第八十三讲


    Text Study
    Do Universities Broaden Minds?
    By Tertius Chandler

    Para. 1 Does university training help or hinder in developing intellectual capacity to do highly original work? Among highly creative modern thinkers the following were formally educated: Montesquieu, Jefferson, Goethe, Marx, and Gandhi. These did not go to college: Austen, Balzac, Tolstoy, Twain, and Shaw.

    Para. 2 Bright people can teach themselves. AsHenry Adams said, “No one can educate anyoneelse. You have to do it for yourself.” There should, of course, be equivalency exams for the self-taught, as well as on-the-job training, formost professions.
original
    adj. 独创的, 新颖的;起初的, 原来的
    e.g.
    a. The inventor had an original mind.
    那个发明家具有创新的头脑。
    b. The original settlers are the Indians.
    最早在这里定居的是印第安人。

    intellectual
    adj. 智力的;知识的
    e.g.
    Maths is an intellectual exercise.
    数学是一种智力训练。
    n. 知识分子
    e.g.
    These views were common among intellectuals.
    这些观点在知识分子中是很普遍的。

    hinder
    vt. 妨碍,阻止
    e.g.
    a. This unfortunate incident may hinder the progress of the peace talks.
    这一不幸事件可能会阻碍和平谈判的进程。
    vi. 起阻碍作用
    b. What is to hinder you from trying?
    是什么阻止你进行尝试?

    capacity
    n. 能力
    e.g.
    a. Her capacity to remember telephone numbers is remarkable.
    她记忆电话号码的能力惊人。
    b. He has a great capacity for enjoying himself.
    他自娱自乐的能力很强。
    辨析:ability/capability/capacity

    ability 主要指体力,脑力或机械工作的能力或力量。
    e.g.
    He has the ability to do the work.
    他有做这项工作的能力。
    capability (to do something/of doing something/for something) 指能做某事的素质,
能力
    e.g.
    You have the capability to do/of doing this job well.
    你有能力把这项工作做好。
    capacity (for something) 指生产、体会、理解或学习的能力。
    Man shares the capacity for love and hate, anger and fear, loyalty and grief with other living creatures.。
    人类与其他生物一样,都有爱、恨、生气、害怕、忠诚和悲伤的能力

    as well as
    和,既······又······
    e.g.
    a. He is courageous as well as strong.
    他既勇敢又强壮。
    b. Air, as well as water, is needed to make plants grow.
    空气和水都是植物生长所必需的。

    balance
    vt. 使平衡,使均衡
    e.g.
    a. I struggle to balance work and family commitment.
    我努力在工作和家庭责任之间寻求平衡。
    vi. 保持平衡
    b. When you learn to ride a bicycle you must learn to balance.
    你学骑脚踏车时必须学会保持平衡。

    Translation
    大学能拓宽思维吗?
    特蒂斯·钱德勒

    Tertius Chandler
    特蒂斯· 钱德勒(1915—2000),历史学家和作家。1937 年毕业于哈佛大学(Harvard University),曾在加利福尼亚大学伯克利分校做过研究,毕生从事教学工作。著有Three Thousand Years of Urban Growth (1987)、The Tax We Need (1980)以及 Chandler’s Half Encyclopedia 等。本文节选自1991 年出版的《21 世纪读物——供当今学生思考关于明天的话题》(Readings for the 21st Century—Tomorrow’s Issues for Today’s Students) 一书中的一篇名为“Education—Less of It!”的文章。
    该篇文章曾首次发表在美国《大学董事会评论》, 作者在文中分析了当时美国中小学和大学教育中存在的弊端,提出了缩短义务教育学制的建议。本文节选的是文章的最后一部分,是关于大学教育的。

    Para. 1 在培养从事高创新性工作的智能方面,大学训练起到的是促进还是阻碍的作用?在具有高度创新能力的现代思想家中,以下是接受过正规教育的:孟德斯鸠,杰斐逊,歌德,马克思和甘地。而未上过大学的有:奥斯丁,巴尔扎克,托尔斯泰,马克· 吐温和萧伯纳。

    Para. 2 聪慧的人能够自学。正如亨利· 亚当说的:“没有人能真正教育其他任何人。 你必须自己教育自己。”当然,社会应提供为自学者设立的同等学力考试,以及为大多数职业者举办的在职培训。