When discussing the benefits of learning a foreign language, most people think of the straightforward perks right away, like able to ask for directions to the bathroom when you visit Beijing, or ask directions in Barcelona when you are lost.当人们谈起学习一门外语的益处时，大部分人立刻想到的是直接好处， 比如当你游览北京时可以问清厕所的位置， 或是当你在巴塞罗那迷路时问路。
But benefits go much deeper than that! Research has shown being bilingual can improve your life in many ways. It can provide new career opportunities, improve your personal life and even lead to better health! How?但真正的益处远比这些要更深入！ 研究表明掌握双语可以在很多方面提升生活素质：可以为你提供新的就业机会， 提升个人生活水平， 甚至达到更高的健康水平！ 如何实现呢？
Knowing a second language makes resumes stand out. Companies are increasingly becoming multilingual as they internationalize.会第二种语言使你的简历引人注目。 当公司更国际化时，就成为多语言文化环境。It can offer a person more opportunities if they are thinking of changing jobs, maybe becoming a translator or interpreter, in travel, tourism, healthcare or national security.双语可以为计划更换工作的人才提供更多的就业机会，也许成为在旅游业，医疗服务业或是国防安全领域笔译员或口译。
Bilinguals can earn more money. Jobs with pay differentials based on bilingualism usually pay 5-20% more per hour.双语人才能获得更高的收入。有双语能力的职员，其每小时工资平均高出5-20%。Life improvements gained by being Bilingual. Speaking another language is just plain fun, and can add great value to your personal life .双语能提高生活质量。会说另一种外语本身就很有趣， 能够为你的个人生活增添巨大价值。Being bilingual opens up social and cultural opportunities. It lets you interact with different people and understand the nuances of another culture.双语为我们打开了社交和文化机会，能使你与不同的人交往， 并了解不同文化间的迥异。Speaking another language gives you a new perspective. Even if you don’t travel abroad, it can help you see the world in a different way, and understand yourself better.说另一种外语带给你不同的视角。 即使不出国旅行，它也会帮助你用不同的方式看世界， 并更加了解自己。Speaking a second language improves problem-solving, multitasking and decision-making. Numerous studies have found that bilingualism can improve brain functions like the ability to focus attending and perform mental tasks. As a bilingual, you are constantly choosing in which language to say a word, and this gives you a lot of practice choosing important information and ignoring extraneous details. This also helps in multitasking and blocking out distractions.
会说第二种语言可以提高解决问题、处理多项任务和做出决策的能力。 很多研究发现双语能力帮助提高大脑功能， 如集中注意力和执行大脑命令的活动等能力。双语人士总在不断选择用哪一种语言说出某个单词， 这就无形中给大脑选择重要信息和忽略无关情节的锻炼机会。 也会帮助提高处理多项任务和摒除杂念的能力。Bilingualism can slow the effects of old age!! Cognitive flexibility, the ability to adapt to unfamiliar or unexpected circumstances, tends to decline as people age, but speaking a second language can block that decline, or at least significantly delay it.
会双语可以放缓老龄化的过程！ 弹性认知力， 适应不熟悉或不可预测环境中的能力， 有随着人们的老化而衰退的趋势； 但会说第二种语言能够阻止衰退， 或至少明显推迟这一衰退过程。
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