Listening to Music in Shower May Stop the Flow of Creative Thought淋浴时听音乐可能会阻止创造性思维的流动

It could be time to ditch1 the playlist2—experts say listening to musicin the shower is bad for creativity.Research has shown that playing musicto keep your mind busy while showering，taking a walk or travelling to schoolcould affect3 your ability to thinkoutside the box and come up with artistic4 or inventive5 things to do.

By comparison， experts say beingbored is important for creativity and canlead to daydreaming plus the birth ofnew ideas.

Expert Gretchen Rubin said peoplewho always keep their mind busy bylistening to music while doing boringtasks could be affecting the power oftheir imagination. This group includedthose who listened to music or podcastsin the shower， while taking a walk ortravelling to school in the morning.

可能是时候放弃播放列表了———专家表示，淋浴时听音乐不利于创造力。研究表明，在洗澡、散步或上学途中播放音乐让大脑保持忙碌，可能会影响你跳出定式思维并想出有艺术性或创造性的事情的能力。

相比之下，专家们表示，无聊对创造力很重要，会引领天马行空的想象和新思路的诞生。

专家格雷琴·鲁宾说，那些在做无聊的事情的时候总是通过听音乐让大脑保持忙碌的人可能正在影响他们的想象力。这一群体包括那些在淋浴、散步或早上上学时听音乐或播客的人。

She said， “I love listening to podcasts，however I would have been thinkingabout whateverthepodcast wasabout.”

While there is nothing wrong withthinking about a podcast or listening tomusic， doing so while taking a shower orgoing for a walk takes away from time thatcould be spent thinking about yourselfand your life—the perfect time to let yourcreative juices flow， Ms Ruben said.

“You need this open-searching timein order for new ideas to bubble up，”she said. “This is why people get ideasin the shower or in the middle of thenight—it’s a downtime6 where then thebrain creates its own fun.”

“It’s when I’m bored that I havebig insights7 because my brain is openand trying to entertain8 itself，” MsRubin added.

A recent study by psychologists9showed the same process at work.

In the research， groups of peoplewere given a dull writing or readingtask. They were then asked to completea creative task. Researchers found theboring writing and reading activities ledto increased creativity—meaning beingbored made the mind entertain itselfwith something creative and fun.

她说：“我很喜欢听播客，但我会思考播客的内容。”

鲁宾女士说，虽然思考播客的内容或听音乐没有错，但在洗澡或散步时这样做会占用本来可以用来思考自己和生活的时间———这是让你的创造力源源不断涌现的最佳时机。

“你需要这段开放式探索的时间，这样新的想法才能涌现出来。”她说，“这就是为什么人们会在淋浴时或半夜产生创意———这是让大脑创造自己乐趣的休息时间。”

鲁宾女士补充道：“当我感到无聊时，我会有深入的见解，因为我的大脑是开放的，并试图自娱自乐。”

心理学家最近的一项研究显示了从事某项任务时的同样过程。

在这项研究中，一组人被分配了枯燥的写作或阅读任务。然后，他们被要求完成一项创造性的任务。研究人员发现，无聊的写作和阅读活动会提高创造力———这意味着无聊会让大脑用一些有创意和有趣的东西来娱乐自己。

So， is it best to hang up yourfavourite podcast and ditch the bath-timetunes10？

One said， “Sometimes I need themusic to drown out all the thoughts I don’t（want to） think.”

Another commented11， “Many peoplehave too much going on in their heads.That’s why they listen to music in theshower， so they can actually relax. Whycan’t we just enjoy the things we love？”

But others said they liked havingquiet time while travelling home at theend of the day.

“I’m in autopilot12 and my brain is freefor30minutes，”onepersoncommented.

In any case， keeping a goodbalance13 and listening to musicsometimes but being quiet at other timescould be the best balance for that busymental playlist.

那么，最好是关掉你最喜欢的播客，放弃洗澡时间的音乐吗？

其中一人说：“有时候我需要音乐来盖过所有我不想思考的想法。”

另一个人评论道：“很多人脑子里想的东西太多了。这就是他们在淋浴时听音乐的原因，这样他们才能真正放松。为什么我们不能享受我们喜欢的东西呢？”

但其他人表示，他们喜欢在一天结束后回家的路上享受安静的时光。

“我处于机械性地驾驶状态，我的大脑可以自由活动30 分钟。”一个人评论道。

无论如何，保持良好的平衡，时而听音乐，时而安静下来可能是繁忙的心理播放列表的最佳平衡状态。

（英语原文选自：kidsnews.com.au）