英语听力文摘 English Digest 487、小猴子如何表达爱

When Marmosets Think About Love
小猴子表达如何爱

狨猴（Marmoset），又称指猴，是生活在在南美洲亚马逊河流域的森林中的一种世界上最小的猴子。这种猴长大后身高仅10—12厘米，重80—100克。新生猴只有蚕豆般大小，重13克。这种猴子喜欢捉虱子吃，且性格温和，因此饲养它们便成了当地印第安人的嗜好。

Marmosets are small primates¹. Think of a monkey with huge fuzzy ears. Primatologists have often wondered whether nonhuman males evaluated their potential mates, or whether their sex drive was more like an on/off switch.

We may think of animals as just responding to sexual invitations without thinking, but a study conducted in both the U.S. and Germany shows this isn’t necessarily so. Male marmosets having their brains scanned were given sniffs² of genital-gland secretions³ from ovulating females.

That’s a scent⁴ that should trigger a mating response in the brain, and it did! But guess what else happened? Many other brain areas lit up as well, such as memory formation, information integration–in other words, areas associated with decision-making.

Researchers are still studying the effect, but apparently⁵ a lot more happens in a marmoset brain than a simple “have sex now” program. The specific areas of brain activity suggest that the males are evaluating potential mates before agreeing to a sexual union.

This makes special sense for marmosets, because they are monogamous and both partners raise the offspring. Under those circumstances you wouldn’t want to enter into a relationship without any thought.

绒猴是很小的灵长类。试想一下，猴子长者一对大大的毛绒绒的耳朵。动物学家时常有这样的疑惑：雄性动物选择“另一半”或者控制性欲是否更像是一个开关键。

我们也许会认为动物对于性邀请基本是不假思索的，但最近美国和德国有研究称事实并非如此。雄性绒猴用它们的大脑扫描，闻正在排卵的磁性动物生殖腺的分泌物。

有一种气味会引起大脑里的交配反应，这样它们才会进行交配。但你猜还会发生什么情况？很多其它的大脑叶都会被“激活”，像信息形成，信息整合，也就是说，所有和决策相关的区域。

研究人员还在观察其影响，但很显然，绒猴的脑部有很多活动而不是一个简单的“性行为”指定。特定区域的大脑活动暗示雄性绒猴
在性结合之前会评估潜在的交配对象。

这对于绒猴有特殊的意义，因为它们是单配制，并且共同抚养后代。在这种情况下，就不会不假思索地介入这段关系了。

 

 

1 primates   

primate的复数

参考例句：

• Primates are alert, inquisitive animals. 灵长目动物是机灵、好奇的动物。
• Consciousness or cerebration has been said to have emerged in the evolution of higher primates. 据说意识或思考在较高级灵长类的进化中已出现。

2 sniffs   

v.以鼻吸气，嗅，闻( sniff的第三人称单数 )；抽鼻子（尤指哭泣、患感冒等时出声地用鼻子吸气）；抱怨，不以为然地说

参考例句：

• When a dog smells food, he usually sniffs. 狗闻到食物时常吸鼻子。 来自辞典例句
• I-It's a difficult time [ Sniffs ] with my husband. 最近[哭泣]和我丈夫出了点问题。 来自电影对白

3 secretions   

n.分泌（物）( secretion的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Lysozyme is an enzyme found in egg white, tears, and other secretions. 溶菌酶是存在于卵白、泪和其他分泌物中的一种酶。 来自辞典例句
• Chest percussion and vibration are used with postural drainage to help dislodge secretions. 在做体位引流时要敲击和振动胸部帮助分泌物松动排出。 来自辞典例句

4 scent   

n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉

参考例句：

• The air was filled with the scent of lilac.空气中弥漫着丁香花的芬芳。
• The flowers give off a heady scent at night.这些花晚上散发出醉人的芳香。

5 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。