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为什么人们自我感觉更年轻(上)
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在刚刚过去的感恩节，我问母亲在她心里她多大年纪了。
双语精读
This past Thanksgiving, I asked my mother how old she was in her head. She didn't pause, didn't look up, didn't even ask me to repeat the question, which would have been natural, given that it was both syntactically awkward and a little odd.
在刚刚过去的感恩节，我问母亲在她心里她多大年纪了。她没有停顿，没有抬头，甚至没有让我重复这个问题。她要是让我再说一遍倒是很正常，因为这个问题在语法上有些别扭，而且也略显奇怪。
We were in my brother's dining room, setting the table. My mother folded another napkin. "Forty-five," she said. She is 76.
当时我们在我哥哥家的餐厅里往桌子上摆餐具，母亲又叠了一张餐巾纸，说：“四十五岁。”而实际上她今年七十六岁了。
Why do so many people have an immediate, intuitive grasp of this highly abstract concept-"subjective age," it's called-when randomly presented with it? It's bizarre, if you think about it.
为什么当随便提出这个高度抽象的概念——被称为“主观年龄”——时，这么多人能立刻凭直觉理解它?如果你仔细想想，就会觉得很奇怪。
Certainly most of us don't believe ourselves to be shorter or taller than we actually are. We don't think of ourselves as having smaller ears or longer noses or curlier hair.
当然，我们大多数人都不认为自己比实际身高更高或更矮。我们也不认为自己的耳朵比实际更小，鼻梁更高，或头发更卷。
Most of us also know where our bodies are in space, what physiologists call "proprioception." Yet we seem to have an awfully rough go of locating ourselves in time.
我们大多数人知道我们的身体位于空间中的什么位置，生理学家称之为“本体感觉”。然而，我们似乎很难确定自己在时间中处于什么位置。
A friend, nearing 60, recently told me that whenever he looks in the mirror, he's not so much unhappy with his appearance as startled by it-"as if there's been some sort of error" were his exact words.
一位年近六十的朋友最近告诉我，每当他照镜子时，与其说他对自己的外表不满意，不如说他对自己的外表感到吃惊，他的原话是“好像出了什么差错”。
(High-school reunions can have this same confusing effect. You look around at your lined and thickened classmates, wondering how they could have so violently capitulated to age; then you see photographs of yourself from that same event and realize: Oh.)
(高中同学聚会也会产生同样令人困惑的效果。你环顾四周，看着那些满脸皱纹、身材发福的同学，诧异他们怎么在年龄面前一败涂地，然后你看到自己在同学聚会上的照片，意识到: 哦，我也一样。)
The gulf between how old we are and how old we believe ourselves to be can often be measured in light-years. As one might suspect, there are studies that examine this phenomenon. (There's a study for everything.)
我们的实际年龄与我们心目中的年龄之间的鸿沟通常可以用光年来衡量。正如有些人可能会怀疑的，有研究调查了这一现象。(无论什么现象都有相关的研究。)
As one might also suspect, most of them are pretty unimaginative.
正如有些人同样可能会怀疑的，大多数研究都毫无创意。
Many have their origins in the field of gerontology, designed primarily with an eye toward health outcomes, which means they ask participants how old they feel, which those participants generally take to mean "how old do you feel physically," which then leads to the rather unsurprising conclusion that if you feel older, you probably are, in the sense that you're aging faster.
许多研究都源自老年医学，主要着眼于健康结果，这意味着研究者会问参与者他们感觉自己多大年龄了，而这些参与者通常会把问题理解为“你在身体上感觉自己有多大年龄”，这就会导致一个相当不足为奇的结论: 如果你感觉自己比实际年龄更大，那么你可能确实年龄更大，这里指的是你衰老得更快。
词汇预习
immediate [高考]
美[ɪˈmiːdiət] | 英[ɪˈmiːdiət]
adj. 直接的；最接近的；立即的；目前的
physically [高考]
美[ˈfɪzɪkli] | 英[ˈfɪzɪkli]
adv. 身体上地；实际上
violently [高考]
美[ˈvaɪələntlɪ] | 英[ˈvaɪələntli]
adv. 猛烈地；强烈地；暴力地
primarily [高考]
美[praɪˈmerəli] | 英[praɪˈmerəli]
adv. 主要地，首要地，根本地
awfully [高考]
美[ˈɔflɪ] | 英[ˈɔ:fli]
adv. 非常地；极端地；令人嫌恶地
odd [高考]
美[ɑːd] | 英[ɒd]
adj. 奇数的；古怪的；零散的；剩余的
concept [高考]
美[ˈkɑːnsept] | 英[ˈkɒnsept]
n. 观念；概念；想法
phenomenon [高考]
美[fəˈnɑːmɪnən] | 英[fəˈnɒmɪnən]
n. 现象；奇人；奇事
suspect [高考]
美[səˈspekt] | 英[səˈspekt]
v. 怀疑；猜想 n. 嫌疑犯 adj. 可疑的；不可信的
pause [高考]
美[pɔːz] | 英[pɔːz]
n. 暂停；中止；犹豫不决 vi. 停顿；中止
error [高考]
美[ˈerər] | 英[ˈerə(r)]
n. 错误；过失；误差；谬误
grasp [高考]
美[ɡræsp] | 英[ɡrɑːsp]
n. 把握；领会；抓紧 vt. 领会；抓住；紧握
awkward [高考]
美[ˈɔːkwərd] | 英[ˈɔːkwəd]
adj. 尴尬的；笨拙的；（设计）别扭的
abstract [高考]
美[ˈæbstrækt] | 英[ˈæbstrækt]
adj. 抽象（派）的，纯理论的 n. 摘要，概要; 抽象派艺术作品 v. 提取，抽取，摘取; 写摘要
subjective [高考]
美[səbˈdʒektɪv] | 英[səbˈdʒektɪv]
adj. 主观的
means [高考]
美[miːnz] | 英[miːnz]
n. 方法；手段；收入；财产 v. 意思是，意味（动词mean的第三人称单数）
setting [高考]
美[ˈsetɪŋ] | 英[ˈsetɪŋ]
n. 背景；环境；镶嵌；安装；放置；（日月的）沉落；[音]乐曲
where [高考]
美[wer] | 英[weə(r)]
adv. 在哪里；在那个地方 conj. 在 ... 地方
would [高考]
美[wʊd , wəd] | 英[wʊd , wəd]
aux. 将；可能；大概；总会；愿意；will的过去式
gulf [四级]
美[ɡʌlf] | 英[ɡʌlf]
n. 海湾；鸿沟 vt. 吞没
randomly [四级]
美['rændəmlɪ] | 英['rændəmlɪ]
adv. 任意地；随便地；胡乱地
intuitive [六级]
美[ɪnˈtuːɪtɪv] | 英[ɪnˈtjuːɪtɪv]
adj. 直觉的
napkin [六级]
美[ˈnæpkɪn] | 英[ˈnæpkɪn]
n. 餐巾；一小块布或毛巾；卫生巾
bizarre [六级]
美[bɪˈzɑːr] | 英[bɪˈzɑː(r)]
adj. 奇异的；怪诞的
Thanksgiving [考研]
美[ˌθæŋksˈɡɪvɪŋ] | 英[ˌθæŋksˈɡɪvɪŋ]
n. 感恩节
don [托福]
美[dɑn] | 英[dɒn]
n. 先生（西班牙用语）；(牛津、剑桥大学的)指导教师 v. 穿上
重点讲解
This past Thanksgiving, I asked my mother how old she was in her head. She didn’t pause, didn’t look up, didn’t even ask me to repeat the question, which would have been natural, given that it was both syntactically awkward and a little odd.
在刚刚过去的感恩节，我问母亲在她心里她多大年纪了。她没有停顿，没有抬头，甚至没有让我重复这个问题。她要是让我再说一遍倒是很正常，因为这个问题在语法上有些别扭，而且也略显奇怪。
given prep. 考虑到；鉴于
【例】Given the circumstances, you have done really well.
考虑到这种情况，你做得真的很好。
【近义词】considering/in view of 考虑到
awkward adj.
1. 令人尴尬的；局促的
【例】an awkward silence 令人尴尬的沉默
2. 令人不舒服的；不方便的；别扭的
【例】an awkward question/customer/position
刁钻的问题/难对付的客人/不舒服的姿势
come at an awkward time/The box is awkward to carry.
来得不是时候/箱子很不好搬。
We were in my brother’s dining room, setting the table. My mother folded another napkin. “Forty-five,” she said. She is 76.
当时我们在我哥哥家的餐厅里往桌子上摆餐具，母亲又叠了一张餐巾纸，说：“四十五岁。”而实际上她今年七十六岁了。
given prep. 考虑到；鉴于
【例】Given the circumstances, you have done really well.
考虑到这种情况，你做得真的很好。
【近义词】considering/in view of 考虑到
awkward adj.
1. 令人尴尬的；局促的
【例】an awkward silence 令人尴尬的沉默
2. 令人不舒服的；不方便的；别扭的
【例】an awkward question/customer/position
刁钻的问题/难对付的客人/不舒服的姿势
come at an awkward time/The box is awkward to carry.
来得不是时候/箱子很不好搬。
Why do so many people have an immediate, intuitive grasp of this highly abstract concept—“subjective age,” it’s called—when randomly presented with it? It’s bizarre, if you think about it.
为什么当随便提出这个高度抽象的概念——被称为“主观年龄”——时，这么多人能立刻凭直觉理解它?如果你仔细想想，就会觉得很奇怪。
present sb with sth
1. 把某物授予某人
【例】The mayor presented the school with a new award.
市长向学校颁发了一个新奖项。
2. 向某人提出/造成……
【例】present sb with a question/problem/challenge/dilemma
向某人提出问题/造成问题/带来挑战/造成两难局面
【拓展】present sth as 把某事展现为某种样子
【例】The article presented the problem as a major crisis.
这篇文章把这个问题描述得像是一场重大危机。
Certainly most of us don’t believe ourselves to be shorter or taller than we actually are. We don’t think of ourselves as having smaller ears or longer noses or curlier hair.
当然，我们大多数人都不认为自己比实际身高更高或更矮。我们也不认为自己的耳朵比实际更小，鼻梁更高，或头发更卷。
present sb with sth
1. 把某物授予某人
【例】The mayor presented the school with a new award.
市长向学校颁发了一个新奖项。
2. 向某人提出/造成……
【例】present sb with a question/problem/challenge/dilemma
向某人提出问题/造成问题/带来挑战/造成两难局面
【拓展】present sth as 把某事展现为某种样子
【例】The article presented the problem as a major crisis.
这篇文章把这个问题描述得像是一场重大危机。
Most of us also know where our bodies are in space, what physiologists call “proprioception.” Yet we seem to have an awfully rough go of locating ourselves in time.
我们大多数人知道我们的身体位于空间中的什么位置，生理学家称之为“本体感觉”。然而，我们似乎很难确定自己在时间中处于什么位置。
have a go of/at doing sth 尝试做某事
【例】I'll have a go at fixing it tonight.
我今晚来试着修一下。
【拓展】go 尝试
【例】I passed my driving test first go.
我考驾照一次就通过了。
Just give it a go. 你试试吧。
locate v.
1. 找到位置
【例】to locate the problem/the lost phone
找到问题出在哪里/定位丢失的手机
2. 安置在某个地方
【例】to locate the store in the shopping mall
把店铺开在购物中心
【拓展】relocate sth from...to... 把某物从……迁往……
A friend, nearing 60, recently told me that whenever he looks in the mirror, he’s not so much unhappy with his appearance as startled by it—“as if there’s been some sort of error” were his exact words.
一位年近六十的朋友最近告诉我，每当他照镜子时，与其说他对自己的外表不满意，不如说他对自己的外表感到吃惊，他的原话是“好像出了什么差错”。
not so much A as B 与其说A，不如说B
【例】He is not so much an actor as an entertainer.
他不算是演员，倒更像是娱乐明星。
【近义词】more B than A/less A than B 与其说A，不如说B
capitulate to 向……投降/屈服
【例】capitulate to the demand of sb 屈从某人的要求
【近义词】give in to/yield to/succumb to 向……屈服
(High-school reunions can have this same confusing effect. You look around at your lined and thickened classmates, wondering how they could have so violently capitulated to age; then you see photographs of yourself from that same event and realize: Oh.)
(高中同学聚会也会产生同样令人困惑的效果。你环顾四周，看着那些满脸皱纹、身材发福的同学，诧异他们怎么在年龄面前一败涂地，然后你看到自己在同学聚会上的照片，意识到: 哦，我也一样。)
not so much A as B 与其说A，不如说B
【例】He is not so much an actor as an entertainer.
他不算是演员，倒更像是娱乐明星。
【近义词】more B than A/less A than B 与其说A，不如说B
capitulate to 向……投降/屈服
【例】capitulate to the demand of sb 屈从某人的要求
【近义词】give in to/yield to/succumb to 向……屈服
The gulf between how old we are and how old we believe ourselves to be can often be measured in light-years. As one might suspect, there are studies that examine this phenomenon. (There’s a study for everything.)
我们的实际年龄与我们心目中的年龄之间的鸿沟通常可以用光年来衡量。正如有些人可能会怀疑的，有研究调查了这一现象。(无论什么现象都有相关的研究。)
gulf n. 海湾；鸿沟
【例】the gulf countries/the gulf between rich and poor
波斯湾附近的国家/富人与穷人之间的鸿沟
【近义词】divide/gap n. 分歧；差距
As one might also suspect, most of them are pretty unimaginative.
正如有些人同样可能会怀疑的，大多数研究都毫无创意。
gulf n. 海湾；鸿沟
【例】the gulf countries/the gulf between rich and poor
波斯湾附近的国家/富人与穷人之间的鸿沟
【近义词】divide/gap n. 分歧；差距
Many have their origins in the field of gerontology, designed primarily with an eye toward health outcomes, which means they ask participants how old they feel, which those participants generally take to mean “how old do you feel physically,” which then leads to the rather unsurprising conclusion that if you feel older, you probably are, in the sense that you’re aging faster.
许多研究都源自老年医学，主要着眼于健康结果，这意味着研究者会问参与者他们感觉自己多大年龄了，而这些参与者通常会把问题理解为“你在身体上感觉自己有多大年龄”，这就会导致一个相当不足为奇的结论: 如果你感觉自己比实际年龄更大，那么你可能确实年龄更大，这里指的是你衰老得更快。
have one’s origins in 起源于
【例】The Dragon Boat Festival has its origins in the commemoration of the ancient poet Qu Yuan.
端午节起源于对古代诗人屈原的纪念。
【拓展】in origin 来源于
【例】The name Linda is Spanish in origin.
琳达这个名字来自西班牙语。
with an eye towards/to 着眼于；目的在于
【例】He bought the warehouse with an eye to converting it into a hotel.
他买这个仓库是为了将它改建成一家旅馆。
【拓展】look at sth with an eye of... 用……的眼光看待某事
课后练习
How did the mother react to the author's question about her perceived age?
A. She thought for a moment before answering.
B. She didn’t take the question seriously.
C. She didn’t understand the question.
D. She answered without hesitation.
The author finds it strange that ____.
A. people care more about their age than their appearances
B. people have a clear understanding of their bodies
C. people think they are not as old as their real age
D. people are typically not sure how old they are
What does the author realize when seeing photographs of herself from a high school reunion?
A. She has not changed since high school.
B. Her classmates look very old.
C. She has aged just like her classmates.
D. She does not recognize his classmates.
The author might consider the studies on subjective age as ____.
A. enlightening
B. surprising
C. misleading
D. boring