第5章 敲石头的人 The Stone-Breakers · 第6讲S4

1. 老师，讲稿里说Kelvin算地球年龄有个'flaw'，这词除了指错误，还有啥别的意思吗？为啥说这是他唯一的弱点？
2. Kelvin一开始说地球年龄是9800万岁，后来又改成了2400万岁，这个'revised'（修订/更改）在科学语境下具体指他做了什么操作？
3. 讲稿里提到Kelvin后来变得'forthright'（直率/武断），这和之前他'prudence'（谨慎）的态度有啥区别？为啥说他越直接反而越不对了？
4. 为啥Kelvin觉得太阳不可能烧几亿年？这里提到的'exhausting fuel'（耗尽燃料）和当时物理学界的认知有啥关系？
5. 既然Kelvin的理论是基于物理学的，那后来发现的'fossil evidence'（化石证据）是怎么跟他产生'contradict'（矛盾）的？这对后来研究地球年龄有啥影响？

1. Teacher, the transcript says Kelvin had a 'flaw' in calculating Earth's age. Besides meaning mistake, what else does it imply? Why is it called his only weakness?
2. Kelvin first estimated Earth's age at 98 million years, but later revised it to 24 million. What exactly does 'revised' mean in this scientific context?
3. The transcript mentions Kelvin became 'forthright' later, contrasting with his earlier 'prudence'. What's the difference, and why did being more direct make him less correct?
4. Why did Kelvin believe the Sun couldn't burn for hundreds of millions of years? How does 'exhausting fuel' relate to the physics knowledge of that time?
5. Since Kelvin's theory was based on physics, how did the later 'fossil evidence' 'contradict' it, and what impact did this have on studying Earth's age?

1 00:00:12,970 --> 00:00:16,190 他在理论方面的工作,包括在电磁学, 2 00:00:16,290 --> 00:00:20,130 热力学,以及光的波动理论方面的贡献, 3 00:00:20,210 --> 00:00:22,830 是一样的具有化石代的意义, 4 00:00:22,890 --> 00:00:24,930 一样的具有革命性的意义。 5 00:00:25,170 --> 00:00:27,970 Electromagnetism,我们可以把这个词分开, 6 00:00:28,070 --> 00:00:30,870 electro 表示电,magnetism 是磁。 7 00:00:31,370 --> 00:00:33,550 而 T hermal Dynamics 也是一样, 8 00:00:33,590 --> 00:00:34,630 T hermal 是热, 9 00:00:34,690 --> 00:00:38,950 Dynamics 是动力学 T hermal 这个前座我们还可以在这 10 00:00:38,950 --> 00:00:40,630 个词里面看到,T hermometer, 11 00:00:40,850 --> 00:00:44,090 温度计 Wave Theory of Light, 12 00:00:44,350 --> 00:00:46,170 光的波动理论, 13 00:00:46,250 --> 00:00:51,630 也就是指出光具有波动性我们现在知道光具有波力二 14 00:00:51,630 --> 00:00:52,150 象性, 15 00:00:52,250 --> 00:00:56,890 光既是一种波也是一种粒子这个关于光的例子, 16 00:00:56,990 --> 00:01:00,790 在之前有提到过,说到这个方长就是光子。 17 00:01:02,200 --> 00:01:04,820 He had really only one flaw, 18 00:01:05,020 --> 00:01:08,400 and that was an inability to calculate the career age of 19 00:01:08,400 --> 00:01:11,840 the earth.Flaw means mistake or weakness. 20 00:01:12,280 --> 00:01:15,640 他只有一个遗憾,只有一个弱点, 21 00:01:15,760 --> 00:01:19,900 那就是 he was not able to calculate the career age of the 22 00:01:19,900 --> 00:01:20,880 earth.The 23 00:01:20,920 --> 00:01:24,460 question occupied much of the second half of his career 24 00:01:24,460 --> 00:01:29,320 but he never came anywhere near getting it right 这个问 25 00:01:29,320 --> 00:01:34,740 题盘旋了他后半辈子就盘旋了他整个科学生涯的后面 26 00:01:34,740 --> 00:01:40,500 的一半但是他连正确的方向都没有抓着 Never came 27 00:01:40,500 --> 00:01:44,760 anywhere near getting it right 不要说他最后没有 get 28 00:01:44,760 --> 00:01:48,420 it right 连 near 连靠近都没有 29 00:02:08,510 --> 00:02:08,950 他 30 00:02:09,400 --> 00:02:14,160 在这方面的第一次尝试是发表在一篇论文里面这篇论 31 00:02:14,160 --> 00:02:19,220 文是为一个叫做 Mc Millan 的杂志作写的 suggested 32 00:02:19,220 --> 00:02:22,340 that the earth was 98 million years old but cautiously 33 00:02:22,340 --> 00:02:26,680 allowed thatallowed that means admitted that 但是他 34 00:02:26,680 --> 00:02:32,260 还是很谨慎地承认这个数字误差还是很大的 it could 35 00:02:32,260 --> 00:02:37,320 be as low as 20 million years 有可能是两千万年也有可 36 00:02:37,320 --> 00:02:41,760 能会高达四亿年 with remarkable prudence he 37 00:02:41,760 --> 00:02:45,360 acknowledged that his calculations could be wrong if 38 00:02:45,360 --> 00:02:48,900 sources now unknown to us are prepared in the great 39 00:02:48,900 --> 00:02:53,060 storehouse of creation but it was clear that he thought 40 00:02:53,060 --> 00:02:57,480 that unlikelyprudence 谨慎他非常谨慎 41 00:02:57,620 --> 00:03:02,220 特别谨慎地 admitted thatack nowledged 就是他也承认 42 00:03:02,220 --> 00:03:07,640 说自己的计算有可能是错的因为有可能出现这种情况 43 00:03:07,640 --> 00:03:11,000 sources now unknown to us are prepared in the great 44 00:03:11,000 --> 00:03:16,920 storehouse of creationstorehouse 是仓库就在造物主 45 00:03:16,920 --> 00:03:20,540 的大仓库里边,可能已经准备了某一些东西, 46 00:03:20,640 --> 00:03:22,660 而这些东西我们现在不知道, 47 00:03:23,080 --> 00:03:26,260 里边有一些我们现在不知道的一些信息。 48 00:03:26,540 --> 00:03:29,700 如果是这样的话,the calculations could be wrong, 49 00:03:29,840 --> 00:03:31,760 那他的计算肯定就不准确了。 50 00:03:32,040 --> 00:03:34,460 But it was clear that he thought that unlikely, 51 00:03:34,940 --> 00:03:37,980 他虽然是出于谨慎写了这么一句, 52 00:03:38,100 --> 00:03:41,180 但是很明显,他其实觉得这不太可能。 53 00:03:41,180 --> 00:03:44,440 With the passage of time, 54 00:03:44,580 --> 00:03:47,240 Kelvin would become more forthright in his 55 00:03:47,240 --> 00:03:49,580 assertions,and less correct. 56 00:03:50,100 --> 00:03:52,620 Forthright means direct and honest, 57 00:03:52,860 --> 00:03:54,500 就更直接了当了。 58 00:03:54,560 --> 00:03:57,420 之前还比较谨慎的,还会再补一句, 59 00:03:57,460 --> 00:03:59,700 或者搞一些误差什么的。 60 00:03:59,820 --> 00:04:02,400 但是后来他就变得越来越直接, 61 00:04:02,580 --> 00:04:04,000 越来越武断。 62 00:04:04,140 --> 00:04:06,780 And his assertions became less correct, 63 00:04:07,880 --> 00:04:10,140 他的计算也变得越来越不准确了。 64 00:04:10,140 --> 00:04:11,020 He 65 00:04:11,240 --> 00:04:15,040 continually revised his estimates downward from a 66 00:04:15,040 --> 00:04:20,800 maximum of 400 million years to 100 million years to 50 67 00:04:20,800 --> 00:04:26,740 million years and finally in 1897 to a mere 24 million 68 00:04:26,740 --> 00:04:32,660 years Revised means changed Estimates 这个是估算是 69 00:04:32,660 --> 00:04:38,260 名字他不断地把自己计算出来的这个数字不断地往下 70 00:04:38,260 --> 00:04:46,360 降从最开始的四亿年一直降到一亿年到后面只剩下五 71 00:04:46,360 --> 00:04:48,060 千万到最后呢, 72 00:04:48,120 --> 00:04:52,660 一直只剩下了两千四百万所以是越来越不准确了 73 00:04:52,660 --> 00:04:58,420 Kelvin wasn't being willful To be willful means to be 74 00:04:58,420 --> 00:05:01,900 continuing to do what you want even after you have been 75 00:05:01,900 --> 00:05:05,180 told to stop 他也不是一意孤行, 76 00:05:05,240 --> 00:05:09,600 也不是非常任性使劲地把那个数字往下降它也有一定 77 00:05:09,600 --> 00:05:14,740 的理由也有一定的根据的 It was simply that there was 78 00:05:14,740 --> 00:05:18,280 nothing in physics that could explain how a body the 79 00:05:18,280 --> 00:05:22,020 size of the suncould burn continuously for more than a 80 00:05:22,020 --> 00:05:24,940 few tens of millions of years at mostwith out 81 00:05:24,940 --> 00:05:30,310 exhausting its fuelexhausting means using up its fuel 82 00:05:30,310 --> 00:05:31,510 耗 83 00:05:31,770 --> 00:05:38,010 尽燃料因为当时在物理学界并没有任何一种理论能够 84 00:05:38,010 --> 00:05:43,500 解释像太阳这么大的一个物体怎样可以持续地燃烧一 85 00:05:43,500 --> 00:05:45,490 直燃烧几千万年 86 00:05:46,070 --> 00:05:52,250 而不耗尽燃料所以他们就想太阳肯定不会非常的古老 87 00:05:52,250 --> 00:05:56,830 要是真的有那么古老的话它早就已经烧尽了因为当时 88 00:05:56,830 --> 00:06:00,310 还不知道太阳里面其实是有核能的因此, 89 00:06:00,510 --> 00:06:06,510 太阳和它的星球 We're relatively but inescapably 90 00:06:06,510 --> 00:06:11,470 youthfulinescapably means surely 绝对的逃不掉 91 00:06:11,470 --> 00:06:16,990 escape 逃脱的意思而 inescapably 就是他觉得这种说 92 00:06:16,990 --> 00:06:19,970 法一定是正确的绝对逃不了 It 93 00:06:20,040 --> 00:06:25,120 followed that 意思是根据上面掌握的情况顺理成章的 94 00:06:25,120 --> 00:06:29,480 我们可以得出这样的结论就是太 ……（后略，完整文稿见视频页字幕）