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1第1课知识的悖论TheParadoxofKnowledgeThegreatestachievementofhumankindinitslongevolutionfromancienthominoidancestorstoitspresentstatusistheacquisitionandaccumulationofavastbodyofknowledgeaboutitself,theworld,andtheuniverse.Theproductsofthisknowledgeareallthosethingsthat,intheaggregate,wecallcivilization,includinglanguage,science,literature,art,allthephysicalmechanisms,instruments,andstructuresweuse,andthephysicalinfrastructuresonwhichsocietyrelies.Mostofusassumethatinmodernsocietyknowledgeofallkindsiscontinuallyincreasingandtheaggregationofnewinformationintothecorpusofoursocialorcollectiveknowledgeissteadilyreducingtheareaofignoranceaboutourselves,theworld,andtheuniverse.Butcontinuingremindersofthenumerousareasofourpresentignoranceinviteacriticalanalysisofthisassumption.Inthepopularview,intellectualevolutionissimilarto,althoughmuchmorerapidthan,somaticevolution.Biologicalevolutionisoftendescribedbythestatementthatontogenyrecapitulatesphylogeny--meaningthattheindividualembryo,initsdevelopmentfromafertilizedovumintoahumanbaby,passesthroughsuccessivestagesinwhichitresemblesancestralformsofthehumanspecies.Thepopularviewisthathumankindhasprogressedfromastateofinnocentignorance,comparabletothatofaninfant,andgraduallyhasacquiredmoreandmoreknowledge,muchasachildlearnsinpassingthroughtheseveralgradesoftheeducationalsystem.Implicitinthisviewisanassumptionthatphylogenyresemblesontogeny,sothattherewillultimatelybeastageinwhichtheaccumulationofknowledgeisessentiallycomplete,atleastinspecificfields,asifsocietyhadgraduatedwithalltheadvanceddegreesthatsignifymasteryofimportantsubjects.Suchviewshave,infact,beenexpressedbysomeeminentscientists.In1894thegreatAmericanphysicistAlbertMichelsonsaidinatalkattheUniversityofChicago:WhileitisneversafetoaffirmthatthefutureofPhysicalSciencehasnomarvelsinstoreevenmoreastonishingthanthoseofthepast,itseemsprobablethatmostofthegrandunderlyingprincipleshavebeenfirmlyestablishedandthatfurtheradvancesaretobesoughtchieflyintherigorousapplicationoftheseprinciplestoallthephenomenawhichcomeunderournotice....ThefuturetruthsofPhysicalScienceatetobelookedforinthesixthplaceofdecimals.InthecenturysinceMichelson'stalk,scientistshavediscoveredmuchmorethantherefinementofmeasurementsinthesixthdecimalplace,andnoneiswillingtomakeasimilarstatementtoday.However,manystillclingtothenotionthatsucha2stateofknowledgeremainsapossibilitytobeattainedsoonerorlater.StephenHawking,thegreatEnglishscientist,inhisimmenselypopularbookABriefHistoryofTime(1988),concludeswiththespeculationthatwemaydiscoveracompletetheorythatwouldbetheultimatetriumphofhumanreason--forthenwewouldknowthemindofGod.PaulDavies,anAustralianphysicist,echoesthatviewbysuggestingthatthehumanmindmaybeabletograspsomeofthesecretsencompassedbythetitleofhisbookTheMindofGod(1992).Othercontemporaryscientistswriteoftheoriesofeverything,meaningtheoriesthatexplainallobservablephysicalphenomena,andNobelLaureateStevenWeinberg,oneofthefoundersofthecurrentstandardmodelofphysicaltheory,writesofhisDreamsofaFinalTheory(1992).Despitetheeminenceandobviousyearningoftheseandmanyothercontemporaryscientists,thereisnothinginthehistoryofsciencetosuggestthatanyadditionofdataortheoriestothebodyofscientificknowledgewilleverprovideanswerstoallquestionsinanyfield.Onthecontrary,thehistoryofscienceindicatesthatincreasingknowledgebringsawarenessofnewareasofignoranceandofnewquestionstobeanswered.Astronomyisthemostancientofthesciences,anditsdevelopmentisamodelofotherfieldsofknowledge.Peoplehavebeenobservingthestarsandothercelestialbodiessincethedawnofrecordedhistory.Asearlyas3000B.C.theBabyloniansrecognizedanumberoftheconstellations.InthesixthcenturyB.C.,PythagorasproposedthenotionofasphericalEarthandofauniversewithobjectsinitchatmovedinaccordancewithnaturallaws.LaterGreekphilosopherstaughtthattheskywasahollowglobesurroundingtheEarth,thatitwassupportedonanaxisrunningthroughtheEarth,andchatstarswereinlaidonitsinnersurface,whichrotatedwestwarddaily.InthesecondcenturyA.D.,Ptolemypropoundedatheoryofageocentric(Earth-centered)universeinwhichthesun,planets,andstarsmovedincircularorbitsofcyclesandepicyclesaroundtheEarth,althoughtheEarthwasnotattheprecisecenteroftheseorbits.Whilesomewhatawkward,thePtolemaicsystemcouldproducereasonablyreliablepredictionsofplanetarypositions,whichwere,however,goodforonlyafewyearsandwhichdevelopedsubstantialdiscrepanciesfromactualobservationsoveralongperiodoftime.Nevertheless,sincetherewasnoevidencethenapparenttoastronomersthattheEarthitselfmoves,thePtolemaicsystemremainedunchallengedformorethan13centuries.InthesixteenthcenturyNocolausCopernicus,whoissaidtohavemasteredalltheknowledgeofhisdayinmathematics,astronomy,medicine,andtheology,becamedissatisfiedwiththePtolemaicsystem.Hefoundthataheliocentricsystemwasboth3mathematicallypossibleandaestheticallymorepleasing,andwroteafullexpositionofhishypothesis,whichwasnotpublisheduntil1543,shortlyafterhisdeath.Earlyintheseventeenthcentury,JohannesKeplerbecameimperialmathematicianoftheHolyRomanEmpireuponthedeathofTychoBrahe,andheacqu