關於身體的12個神奇事實
Do feet really get bigger with age?
腳會一直隨着年齡長大？It’s certainly possible: After years of wear and tear, tendons and ligaments in your feet may weaken. This can cause arches to flatten, which means feet get wider and longer. It won’t happen to everyone, though—people who are overweight, who get swollen feet or ankles, or who have certain medical conditions, like diabetes, are more prone. If it does happen, the average gain is about one shoe size by age 70 or 80.
這是有可能的：經過多年的磨損，腳部的肌腱和韌帶會有損耗。這就會使得腳底變平，那麼腳就更寬更長了。但不是每個人都會這樣，那些很胖、腳或者踝關節浮腫，又或有過某種病症比如糖尿病的人更容易出現這種情況。一般來說到了70或80歲腳會大一碼。What’s with that stomach-in-your-throat feeling on roller coasters?
做過山車時爲什麼有胃到喉嚨眼的感覺？
Your insides are actually shifting! When a coaster comes over its crest, slows for a second for added torture, and then plummets downward, the seat belt keeps your rear in place, but some loosely connected internal organs—like your stomach and intestines—get a little “air time.” You’re not damaging your innards by riding even the craziest of coasters (everything returns to its proper place), but your nerves detect the movement, which registers as though your stomach has jumped into your throat.
你的體內在翻江倒海！當過山車到了頂端，減速那一秒鐘會加重體內的折磨，隨即驟然落下，座位安全帶能保持你的屁股在原位，但卻無法照顧到體內的器官，比如胃和腸道就會有點“飄飄蕩”了。其實玩最瘋狂的過山車也不會損壞你的內臟（它們最後會迴歸的），但是你的神經能感測到運動，就會讓你覺得胃都跑到喉嚨眼來了。How come women always seem colder than men?
女人爲什麼總比男人感覺更怕冷？The fairer sex has a higher percentage of body fat and conserves more heat around the core. That helps keep vital organs nice and toasty but not the extremities—and when your hands and feet feel cold, so does the rest of your body. Plus, research suggests that women have a lower threshold for cold than men. When exposed to the same freezing temperature, the blood vessels in women’s fingers constrict more than men’s do, which is why they turn white more quickly.
女人體內有更高的身體脂肪比例，也會在體內儲存更多的熱量，這能保持核心器官的運轉，但不包括四肢。如果你的手腳感覺冰冷，身體的其他部位也是如此。另外，調查顯示女人寒冷的臨界值比男人低。在相同溫度的嚴寒環境之下，女人手指血管的收縮度比男人要大，所以它們會迅速變白。Is “old-person smell” real?
老年人的體味是真的麼？Yes. But there’s also a distinctive middle-aged-person smell and a young-person smell, according to a recent study. The research found that older people have a less intense—and more pleasant—scent than the middle-aged folk and young whippersnappers. Not what you expected, right?
是真的，但近期研究表明中年人和年輕人身上的味道也是有區別的。調查發現相對中年人和青年人來說，老年人的體味不那麼強烈，反而相對溫和。和你想的不一樣吧？Why does room-temperature coffee taste so bad?
常溫的咖啡爲何這麼難喝？The temperature affects flavor. Researchers in Belgium found that certain taste bud receptors are most sensitive to food molecules that are at or just above room temperature. So hot coffee may seem less bitter (and, in turn, taste better) because our bitter-detecting taste buds aren’t as sensitive when coffee is hot. Odors influence flavor as well, so even the most bitter hot coffee may taste delicious because of its pleasant aroma; room-temperature coffee doesn’t smell the same.
溫度影響口感。比利時的研究者發現，某些味蕾會對處於室溫的食物分子更加敏感。由於我們品嚐苦味的味蕾在高溫度時並不十分敏感，相對而言熱咖啡似乎不那麼苦啦（當然口感更好）。氣味也會影響口感，所以即使是最苦的熱咖啡，也會因爲它的香氣讓人覺得美味，而室溫咖啡就沒這個香氣了。How come you wake up at night to urinate but not to do anything else?
爲什麼半夜醒來只想小便？Because the sophisticated, intelligent neurons in your gut that control colon contractions, which push out waste, are also influenced by your body’s circadian rhythm, the internal clock that wakes you when it’s light out and makes you feel sleepy at night. So most people don’t have the urge to empty their colon in the middle of the night. On the other hand, the bladder, which acts a reservoir for the continuous flow of urine produced in the kidneys, can stretch only up to a certain volume before you gotta go. Normally, you can sleep six to eight hours without having to urinate, but certain medical conditions or drinking too much water before bed can wake you to use the bathroom at night.
這是因爲控制着結腸收縮的複雜敏感神經元，也會受到人體生理週期（也就是排便規律）的影響，白天生物鐘會讓你醒來，晚上會讓你睡覺。到了半夜，大部分人並不會急着去排便。另一方面，膀胱一直都儲存着腎臟排泄出的不間斷的尿液流，到了一定的容量，你就需要上廁所了。一般說來睡眠六到八小時是無需小便的，但某種病症或是睡前多喝水則會使你起夜了。Why do we have fingerprints?
我們爲什麼有指紋？Many experts think it’s to improve grip, but a British study from a few years back suggests otherwise. Researchers found that a fingerprint’s ridges actually made it harder to hold flat, smooth surfaces, like Plexiglas, because they reduced the skin’s contact area. Instead, they think our prints might help wick water off our fingertips or allow our skin to stretch more easily, which can protect it from damage and help prevent blisters. Other scientists have suggested fingerprints could improve our sense of touch. What we do know for sure is that no two people’s fingerprints are the same, even among identical twins.
有的專家認爲這會增加在抓取時手上的摩擦力，但最近幾年英國的調查顯示並非如此。研究者發現指紋的脊狀反而使人們難抓平滑的表面，比如樹脂玻璃，因爲指紋減少了皮膚的接觸面積。他們反倒認爲指紋有可能是能防止指尖的水分流失，或使得我們皮膚更易吸收水分，從而保護皮膚防止起水泡。其他科學家還認爲指紋能提高我們的觸覺。目前我們確切知道的是：每個人的指紋都與其他人的不同，就算是雙胞胎也如此。Can achy joints really forecast the weather?
關節疼痛真的可以預測天氣？Maybe. A change in barometric readings may be part of the reason: Atmospheric pressure often drops right before bad weather sets in; this shift could cause body tissue to expand, which can lead to swelling and pain. The effect is slight, but people who have arthritic or inflamed joints may detect the difference. Temperature may have an impact too: In 2007, researchers found that every ten-degree drop in temperature corresponded with a small increase in osteoarthritic knee pain.
也許吧，氣壓變化有可能是一部分原因：壞天氣來臨時，氣壓往往會降低，這會導致機體組織擴張，會讓人感覺疼痛。這種影響是十分輕微的，但如果有人患了關節炎又或關節受傷，影響或許會增大。溫度也是一方面原因：2007年，研究者發現氣溫每降低10度會增加膝骨關節炎的疼痛程度。Why does holding your breath help with hiccups?
爲什麼憋氣能治打嗝呢？It’s thought that if you build up carbon dioxide in your body (by not exhaling), it will help stop your diaphragm from spasming, which is what causes the hiccups. When your diaphragm contracts involuntarily, it forces a quick intake of breath that’s suddenly stopped by the epiglottis. That closure is what causes the hiccup sound.
有人認爲如果你憋住了二氧化碳（不呼氣），就能讓你阻止你的隔膜痙攣，這也就造成了打嗝。如果你的隔膜開始不自覺痙攣，會迫使你快速吸一口氣，然後受到會厭的阻擋。會厭就是打嗝聲音發出的地方。What makes my stomach growl?
爲什麼胃會咕嚕咕嚕叫？It can be the sound of your digestive juices churning and stomach muscles contracting as they get prepped for food. To avoid those often poorly timed and embarrassing sounds, eat smaller meals more frequently.
這是你胃液翻轉的聲音，胃部肌肉仍像消化食物一般蠕動時發出聲音。要防止這些令人尷尬的提醒飢餓聲音，就少吃多餐吧。Why do I sometimes get side stitches when I run?
爲什麼跑步時會胸口疼？Your diaphragm gets stretched, pulled, and pounded during a run, which can cause that sharp, stabbing pain at the lower edge of your rib cage, usually on the right side of your body. To help the pain pass, slow down and take more controlled, easy breaths.
跑步時你的隔膜伸展拉長以及變重，這會導致胸腔有種劇烈的疼痛感，且往往在身體右側。要減緩疼痛，那就放慢速度，呼吸均勻。Why does armpit sweat smell worse than sweat from other places?
爲什麼腋下流汗的氣味比其他部位難聞？Your body has two kinds of sweat glands. Most of those on your arms and legs secrete a mix of water and salt. But the glands in your armpits (as well as your groin) release an oily substance, which bacteria love. It’s actually the bacteria eating the oil that releases the telltale stench.
身體有兩種汗腺。大部分是在手臂以及腿部，分泌的是水和鹽分。而腋下（以及腹股溝）處的汗腺會分泌出油性物體，也是細菌的最愛。所以實際上是細菌吞噬油脂時發出的信號啦。
