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(单词翻译:双击或拖选)
Where Does The Brain Process Moral Decisions?
Ya?l And Don Try An Experiment…
Don: Ya?l, suppose there’s a trolley1 that’s about to run over five people. Do you flip2 the switch that will steer3 the trolley onto a different track if that means only one person will die?
Ya?l: I sure would.
Don: Okay, now what if the only way you can save those five people is by pushing the stranger next to you into the trolley’s path?
Ya?l: Yuck, Don. That would be wrong.
Don: You know, Ya?l, most people, when asked this question, answered the same way. And moral philosophers and psychologists have been trying to figure out why. After all, in both cases, one person dies to save five.
Inside The Science
In one study, scientists discovered that these two scenarios4 are processed by different parts of the brain. Flipping6 a switch, because it’s more impersonal7, activates8 the part of the brain associated with memory. But the more personal scenario5 that requires actively9 killing10 a person activates the part of the brain associated with emotions.
Scientists speculate that a lot of our gut11 reactions to moral dilemmas12 may be affected13 by our upbringing. After all, as children we internalize the emotional reactions of those around us and store them in emotional brain circuits. Then, later, when we encounter a moral problem, these automatic gut feelings guide our decision-making.
Scientists hope that by figuring out how the brain behaves when people wrestle14 with difficult issues, we’ll be able to understand how people with different backgrounds reach different conclusions on when it’s okay to take a life. And everyone knows we could use a little more understanding.
1 trolley | |
n.手推车,台车;无轨电车;有轨电车 | |
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2 flip | |
vt.快速翻动;轻抛;轻拍;n.轻抛;adj.轻浮的 | |
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3 steer | |
vt.驾驶,为…操舵;引导;vi.驾驶 | |
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4 scenarios | |
n.[意]情节;剧本;事态;脚本 | |
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5 scenario | |
n.剧本,脚本;概要 | |
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6 flipping | |
讨厌之极的 | |
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7 impersonal | |
adj.无个人感情的,与个人无关的,非人称的 | |
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8 activates | |
使活动,起动,触发( activate的第三人称单数 ) | |
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9 actively | |
adv.积极地,勤奋地 | |
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10 killing | |
n.巨额利润;突然赚大钱,发大财 | |
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11 gut | |
n.[pl.]胆量;内脏;adj.本能的;vt.取出内脏 | |
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12 dilemmas | |
n.左右为难( dilemma的名词复数 );窘境,困境 | |
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13 affected | |
adj.不自然的,假装的 | |
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14 wrestle | |
vi.摔跤,角力;搏斗;全力对付 | |
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