Habits are controlled by our brains, and recently, a region has been identified by MIT researchers which provides insight into how the brain can shift between new habits and old ones.
习惯是由我们的大脑控制的，最近麻省理工学院的研究人员发现了一个区域可以提供对大脑如何在新旧习惯中转移的深入了解。
People act on habits automatically because the habits are deep inside our brains. This explains why we take the same route to work every day, or put our left shoe on first. It also allows our brains to
人们按着习惯行动自动因为这些习惯深入我们的大脑。这解释了为什么我们会每天按相同的路线去上班或者先穿左脚的鞋子。习惯也让我们的大脑思考晚上做什么菜或是穿什么去学校。
The brain's administrative command center, however, does not fully renounce control of constant behavior. The new study has determined that a small region of the brain's prefrontal cortex has been identified as the controller of minute-by-minute control of thinking and acting, and can be prompted on at any moment.
但是大脑的管理指挥中心不能完全放弃对持续行为的控制。新的研究已经确定大脑的前额皮质中的一小块区域控制着每分钟的思考和行动并且在任何时刻可以被提示。
"We've always thought - and I still do - that the value of a habit is you don't have to think about it. It frees up your brain to do other things. It frees up your brain to do other things. However, it doesn't free up all of it. There's some piece of your cortex that's still devoted to that control."
来自麻省理工学院麦戈文研究所，从事大脑研究的Ann Graybiel说：“我们以前和现在都认为习惯的价值在于你不必去想它。它解放了你的大脑，让它可以去做别的事情。但是它并没有完全解放你的大脑。你的一部分皮层仍然在进行控制。
Graybiel explained that the recent evidence, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, provides hope for people who cannot seem to shake their bad habits, because it reveals that even though habits are deep in our brains, the brain's control center has the capability of turning them off.
Graybiel解释说美国国家科学院院刊最近发表的内容给那些难以改掉坏习惯的人们带来了希望。因为它表明尽管习惯深入我们大脑，大脑控制中心还是有能力解除它们。
The new findings also pave the way for possible intervention into that area of the brain in order to help people who are affected by certain kinds of conditions which stem from this part of the brain, including OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder).
这项新发现也为对大脑这块区域做出调整铺平道路。这样能帮助那些因为大脑这块区域而受某些症状影响的人，包括强迫症。
According to the report, which was led by Kyle Smith, a McGovern Institute research scientist, habits become such a large part of who we are that it sometimes seems it may be virtually impossible to say goodbye to them, even when they may not be good for us.
根据 Kyle Smith，一位麦戈文研究所的科研人员负责的报告，习惯成为我们的一大部分，实际上要摆脱它们有时看似是不可能的，尽管这些习惯可能对我们没有好处。
For their study, the authors conducted an experiment on mice that were trained to run a maze in the shape of a T. When the rats headed toward the part of the maze where they had to make a decision in direction, the researchers played a tone telling them to either go right or left. When the rats went in the
为了研究，研究者们对老鼠进行了实验。这些老鼠被训练在T型的迷宫里奔跑。当老鼠们跑到迷宫需要选择方向的地方时，研究人员会用调子来告诉它们向右还是向左。当老鼠走了正确的方向（左），它们就被奖励巧克力奶。如果老鼠走了错误的方向（右），它们只能得到糖水。
To demonstrate that the rats' behavior was consistent, the authors ceased giving the trained rats any rewards, and the animals continued to find their way through the T-shaped maze. Then, after a while, the experts rewarded the rats with chocolate milk again. However, this time it was mixed with lithium
为了确保老鼠行为的一致，研究者在停止给予受训老鼠任何奖励的情况下让这些老鼠继续在T型迷宫里找路。过了一会，研究者又奖励老鼠巧克力奶。但是这次的巧克力奶里混了氯化锂，它会使老鼠恶心作呕。恶心作呕后，这些老鼠继续按以前的线路跑迷宫，但是它们不再喝巧克力奶。
When the researchers had determined that the rats' behavior was completely fixed, they wanted to find out if they could change the way the rats were going through the maze by changing a part of the
当研究人员断定老鼠的行为已经完全被固定后，它们想知道是否可以通过改变前额叶皮层边缘下区来改变老鼠跑迷宫的路径。前额叶皮层边缘下区对习惯的发展非常重要，尽管将习惯的持续行为编码的神经通路是大脑结构很里面的基底神经节。
Scientists used a method called optogenetics to get inside certain cells with light, and were able to shut off the IL cortex activity for the seconds before the rats approached the part of the maze where they had to make a decision to turn right or left.
科学家们使用一种叫光遗传学的方法来使光进入某些细胞。这样就能在老鼠到达拐口决定方向前停止前额叶皮层边缘下区的活动。
The rats almost immediately stopped their habit of turning left and turned to the right instead. This showed that switching off the IL cortex changed the rats from instantly following their habits, and to instead, go the way they thought was right.
这些老鼠几乎理科停止了它们向左转的习惯而是向右转了。这表明停止前额叶皮层边缘下区促使老鼠没有立刻听从习惯，而是选择了它们认为对的路径。
After the rats stopped going left, they began turning to the right every single time they
老鼠停止向左走后，尽管研究人员提示它们向左转，它们在每次被放入T型迷宫后却向右走。这暗示一个新习惯养成了。
were put in the T-shaped maze, even when the experts prompted them to turn left, indicating that a new habit had formed.
史密斯说：“这个习惯永远不会真正被忘记。它一直潜伏在某处。我们通过停止覆盖它的新习惯来揭开它。”这个发现很清楚地表明前额叶皮层边缘下区能够改变习惯性的行为。
Smith said: "This habit was never really forgotten. It's lurking there somewhere, and we've unmasked it by turning off the new one that had been overwritten." The findings clearly indicate that the IL cortex is capable of changing habitual "moment-to-moment" behavior.
Graybiel总结说：“对我们来说，真正让人吃惊的是习惯仍然必须是完整无损和可以立马恢复的并且有网络控制系统控制着它。”
Graybiel concluded: "To us, what's really stunning is that habit representation still must be totally intact and retrievable in an instant, and there's an online monitoring system controlling that."
这项研究引起了关于习惯性行为是否是自动的问题。来自耶鲁大学的精神病学与心理学教授Jane Taylor说道：”我们总是认为习惯是不能改变的，但是这项研究表明你可以再某种程度上拥有可变的习惯。”
The research brings up questions regarding whether habitual behaviors are really automatic. Jane Taylor, a professor of psychiatry and psychology at Yale University said: "We've always thought of habits as being inflexible, but this suggest you can have flexible habits, in some sense.
先前的研究说明了比起旧习惯，前额叶皮层边缘下区似乎更偏爱新习惯。因为这些研究表明习惯并没有被剔除而是被新的习惯代替了。
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