第1791期:What makes puzzles fun

Throughout history, people have been attracted to puzzles, from Ancient Greek riddles to brain-teasing video games, people have tried to solve problems for fun. But what is it about these conundrums that makes us enjoy them? It could be that the desire to find a solution is wired into us. A study has shown that when people complete anagrams, it can stimulate the reward centre in the brain. One of the researchers behind the study, Yongtaek Oh, suggests that problem-solving ability provides an evolutionary advantage – it can help us survive! It's clear that this 'aha' moment is very enjoyable, but it's not just completing a puzzle that people enjoy.

纵观历史，人们一直被谜题所吸引，从古希腊谜语到益智游戏，人们都试图以解决问题为乐。但是，是什么让我们喜欢这些难题呢？可能是我们渴望找到解决方案。一项研究表明，当人们完成字谜游戏时，它可以刺激大脑中的奖赏中心。这项研究背后的研究人员之一 Yongtaek Oh 认为，解决问题的能力提供了一种进化优势——它可以帮助我们生存！很明显，这个“啊哈”时刻非常令人愉快，但它不仅仅是完成人们喜欢的拼图。

David Shariatmadari highlights that solving the best puzzles requires a combination of luck and skill. He points out that the element of chance makes it more open to a wide range of people, while the need for skill gives players a feeling that they are in control. This also helps to provide a balance between being something challenging and something achievable. Michael Vilensky, a psychologist at Ohio State University, tells us that puzzles offer us a situation that we can control and resolve, which can be satisfying when compared with other life challenges. Other experts, such as therapist Elizabeth Hinkel, argue that by requiring concentration, puzzles can provide mindful moments away from the stresses of everyday life. Puzzles can also have a social aspect, whether that's making it easy to share your scorecard on social media, or the fact that people are keen to help each other find clues and come up with the answer.

David Shariatmadari 强调，解决最好的谜题需要运气和技巧的结合。他指出，机会因素使其对更广泛的人群更加开放，而对技巧的需求则让玩家有一种掌控一切的感觉。这也有助于在具有挑战性和可实现性之间取得平衡。俄亥俄州立大学的心理学家迈克尔维伦斯基告诉我们，谜题为我们提供了一个我们可以控制和解决的情境，与其他生活挑战相比，这可以令人满意。其他专家，如治疗师伊丽莎白·欣克尔 (Elizabeth Hinkel) 认为，通过需要集中注意力，拼图可以提供远离日常生活压力的正念时刻。谜题还可以具有社交方面的意义，无论是让您在社交媒体上轻松分享您的记分卡，还是人们热衷于互相帮助寻找线索并得出答案。

Puzzles and fun may even be dependent on each other, researchers at Drexel University have suggested. When looking at brain images, they found that some people preparing to do a puzzle showed activity associated with positive moods and that these people were better able to come up with solutions. They also found that subjects performed better on puzzles if they had seen a funny video beforehand.

德雷克塞尔大学的研究人员建议，谜题和乐趣甚至可能相互依赖。在查看大脑图像时，他们发现一些准备拼图的人表现出与积极情绪相关的活动，并且这些人能够更好地想出解决方案。他们还发现，如果受试者事先看过一段有趣的视频，他们在拼图上的表现会更好。

词汇表

riddle 谜语
brain-teasing 考验脑力的
solve 解决
problem 问题，难题
conundrum 谜语，难题
solution 解决方法，答案
anagram （游戏）同字母异序词
problem-solving 解决问题的
'aha' moment 顿悟时刻
complete 完成（谜语），解开（谜题）
luck 运气
skill 技能，技巧
element of chance 碰运气的成分
player 玩家
challenging 有挑战性的
achievable （谜语）可完成的，可解开的
resolve 解决
concentration 专注力，注意力集中
mindful 聚精会神的，注意的
scorecard 记分卡
clue （谜语、游戏、问题答案的）提示
come up with 想出
answer 答案，解法