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The Cult-Figure Physicist 费曼出招，真相难逃

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A Great Mind

In 1986, at the Rogers Commission hearing investigating the January 28^th explosion of the Space Shuttle Challenger, Richard Phillips Feynmen illustrated one of the traits that had made him famous – the Nobel laureate physicist effortlessly made the complex simple.

1986年，罗杰斯委员会为元月28日航天飞机挑战者号爆炸案举办公听会，会中，理察．费曼展现了一项令他声名大噪的特质──这位诺贝尔物理学奖得主不费吹灰之力，便将难题迎刃而解。

By submerging a piece of rubber in ice water, he clearly demonstrated what had caused the tragic failure of the O-rings that should have contained the heat of the shutter’s two booster rockets; on that atypically cold Florida morning, the flexible rubber rings froze, rendering the material stiff – and dangerously ineffective.

费曼将一块橡皮没入冰水中，藉以清楚地说明，应能承受航天飞机两支助升火箭热度的○型环，为何会失效酿成悲剧：事发当天清晨，佛罗里达天气异常冷冽，富弹力的橡皮垫圈因而结冻，导致橡皮僵硬──接着便危险地失去效力。

In addition to making difficult concepts easy to understand, Feynmen, known for having a friendly, mischievous, charismatic personality, was able to explain science in an entertaining way; his lectures on physics while a professor at California State University are legendary for their insight and lively methods of delivery.

费曼除了能使艰涩的概念容易为人理解，以友善、顽皮、有领袖魅力出了名的他，也能以妙趣横生的方式来解释科学。他在加州大学任教时所做的物理学演讲，其独到的见解与生动的陈述方式堪称一代传奇。

But this “regular” kind of guy was also one the greatest scientific minds of modern time: in his early twenties, Feynman joined the Manhattan Project to help develop the atomic bomb, and in 1965 he won a Nobel prize in physics for his theory on quantum electrodynamics. Today, fourteen years after his death, Richard Feynamn is regarded as something of a scientific cult figure.

但这位「讨喜的」（注）仁兄也是现代最伟大的科学家之一：费曼廿岁出头便参与了曼哈顿计划，协助发展原子弹；1965年，他以量子电动力学的理论获颁诺贝尔物理学奖。今天，在他逝世十四年后，费曼仍被视为科学领域的偶像。

注：regular一般作「平凡的」解，在此为双关语，另表「讨人喜欢的」。

Vocabulary

单词发音

cult [kʌlt] adj. 受特定群体欢迎的；作为偶像崇拜的

hearing [ˋhɪrɪŋ] n.【美】意见听取会

illustrate [ˋɪləstret] v.（用图，实例等）说明，阐明

trait [tret] n. 特征，特点，特性

laureate [ˋlɔrɪɪt] adj. 获奖者的

contain [kənˋten] v. 控制; 遏制; 防止…蔓延

atypically [eˋtɪpɪk!ɪ] adv. 不同寻常地; 异常地

render [ˋrɛndɚ] v. 使得；造成

stiff [stɪf] adj. 硬的; 不易移动的，不灵活的

mischievous [ˋmɪstʃɪvəs] adj. 调皮的﹐ 淘气的

charismatic [͵kærɪzˋmætɪk] adj. 有魅力的；有吸引力的

legendary [ˋlɛdʒənd͵ɛrɪ] adj. 非常有名的﹐ 大名鼎鼎的﹐ 传奇式的

insight [ˋɪn͵saɪt] n. 洞悉；深刻的理解; 洞察力﹐眼光

delivery [dɪˋlɪvərɪ] n. 发言(或演说)的方式

quantum [ˋkwɑntəm] n.【物】量子

electrodynamics [ɪ͵lɛktrodaɪˋnæmɪks] n. 电动力学; 电气力学

Sentence of the Day

Great minds think alike.

英雄所见略同。

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Continuing to Inspire

Even though Feynman passed away in 1988, aged sixty-nine, his memory lives on: his many dedicated followers are forever trying to get the U.S. Postal Service to put his image on a set of commemorative postage stamps, and his book, including his published lectures on physics, are still highly sought-after.

尽管费曼已于1988年过世，享年69岁，对他的回忆依然留存人世：他众多的死忠追随者不断敦请美国邮政局将其肖像放进纪念邮票系列，他的著作，包括已出版的物理学演讲，仍令读者趋之若鹜。

The Pleasure of Finding Things Out is a collection of Feynman’s interview and lecture transcripts and reports. The subjects range from his childhood to quantum science to working on the top-secret Manhattan Project, where Feynman’s irreverent exploits included learning how to crack open the lab’s safes to illustrate his concern that the project’s security was inadequate.

《费曼的主张》集结了费曼专访及演讲的纪录。涵括的主题从他的童年、量子科学，到进行高度机密的曼哈顿计划；参与计划时，费曼胆大包天的壮举之一是他学会了撬开实验室保险柜的方法，以表明他对计划安全防护欠周延的顾虑。

Feynman loved to question authority: While the tales of his youthful high-jinks at the project may be amusing, he also discusses more seriously how he later questioned the use of the nuclear weapons he had helped design; the collection also includes the “Minority Report to the Space Shuttle Challenger Inquiry,” in which he accused those at NASA of putting emphasis on political concerns rather than safety. As those who knew him had the pleasure of finding out, Richard Feynman’s straightforwardness and tenacity were just part of the many traits that made up this brilliant and remarkable man.

费曼喜欢对权威提出质疑：虽然他参与曼哈顿计划的年少轻狂事迹或许有趣，在书中他却更严肃地探讨，对于这些他曾协助设计过的核子武器，他后来就其使用问题提出质疑的情形。选集中还有一篇〈费曼的挑战者号航天飞机调查报告〉，文中他指控美国国家航空及太空总署的官员们置政治考虑于安全考虑之上。如同那些认识费曼的人有幸发现的，费曼之所以如此才气纵横、引人注目，凭借的特质不单只是直率与顽强而已。

－by Mary Beth Maslowski

Vocabulary

单词发音

live on 继续存在着 to continue to exist

commemorative [kəˋmɛmərətɪv] adj. 纪念性的

postage [ˋpostɪdʒ] n. 邮资，邮费

sought-after [ˋsɔt͵æftɚ] adj. 广受欢迎的﹐ 吃香的〔但罕有或难得到〕in demand; wanted

transcript [ˋtræn͵skrɪpt] n.（录音的）文字记录

irreverent [ɪˋrɛvərənt] n.〔对组织﹑习俗﹑信仰等〕不尊敬的; 不恭的

exploit [ˈɛksˌplɔɪt] n. 功绩，功勋；辉煌的成就；英勇的行为

crack [kræk] v. 破解（密码），

inadequate [ɪnˋædəkwɪt] adj. 不充分的；不足的

high-jink [ˈhaɪˌdʒɪnks]  n. <口>喧闹的玩乐，狂欢作乐

amusing [əˋmjuzɪŋ] adj. 有趣的，好玩的

minority [maɪˋnɔrətɪ] adj. 〔人〕少数的; n. 少数

inquiry [ɪnˋkwaɪrɪ] n. 调查

accuse [əˋkjuz] v. 指控，控告；谴责[（+of）]

straightforwardness [͵stretˋfɔrwɚdnɪs] n. 坦率；直率

tenacity [tɪˋnæsətɪ] n. 固执；坚持，顽强，不屈不挠

remarkable [rɪˋmɑrkəb!] adj. 非凡的；显著的

Sentence of the Day

He was soon found out.

他马上就被揪出来了。