经济学人140:强于汝 但终究源于汝
时间:2019-01-26 作者:英语课 分类:经济学人科技系列
英语课
Science and technology
科学与技术
Sexual selection
性选择
Hunkier than thou
强于汝
Scientists are finally succeeding where so many men have failed: in understanding why women find some guys handsome and others hideous 1.
科学家终于发现女性在评判男性的臭与美时大多数男性失败在哪了。
WHEN it comes to partners, men often find women's taste fickle 2 and unfathomable.
在选择配偶时,男性发现女性的品味经常起伏不定,难以理解。
But ladies may not be entirely 3 to blame.
然而我们却不能将这一问题完全怪罪在女性身上。
A growing body of research suggests that their preference for certain types of male physiognomy may be swayed by things beyond their conscious control—like prevalence of disease or crime—and in predictable ways.
因为越来越多的研究显示女性对于男性某些特定相貌的偏爱可能受制于其意识控制以外的事物—比如流行疾病或者犯罪—并且影响方式可以被预测。
Masculine features—a big jaw 4, say, or a prominent brow—tend to reflect physical and behavioural traits, such as strength and aggression 5.
像宽大的下巴或者突出的眉骨这些阳刚性的特征总是可以反映出诸如力量以及进攻性这些生理和行为上的特点。
They are also closely linked to physiological 6 ones, like virility 7 and a sturdy immune system.
而这些同样与生育能力以及强健的免疫系统等生理特点有着密切的联系。
The obverse of these desirable characteristics looks less appealing.
但是这些令人羡慕的特点却有着不太受欢迎的负面影响。
Aggression is fine when directed at external threats, less so when it spills over onto the hearth 8.
比如进攻性在攘外时确实有着尚佳额表现,但是却难以用来处理家庭生活。
Sexual prowess ensures plenty of progeny 9, but it often goes hand in hand with promiscuity 10 and a tendency to shirk parental 11 duties or leave the mother altogether.
而强劲的性能力确实能保证后代的繁衍生息,但是往往导致私生活的不检点以及抛弃妻儿而不尽赡养之责。
So, whenever a woman has to choose a mate, she must decide whether to place a premium 12 on the hunk's choicer genes 13 or the wimp's love and care.
所以无论何时何代女性在选择配偶时都必须在高大威猛的大男人和体贴关爱的小男人之间做出抉择。
Lisa DeBruine, of the University of Aberdeen, believes that today's women still face this dilemma 14 and that their choices are affected 15 by unconscious factors.
来自阿伯丁大学的丽萨.德布鲁因认为当今的女性仍然面临这种两难境地而且他们的选择会受到非意识因素的影响。
In a paper published earlier this year Dr DeBruine found that women in countries with poor health statistics preferred men with masculine features more than those who lived in healthier societies.
在今年早期发表的一份论文中德布鲁因博士发现与生活在卫生状况较好的社区中的妇女相比来自卫生状况较差国家的妇女更钟情于那些拥有阳刚外表特征的男性。
Where disease is rife 16, this seemed to imply, giving birth to healthy offspring trumps 17 having a man stick around long enough to help care for it.
在疾病连连的地区,这一点暗示了生育更加健康的后代要比嫁一个整天能够伴你左右并提供细心呵护的男人更重要。
In more salubrious climes, therefore, wimps 18 are in with a chance.
而在一些相对安逸的地区,小男人 便因此有了一定的机会。
Now, though, researchers led by Robert Brooks 19, of the University of New South Wales, have taken another look at Dr DeBruine's data and arrived at a different conclusion.
目前,由新南威尔斯大学的罗伯特.布鲁克斯率领的研究者对于德布鲁因博士的数据有着另一种理解并得出一个不同的结论,
They present their findings in the Proceedings 20 of the Royal Society.
并将所发些的结果发表在了《皇家协会会刊》上。
Dr Brooks suggests that it is not health-related factors, but rather competition and violence among men that best explain a woman's penchant 21 for manliness 22.
布鲁克斯博士认为与其说是涉及健康的相关因素不如说男人之间的竞争和暴力可以最好地解释女性对于男子气概的追捧。
The more rough-and-tumble the environment, the researcher's argument goes, the more women prefer masculine men, because they are better than the softer types at providing for mothers and their offspring.
研究者辩解道,环境越是恶劣,女性就越发地选择阳刚型男子,因为与稍显温和的男性相比更具男人气概的男子在赡养妻儿方面更能胜任。
An unhealthy relationship
一个不健康的关系
Since violent competition for resources is more pronounced in unequal societies, Dr Brooks predicted that women would value masculinity more highly in countries with a higher Gini coefficient, which is a measure of income inequality.
由于不平等社会更容易发生为争夺资源的暴力竞争,布鲁克斯博士预测在基尼系数较高国家的妇女可能更看重男人阳刚的一面。
And indeed, he found that this was better than a country's health statistics at predicting the relative attractiveness of hunky faces.
而事实上,他发现通过这种方法比利用一个国家的健康状况统计数据能够更好地预测一张标致的脸庞是否具有吸引力。
The rub is that unequal countries also tend to be less healthy.
问题是收入不平等国家的人口健康状况也不会太好。
So, in order to disentangle cause from effect, Dr Brooks compared Dr DeBruine's health index with a measure of violence in a country: its murder rate.
所以为了澄清效应产生的原因,布鲁克斯博士将德布鲁因博士的健康指数与反映一个国家暴力事件水平的谋杀案发率进行了对比。
Again, he found that his chosen indicator 23 predicts preference for facial masculinity more accurately 24 than the health figures do.
他再次发现其所选择的指标要比人口健康状况指数更准确地放映女性对于男性外在阳刚特性的偏爱。
However, in a rejoinder published in the same issue of the Proceedings, Dr DeBruine and her colleagues point to a flaw in Dr Brooks's analysis: his failure to take into account a society's overall wealth.
然而,德布鲁因博士及其同事在《皇家协会会刊》上发表了关于此问题的回复,他们指出布鲁克斯博士的分析存在一个缺点:这就是他没有将一个社会群体的所有财富考虑在内。
When she performed the statistical 25 tests again, this time controlling for GNP, it turned out that the murder rate's predictive power disappears, whereas that of the health indicators 26 persists.
德布鲁因博士再次进行了统计学验证,其结果是谋杀案发率的预测性消失了而人口健康状况指数的却依然存在。
In other words, the prevalence of violent crime seems to predict mating preferences only in so far as it reflects a country's relative penury 27.
换句话说,就目前而言利用暴力犯罪的流行程度来预测择偶偏好只适用于一个相对拮据的国家。
The statistical tussle 28 shows the difficulty of drawing firm conclusions from correlations 29 alone.
这些统计学上的争辩显示仅从相关性难以得出确凿的结论。
Dr DeBruine and Dr Brooks admit as much, and agree the dispute will not be settled until the factors that shape mating preferences are tested directly.
德布鲁因博士和布鲁克斯博士都非常赞同这一点,并且一致认为只有在形成择偶偏好的因素被直接验证后才能消除双方的分歧。
Another recent study by Dr DeBruine and others has tried to do just that.
由德布鲁因博士及其他成员主导的另一个研究就是为了尝试这方面的验证。
Its results lend further credence 30 to the health hypothesis.
这项研究的结果加强了健康偏好假说的可信性。
This time, the researchers asked 124 women and 117 men to rate 15 pairs of male faces and 15 pairs of female ones for attractiveness.
这次,研究者邀请124名女士及117名男士给15对男性面孔图片及15对女性面孔图片的魅力程度进行评级。
Each pair of images depicted 31 the same set of features tweaked to make one appear ever so slightly manlier 32 than the other or more feminine.
每一对面孔都具有相同的外貌特征,只是如果图片上是男性的面孔,则其中一幅略显阳刚,而如果是女性的面孔,其中一幅则略显柔美。
Some were also made almost imperceptibly lopsided.
有些面孔则呈现出一边倒的情况使得难以分辨差异。
Symmetry, too, indicates a mate's quality because in harsh environments robust 33 genes are needed to ensure even bodily development.
由于在严酷的环境下优良的基因可以为后代的生理发育带来保障,所以外貌的对称性同样被作为择偶的标准。
Next, the participants were shown another set of images, depicting 34 objects that elicit 35 varying degrees of disgust, such as a white cloth either stained with what looked like a bodily fluid, or a less revolting blue dye.
接下来,参与者会观看一系列让人感觉恶心程度不一的图片,例如一块沾有貌似体液或者不太让人反感的蓝色色块的白布。
Disgust is widely assumed to be another adaptation, one that warns humans to stay well away from places where germs and other pathogens may be lurking 36.
由于反感情绪被广泛认为是另一种适应,它可以警告人类远离那些可能潜伏着细菌和病原体的地方。
So, according to Dr DeBruine's hypothesis, people shown the more disgusting pictures ought to respond with an increased preference for masculine lads and feminine lasses, and for the more symmetrical countenances 37.
所以,根据德布鲁因博士的假设,观看了较多让人反感的图片的人群应该会更偏向于选择阳刚的小伙子和柔美的小姑娘以及面貌对称性较高的图片。
That is precisely 38 what happened when they were asked to rate the same set of faces one more time.
当被要求重新给这些图片进行评级时所得出的结果还是一样。
But it only worked with the opposite sex; the revolting images failed to alter what either men or women found attractive about their own sex.
但是,这只对给异性面貌图片进行评级时有效。令人反感的图片无法改变男性或者女性给同性面貌图片评级的结果。
This means sexual selection, not other evolutionary 39 mechanisms 40, is probably at work.
这意味着验证过程中产生效果的是性选择而不是其他进化机制。
More research is needed to confirm these observations and to see whether other factors, like witnessing violence, bear on human physiognomic proclivities 41.
还需要更多的研究来证实这些观点并确定是否还有其他诸如目睹暴力等因素会对人类以貌取人的倾向产生影响。
For now, though, the majority of males who do not resemble Brad Pitt may at least take comfort that this matters less if their surroundings remain spotless.
目前看来,对于绝大多数长得不够布拉德.皮特的男士们来说至少可以松一口气了,因为只要你保持清洁,长得像不像布帅哥倒也没什么。
1.hideous a.丑陋的;可怕的
They wear hideous clothes to cover their mostly monstrous 42 bodies.
他们穿着丑陋的衣服以便掩盖畸形的身躯。
2.preference n.偏爱;优先
She has a preference for blue.
她特别喜欢蓝色。
3.conscious a.神志清醒的;意识到的
He was badly hurt, but he still remained conscious.
他伤得很重,但仍未失去知觉。
4.aggression n.进攻;侵犯;侵害
For a dog,an erect 43 tail indicates aggression.
对狗而言,竖立起来的尾巴表示进攻。
5.obverse a.正面的;对应面的
The head of the Queen appears on the obverse of British coins.
英国硬币的正面有女王的头像。
adj.丑陋的,可憎的,可怕的,恐怖的
- The whole experience had been like some hideous nightmare.整个经历就像一场可怕的噩梦。
- They're not like dogs,they're hideous brutes.它们不像狗,是丑陋的畜牲。
adj.(爱情或友谊上)易变的,不坚定的
- Fluctuating prices usually base on a fickle public's demand.物价的波动往往是由于群众需求的不稳定而引起的。
- The weather is so fickle in summer.夏日的天气如此多变。
ad.全部地,完整地;完全地,彻底地
- The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
- His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。
n.颚,颌,说教,流言蜚语;v.喋喋不休,教训
- He delivered a right hook to his opponent's jaw.他给了对方下巴一记右钩拳。
- A strong square jaw is a sign of firm character.强健的方下巴是刚毅性格的标志。
n.进攻,侵略,侵犯,侵害
- So long as we are firmly united, we need fear no aggression.只要我们紧密地团结,就不必惧怕外来侵略。
- Her view is that aggression is part of human nature.她认为攻击性是人类本性的一部份。
adj.生理学的,生理学上的
- He bought a physiological book.他买了一本生理学方面的书。
- Every individual has a physiological requirement for each nutrient.每个人对每种营养成分都有一种生理上的需要。
n.雄劲,丈夫气
- He wanted his sons to become strong,virile,and athletic like himself.他希望他的儿子们能长得像他一样强壮、阳刚而又健美。
- He is a tall,virile man with rugged good looks.他是个身材高大、体魄健壮、相貌粗犷英俊的男子。
n.壁炉炉床,壁炉地面
- She came and sat in a chair before the hearth.她走过来,在炉子前面的椅子上坐下。
- She comes to the hearth,and switches on the electric light there.她走到壁炉那里,打开电灯。
n.后代,子孙;结果
- His numerous progeny are scattered all over the country.他为数众多的后代散布在全国各地。
- He was surrounded by his numerous progeny.众多的子孙簇拥着他。
n.混杂,混乱;(男女的)乱交
- Promiscuity went unpunished, divorce was permitted. 乱交挨不着惩罚,离婚办得成手续。 来自英汉文学
- There is also no doubt that she falls into promiscuity at last. 同时无疑她最后也堕入性乱。 来自互联网
adj.父母的;父的;母的
- He encourages parental involvement in the running of school.他鼓励学生家长参与学校的管理。
- Children always revolt against parental disciplines.孩子们总是反抗父母的管束。
n.加付款;赠品;adj.高级的;售价高的
- You have to pay a premium for express delivery.寄快递你得付额外费用。
- Fresh water was at a premium after the reservoir was contaminated.在水库被污染之后,清水便因稀而贵了。
n.基因( gene的名词复数 )
- You have good genes from your parents, so you should live a long time. 你从父母那儿获得优良的基因,所以能够活得很长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- Differences will help to reveal the functions of the genes. 它们间的差异将会帮助我们揭开基因多种功能。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 生物技术的世纪
n.困境,进退两难的局面
- I am on the horns of a dilemma about the matter.这件事使我进退两难。
- He was thrown into a dilemma.他陷入困境。
adj.不自然的,假装的
- She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
- His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。
adj.(指坏事情)充斥的,流行的,普遍的
- Disease is rife in the area.疾病在这一区很流行。
- Corruption was rife before the election.选举之前腐败盛行。
abbr.trumpets 喇叭;小号;喇叭形状的东西;喇叭筒v.(牌戏)出王牌赢(一牌或一墩)( trump的过去式 );吹号公告,吹号庆祝;吹喇叭;捏造
- On the day of the match the team turned up trumps. 比赛那天该队出乎意料地获得胜利。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- Every time John is late getting home he trumps up some new excuse. 每次约翰晚回家都会编造个新借口。 来自《简明英汉词典》
n.懦弱的人,无用的人( wimp的名词复数 )v.懦弱的人,无用的人( wimp的第三人称单数 )
- No. Seatbelts are for wimps. Besides, I'm a great driver. 不。只有懦夫才系安全带。我驾车很在行。 来自互联网
- Good news for wimps (a weak person), then. 这对于那些白面小生来说可是个好消息。 来自互联网
n.小溪( brook的名词复数 )
- Brooks gave the business when Haas caught him with his watch. 哈斯抓到偷他的手表的布鲁克斯时,狠狠地揍了他一顿。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- Ade and Brooks exchanged blows yesterday and they were severely punished today. 艾德和布鲁克斯昨天打起来了,今天他们受到严厉的惩罚。 来自《简明英汉词典》
n.进程,过程,议程;诉讼(程序);公报
- He was released on bail pending committal proceedings. 他交保获释正在候审。
- to initiate legal proceedings against sb 对某人提起诉讼
n.爱好,嗜好;(强烈的)倾向
- She has a penchant for Indian food.她爱吃印度食物。
- He had a penchant for playing jokes on people.他喜欢拿人开玩笑。
刚毅
- She was really fond of his strength, his wholesome looks, his manliness. 她真喜欢他的坚强,他那健康的容貌,他的男子气概。
- His confidence, his manliness and bravery, turn his wit into wisdom. 他的自信、男子气概和勇敢将他的风趣变为智慧。
n.指标;指示物,指示者;指示器
- Gold prices are often seen as an indicator of inflation.黃金价格常常被看作是通货膨胀的指标。
- His left-hand indicator is flashing.他左手边的转向灯正在闪亮。
adv.准确地,精确地
- It is hard to hit the ball accurately.准确地击中球很难。
- Now scientists can forecast the weather accurately.现在科学家们能准确地预报天气。
adj.统计的,统计学的
- He showed the price fluctuations in a statistical table.他用统计表显示价格的波动。
- They're making detailed statistical analysis.他们正在做具体的统计分析。
(仪器上显示温度、压力、耗油量等的)指针( indicator的名词复数 ); 指示物; (车辆上的)转弯指示灯; 指示信号
- The economic indicators are better than expected. 经济指标比预期的好。
- It is still difficult to develop indicators for many concepts used in social science. 为社会科学领域的许多概念确立一个指标仍然很难。
n.贫穷,拮据
- Hardship and penury wore him out before his time.受穷受苦使他未老先衰。
- A succession of bad harvest had reduced the small farmer to penury.连续歉收使得这个小农场主陷入了贫困境地。
n.&v.扭打,搏斗,争辩
- They began to tussle with each other for the handgun.他们互相扭打起来,抢夺那支手枪。
- We are engaged in a legal tussle with a large pharmaceutical company.我们正同一家大制药公司闹法律纠纷。
相互的关系( correlation的名词复数 )
- One would expect strong and positive correlations between both complexes. 人们往往以为这两个综合体之间有紧密的正相关。
- The correlations are of unequal value. 这些对应联系的价值并不相同。
n.信用,祭器台,供桌,凭证
- Don't give credence to all the gossip you hear.不要相信你听到的闲话。
- Police attach credence to the report of an unnamed bystander.警方认为一位不知姓名的目击者的报告很有用。
描绘,描画( depict的过去式和过去分词 ); 描述
- Other animals were depicted on the periphery of the group. 其他动物在群像的外围加以修饰。
- They depicted the thrilling situation to us in great detail. 他们向我们详细地描述了那激动人心的场面。
manly(有男子气概的)的比较级形式
- The man did work that was thought to be manlier. He was a logger. 老先生做的是一般认为较适合男性的工作-当一名樵夫。
adj.强壮的,强健的,粗野的,需要体力的,浓的
- She is too tall and robust.她个子太高,身体太壮。
- China wants to keep growth robust to reduce poverty and avoid job losses,AP commented.美联社评论道,中国希望保持经济强势增长,以减少贫困和失业状况。
描绘,描画( depict的现在分词 ); 描述
- a painting depicting the Virgin and Child 一幅描绘童贞马利亚和圣子耶稣的画
- The movie depicting the battles and bloodshed is bound to strike home. 这部描写战斗和流血牺牲的影片一定会取得预期效果。
v.引出,抽出,引起
- It was designed to elicit the best thinking within the government. 机构的设置是为了在政府内部集思广益。
- Don't try to elicit business secrets from me. I won't tell you anything. 你休想从我这里套问出我们的商业机密, 我什么都不会告诉你的。
潜在
- Why are you lurking around outside my house? 你在我房子外面鬼鬼祟祟的,想干什么?
- There is a suspicious man lurking in the shadows. 有一可疑的人躲在阴暗中。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
n.面容( countenance的名词复数 );表情;镇静;道义支持
- 'stood apart, with countenances of inflexible gravity, beyond what even the Puritan aspect could attain." 站在一旁,他们脸上那种严肃刚毅的神情,比清教徒们还有过之而无不及。 来自英汉 - 翻译样例 - 文学
- The light of a laugh never came to brighten their sombre and wicked countenances. 欢乐的光芒从来未照亮过他们那阴郁邪恶的面孔。 来自辞典例句
adv.恰好,正好,精确地,细致地
- It's precisely that sort of slick sales-talk that I mistrust.我不相信的正是那种油腔滑调的推销宣传。
- The man adjusted very precisely.那个人调得很准。
adj.进化的;演化的,演变的;[生]进化论的
- Life has its own evolutionary process.生命有其自身的进化过程。
- These are fascinating questions to be resolved by the evolutionary studies of plants.这些十分吸引人的问题将在研究植物进化过程中得以解决。
n.机械( mechanism的名词复数 );机械装置;[生物学] 机制;机械作用
- The research will provide direct insight into molecular mechanisms. 这项研究将使人能够直接地了解分子的机理。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- He explained how the two mechanisms worked. 他解释这两台机械装置是如何工作的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
n.倾向,癖性( proclivity的名词复数 )
- Raised by adoptive parents,Hill received early encouragement in her musical proclivities. 希尔由养父母带大,从小,她的音乐爱好就受到了鼓励。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- Whatever his political connections and proclivities, he did not care to neglect so powerful a man. 无论他的政治关系和脾气如何,他并不愿怠慢这样有势力的人。 来自辞典例句
adj.巨大的;恐怖的;可耻的,丢脸的
- The smoke began to whirl and grew into a monstrous column.浓烟开始盘旋上升,形成了一个巨大的烟柱。
- Your behaviour in class is monstrous!你在课堂上的行为真是丢人!
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