【英语时差8,16】老人依旧欣赏幽默？

Ya?l and Don wonder if old folks still appreciate humor.   Y: Every time I see the old crone living next door to me I joke around a little, you know, to be friendly, and she just scowls¹ at me. Maybe when people get old their sense of humor is the first thing to go.

D: Actually, research suggests that old folks, if they're healthy, can still appreciate humor as much as a younger person can. They still smile and laugh when they get the joke. However, there is evidence to suggest that with age we may lose our ability to comprehend more complex forms of humor.

Scientists believe that the tools we need to get a complex joke are primarily located in the brain's frontal lobes³. People with damage to their right frontal lobe² experience difficulty getting punch lines and prefer slapstick humor instead. There's also evidence that the functions located in the brain's frontal lobes may be the first to diminish with aging. This may explain why in a recent experiment older folks performed significantly worse than younger folks in comprehending more complex forms of humor.

Of course, it's also important to take into account factors such as social differences in the kind of humor people prefer, social setting, and health. Maybe your neighbor would laugh at the same jokes if she were socializing with a group of her friends, but not laugh with her neighbor whom she doesn't know well or finds annoying.

Y: Gee⁴ thanks. Or maybe I need to simplify my humor, say step on a rake and get bonked on the head.

D: I can't speak for your neighbor, but I'd sure laugh.  

1 scowls   

不悦之色，怒容( scowl的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• All my attempts to amuse the children were met with sullen scowls. 我想尽办法哄这些孩子玩儿，但是他们总是满脸不高兴。
• Frowns, scowls and grimaces all push people away -- but a smile draws them in. 1. 愁眉苦脸只会把人推开，而微笑却把人吸引过来。

2 lobe   

n.耳垂，（肺，肝等的）叶

参考例句：

• Tiny electrical sensors are placed on your scalp and on each ear lobe.小电器传感器放置在您的头皮和对每个耳垂。
• The frontal lobe of the brain is responsible for controlling movement.大脑前叶的功能是控制行动。

3 lobes   

n.耳垂( lobe的名词复数 )；（器官的）叶；肺叶；脑叶

参考例句：

• The rotor has recesses in its three faces between the lobes. 转子在其凸角之间的三个面上有凹槽。 来自辞典例句
• The chalazal parts of the endosperm containing free nuclei forms several lobes. 包含游离核的合点端胚乳部分形成几个裂片。 来自辞典例句

4 gee   

n.马；int.向右！前进！，惊讶时所发声音；v.向右转

参考例句：

• Their success last week will gee the team up.上星期的胜利将激励这支队伍继续前进。
• Gee,We're going to make a lot of money.哇！我们会赚好多钱啦！