【课文】
First listen and then answer the following question.
听录音，然后回答以下问题。
In what two areas have people made no "progress" at all?
Why does the idea of progress loom so large in the modern world? Surely because progress of a particular kind is actually taking place around us and is becoming more and more manifest. Although mankind has undergone no general improvement in intelligence or morality, it has made extraordinary progress in the accumulation of knowledge. Knowledge began to increase as soon as the thoughts of one individual could be communicated to another by means of speech. With the invention of writing, a great advance was made, for knowledge could then be not only communicated but also stored. Libraries made education possible, and education in its turn added to libraries: the growth of knowledge followed a kind of compound interest law, which was greatly enhanced by the invention of printing. All this was comparatively slow until, with the coming of science, the tempo was suddenly raised. Then knowledge began to be accumulated according to a systematic plan. The trickle became a stream; the stream has now become a torrent. Moreover, as soon as new knowledge is acquired, it is now turned to practical account. What is called "modern civilization" is not the result of a balanced development of all man"s nature, but of accumulated knowledge applied to practical life. The problem now facing humanity is: What is going to be done with all this knowledge? As is so often pointed out, knowledge is a two-edged weapon which can be used equally for good or evil. It is now being used indifferently for both. Could any spectacle, for instance, be more grimly whimsical than that of gunners using science to shatter men"s bodies while, close at hand, surgeons use it to restore them? We have to ask ourselves very seriously what will happen if this twofold use of knowledge, with its ever-increasing power, continues.
G.N.M.TYRRELL The Personality of Man
【New words and expressions 生词和短语】
loom v. 赫然耸起
manifest adj.明显的
morality n. 道德
communicate v. 交流，交际
compound adj. 复合的
enhance v. 增进
tempo n. 速率
trickle n. 涓涓细流
torrent n. 滔滔洪流
humanity n. 人类
indifferently adv. 不在乎地
grimly adv. 可怖地
whimsical adj. 怪诞的
shatter v. 毁坏
twofold adj. 双重的
【课文注释】
1.loom，隐现(常令人生畏);即将发生。
①If something looms over you, it appears as a large or unclear shape, often in a frightening way.
例句：The mountainous island loomed on the horizon.
那座巨大的岛屿隐隐约约浮现在地平线上。
②If a worrying or threatening situation or event is looming, it seems likely to happen soon.
例句：The looming threat of recession made them anxious.
近在眼前的经济衰退让他们很是焦虑。
2.take place，发生。
take place和happen意思相近，都有发生的意思，但take place更强调有人为因素参与的某事发生、有计划的使某事发生，而happen多指没有计划的、自然发生的。来看几个例子就知道了^^
例句：The fete will take place on Sunday, rain or shine.
游园义卖会定於星期日举行，风雨无阻。
这句话用happen就不妥，因为fete是不会无计划、自然而然自己发生的。
例句：The accident happened at the corner of the street.
意外发生在街角。
这句话中因为accident不是人为安排的让其发生的，所以用happen更好。
3.undergo，经历，遭受。
If you undergo something necessary or unpleasant, it happens to you.
例句：During the past few decades, this city has undergone great changes.
过去的几十年中，这座城市经历了巨大的变化。
undergo changes是个比较正式地道的表达。
4.with the invention of wrinting，短语中的with是“由于”的意思。
5.education in its turn added to libraries，教育反过来也丰富了藏书。
①in turn，反过来，转而。
例句：One of the members of the surgical team leaked the story to a fellow physician who, in turn, confided in a reporter.
医疗队中的一名成员把故事告诉了一名内科医生，该内科医生转而又告诉了记者。
②in turn，轮流。
例句：The girls called out their names in turn.
那些女孩儿逐一报出自己的名字。
6.a kind of compound interest law，一种复利法则。compound interest law有时也被称作“雪球法则”，即利上滚利，增长很快。
7.turn...to account，利用……。
例句：We should turn knowledge to good account to build a better future.
我们应该好好利用知识，创造一个美好的未来。
8.Could any spectacle,...to restore them?这句话从形式上是个疑问句，但实质上起一个加强语气的陈述句的作用，这种疑问句常被称为修辞疑问句。
9.this twofold use of knowledge，知识的这种双重性。
twofold表示双重性：You can use twofold to introduce a topic that has two equally important parts.
例句：The case against is twofold: too risky and too expensive.
反对的理由有两个：太冒险，太昂贵。
【参考译文】
为什么进步这个概念在现代世界显得如此突出?无疑是因为有一种特殊的进步实际上正在我们周围发生，而且变得越来越明显。虽然人类有智力和道德上没有得到普遍提高，但在知识积累方面却取得了巨大的进步。人一旦能用语言同别人交流思想，知识的积累便开始了。随着书写的发明，又迈进了一大步，因为这样一来，知识不仅能交流，而且能储存了。藏书使教育成为可能，而教育反过来又丰富了藏书，因为知识的增长遵循着一种“滚雪球”的规律。印刷术的发明又大大提高了知识增长的速度。所有这些发展都比较缓慢，而随着科学的到来，增长的速度才突然加快。于是，知识便开始有系统有计划地积累起来。涓涓细流汇成小溪，小溪现已变成了奔腾的江河。而且，新知识一旦获得，便得到实际应用。所谓“现代文明”并不是人的天性平衡发展的结果，而是积累起来的知识应用到实际生活中的结果。现在人类面临的问题是：用这些知识去做什么?正像人们常常指出的，知识是一把双刃刀，可以用于造福，也可以用来为害。人们现在正漫不经心地把知识用于这两个方面，例如：炮兵利用科学毁坏人的身体、而外科医生就在附近用科学抢救被炮兵毁坏的人体，还有什么情景比这更可怕、更怪诞的吗?我们不得不严肃地问问我们自己：随着日益增长的知识的力量，如果我们继续利用知识的这种双重性，将会发生什么样的情况呢?
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