfindtherightdepartment.B、Buyinghimselfsomeshoes.C、Takingaclassatthegymnasium.D、Returningajogg
A、Thestategovernment.B、Thelocalgovernment.C、Thecollegeoruniversity.D、Aforeignstudent’snativecountry.C
Peoplecanbeaddictedtodifferentthings--e,g.,alcohol,drugs,certainfoods,oreventelevision.Peoplewhohavesuchana
Don’tLetDepressionRuinaGoodThingFeelingdown?Gottheblues?You’renotalone.Everyonegets.sad(yes,everyoneyou’
A、Doctorandnurse.B、Customerandwaitress.C、Bossandsecretary.D、Managerandclerk.B
A、Achemistryassignment.B、Astudythattheirchemistryprofessordid.C、Aclassthatthewomanistaking.D、Ajobpossibility.
Morethanthree-quartersofthechildrenweinterviewedsaidthey’resometimesafraidtobehomealone.Ifyoudecideyourchild
随机试题
T细胞的TCR识别的MHC分子部位是
肾的被膜,由内向外依次是
A.溶解氧B.生化需氧量C.化学耗氧量D.悬浮物E.混浊度一定时间和温度下,水体中有机污染物受微生物分解所耗去水体溶解氧的总量()
一男士45岁,平日不嗜烟酒、爱运动。性格平和,过分容忍,常顺从于别人。有时办事无主见,从不表现出愤怒、不满等不良情绪。一月前体检发现患有胃癌,做手术将胃大部切除。术后情绪低落,对各种事的兴趣下降,有悲观厌世之念。
纳税人自觉纳税表明纳税人自觉遵守税法,是法制观念强的表现,不能以此否定税收的()。
某商业广场首层为超市,设置了12个安全出口。超市经营单位为了防盗封闭了10个安全出口。根据《中华人民共和国消防法》,消防部门在责令超市经营单位改正的同时,应当并处()。
确实地相信叫_________;非常地相信叫_________;坚决地相信叫_________;忠实地信仰叫_________。填入画横线部分最恰当的一项是:
某公司拟发行8年期债券进行筹资,债券票面金额为1200元,票面利率为10%,当时市场利率为10%,计算以下两种情况下该公司债券发行价格应为多少才是合适的。(1)单利计息,到期一次还本付息。(2)每年付息一次,到期一次还本。
在中国历史上,鲜卑、契丹、金人和满族,都起源于()平原。
A:Hi.Tom.Howareyou?B:Notverygood.A:Sorry.【24】【25】【26】(怎么了)?B:Idon’tknow.ThesedaysIalwayshave
最新回复
(
0
)