摘录一则（on “Practical usefulness”）
Posted: October 13th, 2008 | Author: 李笑来Filed under: 随便想想 | 8 Comments »
今天在网上搜索“the importance of phonetics”时，找到一篇Otto Jespersen教授于1909年在哥伦比亚大学系列讲座的其中一篇：“What is the use of phonetics?”。其中的一段文字实在令人印象深刻：
... The true man of science pursues his inquiries without asking at every point about the use of examining this or that. A zoologist will not be deterred from examining the habits of ants or the muscular structure of their hindlegs by the cry of the man in the street that it is no use knowing all these things; he will go on patiently observing his animals in exactly the same conscientious and laborious way as if each little step in advance meant so much money saved or gained for mankind, or so much food for the poor. The truly scientific mind does not ask about profit or use, but tries by every accessible means to add to human knowledge and to our intelligent understanding of the wonderful world that surrounds us.
Still, the question about utility is not quite futile; only it should not be urged in the first place, and it should never stand in the way of scientific research, however useless it may seem in the eyes of the uninitiated. Science is useful; but often it is so in a roundabout or indirect way. When my countryman Oersted discovered that an electric current influenced the movements of a magnetic needle, he made a great step forward in science. He immediately saw the immense importance of his discovery for our knowledge of the great mystical powers of electricity and magnetism; he did not stop to ask himself about the practical usefulness of such knowledge; his concern was exclusively with the theoretical side of the question, and joyfully he sent out the message to his brother scientists that here was one important problem solved. But then, your countryman (1) Morse seized upon this theoretical discovery and turned it to practical account: the electric telegraph came into existence, and everybody saw the use of Oersted's discovery. In the same manner purely scientific investigations may unexpectedly lead to some great practical result: the observation of the habits of mosquitoes leads to the diminution of malaria and other diseases, and research work in chemistry may eventually benefit mankind in some way not at all anticipated by the original initiator.
Practical usefulness thus often comes in at the back door, tho it should not be our primary object in scientific pursuits...
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我记得自己在上学的时候，每次有一门新的课程，如果是自己认为不太有意思的课程，总会跑上去问老师“这门课究竟有什么用处？”
现在想想，可能自己真有点太急功近利了，是不是这样呢？笑来老师？
the importance of phonetics吧
to 一天一天：
嗯，是啊。改过。谢谢。
老师，看您的博客有一年多了。一直就想跟您说声谢谢。并不是为了跟您套近乎，因为有很多次在我被一些问题捆饶的很深的时候都在您这里获得了几乎是能得到的最好的答案。
[...] 令人哭笑不得的是，人们往往拒绝做一些实际上有意义的事情，是基于“实用主义”。实际上，学习永远是无本万利、稳赚不赔的活动（也许有人不同意，这事儿实在难以争论）。很多人习惯于在行动之前一定要问一个“做这事情有什么用？”尽管这本身通常是没有错的，但是，在学习的时候问这个问题就很可能是不明智的了。最终有成就的人有一个共性，就是他们永远保持旺盛的“好奇心”，对学习“永不厌倦”，在求知的路上一向懒得问“学它有什么用？”另外，请点击这个链接，读读其中的文字，也许也会让读者有另外一番思考。多读书，多思考，多学习，从来都不是坏事儿，为什么一定要亲自体会“书到用时方很少”呢？ [...]
[...] 令人哭笑不得的是，人们往往拒绝做一些实际上有意义的事情，是基于“实用主义”。实际上，学习永远是无本万利、稳赚不赔的活动（也许有人不同意，这事儿实在难以争论）。很多人习惯于在行动之前一定要问一个“做这事情有什么用？”尽管这本身通常是没有错的，但是，在学习的时候问这个问题就很可能是不明智的了。最终有成就的人有一个共性，就是他们永远保持旺盛的“好奇心”，对学习“永不厌倦”，在求知的路上一向懒得问“学它有什么用？”另外，请点击这个链接，读读其中的文字，也许也会让读者有另外一番思考。多读书，多思考，多学习，从来都不是坏事儿，为什么一定要亲自体会“书到用时方很少”呢？ [...]
[...] 令人哭笑不得的是，人们往往拒绝做一些实际上有意义的事情，是基于“实用主义”。实际上，学习永远是无本万利、稳赚不赔的活动（也许有人不同意，这事儿实在难以争论）。很多人习惯于在行动之前一定要问一个“做这事情有什么用？”尽管这本身通常是没有错的，但是，在学习的时候问这个问题就很可能是不明智的了。最终有成就的人有一个共性，就是他们永远保持旺盛的“好奇心”，对学习“永不厌倦”，在求知的路上一向懒得问“学它有什么用？”另外，请点击这个链接，读读其中的文字，也许也会让读者有另外一番思考。多读书，多思考，多学习，从来都不是坏事儿，为什么一定要亲自体会“书到用时方很少”呢？ [...]
he will go on patiently observing his animals in exactly the same conscientious and laborious way as if each little step in advance meant so much money saved or gained for mankind, or so much food for the poor.
朴素的逻辑，用自嘲的方式说出来，要是有同感的人，估计有点感动了。