本文选自吴应时主编的《大学英语六级阅读真题精读——晨读伴侣》。本书对历年国家大学英语六级考试（CET-6）的仔细阅读部分进行了详尽而精准的分析、翻译和注释，对四六级考生有着事半功倍的效果，对提升整体英语能力也很有帮助。

学习导读：

这是一个渴望天才的时代，这是一个缺乏大师的时代。时代的矛盾让我们对社会现状产生思考，究竟是为什么，使得这个时代没有如爱因斯坦般伟大的天才？文章先从数学不够用的学理角度出发，继而又讨论了物理学体系、教育制度，到后面甚至连音乐这类兴趣也考虑了进来。最后回到当今科学界的现实之中——憋论文，憋不出好论文，连发表的机会都没有，更别说成名了。

Will there [ever] be another Einstein? This is the undercurrent 1(of conversation) [at Einstein memorial 2 meetings] [throughout 3 the year]. A new Einstein will emerge 4, scientists say. But it may take a long time. [After all], [more than] 200 years separated Einstein [from 5 his nearest rival], {Isaac Newton}.

未来会出现另一个爱因斯坦吗？这个问题成了今年纪念爱因斯坦会议的潜在话题。新的爱因斯坦会出现，科学家称。这可能需要很长的时间。毕竟，爱因斯坦同最近的匹敌者牛顿也相隔了200多年。

注：1. undercurrent n. 潜流，暗流；潜在的感情、影响或倾向（尤指与表面相反的）。例：

And there’s a strong undercurrent of resentment toward the baby boom.

另外，针对婴儿潮，出现了一股强劲的潜在憎恨情绪。

[选自：WSJ: Facebook Chronicles A Lost Generation]

There was an undercurrent of fear and loss.

有一种恐惧和损失的潜流。

2. memorial n. 纪念碑；纪念仪式。例：

Every village had its war memorial.

每座村庄都有自己的战争纪念碑。

Though it never had a war memorial, the windswept village had a commemoration of its own.

尽管从没有过战争纪念会，风拂村自己举办了纪念仪式。

[选自：BBC: Magazine]

adj. 纪念的，悼念的。例：

A memorial service is being held for her at St Paul’s church.

她的追悼会正在保罗教堂举行。

3. throughout prep. 自始至终，贯穿。例：

The boy remained silent throughout.

那男孩始终保持沉默。

adv. 始终地。例：

The first song didn’t go too badly except that everyone talked throughout.

第一首歌唱得并不太差，只是所有人始终都在讲话。

4. emerge vi. 浮现，出现，显现

We pass through a stand of almond trees and emerge onto a deserted beach.

我们穿过一排银杏树，荒凉的海滩浮于眼前。

[选自：CNN: Exploring Costa Rica's Osa Peninsula]

emerge from出现，暴露(问题、意见等)，例：

Problems emerge when new breakthrough technologies arrive.

具有突破性的新技术到来时，新问题也会显现。

【派】emergence(n.浮现，露出；出现)

5. separate from 分开，离开。例：

Who’ll be separated from whom?

谁又将和谁分开？

They will have to decide if they want to stay or separate from the Church.

他们需要就留在或离开教堂做出抉择。

[选自：BBC: NEWS | UK | Head to head: Women bishops]

Many physicists say the next Einstein hasn’t been born [yet], or is a baby [now]. That’s because the quest 1 for a unified 2 theory (that would account for 3 all the forces of nature) has pushed current mathematics [to its limits]. New math must be created [before the problem can be solved.]

许多物理学家说，下一个爱因斯坦还没出生，要么就还是个婴儿。因为对可能解释所有自然力量的统一论的探求已经将数学运用到了极限。解决这个问题之前必须创造新的数学。

注：1. quest vi. (for)搜寻，探求。例：

The whole team are questing for improvements for the newly set up system.

所有的小组成员都在为新建立的系统寻求改进方案。

n. 搜寻，探求。例：

Jack’s quest for a wife finally ended when he met Anne.

杰克寻找伴侣的历程最终在他遇到安妮的时候结束了。

【参】request(vt./n.请求，要求)

2. unified adj. 统一的。例：

Everything is a unified system of contradictions.

任何事物都是矛盾的统一体。

The President has taken great pains to say there has to be a unified response.

总统先生承受着巨大的痛苦表示必须作出统一的回应了。

[选自：WHITEHOUSE: Press Briefing]

3. account for 导致，解释；（数量或比例上）占；为...做出说明；将（钱等）列入预算；对（政策等）负有责任。例：

They can’t account for all those cases.

他们无法解释所有的案件。

Televisions account for20%of this country’s commercial electricity consumption.

电视占该国商业用电的20%。

The government must account for their reforms.

政府必须为改革负责。

Consumers, whose purchases account for about 70% of economic activity, face a variety of challenges.

消费者面临一系列的挑战，其消费额对经济活动占比约70%。

[选自：WSJ: Consumer Mood Darkens, but Indicators Brighten]

But researchers say there are many other factors 1 working against 2 another Einstein emerging [anytime soon].

但是研究者说，还有诸多别的因素妨碍着另一个爱因斯坦在近期诞生。

注：1. factor n. 因素，要素。例：

the key factor关键因素

internal/external factor 内在/外在因素

Those scientists believe that our personalities and behavior patterns are largely determined by biological factors.

那些科学家认为，我们的个性和行为模式大多是由生物因素决定的。

2. work against 对...不利，竭力反对。在文中动词短语一起作谓语。例：

Some person work against his plan.

有些人竭力反对这一计划。

“We expect that these factors will continue to work against us in the second half of the year,” he added.

“我们期待这些因素能继续在下半年起反对作用，”他补充道。

[选自：BBC: IBM profits rise]

【参】factual（adj.事实的，实际的）

[For one thing], physics is a much different field [today]. [In Einstein’s day], there were [only] a few thousand physicists [worldwide], and the theoreticians 1 (who could [intellectually] rival 2Einstein) [probably] would fit into a streetcar [with seats to spare].

一方面，当今的物理学与以往已不相同。在爱因斯坦那个时代，全世界只有几千位数学家，而且能够与爱因斯坦在智力上相抗衡的理论家，可能连一辆有轨电车都坐不满。

注：1. theoretician n. 理论家。例：

socialist theoretician社会主义理论学家

He is a famous theoretician of Chinese.

他是中国一位著名的理论家。

2. rival n. 竞争者，对手  

business rival商业上的竞争对手

without rival无可匹敌，无敌

vt.竞争，对抗。文中此意。例：

Tennis cannot rival basketball in excitement.

网球不如篮球刺激。

China also has commitments to rival free trade blocs in East and Southeast Asia.

中国也同样在竭力与东南亚自由贸易集团们竞争。

[选自：NPR: Pacific Trade Pact Gains, But Friction Remains]

adj. 竞争的，对手的。例：

The rival team lost by 12 points in the first round.

在第一轮比赛中，对方就输掉了12分。

Education is different, [too]. One crucial 1 aspect 2(of Einstein’s training) (that is overlooked 3) is the years (of philosophy) (he read [as a teenager]) – {Kant, Schopenhauer and Spinoza, among others}. It taught him how to think independently 4 and abstractly 5 [about space and time], and it wasn’t [long] [before he became a philosopher himself.]

教育也大不一样。我们忽略了爱因斯坦所受教育的一个关键方面，那就是他青少年时阅读了康德、叔本华和斯宾诺等人大量的哲学著作。这教会了他如何独立和抽象地对时空进行思考，而且他自己也很快成为了一位哲学家。

注：1. crucial adj. 至关重要的，决定性的

the crucial factor关键因素。例：

The nineteenth century should he reckoned as the crucial period for the change in the structure if science.

十九世纪应该被看做是科学结构变化的关键时刻。

It finally obtained the crucial approval from the China Securities Regulatory Commission in May.

他们终于在五月得到了中国证监会的关键性批准。

[securities在金融业指证券，而bonds指债券。][选自：MSN: Buffett-backed carmaker BYD raises $219 million in China IPO - Business - msnbc.com]

2. aspect n. 样子，外表，面貌；（问题等的）方面。例：

Everyone wore a happy aspect in the party.

晚会上每个人都神情愉悦。

in all aspects全面。例：

We discussed all aspects of the war in the meeting.

我们在会上讨论了战争的方方面面。

3. overlooked adj.被忽视的。例：

Unfortunately，I was overlooked.

不幸的是，我被忽视了。

In important ways, immigration is the overlooked, hidden advantage that strengthens American companies and the economy.

在重要的方面，移民是促进美国公司和经济的潜在的而又被忽视的优势。

[选自：FORBES: Moneyball, Immigration, and the Search for Hidden Advantage]

4. independently adv.独立地，自主地。例：

I would like to be independently wealthy.

我想靠自己的努力来致富。

5. abstractly adv. 抽象地。例：

Can you talk about success abstractly?

你能抽象地谈论下成功吗？

Too often we talk abstractly about health care, the environment, education, and criminal justice.

我们往往粗略地谈论着卫生保健、环境、教育以及刑事司法。

[选自：MSN: Read an excerpt of Tavis Smiley's 'Accountable']

“The independence 1 created [by philosophical insight] is – ^in my opinion^ – the mark (of distinction) [between a mere artisan or specialist and a real seeker] (after truth,) 2” Einstein wrote [in 1944].

“在我看来，由哲学洞察力所创造出来的独立意识是区分一个纯粹的工匠或专家同一个真正的真理追求者的标志，”爱因斯坦在1944年写道。

注：1. independence n. 独立，自主。例：

This country gained its independence in 1890.

该国于1890年获得独立。

bid for independence 寻求独立

2. after truth在这里是省略了who的定语从句，修饰seeker。After用作动词就是追逐，男生常说的追妹子，可以用这个单词来表达，例：

He is aftering the most beautiful girl in our class.

他在追我们班花。

And he was an accomplished 1 musician. The interplay 2 (between music and math) is [well] known. Einstein would [furiously 3] play his violin [as a way to think through a knotty 4 physics problem].

再者，爱因斯坦还是一位有造诣的音乐家。音乐和数学之间的相互影响是众所周知的。爱因斯坦常常昂扬激烈地弹奏小提琴，而这正是他思考棘手的物理问题的方式。

注：1. accomplished adj. 有造诣的，学识渊博的。例：

She is an accomplished painter.

她是位有造诣的画家。

Many of China’s most accomplished artists, movie directors, and writers cut their teeth in that decade.

中国最杰出的一批艺术家、导演和作家都在那个十年中走向成熟。

[cut sb.’s teeth原意为长牙齿，即到达成熟懂事的年龄之意]

[选自：WSJ: Minxin Pei: China's Cultural Devolution]

v.（accomplish的过去式和过去分词）完成，实现  

accomplish one’s purpose达成目的

【参】accomplishment(n.完成；成就)

2. interplay n.相互作用。例：

The interplay of political and economic is remarkable.

政治与经济的相互作用是显著的。

3. furiously adv. 狂怒地，狂暴地，猛烈地。例：

I say furiously as my father enters.

我怒冲冲地说，这时我父亲进来了。

The wind turbines aren't the only things to have been rotating furiously, it seems.

看起来，风力涡轮机并不是唯一在疯狂旋转的。

[选自：BBC: The spinning of turbine blades]

4. knotty adj. 棘手的，困难的；（木材）多结节的。例：

How to improve this country’s economy has always been a knotty issue.

怎样提高该国的经济是个棘手的问题。

The knotty trunk of a hawthorn tree.

多节的山楂树干。

[Under the Hawthorn Tree《山楂树之恋》]

[Today], universities have produced millions of physicists. There aren’t many jobs [in science] [for them], [so they go to Wall Street and Silicon Valley [to apply their analytical 1 skills] [to more practical 2 – ^and rewarding 3^ – efforts].]

如今，大学培养出了数以万计的物理学家。科学研究不能为他们提供足够的工作岗位，因此他们去华尔街和硅谷，将他们的分析技能应用到更实用——而且更有利可图——的工作中去。

注：1. analytical adj.分析的，分解的。例：

The scientist was making carefully analytical study of the experiment.

科学家正在对这一实验做出细致的分析性研究。

The NYPD program began as a purely analytical exercise, according to documents and interviews.

据一些文件和采访得知，纽约警察局项目作为一个纯粹的分析训练展开。

[选自：NPR: AP IMPACT: NYPD Shadows Muslims Who Change Names]

2. practical adj. 实际的，实用的。例：

You were always so practical, Jim.

吉姆，你以前一向很实际。

3. rewarding adj. 报答的，有益的，值得的。例：

Reading is rewarding for everyone.

阅读对每个人都是有益的。

“Maybe there is an Einstein (out there) [today],” said (Columbia University physicist) Brian Greene, “but it would be a lot harder for him to be heard 1.”

“可能现在什么地方就有一个爱因斯坦，”哥伦比亚大学物理学家布莱恩格林说，“但是，对他而言，想要成名会难很多。”

1. to be heard在这里字面意思就是被人听见，在文中自然表示被大众所知，即出名、成名。

[Especially] considering 1 what Einstein was proposing 2.

尤其是考虑到爱因斯坦所提出的理论。

注：1.considering在这里是动词的ing形式，是现在分词，作句子的谓语，可以将全句理解成Especially when it is considering what…

2. propose vt. 提议，建议；提名，推荐。例：

Tom proposed that we should go out for dinner.

汤姆提议我们出去吃饭。

I was proposed for chairman of the club.

我被推荐为俱乐部的主席

In September the administration will propose fuel-efficiency standards for the nine years from 2017.

在九月份，政府部门将提出燃料效率标准供2017年之后的九年使用。

[原文中就效率每年提升3%还是6%进行了讨论，这将影响到2025年，所以从2017年算起，的确是9年，只是从文章中拿出一句话显得有些奇怪罢了。][选自：ECONOMIST: The politics of the pump]

vi.(向某人)求婚。例：

Jim proposed to Mary.

吉姆想玛丽求婚了。

“The actual fabric 1 (of space and time) curving 2? ^My God^, what an idea!” Greene said [at a recent gathering] [at the Aspen Institute]. “It takes a certain type (of person) (who will bang 3 his head [against the wall]) [because you believe you’ll find the solution.]”

“时空的实际结构是弯曲的？天啊，这是一个什么样的想法啊！”格林在奥斯本学会举办的最近一次会上说道，“你要是认为你会找到答案，肯定有人会撞墙的。”

注：1. fabric n. 织物；结构。例：

Synthetic fabrics usually don’t wrinkle as easily as cotton.

人造纤维织物一般没有棉织物那么容易起皱。

The whole fabric of society was changed by the revolution.

这场革命改变了社会架构。

2. curving adj. 弯曲的。这里省略了is，所以直接作表语。口语中经常省略，就好比我们说“啊，这东西弯的？”我们并没有说“是”字，但表达的意思仍旧是“这东西是弯的”。例：

These two lines are curving.

这两条线是弯曲吗？

In the distance, he could see a swimming pool with curving sides, overhung by chinar trees and willows.

远处，他看到两边弯曲的游泳池，被法国梧桐和柳树悬挂了起来。

[选自：NEWYORKER: A Spoiled Man]

3. bang n. 砰砰的声音；猛击，猛撞。在翻译的时候，我们把“用头撞”的“头”给省略了，因为在中文的习惯表达中，说一个人撞墙，那一定是用头撞了。例：

The impolite boy shutting the door with a bang.

那个没礼貌的男孩把门嘭的一声关上了。

v. 发出砰的一声。例：

bang on/at the door砰砰地敲门

The door banged open and came in Tom.

门砰的一声开了，汤姆走进来了。

vt. 猛撞着某人（某物）；猛击  

bang against/into 猛撞着某人（某物）。例：

The drunk guy banged into the tree.

那个醉鬼撞在了树上。

Rose banged the robber over the head with a stick.

露丝用棍子猛击那个劫匪的头。

[Perhaps] the best examples are the five scientific papers (Einstein wrote [in his “miracle year”] (of 1905).) These “thought experiments” were pages of calculations 1(signed and submitted 2 to the prestigious 3 journal) {Annalen der Physik} [by a virtual unknown]. There were no footnotes or citations.

或许最好的例子是爱因斯坦在1905年他的“奇迹年”里所写的5篇科学论文。这些“思想实验”就是一页页的运算，由一个实际上默默无闻的人投给赫赫有名的《物理学年鉴》杂志。论文中没有任何脚注或引用。

注：1. calculation n. 计算，盘算；计算的结果；深思熟虑，慎重的计划。例：

A computer can do a calculation in a minute.

计算机可以在一瞬间做一次计算。

2. submit vi.(to)使屈服，服从。例：

After many times failure,I submitted to fate.

多次失败后，我向命运屈服了。

vt. (to)呈送，提交。文中此意。例：

A sketch of the long report by the budget committed to the mayor.

预算委员会向市长递交了一份长篇报告的梗概。

3. prestigious adj.受尊敬的，有声望的。例：

He is a prestigious man in our village.

他是我们村里很有声望的人。

In 2005, he and his ensemble won Britain’s most prestigious music award, the Mercury Prize.

在2005年，他和他的合奏团荣获了英国最负盛名的音乐大奖——水星音乐奖。

[选自：NPR: Antony Hegarty's Otherworldly Sound]

4. footnote n. 脚注；补充说明。例：

Don’t forget to add the footnotes.

别忘了添加脚注。

vt. 给...添加脚注。例：

Tom is footnoting this sentence.

汤姆在为这个句子添加脚注。

5. citation n.引用，引文；表彰。例：

His citation says he showed outstanding and exemplary courage.

颁给他的嘉奖令称他表现出非凡的勇气，堪为表率。

They were discovered in nature for the first time in 2009, according to the citation.

据引文提到，准晶体管在自然界首次被发现是2009年。

What might happen to [such] a submission 1 [today]?

这样的投稿放在今天会怎样？

注：1. submission n. 投稿

You need to ensure that your submission adheres to the BBC’s Terms of Use.

敬请留意您的投稿符合英国广播的条款。

[选自：BBC: Your Pictures: Your Wales]

“We {all} get papers (like those) [in the mail 1],” Greene said. “We put them [in the junk file].”

“我们大家都收到过像那样的论文邮件，我们总是将它们扔进垃圾邮件文件夹，”格林说。

注：1. in the mail在邮件里。例：

But when was the last time you got a personal letter in the mail?

但是你们上一次收到私人邮件是什么时候？

[选自：NPR: Read Any Good Personal Letters Lately? Me Neither]