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(单词翻译:双击或拖选)
This is Scientific American's 60-Second Science. I'm Christopher Intagliata. Got a minute?
During the 2008 presidential election, the Internet became a giant rumor1 mill. For example, there were the viral e-mails claiming Barack Obama's birth certificate was a fake. Or ones spreading the phony Sarah Palin quote, "God made dinosaurs2 4,000 years ago".
Some political scholars worry the Web could undermine democracy, by misinforming and polarizing voters. But Web sites and blogs don't serve up the most influential3 rumors4. Our in-boxes do. So says a study of e-mail in the journal Human Communication Research.
Just after the election, researcher R. Kelly Garrett randomly5 surveyed 600 Americans about their online habits, and whether they'd heard—and believed—a number of widespread rumors. He found that the Web does expose us to more rumors. But the Web also delivers more rebuttals, which can even the field.
E-mail's more insidious6. Because you're more likely to believe that rumor forwarded by cousin Rob. And the more you believe something, Garrett says, the more you wanna share it with your social network—spawning a nasty cascade7 of misperception.
So before you hit SEND to forward e-mail, ask yourself: Do I know the item I'm sharing is true, or do I just want it to be?
Thanks for the minute. For Scientific American's 60-Second Science, I'm Christopher Intagliata.
![收听单词发音](/images/play.gif)
1
rumor
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n.谣言,谣传,传说 | |
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2
dinosaurs
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n.恐龙( dinosaur的名词复数 );守旧落伍的人,过时落后的东西 | |
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3
influential
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adj.有影响的,有权势的 | |
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4
rumors
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n.传闻( rumor的名词复数 );[古]名誉;咕哝;[古]喧嚷v.传闻( rumor的第三人称单数 );[古]名誉;咕哝;[古]喧嚷 | |
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5
randomly
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adv.随便地,未加计划地 | |
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6
insidious
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adj.阴险的,隐匿的,暗中为害的,(疾病)不知不觉之间加剧 | |
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7
cascade
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n.小瀑布,喷流;层叠;vi.成瀑布落下 | |
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