【趣谈英语】大脑本身感受不到痛苦-Your Brain Feels No Pain

Pre-Listening Vocabulary

 

whine¹: to complain in a way that annoys others

receptor: a cell or nerve that responds to a sense

roof of one’s mouth: the palate; above the top of the tongue

contract: get smaller

overreact: to act as if a minor² problem is a serious one

dilate³: get wider

conserve⁴: save

sensation: feeling

temples: two flat upper parts at the side of the forehead

 

Your Brain Feels No Pain

You can whine about an earache⁵ or a headache, but you can’t complain about pain in the brain. The human brain has no pain receptors. It can’t tell itself that it hurts. If the brain feels no pain, what is brain freeze? Brain freeze, also called an ice cream headache, occurs when you eat or drink something cold too quickly. When ice cream touches the roof of your mouth, the blood vessels⁶ in your mouth contract. This sends a message to the brain about a change in your body heat. The brain overreacts and tries to conserve heat by contracting the blood vessels in your head. When the threat is over, the blood vessels in the head relax and dilate. This sends a quick rush of blood to the head. You feel this rush of blood as pain in your temples, face, or neck, but not in your brain. Try pressing your tongue against the roof of your mouth to relieve the sensation of brain freeze.

1 whine   

v.哀号，号哭；n.哀鸣

参考例句：

• You are getting paid to think,not to whine.支付给你工资是让你思考而不是哀怨的。
• The bullet hit a rock and rocketed with a sharp whine.子弹打在一块岩石上，一声尖厉的呼啸，跳飞开去。

2 minor   

adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修

参考例句：

• The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
• I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。

3 dilate   

vt.使膨胀，使扩大

参考例句：

• At night,the pupils dilate to allow in more light.到了晚上，瞳孔就会扩大以接收更多光线。
• Exercise dilates blood vessels on the surface of the brain.运动会使大脑表层的血管扩张。

4 conserve   

vt.保存，保护，节约，节省，守恒，不灭

参考例句：

• He writes on both sides of the sheet to conserve paper.他在纸张的两面都写字以节省用纸。
• Conserve your energy,you'll need it!保存你的精力，你会用得着的！

5 earache   

n.耳朵痛

参考例句：

• I have been having an earache for about a week.我的耳朵已经痛了一个星期了。
• I've had an earache for the past few days.我耳痛好几天了。

6 vessels   

n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人

参考例句：

• The river is navigable by vessels of up to 90 tons. 90 吨以下的船只可以从这条河通过。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All modern vessels of any size are fitted with radar installations. 所有现代化船只都有雷达装置。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》