It's a topic people usually avoid, yet it's a universal human experience.
这是一个人们通常回避的话题，但它是一种普遍的人类体验。
Flatulence, affectionately known as farting, is simply the releasing of gas from the backside.
肠胃气胀，亲切地称为放屁，只是从背后释放气体。
The word itself traces back to the Latin 'flatus', which literally means 'a blowing' or 'wind.'
这个词本身可以追溯到拉丁语“flatus”，字面意思是“吹”或“风”。
While it is often the butt of the joke, we do it for very practical reasons, which boil down to digestion.
虽然它经常成为笑话的笑柄，但我们会放屁是由于非常实际的原因，这些原因可归结为消化。
Most mammals have a complex, symbiotic relationship with their gut microbes which break down food.
大多数哺乳动物与它们的肠道微生物有着复杂的共生关系，这些微生物分解食物。
Digestion requires a lengthy process of fermentation, and flatulence is simply the inevitable byproduct of these hard-working bacteria.
消化需要漫长的发酵过程，而肠胃气胀只是这些辛勤工作的细菌不可避免的副产品。
Passing gas is a sign of a highly functioning digestive system.
放屁是消化系统高度运作的标志。
But we humans aren't the only mammals that like to let one off.
但我们人类并不是唯一喜欢放屁的哺乳动物。
In 2017, National Geographic and the BBC reported the results of an online survey.
2017年，国家地理和BBC报道了一项在线调查的结果。
It revealed some incredibly unlikely farters, like zebras, which have been documented farting with every single step whilst running away from predators.
它揭示了一些难以置信的不太可能放屁的动物，比如斑马，据记载它们在逃离捕食者时每一步都在放屁。
On a bigger scale, cow flatulence and burps are packed with methane, a potent greenhouse gas that is actively driving global climate change.
在更大的范围内，牛的肠胃气胀和打嗝含有大量甲烷，这是一种强效温室气体，正在积极推动全球气候变化。
And, if you've ever had a domesticated pet, you might've even blamed your own farts on them!
而且，如果你曾经养过宠物，你甚至可能把自己的屁归咎于它们！
There are other fascinating examples of farting from the animal kingdom.
动物王国中还有其他有趣的放屁例子。
The Sonoran coral snake expels air forcefully to startle predators when it's in danger.
索诺兰珊瑚蛇在遇到危险时会用力排出空气以吓唬捕食者。
In an article published on The Conversation, it's mentioned that herring, a type of fish, will release gas as a way to communicate with each other that predators are nearby.
在《The Conversation》上发表的一篇文章中提到，鲱鱼这种鱼会释放气体，以此相互交流捕食者就在附近。
It was also written in IFLScience that the beaded lacewing, a type of larva, can take down six termites with one fart!
IFLScience也写道，一种幼虫——珠网蛉，一个屁就能干掉六只白蚁！
So it seems that some animals pass gas as an evolutionary survival tactic.
所以看来有些动物放屁是一种进化生存策略。
Those not so 'silent but deadly' farts can ward off predators as well as let others know that there's potential danger.
那些不那么“无声但致命”的屁既可以抵御捕食者，也可以让其他动物知道有潜在危险。
While farts for us are mainly the result of digestion, perhaps, like the Sonoran snake, herring and beaded lacewing, we could embrace the breeze and utilize them against our enemies?
虽然对我们来说，放屁主要是消化的结果，但也许像索诺兰蛇、鲱鱼和珠网蛉一样，我们可以拥抱这股风向敌人利用它们？
