Called misophonia, it describes the unreasonable emotions that well up in some of us when we hear certain repetitive noises being produced by other humans. People with this condition experience annoyance or even anger at the clacking of a keyboard, the rustling of a chip packet, or the smacking of lips.
這種情況被稱為「恐音症」，是指某些人在聽到他人產生的某些重複性噪音時出現的不合理情緒。有這種症狀的人聽到鍵盤的咔噠聲、薯條包裝的沙沙聲或吧唧嘴的聲音時會煩躁，甚至憤怒。
While it's been recognised as a condition since 2000, research into the cause and prevalence of misophonia has been limited. There are no official criteria in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), and those who experience it often find it difficult to be taken seriously.
雖然這種症狀在2000年就已經被認定為一種病了，但對恐音症病因和患病率的研究仍然不足。在《精神障礙診斷與統計手冊》中還沒有官方標準，而且患者發現很難引起重視。
But a study published in the Journal of Clinical Psychology in 2014 suggested that misophonia could affect as much as 20 percent of the population; a 2015 study in Australasian Psychiatry argued that it was associated with obsessive compulsive disorder and anxiety, and could potentially be considered a disorder in its own right.
但2014年發表在《臨床心理學期刊》的研究表明全球有20%的人患有恐音症。2015年發表在《澳大利亞精神病學》的研究稱這種病與強迫症和焦慮有關，可能它本身就是一種紊亂。
While we all might feel a twinge of bother, having misophonia turns an annoying sound into an enraging experience, as it spreads through different parts of the brain associated with 'fight or flight' responses.
雖然我們可能都會感覺有點煩，但恐音症患者會把令人不適的聲音轉變成憤怒，因為他們與別人不同，這種聲音會傳播到他們大腦中與「戰鬥或逃跑」的反應有關的區域。
Research team lead Sukhbinder Kumar described the impact of their 2017 discovery: "For many people with misophonia, this will come as welcome news, as for the first time, we have demonstrated a difference in brain structure and function in sufferers."
研究團隊的負責人Sukhbinder Kumar這樣評價他們在2017年發現的影響：「對於很多恐音症患者來說，這將是一個好消息，因為我們第一次證實了患者的大腦結構和功能異於常人。」
Sadly for those with misophonia, the discovery doesn't come with an easy fix. It might help the rest of us sympathise, however, and consider chewing with our mouths closed.
壞消息是，研究沒有找到簡單的解決方法。但這項研究可能會讓正常人產生同情心，在嚼東西時閉上嘴。