托福阅读之爱吃辣的人更爱冒险？

喜欢点咖喱鸡肉的人通常是很偏爱辣的食物，这也表示他们的性格也有很“辣”的一面。

A new study has found that people who like stimulating their taste buds with meals such as a vindaloo curry also have risk-taking personalities.

一项新的研究发现，喜欢像咖喱鸡肉这种挑战味蕾的食物的人是天生的冒险家。

Researchers in the US tested 200 people to see how they reacted to certain adrenalin pumping sensations, such as standing on the edge of something or watching highly suspenseful movies.

美国的一项调查中测试了200人，看他们在面对某些令肾上腺素激升的情况时做何反应，比如站在某物的边缘或者看一部悬疑片。

They were then given a small amount of capsaicin - the active ingredient in chilli peppers - in a glass of water and asked to swish it around their mouth. Those who said they liked the spicy taste were the same ones who enjoyed the adrenalin rush of risky behaviour.

他们每人会得到含有少量辣椒素（辣椒的主要成分）的一杯水，并被要求用它漱口。那些说自己喜欢辣味的人正是喜欢令肾上腺素飙升的冒险行为的人。

The test, known as Arnett’s Inventory of Sensation Seeking, was carried out by researchers at Penn University in Pennsylvania. The AISS test is used by scientists to determine each person’s level of risk taking behaviour.

这项测试被称作“阿内特库存感觉寻求(AISS)模型”，是宾夕法尼亚大学的研究人员发明的。科学家使用“阿内特库存感觉寻求模型”测试判定每个人的冒险行为的程度。

Dr. Alan Hirsch of the Smell and Taste Treatment and Research Foundation in Chicago says the correlation between risk taking and spicy food makes total sense to him.

芝加哥“嗅觉和味觉治疗与研究基金会”的艾伦·赫希博士表示他完全赞同冒险与辣味之间的联系。

He said: 'There’s a long-standing hypothesis that risk takers are adrenaline deficient and that they take risks to get that adrenaline and feel better. So they’ll work with bombs or in other high risk environments and then they’ll feel normal. Similarly, when you eat hot spicy food, it gives you a little bit of pain and therefore enhances your adrenaline level.'

他说：“长期以来，有一种假说是冒险者肾上腺素匮乏，他们通过冒险来获取肾上腺素，使自己感觉更好。所以他们与炸弹打交道，或者在其它高危环境里工作，这样他们才会感觉正常。同样，当你吃辣的食物时，它可以给你些许疼痛感，这样就会提高肾上腺素含量。”