(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
Now from the U.S. to Europe.
Turning down temperatures at home and office may help you fight obesity.
New evidence suggests that regular exposure to mild cold may be a healthy and sustainable way to help people lose weight.
Researchers from Maastricht University Medical Center in The Netherlands say, in other words, our warm and cozy homes and offices might be partly responsible for our expanding waistlines.
Doctors found the thermal environment affects human health. More specifically, frequent mild cold exposure can significantly affect the energy expenditure over sustained time periods.
They found that a more variable indoor temperature, one that is allowed to drift along with temperatures outside, might be beneficial, although long-term effects still await further investigation.
A previous study from researchers in Japan revealed a decrease in body fat after people spent 2 hours per day at 17 degrees Celsius for six weeks.
The 10-year study also found that people get used to the cold over time. After six hours a day in the cold for a period of 10 days, people increase heat-generating, calorie-burning brown fat. They felt more comfortable and shivered less at 15 degree Celsius.
At least in young and middle-aged people, non-shivering heat production can account for a few percent up to 30 percent of the body's energy budget.
That means lower temperatures can significantly affect the amount of energy a person expends overall.
So perhaps, in addition to our exercise training, people need to train themselves to spend more time in the cold.
Scientists from the Czech Republic have found that dogs exhibited a very clear inclination to defecate with their bodies aligned in a North-South stance.
Intrigued by the growing list of animals that appear to have a magnetic sensitivity, the scientists focused on dogs to see if they too have any such abilities.
After some initial observations, they began to notice a pattern of behavior related to stance during defecation that was enough to embark on some field studies.
The field studies were conducted in an open field so as to ensure that the dogs weren't being impacted by familiar surroundings. In all, 70 dogs of 37 breeds were observed circling and defecating for a total of almost 1,900 times.
The dogs were found to prefer to defecate while in a North-South stance relative to the Earth's axis.
But researchers also found that freedom was a factor. Dogs on leashes didn't appear to have as much of an inclination to align themselves in any particular direction as did dogs who were allowed to roam free in a field as they did their business.
Researchers suggested that the dogs might simply feel more comfortable to align themselves in a particular direction when defecating.
They also found that they tended to intentionally avoid crouching in an East-West alignment, perhaps finding it the most uncomfortable of all.
The study is the first to conclusively show that dogs have magnetic sensitivity.
中文翻译
现在把目光从美国转向欧洲。
将家里和办公室的温度调低有助于对抗肥胖。
现在有证据表明，经常性暴露在温冷的环境可以帮助人们健康且持久的减轻体重。
荷兰马斯特里赫特大学医学中心的研究人员表示，换句话说，温暖舒适的房屋和办公室可能会导致我们的腰围不断增大。
医生发现，温热环境会影响人类的健康。更准确地说，经常性暴露在温冷环境中会对长时间的能量消耗产生显著影响。
研究发现，更具变化性的室内温度，即随室外温度调整的室内温度可能更有益健康，但其长期影响还要进行进一步研究。
此前日本研究人员的调查发现，每天在17摄氏度的环境中待两个小时，坚持六周，人体内的脂肪会减少。
这项为期10天的研究同时发现，人们会随着时间的推移习惯寒冷。每天在寒冷的环境中待6个小时，坚持10天，人们体内产生热量和燃烧脂肪的棕色脂肪会增加。人们在低于15摄氏度的环境下会感觉更舒服、不至于发抖。
对年轻人和中年人来说，不至于发抖的环境产生的热量相当于人体能量收支的30%。
这意味着较低温度可以对人体消耗的全部能量产生明显影响。
也许除了运动训练，人们需要训练自己在寒冷环境中待更长时间。
捷克共和国的科学家发现，狗在排便时喜欢身体和南北方向保持一致。
出于对各种动物的磁场灵敏度的好奇，科学家决定研究狗是否也拥有这种能力。
在进行初步观察后，科学家注意到狗狗在排便时的特定行为模式，这足于促使他们展开实地研究。
实地研究在开放领域进行，以保证狗狗不会受到熟悉环境的影响。研究人员观察了37个品种70只狗的约1900次排便。
他们发现，狗狗排便时喜欢让身体与地球南北轴线对齐。
不过研究人员同时发现，自由度是其中一个影响因素。有拴绳的狗狗在排便时并不会与特定的方向保持一致，而没有栓绳的狗狗在排便时则会寻求方向。
研究人员表示，狗狗在排便时与特定方向保持一致可能会感觉更舒服。
他们同时发现，狗狗会避免与东西方向一致，可能是因为它们觉得这样最不舒服。
这是首次确切指出狗狗拥有磁场灵敏度能力的研究。
译文属可可英语原创，未经允许，不得转载
重点讲解
重点讲解：
1. turn down
关小；调低；
eg. She turned down the volume on the radio.
她关小了收音机的音量。
eg. We usually turn down the heat before going to bed.
睡觉前我们通常把暖气调低一些。
2. in other words
换言之；换句话说；也就是说；
eg. The mobile library services have been reorganised — in other words, they visit fewer places.
流动图书馆服务重新作了安排——换句话说，他们去的地方减少了。
eg. I ask you to leave — in other words, you are fired.
我请你走人，也就是说，你被解雇了。
3. account for
（数量或比例上）占；
eg. Studies indicate that nonfarm earnings now account for more than 20 percent of total household income.
研究资料表明，目前非农业收入占整个家庭收入的20%以上。
eg. CFS 65, account for 6.4 percentage.
慢性疲劳综合征65人，占6.4%。
4. in addition to
另外；加之；除…之外；
eg. In addition to the main question, there are secondary matters to talk about.
除主要问题之外，还有些次要问题讨论。
eg. In addition to all of the above, she won a Pulitzer Prize in 1980.
除上述外，她还在1980年获得普利策奖,。
5. embark on
着手；开始做；
eg. Redundancy is the spur for many to embark on new careers.
裁员促使很多人开始从事新事业。
eg. Some forethought and preparation is necessary before you embark on the project.
你着手进行这个项目之前必须有所考虑，有所准备。
6. so as to
（用于引出原因）为了；以便；
eg. He was pounding away at the job so as to finish it before dark.
他在拼命地干，以便在天黑前把工作做完。
eg. The test questions are kept secret, so as to prevent cheating.
为了防止作弊，考试的题目是保密的。
7. in all
总共；合计；
eg. I have two brothers and a sister: three siblings in all.
我有两个哥哥和一个妹妹: 共有三个兄妹。
eg. In all, she has eight costume changes.
她总共换了8次演出服。
