There was a huge crowd of people waiting at the train station this morning, Neil. When the train finally arrived, everyone rushed in and I couldn't find a seat! I hate crowds!-- But you love going to the football match on Saturday.--Ah, that's different –more like a big group of friends.

尼尔，今天早上有一大群人在火车站等车。火车终于到站了，大家都冲了进去，我找不到座位！我讨厌人多！--但你喜欢周六去看足球赛--啊，那不一样，那更像是一大群朋友。

Well, whether it's sporting events, train stations or political protests, crowds – that's large groups of people who gather together for a shared activity, are a feature of life. For some, crowds create feelings of excitement and a sense of community, while for others they feel uncomfortable, confusing, or even dangerous. So why is that? In this programme, we'll be discussing the role of crowds in modern life, asking why they evoke different reactions in people. And, as usual, we'll be learning some new vocabulary as well. 

无论是体育赛事、火车站还是政治抗议，人群——即一大群人聚集在一起进行共同活动，都是生活的一个特点。对于一些人来说，人群会产生兴奋感和社区感，而对于另一些人来说，他们会感到不舒服、困惑甚至危险。那么为什么呢？在本节目中，我们将讨论人群在现代生活中的作用，询问为什么它们会引起人们的不同反应。而且，像往常一样，我们也将学习一些新词汇。

But first, I have a question for you, Neil. The biggest crowd in history happened in 2019 when over 200 million people gathered in the northern Indian city of Allahabad. But what did so many people come together for? Was it: a) a cricket match, b) a religious festival or c) an election?

--Well, I know Indians love cricket, but I doubt 200 million people would fit into a stadium! So I'll guess it's c) an election. --OK, Neil. We'll find out the answer later in the programme. 

但首先我有个问题要问你，尼尔。历史上最大的人群聚集发生在2019年，当时超过2亿人聚集在印度北部城市阿拉哈巴德。但是这么多人聚在一起是为了什么呢？是:a)板球比赛，b)宗教节日还是c)选举？ --我知道印度人喜欢板球，但我怀疑一个体育场能容纳2亿人！所以我想这是c)一次选举。 --好的，尼尔。我们将在节目后面中揭晓答案。

People gathering for a cricket match, or a music concert are usually happy events. But crowds can have a darker side as well – they can become out of control and sometimes even violent. Here's, psychologist, Professor John Drury, discussing this idea with, Anand Jagatia, presenter of the BBC World Service programme, appropriately named, CrowdScience. 

人们聚集在一起观看板球比赛或音乐会通常是令人高兴的事情。但是人群也有黑暗的一面——他们会变得失控，有时甚至暴力。心理学家约翰·德鲁里教授正在和BBC世界服务节目主持人阿南德·贾加蒂亚讨论这个观点，该节目名恰好为《群体科学》。

When people get together in a crowd, they regress psychologically, their thinking is more primitive, they become more gullible, and that's also associated with the supposed tendency towards violence as well. But according to John, the idea of mob mentality, that people in crowds are irrational and prone to destructive behaviour, just isn't backed up by research. 

当人们聚集在一起时，他们的心理会倒退，他们的思维更加原始，他们变得更加容易受骗，这也与所谓的暴力倾向有关。但约翰认为，暴民心理的观点，即人群中的人不理智，容易做出破坏性行为，并没有得到研究的支持。