Mental Representations

在上一章的结尾作者扔出的问题是：what changes are you making in your brain as you train to be...也就是说，we know that purposeful practice can lead to certain changes in our brain with help of brain imaging techniques, but what exactly is being changed in the brain with deliberate practice?

不难发现，作者在提出一个新的重要的concept的时候，会以一个具体的例子起头。这次的例子是一位 blindfold chess master,其他还有盲记魔方等的examples abound in Super Brain.

从这位大师的经历中，我们看到  

Blindfold chess playing was never something that he made a special effort to develop, but rather something that grew out of his relentless effort to master the game and become the best in the world.

non-chessplayers觉得这不可思议的原因在于，对于棋盘这一特定的场景，我们是flat-out outsiders so the chessboard seems random and confusing 所谓内行看门道，看的就是pattern, 而且是a beautifully nuanced and constantly shifting pattern 对他们来说，there is nothing new or unexpected, just repetition of what preexists in their minds. All they have to do is trigger their memory banks to function, spontaneously.

高晓松说，其实初中生也能参加奇葩说，因为他们对世界的语料库已经建立起来了，你说的每个词他都能在memory banks 里有对应，只是对于这个概念了解深浅的问题。

成长认知的过程阶段 :

“dogs” is just a label for this collection of disconnected knowledge------spend time around and start to understand them----- all this information becomes integrated into one holistic concept----- all that information is immediately accessible > fully capable of recognizing all related facts> able to predict what’s coming next from what has already happened

接着谈到了deliberate practice 和 mental representations的关系。

Much of deliberate practice involves developing ever more efficient mental representations,  and form a clear mental picture of what we do.

特点：domain specific：there is no such thing as developing a general skill

所以对于之前的问题，我们有了答案： practice > have changed the neural circuitry in their brains > produce highly specialized mental representations > make possible the incredible memory, pattern recognition, problem solving, and other sorts of advanced abilities needed to excel in their particular specialties.

But if you understand the sport, you’ve already established a mental structure for making sense of it, organized the information, and combined it with all the other relevant information you’ve already assimilated. The new information becomes part of an ongoing story.

其他：where our foot must be to hit the accelerator or brake, how much force to apply to the pedals, how quickly to turn the steering wheel （too many muscle movements to coordinate） 

最近学车，感触很深

感触：

在了解了mental representations 之后，相信再看到最强大脑里超级刑警速记几百张面孔的场景也不会仅仅把它归结为talent.

在上一章中，对于Steve 的那把利剑我一直找不到合适的词来形容。紧接着就有了答案。其实就像在某专业领域做文案工作需要行业内的语料库一样，做翻译的受限于context 的建立，对不同领域也有生熟之分。随着我们对一个对象的了解慢慢深入，它的形象就会更加完整，细节也开始补充进去，然后才能达到烂熟于胸的程度。

mental representation 这个概念以前有所认知，当时的理解是对某个场景的再现。现在扩展到更广泛的视野里，希望在后面的阅读中找到更加具体的方法。

sweet spot  最佳触发点 （没找到合适翻译）

noun

1.the area on a bat which hits the ball in the most effective way

2.a location or combination of characteristics that produces the best results

• This series aims to hit a sweet spot between romantic comedy and thriller.

• If you want the best sound, I'd say the sweet spot is about three metres from your speakers.

Stiff

[stɪf]adjective

SEVERE严厉的

■severe and difficult严厉的，严格的；艰难的

•The athlete was given a stiff punishment for using drugs.这名运动员因服用违禁药物受到严厉惩罚。

•They are campaigning for stiffer penalties for people who drink and drive.他们正进行游说活动，要求对酒后驾车人士处以更严厉的惩罚。

•There has been stiff opposition/resistance to the proposed tax increases.增加税收的提案遭到强烈反对／抵制。

•It's a stiff climb to the top of the hill.要爬上山顶很费劲。

•Some college courses have stiffer entry requirements than others.有些大学课程比其他课程有更严格的入门资格要求。

•Both companies are worried about losing business in the face of stiff competition.两家公司都担心在激烈的竞争中损失生意。

Either way, though, the demonstration made a serious impression on the young Alekhine

either way|one way or the other 不管咋样

used to say that it does not matter which one of two possibilities happens, is chosen or is true

•Was it his fault or not? Either way, an explanation is due.

•We could meet today or tomorrow— I don't mind one way or the other.

Novice

UK['nɒv.ɪs]US['nɑ:.vɪs]

■a person who is not experienced in a job or situation新手，初学者

•I've never driven a car before - I'm a complete novice.我以前从未开过车——完全是个新手。

•This is quite a difficult plant fornovicegardeners to grow.让园艺新手来培育这种植物是相当有难度的。

assimilate

[ə'sɪm.ɪ.leɪt]verbintransitiveortransitive

■to take in, fit into, or become similar (to)吸收；融入；加入；（使）同化

•The European Union should remain flexible enough to assimilate more countries quickly.欧盟应该保持足够的灵活性，以加快步伐吸收更多的国家为其成员。

•You shouldn't expect immigrants to assimilate into an alien culture immediately.你不应该指望移民能够马上融入一种外国文化中。

•It's hard to assimilate(= learn and understand) so much information.很难吸收这么多的资讯。

•In this form vitamins can be easily assimilated by the body.在这种形态下，维他命非常易于身体吸收。

gibberish

UK['dʒɪb.ər.ɪʃ]US[-ɚ-]disapproving

noun uncountable

■spoken or written words which are nonsense and have no meaning莫名其妙的话（或文字）；文理不通的话（或文字）；胡扯

•I was so nervous, I just startedtalkinggibberish.我太紧张了，开始语无伦次起来。