外國人最想和你聊的名人話題：牛頓

　About Newton　關于牛頓

     Sir Isaac Newton was an English physicist, mathematician, astronomer, natural philosopher, alchemist, and theologian.
     His monograph Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica, published in 1687, lays the foundations for most of classical mechanics and is one of the most important scientific books ever written. In this work, Newton described universal gravitation and the three laws of motion, which dominated the scientific view of the physical universe for the next three centuries. Newton showed that the motions of objects on Earth and of celestial bodies are governed by the same set of natural laws, by demonstrating the consistency between Kepler's laws of planetary motion and his theory of gravitation; thus removing the last doubts about heliocentrism and advancing the Scientific Revolution.
     Newton built the first practical reflecting telescope and developed a theory of colour based on the observation that a prism decomposes white light into the many colours that form the visible spectrum. He also formulated an empirical law of cooling and studied the speed of sound.
     In mathematics, Newton shares the credit with Gottfried Leibniz for the development of differential and integral calculus. He also demonstrated the generalised binomial theorem, developed Newton's method for approximating the roots of a function, and contributed to the study of power series.
     Newton was also highly religious. He was an unorthodox Christian, and wrote more on Biblical hermeneutics and occult studies than on science and mathematics, the subjects he is mainly associated with. Newton secretly rejected Trinitarianism, fearing to be accused of refusing holy orders.
     牛頓的研究領域非常廣泛，他除了在數(shù)學、光學、力學等方面作出卓越貢獻外，他還花費大量精力進行化學實驗。他常常六個星期一直留在實驗室里，不分晝夜地工作。他在化學上花費的時間并不少，卻幾乎沒有取得什么顯著的成就。為什么同樣一個偉大的牛頓，在不同的領域取得的成就竟那么不一樣呢？其中一個原因就是各個學科處在不同的發(fā)展階段。在力學和天文學方面，有伽利略、開普勒、惠更斯等人的努力，牛頓有可能用已經(jīng)準備好的材料，建立起一座宏偉壯麗的力學大廈。正像他自己所說的那樣"如果說我看得遠，那是因為我站在巨人的肩上"。而在化學方面，因為正確的道路還沒有開辟出來，牛頓沒法走到可以砍伐材料的地方。
     牛頓在臨終前對自己的生活道路是這樣總結的："我不知道在別人看來，我是什么樣的人，但在我自己看來，我不過就像是一個在海濱玩耍的小孩，為不時發(fā)現(xiàn)比尋常更為光滑的一塊卵石或比尋常更為美麗的一片貝殼而沾沾自喜，而對于展現(xiàn)在我面前的浩瀚的真理的海洋，卻全然沒有發(fā)現(xiàn)。"

     We're delighted to take this piece of Sir Isaac Newton's apple tree to orbit.
     我們很高興能將牛頓爵士那顆蘋果樹上的樹枝帶入太空。
     He was quite probably the best British theoretical physicist since Isaac Newton.
     自牛頓之后，他也許是英國最偉大的理論物理學家了。
     Today, Harry Monroe and I report on one of the world's greatest scientists, Isaac Newton.
     今天，我和哈里·門羅將向你講述世界上最偉大的科學家牛頓的故事。
     Isaac Newton, besides being the founder of modern physics, was also master of Britain's mint.
     牛頓是現(xiàn)代物理學的奠基者，同時身兼英國造幣廠廠長。
     Sir Isaac Newton was very much smaller than a hippopotamus, but we do not on that account value him less.
     牛頓爵士比起河馬的體型可小多了，但是我們并不會因此貶低他。
     Two science representatives -Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein, their theories intensively referred to time.
     科學上兩次重大飛躍的代表人物牛頓和愛因斯坦，其理論都是和時間概念緊密相連的。
     By the age of 20, Isaac Newton found a general binomial theorem which lead to the later development of calculus.
     20歲的時候，牛頓發(fā)現(xiàn)了一個二項式定理，為以后發(fā)展微積分做好了準備。
     Isaac Newton, the great British scientist, was often so deep in his thoughts that he would forget to eat his dinner.
     英國著名科學家牛頓經(jīng)常沉浸在自己的思想中，忘了吃飯。
     Sir Isaac Newton was one of the pioneers in investigating viscosity, and on his analysis depends the definition of the coefficient.
     牛頓爵士是研究粘度的先驅者之一，粘性系數(shù)就是根據(jù)他的分析下的定義。
     Gravity was discovered by Isaac Newton.
     萬有引力是牛頓發(fā)現(xiàn)的。
     It is named for Isaac Newton, whose second law of motion describes the changes a force can produce in the motion of a body.
     它以科學家牛頓的名字命名，牛頓的第二運動定律描述了力所能產(chǎn)生的物體運動狀態(tài)的改變。
     Anyone who has ever gone to school is probably aware that Isaac Newton formed his theory of gravity after seeing an apple fall from a tree.
     凡是上過學的人大概都知道這個典故：牛頓在看到從樹上掉下的蘋果后，就創(chuàng)立了著名的萬有引力學說。
     When it comes to gravitation and the laws of motion, Isaac Newton didn't see the whole picture either, but he remains one of science's giants.
     一提到萬有引力和運動定律，牛頓也沒有看到全貌，但他仍然是科學巨人之一。
     Isaac Newton, a British scientist, who lived over 300 years ago, said that he saw further than others because he stood on the shoulder of giants.
     牛頓，一位距今300年前的英國科學家，曾經(jīng)說他比別人看的更長遠是因為他站在巨人的肩膀上。
     Stephen Hawking is Lucasian professor of mathematics, a seat once occupied by Isaac Newton.
     霍金是拉卡斯數(shù)學教授，牛頓曾經(jīng)也擔任過此職位。
     Other monuments include those of Isaac Newton, scores of statesmen, and Poet's Corner, with memorials to centuries of authors including Chaucer, Shakespeare and Dickens.
     其他紀念碑包括艾薩克·牛頓、許多政治家、詩人的天地，還有紀念世紀作家的紀念碑，包括喬叟、莎士比亞和狄更斯。
     I'm looking forward to seeing Westminster abbey, where many historic figures are buried, like Isaac Newton, the great mathematician and Winston Churchill, the great wartime leader.
     我想看看威斯敏斯特大教堂、眾多歷史人物被埋葬的地方，比如偉大的數(shù)學家艾薩克·牛頓，以及著名的戰(zhàn)爭領袖溫斯頓·丘吉爾。
     Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein left profound legacies.
     牛頓與愛因斯坦都給世人留下了深厚的遺澤。
     It always falls down. That's how the apple helped Isaac Newton.
     它總是垂直下落，蘋果正是這樣啟發(fā)了艾薩克·牛頓。
     Isaac Newton is best known for explaining how gravity works.
     艾薩克·牛頓先生因解釋了地心引力是如何作用的而出名。
     I just think it's really important to get kids excited about science at an early age, because they might be the next Albert Einstein or Isaac Newton, or America's top young scientist.
     我認為，讓孩子們在年紀很小的時候就對科學感興趣非常重要。因為他們可能會是下一個愛因斯坦，牛頓，也可能是美國最優(yōu)秀的年輕科學家。
     And throughout history, men with great minds, like Augustine, Isaac Newton, and Leonardo Di Vinci, showed more than just a passing curiosity regarding the importance of biblical numbers.
     縱觀歷史上的偉人，如奧古斯丁、艾薩克·牛頓以及列昂納多·達·芬奇等，他們對于圣經(jīng)中的數(shù)字都表現(xiàn)出了極強的好奇心。
     The birthplace of the great scientist Isaac Newton is Woolsthorpe.
     大科學家牛頓的出生地是烏爾索普。

     Mike: Do you know the story of Newton?
     麥克：你知道牛頓的故事嗎？
     Daisy: Of course, the apple falls on his head.
     黛西：當然了，蘋果掉在了他的頭上。
     Mike: I've seen the apple tree; it's just an average tree.
     麥克：我見過那棵蘋果樹，它就只是個普通的樹。
     Daisy: The point is not the tree, it's who it hit.
     黛西：重點不是那棵樹，是他打到了誰。
     Mike: Yes, coincidentally, the apple falls on a genius.
     麥克：是的，巧合的是，蘋果掉在了一個天才的頭上。
     Daisy: Newton is such a great scientist.
     黛西：牛頓是一個非常偉大的科學家。
     Mike: He is very observant.
     麥克：他非常善于觀察。
     Daisy: But it is said that he does not have a good personality.
     黛西：但好像聽說他的性格不太好。
     Mike: Genius are always very wield.
     麥克：天才都很奇怪。
     Daisy: That's true.
     黛西：確實是。
     Mike: I hoped to be a scientist when I was young.
     麥克：我小時候也想成為一名科學家。
     Daisy: We all had dreams when we were young, but few come true.
     黛西：我們小時候都有夢想，但很少能實現(xiàn)。
     Mike: Yes, there's only one Newton.
     麥克：是的，牛頓只有一個。