黃連英

You know the feeling — your ears start to warm up， your tongue goes numb， you start sweating and taking deep breaths. Youve just eaten something spicy knowing it would be painful， and， yet， you chose to do it anyway. Are humans just masochistic（受虐傾向的）， or is there something else going on？ The answer lies in both science and history.

Lets start with the science. Spicy isnt actually a taste like salty， sweet， sour and bitter — its a sensation. This sensation is triggered by a chemical compound found in chilli peppers called ‘capsaicin. When we eat foods containing capsaicin， our bodies are tricked into thinking the temperature is actually rising. In trying to temper the burning sensation， our bodies release endorphins（內(nèi)啡肽） which control pain and， give a feeling of pleasure — like painkillers.

This is what is happening chemically， but there is also a conscious side to choose spicy food. Dr Tamara Rosenbaum， Cognitive Neuroscientist at the National Autonomous University of Mexico， explains in an interview with the BBC that this is because we are rational beings — we know that the burning sensation of chilli doesnt physically harm us. Furthermore， we derive pleasure from the other ingredients chilli is generally cooked and eaten with — including fat， sugar and salt. So — like skydiving — eating chilli is a form of thrill-seeking or ‘benign masochism， where we get pleasure from a seemingly negative sensation.

This masochistic relationship with capsaicin has been a long one， starting in the Andes of South America， where chilli peppers originate. Humans were one of the few mammals on Earth that developed a taste for capsaicin so， archaeological evidence suggests， they started cultivating chilli peppers about six thousand years ago. Human intervention changed the chilli pepper to suit human tastes and needs， helping to explain the many different types of chilli peppers now available.

Fast-forward to today， and our love affair with the chilli pepper is going strong. We eat around 57.3 million tons of peppers globally each year， and chilli is a key ingredient in traditional dishes from Mexico to Korea. Maybe we are masochistic after all.

（材料來(lái)自XDF網(wǎng)站，有刪改）

1. Whats the function of the first paragraph？

A. To introduce the topic.

B. To summarize the passage.

C. To explain the authors opinion.

D. To give background information.

2. What does the underlined word “temper” in Paragraph 2 mean？

A. Intensify. B. Relieve. C. Cause. D. Produce.

3. Which of the following isnt to the reason why we consciously choose spicy food？

A. We know that eating chilli does not physically harm us.

B. We can get pleasure from other ingredients cooked with chilli.

C. It is a form of seeking excitement for us to eat chilli.

D. Many different types of chilli peppers are accessible to us.

4. Where is this passage most probably taken from？

A. A guide book. ? B. A book review.

C. A science magazine. D. An official document.

1. A。解析：推理判斷題。材料第一段先提到吃辣椒的感受及人們了解辣椒給身體帶來(lái)的痛苦卻樂(lè)此不疲，然后提出問(wèn)題，最后說(shuō)到答案在科學(xué)和歷史中。由此引出本篇文章話題——我們?yōu)槭裁聪矚g吃辣？故選A。

2. B。解析：詞義猜測(cè)題。材料第二段中畫(huà)線詞所在句子的大意為“在試圖緩和灼燒感時(shí)，我們的身體會(huì)釋放內(nèi)啡肽，這種內(nèi)啡肽能夠控制疼痛，并且給人一種愉悅的感覺(jué)，就像止痛藥一樣”，由此可知，“temper”應(yīng)有“緩解，緩和”之意。故選B。

3. D。解析：細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)材料第三段第二句中的“we know that the burning sensation of chilli doesnt physically harm us”，我們可排除A選項(xiàng)；根據(jù)材料第三段第三句中的“we derive pleasure from the other ingredients chilli is generally cooked and eaten with — including fat， sugar and salt”，我們可排除B選項(xiàng)；根據(jù)材料第三段第四句中的“eating chilli is a form of thrill-seeking”，我們可排除C選項(xiàng)。D選項(xiàng)的內(nèi)容不是人們選擇辛辣食物的原因，故選D。

4. C。解析：推理判斷題。本篇材料探究了我們喜歡吃辣的原因，因此，這應(yīng)該是一本科學(xué)雜志上的某篇科普說(shuō)明文中的內(nèi)容。故選C。