> Do humans need to hibernate?
人類需要冬眠嗎？

“If you feel like sleeping more in the winter, you’re not alone,” said Dr. Raj Dasgupta, an associate professor of clinical medicine at Huntington Memorial Hospital in Pasadena, California, citing research that found at least a third of American adults reported they sleep more in the winter.
美國加州帕薩迪納亨廷頓紀念醫院臨床醫學副教授拉吉?達斯古普塔博士說：“如果你覺得冬天睡得更多，那你并不是一個人。”他援引的研究發現，至少有三分之一的美國成年人表示他們在冬天睡得更多。

The 188 patients who underwent sleep studies at St. Hedwig Hospital in Berlin slept about an hour longer in winter than they did in summer, which the authors said wasn’t statistically significant.
在柏林圣赫德維格醫院接受睡眠研究的188名實驗對象在冬季比夏季多睡了約一個小時，研究作者認為這并不具有統計學意義。

But participants did get 30 more minutes of rapid eye movement, or REM, sleep during winter.
但參與者在冬季的快速眼動睡眠時間確實多了30分鐘。

The REM phase of sleep is the sweet spot of sleep cycles, characterized by more dreaming and faster heart rate and breathing more than in other stages.
快速眼動睡眠階段是睡眠周期中的高質量睡眠階段，其特點是比其他階段做夢更多，心率和呼吸更快。

It’s “an essential stage of sleep that helps with memory, concentration, mood regulation and immune function,” Dasgupta said.
達斯古普塔說：“這是重要的睡眠階段，有助于提高記憶、集中注意力、情緒調節和改善免疫功能。”

The desire for, or occurrence of, more sleep during winter may have to do with how light fluctuates throughout the year.
在冬季渴望或出現更多睡眠，可能與全年的光照波動有關。

“Our bodies receive cues from the sun when it comes to our circadian rhythm, meaning that when it is bright outside we tend to be active, but when the sun goes down, you may tend to feel tired,” Dasgupta said. “The decrease in sunlight causes an increase in melatonin, a hormone made in the body that regulates sleep-wake cycles.”
達斯古普塔說：“在晝夜節律方面，我們的身體會接受來自太陽的提示，也就是說，當室外陽光明媚時，我們往往會很興奮，但當太陽下山時，你可能會感到疲憊。”陽光的減少會導致褪黑素的增加，褪黑素是人體內產生的一種調節睡眠—清醒周期的激素。

And light influences not only sleep quantity but also sleep quality.
光照不僅影響睡眠時間，而且影響睡眠質量。

“REM sleep is highly affected by light and darkness, so when during the winter months we have less light, the body is going to basically overcompensate by giving more REM sleep,” said Dr. Joshua Tal, a New York City-based clinical psychologist specializing in sleep issues.
紐約市睡眠問題臨床心理學家約書亞?塔爾博士說：“快速眼動睡眠受光照和黑暗的影響很大，因此當冬季光照減少時，身體基本上會通過提供更多的快速眼動睡眠來過度補償。”

Humans still don’t need to hibernate, Weiss said, nor can we afford to due to our social and occupational obligations.
韋斯說，人類不需要冬眠，由于我們的社會和職業義務，我們也無法冬眠。

“But we can make adjustments to perform in a better way, to rest in a better way during winter,” she said.
“但我們可以做出調整，在冬季以更好的方式活動，以更好的方式休息，”她說。

> US home sales see worst year since 1995
美國二手房銷量創下1995年以來最差表現

Home sales in the US sank to the lowest in nearly 30 years, as a sharp rise in interest rates increased costs for buyers and persuaded many potential sellers with lower rates to stay put.
由于美國房貸利率大幅上漲增加了潛在購房者的成本，也勸退了很多以低息貸款購房的潛在賣房者，美國二手房銷量降到了近30年來的最低點。

Just 4.09 million homes were purchased, the fewest since 1995, as tight supply pushed prices to a new record, the National Association of Realtors said.
美國全國地產經紀商協會稱，2023年僅賣出了409萬套房屋，這是自1995年以來的最低水平。與此同時，供應緊張進一步推高房價，導致房價紀錄被刷新。

The organisation said it expected the market to improve in 2024. But it warned that affordability would remain an issue.
該協會表示，2024年市場有望改善，但也警告說，房價過高仍將是個棘手問題。

The median sale price in 2023 climbed 1% over the year, to $389,800, according to the NAR.
協會稱，2023年美國二手房中位價格上漲了1%，達到了38.98萬美元。

The housing market in the US has slowed abruptly since 2022, when the Federal Reserve started raising interest rates in a bid to curb inflation.
自2022年美聯儲開始加息以抑制通脹以來，美國房地產市場突然降溫。

Last year, US mortgage rates, which are typically fixed for a 30-year period, shot above 7% for the first time in decades.
去年，美國（30年）房貸利率幾十年來首次突破7%。

It has also created a stark divide between would-be buyers and existing homeowners, many of whom have loans with rates below 4% and would face sharply higher costs to move.
房貸利率飆升還在潛在購房者和現有房主之間形成了一道分水嶺，很多以不到4%的貸款利率購得房屋的人如果要搬走將面臨高得多的置換成本。

But Nancy Vanden Houten, lead US economist for Oxford Economics, said while that may help demand, rates are likely to remain above 6% - not enough to bring a substantial number of sellers into the market.
但是牛津經濟研究院首席美國經濟學家南希?范登?霍滕表示，房貸利率下調也許有助于提升購房需求，但是貸款利率很可能將保持在6%以上，不足以讓大量賣房者入市。

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