The Ascent of Man By J. Bronowski: 科學家佳偶Dr. Bronowski closed the article by recalling the heroism of the atomic weapons specialist Louis Slotin who, when his screwdriver slipped during the delicate operation of manipulating the core of a plutonium bomb, causing a huge shower of deadly neutrons, pulled the pieces of the bomb apart with his own hands.
By this act, Mr. Slotin sentenced himself to death by radiation sickness nine days later, but he saved seven colleagues in the room. Dr. Bronowski commented, “Morality — shall we call it heroism in this case —has the same anatomy the world over.”
In 1950, Dr. Bronowski became head of research for Britain's National Coal Board, which took over all British coal mines when they were nationalized after World War II. He held this post for 13 years, while the board's researchers worked to develop “smokeless” fuels to burn in British grates.
Often Witty
A short, stocky man, Dr. Bronowski was often witty, even sarcastic, in conversation. When interviewed on television, he made intent, dramatic pauses while he thought of answers to questions. He wrote many books, including the well‐known “Science and Human Values,” and two plays. He was a frequent participant in the B.B.C. radio show “Brains Trust,” a counterpart to “Information Please” in the United States.
One of Dr. Bronowski's deepest interests was the 19th century English artist and poet William Blake. He became an authority on Blake, about whom he wrote a book, “William Blake and the Age of Revolution.”
布朗諾夫斯基博士在文章結尾回顧了原子武器專家路易斯·斯洛廷的英雄事蹟。在操作鈽彈核心的精細操作過程中,他的螺絲起子滑落,導致中子大量噴湧而出,斯洛廷親手將炸彈碎片拆開。
斯洛廷先生的這一舉動,使他在九天後因輻射病而被判死刑,但他卻救了房間裡的七名同事。布朗諾夫斯基博士評論道:“道德——在這種情況下,我們不妨稱之為英雄主義——在世界各地都擁有相同的本質。”
1950年,布朗諾夫斯基博士成為英國國家煤炭委員會的研究主管,該委員會在二戰後接管了所有被國有化的英國煤礦。他擔任該職位13年,在此期間,委員會的研究人員致力於研發在英國爐排中燃燒的「無菸」燃料。
妙語連珠
布羅諾夫斯基博士身材矮壯,談吐風趣,甚至帶有諷刺意味。在接受電視採訪時,他會在思考問題答案時,故意做出戲劇性的停頓。他著述頗豐,包括著名的《科學與人類價值》和兩部戲劇。他經常參加英國廣播公司(BBC)的廣播節目“智囊團”(Brains Trust),該節目相當於美國的“請提供資訊”(Information Please)。
布羅諾夫斯基博士最深厚的興趣之一是19世紀英國藝術家兼詩人威廉布萊克。他成為了布萊克研究的權威,並撰寫了一本關於布萊克的書,名為《威廉布萊克與革命時代》。
Report on Hiroshima
In World War II, Dr. Bronnowski headed statistical groups studying the effects of bombing on industry and the economy. This was one of the origins of what became known as “operations research.” In 1945, he was scientific deputy of the, British Chiefs of Staff mission to Japan, where he wrote a report called “The Effects of Atomic Bombs at Hiroshima and Nagasaki.”
In an article in The Saturday Evening Post in 1960, Dr. Bronowski wrote of his experience, “When I saw the inhuman desolation of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, I was convinced that the development of atomic weapons could lead to the destruction of mankind.”
In the same article, however, he said public fears that scientists who had worked on such weapons had lost their sense of right and wrong were mistaken. “On the contrary, I have found that the conscience of scientists is the most active morality in the world,” he wrote.
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