有一个简单的环保窍门，任何人都可以在浴室里使用

有一个简单的环保窍门，任何人都可以在浴室里使用

The psychological effect of having a clock in your shower is enough to get you in and out more quickly, saving water along the way, according to a small preliminary study.

一项小型初步研究显示，在淋浴时设置闹钟的心理效果足以让你更快地进出，并在整个过程中节水。

It makes sense that a visible time display would increase awareness of the passing minutes. While the study is yet to be published, we love the idea of this being a sustainable life hack you can try out yourself to see if it... erm... holds water.

可见的时间显示可以增加对时间流逝的感知，这是有道理的。虽然这项研究还没有发表，但我们喜欢这个想法，这是一个可持续的生活小窍门，你可以尝试自己看看它是否…嗯…成立。

Around 25 different types of accommodation units at Cranfield University in the UK were fitted with Aguardio sensors, water usage monitors that have previously been shown to be effective at conserving water in hotels, since they give the user feedback on how long their showers are taking.

英国克兰菲尔德大学(Cranfield University)约有25种不同类型的住宿单元安装了Aguardio传感器，这是一种用水监测仪，此前曾被证明能有效地节约酒店用水，因为它们能向用户反馈淋浴时间。

Across the course of four months, people accessing showers with both sensors and time displays spent 20-30 percent less time showering compared with those accessing showers with just sensors fitted. The saving was roughly two minutes per shower.

在四个月的时间里，使用传感器和时间显示器淋浴的人，比只安装传感器淋浴的人少花20- 30%的时间洗澡，每次淋浴大约节省两分钟。

These initial findings show that unobtrusive sensors can be effective at capturing anonymous data on hidden water-use behaviours, and that real-time feedback displays can have an influence on those behaviours to promote water conservation, says environmental scientist Heather Smith, from Cranfield University.

克兰菲尔德大学的环境科学家希瑟·史密斯说:“这些初步发现表明，不引人注目的传感器可以有效地捕捉隐藏的用水行为的匿名数据，而实时反馈显示可以对这些行为产生影响，从而促进节约用水。”

This preliminary study will inform a much larger trial of the sensors that will incorporate additional forms of messaging to explore the effects of different influential factors on shower behaviour over the longer term.

“这项初步研究将为更大范围的传感器试验提供信息，该试验将加入更多形式的信息，以探索不同影响因素对淋浴行为的长期影响。”

Taking inspiration from this research, even without a special water monitor it would be super-easy to put a clock in your shower.

从这项研究中获得灵感，即使没有一个特殊的水监视器，在你的淋浴中放置一个时钟也会非常容易。

After all, doing your bit for water conservation doesn't have to be difficult. Previous studies have shown how you can use less water by changing the time of day you water your plants (it's to do with the evaporation rates) or switching to a healthier diet (which is good for your body and the environment).

毕竟，为节约用水尽一份力并不难。以前的研究已经表明，你可以通过改变一天中给植物浇水的时间(这与水分蒸发率有关)或转换到更健康的饮食(这对你的身体和环境都有好处)来减少用水。

While this is only a preliminary study, it does focus on one of the 'hidden' behaviours that harm the environment and can be harder to change – people can see you buying more plastic bags or taking long-haul flights, but no one really knows how long you spend in the shower (unless you live with people who run a very tight bathroom schedule).

虽然这只是一个初步研究,它关注“隐藏”的反竞争行为之一,破坏环境,可以更难改变——人们可以看到你购买更多的塑料袋或长途航班,但没有人真正知道你花多长时间洗澡的人(除非你住浴室运行一个非常紧密的时间表)。

Where there's less visible social pressure to think and act in an ecofriendly way, we need to come up with other prompts and tricks to help us act more sustainably – like installing a bathroom clock, perhaps.

在那些以环保友好的方式思考和行动的社会压力不那么明显的地方，我们需要想出其他的提示和技巧来帮助我们更可持续地行动——比如安装一个浴室时钟。

Studies like this can give us a better understanding of water-use habits and motivations to change behaviour to reduce water consumption and costs, says environmental scientist Caitriona Shannon, from Cranfield University.

克兰菲尔德大学的环境科学家Caitriona Shannon说:“这样的研究可以让我们更好地了解用水习惯和改变行为的动机，从而减少水的消耗和成本。”

Insights from these studies will contribute to a better understanding of pro-environmental behaviour, and the impact of hidden behaviours in particular.

“这些研究的见解将有助于更好地理解环保行为，尤其是隐藏行为的影响。”