時差N小時:"失禮"的科學解釋

Dear Yael and Don: The other night,I was at aparty, and one of the people I was talking with waspretty overweight. I was trying to be careful not tosay anything affensive, but in suddenly I blurted outsomething...Is there a scientific explanation for mybehaviour?"

親愛的雅艾爾和唐：前天晚上，我參加一個聚會，其中跟我交談的一個人身材超重。我試圖讓自己小心，不說任何冒犯的話，但突然間我忍不住脫口說了什么...我的這種行為有沒有對應的科學解釋呢?

Yael: Good quuestion! There are many possiblereasons why we say things out loud we mean to keep to ourselves. But one compellingexplanation is that the very act of straining to avoid saying something embarrassing orawkward raises the risk of doing just that.

雅艾爾：問得好!為什么我們明知道有些話不該說出來，卻偏偏脫口而出，有很多可能的原因來解釋這一現(xiàn)象。其中一個令人信服的解釋就是想要避免說一些令人尷尬、難堪的話的緊張感加大了那樣做的風險。

Don: Wait, you mean to say that we say things because we are trying too hard to beappropriate?

唐：等等，你是指我們說出來是因為我們竭力使自己表現(xiàn)地得體。

Yael: Sort of. Scientists explain it as a struggle between the conscious and unconsciousmind. Say you're at a party and someone near you is smoking. It's obnoxious, but you don'twant to make a big deal, so you consciously try to think about something else. Butmeanwhile, your unconscious mind is on the lookout for any smoking related thoughts.

雅艾爾：差不多?？茖W家把這解釋為意識與潛意識之間的斗爭。例如你在聚會上，看見旁邊有人抽煙。這讓人很不愉快，但你并不想小題大做，所以你有意識地試圖轉移注意力。但與此同時，你又下意識地在腦中搜索吸煙相關的信息。

Don: So even though I'm not trying to think thoughts about smoking, I'm still thinking them.

唐：所以，即使我盡量不去想吸煙的事情，但實際上我仍在想。

Yael: Right, and if you've had a bit to drink, or you are tired, or stressed, whatever, anunconscious smoking thought can burble to the conscious surface. And before you know ityou blurt out something about how second hand smoke is a deadly killer.

雅艾爾：對，如果你多喝了點酒，或者你感到疲憊、壓抑，但無論如何，下意識中有關吸煙的想法仍會浮出意識的表面。在你清楚之前，你會脫口說出二手煙是致命的殺手之類的話。

Don: So, in a sense, we are at the mercy of our unconscious minds?

唐：那么，從某種意義上講，我們受潛意識想法的控制?

Yael: Sometimes. In certain situations, at least, we're not in total control of what we think,and how we act.

雅艾爾：有時候是的。至少在某些場合，我們不能完全控制自己的想法和言行。