How Does Television HarmYour Children
It’s no secret that most busy American mothers use the TV set as a livein babysitter.In some households the tube holds a child’s attention for the odd half hour or two while mom works on dinner；in others it is the child’s constant daytime companion.Is there any harm in this？
Debate rages over the question，and periodically research is published showing that TV reduces attention span，makes children jumpy or inclines them to violence.In today’s cartoon David Horsey makes fun of the claims of “children’s TV”，the special programming that supposedly uses entertainment to help youngsters to learn to read and take their first steps in the big，diverse world outside their family.What do children really get from this programming？
Horsey’s suspicion is that children’s programming chiefly turns kids into TV addicts，not into readers or happy mixers.The toddler in the cartoon，still at the age of pacifiersand stuffed animals，is held spellbound by the figure on the screen.What is the stimulating message of this creature specifically designed to fascinate small children？“Can you say TV？”The sooner the kid learns the word，the more effectively he can remind—or nag—his mother to turn on the boob tube.
A child hooked on TV is a viewer open to commercial messages，and there are plenty of those targeting children of all ages.Thus，at the very least，mom’s search for peace and quiet sets the stage for her child’s transformation into an American consumer—and，of course，soaks up time that could be used for other，perhaps more desirable，transformations.
电视对孩子的危害
在美国，很多忙碌的母亲把电视当成住在家里的保姆，这已不是什么秘密。在有些家庭中，当妈妈做饭时电视会拴住孩子的注意力，有时是半小时甚至两小时。还有些家庭，电视就是孩子整天的伙伴。这种情况有什么害处吗？
对这一问题的争论十分激烈，相关研究也在定期发表，这些研究表明，电视缩小了孩子们的兴趣范围，使孩子们变得心绪不宁，产生暴力倾向。在今天的漫画中，漫画家戴维·霍尔西嘲笑了“儿童电视节目”的自我标榜，这种电视节目据说是用娱乐方式来帮助儿童学习认字，帮助儿童向家庭之外的大千世界迈出第一步。但是孩子们从这种节目中真正得到了什么呢？
霍尔西认为，儿童节目的主要功能是把儿童变成电视迷，而不是变成爱读书的人或是善于与不同的人相处的人。漫画中刚学走步的孩子还处于叼奶嘴和玩毛绒动物玩具的年龄，可已经被电视上的人物迷住了。而这个被设计成非常吸引小孩子的形象正在启发孩子什么呢？——“你会说‘电视’这个词吗？”只要孩子一学会这个词，他就能更明确地提醒妈妈——更可能是纠缠妈妈——打开会把人变蠢的电视。
被电视拴住的孩子对商业广告毫无限制地接受，而商业广告中有很多针对所有年龄段的孩子。因此，妈妈想通过电视让孩子安静下来的做法，其负面影响往最小了说，是为把孩子变成成天想着买东西的人打下了基础——当然，这还使孩子把时间全耗费在电视上了，而这些时间本可以用在对孩子成长更有意义的事情上。
Regular Use of Text Messages andEmails Can Lower the IQ
The regular use of text messages and emails can lower the IQ more than twice as much as smoking marijuana.
That is the claim of psychologists who have found that tapping away on a mobile phone or computer keypad or checking them for electronic messages temporarily knocks up to 10points off the user’s IQ.
This rate of decline in intelligence compares unfavourably with the fourpoint drop in IQ associated with smoking marijuana，according to British researchers，who have labelled the fleeting phenomenon of enhanced stupidity as “infomania”.
Research on sleep deprivation suggests that the IQ drop caused by electronic obsession is also equivalent to a wakeful night.
Infomania is mainly a problem for adult workers，especially men，the study commissioned by Hewlett Packard，the technology company，has concluded.
The noticeable drop in IQ is attributed to the constant distraction of “always on”technology when employees should be concentrating on what they are paid to do.Infomania means that they lose concentration as their minds remain fixed in an almost permanent state of readiness to react to technology instead of focusing on the task in hand.
The brain also finds it hard to cope with juggling lots of tasks at once，reducing its overall effectiveness，the report added.And while modern technology can have huge benefits，excessive use can be damaging not only to a person’s mind，but to their social life.
Eighty volunteers took part in clinical trials on IQ deterioration and 1，100adults were interviewed.
More than six in ten （62per cent）of people polled admit that they were addicted to checking their email and text messages so assiduously that they scrutinized workrelated ones even when at home or on holiday.Half said that they always responded immediately to an email and one in five （21per cent）will interrupt a meeting to do so.
Furthermore，infomania is having a negative effect on work colleagues，increasing stress and dissenting feelings.Nine out of ten polled thought that colleagues who answered emails or messages during a facetoface meeting were extremely rude.Yet one in three Britons believes that it is not only acceptable，but actually diligent and efficient to do so.
经常收发短信和电邮会
损害智商
经常收发短信和电子邮件会降低你的IQ，损害程度甚至是吸食大麻对智力损害程度的两倍多。
心理学家发现人们在使用手机或电脑键盘打字或者用它们查询电子信息时，智力会暂时降低10个百分点。
英国研究人员称，与吸食大麻相比，电子信息对智力的不利影响大得多。人在吸食大麻时智商会降低4个百分点。研究人员将这种暂时变笨的现象称为“信息狂躁”。
关于剥夺睡眠的研究表明因为痴迷于电子产品而造成的智力衰退相当于一夜失眠。
惠普科技公司委托进行的研究结果表明，信息狂躁主要表现在成年人身上，尤其是成年男性。造成这种智力明显衰退的原因在于当员工们应该集中精力工作时，“无处不在”的科技却总是不断分散他们的注意力。信息狂躁是指他们的意识近乎一直处于一种随时对“技术”做出反应的状态，因而无法将注意力集中在手头的工作上。
该报告还补充说大脑很难同时应付许多难题，其整体效率会降低。此外，虽然现代科技可以给予我们巨大的帮助，但过多地使用科技也会给人们的大脑和社会生活带来危害。
80名志愿者参加了一个关于智力减退的临床实验，1100名成年人接受了采访。
超过60%的被调查者（62%）承认他们对查阅电邮和短信上瘾。他们说他们很频繁地进行查阅，就算是在家和节假日也会仔细查看与工作有关的电邮和短信。其中有一半人说他们总是立刻就回电子邮件，五分之一（21%）的人说他们会为此打断会议。
此外，信息狂躁对同事也有负面影响，增加他们的压力和敌对情绪。90%的被调查者认为在面对面会议时回电子邮件是非常无礼的行为。但是三分之一的英国人不仅可以接受这种行为，而且觉得这样做说明自己工作勤奋、高效。