If you travel by bus or subway, you may look up to find someone sleeping in the seat across from you. Maybe this even happens to you! You might think you need more coffee, but it won’t help much. The natural vibration (振动) of buses and subways makes us fall sleepy, according to a new study.
Why? It’s all about the information going to your brain. On a bus, you keep receiving the repeating information. For example, the air conditioner and engine keep making white noise. At the same time, you’re sitting still on the seat. Also, things around you don’t change. Your brain almost has no new information to process. Slowly, your brain doesn’t care about the information any longer and starts to rest. The fact that you fall asleep quickly when closing your eyes on a bus is because your brain gets used to all the repeating information.
When you’re tired, it doesn’t take you much time to start nodding off. And we’ve found that the vibrations made by car seats as you drive can make your brain and body relaxed and calm,” said Stephen Robinson, a researcher from Australia.
Robinson’s team monitored (监测) 15 volunteers’ hearts rate variability (HRV，心率变异度) which shows how sleepy one person is, while they sat in a driving simulator (模拟器). In two 60-minute tests, volunteers were tested once with vibrations and once without.
During the test with vibrations, volunteers’ HRV was much lower. Within 15 minutes, they felt a bit sleepy, and the feeling was increasing up until the end of the test.
The line of research can help in the development of the car industry, and then help to reduce accidents. “We hope that future car seat design can fight sleeping caused by vibration,” Robinson said.
【小题1】How does the writer lead into the topic?| A．By asking a question. |
| B．By giving an example. |
| C．By making a comparison. |
| A．the things around you always change to make your brain get new information |
| B．you keep hearing the white noise such as the air conditioner and engine |
| C．your brain is used to some information which is repeating |
| A．felt sleepy for just 15 minutes |
| B．felt sleepier and sleepier during the test |
| C．felt sleepy as soon as the test started |
| A．during the test without vibrations, volunteers’ HRV slowed down |
| B．the vibrations made by seats can excite your brain and body as you drive |
| C．when you’re tired, it’s easy for you to start nodding off |
| A．Fewer people will take buses in the near future. |
| B．The lower a person’s HRV is, the more active he is. |
| C．If Robinson’s dream comes true, road safety will be improved. |
