新奇事件簿 莫扎特音乐让香蕉更快成熟

Scientists have shown that Mozart has a positive effect on many things, but the great composer himself might be surprised that his music helps bananas ripen¹. A Japanese fruit company, Toyoka Chuo Seika, claims its bananas taste better after being exposed to Mozart’s music for a week. The company has special “ripening chambers” that play wall-to-wall Mozart to its Philippine bananas non-stop for a week. Company officials say "String Quartet No. 17" and "Piano Concerto² No. 5 in D major" are particularly good at sweetening the fruit. The company is very confident its methods work. It has started selling its fruit as "Mozart Bananas" in local supermarkets. A spokesperson believes the bananas will become a hit throughout the rest of Japan once word gets out.

科学家发现，莫扎特音乐对许多事物都有着积极的影响。但是这位伟大的作曲家或许自己也没想到他的音乐可以帮助香蕉成熟。一家日本水果公司Toyoka Chuo Seika表示，将香蕉置于莫扎特音乐环境中一周的时间，香蕉的味道更好。这家公司有着自己特别的“成熟室”，连续一周不间断地为它们的菲律宾香蕉播放莫扎特音乐。公司官员表示，《第十七号弦乐》和《D大调第五钢琴协奏曲》对于让香蕉变甜效果是最好的。公司非常相信这个方法奏效。他们已经开始在当地超市以“莫扎特香蕉”的名号销售水果。一名发言人相信，经过口口相传，这种香蕉将会成为热门。

Toyoka Chuo Seika is not the first Japanese company to experiment with classical music to produce better tasting food. The “Japan Times” newspaper reports this is the latest in a trend spanning ten years. It writes: “Over the past few decades, a wide variety of foods and beverages³ have been exposed to classical vibrations⁴ — soy sauce in Kyoto, udon noodles in Tokyo, miso in Yamagata, maitake mushrooms in Ishikawa and "Beethoven Bread" in Nagoya, to name a few.” The paper reports on a 1973 study into music and plants by botanist⁵ Dorothy Retallack. It says: “After playing various kinds of music to plants for three hours daily, she found they "preferred" soothing⁶ classical, which made them flourish. Rock and country, on the other hand, had either a debilitating⁷ effect or none at all.”

Toyoka Chuo Seika并不是第一家使用古典音乐来改善水果味道的日本公司。《日本时报》报道称，这是已经历时十年的流行趋势中最新一家这样做的公司。报道称：“过去几十年，许多食物和饮料都被置于古典音乐环境中——京都的酱油，东京的乌东面，山形的豆面酱，石川的舞菇和名古屋的贝多芬面包，不胜枚举。”报纸报道了1973年植物学家Dorothy Retallack对音乐和植物的研究。报道称：“每天给植物播放不同类型的音乐，她发现植物偏好舒缓的音乐，让植物茁壮成长。而摇滚乐和乡村音乐则让植物非常孱弱或者没有任何影响。”

1 ripen   

vt.使成熟；vi.成熟

参考例句：

• I'm waiting for the apples to ripen.我正在等待苹果成熟。
• You can ripen the tomatoes on a sunny windowsill.把西红柿放在有阳光的窗台上可以让它们成熟。

2 concerto   

n.协奏曲

参考例句：

• The piano concerto was well rendered.钢琴协奏曲演奏得很好。
• The concert ended with a Mozart violin concerto.音乐会在莫扎特的小提琴协奏曲中结束。

3 beverages   

n.饮料( beverage的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• laws governing the sale of alcoholic beverages 控制酒类销售的法规
• regulations governing the sale of alcoholic beverages 含酒精饮料的销售管理条例

4 vibrations   

n.摆动( vibration的名词复数 )；震动；感受；（偏离平衡位置的）一次性往复振动

参考例句：

• We could feel the vibrations from the trucks passing outside. 我们可以感到外面卡车经过时的颤动。
• I am drawn to that girl; I get good vibrations from her. 我被那女孩吸引住了，她使我产生良好的感觉。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 botanist   

n.植物学家

参考例句：

• The botanist introduced a new species of plant to the region.那位植物学家向该地区引入了一种新植物。
• I had never talked with a botanist before,and I found him fascinating.我从没有接触过植物学那一类的学者，我觉得他说话极有吸引力。

6 soothing   

adj.慰藉的；使人宽心的；镇静的

参考例句：

• Put on some nice soothing music.播放一些柔和舒缓的音乐。
• His casual, relaxed manner was very soothing.他随意而放松的举动让人很快便平静下来。

7 debilitating   

a.使衰弱的

参考例句：

• The debilitating disease made him too weak to work. 这个令他衰弱的病，使他弱到没有办法工作。
• You may soon leave one debilitating condition or relationship forever. 你即将永远地和这段霉运说拜拜了。