新奇事件簿 空气污染导致智力下降（在线收听）

Scientists have revealed that air pollution may be responsible for a significant reduction in intelligence. Research conducted for the World Health Organization (WHO) in China showed that air pollution was responsible for notable falls in student test scores for languages and arithmetic. The Chinese study is called, "The impact of exposure to air pollution on cognitive performance". It was published in a journal called, "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences". The study took place over a period of four years. Researchers analyzed verbal and arithmetic tests taken by 20,000 people of all ages. They said: "Polluted air may impede cognitive ability as people become older."

科学家透露空气污染或许导致智力显著下降。中国世界卫生组织（WHO）研究表明空气污染导致学生语言和算术测试成绩显著降低。这项中国研究名为《空气污染对认知表现的影响》。被研究发表于《Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences》期刊上。该研究为期4年。研究人员对所有年龄段中的两万人的语言和算数测试进行分析。他们表示：“随着年龄增长，空气污染会阻碍人们的认知能力。”

Researchers say their study is a warning to the rest of the world, especially to those who live in cities. The WHO says over 91 per cent of the world population live in areas with toxic air. Air pollution is currently the fourth highest cause of deaths worldwide. The researchers discovered that the longer people were exposed to polluted air, the greater was the damage to their intelligence. They equated the impact of air pollution to losing a year's worth of education. For those aged over 60, this could be the equivalent of several years of lost education. Researcher Dr Xi Chen warned: "There is no shortcut to solve this issue. Governments really need to take concrete measures to reduce air pollution."

研究人员表示他们的研究是对世界，尤其是那些生活在城市里的人的一种警告WHO表示超过91%的世界人口，他们所居住的地方空气都是有毒的。目前空气污染是全球第四大死因。研究人员发现人们暴露在污染空气中的时间越长，他们的智力就会受到越严重的伤害。他们将这种空气污染的影响等同于一年的教育缺失。对那些60岁以上的人而言，这种影响相当于好几年的教育缺失。研究人员陈西警告称：“解决这个问题刻不容缓。政府真的需要采取具体措施减少空气污染。”