VOA慢速英语2015 晕车能够提前预防,你相信吗？

Could an Electric Current Stop Motion Sickness? 晕车能够提前预防,你相信吗？

Some people can get motion sickness from being in moving vehicles such as cars or airplanes.

有些人在快速移动的交通工具上会晕车，例如乘坐汽车或飞机。

But, a new device could stop motion sickness by suppressing some signals in the brain.

但是，一种新的设备可以通过抑制大脑信号来有效预防晕车。

Motion sickness occurs when the motion you sense with your inner ear is different from the motion you see. Symptoms of motion sickness are dizziness, nausea 1 and vomiting 2. People have tried different ways to prevent the condition, including wrist bands and anti-nausea drugs.

晕车是因为内耳感受到的移动速率与眼睛所看到产生差距所致。晕车的症状包括头晕、恶心、呕吐等。人们已经在晕车这一问题上已尝试过多种办法，包括防晕车腕带以及一些抗恶心药物。

But often, nothing works.

但是这些办法并不总是奏效。

Now, scientists at Imperial College London are working on a device to counteract 3 motion sickness.

现在伦敦帝国理工学院的科学家正致力研发一种抗晕车的先进设备。

Michael Gresty is an expert on the condition.

迈克尔·格雷斯蒂是这个领域的专家。

"You imagine being on a bicycle or motorbike; you go around the corner, you lean into the corner, which remains 4 perfectly 5 upright in physics.  You don't do that in a car. You don't do that on a ship. You're actually struggling to find out what is upright and what's the best way of dealing 6 with it."

"想象一下，当你骑着自行车和摩托车遇到拐弯处时，你的身体会朝着拐角处倾斜，从物理角度说你的身体还是保持着直立的姿态。但如果你在车上或是船上的时候就另当别论了。其实关键就在于明白什么才算是直立以及如何保持直立的姿态。”

The device sends a weak electrical current through electrodes placed on a person’s head. The electric current appears to cause the brain to suppress signals that affect the inner ear.

该设备通过在人体头部安放电极发送弱电流来达到防晕车的目的。电流能够让大脑发出影响内耳的信号。

Researcher Qadeer Arshad says the scientists found “that it took longer for the individual to develop motion sickness and that they also recovered faster."  The next step is to test the device outside the laboratory.

研究人员卡迪尔.艾尔沙德表示，科学家们发现，“这种装置大大降低了人们晕车的概率，即便晕车了也会很快恢复。” 接下来就开始进行人体测试。

Michael Gresty says there are no reports of unwanted side effects from the small amounts of electricity released by the device. The researchers hope a device that plugs into a smart phone and attaches to the head will be available within 10 years.

格雷斯蒂表示，目前还没有发现这种设备所释放的弱电流有副作用。研究人员希望未来十年内研制出一种可以插入智能手机来连接到头部的便携设备。

Words in This Story

symptoms – n. a change in the body or mind which indicates that a disease or problem is present

dizziness - n. lightheadedness; a feeling or spinning or movement

nausea - n. an uneasy feeling in the stomach

vomiting - n. expulsion of food or liquids from the mouth

wrist band(s) - n. a colorful ring, usually worn around the wrist or arm

suppress - v. to slow or stop the growth, development, or normal functioning of (something)

plugs - v. to connect or link up to something

attaches - v. connects