Did you know that every time musicians pick up their instruments, there are fireworks going off all over their brain?
知道每当音乐家弹奏他们的乐器时，他们脑里是到处在施放烟火吗？
On the outside, they may look calm and focused, reading the music and making the precise and practiced movements required.
由外表看来，他们很冷静、专注看着乐谱，做出所需的准确和熟练动作。
But inside their brains, there's a party going on.
但他们的脑里正开着一个派对。
How do we know this?
我们怎么会知道呢？
Well, in the last few decades, neuroscientists have made enormous breakthroughs in understanding how our brains work
在过去的几十年中，神经科学家对理解脑功能有了巨大的突破，
by monitoring them in real time with instruments like fMRI and PET scanners.
功归于能即时监测脑功能的仪器，例如功能性磁振造影(fMRI) 、正电子发射计算机断层扫描仪(PET)。
When people are hooked up to these machines, tasks, such as reading or doing math problems, each have corresponding areas of the brain where activity can be observed.
这些仪器扫描显示阅读、做数学题等行为引起脑内相应的活动区域。
But when researchers got the participants to listen to music, they saw fireworks.
但给研究参与者听音乐时神经学家看到了烟火。
Multiple areas of their brains were lighting up at once, as they processed the sound, took it apart to understand elements like melody and rhythm,
处理声音的同时脑里多处同时亮起，将其分解成旋律、节奏等元素，
and then put it all back together into unified musical experience.
而后再重新组合成一个完整的音乐体验。
And our brains do all this work in the split second between when we first hear the music and when our foot starts to tap along.
这些大脑运作发生在听到音乐和脚开始打节拍的一瞬间。
But when scientists turned from observing the brains of music listeners to those of musicians, the little backyard fireworks became a jubilee.
而当科学家由观察聆听者的大脑转至音乐家的大脑，后院的小烟火变成了喜年庆典烟火。
It turns out that while listening to music engages the brain in some pretty interesting activities, playing music is the brain's equivalent of a full-body workout.
事实证明，听音乐时大脑忙碌于一些很有趣的活动，而弹奏音乐是相当于大脑的全身锻炼。
