博士研究生英语精读-翻译及原文(中科院)

1、1第1课知识的悖论TheParadoxofKnowledgeThegreatestachievementofhumankindinitslongevolutionfromancienthominoidancestorstoitspresentstatusistheacquisitionandaccumulationofavastbodyofknowledgeaboutitself,theworld,andtheuniverse.Theproductsofthisknowledgeareallthosethingsthat,intheaggregate,wecallcivilization,includinglanguage,science,literature,art,allthephysicalmechanisms,instruments,andstructuresweuse,andthephysicalinfrastructuresonwhichsocietyrelies.Mostofusassumethatinmodernsocietyknowledgeofallkindsis。

2、continuallyincreasingandtheaggregationofnewinformationintothecorpusofoursocialorcollectiveknowledgeissteadilyreducingtheareaofignoranceaboutourselves,theworld,andtheuniverse.Butcontinuingremindersofthenumerousareasofourpresentignoranceinviteacriticalanalysisofthisassumption.Inthepopularview,intellectualevolutionissimilarto,althoughmuchmorerapidthan,somaticevolution.Biologicalevolutionisoftendescribedbythestatementthatontogenyrecapitulatesphylogeny--meaningthattheindividualembryo,initsdevelopment。

3、fromafertilizedovumintoahumanbaby,passesthroughsuccessivestagesinwhichitresemblesancestralformsofthehumanspecies.Thepopularviewisthathumankindhasprogressedfromastateofinnocentignorance,comparabletothatofaninfant,andgraduallyhasacquiredmoreandmoreknowledge,muchasachildlearnsinpassingthroughtheseveralgradesoftheeducationalsystem.Implicitinthisviewisanassumptionthatphylogenyresemblesontogeny,sothattherewillultimatelybeastageinwhichtheaccumulationofknowledgeisessentiallycomplete,atleastinspecificfie。

4、lds,asifsocietyhadgraduatedwithalltheadvanceddegreesthatsignifymasteryofimportantsubjects.Suchviewshave,infact,beenexpressedbysomeeminentscientists.In1894thegreatAmericanphysicistAlbertMichelsonsaidinatalkattheUniversityofChicago:WhileitisneversafetoaffirmthatthefutureofPhysicalSciencehasnomarvelsinstoreevenmoreastonishingthanthoseofthepast,itseemsprobablethatmostofthegrandunderlyingprincipleshavebeenfirmlyestablishedandthatfurtheradvancesaretobesoughtchieflyintherigorousapplicationoftheseprinci。

5、plestoallthephenomenawhichcomeunderournotice....ThefuturetruthsofPhysicalScienceatetobelookedforinthesixthplaceofdecimals.InthecenturysinceMichelson'stalk,scientistshavediscoveredmuchmorethantherefinementofmeasurementsinthesixthdecimalplace,andnoneiswillingtomakeasimilarstatementtoday.However,manystillclingtothenotionthatsucha2stateofknowledgeremainsapossibilitytobeattainedsoonerorlater.StephenHawking,thegreatEnglishscientist,inhisimmenselypopularbookABriefHistoryofTime(1988),concludeswiththespe。

6、culationthatwemaydiscoveracompletetheorythatwouldbetheultimatetriumphofhumanreason--forthenwewouldknowthemindofGod.PaulDavies,anAustralianphysicist,echoesthatviewbysuggestingthatthehumanmindmaybeabletograspsomeofthesecretsencompassedbythetitleofhisbookTheMindofGod(1992).Othercontemporaryscientistswriteoftheoriesofeverything,meaningtheoriesthatexplainallobservablephysicalphenomena,andNobelLaureateStevenWeinberg,oneofthefoundersofthecurrentstandardmodelofphysicaltheory,writesofhisDreamsofaFinalThe。

7、ory(1992).Despitetheeminenceandobviousyearningoftheseandmanyothercontemporaryscientists,thereisnothinginthehistoryofsciencetosuggestthatanyadditionofdataortheoriestothebodyofscientificknowledgewilleverprovideanswerstoallquestionsinanyfield.Onthecontrary,thehistoryofscienceindicatesthatincreasingknowledgebringsawarenessofnewareasofignoranceandofnewquestionstobeanswered.Astronomyisthemostancientofthesciences,anditsdevelopmentisamodelofotherfieldsofknowledge.Peoplehavebeenobservingthestarsandotherc。

8、elestialbodiessincethedawnofrecordedhistory.Asearlyas3000B.C.theBabyloniansrecognizedanumberoftheconstellations.InthesixthcenturyB.C.,PythagorasproposedthenotionofasphericalEarthandofauniversewithobjectsinitchatmovedinaccordancewithnaturallaws.LaterGreekphilosopherstaughtthattheskywasahollowglobesurroundingtheEarth,thatitwassupportedonanaxisrunningthroughtheEarth,andchatstarswereinlaidonitsinnersurface,whichrotatedwestwarddaily.InthesecondcenturyA.D.,Ptolemypropoundedatheoryofageocentric(Earth-c。

9、entered)universeinwhichthesun,planets,andstarsmovedincircularorbitsofcyclesandepicyclesaroundtheEarth,althoughtheEarthwasnotattheprecisecenteroftheseorbits.Whilesomewhatawkward,thePtolemaicsystemcouldproducereasonablyreliablepredictionsofplanetarypositions,whichwere,however,goodforonlyafewyearsandwhichdevelopedsubstantialdiscrepanciesfromactualobservationsoveralongperiodoftime.Nevertheless,sincetherewasnoevidencethenapparenttoastronomersthattheEarthitselfmoves,thePtolemaicsystemremainedunchallen。

10、gedformorethan13centuries.InthesixteenthcenturyNocolausCopernicus,whoissaidtohavemasteredalltheknowledgeofhisdayinmathematics,astronomy,medicine,andtheology,becamedissatisfiedwiththePtolemaicsystem.Hefoundthataheliocentricsystemwasboth3mathematicallypossibleandaestheticallymorepleasing,andwroteafullexpositionofhishypothesis,whichwasnotpublisheduntil1543,shortlyafterhisdeath.Earlyintheseventeenthcentury,JohannesKeplerbecameimperialmathematicianoftheHolyRomanEmpireuponthedeathofTychoBrahe,andheacqu。