最新大學英語四級考前輔導試題及答案
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Method of Scientific Inquiry
Why the inductive and mathematical sciences, after their first rapid development at theculmination of Greek civilization, advanced so slowly for two thousand years—and why in thefollowing two hundred years a knowledge of natural and mathematical science has accumulated,which so vastly exceeds all that was previously known that these sciences may be justlyregarded as the products of our own times—are questions which have interested the modernphilosopher not less than the objects with which these sciences are more immediatelyconversant. Was it the employment of a new method of research, or in the exercise of greatervirtue in the use of the old methods, that this singular modern phenomenon had its origin?Was the long period one of arrested development, and is the modern era one of normal growth?Or should we ascribe the characteristics of both periods to so-called historical accidents—tothe influence of conjunctions in circumstances of which no explanation is possible, save in theomnipotence and wisdom of a guiding Providence?
The explanation which has become commonplace, that the ancients employed deductionchiefly in their scientific inquiries, while the moderns employ induction, proves to be toonarrow, and fails upon close examination to point with sufficient distinctness the contrastthat is evident between ancient and modern scientific doctrines and inquiries. For all knowledgeis founded on observation, and proceeds from this by analysis, by synthesis and analysis,by induction and deduction, and if possible by verification, or by new appeals toobservation under the guidance of deduction—by steps which are indeed correlative parts ofone method; and the ancient sciences afford examples of every one of these methods, or partsof one method, which have been generalized from the examples of science.
A failure to employ or to employ adequately any one of these partial methods, animperfection in the arts and resources of observation and experiment, carelessness inobservation, neglect of relevant facts, by appeal to experiment and observation—these arethe faults which cause all failures to ascertain truth, whether among the ancients or themoderns; but this statement does not explain why the modern is possessed of a greatervirtue, and by what means he attained his superiority. Much less does it explain the suddengrowth of science in recent times.
The attempt to discover the explanation of this phenomenon in the antithesis of “facts” and“theories” or “facts” and “ideas”—in the neglect among the ancients of the former, and their tooexclusive attention to the latter—proves also to be too narrow, as well as open to the charge ofvagueness. For in the first place, the antithesis is not complete. Facts and theories are notcoordinate species. Theories, if true, are facts—a particular class of facts indeed, generallycomplex, and if a logical connection subsists between their constituents, have all the positiveattributes of theories.
Nevertheless, this distinction, however inadequate it may be to explain the source of truemethod in science, is well founded, and connotes an important character in true method. A factis a proposition of simple. A theory, on the other hand, if true has all the characteristics of afact, except that its verification is possible only by indirect, remote, and difficult means. Toconvert theories into facts is to add simple verification, and the theory thus acquires the fullcharacteristics of a fact.
1. The title that best expresses the ideas of thispassage is
[A]. Philosophy of mathematics. [B]. The RecentGrowth in Science.
[C]. The Verification of Facts. [C]. Methods of Scientific Inquiry.
2. According to the author, one possible reason for the growth of science during thedays of the ancient Greeks and in modern times is
[A]. the similarity between the two periods.
[B]. that it was an act of God.
[C]. that both tried to develop the inductive method.
[D]. due to the decline of the deductive method.
3. The difference between “fact” and “theory”
[A]. is that the latter needs confirmation.
[B]. rests on the simplicity of the former.
[C]. is the difference between the modern scientists and the ancient Greeks.
[D]. helps us to understand the deductive method.
4. According to the author, mathematics is
[A]. an inductive science. [B]. in need of simple verification.
[C]. a deductive science. [D]. based on fact and theory.
5. The statement “Theories are facts” may be called.
[A]. a metaphor. [B]. a paradox.
[C]. an appraisal of the inductive and deductive methods.
[D]. a pun.
詞彙
1. inductive 歸納法
induction n.歸納法
2. deductive 演繹法 deduction n 演繹法
3. culmination 到達頂/極點
4. conversant (with) 熟悉的，精通的
5. exercise 運用，實行，執行儀式
singular 卓越的，非凡的，獨一無二的
6. conjunction 結合，同時發生
7. omnipotence 全能，無限權/威力
8. Providence (大寫)指上帝，天道，天令
9. commonplace 平凡的，陳腐的
10. inquiry 調查，探究(真理，知識等)
11. doctrine 教義，學説，講義
12. correlative 相互關聯的
13. antithesis 對立面，對偶(修辭學中)，對句
14. coordinate 同等的，並列的
15. subsist 生存，維持生活
16. attribute 特徵，屬性
17. connote 意味着，含蓄(指詞內涵)
長句解析
1. Why the inductive and mathematical sciences,after their first rapid development at theculmination of Greek civilization, advanced soslowly for two thousand years are questions whichhave interested the modern philosopher not less thanthe objects with which these sciences are more immediately conversant.
[結構簡析] 破折號後面的內容(見難句譯註2)先撇開。這樣便於理解，整個句子是主謂表結構，前面一個問題句作主語，question後跟一個定語從句，和not less than連接的表語。
[參考譯文] 為什麼歸納發和數學科學，在希臘文明達到頂點時首先快速發展後，兩千年內進展緩慢，現在哲學家對這個問題的興趣不亞於對這些科學很熟悉研究的對象。
2. …—and why in the following two hundred years a knowledge of natural andmathematical science has accumulated, which so vastly exceeds all that waspreviously known that these sciences may be justly regarded as the products of ourown times—…
[參考譯文] 問什麼在後來的二百年中自然科學數理科學積累起來，它們廣泛的超越了過去已知的一切，所以就把這些科學視為我們時代的產品。
3. arrested development 停滯發展(被制止了的發展)。
4. Or should we ascribe the characteristics of both periods to so-called historical accidents—tothe influence of conjunctions in circumstances of which no explanation is possible, save in theomnipotence and wisdom of a guiding Providence?
[參考譯文] 或者我們是否應當把兩個階段的特點歸因於所謂的歷史的偶然性(意外事件)——歸因於客觀環境中相似(結合)的影響。這一點除非以指導一切的上帝的智慧和無限權利來解釋，否則難以解説清楚。
答案解析
1. D. 科學研究/探索的方法。文章一開始就提出問題，為什麼從希臘文化頂峯時期後兩千年來歸納法和數學科學發展如此緩慢，而後的兩百年又超越了前人，是應用新，舊方法關係還是其它(見難句譯註1，2)。第二段講埃及古代在科學探索中運用了演繹推理法，而現在應用了歸納法。這種解釋太狹隘，經仔細審核，難以很清晰地點明古代和現代科學教義和探究上明顯的差別。因為一切知識都基於觀察，通過分析，綜合，或綜合分析，歸納演繹推理，有可能的話，經過校正或經由演繹指導下再觀察而向前推進。第三段進一步闡明不用這些方法觀察，實驗;忽略相關事實，推理不慎;不能答出理論的結論，再用實驗或觀察來檢驗等或用得不全，不論在古代還是現代都會失敗。但這不能説明為什麼現代科學具有較高的功效，通過什麼方式方法，超越了前人，更不用説説明最近科學突飛猛進的原因。第四，五段涉及事實和理論的關係。
A. 數學的哲學，文內沒有提。 B. 近來科學的發展。 C. 事實的驗證，只是最後兩段提及驗證方法之作用。
2. B. 是上天的安排，這是作家在用方法論等失敗後得出的結論。見難句譯註4，第一段最後一句話。
A. 兩個階段的相似性。 . 兩者都試圖應用歸納法。 D. 由於演繹法的衰落。
3. A. 後者需要證實。答案在第四，五段，死段試圖在事實的對立面和理論，或事實和思想中發現上述現象的解釋看起來有餓太狹隘，也會因模糊不清遭批評。因為，對立面不全面，事實和理論不是同類的`事物。理論，如果是真正的理論，就是事實——一種特殊類別的事實，一般複雜，但仍是事實。而事實，從詞的狹義來説，如果很複雜，如果各成分中存在着邏輯的聯繫，就具有理論的一切主要特徵。第五段第二句，事實是一個提議，通過運用知識的源泉和經驗而證實的提議直接而又簡單。而理論，若是真理論，就有事實的一切特性(除非其證實只能通過非直接的，遙遠的和困難的方式方法)，把理論轉成事實必須用簡單的核實，理論因此具有事實的一切特性。
B. 前者簡單。 C. 是現代科學家和古希臘的差異。 D. 幫助我們瞭解演繹法，三項都不對。
4. C. 是推理演繹科學，這個問題常識就能回答。
A. 歸納法科學。 B. 需要簡單證實。 D. 基於事實和理論。
5. B. 是一個悖論，見第四，五段註釋。
A. 比喻。 C. 對歸納法和演繹法的讚揚。 D. 雙關語。
