【今日阅读推荐】本篇阅读材料“面对灾难,人类大脑如何反应”选自《卫报》(原文标题:What your brain does in an emergency 2010.3.16)。如果大家觉得比较简单,就当作泛读材料了解了解,认识几个新单词或新表达方式也不错。如果大家觉得这些材料理解上有难度,不妨当做挑战自己的拔高训练,希望大家都有进步^^
Research into people’s reactions to emergencies aims to make sure there are more survivors in future.
Imagine you’re stuck in a burning building, trying desperately to escape. After stumbling to the end of a smoke-filled corridor, you have to choose whether to turn left or right. The decision could determine whether you live or die – but the way you make it is not as random as you might think, according to Ed Galea, professor of mathematical modelling at the University of Greenwich.
Galea has forged a career out of working out the science and psychology behind how people’s brains function in disaster zones. He has interviewed thousands of survivors, from 300 people who escaped the World Trade Center on 9/11 to plane crash and Paddington rail disaster survivors. The results of his research are used by governments, building designers and emergency workers around the world to try to plan for the effects of future catastrophes.
His latest project, funded by a