The word mukbang is from the Korean words “muk-ja” (let’s eat) and “bang- song” (广播). Hosts eat amounts of food in front of a camera while interacting with their audience. The show appeared first in South Korea, where the videos became popular via live stream(直播)channels.

The show comes from South Korea but other countries follow in significantly different ways. Take America as an example, Koreans plan their streams around dinnertime hours so viewers can feel like they are sharing a meal with a friend. And yet Americans tend (倾向于) to be more conversational in their videos which are pre-recorded. Korean mukbangers tend to eat traditional Korean dishes while American mukbangers eat a wider variety of foods.

Why are millions of people so drawn to watching perfect strangers eat in the first place? It’s a combination of sensory, psychological, social, emotional, environmental even neurological factors, says Rachel Herz, a neuroscientist at Brown University Alpert Medical School. She specially explains how food attracts our senses and develops our behavior when it comes to what we like to eat. A big part of that neurological factor is the ASMR (autonomous sensory-motor response), described as a brain feeling which can help people relaxed from the familiar sounds of eating in the mukbang videos.

Earning the popularity and money, more and more mukbangers appear. However, the show has not come without its unfavorable comments. As our habits change, we spend more and more social engagement on social media. It’s only a matter of time before mukbang affects our behavior around food. Viewers could probably develop unhealthy eating habits from watching. Despite the negative comments, mukbang continues to do well on the Internet and it doesn’t look like it’s slowing down anytime soon.

【小题1】What do we know about Mukbang?

A．It is an eating live show.	B．It is a TV channel
C．It is an eating competition.	D．It is a video website.

【小题2】What do Americans like to do about their streams?

A．Play them without a stop.	B．Show various dishes in them.
C．Record them after dinnertime.	D．Chat more with friends in them.

【小题3】Which statement does Rachel Herz probably agree with?

A．Strangers like to eat what is on show.

B．The viewers’ bad behaviors can get adjusted.

C．Weak-minded people are most likely to overeat.

D．The eating sounds can easily cause viewers’ interest.

【小题4】What might be talked about following the passage?

A．The changes of our habits.	B．The comments of viewers.
C．The management of the show.	D．The development of the Internet.