英语听力文摘 English Digest 512、走路的奥妙

 　　Walking and Sloshing

 

　　You’re at a party. Somebody hands you a glass. Hey, come on over here! Somebody else shouts. You take a step and the next thing you know you are wearing that tasty beverage¹.

 

　　But why? When we walk, we keep our torsos straight, don’t we? Walking feels entirely² steady and constant. So why is it so hard to carry a liquid?

 

　　If you doubt the difficulty of this exercise, we suggest you try filling up a bucket with water and carrying it at chest level without spilling any. But try it outside first!

 

　　The answer is that although we feel ourselves to be quite steady when we walk, in truth that is anything but the case. When you walk your torso bobs in all directions.

 

　　Walking is a complex muscular phenomenon that amounts to allowing yourself to fall slightly forward and then preventing yourself from falling completely by extending your foot. The extended foot halts the motion which was begun partly by gravity and partly by the pushing of the other foot. Now the torso moves over the base of the resting foot which, once the torso has passed it, begins pushing it into a forward fall again until the other foot arrests the motion.

 

　　On top of this, we must also constantly prevent ourselves from falling sideways by flexing³ and releasing the gluteus muscles around our buttocks and hips⁴. That’s why people sway as well when they walk.

 

　　This is what walking is: not the smooth, undifferentiated motion that it seems to be, but an ongoing⁵ series of up-down, start-stop, and side-to-side maneuvers⁶. No wonder drinks fly!

1 beverage   

n.(水，酒等之外的)饮料

参考例句：

• The beverage is often colored with caramel.这种饮料常用焦糖染色。
• Beer is a beverage of the remotest time.啤酒是一种最古老的饮料。

2 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• 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。

3 flexing   

n.挠曲，可挠性v.屈曲( flex的现在分词 )；弯曲；（为准备大干而）显示实力；摩拳擦掌

参考例句：

• Flexing particular muscles allows snakes to move in several ways. 可弯曲的特殊的肌肉使蛇可以用几种方式移动。 来自电影对白
• China has become an economic superpower and is flexing its muscles. 中国已经成为了一个经济巨人而且在展示他的肌肉。 来自互联网

4 hips   

abbr.high impact polystyrene 高冲击强度聚苯乙烯，耐冲性聚苯乙烯n.臀部( hip的名词复数 )；[建筑学]屋脊；臀围（尺寸）；臀部…的

参考例句：

• She stood with her hands on her hips. 她双手叉腰站着。
• They wiggled their hips to the sound of pop music. 他们随着流行音乐的声音摇晃着臀部。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

6 maneuvers   

n.策略，谋略，花招( maneuver的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He suspected at once that she had been spying upon his maneuvers. 他立刻猜想到，她已经侦察到他的行动。 来自辞典例句
• Maneuvers in Guizhou occupied the Reds for four months. 贵州境内的作战占了红军四个月的时间。 来自辞典例句