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Onions may be one of the healthiest, most flavorful vegetables on the face of the Earth, but they’re definitely no fun to chop. However, your days of getting teary-eyed in the kitchen may be coming to an end as Japanese company House Foods Group prepares to launch the world’s first tear-free onion to the market. 洋葱也许是世界上最健康可口的蔬菜了，但是切洋葱可不是什么好玩的活。然而，切洋葱“催人泪下”的历史终于要结束啦！因为日本House食品集团株式会社即将推出世界上首个“无泪洋葱”。 Aptly named “Smile Ball”, because it puts a smile on your face rather than make you cry, this new type of onion is the result of two decades of research. In 2002, House Foods Group scientists published a paper in which they hypothesized that tear-inducing enzymes in onions could be weakened while retaining their full flavor and nutritional value. Their research actually won an Ig Nobel Prize – an award handed out to honor achievements organizers consider unintentionally funny – but last year the company announced that their theory had finally become reality. Although the announcement mentioned that House Foods Group had no intention of producing Smile Ball onions commercially anytime soon, it appears the wonder vegetables will hit Japanese stores this fall. 这种名叫“微笑洋葱”的新洋葱可谓名副其实，因为它不会让你流泪，反而能令你微笑。研究者们花了二十多年才使其问世。2002年，House食品集团株式会社的科学家们发表了一篇文章，文章中提出一个假设，洋葱中催泪酶的功效可以被减弱，但其原有的口感和营养价值能被保留。这项研究获得了“搞笑诺贝尔奖”——这个奖是为了选出那些“无意之中达到搞笑效果”的研究。去年该食品集团宣布他们的理论已变成了现实。尽管当时该集团称不会在短期内商业化生产“微笑洋葱”，但是这种奇异洋葱有望在今年秋季进入日本商店。 | 
