常春藤解析英语【9】It's Like Déjà vu. Déjà vu. 神

by Christine Newton

You are walking through a park you have never visited before when a dog runs past, barking at a cluster of birds. You turn to see its owner smile and wave. Suddenly, you are overcome by the feeling that you have been here before—in this same park, with the same dog and birds, while the same owner is waving his arm in exactly the same way. By the time he lowers his arm, you realize the situation no longer fits quite so well with your fading recollection. You are sure once again that you have never been to this park. The familiarity is gone.

Déjà vu, French for "already seen," describes the peculiar¹ feeling of having encountered an identical situation in the past, without knowing exactly when or where. The memory is most often attributed to a dream. The feeling lasts only a few seconds and is usually tied to an ordinary event. It may be a visual scene recalled in detail, or an uncanny knowledge of a new place. What is distinctive² about déjà vu is not the situation itself but the feeling that accompanies it.

More than 70 percent of the population has experienced this phenomenon. Attempts to explain it range from past lives to repressed memories. Some people believe déjà vu is a form of precognition, the mysterious ability to know of an event before it happens. Scientists have linked déjà vu to neural³ disorders⁵ like schizophrenia and epilepsy, suggesting it could be a hiccup⁶ of the brain with no connection to the past.

Is déjà vu ordinary or extraordinary? The answer remains⁷ a mystery. But perhaps you've heard this all before...

1. Which of the following wouldn't be considered déjà vu?
(A) An overwhelming urge to do the same thing over and over again.
(B) The feeling that you've been somewhere before.
(C) An impression that you've already met someone at one time or another.
(D) A sensation that you've had the same experience in the past.

2. How do scientists attempt to explain déjà vu?
(A) It's a sign of potential cancer.
(B) It can indicate a harmless problem in the brain.
(C) It means that a person has gone totally crazy.
(D) It results from brain damage or other injuries.

3. The last line of the article is trying to suggest _____.
(A) this article was never published before
(B) you'll never fully⁸ understand déjà vu
(C) you've read this article at a time in the past
(D) you can never make up for your past mistakes

精解字词词组

1. be overcome by...　被……（的感觉）压倒
例：When I spoke⁹ to Gina, I was overcome by guilt¹⁰ for telling her secret to her mother.
（我跟吉娜说话时感到一股强烈的罪恶感，因为我把她的秘密告诉她妈妈。）

2. By the time S + V, S + V　等到……的时候，……
例：By the time his son finally returned home, Mr. Burns had already fallen asleep.
（等儿子终于回到家时，波恩先生早已经睡着了。）

3. identical a. 相同的
be identical to...　　与……完全相同
例：Jim's coat was identical to the one I bought last month.
（吉姆的外套跟我上个月买的那件一模一样。）

4. be attributed to N/V-ing　　归因于……
例：The child's declining health can be attributed to poor dental care and hygiene¹¹.
（那孩子每况愈下的健康状况可归咎于牙齿保健不良和卫生不佳。）

5. be tied to...　　与……联系在一起
例：Skin cancer is tied to overexposure to the sun's rays.
（皮肤癌与过度接触阳光有高度关联。）

6. in detail　　详细地
= at length
例：Tell me everything in detail. Don't hold anything back at all.
（详细告诉我所有事情，任何事都别隐瞒。）

7. distinctive a. 显著的
例：That restaurant has a distinctive smell that makes my mouth water whenever I pass by.
（那间餐厅有股特殊的香味，害我每次经过都口水直流。）

8. accompany vt. 伴随；陪伴
例：Several benefits accompany signing up for the program today.
（今天报名这项课程会有许多好处随之而来。）

9. range from A to B　　范围从 A 到 B 都有
例：Quinn's health problems range from diabetes¹² to liver disease.
（奎恩健康方面的毛病从糖尿病到肝病都有。）

10. know of...　　获悉∕知道……
例：No one I know of has ever been to Europe.
（我知道的人里面没有人去过欧洲。）

11. link A to B　　使 A 和 B 产生关联；连结 A 与 B
例：The police linked the death of the actress to her ex-husband.
（警方认为那位女演员的死与她前夫有关。）

12. overwhelming a. 压倒性的
例：Harry¹³ had an overwhelming urge to hug his daughter as soon as she stepped off the plane.
（女儿一走下飞机，哈利就有一股想拥抱她的强烈欲望。）

13. make up for...　　补偿∕弥补……
= compensate¹⁴ for...
例：How can I possibly make up for being so rude to you?
（我对你那么无礼，怎么做才能补偿你呢？）

单字小铺

1. déjà vu n. 既视现象

2. recollection n. 回忆

3. familiarity n. 相似；熟悉

4. peculiar a. 独特的，特异的

5. encounter vt. 遭遇，遇到

6. uncanny a. 怪异的；离奇的

7. repressed a. 受压抑的

8. precognition n. 预知

9. neural a. 中枢神经的

10. disorder⁴ n. 失调

11. schizophrenia n. 精神分裂症

12. epilepsy n. 癫痫

13. hiccup n. 小问题；打嗝

14. sensation n. 感觉

词组小铺

1. a cluster of...　　一群的……

2. once again　　再一次

3. over and over again　　一而再，再而三

4. at one time or another　　过去某时

5. go crazy　　失去理智；发疯

6. result from...　　起因于……

中文翻译＆标准答案

你正走过一座自己从没去过的公园，这时一只狗跑过你身边，对着一群鸟吠叫。你转头看见牠的主人正在微笑挥手。突然之间，你感觉曾经到过这里——同样的公园，同样的小狗和鸟，同一个主人以完全相同的方式挥手。当他放下手臂后，你了解到这情形与逐渐消失的记忆不太吻合。你再次确定自己从没来过这个公园。熟悉的感觉已经不见了。

déjà vu（既视现象），法文里的意思是『已经见过』，描述过去曾遇过相同情况，但不确定是在何时何地发生的奇妙感觉。这种记忆常被归因于梦境。这感觉只持续几秒钟，而且通常和日常事件有关。可能是一个忆起的详细画面，或对新环境有着奇怪的认识。既视现象特别的不是情境本身，而是随之而来的熟悉感。

多达七成的人曾经历过这种现象，关于它的解释从前世今生到被压抑的记忆都有。有些人相信既视现象是一种预知的形式，也就是在事情发生前就隐约知道的特异功能。科学家则将它与中枢神经失调，如精神分裂症或癫痫，连结在一起，认为那可能是大脑一时失常的现象，和过去无关。

既视现象是正常还是反常呢？答案依然是个谜。但也许你早已听说过这一切……

1. 下列何者不是既视现象？
(A) 一股压倒性的冲动，想一再做同一件事。
(B) 你过去曾到过某处的感觉。
(C) 你过去某个时候曾见过某人的印象。
(D) 你过去曾经历过某件事的感觉。
题解： 本文第二段即点出，法文里的『已经见过』，描述的是过去曾经遇过相同的情况，但不确定是在何时何地的感觉，选项中仅 (A) 不符合，故选之。

2. 科学家如何解释既视现象？
(A) 罹患癌症的征兆。
(B) 暗示脑部有无害的问题。
(C) 意指某人完全发疯了。
(D) 是由脑部损伤或其它伤害引起的。
题解： 根据第三段，科学家将既视现象与中枢神经失调有关，主张这只是大脑一时失常的现象，故选 (B)。

3. 这篇文章的最后一行暗示 _____。
(A) 这篇文章从未出版过
(B) 你永远无法全然了解既视现象
(C) 你过去曾在某时读过这篇文章
(D) 你永远无法弥补过去的错误
题解： 本文最后一行说『但也许你早已听说过这一切……』，暗示你目前正经历既视现象，所以感觉文章所谈的一切都很熟悉，故选 (C)。

标准答案：　
1. (A)　2. (B)　3. (C)
 

1 peculiar   

adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的

参考例句：

• He walks in a peculiar fashion.他走路的样子很奇特。
• He looked at me with a very peculiar expression.他用一种很奇怪的表情看着我。

2 distinctive   

adj.特别的，有特色的，与众不同的

参考例句：

• She has a very distinctive way of walking.她走路的样子与别人很不相同。
• This bird has several distinctive features.这个鸟具有几种突出的特征。

3 neural   

adj.神经的，神经系统的

参考例句：

• The neural network can preferably solve the non- linear problem.利用神经网络建模可以较好地解决非线性问题。
• The information transmission in neural system depends on neurotransmitters.信息传递的神经途径有赖于神经递质。

4 disorder   

n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调

参考例句：

• When returning back,he discovered the room to be in disorder.回家后，他发现屋子里乱七八糟。
• It contained a vast number of letters in great disorder.里面七零八落地装着许多信件。

5 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》

6 hiccup   

n.打嗝

参考例句：

• When you have to hiccup,drink a glass of cold water.当你不得不打嗝时，喝一杯冷水就好了。
• How long did he hiccup?他打嗝打了多久？

7 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

8 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

9 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

10 guilt   

n.犯罪；内疚；过失，罪责

参考例句：

• She tried to cover up her guilt by lying.她企图用谎言掩饰自己的罪行。
• Don't lay a guilt trip on your child about schoolwork.别因为功课责备孩子而使他觉得很内疚。

11 hygiene   

n.健康法，卫生学 （a.hygienic）

参考例句：

• Their course of study includes elementary hygiene and medical theory.他们的课程包括基础卫生学和医疗知识。
• He's going to give us a lecture on public hygiene.他要给我们作关于公共卫生方面的报告。

12 diabetes   

n.糖尿病

参考例句：

• In case of diabetes, physicians advise against the use of sugar.对于糖尿病患者，医生告诫他们不要吃糖。
• Diabetes is caused by a fault in the insulin production of the body.糖尿病是由体內胰岛素分泌失调引起的。

13 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

14 compensate   

vt.补偿，赔偿；酬报 vi.弥补；补偿；抵消

参考例句：

• She used her good looks to compensate her lack of intelligence. 她利用她漂亮的外表来弥补智力的不足。
• Nothing can compensate for the loss of one's health. 一个人失去了键康是不可弥补的。