翻譯講師英語一唐靜版

第一部考真題（1990年——2014年1990年英譯漢Peoplehavewonderedforalongtimehowtheirpersonalities，andbehaviorsareformed.Itisnoteasytoexplainwhyonepersonisintelligentandanotherisnot，orwhyoneis第一部考真題（1990年——2014年1990年英譯漢Peoplehavewonderedforalongtimehowtheirpersonalities，andbehaviorsareformed.Itisnoteasytoexplainwhyonepersonisintelligentandanotherisnot，orwhyoneiscooperativeandanotheriscompetitive.Socialscientistsare，ofcourse，extremelyinterestedinthesetypesofquestions.(61)Theywanttoexplainwhywepossesscertaincharacteristicsandexhibitcertainbehaviors.Therearenoclearanswersyet，buttwodistinctschoolsofthoughtonthematterhavedeveloped.Asonemightexpect，thetwoapproachesareverydifferentfromeachother.Thecontroversyisoftenconvenientlyreferredtoas‖naturevs.nurture‖.(62)Thosewhosupportthe―nue‖sideoftheconflictbelievethatourpersonalitiesandbehaviorpatternsarelargelydeterminedbybiologicalfactors.(63)Thatourenvironmenthaslittle，ifanything，todowithourabilities，characteristicsandbehavioriscentraltothistheory.Takentoanextreme，thistheorymaintainsthatourbehaviorispredeterminedtosuchagreatdegreethatwearealmostcompletelygovernedbyourinstincts.Thosewhosupportthe―nurture‖theory，thatis，theyadvocateeducation，areoftencalledbehaviorists.Theyclaimthatourenvironmentismoreimportantthanourbiologicallybasedinstinctsindetermininghowwewillact.Abehaviorist，B.F.Skinner，seeshumansasbeingswhosebehaviorisalmostcompletelyshapedbytheirsurroundings.Thebehavioristsmaintainthat，likemachines，humansrespondtoenvironmentalstimuliasthebasisoftheirbehavior.Letusexaminethedifferentexplanationsaboutonehumancharacteristic，intelligence，offeredbythetwotheories.Supportersofthe―nature‖theoryinsistthatwearebornwithacertainintheenvironmenthavemuchinfluenceonwhatisbasicallyapredeterminedcharacteristic.Ontheotherhand，behavioristsarguethatourintelligencelevelsaretheproductofourexperiences.(64)BehavioristssuggestthatthechildwhoisraisedinanenvironmentwheretherearemanystimuliwhichdevelophisorhercapacityforappropriateresponseswillexperiencegreaterintellectualThesocialandpoliticalimplicationsofthesetwotheoriesareprofound.IntheUnitedStates，blacksoftenscorebelowwhitesonstandardizedintelligencetests.Thisleadssome―nature‖proponentstoconcludethatblacksarebiologicallyinferiortowhites.(65)Behaviorists，incontrast，saythatdifferencesinscoresareduetothefactthatblacksareoftendeprivedofmanyoftheeducationalandotherenvironmentaladvantagesthatwhitesenjoy.Mostpeoplethinkneitherofthesetheoriescanyetfullyexplainhuman1991年英譯漢Thefactisthattheenergycrisis，whichhassuddenlybeenofficiallyannounced，hasbeenwithusforalongtimenow，andwillbewithusforanevenlongertime.WhetherAraboilflowsfreelyornotitiscleartoeveryonethatworldindustrycannotbeallowedtodependonsofragileabase.(71)Thesupplyofoilcanbeshutoffunexpectedlyatanytime，andinanycase，theoilwellswillallrundryinthirtyyearsorsoatthepresentrateofuse.2/Newsourcesofenergymustbefound，andthiswilltaketime，butitisnotlikelytoresultinanysituationthatwilleverrestorethatsenseofcheapandplentifulenergywehavehadinthetimespast.Foranindefiniteperiodfromhereon，mankindisgoingtoadvancecautiously，andconsideritselfluckythatitcanadvanceatall.Tomakethesituationworse，thereisasyetnosignthatanyslowingoftheworld’spopulationisinsight.Althoughthebirthratehasdroppedinsomenations，includingtheUnitedStates，thepopulationoftheworldseemssuretopasssixbillionandperhapsevensevenbillionasthetwenty-firstcenturyopens.Thefoodsupplywillnotincreasenearlyenoughtomatchthis，whichmeansthatweareheadingintoacrisisinthematterofproducingandmarketingfood.Takingallthisintoaccount，whatmightwereasonablyestimatesupermarketstobelikeintheyear2001?Tobeginwith，Newsourcesofenergymustbefound，andthiswilltaketime，butitisnotlikelytoresultinanysituationthatwilleverrestorethatsenseofcheapandplentifulenergywehavehadinthetimespast.Foranindefiniteperiodfromhereon，mankindisgoingtoadvancecautiously，andconsideritselfluckythatitcanadvanceatall.Tomakethesituationworse，thereisasyetnosignthatanyslowingoftheworld’spopulationisinsight.Althoughthebirthratehasdroppedinsomenations，includingtheUnitedStates，thepopulationoftheworldseemssuretopasssixbillionandperhapsevensevenbillionasthetwenty-firstcenturyopens.Thefoodsupplywillnotincreasenearlyenoughtomatchthis，whichmeansthatweareheadingintoacrisisinthematterofproducingandmarketingfood.Takingallthisintoaccount，whatmightwereasonablyestimatesupermarketstobelikeintheyear2001?Tobeginwith，theworldfoodsupplyisgoingtobecomesteadilytighteroverthenextthirtyyears—evenhereintheUnitedStates.By2001，thepopulationoftheUnitedStateswillbeatleasttwohundredfiftymillionandpossiblytwohundredseventymillion，andthenationwillfinditdifficulttoexpandfoodproductiontofilltheadditionalmouths.(74)ThiswillbeparticularlytruesinceenergypinchwillmakeitdifficulttocontinueagricultureinthehighenergyAmericanfashionthatmakesitpossibletocombinefewfarmerswithhighyields.Itseemsalmostcertainthatby2001theUnitedStateswillnolongerbeagreatfoodexportingnationandthat，ifnecessityforcesexports，itwillbeatthepriceofbelttighteningathome.Infactasfooditemswillendtodeclineinqualityanddecreaseinvarietythereisverylikelytobeincreasinguseofflavouringadditives.(75)Untilsuchtimeasmankindhasthesensetoloweritspopulationtothepointwheretheplanetcanprovideacomfortablesupportforall，peoplewillhavetoacceptmore―unnaturalfood‖.1992年英譯漢―negene‖atbestisanassumptiveconstruct—themeaningofthewordhasneverbeenclear.(71)Thereismoreagreementonthekindsofbehaviorreferredtobythetermthanthereisonhowtointerpretorclassifythem.Butitisgenerallyagreedthatapersonofhighintelligenceisonewhocangraspideasreadily，makedistinctions，reasonlogically，andmakeuseofverbalandmathematicalsymbolsinsolvingproblems.Anintelligencetestisaroughmeasureofachild’scapacityforlearningthekindsofthingsrequiredinschool.Itdoesnotmeasurecharacter，socialadjustmentphysicalendurancemanualskillsordesignedforsuchpurposes.(72)Tocriticizeitforsuchfailureisroughlycomparabletocriticizingathermometerfornotmeasuringwindvelocity.Theotherthingwehavetonoticeisthattheassessmentoftheintelligenceofanysubjectisessentiallyacomparativeaffair.(73)Nowsincetheassessmentofintelligenceisacomparativematterwemustbesurethatthescalewithwhichwearecomparingoursubjectsprovidesa―ald‖or―ar‖comparison.Itisherethatsomeofthedifficultieswhichinterestusbegin.Anytestperformedinvolvesatleastthreefactors:theintentiontodoone’sbest，theknowledgerequiredforunderstandingwhatyouhavetodo，andtheintellectualabilitytodoit.(74)Thefirsttwomustbeequalforallwhoarebeingcompared，ifanycomparisonintermsofintelligenceistobemade.Inschoolpopulationsinourculturetheseassumptionscanbemadefairandreasonable，andthevalueof3/testinghasbeenprovedthoroughly.Itsvaluelies，ofcourse，initsprovidingasatisfactorybasisforprediction.Nooneisintheleastinterestedinthemarksalittlechildgetsonhistest;whatweareinterestediniswhetherwecanconcludefromhismarkonthetestthatthechildwilldobetterorworsethanotherchildrenofhisageattaskswhichwethinkrequire―generalintelligence‖.(75)Onthewholesuchaconclusioncanbedrawnwithacertaindegreeofconfidence，butonlyifthechildcanbeassumedtohavehadthesameattitudetowardsthetestastheotherswithwhomheisbeingcompared，andonlyifhewasnotpunishedbylackofrelevantinformationwhich1993年英譯漢(71)Themethodofscientificinvestigationisnothingbuttheexpressionofthenecessaryofworkingofthehumanmind;itissimplythemodebywhichallphenomenaarereasonedaboutandgivenpreciseandexactexplanation.Thereisnomoredifference，butthereisjustthesamekindofdifference，betweenthementaloperationsofamanofscienceandthoseofanordinaryperson，asthereisbetweentheoperationsandmethodsofabakerorofabutcherweighingouthisgoodsincommonscales，andtheoperationsofachemistinperformingadifficultandcomplexanalysisbymeanstestinghasbeenprovedthoroughly.Itsvaluelies，ofcourse，initsprovidingasatisfactorybasisforprediction.Nooneisintheleastinterestedinthemarksalittlechildgetsonhistest;whatweareinterestediniswhetherwecanconcludefromhismarkonthetestthatthechildwilldobetterorworsethanotherchildrenofhisageattaskswhichwethinkrequire―generalintelligence‖.(75)Onthewholesuchaconclusioncanbedrawnwithacertaindegreeofconfidence，butonlyifthechildcanbeassumedtohavehadthesameattitudetowardsthetestastheotherswithwhomheisbeingcompared，andonlyifhewasnotpunishedbylackofrelevantinformationwhich1993年英譯漢(71)Themethodofscientificinvestigationisnothingbuttheexpressionofthenecessaryofworkingofthehumanmind;itissimplythemodebywhichallphenomenaarereasonedaboutandgivenpreciseandexactexplanation.Thereisnomoredifference，butthereisjustthesamekindofdifference，betweenthementaloperationsofamanofscienceandthoseofanordinaryperson，asthereisbetweentheoperationsandmethodsofabakerorofabutcherweighingouthisgoodsincommonscales，andtheoperationsofachemistinperformingadifficultandcomplexanalysisbymeansofhisbalanceandfinelygradedweights.(72)Itisnotthatthescalesintheonecase，andthebalanceintheother，differintheprinciplesoftheirconstructionormannerofworking;butthatthelatterismuchfinerapparatusandofcoursemuchmoreaccurateinitsmeasurementthantheformer.Youwillunderstandthisbetter，perhaps，ifIgiveyousomefamiliarexamples.73)Youhavebythehelpoftheseoperations，they，inasortofsense，managetoextractfromNaturecertainnaturallaws，andthatoutofthese，bysomespecialskilloftheirown，theybuilduptheirtheories.(74)Anditisimaginedbymanythattheoperationsofthecommonmindcanbebynomeanscomparedwiththeseprocesses，andthattheyhavetobeacquiredbyasortofspecialtraining.Tohearalltheselargewords，youwouldthinkthatthemindofamanofsciencemustbeconstituteddifferentlyfromthatofhisfellowmen;butifyouwillnotbefrightenedbyterms，youwilldiscoverthatyouarequitewrong，andthatalltheseterribleapparatusarebeingusedbyyourselveseverydayandeveryhourofyourlives.Thereisawell-knownincidentinoneofMoliere’splays，wheretheauthormakestheheroexpressunboundeddelightonbeingtoldthathehadbeentalkingprose（散文）duringthewholeofhislife.Inthesameway，Itrustthatyouwilltakecomfort，andbedelightedwithyourselves，onthediscoverythatyouhavebeenactingontheprinciplesofinductiveanddeductivephilosophyduringthesameperiod75)Probablythereisnotoneherewhohasnotinthecourseofthedayhadoccasiontosetinmotionacomplextrainofreasoning，oftheverysamekind，thoughdifferingdegree，asthatwhichascientificmangoesthroughintracingthecausesofnatural1994年英譯漢Accordingtothenewschoolofscientists,technologyisanoverlookedforceinexpandingthehorizonsofscientificknowledge.(71)Sciencemovesforward,theysay,notsomuchthroughtheinsightsofgreatmenofgeniusasbecauseofmoreordinarythingslikeimprovedtechniquestools.(72)―Inshort‖,aleaderofthenewschoolcontends,―thescientificrevolution,aswecall4/waslargelytheimprovementandinventionanduseofaseriesofinstrumentsthatexpandedthereachofscienceininnumerabledirections.‖(73)Overtheyears,toolsandtechnologythemselvesasasourceoffundamentalinnovationhavelargelybeenignoredbyhistoriansandphilosophersofscience.ThemodernschoolthathailstechnologyarguesthatsuchmastersasGalileo,Newton,Maxwell,Einstein,andinventorssuchasEdisonattachedgreatimportanceto,andderivedgreatbenefitfrom,craftinformationandtechnologicaldevicesofdifferentkindsthatwereusableinscientificexperiments.Thecenterpieceoftheargumentofatechnology-yes,genius-noadvocatewasananalysisofGalileo'sroleatthestartofthescientificrevolution.ThewisdomofthedaywasderivedfromPtolemy,anastronomerofthesecondcentury,whoseelaboratesystemoftheskyputEarthatthecenterofallheavenlymotions.(74)Galileo'sgreatestglorywasthatin1609hewasthefirstpersontoturnthenewlyinventedtelescopeontheheavenstoprovethattheplanetsrevolvearoundthesunratherthanaroundtheEarth.Buttherealheroofthestory,accordingtothenewwaslargelytheimprovementandinventionanduseofaseriesofinstrumentsthatexpandedthereachofscienceininnumerabledirections.‖(73)Overtheyears,toolsandtechnologythemselvesasasourceoffundamentalinnovationhavelargelybeenignoredbyhistoriansandphilosophersofscience.ThemodernschoolthathailstechnologyarguesthatsuchmastersasGalileo,Newton,Maxwell,Einstein,andinventorssuchasEdisonattachedgreatimportanceto,andderivedgreatbenefitfrom,craftinformationandtechnologicaldevicesofdifferentkindsthatwereusableinscientificexperiments.Thecenterpieceoftheargumentofatechnology-yes,genius-noadvocatewasananalysisofGalileo'sroleatthestartofthescientificrevolution.ThewisdomofthedaywasderivedfromPtolemy,anastronomerofthesecondcentury,whoseelaboratesystemoftheskyputEarthatthecenterofallheavenlymotions.(74)Galileo'sgreatestglorywasthatin1609hewasthefirstpersontoturnthenewlyinventedtelescopeontheheavenstoprovethattheplanetsrevolvearoundthesunratherthanaroundtheEarth.Buttherealheroofthestory,accordingtothenewschoolofscientists,wasthelongevolutionintheimprovementofmachineryformakingeyeglasses.Federalpolicyisnecessarilyinvolvedinthetechnologyvs.geniusdispute.(75)WhethertheGovernmentshouldincreasethefinancingofpurescienceattheexpenseoftechnologyorviceoftendependsontheissueofwhichisseenasthedriving1995年英譯漢Thestandardizededucationalorpsychologicalteststhatarewidelyusedtoaidinselecting,classifying,assigning,orpromotingstudents,employees,andmilitarypersonnelhavebeenthetargetofrecentattacksinbooks,magazines,thedailypress,andevenincongress.(71)Thetargetiswrong,forinattackingthetests,criticsdivertattentionfromthefaultthatlieswithill-informedorincompetentusers.Theteststhemselvesaremerelytools,withcharacteristicsthatcanbemeasuredwithreasonableprecisionunderspecifiedconditions.Whethertheresultswillbevaluable,meaningless,orevenmisleadingdependspartlyuponthetoolitselfbutlargelyupontheuser.Allinformedpredictionsoffutureperformancearebaseduponsomeknowledgeofrelevantpastperformance:schoolgradesresearchproductive,salesrecords,orwhateverisappropriate.(72)Howwellthepredictionswillbevalidatedbylaterperformancedependsupontheamount,reliability,andappropriatenessoftheinformationusedandontheskillandwisdomwithwhichitisinterpreted.Anyonewhokeepscarefulscoreknowsthattheinformationavailableisalwaysincompleteandthatthepredictionsarealwayssubjecttoerror.Standardizedtestsshouldbeconsideredinthiscontext.Theyprovideaquick,objectivemethodofgettingsomekidsofinformationaboutwhatapersonlearned,theskillshehasdeveloped,orthekindsofpersonheis.Theinformationsoobtainedhas,qualitatively,thesameadvantagesandshortcomingsasotherkindsofinformation.(73)Whethertousetests,otherkindsofinformation,orbothinaparticularsituationdepends,therefore,upontheevidencefromexperienceconcerningcomparativevalidityanduponsuchfactorsascostandavailability.(74)Ingeneral,thetestsworkmosteffectivelywhenthequalitiestobemeasuredcanbemostpreciselydefinedandleasteffectivelywhenwhatistobemeasuredorpredictedcannotbewelldefined.Properlyused,theyprovidearapidmeansofgettingcomparableinformationaboutmanypeople.Sometimestheyidentifystudentswhosehighpotentialhasnotbeenpreviouslyrecognized,buttherearemanythingstheydonotdo.(75)Forexample,theydonotcompensatefor5/socialinequality,andthusdonottellhowableanunderprivilegedyoungstermighthavebeenhegrownupundermorefavorable1996年英譯漢Thedifferencesinrelativegrowthofvariousareasofscientificresearchhaveseveralcauses.(71)Someofthesecausesarecompletelyreasonableresultsofsocialneeds.Othersarereasonableconsequencesofparticularadvancesinsciencebeingtosomeextentself-accelerating.Some,however,arelessreasonableprocessesofdifferentgrowthinwhichpreconceptionsoftheformscientifictheoryoughttotake,bypersonsinauthority,acttoalterthegrowthpatternofdifferentareas.Thisisanewproblemprobablynotyetunavoidable;butitisafrighteningtrend.(72)ThistrendbeganduringtheSecondWorldWar,whenseveralgovernmentscametotheconclusionthatthespecificdemandsthatagovernmentwantstomakeofitsscientificestablishmentcannotgenerallybeforeseenindetail.Itcanbepredicted,however,thatfromtimetotimequestionswillarisewhichwillrequirespecificscientificanswers.Itisthereforegenerallyvaluabletotreatthescientificestablishmentasaresourceormachinetobekeptinfunctionalorder.(73)Thisseemsmostlyeffectivelydonebysupportingacertainamountofresearchnotrelatedtoimmediategoalsbutofpossibleconsequenceinthefuture.Thiskindofsupport,likeallgovernmentsupport,requiresdecisionsabouttheappropriaterecipientsoffunds.Decisionsbasedonutilityasopposedtolackofutilityarestraightforward.Butadecisionamongprojectsnoneofwhichhasimmediateutilityismoredifficult.Thegoalofthesupportingagenciesisthepraisableoneofsupporting―good‖asopposedto―bad‖science,butavaliddeterminationisdifficulttomake.Generally,theideaofgoodsciencetendstobecomeconfusedwiththecapacityofthefieldinquestiontogenerateaneleganttheory.(74)However,theworldissomadethatelegantsystemsareinprinciplesocialinequality,andthusdonottellhowableanunderprivilegedyoungstermighthavebeenhegrownupundermorefavorable1996年英譯漢Thedifferencesinrelativegrowthofvariousareasofscientificresearchhaveseveralcauses.(71)Someofthesecausesarecompletelyreasonableresultsofsocialneeds.Othersarereasonableconsequencesofparticularadvancesinsciencebeingtosomeextentself-accelerating.Some,however,arelessreasonableprocessesofdifferentgrowthinwhichpreconceptionsoftheformscientifictheoryoughttotake,bypersonsinauthority,acttoalterthegrowthpatternofdifferentareas.Thisisanewproblemprobablynotyetunavoidable;butitisafrighteningtrend.(72)ThistrendbeganduringtheSecondWorldWar,whenseveralgovernmentscametotheconclusionthatthespecificdemandsthatagovernmentwantstomakeofitsscientificestablishmentcannotgenerallybeforeseenindetail.Itcanbepredicted,however,thatfromtimetotimequestionswillarisewhichwillrequirespecificscientificanswers.Itisthereforegenerallyvaluabletotreatthescientificestablishmentasaresourceormachinetobekeptinfunctionalorder.(73)Thisseemsmostlyeffectivelydonebysupportingacertainamountofresearchnotrelatedtoimmediategoalsbutofpossibleconsequenceinthefuture.Thiskindofsupport,likeallgovernmentsupport,requiresdecisionsabouttheappropriaterecipientsoffunds.Decisionsbasedonutilityasopposedtolackofutilityarestraightforward.Butadecisionamongprojectsnoneofwhichhasimmediateutilityismoredifficult.Thegoalofthesupportingagenciesisthepraisableoneofsupporting―good‖asopposedto―bad‖science,butavaliddeterminationisdifficulttomake.Generally,theideaofgoodsciencetendstobecomeconfusedwiththecapacityofthefieldinquestiontogenerateaneleganttheory.(74)However,theworldissomadethatelegantsystemsareinprincipleunabletodealwithsomeoftheworld'smorefascinatinganddelightfulaspects.(75)Newformsofthoughtaswellasnewsubjectsforthoughtmustariseinthefutureastheyhaveinthepast,givingrisetonewstandardsofelegance.1997年英譯漢Doanimalshaverights?Thisishowthequestionisusuallyput.Itsoundslikeauseful,ground-clearingwaytostart.(71)Actually,itisn't,becauseitassumesthatthereisanagreedaccountofhumanrights,whichissomethingtheworlddoesnothave.Ononeviewofrights,tobesure,itnecessarilyfollowsthatanimalshavenone.(72)Somephilosophersarguethatrightsexistonlywithinasocialcontract,aspartofanexchangeofdutiesandentitlements.Therefore,animalscannothaverights.Theideaofpunishingatigerthatkillssomebodyisabsurd;forexactlythesamereason,soistheideathattigershaverights.However,thisisonlyoneaccount,andbynomeansanuncontestedone.Itdeniesrightsnotonlytoanimalsbutalsotosomepeople—forinstance,toinfants,thementallyincapableandfuturegenerations.Inaddition,itisunclearwhatforceacontractcanhaveforpeoplewhoneverconsentedtoit:howdoyoureplytosomebodywhosays―Idon'tlikethiscontract‖?Thepointisthis:withoutagreementontherightsofpeople,arguingabouttherightsofanimalsisfruitless.(73)Itleadsthediscussiontoextremesattheoutset:itinvitesyoutothinkthatanimalsshouldbetreatedeitherwiththeconsiderationhumansextendtootherhumans,orwithnoconsiderationatall.Thisisafalsechoice.Bettertostartwithanother,morefundamental,6/isthewaywetreatanimalsamoralissueatManydenyit.(74)Arguingfromtheviewthathumansaredifferentfromanimalsineveryrelevantrespect,extremistsofthiskindthinkthatanimalslieoutsidetheareaofmoralchoice.Anyregardforthesufferingofanimalsisseenasamistake—asentimentaldisplacementoffeelingthatshouldproperlybedirectedtootherhumans.Thisview,whichholdsthattorturingamonkeyismorallyequivalenttochoppingwood,mayseembravely―ogca.Infactitissimplyshallow:theconfusedcenterisrighttorejectit.Themostelementaryformofmoralreasoning—theethicalequivalentoflearningtocrawl—istoweighothers'interestsagainstone'sown.Thisinturnrequiressympathyandimagination:withoutwhichthereisnocapacityformoralthought.Toseeananimalinpainisenough,formost,toengagesympathy.(75)isthewaywetreatanimalsamoralissueatManydenyit.(74)Arguingfromtheviewthathumansaredifferentfromanimalsineveryrelevantrespect,extremistsofthiskindthinkthatanimalslieoutsidetheareaofmoralchoice.Anyregardforthesufferingofanimalsisseenasamistake—asentimentaldisplacementoffeelingthatshouldproperlybedirectedtootherhumans.Thisview,whichholdsthattorturingamonkeyismorallyequivalenttochoppingwood,mayseembravely―ogca.Infactitissimplyshallow:theconfusedcenterisrighttorejectit.Themostelementaryformofmoralreasoning—theethicalequivalentoflearningtocrawl—istoweighothers'interestsagainstone'sown.Thisinturnrequiressympathyandimagination:withoutwhichthereisnocapacityformoralthought.Toseeananimalinpainisenough,formost,toengagesympathy.(75)Whenthathappens,itisnotamistake:itismankind'sinstinctformoralreasoninginaction,aninstinctthatshouldbeencouragedratherthanlaughedat.1998年英譯漢Theywere,byfar,thelargestandmostdistantobjectsthatscientistshadeverdetected:astripofenormouscosmiccloudssome15billionlight-yearsfromearth.(71)Butevenmoreimportant,itwasthefarthestthatscientistshadbeenabletolookintothepast,forwhattheywereseeingwerethepatternsandstructuresthatexisted15billionyearsago.Thatwasjustaboutthemomentthattheuniversewasborn.Whattheresearchersfoundwasatoncebothamazingandexpected;theUSNationalAeronauticsandSpaceAdministration'sCosmicBackgroundExplorersatellite—Cobe—haddiscoveredlandmarkevidencethattheuniversedidinfactbeginwiththeprimevalexplosionthathasbecomeknownastheBigBang(thetheorythattheuniverseoriginatedinanexplosionfromasinglemassofenergy.)(72)TheexistenceofthegiantcloudswasvirtuallyrequiredfortheBigBang,firstputforwardinthe1920s,tomaintainitsreignasthedominantexplanationofthecosmos.Accordingtothetheory,theuniverseburstintobeingasasubmicroscopic,unimaginabledenseknotofpureenergythatflewoutwardinalldirections,emittingradiationasitwent,condensingintoparticlesandthenintoatomsofgas.Overbillionsofyears,thegaswascompressedbygravityintogalaxies,stars,plantsandeventully,evenhumans.Cobeisdesignedtoseejustthebiggeststructures,butastronomerswouldliketoseemuchsmallerhotspotsaswell,theseedsoflocalobjectslikeclustersandsuperclustersofgalaxies.Theyshouldn'thavelongtowait.(73)Astrophysicistsworkingwithground-baseddetectorsattheSouthPoleandballoon-borneinstrumentsareclosinginonsuchstructures,andmayreporttheirfindings(74)Ifthesmallhotspotslookasexpected,thatwillbeatriumphforyetanotherscientificidea,arefinementoftheBigBangcalledtheinflationaryuniversetheory.Inflationsaysthatveryearlyon,theuniverseexpandedinsizebymorethanatrilliontrilliontrilliontrillionfoldinmuchlessthanasecond,propelledbyasortofantigravity.(75)Oddthoughitsounds,cosmicinflationisascientificallyplausibleconsequenceofsomerespectedideasinelementary-particlephysics,andmanyastrophysicistshavebeenconvincedforthebetterpartofadecadethatitistrue.1999年英譯漢(71)Whiletherearealmostasmanydefinitionsofhistoryastherearehistorians,modernpracticemostcloselyconformstoonethatseeshistoryastheattempttorecreateandexplain7/significanteventsofthepast.Caughtinthewebofitsowntimeandplace,eachgenerationofhistoriansdeterminesanewwhatissignificantforitinthepast.Inthissearchtheevidencefoundisalwaysincompleteandscattered;itisalsofrequentlypartialorpartisan.Theironyofthehistorian'scraftisthatitspractitionersalwaysknowthattheireffortsarebutcontributionstoanunendingInterestinhistoricalmethodshasarisenlessthroughexternalchallengetothevalidityofhistoryasanintellectualdisciplineandmorefrominternalquarrelsamonghistoriansthemselves.Whilehistoryoncerevereditsaffinitytoliteratureandphilosophy,theemergingsocialsciencesseemedtoaffordgreateropportunitiesforaskingnewquestionsandprovidingrewardingapproachestoanunderstandingofthepast.Socialsciencemethodologieshadtobeadaptedtoadisciplinegovernedbytheprimacyofhistoricalsourcesrat