Now，gentlemen，I refer to these trifles as a collateral assurance to you that the Englishmen who shall humbly strive，as I hope to do，to be in England as faithful to America as to England herself，have no previous conceptions to contend against.
诵读名句
So this award is only mine in trust.
Our tragedy today is a general and universal physical fear so long sustained7 by now that we can even bear it.
The poet’s voice need not merely be the record of man，it can be one of the props，the pillars to help him endure and prevail.
The Origin of the Universe
史蒂芬·威廉·霍金：宇宙的起源
Stephen William Hawking/史蒂芬·威廉·霍金
According to the Boshongo people of central Africa，in the beginning there was only darkness，water，and the great god Bumba. One day Bumba，in pain from a stomach ache，vomited up the sun. The sun dried up some of the water，leaving land. Still in pain，Bumba vomited up the moon，the stars，and then some animals：the leopard，the crocodile，the turtle，and，finally man.
This creation myth，like many others，tries to answer the questions we all ask. Why are we here? Where did we come from? The answer generally given was that humans were of comparatively recent origin，because it must have been obvious，even at early times，that the human race was improving in knowledge and technology. So it can’t have been around that long，or it would have progressed even more. For example，The Book of Genesis placed the creation of the world at 9 am on October the 23th，4，004 BC. On the other hand，the physical surroundings，like mountains and rivers，change very little in a human life time. They were therefore thought to be a constant background，and either to have existed for ever as an empty landscape，or to have been created at the same time as the humans.
Not everyone however，was happy with the idea that the universe had a beginning. For example，Aristotle，the most famous of the Greek philosophers，believed the universe had existed forever. Something eternal is more perfect than something created. He suggested，the reason we see progress was that floods，or other natural disasters，had repeatedly set civilization back to the beginning. The motivation for believing in an eternal universe was the desire to avoid invoking divine intervention，to create the universe，and set it going. Conversely，those who believed the universe had a beginning，used it as an argument for the existence of God，as the first cause，or prime mover of the universe.
If one believed that the universe had a beginning，the obvious question was：What happened before the beginning? What was God doing before He made the world? Was He preparing Hell for people who asked such questions? The problem of whether or not the universe had a beginning，was a great concern to the German philosopher，Immanuel Kant. He felt there were logical contradictions，or Antinomies，either way. If the universe had a beginning，why did it wait an infinite time before it began? He called that the thesis. On the other hand，if the universe had existed forever，why did it take an infinite time to reach the present stage? He called that the antithesis. Both the thesis，and the antithesis，depended on Kant’s assumption，along with almost everyone else，that time was Absolute. That is to say，it went from the infinite past，to the infinite future，independently of any universe that might or might not exist in this background.
This is still the picture in the mind of many scientists today. However in 1915，Einstein introduced his revolutionary General Theory of Relativity. In this，space and time were no longer Absolute，no longer a fixed background to events. Instead，they were dynamical quantities that were shaped by the matter and energy in the universe. They were defined only within the universe，so it made no sense to talk of a time before the universe began.
If the universe was essentially unchanging in time，as was generally assumed before the 1920s，there would be no reason that time should not be defined arbitrarily far back. Any so-called beginning of the universe，would be artificial，in the sense that one could extend the history back to earlier times. Thus it might be that the universe was created last year，but with all the memories and physical evidence，to look like it was much older. This raises deep philosophical questions about the meaning of existence. I shall deal with these by adopting what is called the positivist approach. In this，the idea is that we interpret the input from our senses in terms of a model we make of the world. One can not ask whether the model represents reality，only whether it works. A model is a good model if it first，interprets a wide range of observations，in terms of a simple and elegant model. And second，if the model makes definite predictions that can be tested，and possibly falsified by observation.
…
We do not yet have a good theoretical understanding of the observations that the expansion of the universe is accelerating again，after a long period of slowing down. Without such an understanding，we can not be sure of the future of the universe. Will it continue to expand forever? Is inflation a law of Nature? Or will the universe eventually collapse again? New observational results and theoretical advances are coming in rapidly. Cosmology is a very exciting and active subject. We are getting close to answering the age old questions. Why are we here? Where did we come from?
Thank you！
根据中非Boshongo人的传说，世界太初只有黑暗、水和伟大的Bumba上帝。一天，Bumba胃痛发作，呕吐出太阳。太阳灼干了一些水，留下土地。他仍然胃痛不止，又吐出了月亮和星辰，然后吐出一些动物，豹、鳄鱼、乌龟，最后是人。
这个创世纪的神话，和其他许多神话一样，试图回答我们大家都想问的问题：为何我们在此？我们从何而来？一般的答案是，人类的起源是发生在比较近期的事。人类正在知识上和技术上不断地取得进步。这样，它不可能存在那么久，否则的话，它应该取得更大的进步。这一点甚至在更早的时候就应该很清楚了。例如，《创世纪》把世界的创生定于公元前4004年10月23日上午9时。另一方面，诸如山岳和河流的自然环境，在人的生命周期里改变甚微。所以人们通常把它们当作不变的背景。要么作为空洞的风景已经存在了无限久，要么是和人类在相同的时刻被创生出来。
但是并非所有人都喜欢宇宙有个开端的思想。例如，希腊最著名的哲学家亚里士多德，相信宇宙已经存在了无限久的时间。某种永恒的东西比某种创生的东西更完美。他提出我们之所以看到发展处于这个情形，那是因为洪水或者其他自然灾害，不断让文明回复到萌芽阶段。信仰永恒宇宙的动机是想避免求助于神意的干涉，以创生宇宙并起始运行。相反的，那些相信宇宙具有开端的人，将开端当作上帝存在的论据，把上帝当作宇宙的第一原因或者原动力。
如果人们相信宇宙有一个开端，那么很明显的问题是，在开端之前发生了什么？上帝在创造宇宙之前在做什么？他是在为那些诘问这类问题的人准备地狱吗？德国哲学家伊曼努尔·康德十分关心宇宙有无开端的问题。他觉得，不管宇宙有无开端，都会引起逻辑矛盾或者二律背反。如果宇宙有一个开端，为何在它起始之前要等待无限久。他将此称为正题。另一方面，如果宇宙已经存在了无限久，为什么它要花费无限长的时间才达到现在这个阶段。他把此称为反题。无论正题还是反题，都是基于康德的假设，几乎所有人也是这么办的，那就是，时间是绝对的，也就是说，时间从无限的过去向无限的将来流逝。时间独立于宇宙，在这个背景中，宇宙可以存在，也可以不存在。
直至今天，在许多科学家的心中，仍然保持这样的图景。然而，1915年爱因斯坦提出他的革命性的广义相对论。在该理论中，空间和时间不再是绝对的，不再是事件的固定背景。相反的，它们是动力量，宇宙中的物质和能量确定其形状。它们只有在宇宙之中才能够定义。这样谈论宇宙开端之前的时间是毫无意义的。
如果宇宙随时间本质上不变，正如20 世纪20年代之前一般认为的那样，就没有理由阻止在过去任意早的时刻定义时间。人们总可以将历史往更早的时刻延展，在这个意义上，任何所谓的宇宙开端都是人为的。于是，情形可以是这样，这个宇宙是去年创生的，但是所有记忆和物理证据都显得它要古老得多。这就产生了有关存在意义的高深哲学问题。我将采用所谓的实证主义方法来对付这些问题。在这个方法中，其思想是，我们按照我们构造世界的模型来解释自己感官的输入。人们不能询问这个模型是否代表实在，只能问它能否行得通。首先，如果按照一个简单而优雅的模型可以解释大量的观测；其次，如果这个模型作出可能被观察检验，也可能被证伪的明确预言，这个模型即是一个好模型。
……
我们观察到，宇宙的膨胀在长期的变缓之后，再次加速。对此理论还不能理解清楚。缺乏这种理解，对宇宙的未来还无法确定。它会继续地、无限地膨胀下去吗？暴胀是一个自然定律吗？或者宇宙最终会再次坍缩吗？新的观测结果，理论的进步正迅速涌来。宇宙学是一个非常激动人心和活跃的学科。我们正慢慢接近这个古老问题的答案：我们为何在此？我们从何而来？
谢谢各位。
导读
2006年6月19日，世界科学大师斯蒂芬·霍金教授参加在人民大会堂举行的国际弦理论大会开幕式，并作“宇宙的起源”主题讲座。霍金，现任英国剑桥大学应用数学及理论物理学系教授，当代最重要的广义相对论和宇宙论家，是本世纪享有国际盛誉的伟人之一，被称为在世的最伟大的科学家，还被称为“宇宙之王”。
诵读名句
If one believed that the universe had a beginning，the obvious question was：What happened before the beginning?
If the universe was essentially unchanging in time，as was generally assumed before the 1920s，there would be no reason that time should not be defined arbitrarily far back.
New observational results and theoretical advances are coming in rapidly. Cosmology is a very exciting and active subject.
The Secret of Success
《钻石宝地》之致富的奥秘
Russell. H. Conwell/拉塞尔·H·康维尔
The best thing can do is to illustrate by actual facts well-known to you all. A. T. Stewart，a poor boy in New York，had $l.50 to begin life on. He lost 87.5 cents of that on the very first venture. How fortunate that young man who loses the first time he gambles. That boy said，“I will never gamble again in business，”and he never did. How came he to lose 87.5 cents? You probably all know the story how he lost it—because he bought some needles，threads，and buttons to sell which people did not want，and had them left on his hands，a dead loss. Said the boy，“I will not lose any more money in that way.”Then he went around first to the doors and asked the people what they did want. Then when he had found out what they wanted he invested his 62.5 cents to supply a known demand. Study it wherever you choose—in business，in your profession，in your housekeeping，whatever your life，that one thing is the secret of success.You must first know the demand. You must first know what people need，and then invest yourself where you are most needed. A. T. Stewart went on that principle until he was worth what amounted afterward to forty millions of dollars，owning the very store in which Mr. Wanamaker carries on his great work in NewYork. His fortune was made hy his losing something，which taught him the great lesson that he must only invest himself or his money in something that people need. When will you salesmen learn it? When will you manufacturers learn that you must know the changing needs of humanity if you would succeed in life?Apply yourselves，all you Christian people，as manufacturers or merchants or workmen to supply that human need. It is a great principle as broad as humanity and as deep as the Scripture itself.
The best illustration I ever heard was of John Jacoh Astor. You know that he made the money of the Astor family when he lived in New York. He came across the sea in debt for his fare.But that poor hoy with nothing in his pocket made the fortune of the Astor family on one principle. Some young man here tonight will say，“Well they could make those fortunes over in New York but they could not do it in Philadelphia!”My friends，did you ever read that wonderful book of Riis，wherein is given his statistical account of the records taken in 1889 of 107 millionaires of New York. If you read the account you will see that out of the 107 millionaires only seven made their money in New York.Out of the l07 millionaires worth ten million dollars in real estate then，67 of them made their money in towns of less than 3，500 inhabitants. The richest man in this country today，if you read the real estate values，has never moved away from a town of 3，500 inhabitants. It makes not so much difference where you are as who you are. But if you cannot get rich in Philadelphia you certainly cannot do it in New York.
我所能做的、证明这个道理的最佳方式，就是给你们讲一个众所周知的实例。斯图亚特是纽约的一个穷孩子，他最开始谋生的时候，只有1.5美元。做第一笔生意时，他就赔了87.5美分。第一次冒险就失败的年轻人是多么幸运啊！他说：“我再也不会在生意上冒险了。”他确实也做到了。他是怎么损失这87.5美分的呢？你们可能都知道这个故事——因为他买了一些针、线和纽扣，卖给那些不需要的人，结果都压在手里，成了废物。他说：“我再也不会像这样糟蹋钱了。”然后他就挨家挨户地问人们需要什么。当他弄清楚之后，就用剩下的62.5美分来满足人们的需求。无论你选择做什么——做生意、上班、做家务，生活中的任何事，都要认真地研究，这就是成功的秘诀。你必须首先了解需求，知道人们需要什么，然后投身到最需要你的领域中去。斯图亚特先生一直都遵循这个原则，后来他赚了4，000万美元；现在，在纽约他所开的商店里，沃纳梅克先生正在继续着他那伟大的事业。他的财富是从损失中得来的，他也从中吸取到了一个重要的教训：必须要把资金和精力投入到人们的需要之中去。推销员们，你们什么时候才能领会到这一点呢？制造商们，你们什么时候才能明白，如果想成功，就一定要了解人们不断变化的需求？所有的人，所有的基督徒，无论是制造商、商人，还是工人，都应满足人们的需要。这个伟大的原则就像《圣经》的经文一样意义深远，它适用于全人类。
我所知道的最好的例子，是关于约翰·雅各布·阿斯特的。你们知道，他在纽约时，为阿斯特家族创造了巨额财富。他当初是借钱买船票漂洋过海而来的，但这个身无分文的穷孩子，凭着一个原则，创造了阿斯特家族的奇迹。今晚在场的某个年轻人会说：“他们在纽约能创造财富，但在费城就做不到！”朋友们，你们读过里斯写的那本精彩的书吗？书中记载了1889年纽约的107个百万富翁的数据资料。如果你们看过这些记录就会发现，在这107个富翁中，只有7位是在纽约发家的。这107个百万富翁都拥有超过1，000万美元的不动产，其中有67人是在不足3，500人的小镇上发家的。如果你读一读这些不动产的数据的话，就会发现，这个国家现在最富有的人，毕生都没有离开过只有3，500户居民的小镇。这就说明，你是谁，或者你在哪里，并不是那么重要；如果你在费城赚不到钱的话，在纽约你也同样赚不到。
导读
拉塞尔·H·康维尔，美国著名律师、作家、演讲大师。《钻石宝地》是根据他在家乡费城的一次著名演讲整理而成。自问世以来，一直畅销不衰。其中所倡导的关于自我与梦想的观点影响了无数的读者，帮助许多寻梦的美国人实现了自己的愿望。
诵读名句
You must first know what people need，and then invest yourself where you are most needed.
Apply yourselves，all you Christian people，as manufacturers or merchants orworkmen to supply that human need It is a great principle as broad as humanity and as deep as the Scripture itself.
It makes not so much difference where you are as who you are. But if you cannot get rich in Philadelphia you certainly cannot do it in New York.
You Get an Office Full of Crackerjacks
乔治·H·洛里默：让身边的员工成为精英
George H. Lorimer/乔治·H·洛里默
Health is like any inheritance—you can spend the interest in work and play，but you mustn’t break into the principal. Once you do，and it’s only a matter of time before you’ve got to place the remnants in the hands of a doctor as receiver.
It’s a mighty simple thing，though，to keep in good condition because about everything that makes for poor health has to get into you right under your nose.
Bad health hates a man who is friendly with its enemies. More men die from worry than from overwork，more stuff themselves to death than die of starvation. If the human animal reposed less confidence in his stomach and more in his legs，the streets would be full of healthy men walking down to business. Remember that a man always rides to his grave，he never walks there.
When I was a boy，the only doubt about the food was whether there would be enough of it. I dwell on this matter of health，because when the stomach and liver aren’t doing good work，the brain can’t.
A good many men will say that it’s none of your business what they do in their own time，but you want to make it your business，so long as it affects what they do in your time. For this reason，you should never hire men who drink after office hours. It may have been the case once that when you opened up a bottle for a customer he opened up his heart，but booze is a mighty poor salesman nowadays. Most of the men who mixed their business and their drinks have failed.
Naturally，when you expect so much from your men，they have a right to expect a good deal from you. If you want them to feel that your interests are theirs，you must let them see that their interests are yours. There are a lot of fellows in the world who are working just for glory，but they are mostly poets，and you needn’t figure on finding many of them out at the Stock Yards. Praise goes a long way with a good man，and some employers stop there.
Of course，the world is full of horses who won’t work except with the whip，but that’s no reason for using it on those who will.
A lot of people think that adversity and bad treatment is the test of a man，and it is—when you want to develop his strength；but prosperity and good treatment is a better one when you want to develop his weakness. By keeping those who show their appreciation of it and firing those who don’t，you get an office full of crackerjacks.
The men who stay in the office and plan are the brains of your business；those who go out and sell are its arms；and those who fill and deliver the orders are its legs. There’s no use in the brains scheming and the arms gathering in，if the legs are going to deliver the goods with a kick.
拥有健康就如同拥有了一笔宝贵的财产——你可以在工作和闲暇之余尽情享用这笔财产提供给你的“利息”。不过，你千万不要打破必须遵守的规则，否则去医生那里“报到”不过是个时间问题罢了。
相信不必多说，所有人都明白健康的重要性，因为你所做的每一件有损健康的事情都会“找上门来”。
没有健康的身体就如同你整日与敌人为伴一样。许多人都因为忧虑而并非操劳过度而离开了人世；越来越多的人因为暴饮暴食而非饥饿而离开人世。如果人类少信点胃，多信点腿，那么大街上应该挤满了步行去上班的人。要知道。乘车去找死神的人总会比徒步前行的人快得多。
在我小时候，食物让我引发的思考只局限于它们能否将我的肚子填饱。而我现在之所以会提及健康问题，是因为我知道当我们的胃不能正常工作时，我们的大脑往往也无法正常思考。
也许别人认为你无权过问他们在工作之余都做了哪些事情，但一旦他们在生活中所做的事情影响了你们的工作状态，你就必须把这件事当成自己的事情来处理。由此，永远不要雇用那些酗酒成性的人。当然，你难免会有与客户洽谈生意的时候，而开启瓶盖的那一瞬间往往就是使客户敞开心扉的时候。不过对于现代社会的人而言，只有能力较差的销售员才会选择这种摆酒宴的方法。许多人都会把公事和酒宴扯在一起，结果使自己在生意场上输得一败涂地。
