2月9日午间英语新闻：研究发现 挖鼻孔或增加患痴呆症风险

> Nose Picking May Increase Dementia Risk

警惕！研究发现：挖鼻孔或增加患痴呆症风险

A mouse study suggests an especially disgusting risk factor for dementia: nose picking. Digging around in the nasal passage sends bacteria known as Chlamydia pneumoniae up through the nasal passage and into the brain where it then attacks the central nervous system, according to the recent study, published in the journal Scientific Reports. Once in the brain, the bacteria stimulates the deposit of amyloid beta protein thought to be a hallmark of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.

一项针对老鼠的研究发现，挖鼻孔是导致痴呆症的一个风险因素。这项最新研究发布在《科学报告》杂志。研究显示，挖鼻孔可使肺炎衣原体通过鼻腔进入大脑，攻击中枢神经系统。肺炎衣原体一旦进入大脑，会促进β淀粉样蛋白的沉积，这是痴呆症和阿尔茨海默症的标志。

“We’re the first to show that Chlamydia pneumoniae can go directly up the nose and into the brain where it can set off pathologies that look like Alzheimer’s disease,” Professor James St John, Head of the Clem Jones Center for Neurobiology and Stem Cell Research, told SciTechDaily.com. “We saw this happen in a mouse model, and the evidence is potentially scary for humans as well.”

克莱姆•琼斯神经生物学和干细胞研究中心负责人詹姆斯•圣约翰教授告诉SciTechDaily.com网站：“我们的研究首次证明，肺炎衣原体可以直接通过鼻子进入大脑，并在大脑引发类似阿尔茨海默病的病变。我们在小鼠实验中看到了这种情况，这一证据对人类来说也需警惕。”

The team plans further study to see if the same pathways do in fact, exist in humans, St John added. If the relationship holds, St. John said it might suggest that memory loss might be able to be modified by limiting nose picking and playing with nose hairs, as well as other lifestyle factors.

他还表示，研究团队已经在计划下一阶段的研究，旨在证明人类也存在同样的通路。如果这种方式成立，这可能表明，通过避免挖鼻子和拔鼻毛等生活习惯，可以改善记忆力下降的情况。

Studies already show an intriguing connection between the brain and nose. A decline in a person’s sense of smell over time can foretell structural changes in regions of the brain important in Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. 

已有研究证实，大脑和鼻子之间存在一种有趣的关联。随着时间的推移，一个人嗅觉下降可以预示大脑中与阿尔茨海默症和痴呆症相关区域的结构变化。

重点词汇：

1、dementia
英/ dɪˈmenʃə /

美/ dɪˈmenʃə /

n.痴呆，精神错乱

2、nasal
英/ ˈneɪz(ə)l /
美/ ˈneɪz(ə)l /
adj.鼻的；（嗓音，话语）带鼻音的；（语音）鼻音的
n.鼻音；<史>（头盔上的）护鼻

3、deposit
英/ dɪˈpɒzɪt /
美/ dɪˈpɑːzɪt /
v.放下，放置；储蓄；存放，寄存；沉积，沉淀；支付（押金、订金或预缴费用）
n.沉积物，沉积层；订金；押金；存款；竞选保证金

4、hallmark
英/ ˈhɔːlmɑːk /
美/ ˈhɔːlmɑːrk /
n.特点，特征；（金银制品上标明纯度及制作时间、地点的）印记
v.给……打金银纯度印记；使具有……特征

5、pathology
英/ pəˈθɒlədʒi /
美/ pəˈθɑːlədʒi /
n.病理学；病状；精神异常；社会异常；语言异常

> E-CNY boosts holiday consumption

数字人民币红包成为中国春节喜庆新元素

On Jan 22, the first day of the Year of the Rabbit, Li, a citizen of North China's Tianjin, prepared for her daughter what in China is called a "red packet", a monetary gift traditionally given by the elderly to the younger generation during Spring Festival or the start of the Chinese New Year.

1月22日，农历正月初一，天津市民李女士为女儿准备了一个“红包”。在中国春节，长辈给晚辈发红包是节日传统。

Instead of withdrawing cash from a bank and putting it in a red envelope, this year she chose to use the e-CNY mobile application, passing on her blessing with digital currency.

今年，李女士没有从银行取现金包红包，而是通过手机数字人民币应用，为女儿发了数字人民币红包。

This virtual red packet of 200 yuan ($29.62) has a lively cover with not only lovely animated images on it but also a message carefully selected by the mother: Try not to be bothered. "Red packets with digital yuan are easy for the elderly like me to operate and interesting enough to draw youngsters' attention," Li said.

这个200元的电子红包封面不仅有活泼可爱的卡通形象，还有李女士为女儿精心挑选的文字“拒绝蕉绿”。李女士说：“对长辈来说，数字人民币发红包操作很方便，年轻人也觉得新奇。”

Issued by the People's Bank of China, the country's central bank, digital yuan is positioned as a legal tender, designed to be treated as M0, meaning cash in circulation, such as coins and banknotes. At present, 17 provincial-level regions in China have piloted the use of digital yuan.

数字人民币是由人民银行发行的数字形式的法定货币，定位于M0，即流通中的现金和硬币。目前，中国已有17个省份的部分地区开展数字人民币试点。

During the weeklong Spring Festival holiday, which began on Jan 21 this year, a large number of red packets containing digital yuan have also been distributed to residents across the country to stimulate the consumer market. Cities including Beijing, Hangzhou, Zhejiang province in the east, and Shenzhen, Guangdong province in the south, have issued e-CNY coupons.

春节假期期间，多地发放了大量数字人民币红包，促进消费。北京、浙江杭州和广东深圳等城市发放了数字人民币消费券。

Gao Nan, a professor at Tianjin University of Finance and Economics, believes that the integration of the digital yuan and the Chinese New Year could accelerate the public's cognition and promotion of the e-CNY. "Technological innovation is also injecting more new impetus into traditional festivals," Gao said.

天津财经大学教授高楠认为，数字人民币与春节的融合，能够加速公众对数字人民币的认知和推广进程。他表示：“科技创新也为传统节日增添了更多活力。”

The amount of the digital yuan in circulation reached 13.61 billion yuan by the end of 2022, PBOC data showed, as it called for efforts to facilitate interconnectivity between the digital yuan system and traditional e-payment tools to make it more convenient for customers to use digital currency.

中国人民银行数据显示，到2022年底，流通中数字人民币存量是136.1亿元。中国人民银行呼吁促进数字人民币体系与传统电子支付工具的互联互通，使数字人民币的使用更加方便。

As of late January, more than 90 internet platforms, including majors such as JD, Taobao and Meituan, which gather rich consumption scenes, have also opened up to embrace the digital currency.

截至1月下旬， 数字人民币（试点版）应用上的子钱包已支持京东、淘宝、美团等90多个汇聚多种消费场景的商户平台接收数字人民币。

重点词汇：
1、banknote
英/ ˈbæŋknəʊt /

美/ ˈbæŋknoʊt /

n.钞票，纸币

2、pilot
英/ ˈpaɪlət /
美/ ˈpaɪlət /
n.飞行员；领航员；（船只的）领航员；（电视）试播节目；常燃小火；航海手册；<非正式>职业骑师；<古>向导；（火车头前端的）排障器
adj.试点的；（电信）控制引导信号
v.驾驶（飞行器）；领航；试验，试行；使（新法律）顺利通过；<文>带领，指引

3、integration
英/ ˌɪntɪˈɡreɪʃ(ə)n /
美/ ˌɪntɪˈɡreɪʃ(ə)n /
n.结合，融合；取消种族隔离；（数）积分法，求积分；（心理分析）整合

4、cognition
英/ kɒɡˈnɪʃ(ə)n /
美/ kɑːɡˈnɪʃ(ə)n /
n.认识，认知；认识（或认知）的结果

5、impetus
英/ ˈɪmpɪtəs /
美/ ˈɪmpɪtəs /
n.动力，促进；动量，冲力