In a study in the journal Science, researchers found that different skin regions harbor very different kinds of bacteria.

发表在《科学》（Science）杂志上的一项研究表明，身体不同的皮肤部位藏有的细菌种类非常不同。

Bacteria on the Skin You're In

Have you ever said, "I know it like the back of my hand"? Well, how well do you know the back of your hand? Or the back of your knee? Or behind your ears? Probably not as well as scientists at the National Institutes of Health who just completed a survey of the bacteria that live on the skin at various parts of the body. They found that different sites harbor different bugs, results published in the May 29th issue of the journal Science.

The skin, they point out, is a large ecosystem that includes a variety of ecological niches. Your moist armpit is like a tropical rainforest, whereas, not far away, your forearm is as smooth and dry as a desert. So the scientists took samples from 20 different body regions in 10 volunteers. And found that the microbes in your armpit are more like those in someone else's armpit than the ones on your own forearm.

Dry skin showed the greatest diversity with an average of 44 different species found on the forearm. While the least diverse mix, with only 19 species, lives aft of your ears. So science-savvy moms: don't worry about washing behind the ears. Instead, bug your brood to give those grubby forearms a good scrubbing.

你皮肤上的细菌

你是否曾经说过："我知道某事就像我了解我的手背一样？"那么，你到底有多了解你的手背呢？或者你的膝盖背部？或者你的耳朵后面？可能你没有来自美国国家卫生研究院（National Institutes of Health）的科学家们了解地多，这些科学家们刚刚完成了一项调查，他们调查了皮肤上不同部位上的细菌。他们发现，皮肤不同的部位藏有不同的细菌。该研究结果发表在5月29日的《科学》（Science）杂志上。

科学家们指出，皮肤是一个大的生态系统，这个系统包含有不同的生态位。你最潮湿的腋窝就像热带雨林，而离这个"热带雨林"不远的前臂就像沙漠一样平整和干燥。因此科学家们从10名志愿者的20个不同身体部位采集了样品。他们发现，和你自己前臂上的微生物相比，在你腋窝下的微生物与别人腋窝下的微生物更为相似。

在前臂上，干燥皮肤显示出的细菌种类最多，平均有44种。皮肤上细菌种类最少的地方在你的耳朵后面，只有19种。怪不得那些有科学知识的妈妈们说这句话："不用担心洗你的耳朵后面。"相反为了除去细菌，好好擦洗你那脏兮兮的前臂吧！

Vocabulary:

Harbor:包含；藏有

Bacteria:细菌

Survey:调查

Various:不同的

Ecosystem:生态体系

Ecological:生态的

Niche:壁龛；商机；生态位

Armpit: 腋窝

Microbe: 微生物

Diversity: 多样性

Aft: 在后面

Savvy:有见识的

Grubby:肮脏的

Scrub:擦洗