[by:可可英语～m.moreplr.com]
[00:00.01]Have you ever heard that we humans use only ten percent of our brains? 
你是否曾经听说过我们人类只使用了大脑的百分之十？
[00:08.24]This oft-quoted myth holds a certain appeal because if it were true, then we could instantly become ten times more intelligent just by firing up that sleepy majority of the brain!
这个被经常引用的神话般的说法颇具吸引力，因为如果这种说法属实，那么我们只要激活沉睡的大部分大脑就可以比现在聪明十倍！
[00:19.08]Animals Experiments
动物实验
[00:25.16]The idea that we use only a small fraction of the brain dates back to animal experiments in the 19th century. 
人类只使用了大脑很小一部分的观点可以追溯到19世纪的动物实验。
[00:32.02]When scientists stimulated a specific part of the brain, the animal moved its leg or tail. 
科学家刺激动物大脑的某个特殊部分时，动物的腿部或尾巴就会动弹。
[00:37.29]If a tiny part of the brain could do something so grand, what was the use of the rest of the brain? 
当如果大脑这微小的一部分就可以引起这么大的动作，那么大脑其它部分有什么作用呢？
[00:43.32]Some scientists assumed (rather unscientifically) that large parts of the brain were simply useless.
一些科学家则假设（其实相当不科学）大脑的大部分没有任何作用。
[00:50.10]Then, in the early 20th century, scientists observed that stimulating certain regions of the brain had no physical effects. 
到了20世纪早期，科学家观察到，刺激动物大脑某个区域其身体没有任何反应。
[00:57.24]They dubbed these seemingly useless parts of the brain the “silent cortex.” 
于是他们把这部分看起来无用的大脑称作“沉默的皮质”。
[01:01.38]Today we know that in humans, much of the “silent cortex” is actually devoted to complex activities like language, learning, and imagining.
如今我们都知道，在人类大脑中，许多“沉默的皮质”实际上在一些复杂活动诸如语言、学习和想象等方面发挥着重要的作用。
[01:09.57]Brain Scans
脑部扫描
[01:10.54]Brain scans have shown that different parts of the brain crackle into heightened activity as we shift our attention and focus, 
脑部扫描表明，当我们转移注意力或聚精会神时，大脑不同部位顿时提高活动强度，
[01:17.12]but even as we sleep, many areas of the brain are extremely active. 
即使我们睡觉时，大脑的许多区域也极其活跃。
[01:21.50]Would you be smarter if your entire brain constantly worked to maximum capacity? 
如果整个大脑充分持续运转，人是否就会更聪明？
[01:26.42]Interestingly enough, the opposite is probably true. The less brain activity you need to perform a given task, the more the brain as a whole is capable of doing.
有趣的是，结果恰恰相反。执行一项既定任务时脑部活动越少，大脑作为一个整体能做的事情就越多。