科学美国人60秒 SSS 研究称葡萄酒可以减轻球芽甘蓝的苦味

This is Scientific American's 60-second Science, I'm Christopher Intagliata.

这里是科学美国人——60秒科学系列，我是克里斯托弗·因塔利亚塔。

Thanksgiving is, of course, really all about the side dishes.

感恩节自然离不开各种配菜。

And alongside mashed¹ potatoes and yams, Brussels sprouts² are a common side on many Thanksgiving tables.

和土豆泥和山药泥一样，球芽甘蓝也是感恩节餐桌上常见的一道配菜。

Not that they're equally appreciated.

并不是说他们得到了同样的赞赏。

But science is here to save turkey day, with a way to mitigate³ the sprouts' intense, slightly bitter flavor: take swigs of red wine as you eat them.

但科学来拯救感恩节了，它有一种方法来减轻球芽甘蓝强烈、微苦的味道:吃的时候喝几大口红酒。

Like any human research study, or perhaps more importantly for one in which you'll be forcing people to eat Brussels sprouts, the project started off with approval from an ethics⁴ committee.

就像任何人类研究一样，或许对于强迫人们吃球芽甘蓝的研究来说更重要，这个项目是在伦理委员会批准的情况下开始的。

Researchers then served 28 volunteers slices of microwaved Brussels sprouts, and asked them to rate the intensity⁵ or bitterness of their flavor on a scale of 1 to 10.

然后，研究人员给28名志愿者提供了微波加热过的球芽甘蓝片，并让他们对其味道的强度和苦味进行打分，分值从1到10。

They then alternated their bites with red wine, gravy⁶, and bottled water. And rated the flavor again.

然后他们轮流喝红酒、肉汁和瓶装水。然后再对味道进行评级。

Turns out, the subjects scored the sprouts as significantly less intense on a flavor scale after a sip⁷ of wine: 3.5 out of 10, compared to 5.5.

结果表明，研究对象喝了一小口葡萄酒后，对球芽甘蓝的味道感觉明显不那么强烈:满分为10分，评分为3.5分，对比之前的5.5分。

Maybe, the scientists write, because the astringency⁸ of wine interferes⁹ with saliva's ability to deliver bitter flavor molecules¹⁰ to the taste buds.

科学家们写道，也许是因为葡萄酒的涩味干扰了唾液向味蕾传递苦味分子的能力。

The results are in the Journal of Texture¹¹ Studies, which is a real publication.

研究结果发表在《质构研究》上, 这是一本真正的出版物。

Unfortunately for the kids at the table, gravy and water did not do the taste trick.

不幸的是，对于餐桌上的孩子们来说，肉汁和水并不能达到这个味道。

But for adults who choose to use this Thanksgiving hack—please imbibe¹² responsibly.

但对于选择使用这个感恩节技巧的成年人来说，请承担起吃球芽甘蓝的责任。

Though it’s hard to imagine you'll be eating that many Brussels sprouts.

不过很难想象你会吃那么多球芽甘蓝。

Thanks for listening for Scientific American's 60-second Science. I'm Christopher Intagliata.

谢谢大家收听科学美国人——60秒科学。我是克里斯托弗·因塔利亚塔。

1 mashed   

a.捣烂的

参考例句：

• two scoops of mashed potato 两勺土豆泥
• Just one scoop of mashed potato for me, please. 请给我盛一勺土豆泥。

2 sprouts   

n.新芽，嫩枝( sprout的名词复数 )v.发芽( sprout的第三人称单数 )；抽芽；出现；（使）涌现出

参考例句：

• The wheat sprouts grew perceptibly after the rain. 下了一场雨，麦苗立刻见长。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The sprouts have pushed up the earth. 嫩芽把土顶起来了。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

3 mitigate   

vt.（使）减轻，（使）缓和

参考例句：

• The government is trying to mitigate the effects of inflation.政府正试图缓和通货膨胀的影响。
• Governments should endeavour to mitigate distress.政府应努力缓解贫困问题。

4 ethics   

n.伦理学；伦理观，道德标准

参考例句：

• The ethics of his profession don't permit him to do that.他的职业道德不允许他那样做。
• Personal ethics and professional ethics sometimes conflict.个人道德和职业道德有时会相互抵触。

5 intensity   

n.强烈，剧烈；强度；烈度

参考例句：

• I didn't realize the intensity of people's feelings on this issue.我没有意识到这一问题能引起群情激奋。
• The strike is growing in intensity.罢工日益加剧。

6 gravy   

n.肉汁；轻易得来的钱，外快

参考例句：

• You have spilled gravy on the tablecloth.你把肉汁泼到台布上了。
• The meat was swimming in gravy.肉泡在浓汁之中。

7 sip   

v.小口地喝，抿，呷；n.一小口的量

参考例句：

• She took a sip of the cocktail.她啜饮一口鸡尾酒。
• Elizabeth took a sip of the hot coffee.伊丽莎白呷了一口热咖啡。

8 astringency   

n.收敛性，严酷

参考例句：

• The endosperm of the nut owes its marked degree of astringency. 坚果的胚乳由于存在丹宁，所以有显著的涩味。 来自辞典例句
• The mountain cultivation, the fruit is mature when cannot remain the astringency. 高山栽培，果实成熟时不会残留涩味。 来自互联网

9 interferes   

vi. 妨碍，冲突，干涉

参考例句：

• The noise interferes with my work. 这噪音妨碍我的工作。
• That interferes with my plan. 那干扰了我的计划。

10 molecules   

分子( molecule的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The structure of molecules can be seen under an electron microscope. 分子的结构可在电子显微镜下观察到。
• Inside the reactor the large molecules are cracked into smaller molecules. 在反应堆里，大分子裂变为小分子。

11 texture   

n.(织物)质地；(材料)构造；结构；肌理

参考例句：

• We could feel the smooth texture of silk.我们能感觉出丝绸的光滑质地。
• Her skin has a fine texture.她的皮肤细腻。

12 imbibe   

v.喝，饮；吸入，吸收

参考例句：

• Plants imbibe nourishment usually through their leaves and roots.植物通常经过叶和根吸收养分。
• I always imbibe fresh air in the woods.我经常在树林里呼吸新鲜空气。