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Over the years, people have put forth¹ a lot of theories to explain why intelligence differs, from person to person and even around the world. Health, wealth, schooling², nutrition, and even climate have all come up. Now, researchers at the University of New Mexico suggest that parasites³ might play a role. They find that the prevalence of infectious diseases can be a powerful predictor of regional smarts. Their work appears in the Proceedings⁴ of the Royal Society.

It takes a lot of energy to build and operate a human brain. This needy⁵ organ commands 87 percent of the body’s metabolic⁶ budget in infants, and about 25 percent in adults. So things that sap our energy are likely to hinder our intellectual growth. That’s why malnourishment’s not good for the mind.

But what about parasites? Fighting off nasty bugs⁷ can take a lot out of you. So the scientists got to wondering whether excessive infections might correlate with impaired⁸ cognitive⁹ development. Looking at IQs from around the world, they found that high levels of infectious disease go hand in hand with lower average national intelligence.

Although the authors have not demonstrated cause-and-effect, it’s nice to think that taking down parasites could bring up our IQs.

Thanks for the minute for Scientific American’s 60-Second Science. I’m Karen Hopkin

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1 forth
adv.向前；向外，往外
参考例句：
The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。 He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

2 schooling
n.教育；正规学校教育
参考例句：
A child's access to schooling varies greatly from area to area.孩子获得学校教育的机会因地区不同而大相径庭。 Backward children need a special kind of schooling.天赋差的孩子需要特殊的教育。

3 parasites
寄生物( parasite的名词复数 )；靠他人为生的人；诸虫
参考例句：
These symptoms may be referable to virus infection rather than parasites. 这些症状也许是由病毒感染引起的，而与寄生虫无关。 Kangaroos harbor a vast range of parasites. 袋鼠身上有各种各样的寄生虫。

4 proceedings
n.进程，过程，议程；诉讼(程序)；公报
参考例句：
He was released on bail pending committal proceedings. 他交保获释正在候审。 to initiate legal proceedings against sb 对某人提起诉讼

5 needy
adj.贫穷的，贫困的，生活艰苦的
参考例句：
Although he was poor,he was quite generous to his needy friends.他虽穷，但对贫苦的朋友很慷慨。 They awarded scholarships to needy students.他们给贫苦学生颁发奖学金。

6 metabolic
adj.新陈代谢的
参考例句：
Impressive metabolic alternations have been undergone during embryogenesis.在胚胎发生期间经历了深刻的代谢变化。 A number of intoxicants are associated with metabolic acidosis.许多毒性物质可引起代谢性酸中毒。

7 bugs
adj.疯狂的，发疯的n.窃听器( bug的名词复数 )；病菌；虫子；[计算机]（制作软件程序所产生的意料不到的）错误
参考例句：
All programs have bugs and need endless refinement. 所有的程序都有漏洞，都需要不断改进。来自《简明英汉词典》 The sacks of rice were swarming with bugs. 一袋袋的米里长满了虫子。来自《简明英汉词典》

8 impaired
adj.受损的；出毛病的；有（身体或智力）缺陷的v.损害，削弱( impair的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
Much reading has impaired his vision. 大量读书损害了他的视力。来自《现代汉英综合大词典》 His hearing is somewhat impaired. 他的听觉已受到一定程度的损害。来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

9 cognitive
adj.认知的，认识的，有感知的
参考例句：
As children grow older,their cognitive processes become sharper.孩子们越长越大，他们的认知过程变得更为敏锐。 The cognitive psychologist is like the tinker who wants to know how a clock works.认知心理学者倒很像一个需要通晓钟表如何运转的钟表修理匠。