We have just entered an era when AI can translate languages in real time, as the voice interactive ChatGPT 4o demonstrated in OpenAI’s demo a few weeks ago.
Unfortunately, with increasing convenience from generative AI, we risk becoming lazy. Becoming less intelligent. Becoming less human.
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But becoming bilingual in a second or foreign language can enhance our humanity and human intelligence in three ways.
· First, bilingual brains have been shown to be smarter, more creative and more capable at solving problems.
· Second, learning foreign languages can increase our empathy and ability to understand and relate to others.
· Finally, investing effort into mastering any skill provides value and meaning to humans.
人工智慧時代來臨，翻譯軟件可以即時翻譯語言，就如同 OpenAI 幾週前展示的語音互動式 ChatGPT 4o 一樣。
See AlsoThe importance of communicating in foreign languagesHow can learning a foreign language improve your personal development?然而，隨著生成式人工智慧帶來的便利，我們也可能變得懶惰、缺乏智能，甚至失去人性。
學習第二語言可以透過以下三個面向來提升我們的人性和智慧：
1. Bilingual brainsare smarter
In the brains of bilinguals, both languages are always active. This creates more neural connections and denser gray matter in the brain than monolinguals [1,2]. Since gray matter is responsible for processing information and performing cognitive tasks, it is not surprising that several studies have found that bilinguals possess superior cognitive abilities for attention [3], focus, creativity, and problem solving.
Although young bilinguals build vocabulary more slowly, they learn to manage their attention more efficiently by switching back and forth between languages. This is why bilinguals are often more efficient, flexible, and faster multitaskers [4,5,6]. And in tests of association and creative uses for objects, bilinguals often outperform monolinguals. The ability to focus attention and engage in creative thinking, especially for convergent thinking [7] that requires focused attention, can give bilinguals an edge in problem-solving.
一、雙腦更聰明
雙語者的大腦會同時活躍於兩種語言，這會比單語者的大腦創造出更多的神經連結和更密集的灰質 [1,2]。由於灰質負責處理資訊和執行認知任務，因此許多研究表明，雙語者在註意力、專注力、創造力和問題解決方面都擁有更強的認知能力[3]。
雖然年輕的雙語者學習詞彙的速度較慢，但他們可以透過在兩種語言之間切換來更有效地管理注意力。這就是為什麼雙語者往往在多工處理方面更有效率、靈活且迅速 [4,5,6]。在聯想和創意使用物件的測試中，雙語者也常常表現優於單語者。專注力和創意思考的能力，尤其是需要集中註意力的融合思維 (convergent thinking) [7]，可以使雙語者在解決問題方面更具優勢。
2. Bilinguals are more empathetic and build relationships better
Most people think that the only function of language is to send and receive information, but many overlook its social function. Much of our language is devoted to functions like greetings, requests, and polite phrasing, whose primary function is to build and maintain relationships.
In the process of developing high proficiency in a foreign language, bilinguals become more aware of language and culture differences. This helps them better understand and share feelings with others and become more open-minded and tolerant of differences. These are crucial skills in intercultural experiences like travel, socializing, sales, and negotiation. Studies have shown that children growing up in multilingual environments are more effective communicators [8] because they can take into account others’ feelings and perspectives.
二、雙語者更具同理心，能建立更好的關係
大多數人認為語言只是用來傳送和接收訊息，但很多人忽略了它的社交功能。許多語言的使用都著重於問候、請求和禮貌用語等功能，其主要目的是建立和維持關係。
在學習外語的過程中，雙語者會更意識到語言和文化差異。這可以幫助他們更好地理解和分享他人的感受，變得更加包容和開放。這些技能在旅行、社交、銷售和談判等跨文化體驗中至關重要。研究表明，成長於多語言環境中的兒童往往是更有效的溝通者 [8]，因為他們可以考慮到他人的感受和觀點。
3. Becoming bilingual has human value
Mastering a skill like a foreign language can make your life meaningful. In the Age of AI, to live a good life that has value will become more difficult—yet more important—than ever before.
A good life should not be confused with a convenient life. If everything you want can be done by an AI, will you feel good? Will you have any sense of self-worth? Will your life have any meaning?
Anything of value or meaning in our life comes from struggle, difficulty, and friction. We can see this in the Ikea Effect: People attach much more value to a cheap desk if they put effort into assembling it themselves. This effect takes greater importance for more abstract human endeavors, like sketching a portrait, throwing a 3-point shot, or fluently using a second language.
Apart from the cognitive benefits we enjoy from effortful language learning, we also derive a more profound sense of purpose and meaning from persistently working to improve our language and communication abilities.
三、學習雙語語能力讓人更有價值
掌握外語等技能可以使你的生活更有意義。在人工智慧時代，想要過美好而有價值的生活將變得比以往更加困難 - 但也更加重要。
美好生活不該與便利生活混為一談。如果所有你想要的東西都由人工智慧完成，你會覺得自己好嗎？你會覺得自己有價值嗎？你的生活จะมี意義嗎？
我們生活中任何有價值或有意義的東西都來自於奮鬥、困難和摩擦。我們可以從宜家效應 (Ikea Effect) 中看到這一點：人們會更珍惜自己組裝的便宜桌子，因為他們為此付出了努力。對於更抽象的人類活動，例如繪製肖像、投擲三分球或流利使用第二語言來說，這種效應就更加重要。
除了透過費力學習語言獲得認知益處之外，我們還能從持續努力提升語言和溝通能力中獲得更深層的意義感。
Human communication cannot be replaced by AI
Humans who master generative AI technologies in the future will be more productive than those who don’t, but those who can master both AI and human communication skills will become even more valuable as more and more people will depend on AI technologies for their intelligence.
This is why tycoon investor and technologist Peter Thiel recently said that AI will be replacing more math people than word people. In the end, communication skills involve an intelligence about context, audience, and persuasion that generative AI technologies cannot mimic. Only talented human communicators can.
人工智慧無法取代人類溝通
未來掌握生成式人工智慧技術的人將會比不掌握的人更俱生產力，但既能掌握人工智慧又能掌握人類溝通技巧的人將會更加值錢，因為越來越多的人將依賴人工智慧科技來獲取智能。
這就是為什麼科技投資大亨彼得·蒂爾 (Peter Thiel) 最近表示，人工智慧將取代更多擅長數學的人，而不是擅長語言的人。歸根究底，溝通技巧涉及對情境、受眾和說服力的理解，而這正是生成式人工智慧技術無法模仿的。只有才華橫溢的人類溝通者才能做到這一點。
(Translated by Google Gemini)
References
1. Mechelli, A., Crinion, J. T., Noppeney, U., O'doherty, J., Ashburner, J., Frackowiak, R. S., & Price, C. J. (2004). Neurolinguistics: structural plasticity in the bilingual brain. Nature, 431(7010), 757-757.
2. Zou L., Ding G., Abutalebi J., Shu H., & Peng D.(2012). Structural plasticity of the left caudate in bimodal bilinguals. Cortex, 48(9), 1197-1206.
3. Poarch, G. J., & Bialystok, E. (2015). Bilingualism as a model for multitasking. Developmental Review, 35, 113-124.Bilingualism as a Model for Multitasking - PubMed (nih.gov)
5. Bialystok, E., Craik, F. I., Klein, R., & Viswanathan, M. (2004). Bilingualism, aging, and cognitive control: evidence from the Simon task. Psychology and aging, 19(2), 290.
6. Costa, A., Hernández, M., Costa-Faidella, J., & Sebastián-Gallés, N. (2009). On the bilingual advantage in conflict processing: Now you see it, now you don’t. Cognition, 113(2), 135-149.
7. Hommel, B., Colzato, L.S., Fischer, R., & Christoffels, I.K. (2011). Bilingualism and creativity: Benefits from cognitive control and cognitive flexibility. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 20(4), 236-239.https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721411407616
8. Fan, S.P., Liberman, Z., Keysar, B., & Kinzler, K.D. (2015). The exposure advantage: Early exposure to a multilingual environment promotes effective communication. Psychological Science, 26(7), 1090-1097.https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797615574699
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