Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

both on the west coasts of continents with similar climates,

都在各自大陸的西海岸，

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

and probably with rather similar natural resources.

氣候相似，自然資源也可能相似。

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

Yet their present development is wholly different,

但是，這兩個地方目前的發展程度完全不一樣。

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

not so much because of different people even,

這倒不是因為人民不同，

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

but because of thedifferent thoughts that exist in the minds of their inhabitants.

而是由于居民頭腦中的思想不同。

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

This is the point I wish to emphasize.

這就是我要強調的論點。

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

The most important factor in our environment is the state of our own minds.

我們環境中最重要的因素就是我們的思想狀況。

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

It is well known that where the white man has invaded a primitive culture,

眾所周知，凡是白人侵入原始文化的地方，

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

the most destructive effects have come not from physical weapons but from ideas.

破壞作用最大的不是殺人的武器，而是思想。

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

Ideas are dangerous.

思想是危險的。

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

The Holy Office knew this full well when it caused heretics to be burned in days gone by.

宗教法庭對此是非常清楚的，因此從前它總是把異教徒燒死。

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

Indeed, the concept of free speech only exists in our modern society because when you are inside a community,

的確，言論自由的概念只存在于我們現代社會中，因為當你生活在一個社團當中時，

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

you are conditioned by the conventions of the community to such a degree that it is very difficult to conceive of anything really destructive.

社團的風俗習慣會嚴格地制約你，使你很難有破壞性的想法。

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

It is only someone looking on from outside that can inject the dangerous thoughts.

只有外部的旁觀者才能灌輸危險的思想。

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

I do not doubt that it would be possible to inject ideas into the modern world that would utterly destroy us.

向現代世界灌輸一種思想以便摧毀我們人類是可能的事，對此我并不懷疑。

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

I would like to give you an example, but fortunately I cannot do so.

我愿為你舉個例子，但幸虧我舉不出。

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

Perhaps it will suffice to mention the nuclear bomb.

也許提一下核彈就足以說明了。

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

Imagine the effect on a reasonably advanced technological society,

那么可以設想，這將對這個社會產生何等的影響。但科技相當發達的社會，

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

one that still does not possess the bomb, of making it aware of the possibility,

對一個尚未擁有核彈、如果告訴它制造核彈的可能性，

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

of supplying sufficient details to enable the thing to be constructed.

而且向它提供制造核彈的細節，

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

Twenty or thirty pages of information handed to any of the major world powers around the year 1925 would have been sufficient to change the course of world history.

如果把二三十頁的情報交給1952年前后的任何一個世界強國，就足以改變世界歷史的進程。

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

It is a strange thought, but I believe a correct one,

這是個離奇的想法，不過我認為這個想法是正確的。

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

that twenty or thirty pages of ideas and information would be capable of turning the present-day world upside down, or even destroying it.

二三十頁材料中的思想和情報會使當今的世界天翻地覆，甚至毀滅這個世界。

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

I have often tried to conceive of what those pages might contain,

我常常試圖想像這些紙上所寫的東西，

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

but of course I cannot do so because I am a prisoner of the present-day world,

不過我是做不到的，因為我和你們大家一樣，

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

just as all of you are.

是當今世界上的凡人。

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

We cannot think outside the particular patterns that our brains are conditioned to,

我們不能脫離我們大腦所限定的模式去思考問題，

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

or, to be more accurate, we can think only a very little way outside,

我們只能稍微離開一點兒，

Lesson 45 Of men and galaxies

and then only if we are very original.

就這也需要我們有獨創的思想。

Lesson 46 Hobbies

A gifted American psychologist has said,'Worry is a spasm of the emotion;

煩惱是感情的發作，