VOA慢速英语 | 预防晕车的高科技设备

小白老师说：今天大家即将听到的是VOA的慢速英语节目，一段3分钟的科技报道，“预防晕车的高科技设备”，有原文有译文。参加医博英语考试的好朋友们可以把本文用作短文听力训练。请点击下方条形框播放音频。

Some people can get motion sickness（晕车） from being in moving vehicles such as cars or airplanes.

But, a new device could stop motion sickness by suppressing some signals in the brain.

Motion sickness occurs when the motion you sense with your inner ear is different from the motion you see. Symptoms of motion sickness are dizziness（头晕）, nausea（恶心） and vomiting（呕吐）. People have tried different ways to prevent the condition, including wrist bands and anti-nausea drugs.

But often, nothing works.

Now, scientists at Imperial College London are working on a device to counteract motion sickness.

Michael Gresty is an expert on the condition.

"You imagine being on a bicycle or motorbike; you go around the corner, you lean into the corner, which remains perfectly upright in physics.

“You don’t do that in a car. You don’t do that on a ship. You’re actually struggling to find out what is upright and what’s the best way of dealing with it.”

The device sends a weak electrical current through electrodes placed on a person’s head. The electric current appears to cause the brain to suppress signals that affect the inner ear.

Researcher Qadeer Arshad says the scientists found “that it took longer for the individual to develop motion sickness and that they also recovered faster."

The next step is to test the device outside the laboratory.

Michael Gresty says there are no reports of unwanted side effects from the small amounts of electricity released by the device.

The researchers hope a device that plugs into a smart phone and attaches to the head will be available within 10 years.

I’m Jonathan Evans.

译文：

有些人坐在移动的交通工具会晕车，例如汽车或飞机。但是，一项新设备通过抑制大脑信号可以预防晕车。

晕车产生于内耳感知的运动和所见运动有所差异。晕车的症状包括晕眩、恶心和呕吐。人们尝试不同方法：如腕带和抗恶心药物。但是通常都不奏效。

如今，伦敦帝国学院的科学家正在致力研究一种能抑制晕车的设备。Michael Grest是该领域的专家。

“想像你骑车自行车或摩托，拐弯时，你身体向拐角侧倾，从物理角度说，你的身体正好保持直立状态。”

“但是，你在车里和船上没有这样做，事实上，你努力尝试着保持直立及寻找应对的最佳方法。”

该设备通过安在头部的电极发送微弱的电流。电流似乎使大脑抑制影响内耳的信号。研究人员Qadeer Arshad称科学家发现 “如此使个体产生晕车的时间延长，恢复得也更快。”

接下来是在实验室外测试该设备。Michael Gresty称暂无报告称该设备发出的微弱电流有副作用。该设备将植入智能手机再与大脑连接，研究人员希望该设备有望在未来十年内问世。

我是Jonathan Evans。

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