第1561期:Why do we love to dance?

If you asked me to dance, I'd probably freeze on the spot. I lack rhythm and coordination and some people say I have two left feet! But with some persuasion and Dutch courage I can be tempted to take to the dance floor and shake some moves – and that, apparently, is only natural.如果你让我跳舞，我可能会当场僵住。我缺乏节奏和协调，有人说我有两只左脚！但有了一些说服力和荷兰人的勇气，我可能会想去舞池摇晃一些动作——显然，这是很自然的。Experts have found as well as being fun, dancing might have helped us to survive as a species.专家们发现，跳舞不仅有趣，还可能帮助我们作为一个物种生存下来。Evolutionary anthropologist Bronwyn Tarr from the University of Oxford has been telling the BBC World Service CrowdScience programme that when we dance with others, we are rewarded with feel-good endorphins that change how we feel about ourselves and those around us.牛津大学的进化人类学家 Bronwyn Tarr 告诉 BBC World Service CrowdScience 节目，当我们与他人共舞时，我们会获得感觉良好的内啡肽，这种内啡肽会改变我们对自己和周围人的感觉。Dancing alone is one thing but it's dancing as a group that makes our brain reward us with a cocktail of feel-good hormones and is likely to lead to profound social effects. It's being in-sync with others that makes us happy. She says that "dancing fosters social closeness between people. It helps us build social connections and communities. In our past, those social connections would have been critical for surviving."独自跳舞是一回事，但作为一个集体跳舞，它会让我们的大脑用一种感觉良好的荷尔蒙鸡尾酒来奖励我们，并且可能会产生深远的社会影响。与他人保持同步使我们感到高兴。她说，“跳舞促进了人与人之间的社会亲密关系。它帮助我们建立社会联系和社区。在我们过去，这些社会联系对于生存至关重要。”You certainly need the right kind of music to help you shimmy, boogie or even twerk, but once you get the right beat and get into the groove with others, it can be an uplifting experience. Even my cringeworthy dad dancing makes me feel good sometimes. And in Swindon in the UK, this 'style' of dancing has been taken to a new level, where babies, attached to their fathers' chests in a sling, have been dancing with the aim of increasing the bond between parent and child.你当然需要合适的音乐来帮助你摇摆、布吉甚至扭动，但是一旦你获得了正确的节拍并与其他人一起进入节奏，这可能是一种令人振奋的体验。即使是我令人畏惧的爸爸跳舞有时也让我感觉很好。在英国的斯温顿，这种“风格”的舞蹈被提升到了一个新的水平，婴儿们用吊带系在父亲的胸前，一直在跳舞，目的是增加父母和孩子之间的联系。Dance is also a good way to keep fit and improve our mental health. In Wales there have been calls for doctors to prescribe dance classes to people who are unwell. The Arts Council of Wales claims there are many health benefits. And Bronwyn Tarr says "more and more we're actually discovering that your longevity – your life expectancy – is predicted by the social connections that you have… still today it's something we should do more of."舞蹈也是保持健康和改善心理健康的好方法。在威尔士，有人呼吁医生为身体不适的人开舞蹈课。威尔士艺术委员会声称有许多健康益处。Bronwyn Tarr 说：“我们实际上越来越多地发现，你的寿命——你的预期寿命——是由你所拥有的社会关系所预测的……今天仍然是我们应该做更多的事情。”It could be part of being an uptight Englishman that makes me a reluctant dancer. Look at other nationalities such as Cubans where dancing is at the heart of their cultural identity. And in Brazil at Carnival time, people let their hair down by dancing together day and night. They seem to be having a good time – so maybe I should get on my feet and dance!这可能是作为一个紧张的英国人的一部分，这让我成为一个不情愿的舞者。看看其他民族，例如古巴人，舞蹈是他们文化认同的核心。在狂欢节期间的巴西，人们日夜一起跳舞，让头发垂下。他们似乎玩得很开心——所以也许我应该站起来跳舞！词汇表rhythm 节奏感coordination 协调性two left feet “两只左脚”，跳舞时舞步笨拙Dutch courage 借酒壮胆，酒后之勇shake some moves 扭动几下evolutionary anthropologist 人类进化学家endorphin 内啡呔hormone 荷尔蒙in-sync 与…同步的foster 培养，促进social connection 社会关系shimmy 跳希米舞（抖动肩部和臀部的舞蹈）boogie 跟着流行乐跳舞twerk 抖臀get into the groove 进入理想状态uplifting 令人精神焕发的dad dancing “爸爸式舞姿”（较笨拙、过时的舞步）bond 纽带prescribe（医生）开（药）longevity 长寿cultural identity 文化认同let one’s hair down 放松，尽情享受