9月1日午间英语新闻：在大瀑布上空野餐是种怎样的体验？

> Study finds laughter is good for heart health
研究：开怀大笑有助于心脏健康

The old adage that “laughter is the best medicine” may contain an element of truth when it comes to heart health. A study has demonstrated that having a chuckle causes the tissue inside the heart to expand – and increases oxygen flow around the body.
老话说，笑是最好的良药，这句话在心脏健康方面也许是有道理的。一项研究表明，笑能让心脏内部组织扩张，从而增加在体内四处流动的氧气。

Patients with coronary artery disease who engaged in a course of laughter therapy had reduced inflammation and better health, the research found.
研究发现，采用“大笑疗法”的冠心病患者炎症减轻了，身体变好了。

"Our study found that laughter therapy increased the functional capacity of the cardiovascular system,” said the lead author, Prof Marco Saffi, of the Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre in Brazil.
该研究的首席作者、巴西阿雷格里港医院的马克•萨菲教授表示：“我们的研究发现，大笑疗法能改善心血管系统的功能。”

The findings were presented at the annual meeting of the European Society of Cardiology in Amsterdam, the world’s largest heart conference. In the trial, scientists carried out a first-of-its-kind study to examine if laughter therapy could improve symptoms of patients with heart disease.
这一研究结果在阿姆斯特丹举行的世界最大型心脏病学会议——欧洲心脏病学会年会上公布。科学家在这项研究中开展了一场史无前例的试验，看大笑疗法能否改善心脏病患者的症状。

It involved 26 adults with an average age of 64, all diagnosed with coronary artery disease, caused by plaque buildup in the walls of the arteries that supply blood to the heart.
平均年龄为64岁的26名成人参与了这个试验，他们全都确诊冠心病，这种病是由给心脏供血的冠状动脉内壁斑块的累积导致的。

Over three months, half were asked to watch two different hour-long comedy programs each week, including popular sitcoms. The other half watched two different serious documentaries, about topics such as politics or the Amazon rainforest.
在三个月的时间内，有一半的患者被要求每周观看两个不同的长达一小时的喜剧节目，包括受欢迎的情景喜剧。另外一半患者每周观看两部不同的严肃纪录片，涉及政治或亚马逊雨林这类题材。

At the end of the 12-week study period, the comedy group improved by 10% in a test measuring how much oxygen their heart could pump around the body. The group also improved in a second measure that tested how well arteries can expand.
在长达12周的研究结束时，科学家对他们的身体进行检查后发现，观看喜剧的小组成员心脏供应全身的氧气流量增加了10%。另一项检查发现，该小组的成员的冠状动脉扩张功能也改善了。

They also had blood tests to measure several inflammatory biomarkers, which indicate how much plaque has built up in the blood vessels, and whether people are at risk of heart attack or stroke. The results showed that these inflammatory markers had significantly reduced compared with the control group.
这些人还抽血检测了几个炎症生物指标，这些指标能显示出血管中积聚了多少斑块，以及是否有心脏病发作或中风的风险。结果显示，相比对照组，这些人的炎症指标都显著降低。

"When patients with coronary artery disease arrive at hospital, they have a lot of inflammatory biomarkers,” said Saffi. “Inflammation is a huge part of the process of atherosclerosis, when plaque builds up in the arteries.
萨菲表示：“当冠心病患者就医时，他们的炎症指标都很高。炎症是动脉粥样硬化过程中表明动脉斑块累积的主要症状。”

"This study found that laughter therapy is a good intervention that could help reduce that inflammation and decrease the risk of heart attack and stroke.”
“这项研究发现，大笑疗法是很好的干预手段，有助于减轻炎症并降低心脏病发作和中风的风险。”

重点词汇：
inflammation
英/ˌɪnfləˈmeɪʃ(ə)n/ 美/ˌɪnfləˈmeɪʃn/
n.发炎，炎症

cardiovascular
英/ˌkɑːdiəʊˈvæskjələ(r)/ 美/ˌkɑːrdioʊˈvæskjələr/
adj.心血管的；心脏强化运动的

plaque
英/plæk/ 美/plæk/
n.匾牌，匾额，纪念匾；牙斑，齿菌斑；（医）斑（块）；动脉斑块；（微生物）空斑，噬斑；（用于赌博的扁平）筹码

>Would you pay $450 for a unique picnic dangling 295 feet over a thundering waterfall?
在大瀑布上空野餐是种怎样的体验？

A Brazilian adventure firm is offering thrill seekers the unique opportunity to enjoy a picnic at a wooden table suspended above the thundering Cascata da Sepultura, in the state of Rio Grande do Sul.
巴西一家探险公司为爱冒险者提供了一项特殊服务，该公司在南里奥格兰德州塞普尔图拉瀑布上空架起了野餐木桌。

The breathtaking experience recently went viral thanks to a short clip posted by an American couple who found it while looking for special things to try in Brazil. In the video, Christianna Hurt and her boyfriend can be seen casually enjoying some snacks and a glass of red wine at a picnic table suspended on a bunch of metal wires high above the waterfall. The whole experience lasts only 15 minutes and costs $450, but it’s definitely something you’ll never forget.
这个令人心跳加速的野餐体验近日走红网络，起因是一对美国夫妇在巴西冒险时发布了一段视频。在视频中，可以看到克里斯蒂安娜•赫特和她的男友在一张野餐桌旁自在地享用着小吃和红酒，而野餐桌悬挂在瀑布上空的一条钢索上。整个体验只持续了15分钟，花费450美元，但这绝对令人永生难忘。

“It’s only about a 15-minute experience total… the experience is more about the scenery, not the food,” Hurt told Mail Online.
克里斯蒂安娜告诉英国《每日邮报》网站：“用餐时间总共只有大约15分钟……更多的是欣赏风景，而不是品尝食物。”

They needed to briefly walk through the river itself to reach the zipline platform that’s been built into the waterfall’s edge, she said. 
她透露，需要先穿过一小段河流，才能到达瀑布边缘的滑索平台。

They were then strapped into a harness and took a seat at the picnic table, which was secured to the zipline. She explains that the Rota Aventura crew then ‘rolled’ the table along the zipline, leaving the couple dangling over the cascading water.
克里斯蒂安娜和男友绑上安全带，在野餐桌旁就座，野餐桌固定在滑索上。随后，工作人员沿着滑索“滑动”桌子，让他们在飞流直下的瀑布上晃来晃去。

The two were strapped into safety harnesses and seated at a picnic table secured to a sturdy zipline. The table was then rolled out over the thundering waterfall, where the couple unpacked their food and drinks. A photo op and drone video was also included in the price of the experience.
这对情侣系上安全带，坐在一张用结实的锁链固定的野餐桌旁。桌子悬吊在水声轰鸣的瀑布上方，他们在餐桌旁享用食物和饮料。项目费用还包括拍照和无人机视频拍摄服务。

重点词汇:
sturdy
英/ˈstɜːdi/ 美/ˈstɜːrdi/
adj.
结实的，坚固的；（人或身体）强壮的，健壮的；坚决的，坚定的
n.（绦虫幼虫在脑中形成包囊使绵羊产生的）晕倒病，蹒跚病