twist sth into... 將某物扭曲成 Sarah twisted the wire into the shape of a star.
pretzel n. 椒鹽脆餅
Now, a new trend has started called Broga, which is the manlier version of yoga. In 2009, Robert Sidoti trademarked the name Broga, and he has licensed more than 200 Broga instructors since then. The main fear men have of going to a yoga class is that they will look foolish in front of a room full of women. Many men might feel embarrassed if they could not touch their toes while all the women beside them are twisting their bodies into pretzels. 現在，一種名為哥兒們瑜珈的新潮流已經展開，這是一種較為陽剛版本的瑜珈。 2009年，羅伯特 •希達堤為哥兒們瑜珈這個名字註冊了商標，並在那之後認證了兩百多位哥兒們瑜珈教練。男人對於參加瑜珈課程的主要恐懼來自於當他們置身於一個全是女人的場地前面時，他們會顯得很笨拙。當身旁所有的女人能把身體扭曲成脆餅狀時，大多數的男人會因摸不到自己的腳趾頭而感到尷尬。
‘Too fat to fight’: thousands of British soldiers overweight 胖到不能打仗：數萬名英國軍人超重
British soldiers ride bicycles over Arnhem Bridge, in Arneham, Netherlands on Sept. 19. 英國軍人九月十九日在荷蘭阿納姆騎單車穿越阿納姆橋。
Photo: EPA 照片：歐新社
The British army has a global reputation for efficiency and performance, but new figures published on June 22 suggest that its soldiers might be getting a little soft.
More than 32,000 soldiers failed a basic fitness test at some point in the past three years, and more than 22,000 were found to be overweight and at risk of health problems, according to Ministry of Defense figures.
All soldiers in the British army are required to complete a personal fitness assessment twice a year, and those who fail must retake the test within seven days. Multiple failures could result in being discharged.
Men under the age of 29 must complete 44 press-ups in two minutes, followed by 50 sit-ups in two minutes, and a 2.4km run within 10.5 minutes.
Women have a slightly easier test, with 21 press-ups, 50 sit-ups and 13 minutes in which to complete the run.
According to the figures obtained by The Sunday Times newspaper, 29,600 men and 2,819 women failed their fitness tests between April 2011 and March this year.
“This figure represents 11 percent of the army serving in that period and many of those who failed will have subsequently passed their fitness test,” the Ministry of Defense said in a statement.
The Sunday Times also revealed that more than 22,000 troops were found to be at increased risk of type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease because they were so unfit.
Holding doors open for men threatens their masculinity 幫男人開門 威脅他們的男子氣概
A sure-fire way to ruin the self-esteem of a cocky colleague is to hold the door open for him, say psychologists.
Such a gesture could be taken to imply that the recipient looks needy and vulnerable.
This is likely to clash with their masculine identity and leave them deflated, professors Janice Kelly and Megan McCarty of Purdue University in Indiana suggested.
Their study, published in the journal Social Influence, found no evidence that women were effected in a similar way when men held doors for them.
The authors said even fleeting examples of unexpected help can have significant impact if they work against typical gender roles.
Men who had the door held for them by another man reported lower feelings of self-esteem and self-belief than men who did not have the door held for them.
No differences were seen in women, regardless of whether a door was held open for them or not.
(Liberty Times)
絕對能摧毀臭屁同事自尊的方法，就是幫他開門，心理學家說。
這可能與他們的男性認同有所衝突，並且讓他們很洩氣，印地安納州普渡大學博士凱利與麥卡尼強調。
他們的研究，刊登在期刊「社會影響」上，沒有發現證據顯示，女性在當男性幫忙開門時有受到同樣影響。
作者說，即使時間短暫的、突如其來的幫助有顯著的影響，若他們這些動作有違典型的性別角色。
被男人幫忙開門的男人，據稱其自尊心與自信心比沒有被幫忙開門的男人來得低落。
但在女性身上並沒有不一樣，無論她們是否被提供開門的服務。
（自由時報／翻譯：詹立群）
TODAY’S WORDS
今日單字
1. sure-fire adj. 必定能的
例: This is a sure-fire way to get publicity.
(這麼做必定能引人矚目。
2. cocky adj. 驕傲自大的
例: Don’t get cocky just because you’ve achieved some amount of success.
(別小有成績就把尾巴翹起來。)
3. clash with v. phr. 與…衝突
例: The color of the curtains clashes with the color of the wall.
