There are a lot of things in this world that people don’t understand because, hey, the world is a confusing place. But we can always take solace in the fact that there are some really simple concepts and ideas out there that we can all understand. However, as is often the way with life, when you start to look closely at some of these concepts, you realize that you’ve opened a giant can of worms.
这世界上有许多事情人们都搞不明白，哎，因为这世界就是一个容易把人弄糊涂的地方。不过，有一些概念和观念还是挺简单的，我们都能理解。藉此，我们总能感到一丝宽慰。不过，当你开始仔细审视其中一些概念的时候，你就会意识到，它们的背后还隐藏着一连串极为复杂的问题。而在生活中，这是常有的事。
The Proof For ’1+1=2′ Is 300 Pages Long
为了证明1+1=2，数学家用了300多页纸来计算
The equation 1+1=2 is probably the very first bit of math that most of us learned, because addition and subtraction are probably the simplest concepts in mathematics. If you have one apple and somebody gives you another, you have two apples. By the same logic, if you have two apples and someone takes one away, you only have one apple. It’s a universal fact of life that transcends barriers like language or race. Which is what makes the following sentence so unbelievable: The proof for 1+1=2 is well over 300 pages long and it wasn’t conclusively proven until the 20th century.
1+1=2这个等式或许是我们大多数人最先学到的数学知识，因为加法和减法也许是数学中最简单的概念。如果你有一个苹果，某人又给了你一个，那么你就有两个苹果。同样的逻辑，如果你有两个苹果，某人拿走了一个，那么你就剩一个苹果了。这是生活中普遍存在的一个事实。也许人们语言不通，种族不同，但他们都认同这一等式。正因为道理如此简单，才得使下面这句话令人难以置信：1+1=2的证明用了300多页纸，并且直到20世纪才被完全证实。
How Long Is A Piece Of String? It"s Impossible To Know
一根绳子有多长？这是根本不可能知道的
If someone was to give you a piece of string and ask you how long it was, you’d assume that answering them would be a fairly simple, if rather odd task. But how would you answer that person if they wanted to know exactly how long that piece of string was? That was something comedian Alan Davies wanted to ascertain for a BBC TV special aptly called How Long is a Piece of String? by posing the deceptively simple question to a group of scientists.
如果有人给你一根绳子，然后问你绳子有多长，你肯定会认为回答他们真是太简单了，尽管这个任务有些奇怪。但是如果这个人想要知道绳子的精确长度，你会怎么回答呢？这是在BBC一档特别电视节目中，喜剧演员艾伦·戴维斯想要弄清楚的问题，这档电视节目的名字很贴切，叫《一根绳子有多长》（How Long is a Piece of String?）。节目中，他把这个看似很简单的问题抛给了一组科学家。
The answer was, rather ironically, “it depends,” because the exact definition of how long something is depends on who you ask. Mathematicians told the comedian that a piece of string could theoretically be of infinite length, while physicists told him that due to the nature of subatomic physics and the fact that atoms can technically be in two places at once, measuring the string precisely is impossible.
相当滑稽地是，答案居然是“要视情况而定，”因为某样东西长度的准确定义也要根据被提问者而定。数学家们告诉这位喜剧演员，从理论上来说，一根绳子的长度可能是无限的。而物理学家们却告诉他说，基于亚原子物理学的本质和这样一个事实—从技术上讲，原子可以同时出现在两个地方，想要精确测量绳子的长度是不可能的。
Yawning
打哈欠
Yawning is a puzzling phenomenon. Even the simple act of talking about it is enough to make some people do it (some of you are probably doing it right now). There really is no other bodily function quite like it.
打哈欠是一个令人迷惑不解的现象。即使是仅仅谈论一下也足以使一些人打个哈欠（你们中的一些人也许现在正打哈欠呢）。真的没有什么其他的身体机能会像打哈欠一样具有传染性了。
Now, some of you reading this may be aware of the long-standing theory that the purpose of yawning is to keep us alert by forcing our bodies to take in an extra large gulp of oxygen. That makes sense, because we mostly yawn when we’re tired or bored, situations where an extra burst of energy would come in handy.
此刻，也许你们当中的一些人想到了一个由来已久的理论：打哈欠的目的是通过迫使我们的身体吸入一大口氧气来使我们保持清醒。这么说是有道理的，因为当我们感到疲倦和无聊时，往往都会打哈欠。在这种情况下一股能量会补充进身体，进而振奋我们的精神。
The thing is, experiments have conclusively disproven that theory over the years. In fact, there is no universally agreed upon theory for why we actually yawn, even though everyone does it. A commonly accepted theory is that yawning actually cools down the brain, because various experiments have shown that one of the few things to actually change in the body during a yawn is the temperature of the brain itself. As for why yawning is contagious, no one knows that either.
可事实是，这些年来，实验已经完全否定了这一理论。实际上，尽管每个人都会打哈欠，可关于我们打哈欠的原因仍没有普遍认同的理论。一种人们广为接受的理论称打哈欠事实上能使大脑的温度下降，因为各种各样的实验已经说明当人打哈欠时，人体为数不多的变化之一就是大脑自身温度的下降。至于打哈欠为什么会传染，也没有人知道原因。
Some Mosquitoes Bite People Because Of Their Clothes
一些蚊子咬人是由于衣服的缘故
If you’ve ever been bitten by a mosquito, chances are someone nearby has given you a recycled explanation for why the insect decided to ruin your day. Maybe they said that you smelled good, or that you had a particular blood type, or maybe they just told you that your shirt makes you look like a victim. We’re not being facetious with that list, by the way—they’re all things that scientists believe can cause mosquitoes to find you more attractive.
如果你曾经被蚊子咬过，周围的人很可能会不断地向你解释蚊子为啥会毁掉你的一天。也许他们会说你太好闻了，或者说你有特殊的血型，又或者只告诉你说你的衬衫使你看起来更像被攻击的目标。对于以上所列的这些原因，我们绝对不是开玩笑，顺便说一句—科学家认为所有这些因素都会使你更招蚊子。
Rock-Paper-Scissors Is The Most Serious Game In The World
剪刀—石头—布是世界上最正经的游戏
Nothing could be simpler than a game of rock-paper-scissors; it’s the easiest way to decide any argument because it’s basically just random chance, right?
没有什么事儿比剪刀—石头—布这个游戏还要简单了；它是解决争论，作出决定最简单的方式，因为基本上来说它就是随机的，不是吗？
Well, not if the dozens of papers written about the subject are to be believed. The game has become a favorite research topic of psychologists because of how intertwined rock-paper-scissors is with subconscious human responses and game theory. As a result, dozens of strategies exist to help players get an edge in the game—including playing blindfolded to avoid being subconsciously influenced by an opponent’s body language.
哦，如果人们相信以此为主题写就的几十篇论文的话，那就没这么简单了。由于剪刀—石头—布和人潜意识的反应以及游戏理论紧密相关，这个游戏已经成为心理学家们热衷的研究主题。于是，研究发现了可以帮助选手取得优势的几十种策略—包括玩儿时蒙住眼睛，以避免潜意识里受到对手肢体语言的影响。
