【英语时差8,16】引起信任的化学作用

Trust is essential to social interaction among humans. Making friends, conducting business transactions, leading a team, and even playing games would be all but impossible without it. But have you ever wondered why we trust other people at all? Little is known about the science of trust, but researchers have begun to focus on the peptide oxytocin as a potential clue to the biological basis for this behavior. Oxytocin is produced in the hypothalamus, and acts on areas of the brain responsible for social behaviors. Scientists hypothesize that oxytocin stimulates¹ a trust response by encouraging "approach behavior" --that is, reducing the natural suspicion we have to the social proximity² of others. The chemical has also been found to reduce the brain's fear response to pictures of human faces. Under its influence, people are more willing to take social risks. In one study, researchers had their subjects play a simple game based on trust. Those who had been given a dose of synthetic³ oxytocin were more likely to trust the other players than those who had not. In another study, seventy individuals with general social phobias used synthetic oxytocin for one month, taking a dose before entering difficult social situations. These subjects were more relaxed and exhibited a higher level of confidence when interacting with others while supplementing their brain's natural levels of the chemical. Scientists are hopeful that further research into the effects of oxytocin will provide a new way to treat anxiety disorders⁴ in humans, from debilitating⁵ shyness to autism and schizophrenia. As they continue to explore oxytocin's role in brain activity, they hope to further understand these disorders, as well as the normal function of trust in human societies.

1 stimulates   

v.刺激( stimulate的第三人称单数 )；激励；使兴奋；起兴奋作用，起刺激作用，起促进作用

参考例句：

• Exercise stimulates the body. 运动促进身体健康。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Alcohol stimulates the action of the heart. 酒刺激心脏的活动。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

2 proximity   

n.接近，邻近

参考例句：

• Marriages in proximity of blood are forbidden by the law.法律规定禁止近亲结婚。
• Their house is in close proximity to ours.他们的房子很接近我们的。

3 synthetic   

adj.合成的，人工的；综合的；n.人工制品

参考例句：

• We felt the salesman's synthetic friendliness.我们感觉到那位销售员的虚情假意。
• It's a synthetic diamond.这是人造钻石。

4 disorders   

n.混乱( disorder的名词复数 )；凌乱；骚乱；（身心、机能）失调

参考例句：

• Reports of anorexia and other eating disorders are on the increase. 据报告，厌食症和其他饮食方面的功能紊乱发生率正在不断增长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The announcement led to violent civil disorders. 这项宣布引起剧烈的骚乱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 debilitating   

a.使衰弱的

参考例句：

• The debilitating disease made him too weak to work. 这个令他衰弱的病，使他弱到没有办法工作。
• You may soon leave one debilitating condition or relationship forever. 你即将永远地和这段霉运说拜拜了。