研究称人均有1/6的生命花在外表

有研究者收集了来自93个国家9万多人的数据，对人们每天花费在改善外貌上的行为（如化妆、挑选衣服、健身等）进行了有史以来规模最大的跨文化研究。

🤔️小作业：

1. What factors can affect appearance-enhancing behaviours?

2. go to great lengths是什么意思？

3. mask是什么意思？

无注释原文：

People spend 1/6th of their lifetimes enhancing their appearance, says study

From: PHYS.ORG

An international team including HSE researchers has conducted the largest ever cross-cultural study of appearance-enhancing behaviors. They have found that people worldwide spend an average of four hours a day on enhancing their beauty. Caring for one's appearance does not depend on gender, and older people worry as much about looking their best as the young do. The strongest predictor of attractiveness-enhancing behaviors appears to be social media usage. The study findings have been published in Evolution and Human Behavior.

People have always valued beauty. Throughout history, we have gone to great lengths to enhance our physical appearance. Early Homo sapiens are known to have applied pigment to decorate their bodies, and ancient civilizations widely used cosmetics, ornate clothing, and jewelry. According to some scholars, our tendency for appearance enhancement might have originated from primate self-grooming behaviors.

But what exactly motivates us to spend time trying to look more physically attractive? From an evolutionary perspective, this may be part of mating behavior, since good looks indicate good health and good genetics, maximizing the chances of having healthy offspring; therefore, physical appearance is one of the key criteria in selecting a mate. From this perspective, women are assumed to be more interested in enhancing their physical attractiveness than men, and younger unmarried women are thought to be particularly concerned with their appearance.

There are a few other theories explaining people's preoccupation with their physical attractiveness. One of them, the pathogen prevalence theory, suggests that people in countries with a high prevalence of dangerous infections such as leishmaniasis, trypanosomiasis, malaria, and leprosy are likely to spend more time improving their appearance, in particular to conceal visual imperfections which may be perceived as signs of disease. Sociocultural characteristics, such as gender inequality or individualistic vs. collectivist attitudes, and the influence of mass media or social media usage can also impact on how much time people invest in their appearance.

An international team of scientists, including HSE researchers, has tested a range of these theories to determine which factors have the greatest impact on beauty-enhancing behavior. The authors surveyed more than 93,000 people across 93 countries about the amount of time they spend every day enhancing their physical appearance. To date, it is the largest study carried out in in evolutionary psychology.

"We were able to collect data on almost 100,000 people across a very large sample in terms of age, education and income level, including many participants from non-industrial countries for which we had no previous data," said Dmitrii Dubrov, study co-author, a Research Fellow of the HSE Centre for Sociocultural Research.

According to the evolutionary hypothesis, people want to look good to improve their chances of finding a suitable mate. The survey found both men and women spend an average of about four hours a day on behaviors designed to enhance their physical attractiveness. In addition to putting on makeup, grooming their hair grooming and selecting clothes, such behaviors include caring for body hygiene, exercising or following a specific diet for the purpose of improving one's appearance.

It has also been found that older people spend about as much time as younger ones enhancing their attractiveness. People in early romantic relationships tend to spend more time enhancing their appearance compared to those who are married or have been dating for a while.

The pathogen prevalence hypothesis was only partly confirmed: Individuals with a history of serious pathogenic diseases were likely to spend more time enhancing their appearance, e.g. by applying makeup to mask traces of the disease, but no association was found between one's investment in beauty and living in a country where certain pathogens occur. The reason may be better healthcare, even in poorer countries which used to struggle with severe infections in the past.

As expected, women from countries with pronounced gender inequality tend to invest more time and effort in beauty enhancement than women in countries which have advanced gender equality. The same is true of countries and cultures with traditional attitudes towards gender roles.

Individualistic cultures that value individual accomplishments over those of the collective also emphasize the importance of enhancing one's physical attractiveness.

Social media usage appears to be the strongest predictor of attractiveness-enhancing behaviors. Active social media users—in particular, those who strive for unrealistic beauty standards and become concerned when their pictures get fewer likes—have been found to invest more time in improving their appearance than those who spend less or no time on social networks.

"In this paper, we tested five existing theories that shed light on people's attractiveness-enhancing behaviors. These theories are complementary rather than mutually exclusive. We confirmed certain assumptions and came up with some interesting and less expected results. This study is an important step in evolutionary and sociocultural research that will allow a better understanding of human psychology and our attitudes towards beauty," concludes Dmitrii Dubrov.

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注：中文文本为机器翻译并非一一对应，仅供参考

含注释全文：

People spend 1/6th of their lifetimes enhancing their appearance, says study

From: PHYS.ORG

An international team including HSE researchers has conducted the largest ever cross-cultural study of appearance-enhancing behaviors. They have found that people worldwide spend an average of four hours a day on enhancing their beauty. Caring for one's appearance does not depend on gender, and older people worry as much about looking their best as the young do. The strongest predictor of attractiveness-enhancing behaviors appears to be social media usage. The study findings have been published in Evolution and Human Behavior.

一个包括俄罗斯高等经济大学（HSE）研究人员在内的国际团队对改善外貌的行为进行了有史以来规模最大的跨文化研究。他们发现，全世界的人平均每天花四个小时来提升自己的美貌。爱美之心人皆有之，与性别无关；老年人和年轻人一样，都关心自己的最佳形象。社交媒体的使用似乎是改善外貌行为的最大影响因素。这项研究结果发表在《进化与人类行为》（Evolution and Human Behavior）期刊上。

enhance /ɪnˈhɑːns/ 表示“提高；增加；增强；增进”，英文解释为“to improve the quality, amount, or strength of something”举个🌰：

These scandals will not enhance the organization's reputation. 这些丑闻可不会提高这个组织的声誉。

People have always valued beauty. Throughout history, we have gone to great lengths to enhance our physical appearance. Early Homo sapiens are known to have applied pigment to decorate their bodies, and ancient civilizations widely used cosmetics, ornate clothing, and jewelry. According to some scholars, our tendency for appearance enhancement might have originated from primate self-grooming behaviors.

人们向来重视美貌。纵观历史，我们为改善自己的外貌付出了很大的努力。众所周知，早期智人利用颜料来装饰身体，而古代文明广泛使用化妆品、华丽的服装和珠宝。据一些学者的说法，我们改善外貌的倾向可能源于灵长类动物的自我梳理行为。

go to great lengths/go to any lengths表示“不遗余力，千方百计，竭尽全力，全力以赴”，英文解释为“to try very hard to achieve something”举个🌰：

Some people go to great lengths to make their homes attractive. 有些人不遗余力地装修自己的房子。

He'll go to any lengths to get what he wants. 他会竭尽全力去争取自己想要的东西。

表示“色素；颜料”，英文解释为“a substance that gives something a particular colour when it is present in it or is added to it”举个🌰：

Melanin is the dark brown pigment of the hair, skin, and eyes that is present in varying amounts in every human being. 黑色素是头发、皮肤和眼睛中的黑褐色色素，每个人体内或多或少都有这种色素。

1）cosmetic /kɒzˈmɛtɪk/作名词，通常复数cosmetics，表示“化妆品；美容品”（a substance that you put on your face or body to make it more attractive），如：the cosmetics industry 化妆品行业，a cosmetic company 化妆品公司，cosmetic products 化妆产品。

本身也可以作形容词：

2）表示“装饰门面的，虚饰的，表面的”，英文解释为“Cosmetic changes, etc. are intended to make you believe that something is better when, really, the problem has not been solved.” 举个🌰：

They were offered a few cosmetic improvements to their working conditions, but nothing of significance. 表面上他们的工作环境有所改善，但并没有实质上的改变。

3）表示“整容的”，英文解释为“connected with medical treatment that is intended to improve a person's appearance”如：cosmetic surgery 整容外科。

ornate /ɔːˈneɪt/ 表示“装饰华丽的，装饰繁复的”，英文解释为“having a lot of complicated decoration”如：a room with an ornate ceiling and gold mirrors 装饰有华丽天花板和金框镜子的房间。

1）表示“（思想、行为等的）倾向”，英文解释为“If someone has a tendency to do or like something, they will probably do it or like it.”举个🌰：

His tendency to exaggerate is well known. 他喜欢夸张是出了名的。

2）表示“（某事发展的）倾向”，英文解释为“If there is a tendency to do something, it starts to happen more often or starts to increase.”举个🌰：

There is a growing tendency to regard money more highly than quality of life. 越来越多的人倾向于把金钱看得重于生活质量。

表示“灵长类动物”，英文解释为“a member of the most developed and intelligent group of mammals, including humans, monkeys, and apes”

grooming /ˈɡruː.mɪŋ/ 表示“（人的）打扮，装束；（对动物进行的）刷洗”，英文解释为“the things that you do to make your appearance clean and neat, for example brushing your hair, or the things that you do to keep an animal's hair or fur clean and neat”

But what exactly motivates us to spend time trying to look more physically attractive? From an evolutionary perspective, this may be part of mating behavior, since good looks indicate good health and good genetics, maximizing the chances of having healthy offspring; therefore, physical appearance is one of the key criteria in selecting a mate. From this perspective, women are assumed to be more interested in enhancing their physical attractiveness than men, and younger unmarried women are thought to be particularly concerned with their appearance.

但是，究竟是什么激励我们花时间努力让自己看起来更有吸引力呢？从进化的角度来看，这可能是交配行为的一部分，因为美貌意味着健康状况和遗传基因良好，最大限度地增加了拥有健康后代的机会；因此，外貌是选择伴侣的关键标准之一。从这个角度来看，人们认为女性比男性更有兴趣提升自己的外貌吸引力，而未婚的年轻女性尤其关注自己的外貌。

1）表示“进化的”，英文解释为“relating to the way in which living things develop over millions of years”

2）表示“演变的；逐步发展的”，英文解释为“involving a gradual process of change and development”

表示“（思考问题的）角度，观点，想法”，英文解释为“a particular way of considering something”举个🌰：

Her attitude lends a fresh perspective to the subject. 她的态度为这一问题提供了新的视角。

mate作动词，表示“（使）交配；交尾”，英文解释为“to have sex and produce young, or to make animals do this”。

表示“标示；表明；显示；暗示”，英文解释为“to show, point, or make clear in another way”举个🌰：

Please indicate which free gift you would like to receive. 请标出你想要哪种免费礼物。

1）表示“假定；假设；认为”，英文解释为“to think or accept that sth is true but without having proof of it”举个🌰：

It is generally assumed that stress is caused by too much work. 普遍认为，紧张是工作过重所致。

2）表示“承担，担任；僭取，夺取；呈现，具有”，英文解释为“to take or begin to have responsibility or control, sometimes without the right to do so, or to begin to have a characteristic”举个🌰：

The new president assumes office at midnight tonight. 新总统在今晚午夜就职。

There are a few other theories explaining people's preoccupation with their physical attractiveness. One of them, the pathogen prevalence theory, suggests that people in countries with a high prevalence of dangerous infections such as leishmaniasis, trypanosomiasis, malaria, and leprosy are likely to spend more time improving their appearance, in particular to conceal visual imperfections which may be perceived as signs of disease. Sociocultural characteristics, such as gender inequality or individualistic vs. collectivist attitudes, and the influence of mass media or social media usage can also impact on how much time people invest in their appearance.

还有一些其他理论解释了为什么人们会在乎自己的外貌吸引力。其中之一是病原体流行理论，该理论认为在利什曼病、锥虫病、疟疾和麻风病等危险感染病高发的国家，人们可能会花更多的时间改善自己的外貌，特别是掩盖可能被视为疾病迹象的外貌缺陷。社会文化特征，如性别不平等或个人主义与集体主义态度，以及大众传媒或社交媒体的使用也会影响人们在外表上投入的时间。

表示“（时常想的）想法、事情；关注；盘算，思虑，长久思考的事情”，英文解释为“an idea or subject that someone thinks about most of the time”举个🌰：

My main preoccupation now is trying to keep life normal for the sake of my two boys. 我现在想得最多的是要为了我的两个儿子而尽力使生活保持正常。

📍牛津词典公布2021年度词汇：Vax 文中也提到了这个词：Then we ran the analysis and a story started to emerge, revealing how vax sat at the centre of our preoccupations this year. 然后我们进行了分析，报道开始出现，揭示了vax是如何成为我们今年关注的焦点。

pathogen /ˈpæθəˌdʒɛn/ 表示“病原体”，英文解释为“any small organism, such as a virus or a bacterium that can cause disease”。

prevalence /ˈprev.əl.əns/ 表示“流行，盛行；普遍，广泛”，英文解释为“the fact that something is very common or happens often”如：the prevalence of smoking among teenagers 青少年吸烟的普遍性。

表示“隐藏；隐匿；隐瞒；隐蔽”，英文解释为“to prevent something from being seen or known about”举个🌰：

The listening device was concealed in a pen. 窃听装置藏在了笔里。

🎬电影《V字仇杀队》（V for Vendetta）中的台词提到：Conceal me what I am and be my aid... for such disguise as haply shall become the form of my intent. 你得帮助我假扮起来... 好让我达到我的目的。

An international team of scientists, including HSE researchers, has tested a range of these theories to determine which factors have the greatest impact on beauty-enhancing behavior. The authors surveyed more than 93,000 people across 93 countries about the amount of time they spend every day enhancing their physical appearance. To date, it is the largest study carried out in in evolutionary psychology.

包括俄罗斯高等经济大学研究人员在内的一个国际科学家团队测试了一系列理论，以确定哪些因素对改善外貌行为影响最大。作者们对93个国家的9.3万多人进行了调查，了解他们每天花费多少时间来改善自己的外貌。到目前为止，这是进化心理学领域进行的最大规模的研究。

"We were able to collect data on almost 100,000 people across a very large sample in terms of age, education and income level, including many participants from non-industrial countries for which we had no previous data," said Dmitrii Dubrov, study co-author, a Research Fellow of the HSE Centre for Sociocultural Research.

俄罗斯高等经济大学社会文化研究中心研究员、该研究共同作者德米特里·杜布罗夫（Dmitrii Dubrov）说：“我们收集到近10万人的数据，涵盖了各个年龄段、教育水平和收入水平的大样本，包括许多来自非工业化国家的参与者，我们以前没有这类数据。”

According to the evolutionary hypothesis, people want to look good to improve their chances of finding a suitable mate. The survey found both men and women spend an average of about four hours a day on behaviors designed to enhance their physical attractiveness. In addition to putting on makeup, grooming their hair grooming and selecting clothes, such behaviors include caring for body hygiene, exercising or following a specific diet for the purpose of improving one's appearance.

根据进化假说，人们想变得好看，是为了提高找到合适伴侣的机会。调查发现，男性和女性平均每天花大约四个小时用于旨在提高自身吸引力的行为。除了化妆、修剪头发、挑选衣服之外，这些行为还包括在意身体卫生、锻炼或为改善外表而遵循特定饮食习惯。

make-up/makeup 表示“化妆品”，英文解释为“coloured substances used on your face to improve or change your appearance”举个🌰：

I put on a little eye make-up. 我在眼部上了淡妆。

动词，1）表示“培养，培训，使做好准备”，英文解释为“to prepare someone for a special job or activity”举个🌰：

She was being groomed for leadership. 她正在接受培训以担任领导。

2）表示“擦洗，刷洗（动物）”，英文解释为“to clean an animal, often by brushing its fur”举个🌰：

She spends hours in the stables grooming her pony. 她在马厩里刷洗她的小马，一干就是几个小时。

hygiene /ˈhaɪdʒiːn/ 不可数名词，表示“卫生；保健法”，英文解释为“the practice of keeping yourself and your living and working areas clean in order to prevent illness and disease”，如：food hygiene 食品卫生，personal hygiene 个人卫生。

It has also been found that older people spend about as much time as younger ones enhancing their attractiveness. People in early romantic relationships tend to spend more time enhancing their appearance compared to those who are married or have been dating for a while.

研究还发现，为提高自身吸引力，老年人花费的时间和年轻人一样多。与已婚或已交往一段时间的人相比，处于早期恋爱关系中的人倾向于花更多的时间来改善自己的外貌。

The pathogen prevalence hypothesis was only partly confirmed: Individuals with a history of serious pathogenic diseases were likely to spend more time enhancing their appearance, e.g. by applying makeup to mask traces of the disease, but no association was found between one's investment in beauty and living in a country where certain pathogens occur. The reason may be better healthcare, even in poorer countries which used to struggle with severe infections in the past.

病原体流行假说仅得到了部分证实：有严重病原体病史的人可能会花更多时间改善外表，例如通过化妆来掩盖疾病痕迹，但并未发现人们在美貌上的投资与生活在出现某些病原体的国家之间存在联系。原因可能是，即使在过去曾经遭受严重感染的较贫穷国家中，医疗保健也更好了。

mask /mɑːsk/ 作名词，表示“面具，面罩，口罩”，作动词，表示“掩饰；掩盖；遮蔽”，英文解释为“to prevent something from being seen or noticed”举个🌰：

I've put some flowers in there to mask the smell. 我在那儿放了一些花来遮住那种味道。

As expected, women from countries with pronounced gender inequality tend to invest more time and effort in beauty enhancement than women in countries which have advanced gender equality. The same is true of countries and cultures with traditional attitudes towards gender roles.

不出所料，在提升自己的外貌上，来自性别明显不平等的国家的女性往往比性别较平等的国家的女性投入更多的时间和精力。对性别角色持传统观念的国家和文化也是如此。

Individualistic cultures that value individual accomplishments over those of the collective also emphasize the importance of enhancing one's physical attractiveness.

重视个人成就而不是集体成就的个人主义文化也凸显了增强自身吸引力的重要性。

Social media usage appears to be the strongest predictor of attractiveness-enhancing behaviors. Active social media users—in particular, those who strive for unrealistic beauty standards and become concerned when their pictures get fewer likes—have been found to invest more time in improving their appearance than those who spend less or no time on social networks.

社交媒体的使用似乎是改善外貌行为的最大影响因素。活跃的社交媒体用户——尤其是那些追求不切实际的美貌标准，并在照片获得较少点赞时感到担忧的人——被发现比那些在社交网络上花费较少或不花时间的人投入更多时间来改善自己的外表。

熟词僻义，可以作动词也可以作名词，表示“（在社交媒体上）点赞”，英文解释为“to show that you think something is good on a social networking website by clicking on a symbol or the word 'like'”举个🌰：

Like me on Weibo! 到微博上为我点赞吧！

"In this paper, we tested five existing theories that shed light on people's attractiveness-enhancing behaviors. These theories are complementary rather than mutually exclusive. We confirmed certain assumptions and came up with some interesting and less expected results. This study is an important step in evolutionary and sociocultural research that will allow a better understanding of human psychology and our attitudes towards beauty," concludes Dmitrii Dubrov.

德米特里·杜布罗夫总结道：“在这篇论文中，我们测试了五种现有的理论，这些理论揭示了人们增强自身吸引力的行为。这些理论是互补的，而不是相互排斥的。我们证实了某些假设，并得出了一些有趣的和让人意想不到的结果。这项研究是进化和社会文化研究的重要一步，将有助于更好地理解人类心理和我们对美的态度。”

cast/shed/throw light on sth 表示“使（问题等）较容易理解；为…提供解释；使…较容易理解；阐明；使…清楚地显出”，英文解释为“to make a problem, etc. easier to understand”举个🌰：

As an economist, he was able to shed some light on the problem. 作为经济学家，他能解释这个问题。

complementary /ˌkɒm.plɪˈmen.tər.i/ 表示“补充的；互补的；补足的”，英文解释为“useful or attractive together”如：complementary colours/flavours/skills 互补色/风味/技能。

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