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1、Unit Thirteen,The Power of Music By LaurenceODonnell,Questions,1. Is there any evidence of prehistoric music? 2. Could you give some examples to show that music has the ability to strengthen or weaken emotions?3. What kind of musical sounds do you think are more beneficial to the body and a persons
2、well being?,Text,Musics interconnection with society can be seen throughout history. Every known culture on the earth has music. Music seems to be one of the basic actions of humans. However, early music was not handed down from generation to generation or recorded. Hence, there is no official recor
3、d of “prehistoric“ music. Even so, there is evidence of prehistoric music from the findings of flutes carved from bones .,hand down v. 传下来, 宣布 hand-in-glove adj. 亲密的 adv. 亲密地 hand-in-hand adj. 手拉手的, 亲密的, 并进的,The influence of music on society can be clearly seen from modern history. Music helped Thom
4、as Jefferson write the Declaration of Independence. When he could not figure out the right wording for a certain part, he would play his violin to help him. The music helped him get the words from his brain onto the paper. Albert Einstein is recognized as one of the smartest men who has ever lived.
5、A little known fact about Einstein is that when he was young he did extremely poor in school. His grade school teachers told his parents to take him out of school because he was “too stupid to learn“ and it would be a waste of resources for the school to invest time and energy in his education. The
6、school suggested that his parents get Albert an easy, manual labor job as soon as they could. His mother did not think that Albert was “stupid“. Instead of following the schools advice, Alberts parents bought him a violin. Albert became good at the violin. Music was the key that helped Albert Einste
7、in become one of the smartest men who has ever lived. Einstein himself says that the reason he was so smart is because he played the violin. He loved the music of Mozart and Bach the most. A friend of Einstein, G.J. Withrow, said that the way Einstein figured out his problems and equations was by im
8、provising on the violin.,The power of music can also be seen in the arena of therapy. Music is one of the oldest tools used for therapy. Drums and rattles were used by medicine men as a symbol of their power over the spirits of sickness. Plato, in his book Charnides, talks about the healing power of
9、 music. Many Parkinsons disease patients can overcome the effects of the disease by listening to certain types of music. The music helps brain messages to organize and flow and puts the brain into a higher gear. Music can also be used with mental patients who have schizophrenia or depressive psychos
10、is as a way to “contact“ them, to get them back into reality. However, for the music to be effective, it has to be liked by the patient.,In general, responses to music are able to be observed. It has been proven that music influences humans both in good and bad ways. These effects are instant and lo
11、ng lasting. Music is thought to link all of the emotional, spiritual, and physical elements of the universe. Music can also be used to change a persons mood, and has been found to cause like physical responses in many people simultaneously. Music also has the ability to strengthen or weaken emotions
12、 from a particular event such as a funeral.,Used correctly, music has been found to have a significant impact on the well being of a person. Dr. Stephen Halpern, the well known composer and researcher of “The Anti-Frantic Alternative“ recording series demonstrates that most music is not written to b
13、e beneficial to a persons well being and health. Certain musical sounds are more beneficial to the body and a persons well being because they are more pleasing to the body. Barbara Scarantino suggests that for a piece of music to be beneficial to well being and health it must be specifically written
14、 with the right components so that the body “involuntarily responds in a healthful, positive way, without mental suggestions or anticipation of a desired result“.,Responses to music are easy to be detected in the human body. Classical music from the baroque period causes the heart beat and pulse rat
15、e to relax to the beat of the music. As the body becomes relaxed and alert, the mind is able to concentrate more easily. Furthermore, baroque music decreases blood pressure and enhances the ability to learn. Music affects the amplitude and frequency of brain waves, which can be measured by an electr
16、o-encephalogram. Music also affects breathing rate and electrical resistance of the skin. It has been observed to cause the pupils to dilate, increase blood pressure, and increase the heart rate.,The power of music to affect memory is quite intriguing. Mozarts music and baroque music, with a 60 beat
17、s per minute beat pattern, activate the left and right brain. The simultaneous left and right brain action maximizes learning and retention of information. The information being studied activates the left brain while the music activates the right brain. Also, activities which engage both sides of th
18、e brain at the same time, such as playing an instrument or singing, causes the brain to be more capable of processing information. According to The Center for New Discoveries in Learning, learning potential can be increased a minimum of five times by using this 60 beats per minute music. For example, the ancient Greeks sang their dramas because they understood how music could help them remember more easily.,
