What Does It Mean to Know?

Vocabulary

cannibalism n. 同類相食，食人肉

wanton adj. 有意傷害的，肆無忌憚的，惡意的

inhibition n. 顧慮，禁忌

ethno- 種族的

hunch（on a hunch）直覺

wishy-washy adj. 不清楚的，不堅定的，糊涂的

Expression

The ancient Greek philosopher Epictetus’s?warning is relevant: “Get rid of self-conceit. For it is impossible for anyone?to begin to learn that which he thinks he already knows.”

古希臘哲學(xué)家愛比克泰德的警告是有意義的：“擺脫自負。因為任何人都不可能開始學(xué)習(xí)他認為自己早已知道的事?！?/p>

The Puritans were “prim, proper, and prudish prigs.”

清教徒是“整潔，有禮貌和過分規(guī)矩的正經(jīng)人?！保ㄑ侯^韻）

Knowledge is often thought of as dead matter stored on dusty?shelves in dull libraries. Unfortunately, the hushed atmosphere of a library?can suggest a funeral chapel or a cemetery.

通常，知識被認為是儲存在昏暗圖書館里積滿灰塵的書架桑的死物。遺憾的是，圖書館里沉寂的氣氛會使人想起教堂的葬禮或墓地。

Excerpt

That’s what happens in daily life. No two words have precisely the?same shades of meaning. Therefore, the simple fact that people repeat a?story in their own words rather than in exact quotation changes the story.?Then, too, most people listen imperfectly. And many enjoy adding their own?creative touch to a story, trying to improve on it by stamping it with their?own personal style. This tendency may be conscious or unconscious. Yet?the effect is the same in either case—those who hear it think they know.

由此可見道聽途書有多么“不靠譜”，歷史之所以撲朔迷離，很大程度上源于此。

Summary

In reality, the more one believe in an ambiguous conception, the less likely he is to pursue the truth. Knowing involves both having the right answer and the realization that you have it. To achieve knowledge, we can either achieve it actively by direct experience, or receive it passively, except that passive learning has a serious defect. We need to consider all the facts and possible interpretations to analyze a problem before drawing the logical conclusion.

Knowing is difficult because some long unanswered questions continue to resist solution and everyday situations arise for which there are no precedents. What's more, as one generation succeeds another, knowledge is often forgotten or unwisely rejected. Even authorities who have the most sophisticated measurement tools at?their disposal fail to achieve certainty.

Thought

認知意味著什么？一個自認為知道的人也許不知道，一個自認為不知道的人也許并不是完全不知道。阻礙學(xué)者奔向真理的一大障礙（obstacle）就是自負（self-conceit），因為任何人都不可能開始學(xué)習(xí)他已經(jīng)知道的事。想要學(xué)習(xí)新知識，一定要克服的兩大習(xí)慣：假設(shè)和猜想，不把任何事看做是理所當然，不盲目提出一個直覺判斷或一個沒信心的答案，新知識舊知識都可能有價值，保持足夠的好奇心，卻又不失主見才是我們應(yīng)該秉持的態(tài)度。