to create thousands of expressions.

以創建成千上萬的表達式。

But do these expressions look the same

但這些表達方式看起來一樣嗎？

and communicate the same meaning around the world,

並在全世界範圍內傳達同樣的意義。

regardless of culture?

不分文化？

Is one person's smile another's grimace?

一個人的微笑就是另一個人的笑臉嗎？

Charles Darwin theorized that emotional expression was a common human feature.

查爾斯-達爾文理論上認為，情感表達是人類的共同特徵。

But he was in the minority.

但他是少數。

Until the mid-20th century,

直到20世紀中葉。

many researchers believed that the specific ways we show emotion

許多研究者認為，我們表現情感的具體方式是什麼？

were learned behaviors that varied across cultures.

是在不同文化中學習的行為。

Personality theorist Silvan Tomkins was one of the few to insist otherwise.

人格理論家西爾萬-湯姆金斯是少數堅持不這樣做的人之一。

Tomkins claimed that certain affects—

湯姆金斯稱，某些影響--

emotional states and their associated facial expressions—

情緒狀態及其相關的面部表情

were universal.

是普遍的。

In the 1960s, psychologist Paul Ekman set about testing this theory

20世紀60年代，心理學家保羅-埃克曼開始測試這一理論。

by examining hundreds of hours of film footage

通過審查數百小時的電影錄像

of remote tribes isolated from the modern world.

與現代世界隔絕的偏遠部落的。

Ekman found the native peoples' expressions to be not only familiar,

埃克曼發現，當地人的表情不僅熟悉。

but occurring in precisely the situations he would expect.

但發生的情況正是他所期望的。

Conversely, he ran tests with tribes who had no prior exposure to Western culture.

相反，他對那些之前沒有接觸過西方文化的部落進行了測試。

They were able to correctly match photos of different facial expressions

他們能夠正確匹配不同表情的照片。

with stories designed to trigger particular feelings.

用設計好的故事來引發特定的感受。

Over the next few decades,

在接下來的幾十年裡，。

further research has corroborated Darwin's idea

深入研究印證了達爾文的觀點。

that some of our most important emotional expressions are in fact universal.

我們最重要的一些情感表達其實是普遍的。

The degrees of expression appropriate to a given situation can, however,

不過，適合特定情況的表達度可以。

vary greatly across cultures.

不同文化之間的差異很大。

For instance, researchers have studied facial expression in people who are born blind,

例如，研究人員對天生失明者的面部表情進行了研究。

hypothesizing that if expressions are universal,

假設如果表達式是通用的。

they would be displayed in the same way as sighted people.

他們將以與視力正常的人相同的方式顯示。

In one study, both blind and sighted athletes

在一項研究中，盲人和視力正常的運動員都有

displayed the same expressions of emotion when winning or losing their matches.

在比賽的勝負時，他們表現出同樣的情緒。

Further evidence can be found in our evolutionary relatives.

進一步的證據可以在我們的進化親屬中找到。

Comparisons of facial expression between humans and non-human mammals

人類和非人類哺乳動物面部表情的比較

have found similarities in the structure and movement of facial muscles.

已發現面部肌肉的結構和運動有相似之處。

Chimpanzee laughter looks different from ours,

黑猩猩的笑聲和我們的笑聲看起來不一樣。

but uses some of the same muscle movements.

但使用一些相同的肌肉運動。

Back in the 60s, Ekman identified six core expressions.

早在60年代，Ekman就確定了六種核心表達方式。

Anger is accompanied by lowered eyebrows drawn together,

憤怒的同時，低垂的眉毛也會拉在一起。

tense and narrowed eyes, and tight lips;

緊張的眯著眼睛，嘴脣緊閉。

disgust, by the lips pulled up and the nose crinkling.

厭惡，由嘴脣拉起，鼻子皺起。

In fear, the upper white of the eyes are revealed as the eyebrows raise

恐懼時，隨著眉毛的上揚，眼睛的上白露出來。

and the mouth stretches open,

和嘴巴伸開。

while surprise looks similar,

而驚喜看起來卻很相似。

but with rounded eyebrows and relaxed lips.

但眉毛圓潤，嘴脣放鬆。

Sadness is indicated by the inner corners of the eyebrows

眉毛內角有憂愁之意。

being drawn inwards and upwards,

被向內、向上牽引。

drooping eyes,

耷拉著眼睛。

and a downturned mouth.

和一張下垂的嘴。

And of course there's happiness:

當然還有幸福。

lips drawn up and back,

嘴脣往上拉，往後退。

and raised cheeks causing wrinkling around the eyes.

和凸起的臉頰造成眼周皺紋。

More recently, researchers have proposed additional entries

最近，研究人員提出了更多的條目

such as contempt,

如蔑視。

shame,

恥辱。

and disapproval,

和不贊成。

but opinions vary on how distinct boundaries

但對於如何區分界限，眾說紛紜

between these categories can be drawn.

在這些類別之間可以劃分。

So if Ekman and other researchers are correct,

所以，如果埃克曼和其他研究人員是正確的。

what makes certain expressions universal?

是什麼讓某些表達方式具有普遍性？

And why are they expressed in these particular ways?

又為什麼要用這些特殊的方式來表達呢？

Scientists have a lot of theories rooted in our evolutionary history.

科學家有很多理論植根於我們的進化史。

One is that certain expressions are important for survival.

一是某些表達方式對生存很重要。

Fear and surprise could signal to others an immediate danger.

恐懼和驚奇可以向他人發出緊急危險的信號。

Studies of humans and some other primates

對人類和其他一些靈長類動物的研究

have found that we pay more attention to faces that signal threats over neutral faces,

我們發現，我們對發出威脅信號的面孔比對中性面孔的關注度更高。

particularly when we're already on high alert.

特別是當我們已經處於高度警戒狀態時。

Expressions also could help improve group fitness

表達方式也可以幫助提高群體體質

by communicating our internal states to those around us.

通過向周圍的人傳達我們的內心狀態。

Sadness, for example, signals to the group that something's wrong.

例如，悲傷，向群體發出信號，表明有什麼問題。

There's some evidence that expressions

有一些證據表明，表達式

might be even more directly linked to our physiology.

可能與我們的生理學有更直接的聯繫。

The fear expression, for instance,

比如說恐懼的表情。

could directly improve survival in potentially dangerous situations

可以直接改善潛在危險情況下的生存狀況

by letting our eyes absorb more light

通過讓我們的眼睛吸收更多的光

and our lungs take in more air, preparing us to fight or flee.

我們的肺部就會吸收更多的空氣，為戰鬥或逃跑做準備。

There's still much research to be done in understanding emotional expression,

在理解情感表達方面，還有很多研究工作要做。

particularly as we learn more about the inner workings of the brain.

特別是當我們對大腦的內部運作有了更多的瞭解之後。

But if you ever find yourself among strangers in a strange land,

但如果你發現自己在一個陌生的地方和陌生人在一起。

a friendly smile could go a long way.

笑口常開