60秒科学:Jockey Positions Speed Up Horses

[Horse race bugle]
Horse racing¹ is a sport that’s 200 years old.
[Horse race announcer sounds]
And a day at the track is much more exciting now than it was back then.
[Horse race announcer sounds]
That’s because horses are faster than they used to be. Or are they? A study in the July 17th issue of Science shows that it’s the way that jockeys ride that’s made racing more heart-pounding than before.
Images from the late 1800s show that the boys in silks looked pretty relaxed as they went along for the ride. But modern jockeys—crouching², tightly coiled atop their galloping³ steeds—actively work to make sure their weight doesn’t slow things down. Using GPS to track the riders’ motions, scientists found that jockeys move out of phase with their mounts. That means that the horse doesn’t have to physically⁴ move the jockey through each cyclical stride. As a result, races are five to seven percent faster than they were 100 years ago.
Crouch
1. 蹲伏;弯腰;蜷伏[(+down)]
There was a cat crouching in the corner.
角落里蜷缩着一只猫。
2. 卑躬屈膝,谄媚奉承[(+to)]
The servant crouched⁵ to his master.
那仆人向主人低头哈腰。

Galloping: 迅速增加(或蔓延)的
Galloping inflation is pushing up prices.
急速通胀是价格不断上涨。

1 racing   

n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的

参考例句：

• I was watching the racing on television last night.昨晚我在电视上看赛马。
• The two racing drivers fenced for a chance to gain the lead.两个赛车手伺机竞相领先。

2 crouching   

v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• a hulking figure crouching in the darkness 黑暗中蹲伏着的一个庞大身影
• A young man was crouching by the table, busily searching for something. 一个年轻人正蹲在桌边翻看什么。 来自汉英文学 - 散文英译

3 galloping   

adj. 飞驰的, 急性的 动词gallop的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• The horse started galloping the moment I gave it a good dig. 我猛戳了马一下，它就奔驰起来了。
• Japan is galloping ahead in the race to develop new technology. 日本在发展新技术的竞争中进展迅速，日新月异。

4 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。

5 crouched   

v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He crouched down beside her. 他在她的旁边蹲了下来。
• The lion crouched ready to pounce. 狮子蹲下身，准备猛扑。