Morally Repugnant
“Well, that just leaves a bad taste in my mouth.”
It’s a phrase you’ve likely used at one time or other. And chances are you were talking about something you found morally offputting, as opposed to, say, curdled milk.
Scientists from the University of Toronto say that our reactions to immorality and sour milk may be more similar than we think, because both elicit the same sort of grimace of disgust.
The scientists recorded the facial expressions of subjects who were asked to sip some awful-tasting beverages; brews that were really bitter, salty, or sour. And the drinkers pulled some pretty awful faces, with noses wrinkling and lips curling in disgust. They also made very similar faces when they were shown some yucky photos: pictures of dog poop or dirty toilets.
Finally, the subjects played a game in which they were treated unfairly: say, given only one dollar while a partner got nine dollars. In addition to looking peeved, they also trotted out those sneers of disgust. Findings published in the February 27th issue of Science.
The scientists conclude that our aversion to bad behavior and to bad food may have evolved from a primitive defense mechanism that nowadays protects us from both insult and injury.
道德上的厌恶
“得了，那只不过是让我讨厌罢了。”
这是一句你经常用到的话。不过当你说这句话的时候，很可能你是在说一些从道德上讲让你不愉快的事情， 而不是在说变质的牛奶。
来自多伦多大学的科学家们（University of Toronto）报道说，我们对于不道德的事情与对酸牛奶的反应可能比我们想象的还要一致，因为两种情况都让我们做出相同的厌恶表情。
这些科学家们让一些实验参与者品尝一些味道糟糕的饮料，这些饮料很苦，或者很咸，或者很酸，在他们品尝完后，科学家们记录他们的面部表情。这些品尝者们表现出非常“恐怖”的面部表情，他们皱起鼻子，厌恶地撅起嘴唇。当科学家们给他们看一些恶心的照片时（狗粪或者肮脏的厕所），他们也表现出非常相似的面部表情。
最后这些受测试者们玩一个游戏，在这个游戏中他们受到不公正的对待：比如说他们的伙伴得到9美元，而他们仅仅只得到1美元。这些受测试者除了看起来恼怒外，他们还表现出厌恶的冷笑。这项研究发表在2月27日的《科学》（Science）杂志上。
科学家们得出的结论是：我们对不良行为和糟糕食物的讨厌可能从一种原始的防御机制进化而来，进化到今天，这种防御机制既能保护我们免于受到侮辱，也能防止我们受到伤害。
Vocabulary:
Repugnant: 令人讨厌的
Offputting: 令人不愉快的
Curdled: 使凝固；使变质
Immorality: 不道德
Elicit: 引起；引发
Grimace: 痛苦的表情；鬼脸
Disgust: 厌恶
Facial: 面部的
Sip: 啜饮
Beverage: 饮料
Brew: 饮品
Yucky: 令人厌恶的
Poop: 狗粪
Peeve: 恼怒
Trot sth out: 抛出（陈旧的观点、思想）
Sneer: 讥笑
Aversion: 反感
Primitive: 原始的
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