To see what patterns of behavior most Americans consider "normal", I asked an ad agency--whose researchers are experts in uncovering consumer buying habits and motivation--to tell me how Americans wash their hair, go to bed, change a tire. In some instances,  the results are entirely predictable; in others, downright surprising.

    为了了解什么是大多数美国人眼中的“正常”行为，我询问了一家广告代理公司。那里的研究人员是揭示消费者消费习惯和动机的专家。他们告诉了我美国人洗头，就寝和换胎时的习惯。这些习惯中，有些结果是能预测到的，而另一些则完全出人意料。
 
    Four times as many men as women hug their spouse first thing when they walk in the door after work. When no one's around, men are also more likely to drink straight from a carton or bottle. And they're more likely to salt food without tasting it first.

    下班走到家门口的时候，第一件事便是拥抱配偶的男人要比女人多出3倍。旁边没人的时候，男人更乐意拿来软包装或者瓶子直接对嘴喝。他们也更习惯于不先尝一尝食物就加盐。
 
    There are some other glaring male/female differences. Who'd have guessed women are more likely to squeeze the toothpaste tube from the middle--or worse, from the top!

    男女之间还有其他一些明显的不同。有谁能想到女人比男人更可能从牙膏管中段——甚至更糟，从牙膏管顶端挤牙膏！
 
    Although both men and women swear an average of 16 times a day (much more if we have kids), courtesy lives in America. Most men let women get off the elevator before them. When it comes to opening the car door for the opposite sex--a sign of chivalry--a full 70% of men usually do. And most people acknowledge a sneeze: only 13% remain mute. (Most folks prefer "God bless you.")

    尽管男人女人每天都会骂人16次（如果有孩子的话频率更高），但美国人还是很有礼貌的。大多数男人会让女士先出电梯。70%的男人也常常为女士开车门，他们将之看作一种骑士行为。多数人听到别人打喷嚏时会做出反应，只有13%的人保持沉默。（多数人会说上依据“上帝保佑”之类的话表示对打喷嚏的人的关心。）
 
    It's on the road where we really demonstrate good manners. If upset with another driver, 54% of us do nothing. Less-popular responses: shouting dirty words (17%), making angry gestures (16%), and the rest: flashing our lights.

    行车路上实在是我们展示礼貌的场合。当另一个司机令人心烦的时候，54%的人选择什么也不做。另一些人中，爆粗口的占17%，做生气手势的占16%，其余的人则通过按闪车灯表示愤怒。
 
    When it comes to changing a tire, we're fairly self-reliant. More than a third of female road warriors would tackle it themselves, although 6% of female drivers with a flat confess they'd simply stand there and "look pathetic and hope someone would help." But before chests are puffed out thish manly pride, consider this: twice as many men as women hail a cab for a trip of less than two blocks.

    换轮胎的时候，人们表现得相当自立。1/3还要多的女人会如女勇士般自己换胎，但也有6%的女人就那么坦然地立在那儿，装得可怜兮兮的，希望有人来帮忙。但在你挺胸昂首、充满了男人的自豪感之前，先看看这个事实：为了短短不到两个街区的路程就打车的人中，男性是女性的两倍。
 
    We're lazy in other areas too. 90% of us use an alarm clock to wake up in the morning. Most of us rarely change our answering-machine message, and almost a quarter of us slip into our shoes without untying them. And while more than one out of then shop for Christmas year-round, 22% of men and 9% of women putting off until the last day or two.

    人们其他时候也表现出懒惰。90%的人早上需要闹钟才能起床。大多数人几乎从不更换电话留言的信息。几乎1/4的人不解鞋带就匆忙把脚往里伸。一成多的人整年购物时都会想着圣诞礼物，而22%的男人和9%的女人知道圣诞前一两天才想起买礼物。
 
    Americans are compulsive about cleanliness. Almost half of us change the toweles daily or after every shower. On the other hand, 21% of us don't make the bed every day--and 5% admit they never do!

    美国人喜好清洁。超过半数的人每天或者浴后都会更换毛巾。但是，却有21%的人每天睡前或起身后不整理床铺，甚至有5%的人承认他们从未这么做过！
 
    There's a lot of diversity out there. So, whatever you prefer, remember there's always someone else on this planet just like you.

    人们日常的生活习惯具有多样性。不过无论你有何习惯，地球上总能找到一个和你习惯相同的人。