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Pain is an immediate attention getter.
疼痛是一種即刻生效的感覺。
And when we're in pain, we think we know the exact location of the source of that pain, for example, your knee or your back.
并且當我們感到疼痛時，我們以為自己知曉痛處所在，比如你的膝蓋或后背。
But our ability to pinpoint pain varies across the body, and in a specific pattern.
但我們人類的身體對精確定位疼痛的能力分布是不同的，而是以一種特殊模式呈現(xiàn)出這種疼痛感知分布。
Scientists created stinglike discomfort on the surfaces of volunteers' bodies using two lasers.
科學家們用兩種激光模擬出一種類似于蚊蟲叮咬不舒服的的感覺對參與試驗的志愿者身體進行測試。
They measured the minimum distance between the two pain points where the volunteer could still distinguish between the two stings.
他們隨后測量了在可以區(qū)分兩種疼痛的前提下，這兩個不同痛點位置之間的最小距離。
And they found that this capacity to discern different pain points, called spatial acuity, improves as we move towards the center of our bodies.
而他們發(fā)現(xiàn)這種區(qū)分不同疼痛點的能力，也就是所謂的空間視敏度，會隨著我們向身體中心的偏移而提高。
For example, we're better at detecting the two pain points on the shoulders than at the wrists.
比如，我們對肩部兩點的疼痛感知會比手腕附近的兩點要更靈敏。
The scientists also tested our acuity for touch, assuming it might be similar to pain.
科學家們還測試了觸覺的靈敏度，前提是與疼痛感知靈敏度相似。
While we tend to have an equal ability to detect touch and pain, scientists found that our acuity for simple touch decreases towards the center of the body.
當我們趨向于對接觸和疼痛的感知能力相等時，科學家們發(fā)現(xiàn)我們對身體中心部位的的簡單接觸比外側要弱。
So in this case it's harder for us to detect non-painful touch at our shoulders than at our wrists.
因此，在這種情況下，對無痛的接觸方面的感知度在肩部會比手腕部位要更難檢測。
The exception to this rule of thumb, if you will, is our fingers.
上述規(guī)則對拇指不成立，如果你希望的話，手指也是如此。
The digits are sensitive to both pain and touch.
四肢的趾頭對疼痛和觸摸式很敏感的。
But it's not because fingers have more nerve fibers.
但這并不是因為手指部分匯集更多神經纖維的緣故。
The researchers think it might be a question of information processing.
研究人員們認為這可能是信息處理方面的一個問題。
Because we use our fingers constantly, we're more practiced at sensing them.
因為我們總是不間斷地使用手指腳趾，所以被迫進行了不少感知活動。
Whether they're playing the piano, or hammering a nail.
無論它們是在彈鋼琴，還是在釘釘子。
