The winter solstice, which falls on December 21-23 in the solar calendar, is the shortest day of the year in the northern hemisphere. Traditionally in Taiwan, the winter solstice is the time to eat warm glutinous rice balls, but in the North of China, others make up a bowl of wonton and dumplings. The tradition of the winter solstice festival dates back to the Song Dynasty. It was one of the three major public holidays. The "Winter Solstice, New Year's Day and the Qingming Holiday" were held on the 7th. Both the wonton, the dumplings and the glutinous rice balls were separated from the sacrificial rites. 中國傳統二十四節氣之一的冬至，陽曆12月21至23日之間，是生活在北半球的我們一年中白天時間最短的日子。在台灣的傳統，冬至就是要吃湯圓暖身，但在大陸華北地區，冬至也有食補，只不過人家補的是一碗碗的餛飩和餃子。冬至過節的傳統最早能上溯至宋代，是當時民眾與官員的三大假之一，「冬至、年初一和清明得休假7日」，而無論是餛飩、餃子或是湯圓，都與祭神脫離不了關係。
In the past, agricultural societies’ farming and rest rules throughout the year followed the sun. The passing of the winter solstice means that the new year is coming. Society in a state of rest must take this opportunity to cede all things from top to bottom and pray for blessings in the coming year. 在過去的農業社會中，二十四個節氣運行主管著全年的耕作與休息規律，進入冬至後也意味著，新的一年即將來臨。處於休息狀態的社會，從上到下都必須趁此機會巴結上天，祈求保佑來年風調雨順、農產富饒，民眾和百官也藉此時拜訪親故敘舊。
In Taiwan, you often hear elders say to their children that, "Every solstice when you eat the rice ball wonton soup, you grow a year older” hoping they’ll grow up peacefully. However, even if modern society is busy, the Winter Solstice still has its symbolic significance for many people. Whether you are eating glutinous rice balls or wontons, or eating sweet sesame dumplings or Hakka salty dumplings, the Winter Solstice is of the utmost importance to the Chinese community. The deeper meaning is "reunion". While rushing around for more than six months out of the year, at this time rest, enjoy family and friends. 在台灣，最常聽見長輩對孩子們說，「冬節圓仔食落加一歲」（冬至吃湯圓會長一歲），期望晚輩能平安長大。然而，即便現代社會再忙，冬至對許多人而言仍有其象徵意義，無論你吃的是湯圓或是餛飩、或著是吃甜的芝麻湯圓或客家的鹹湯圓，冬至在華人社會最重要的意義是「團聚」，在外奔波了大半年，於此時和家人或跟你身邊的親友團聚，重享天倫之樂。
insipid：形容詞，枯燥乏味的。例句：The creative director disapproved of those insipid proposals. （創意總監不認同那些枯燥乏味的提案。）
tune out：動詞片語，充耳不聞。例句：As soon as my parents argued, I just tuned out.（每當我爸媽吵起來，我就假裝沒聽到。）
It’s the news that Grinches everywhere have been waiting for： overdosing on festive music is officially bad for your mental health. 這是一則鬼靈精們久候的新聞：聽太多節慶音樂對你的心理健康真的有不良影響。
The clangy harmonies and insipid lyrics in a Christmas song make Christmas haters want to say "bah humbug"at every smiling passer-by in a bobble hat. Christmas songs also stop us from being able to focus on anything other than mince pies and mistletoe. 耶誕歌曲中作為和聲的叮噹鈴響，以及枯燥乏味的歌詞，讓痛恨耶誕節的人想對每個戴著絨球帽、一臉笑嘻嘻的行人大呼「騙人的玩意兒」。耶誕歌曲也讓我們無法專注在百果派、槲寄生以外的東西。
According to psychologist Linda Blair, listening to "Santa Claus is coming to town" on repeat could actually have a negative effect on your brain. 心理學家琳達．布萊爾指出，重複聽《耶誕老人進城去》其實對你的大腦有負面影響。
"People working in the shops at Christmas have to tune out Christmas music because if they don’t, it really does stop you from being able to focus on anything else," she told Sky News.她向英國「天空新聞台」表示：「商店人員在耶誕節期間，必須對耶誕音樂充耳不聞，因為如果他們不這麼做，就無法專注在其他事情上面。」
However, research shows that striking a good balance between festive smells and music can positively affect the shopping environment, making customers happier and eager to spend more time in a shop to boost sales. 然而，研究也顯示，只要能在耶誕節的氣味和音樂之間找到平衡點，就能對購物環境起正面作用，讓客人更開心，願意花更多時間走逛，刺激銷售表現。
The idea of Father Christmas, also known as Santa Claus or “Saint Nick,” derives from a historic figure. Saint Nicholas (270 – 343) was Bishop of Myra, a town in what is now Turkey. His legendary generosity and humble compassion led to his reputation as a gift-giver. 聖誕老人，或「聖尼克」，是由一個歷史人物而來。聖尼可拉斯（西元二七○～三四三年）是米拉城（今土耳其境內）主教。據傳他是個極為慷慨謙遜，且富有同情心的人，經常致贈禮物給人們。
The patron saint of sailors, merchants, repentant thieves and children, he is one of the most popular saints in the Greek and Latin churches, and is said to have been represented more frequently than any other saint except Mary by medieval artists. 他是水手、商人、懺悔的小偷和小孩的主保聖人，是東正教和拉丁天主教會最有人氣的聖人，據說他是除了聖母瑪利亞以外，被中世紀藝術家描繪最多的聖人。
One of the more enduring and common stories about his generosity was how he took pity on three girls of a poor family. With the parents unable to afford a dowry, the girls would have remained unmarried. At that time, this would have meant they would have to go into prostitution, or would be assumed to be prostitutes. According to the story, Saint Nicholas went to the house after dark and dropped three purses filled with gold coins through the window. 關於他的慷慨，有個流傳更久、更為人所熟知的故事。相傳他出於同情幫助了一個貧窮人家的三個女孩。女孩的父母因無力負擔嫁妝，導致她們一直未婚。這在當時，意味著她們將不得不去賣淫，或者被認為是妓女。這個故事說，聖尼古拉斯在天黑後到了那一戶人家，由窗口扔進了三個裝滿金幣的錢包。
There are many variants of the story. In one, Nicholas drops the purses down the chimney and they land in a stocking one of the daughters had left out to dry. 這個故事有很多種版本。其中一個是，尼古拉斯把錢包扔到煙囪底下，結果錢包掉在其中一個女兒在煙囪底下晾著的襪子裡。
With the Reformation, the tradition of worshiping saints disappeared in most Protestant countries. In the Netherlands, however, his legend continued as the figure of Sint-Nicolaas, or Sinterklaas, derived from the Dutch pronunciation of Saint Nicholas. This is where the name Santa Claus originates from. 由於宗教改革的緣故，崇拜聖徒的傳統在大多數新教國家都已不復見。然而，在荷蘭，他的傳說則以源自Saint Nicholas的荷蘭文發音的名字Sint-Nicolaas或Sinterklaas延續下來。這也就是聖誕老人（Santa Claus）這個名字的起源。
Saint Nicholas is said to have died on Dec. 6, 343. This date is now celebrated as Saint Nicholas Day. 據說聖尼古拉斯已於西元三四三年十二月六日去世。這一天即為現今的聖尼古拉斯節。（台北時報編譯林俐凱譯）
1. sustained：形容詞，持續的，持久的。例句：We must make a sustained effort to get this task finished this week.（我們必須持續努力，讓工作在本週內完成。）
2. follow-up assessment：學術名詞：跟進評估，追蹤評估。例句：Follow-up assessment is usually considered necessary.（追蹤評估總被視為必要。）
3. migraine：名詞，偏頭痛。例句：I suffer a lot from migraines.（我深受偏頭痛之苦。）
Practicing Tai Chi - an ancient Chinese martial art - can significantly reduce symptoms of depression and may be useful for people who tend to avoid conventional psychiatric treatments, a new study has found. 一項新研究發現，練習太極拳─一項中國古代武術─可以大幅減緩憂鬱症狀，而且可能有益於傾向避免傳統精神病治療的人們。
Researchers at the Massachusetts General Hospital enrolled 50 Chinese-American participants for the study. All of the volunteers had mild to moderate depression and were not receiving any other forms of treatment. They were placed at random in three groups. The first took part in Tai Chi, the second received educational therapy and the third was a control group. 麻省總醫院的研究人員徵集50名美籍華人參與研究。所有自願者都有輕微至中等的憂鬱，且未接受任何其他形式的治療。他們被隨機分成3組。第一組參與太極拳練習，第二組接受教育療法，第三組則為控制組。
The 12-week assessments showed that all 17 volunteers in the martial art had significantly greater improvement in depression symptoms than the other two groups. Follow-up assessment after six months showed sustained improvement, the report said.
Previous studies have found that Tai Chi could better help patients suffering from five painful conditions - back pain, osteoarthritis, neck pain, fibromyalgia, and severe headaches and migraine. 先前的研究發現，太極拳可能幫助受5種疼痛症狀所苦的病患─背痛、骨性關節炎、頸部疼痛、纖維肌痛，以及嚴重的頭痛和偏頭痛。
thigh：名詞，大腿。例句：My thighs ached terribly after the climb.（我的大腿在攀爬後疼痛不已。）
sponge：名詞，海綿。例句：That child soaks up new facts like a sponge.（那孩子有如海綿一般吸收新知。）
inhibit：動詞，抑制，阻礙。例句：This drug inhibits the growth of tumors.（這種藥物可抑制腫瘤生長。）
Women who have more fat in their hips and thighs are at a lower risk of heart attacks, strokes and diabetes, a new study had found. Experts suggest that the hips and thighs act like a sponge that soaks up fat and stops it from travelling to the heart and liver. 一項新研究發現，臀部與大腿脂肪較多的女性，罹患心臟病、中風及糖尿病的風險較低。專家指出，臀部與大腿有如海綿般吸收脂肪，阻止它移往心臟與肝臟。
The researchers analyzed data from 981 people to assess their risk of heart attack, stroke and type 2 diabetes. They used magnetic imaging to determine their body fat mass, fat distribution and amount of fat in their liver. 研究人員分析取自981人的資料，評估她們罹患心臟病、中風及2型糖尿病的風險。他們使用磁成像，測定她們的體脂量、脂肪分佈與肝臟脂肪量。
The fat, which is stored on the hips and thighs, is known as subcutaneous fat and differs from visceral fat which is found on the abdomen. The latter releases harmful chemicals that severely inhibit our cardiovascular health. 儲存於臀部與大腿的脂肪為皮下脂肪，有別於腹部發現的內臟脂肪。後者會釋放有毒化學物質，嚴重阻礙我們的心血管健康。
The study suggests that it is better to be pear-shaped rather than apple-shaped. Normal-weight women with pear-shaped bodies like Beyonce and Shakira have a lower risk of heart attack, stroke and diabetes, because bottom and thigh fat is less dangerous. 研究指出，水梨型身材好過蘋果型身材。一個擁有水梨型身材的正常體重女性，例如碧昂絲和夏奇拉，罹患心臟病、中風及糖尿病的機率較低，因為臀部與大腿脂肪的危險性較低。
