Questões de Vestibular
Sobre sinônimos | synonyms em inglês
Foram encontradas 293 questões
Q1340968
Inglês
Texto associado
Leia o infográfico para responder à questão.
(www.medicalnewstoday.com. Adaptado.)
No primeiro quadro, Breads & Rolls, a expressão even though
pode ser substituída, sem alteração de sentido, por
Q1340965
Inglês
Texto associado
Leia o texto para responder à questão.
Do fat people stay warmer than thin people?
Pack on some extra pounds for winter
By Daniel Engber
01.02.2014
At the yearly Rottnest Channel Swim in Western Australia, participants often smear their bodies with animal fat for insulation against the 70-degree water. But their own body fat also helps to keep them warm, like an extra layer of clothing beneath the skin. When scientists studied aspects of the event in 2006, they found that swimmers with a greater body mass index (BMI) appear to be at much lower risk of getting hypothermia.
The same effect has been demonstrated in hospitals where patients who’ve suffered cardiac arrest are treated with “therapeutic hypothermia” to stave off brain injury and inflammation. Studies have shown that it takes longer to induce hypothermia in obese patients than in their leaner counterparts. The extra fat seems to insulate the body’s core.
Under certain conditions, though, overweight people might feel colder than people of average weight. That’s because the brain combines two signals — the temperature inside the body and the temperature on the surface of the skin — to determine when it’s time to constrict blood vessels (which limits heat loss through the skin) and trigger shivering (which generates heat). And since subcutaneous fat traps heat, an obese person’s core will tend to remain warm while his or her skin cools down. According to Catherine O’Brien, a research physiologist with the U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine, it’s possible that the lower skin temperature would give fatter people the sense of being colder overall.
But O’Brien points out that many other factors beyond subcutaneous fat help determine the rate at which we chill. Smaller people, who have more surface area compared to the total volume of their bodies, lose heat more quickly. (It’s often said that women feel colder than men; average body size may play a part.) A more muscular physique may also offer some protection against hypothermia, partly because muscle tissue generates lots of heat. “We have a joke around here that the person who’s best-suited for cold is fit and fat,” says O’Brien.
(www.popsci.com)
No trecho do segundo parágrafo – The same effect has been
demonstrated in hospitals where patients who’ve suffered cardiac
arrest are treated with “therapeutic hypothermia” to stave off
brain injury and inflammation. –, a expressão em destaque pode
ser substituída, sem alteração de sentido, por
Q1340909
Inglês
Texto associado
INSTRUÇÃO: Para responder às questão, considere o texto abaixo.
Am I too old to learn a new language?
Adapted from:<https://www.theguardian.com/education/2014/sep/13/am-i-too-old-to-learn-a-language>
O “phrasal verb” “put off” (l. 02) é sinônimo
de
Q1340096
Inglês
Texto associado
Text 1
Typhoon, Hurricane, Cyclone: What's the Difference?
By Ker Than, for National Geographic
Published September 25, 2013.
A powerful typhoon that struck Hong Kong on
Sunday killed at least 30 people and forced the evacuation
of thousands of people on the China mainland, and
hundreds of flights were canceled. Typhoon Usagi—
Japanese for rabbit—is the third and strongest Pacific
typhoon to form this year. It was classified as a severe, or
"super," typhoon after meteorologists recorded gusts of up
to 160 miles per hour (260 kilometers per hour).
If you've never lived in Asia, you might be
wondering what it feels like to experience a typhoon. But
if you've ever survived a hurricane or cyclone, you already
know the answer. That's because hurricanes, cyclones, and
typhoons are all the same weather phenomenon. Scientists
just call these storms different things depending on where
they occur.
In the Atlantic and northern Pacific, the storms are
called "hurricanes," after the Caribbean god of evil,
named Hurrican. In the northwestern Pacific, the same
powerful storms are called "typhoons." In the southeastern
Indian Ocean and southwestern Pacific, they are called
"severe tropical cyclones. In the northern Indian Ocean,
they're called "severe cyclonic storms." In the
southwestern Indian Ocean, they're just "tropical
cyclones."
To be classified as a hurricane, typhoon, or
cyclone, a storm must reach wind speeds of at least 74
miles per hour (119 kilometers per hour). If a hurricane's
winds reach speeds of 111 miles per hour (179 kilometers
per hour), it is upgraded to an "intense hurricane." If a
typhoon hits 150 miles per hour (241 kilometers per
hour)—as Usagi did—then it becomes a "supertyphoon."
(Excerpt from the site:
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/09/130923-
typhoon-hurricanecycloneprimernaturaldisaster/?source=hp_dl2_news_typhoon_e
xplainer_20130924. Researched on: October 2015).
In the excerpt “A powerful typhoon that struck Hong Kong on Sunday” the CORRECT synonym for the underlined word is:
Q1335807
Inglês
Texto associado
Leia o texto para responder à questão.
The placebo effect: amazing and real
November 2, 2015
Robert H. Shmerling
The placebo effect is a mysterious thing. I’ve long been
fascinated by the idea that something as inert and harmless
as a sugar pill could relieve a person’s pain or hasten their
recovery just by the expectation that it would. Studies use
placebos – an inactive treatment, such as a sugar pill – in
an attempt to understand the true impact of the active drug.
Comparing what happens to a group of patients taking the
active drug with the results of those taking a placebo can help
researchers understand just how good the active drug is.
The word “placebo” comes from Latin and means “I shall
please.” And “please” it does. In study after study, many
patients who take a placebo show improvement in their
symptoms or condition.
The placebo effect is for real
Recent research on the placebo effect only confirms how
powerful it can be – and that the benefits of a placebo treatment
aren’t just “all in your head.” Measureable physiological
changes can be observed in those taking a placebo, similar to
those observed among people taking effective medications.
In particular, blood pressure, heart rate, and blood test results
have been shown to improve among subsets of research
subjects who responded to a placebo.
Of course, not everyone has a therapeutic response to a
placebo. If that were the case, we wouldn’t need medications
at all. Instead, we could simply wield the power of suggestion.
Understanding why certain people improve with placebo
treatment and others do not is the “holy grail” of placebo research.
Nocebo: Placebo’s evil twin
The power of suggestion is a double-edged sword. If
you expect a treatment to help you, it’s more likely to do so.
And if you expect a treatment will be harmful, you are more
likely to experience negative effects. That phenomenon is
called the “nocebo effect” (from the Latin “I shall harm”). For
example, if you tell a person that a headache is a common
side effect of a particular medication, that person is more
likely to report headaches even if they are actually taking a
placebo. The power of expectation is formidable and probably
plays a significant role in the benefits and the side effects of
commonly prescribed medications.
(www.health.harvard.edu. Adaptado.)
No trecho do quarto parágrafo “If that were the case, we
wouldn’t need medications at all.”, a expressão em destaque
pode ser substituída, sem alteração de sentido, por
Ano: 2015
Banca:
Cepros
Órgão:
CESMAC
Prova:
Cepros - 2015 - CESMAC - Prova Medicina-2015.2- 1° DIA- PROVA TIPO-2 |
Q1333854
Inglês
Texto associado
Read the text/below/and answer following four
questions according to it.
Viagra abuse in teens
There are several reasons why teenagers may
experiment with erectile dysfunction medication. Of
course, a common reason why teens may be tempted to
take an erectile dysfunction (ED) medication is out of sexual
curiosity. Teens may mistakenly think that these
medications will increase sexual potency, make them
somehow “better” sexually, or make them last longer.
Premature ejaculation is common in this age group, and
they may be hoping to find a pill to help. However, they do
not realize that Viagra will not help them last longer.
Beyond sexual curiosity, another major reason why some
teenagers may think they want Viagra or other erectile
dysfunction drugs is that they may have heard a rumor that
it can improve their athletic performance. Research has
been discussed in The NY Times and NY Daily News about
the use of Viagra to relieve constriction of blood vessels in
the lungs, improving blood flow, breathing, and athletic
endurance.
Another reason why teens may try Viagra or another erectile
medication is to attempt to increase the effect of other drugs
or alcohol; despite the fact that this is a very dangerous
use of these medications. Sometimes this is also related to
sports performance, as someone on steroids may think it
will enhance the effect of the steroids, or resolve steroidrelated erectile dysfunction. There have also been reports of
teenagers and twentysomethings taking Viagra with
alcohol or with Ecstasy (the combination called “Sextasy”),
since Ecstasy or alcohol may heighten desire while
lessening erectile ability. This dangerous combination
could be deadly, and at the very least contributes to a
reduction of safer sex practices.
Teenagers, (or anyone of any age who does not have
clinically diagnosed erectile dysfunction and a prescription
from a doctor), must stay away from Viagra, Cialis,
Levitra, or any other erectile dysfunction medication. They
can certainly cause physical side effects like dizziness,
headache, chest tightness, vision problems including loss of
vision, irregular heartbeat, and more severe
issues. Teachers and parents must teach teenagers about
drugs — and sex.
Adaptado de: <http://sarilocker.com/blog/2009/07/31/viagra-abusein-teens/>
Acessado em 01 de maio de 2015.
In the sentence “…as someone on steroids may think
it will enhance the effect of the steroids”, enhance is a
synonym of
Ano: 2017
Banca:
Cepros
Órgão:
CESMAC
Prova:
Cepros - 2017 - CESMAC - Prova de Medicina- 2017.2- 1° DIA- PROVA TIPO 1 |
Q1333745
Inglês
Texto associado
Read the text below and answer the following questions based on it.
The Healing Power of Music
What better “medicine” than a “treatment” that has only positive side effects and “therapy” that is actually enjoyable? Music is shown to have the ability to help organize the brain; especially vital to those who are afflicted with Alzheimer’s.
Studies have shown that the results of a musical therapy session last for several hours afterward. Positive results include elevated mood, increased socialization and appetite and reduction in agitation. These benefits are attributed to the stimulation the brain receives during a music therapy session, a sort of “cognitive workout”.
As speech, writing and traditional forms of communication are compromised, music provides an alternative means of maintaining a connection, thereby helping to normalize interaction between caregiver and patient. Music used therapeutically creates an environment where the patient can be nurtured and cared for in a way that is safe, gentle and appropriate. Music is central to maintaining human bonds when those with dementia have lost the ability to initiate communication or to respond verbally.
The powers of music when focused and used therapeutically are many. Critical to maintaining quality of life for those with Alzheimer’s is management of emotions and preserving the connection with others. Music is conducive to keeping those connections strong as long as possible while helping the participant to focus, increase awareness and orient to the environment. A number of research studies have looked at music therapy as an important adjunct to medical treatment and findings suggest a possible link between the use of music and slowing the progression of dementia.
Music is primal to life and expressed by each of us every day whether through dancing to a favorite tune, keeping rhythm with a pencil or remembering a special time when hearing a forgotten melody. It is central to our lives and is embedded in our culture, defining how we acknowledge milestones, rites of passage and celebrations as well as providing comfort, transformation and inspiration.
In the sentence “As speech, writing and traditional
forms of communication are compromised,…” a
possible contextual synonym for compromised is
Ano: 2018
Banca:
Cepros
Órgão:
CESMAC
Prova:
Cepros - 2018 - CESMAC - Processo Seletivo Tradicional- 2019.1- AGRESTE |
Q1331563
Inglês
All of the following are a synonym of shrink except for
Ano: 2018
Banca:
Cepros
Órgão:
CESMAC
Prova:
Cepros - 2018 - CESMAC - Prova de Medicina-2018.2- 1° DIA- PROVA TIPO 1 |
Q1331514
Inglês
Texto associado
Read the text below and answer the following
question based on it.
Loneliness may harm sleep quality for young adults
Researchers from King's College London have found that
young adults who reported feeling lonely were more likely to
experience poor sleep quality, daytime tiredness, and poor
concentration than their non-lonely counterparts.
Although loneliness is often perceived as a problem that
primarily affects older adults, recent research has suggested
that this is not the case.
However, according to the researchers of the new study,
less is known about how loneliness affects the health of
young adults - in particular, how it impacts sleep quality.
"In the present study, we tested associations between
loneliness and sleep quality in a nationally representative
sample of young adults," say Prof. Louise Arseneault, of the
Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience at
King's, and colleagues.
The researchers analyzed the data of 2,232 young adults
aged 18 to 19 years. They asked the participants four questions to measure their feelings of loneliness, including,
"How often do you feel that you lack companionship?" and
"How often do you feel alone?"
Additionally, the researchers gathered information on the
participants' sleep quality over the past month, including
sleep duration, sleep disturbances, and how long it takes
them to fall asleep.
The analysis revealed that the lonely participants were 10
percent more likely to have poor sleep quality than subjects
who did not report loneliness, and they were 24 percent
more likely to experience daytime tiredness and problems
with concentration.
These findings remained after accounting for a number of
possible confounding factors, including symptoms
of anxiety, depression, and other mental health disorders.
Although the study was not designed to investigate the
mechanisms underlying the link between loneliness and
poor sleep quality, the researchers have some theories.
For example, they point to previous studies that have
identified a link between loneliness and an increase in the
"stress hormone" cortisol, which could lead to sleep
disruption.
Adaptado de: <
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/317563.php?sr>
Acessado em 02 de abril de 2018.
In the sentence "...the lonely participants were 10
percent more likely to have poor sleep quality than
subjects who did not report loneliness..." a synonym for
likely is
Ano: 2017
Banca:
Cepros
Órgão:
CESMAC
Prova:
Cepros - 2017 - CESMAC - Processo Seletivo Tradicional-2018.1- AGRESTE |
Q1331349
Inglês
Texto associado
Read the text below and answer the following questions based on it.
In 2017 the protestant church is celebrating an important event: the 500th anniversary of the Reformation
On October 31, 2017 protestants will celebrate that historic
day when Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses on the door of
the castle church in Wittenberg, an act which shook the
religious world of the time.
The 500th Reformation anniversary also means a great deal to Heidelberg. The then capital of the Kurpfalz (the Electoral Palatinate) played an important role in the spreading of the new doctrine. On April 26, 1518, Martin Luther visited Heidelberg, residence of the Elector Princes. As in Wittenberg, he proclaimed his 95 theses and defended himself before the General Chapter of the Augustine monks at the famous Heidelberg Defense. The commemorative Luther plaque marks where the Augustine abbey once stood. In 1563 the famous Heidelberg Catechism was formulated, the most significant confessional document in the reformed Christian faith the world over.
The 500th Reformation anniversary also means a great deal to Heidelberg. The then capital of the Kurpfalz (the Electoral Palatinate) played an important role in the spreading of the new doctrine. On April 26, 1518, Martin Luther visited Heidelberg, residence of the Elector Princes. As in Wittenberg, he proclaimed his 95 theses and defended himself before the General Chapter of the Augustine monks at the famous Heidelberg Defense. The commemorative Luther plaque marks where the Augustine abbey once stood. In 1563 the famous Heidelberg Catechism was formulated, the most significant confessional document in the reformed Christian faith the world over.
Disponível em:<http://www.heidelberg-marketing.de/en/culture/500-years-reformation.html>Acessado em
13 de outubro de 2017
In “The then capital of the Kurpfalz (the Electoral
Palatinate) played an important role in the spreading of
the new doctrine.”, the word spreading is a synonym
of
Ano: 2019
Banca:
FUNDATEC
Órgão:
SEBRAE - SP
Prova:
FUNDATEC - 2019 - SEBRAE - SP - Vestibular - Graduação em Administração |
Q1321812
Inglês
Texto associado
Para responder à questão, considere o texto abaixo:
Do you have Fobo?
Para responder à questão considere, além do texto anterior, as figuras abaixo:
Na Figura 1, qual palavra abaixo seria uma substituição adequada para “dope”?
Ano: 2011
Banca:
COPERVE - UFSC
Órgão:
UFSC
Prova:
COPERVE - UFSC - 2011 - UFSC - Vestibular - Português / Inglês / Matemática / Biologia |
Q1310590
Inglês
Texto associado
Adapted from: <http://www.glasbergen.com/tag/tourist-cartoons/>
Accessed on July 17th, 2011.
Select the proposition(s) below that can be used to REPLACE the underlined expression in the sentence “If you need to reach me, call my shellphone”.
To communicate with me.
Q1300893
Inglês
Texto associado
Disponível em: https://www.who.int/mediacentre/events/2015/world-antibiotic-awareness-week/infographics/en/. Acesso em: 02 maio 2019.
Considering the linguistics aspects presented in the infographic, we verify that
Ano: 2018
Banca:
PUC - RJ
Órgão:
PUC - RJ
Prova:
PUC - RJ - 2018 - PUC - RJ - Vestibular - Inglês - Grupo 1,3,4,5 - 1º dia - Tarde |
Q1298379
Inglês
Texto associado
Available at
In the fragment “Young and thin ice can regrow relatively
quickly once the dark and cold winter sets in.” (lines 55-57),
sets in can be replaced, without change in meaning, by
Ano: 2018
Banca:
PUC - RJ
Órgão:
PUC - RJ
Prova:
PUC - RJ - 2018 - PUC - RJ - Vestibular - Inglês - Grupo 2 - 1º dia - manhã |
Q1298280
Inglês
Texto associado
Available a
In the fragment “This kind of science fiction may turn out to
be remarkably prescient.” (lines 6-8), the expression turn
out to be can be replaced, without change in meaning, by
Ano: 2018
Banca:
UNEB
Órgão:
UNEB
Prova:
UNEB - 2018 - UNEB - Vestibular - Português/Inglês/Ciências humanas |
Q1284429
Inglês
The expression “on the fence” (l. 16) should be understood as
Q1280878
Inglês
Texto associado
Leia o texto para responder a questão.
HEALTH
PEOPLE WITH A SENSE OF PURPOSE LIVE LONGER,
STUDY SUGGESTS
BY KASHMIRA GANDER ON 5/24/19 AT 11:10 AM EDT
People who have a sense of purpose in life appear to
live longer, according to the latest research linking
this outlook to a person’s quality of life and to better
physical and mental health.
The authors of the study published in the journal
JAMA Network Open looked at data collected from 6,985 adults who were signed up to the Health
and Retirement Study on people ages 50 and above
in the US. The team looked at a group who completed
a questionnaire in 2006 about their purpose in life,
and used it to come up with a score. On average, the
participants were 68.6 years old. Next, the scientists
looked at causes of death in the group between 2006
and 2010. Variables included their demographic,
marital status, race and education level. Lifestyle
choices like smoking and drinking were also noted.
Purpose was defined by the authors as a selforganizing life aim that stimulates goals, promotes
healthy behaviors and gives meaning to life.
The data revealed that the stronger the participants
felt they had a purpose in life, the lower their risk of
dying. This result remained even when the scientists
adjusted their calculations for factors that could affect
their score, such as a participants’ sociodemographic
status and their health.
But scientists don’t know why there seems to be a
link between purposefulness and the length of life.
One explanation is that the attitude and overall wellbeing could prevent genes linked with inflammation
from being expressed in the body. Meanwhile, lacking
a purpose could dampen a person’s motivation to be
healthy and active, the authors suggested.
Andrew Oswald, a professor of economics and
behavioral science at the University of Warwick, in the
U.K., who studies human happiness, told Newsweek:
“It is as though the mind and body can draw on a pool
of immune responses, and a healthy mind allows the
body more immune response, in some way that we
simply do not understand in 2019. Remarkably, a
number of studies seem to show that happy people
and people with a sense of purpose live longer.
<https://tinyurl.com/yykc8uu4> Acesso em: 27.05.2019. Adaptado.
No trecho do sexto parágrafo — Remarkably, a number
of studies seem to show that happy people and people with a
sense of purpose live longer – o termo em destaque poderia
ser substituído, sem alteração de sentido, por
Ano: 2012
Banca:
UECE-CEV
Órgão:
UECE
Prova:
UECE-CEV - 2012 - UECE - Vestibular - Língua Inglesa - 1º Dia - 2ª fase |
Q1278809
Inglês
Texto associado
T E X T
SPEAKING two languages rather than just
one has obvious practical benefits in an
increasingly globalized world. But in recent years,
scientists have begun to show that the advantages
of bilingualism are even more fundamental than
being able to converse with a wider range of
people. Being bilingual, it turns out, makes you
smarter. It can have a profound effect on your
brain, improving cognitive skills not related to
language and even shielding against dementia in
old age.
This view of bilingualism is remarkably
different from the understanding of bilingualism
through much of the 20th century. Researchers,
educators and policy makers long considered a
second language to be an interference, cognitively
speaking, that hindered a child’s academic and
intellectual development.
They were not wrong about the
interference: there is ample evidence that in a
bilingual’s brain both language systems are active
even when he is using only one language, thus
creating situations in which one system obstructs
the other. But this interference, researchers are
finding out, isn’t so much a handicap as a
blessing in disguise. It forces the brain to resolve
internal conflict, giving the mind a workout that
strengthens its cognitive muscles.
Bilinguals, for instance, seem to be more
adept than monolinguals at solving certain kinds of
mental puzzles. In a 2004 study by the
psychologists Ellen Bialystok and Michelle MartinRhee, bilingual and monolingual preschoolers were
asked to sort blue circles and red squares
presented on a computer screen into two digital
bins — one marked with a blue square and the
other marked with a red circle.
In the first task, the children had to sort
the shapes by color, placing blue circles in the bin
marked with the blue square and red squares in
the bin marked with the red circle. Both groups did
this with comparable ease. Next, the children were
asked to sort by shape, which was more
challenging because it required placing the images
in a bin marked with a conflicting color. The
bilinguals were quicker at performing this task.
The collective evidence from a number of
such studies suggests that the bilingual experience
improves the brain’s so-called executive function
— a command system that directs the attention
processes that we use for planning, solving
problems and performing various other mentally
demanding tasks. These processes include ignoring
distractions to stay focused, switching attention
willfully from one thing to another and holding information in mind — like remembering a
sequence of directions while driving.
Why does the tussle between two
simultaneously active language systems improve
these aspects of cognition? Until recently,
researchers thought the bilingual advantage
stemmed primarily from an ability for inhibition
that was honed by the exercise of suppressing one
language system: this suppression, it was thought,
would help train the bilingual mind to ignore
distractions in other contexts. But that explanation
increasingly appears to be inadequate, since
studies have shown that bilinguals perform better
than monolinguals even at tasks that do not
require inhibition, like threading a line through an
ascending series of numbers scattered randomly
on a page.
The key difference between bilinguals and
monolinguals may be more basic: a heightened
ability to monitor the environment. “Bilinguals
have to switch languages quite often — you may
talk to your father in one language and to your
mother in another language,” says Albert Costa, a
researcher at the University of PompeuFabra in
Spain. “It requires keeping track of changes
around you in the same way that we monitor our
surroundings when driving.” In a study comparing
German-Italian bilinguals with Italian monolinguals
on monitoring tasks, Mr. Costa and his colleagues
found that the bilingual subjects not only
performed better, but they also did so with less
activity in parts of the brain involved in
monitoring, indicating that they were more
efficient at it.
The bilingual experience appears to
influence the brain from infancy to old age (and
there is reason to believe that it may also apply to
those who learn a second language later in life).
In a 2009 study led by Agnes Kovacs of
the International School for Advanced Studies in
Trieste, Italy, 7-month-old babies exposed to two
languages from birth were compared with peers
raised with one language. In an initial set of trials,
the infants were presented with an audio cue and
then shown a puppet on one side of a screen. Both
infant groups learned to look at that side of the
screen in anticipation of the puppet. But in a later
set of trials, when the puppet began appearing on
the opposite side of the screen, the babies exposed
to a bilingual environment quickly learned to
switch their anticipatory gaze in the new direction
while the other babies did not.
Bilingualism’s effects also extend into the
twilight years. In a recent study of 44 elderly
Spanish-English bilinguals, scientists led by the
neuropsychologist Tamar Gollan of the University
of California, San Diego, found that individuals
with a higher degree of bilingualism — measured
through a comparative evaluation of proficiency in
each language — were more resistant than others
to the onset of dementia and other symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease: the higher the degree of
bilingualism, the later the age of onset.
Nobody ever doubted the power of
language. But who would have imagined that the
words we hear and the sentences we speak might
be leaving such a deep imprint?
Source: www.nytimes.com
As to the meaning of the words “stemmed”,
“tussle”, “gaze”, and “onset” in the text, it is
expressed respectively in
Ano: 2012
Banca:
UECE-CEV
Órgão:
UECE
Prova:
UECE-CEV - 2012 - UECE - Vestibular - Língua Inglesa - 1º Dia - 2ª fase |
Q1278808
Inglês
Texto associado
T E X T
SPEAKING two languages rather than just
one has obvious practical benefits in an
increasingly globalized world. But in recent years,
scientists have begun to show that the advantages
of bilingualism are even more fundamental than
being able to converse with a wider range of
people. Being bilingual, it turns out, makes you
smarter. It can have a profound effect on your
brain, improving cognitive skills not related to
language and even shielding against dementia in
old age.
This view of bilingualism is remarkably
different from the understanding of bilingualism
through much of the 20th century. Researchers,
educators and policy makers long considered a
second language to be an interference, cognitively
speaking, that hindered a child’s academic and
intellectual development.
They were not wrong about the
interference: there is ample evidence that in a
bilingual’s brain both language systems are active
even when he is using only one language, thus
creating situations in which one system obstructs
the other. But this interference, researchers are
finding out, isn’t so much a handicap as a
blessing in disguise. It forces the brain to resolve
internal conflict, giving the mind a workout that
strengthens its cognitive muscles.
Bilinguals, for instance, seem to be more
adept than monolinguals at solving certain kinds of
mental puzzles. In a 2004 study by the
psychologists Ellen Bialystok and Michelle MartinRhee, bilingual and monolingual preschoolers were
asked to sort blue circles and red squares
presented on a computer screen into two digital
bins — one marked with a blue square and the
other marked with a red circle.
In the first task, the children had to sort
the shapes by color, placing blue circles in the bin
marked with the blue square and red squares in
the bin marked with the red circle. Both groups did
this with comparable ease. Next, the children were
asked to sort by shape, which was more
challenging because it required placing the images
in a bin marked with a conflicting color. The
bilinguals were quicker at performing this task.
The collective evidence from a number of
such studies suggests that the bilingual experience
improves the brain’s so-called executive function
— a command system that directs the attention
processes that we use for planning, solving
problems and performing various other mentally
demanding tasks. These processes include ignoring
distractions to stay focused, switching attention
willfully from one thing to another and holding information in mind — like remembering a
sequence of directions while driving.
Why does the tussle between two
simultaneously active language systems improve
these aspects of cognition? Until recently,
researchers thought the bilingual advantage
stemmed primarily from an ability for inhibition
that was honed by the exercise of suppressing one
language system: this suppression, it was thought,
would help train the bilingual mind to ignore
distractions in other contexts. But that explanation
increasingly appears to be inadequate, since
studies have shown that bilinguals perform better
than monolinguals even at tasks that do not
require inhibition, like threading a line through an
ascending series of numbers scattered randomly
on a page.
The key difference between bilinguals and
monolinguals may be more basic: a heightened
ability to monitor the environment. “Bilinguals
have to switch languages quite often — you may
talk to your father in one language and to your
mother in another language,” says Albert Costa, a
researcher at the University of PompeuFabra in
Spain. “It requires keeping track of changes
around you in the same way that we monitor our
surroundings when driving.” In a study comparing
German-Italian bilinguals with Italian monolinguals
on monitoring tasks, Mr. Costa and his colleagues
found that the bilingual subjects not only
performed better, but they also did so with less
activity in parts of the brain involved in
monitoring, indicating that they were more
efficient at it.
The bilingual experience appears to
influence the brain from infancy to old age (and
there is reason to believe that it may also apply to
those who learn a second language later in life).
In a 2009 study led by Agnes Kovacs of
the International School for Advanced Studies in
Trieste, Italy, 7-month-old babies exposed to two
languages from birth were compared with peers
raised with one language. In an initial set of trials,
the infants were presented with an audio cue and
then shown a puppet on one side of a screen. Both
infant groups learned to look at that side of the
screen in anticipation of the puppet. But in a later
set of trials, when the puppet began appearing on
the opposite side of the screen, the babies exposed
to a bilingual environment quickly learned to
switch their anticipatory gaze in the new direction
while the other babies did not.
Bilingualism’s effects also extend into the
twilight years. In a recent study of 44 elderly
Spanish-English bilinguals, scientists led by the
neuropsychologist Tamar Gollan of the University
of California, San Diego, found that individuals
with a higher degree of bilingualism — measured
through a comparative evaluation of proficiency in
each language — were more resistant than others
to the onset of dementia and other symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease: the higher the degree of
bilingualism, the later the age of onset.
Nobody ever doubted the power of
language. But who would have imagined that the
words we hear and the sentences we speak might
be leaving such a deep imprint?
Source: www.nytimes.com
An example of a pair of words/terms that
appear in the text with similar meaning is
Q1275030
Inglês
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Adapted from:< http://www.psychologicalscience.org/index.php/news/releases/consumerism-and-its-antisocial-effects-can-beturned-onor-off.html> and < http://grist.org/living/consumerism-plays-a-huge-role-in-climate-change/>Acessed on September 1st, 2016.
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palavras “stuff” (linha 5), “amount” (linha 14)
e “occasionally” (linha 24) são
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