好人遇见了好人

9月21日，四川泸定地震中失联17天的「甘宇」被当地老乡「倪太高」救至家中。

9月5日，泸定地震，「甘宇」和同事「罗勇」没有选择第一时间逃生，而是冲上10层楼高的大坝坝肩，拉闸泄洪，避免了河水漫过大坝冲毁下游村庄。

无注释原文：

Five reasons why being kind makes you feel good – according to science

From: The Conversation

February 26, 2018

Everybody can appreciate acts of kindness. But when it comes to explaining why we do them, people often take one of two extreme positions. Some think kindness is something completely selfless that we do out of love and care, while others believe it is just a tool that we cunningly use to become more popular and reap the benefits.

But research shows that being kind to others can actually make us genuinely happy in a number of different ways. We know that deciding to be generous or cooperating with others activates an area of the brain called the striatum. Interestingly, this area responds to things we find rewarding, such as nice food and even addictive drugs. The feel-good emotion from helping has been termed “warm glow” and the activity we see in the striatum is the likely biological basis of that feeling.

Of course, you don’t have to scan brains to see that kindness has this kind of benefit. Research in psychology shows a link between kindness and well-being throughout life, starting at a very young age. In fact, even just reflecting on having been kind in the past may be enough to improve teenagers’ mood. Research has also shown that spending extra money on other people may be more powerful in increasing happiness than spending it on yourself.

But why and how does kindness make us so happy? There are a number of different mechanisms involved, and how powerful they are in making us feel good may depend on our personalities.

1. Contagious smiling

Being kind is likely to make someone smile and if you see that smile for yourself, it might be catchy. A key theory about how we understand other people in neuroscience suggests that seeing someone else show an emotion automatically activates the same areas of the brain as if we experienced that emotion for ourselves.

You may have been in a situation where you find yourself laughing just because someone else is – why not set off that chain of good feelings with a nice surprise for someone?

2. Righting a wrong

The same mechanism also makes us empathise with others when they are feeling negative, which could make us feel down. This is particularly true for close friends and family, as our representations of them in the brain physically overlap with our representations of ourselves. Doing a kind act to make someone who is sad feel better can also make us feel good – partly because we feel the same relief they do and partly because we are putting something right. Although this effect is especially powerful for people we are close to, it can even apply to humanitarian problems such as poverty or climate change. Getting engaged with charities that tackle these issues provide a way to have a positive impact, which in turn improves mood.

3. Making connections

Being kind opens up many different possibilities to start or develop a social connection with someone. Kind acts such as a buying someone a thoughtful present or even just a coffee strengthens friendships, and that in itself is linked to improved mood.

Similarly, charities offer the opportunity to connect with someone on the other side of the world through donating to improve their life. Volunteering also opens up new circles of people to connect with, both other volunteers and those you are helping.

4. A kind identity

Most people would like to think of themselves as a kind person, so acts of kindness help us to demonstrate that positive identity and make us feel proud of ourselves. In one recent study, even children in their first year of secondary school recognised how being kind can make you feel “better as a person … more complete”, leading to feelings of happiness. This effect is even more powerful when the kind act links with other aspects of our personality, perhaps creating a more purposeful feeling. For example, an animal-lover could rescue a bird, an art-lover could donate to a gallery or a retired teacher could volunteer at an after-school group. Research suggests that the more someone identifies with the organisation they volunteer for, the more satisfied they are.

5. Kindness comes back around

Work on the psychology of kindness shows that one out of several possible motivations is reciprocity, the returning of a favour. This can happen directly or indirectly. Someone might remember that you helped them out last time and therefore be more likely to help you in the future. It could also be that one person being kind makes others in the group more kind, which lifts everyone’s spirits. Imagine that you bake cakes for the office and it catches on so someone does it each month. That is a lot more days that you’re getting cakes than providing them.

The story doesn’t end there. Being kind may boost your mood, but research has also shown that being in a good mood can make you more kind. This makes it a wonderful two-way relationship which just keeps giving.

- ◆ -

注：中文文本为机器翻译仅供参考，并非一一对应

含注释全文：

Five reasons why being kind makes you feel good – according to science

From: The Conversation

February 26, 2018

Everybody can appreciate acts of kindness. But when it comes to explaining why we do them, people often take one of two extreme positions. Some think kindness is something completely selfless that we do out of love and care, while others believe it is just a tool that we cunningly use to become more popular and reap the benefits.

每个人都能欣赏善良的行为。但在解释我们为什么要这样做时，人们通常会采取两种极端的立场之一。有些人认为善良是完全无私的，是我们出于爱和关心而为的，而另一些人认为它只是一种工具，是我们狡猾地用来变得更受欢迎并获得好处的工具。

cunningly

cunningly /ˈkʌn.ɪŋ.li/ 表示“狡猾地，诡诈地；灵巧地，巧妙地”，英文解释为“in a cleverly planned way, especially when this involves tricking other people, or making things for a particular purpose”

reap

reap /riːp/ 表示“收割，收获；获得”，英文解释为“to cut and collect a grain crop”

📍reap the benefit, reward, etc.表示“得到收益/报酬等”，英文解释为“to get something good as a result of your own actions”举个🌰：

She studied every evening and reaped the benefit at exam time.

她每天晚上都坚持学习，考试时受益匪浅。

📍reap what you have sown表示“种瓜得瓜，种豆得豆；善有善报，恶有恶报”，英文解释为“to win or lose as a result of something you did in the past”

But research shows that being kind to others can actually make us genuinely happy in a number of different ways. We know that deciding to be generous or cooperating with others activates an area of the brain called the striatum. Interestingly, this area responds to things we find rewarding, such as nice food and even addictive drugs. The feel-good emotion from helping has been termed “warm glow” and the activity we see in the striatum is the likely biological basis of that feeling.

但是研究表明，对他人的善意实际上可以通过许多不同的方式让我们真正快乐。我们知道，下定决心慷慨解囊或协助他人会激活大脑中一个叫做纹状体（striatum）的区域。有趣的是，这个区域会对我们认为有价值的事情做出反应，比如美食，甚至成瘾性药物。从帮助他人中产生的自我感觉良好的情绪被称为“温暖的光芒”，我们在纹状体中看到的活动可能是这种感受的生物学基础。

addictive

addictive /əˈdɪk.tɪv/ 表示“（活动或食品）使人上瘾的，使人入迷的”，英文解释为“An addictive activity or food is one that you cannot stop doing or eating once you have started.”举个🌰：

The problem with video games is that they're addictive.

电子游戏的问题在于它们会使人上瘾。

feel-good

feel-good /ˈfiːlˌɡʊd/ 作形容词，表示“使人愉悦的”，英文解释为“causing happy and positive feelings about life”如：a feel-good movie 令人愉悦的电影。

term

1）表示“期，期限；任期”，英文解释为“the fixed period of time that something lasts for”举个🌰：

He served a short term for drunk driving.

他因酒后开车而短期入狱。

对比：

📍tenure /ˈtɛnjʊə/ 表示“任期，任职”，英文解释为“the period of time when sb holds an important job, especially a political one; the act of holding an important job”。

2）熟词僻义，表示“预产期”，英文解释为“the end of a pregnancy when a baby is expected to be born”举个🌰：

Her last pregnancy went to term (= the baby was born after the expected number of weeks).

她上次怀孕是足月生的。

3）作动词，表示“把…称为，把…叫作”，英文解释为“to give something a name or to describe it with a particular expression”举个🌰：

At his age, he can hardly be termed a young man.

到了这个年纪，他称不上是年轻人了。

Of course, you don’t have to scan brains to see that kindness has this kind of benefit. Research in psychology shows a link between kindness and well-being throughout life, starting at a very young age. In fact, even just reflecting on having been kind in the past may be enough to improve teenagers’ mood. Research has also shown that spending extra money on other people may be more powerful in increasing happiness than spending it on yourself.

当然，你不必扫描大脑就能看出善良有这样的好处。心理学研究表明，从很小的时候开始，善良和幸福之间的联系就贯穿人的一生。事实上，即使只是反思过去的善意，也足以改善青少年的情绪。研究还表明，把额外的钱花在别人身上可能比花在自己身上更能增加幸福感。

But why and how does kindness make us so happy? There are a number of different mechanisms involved, and how powerful they are in making us feel good may depend on our personalities.

但是善良为什么以及如何让我们如此快乐呢？这其中涉及许多不同的机制，它们让我们感觉良好的力量可能取决于我们的性格。

mechanism

mechanism /ˈmek.ə.nɪ.zəm/ 1）常见的表示“体制，结构方式”，英文解释为“a way of doing something that is planned or part of a system”，2）还可以表示“机械部件；机械装置”，英文解释为“a part of a machine, or a set of parts that work together”举个🌰：

These automatic cameras have a special focusing mechanism.

这些自动相机有特殊的对焦装置。

3）表示“（处理棘手情况的）机制”，英文解释为“a part of your behaviour that helps you to deal with a difficult situation”举个🌰：

She's actually kind of insecure, and her rudeness is just a defence mechanism.

她其实很缺乏安全感，她的粗鲁不过是出于防卫心理。

1. Contagious smiling 有感染力的微笑

Being kind is likely to make someone smile and if you see that smile for yourself, it might be catchy. A key theory about how we understand other people in neuroscience suggests that seeing someone else show an emotion automatically activates the same areas of the brain as if we experienced that emotion for ourselves.

善良可能会让人微笑，如果你亲眼看到了这种微笑，可能会很吸引人。神经科学中关于我们如何理解他人的一个关键理论表明，看到别人表现出某种情绪，会自动激活大脑中的相同区域，就像我们自己经历过这种情绪一样。

contagious

contagious /kən'teɪdʒəs/ 1）表示“（疾病）接触传染的”，英文解释为“A disease that is contagious can be caught by touching people or things that are infected with it.”

2）表示“（感情、态度、行动）富于感染力的，会蔓延的”，英文解释为“If a feeling, attitude, or action is contagious, other people are quickly affected by it and begin to have it or do it”，如：her contagious enthusiasm 她那富有感染力的热情。

catchy

catchy /ˈkætʃi,ˈketʃi/ 表示“（乐曲、名字、广告）引人注意的；容易记住的；动人的”，英文解释为“If you describe a tune, name, or advertisement as catchy, you mean that it is attractive and easy to remember.”如：a song with catchy lyrics 歌词琅琅上口的歌曲。

neuroscience

neuroscience /ˈnjʊərəʊˌsaɪəns/ 表示“神经系统科学（对神经系统的解剖学、生理学、生物化学和药理学的研究）”，英文解释为“the study of the anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, and pharmacology of the nervous system”。

You may have been in a situation where you find yourself laughing just because someone else is – why not set off that chain of good feelings with a nice surprise for someone?

你可能遇到过这样的情况，你发现自己只是因为别人在笑而笑——为什么不给别人一个惊喜以带来一连串的好心情呢？

set sth. off

1）表示“引起，引发（常指一系列事件）”，英文解释为“to cause an activity or event, often a series of events, to begin or happen”举个🌰：

The court's initial verdict in the police officers' trial set off serious criticism.

法庭审理这起警官案件作出的初审判决引起了严重的批评。

2）表示“使发出巨响；使爆炸，引爆”，英文解释为“to cause a loud noise or explosion, such as that made by a bomb or an alarm (= a warning sound) to begin or happen”举个🌰：

Terrorists set off a bomb in the city centre.

恐怖分子在市中心引爆了一颗炸弹。

2. Righting a wrong 纠正错误

The same mechanism also makes us empathise with others when they are feeling negative, which could make us feel down. This is particularly true for close friends and family, as our representations of them in the brain physically overlap with our representations of ourselves. Doing a kind act to make someone who is sad feel better can also make us feel good – partly because we feel the same relief they do and partly because we are putting something right. Although this effect is especially powerful for people we are close to, it can even apply to humanitarian problems such as poverty or climate change. Getting engaged with charities that tackle these issues provide a way to have a positive impact, which in turn improves mood.

同样的机制也让我们在他人感到消极时产生共鸣，这可能会让我们情绪低落。对于亲密的朋友和家人来说尤其如此，因为我们在大脑中对他们的表述与我们对自己的表述在物理上重叠。做一个善意的举动，让悲伤的人感觉好一点，也能让我们自己感觉好一点——部分是因为我们和他们一样感到宽慰，部分是因为我们正在让它恢复正常。尽管这种影响对我们亲近的人尤其强大，但它甚至可以适用于贫困或气候变化等人道主义问题。参与解决这些问题的慈善机构提供了一种产生积极影响的方式，这反过来又能改善情绪。

right

right 作动词，表示“改正，纠正；使恢复正常”，英文解释为“If you right a situation or a mistake, you make it better or correct it.”举个🌰：

It's a terrible situation and we should right it as soon as possible.

这种局面太糟糕了，我们应当尽快使其恢复正常。

empathise

英式 empathise 美式 empathize 表示“表示同情；有同感，产生共鸣”，英文解释为“to be able to understand how someone else feels”举个🌰：

It's very easy to empathise with the characters in her books.

读者很容易和她书中的人物产生共鸣。

overlap

可以作名词，也可以作动词，1）表示“（活动、课程或时间）相互重叠，有共同之处”，英文解释为“If two or more activities, subjects, or periods of time overlap, they have some parts that are the same.”举个🌰：

My musical tastes don't overlap with my brother's at all.

我对音乐的喜好和我弟弟完全不一样。

2）表示“（与…）交叠，（与…）部分重叠，叠盖”，英文解释为“to cover something partly by going over its edge; to cover part of the same space”举个🌰：

The fence is made of panels that overlap (each other).

这个围栏是由交叠的板条搭成的。

humanitarian

humanitarian /hjuːˌmæn.ɪˈter.i.ən/ 表示“人道主义的；人道主义者”，英文解释为“(a person who is) involved in or connected with improving people's lives and reducing suffering”举个🌰：

The prisoner has been released for humanitarian reasons.

出于人道主义原因那名囚犯被释放了。

3. Making connections 建立联系

Being kind opens up many different possibilities to start or develop a social connection with someone. Kind acts such as a buying someone a thoughtful present or even just a coffee strengthens friendships, and that in itself is linked to improved mood.

友善会为开始或发展与某人的社会联系带来许多不同的可能性。友善的行为，比如给某人买一份体贴的礼物，甚至只是一杯咖啡，会加强友谊，而这本身就与改善情绪有关。

Similarly, charities offer the opportunity to connect with someone on the other side of the world through donating to improve their life. Volunteering also opens up new circles of people to connect with, both other volunteers and those you are helping.

同样，慈善机构提供了通过捐赠改善生活与世界另一端的人联系的机会。志愿服务也开辟了新的人际关系圈，包括其他志愿者和你所帮助的人。

4. A kind identity 善良的身份

Most people would like to think of themselves as a kind person, so acts of kindness help us to demonstrate that positive identity and make us feel proud of ourselves. In one recent study, even children in their first year of secondary school recognised how being kind can make you feel “better as a person … more complete”, leading to feelings of happiness. This effect is even more powerful when the kind act links with other aspects of our personality, perhaps creating a more purposeful feeling. For example, an animal-lover could rescue a bird, an art-lover could donate to a gallery or a retired teacher could volunteer at an after-school group. Research suggests that the more someone identifies with the organisation they volunteer for, the more satisfied they are.

大多数人都愿意认为自己是一个善良的人，因此善举有助于我们展示这种积极的身份认同，并让我们为自己感到自豪。在最近的一项研究中，即使是中学一年级的孩子也认识到，善举会让你感觉“作为一个人更好……更完整”，从而产生幸福感。当善举与我们性格的其他方面联系起来时，这种效果甚至更强大，也许会创造一种更有明确目的的感觉。例如，动物爱好者会去拯救一只鸟，艺术爱好者会向画廊捐款，或者退休教师会在课外小组做志愿者。研究表明，一个人越是认同他们志愿服务的组织，他们的满意度就越高。

demonstrate

表示“显示；表明”，英文解释为“to show or make make something clear”举个🌰：

These numbers clearly demonstrate the size of the economic problem facing the country.

这些数字清楚表明了该国经济问题的严重程度。

purposeful

purposeful /ˈpɜː.pəs.fəl/ 表示“有明确目标的，有清晰目的的；坚决的”，英文解释为“showing that you know what you want to do”举个🌰：

He has a quiet, purposeful air.

他镇定而又坚决。

5. Kindness comes back around 好人有好报

Work on the psychology of kindness shows that one out of several possible motivations is reciprocity, the returning of a favour. This can happen directly or indirectly. Someone might remember that you helped them out last time and therefore be more likely to help you in the future. It could also be that one person being kind makes others in the group more kind, which lifts everyone’s spirits. Imagine that you bake cakes for the office and it catches on so someone does it each month. That is a lot more days that you’re getting cakes than providing them.

对善良心理学的研究表明，几种可能的动机之一是互惠，即回报。这可以直接或间接地发生。有人可能会记得你上次帮助了他们，因此将来更有可能帮助你。也可能是一个人的善良会让团队中的其他人更加善良，这会提升每个人的兴致。想象一下，你为办公室烤蛋糕后很受欢迎，于是每个月都有人来烤蛋糕。这意味着你吃到蛋糕的日子比你自己烤蛋糕的日子多得多。

reciprocity

reciprocity /ˌres.ɪˈprɒs.ə.ti/ 表示“互助；互惠；互换”，英文解释为“behaviour in which two people or groups of people give each other help and advantages”

lift sb's spirits

lift sb's spirits 表示“提高（某人）的兴致；提升士气；振奋精神”，英文解释为“to make someone happier”举个🌰：

Nothing - not even the prospect of dinner - could lift his spirits.

什么都提不起他的兴致，甚至连吃饭也不例外。

catch on

表示“受欢迎；流行起来；变得时髦”，英文解释为“If something catches on, it becomes popular.”举个🌰：

The idea has been around for ages without catching on.

这个观点由来已久，但一直未风行。

🎬电影《龙之心3：巫师的诅咒》（Dragonheart 3: The Sorcerer's Curse）中的台词提到：Let's hope that tradition doesn't catch on amongst humans. 希望龙类的传统别出现在人的身上。

The story doesn’t end there. Being kind may boost your mood, but research has also shown that being in a good mood can make you more kind. This makes it a wonderful two-way relationship which just keeps giving.

故事并没有就此结束。善良可能会提升你的情绪，但是研究也表明，心情好会让你更善良。这使得它成为一种奇妙的相互关系，良性循环不断持续。

two-way

1）表示“双向的；可双向通行的”，英文解释为“moving or allowing movement in both directions”如：a two-way street 可双向通行的街道；

2）表示“双方的；相互的；彼此的”，英文解释为“A two-way situation involves two people or two groups of people working together to achieve a shared aim.”举个🌰：

Remember, friendships are a two-way street (= both people have to make an effort).

记住，友谊是需要双方共同付出努力的。

- 今日盘点 -

cunningly

reap

addictive

feel-good

term

mechanism

contagious

catchy

neuroscience

set sth. off

right

empathise

overlap

humanitarian

demonstrate

purposeful

reciprocity

lift sb's spirits

catch on

two-way

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