新奇事件簿 抢购引发卫生纸短缺

Shoppers around the world are embarking¹ on panic buying sprees because of fears over the coronavirus. People in countries as far afield as England, Japan, Singapore and Australia have been emptying supermarket shelves of toilet paper, face masks, hand sanitiser and dried and canned food. Governments have advised their citizens that there is no need to "panic buy". They added that panic buying would only reduce the supply of products needed by medical staff and carers, which could exacerbate² the problems the COVID-19 virus is causing. Footage of shoppers in Australia brawling³ over the last pack of toilet roll in a supermarket has gone viral across social media.

由于对冠状病毒的恐惧，世界各地的购物者正掀起抢购狂潮。远在英国、日本、新加坡和澳大利亚等国的人们纷纷清空超市货架上的卫生纸、口罩、洗手液以及干制和罐装食品。各国政府建议市民没有必要‘抢购’。他们又说到，抢购只会减少医务人员和护理人员所需产品的供应，这可能会加剧COVID-19病毒造成的问题。在澳大利亚一家超市里，购物者为最后一包卫生纸争吵的视频在社交媒体上疯传。

Psychologists say panic buying is an "irrational⁴" behaviour that is part of a condition called FOMO - the fear of missing out. Dr Katharina Wittgens said a herd⁵ mentality⁶ sets in during disasters that causes people to copy the actions of others. People watch the news of items being bought in bulk and immediately rush out to the stores to do the same. She said people were overestimating⁷ the risks of dying from the coronavirus. She said: "Far more people die in car accidents or household accidents per year but we don't panic about these things in the morning before we go to work." Singapore's prime minister reassured⁸ Singaporeans that: "We have ample supplies. There's no need to stock up."

心理学家表示抢购是一种“非理性”行为，属于一种名为“害怕错过”（FOMO）的心理疾病。Katharina Wittgens博士称，在发生灾难时，人们会产生从众心理，从而模仿他人的行为。人们看到大量采购商品的新闻，就会立即跑去商店做同样的事情。她说道，人们高估了死于冠状病毒的风险。她说：“每年死于车祸或家庭事故的人更多，但我们不会在上班前为这些事情感到恐慌。”新加坡总一再向民众保证：“我们有充足的物资，没必要囤货。”

1 embarking   

乘船( embark的现在分词 )； 装载； 从事

参考例句：

• He's embarking on a new career as a writer. 他即将开始新的职业生涯——当一名作家。
• The campaign on which were embarking was backed up by such intricate and detailed maintenance arrangemets. 我们实施的战争，须要如此复杂及详细的维护准备。

2 exacerbate   

v.恶化，增剧，激怒，使加剧

参考例句：

• WMO says a warming climate can exacerbate air pollution.世界气象组织说，气候变暖可能会加剧空气污染。
• In fact efforts will merely exacerbate the current problem.实际上努力只会加剧当前的问题。

3 brawling   

n.争吵，喧嚷

参考例句：

• They were arrested for brawling in the street. 他们因在街上打斗而遭到拘捕。
• The officers were brawling commands. 军官们大声地喊口令。

4 irrational   

adj.无理性的，失去理性的

参考例句：

• After taking the drug she became completely irrational.她在吸毒后变得完全失去了理性。
• There are also signs of irrational exuberance among some investors.在某些投资者中是存在非理性繁荣的征象的。

5 herd   

n.兽群，牧群；vt.使集中，把…赶在一起

参考例句：

• She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
• He had no opinions of his own but simply follow the herd.他从无主见，只是人云亦云。

6 mentality   

n.心理，思想，脑力

参考例句：

• He has many years'experience of the criminal mentality.他研究犯罪心理有多年经验。
• Running a business requires a very different mentality from being a salaried employee.经营企业所要求具备的心态和上班族的心态截然不同。

7 overestimating   

对（数量）估计过高，对…作过高的评价( overestimate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• I think you're overestimating his abilities. 我看你对他的能力评价过高。
• With hindsight, he was overestimating their desire for peace. 事后看来，他高估了他们对和平的渴望。

8 reassured   

adj.使消除疑虑的；使放心的v.再保证，恢复信心( reassure的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• The captain's confidence during the storm reassured the passengers. 在风暴中船长的信念使旅客们恢复了信心。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• The doctor reassured the old lady. 医生叫那位老妇人放心。 来自《简明英汉词典》