肚脐位置决定你能否成为"飞人"

 　　The reason why black people make better sprinters and white people dominate swimming races has been explained by scientists - it's down to their belly² buttons.

　　为什么黑人擅长短跑而白人是游泳比赛的常胜将军？科学家给出了新解释，这是由肚脐的位置决定的。

　　The researchers found that the position of the navel in relation to the rest of their body affects athletic³ ability. This is because the naval⁴ is the body's centre of gravity. A higher naval meaning a higher centre of gravity, so your body is pulled forward faster. While a lower navel means a longer torso which makes for a better swimmer.

　　研究人员发现肚脐在人体的相对位置能够影响到人的运动能力。因为它是人体的重心所在。肚脐位置高，重心就高，因此向前冲的速度快。反之，肚脐位置低，躯干长，游泳就快。

　　The researchers say their findings prove why black people are more likely to sprint¹ faster while white people make swifter swimmers. A professor from Duke University explains, "What matters is not total height but the position of the belly-button, or centre of gravity."

　　研究人员称他们的发现找到了黑人善跑而白人善游的原因。美国杜克大学一位教授解释说：“起决定作用的不是身高而是肚脐的位置，也就是人体的重心位置。”

　　It so happens that in the architecture of the human body of West African-origin runners, the centre of gravity is significantly higher than in runners of European origin which puts them at an advantage in sprints⁵ on the track.

　　通常，西非运动员的重心明显比欧洲运动员的要高很多。这就使他们在短跑项目上占据优势。

　　Individuals of West African-origin have longer legs than European-origin athletes, which means their belly-buttons are three centimeters (1.18 inches) higher than whites. That means the black athletes have a "hidden height" that which gives them a significant speed advantage on the track.

　　从个体比较，西非运动员比欧洲运动员的腿长，他们肚脐的位置平均比白人高出三厘米。这个隐藏高度使他们在跑道上速度占优。

　　In the pool, meanwhile, whites have the advantage because they have longer torsos, so their belly-buttons sit lower on the body.

　　相比之下，在游泳项目上，白人较长的躯干和位置较低的肚脐是有利条件。

　　"Swimming is the art of surfing the wave created by the swimmer,"said the professor. "The swimmer who makes the bigger wave is the faster swimmer, and a longer torso makes a bigger wave. Europeans have a three-percent longer torso than West Africans, which gives them a 1.5-percent speed advantage in the pool," he said.

　　该教授说：“游泳是冲浪艺术。游泳者制造浪花。浪花造的越大，游得就越快。游泳者的躯干越长，就越容易制造大朵浪花。欧洲人的躯干一般比西非人长3%，这就使得他们游泳时有1.5%的速度优势。”

1 sprint   

n.短距离赛跑；vi. 奋力而跑，冲刺；vt.全速跑过

参考例句：

• He put on a sprint to catch the bus.他全速奔跑以赶上公共汽车。
• The runner seemed to be rallied for a final sprint.这名赛跑者似乎在振作精神作最后的冲刺。

2 belly   

n.肚子，腹部；(像肚子一样)鼓起的部分，膛

参考例句：

• The boss has a large belly.老板大腹便便。
• His eyes are bigger than his belly.他眼馋肚饱。

3 athletic   

adj.擅长运动的，强健的；活跃的，体格健壮的

参考例句：

• This area has been marked off for athletic practice.这块地方被划出来供体育训练之用。
• He is an athletic star.他是一个运动明星。

4 naval   

adj.海军的，军舰的，船的

参考例句：

• He took part in a great naval battle.他参加了一次大海战。
• The harbour is an important naval base.该港是一个重要的海军基地。

5 sprints   

n.短距离的全速奔跑( sprint的名词复数 )v.短距离疾跑( sprint的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• You can run sprints only so long before you're out of breath. 你死命地跑，只能跑那么一段时间，到了喘不上气的时候，只好停下来。 来自辞典例句
• The cheetah finds the open grasslands ideal footing for its lightning-quick sprints. 非洲猎豹把开阔的草原作为它们闪电猎食的理想处所。 来自互联网