Scientific Progress
Most scientific progress is the result of careful consideration of work that has already been done. The wonderful world which lies before us today has been put up by hardworking men with clear heads and inventive mind, and these who follow them along life’s road will improve on their efforts. It is sometimes necessary to question and even to disbelieve some of the statements made by experts. Action or experiment can often end an argument or achieve a breakthrough.
When men were wondering whether it was possible to reach India by sailing westwards from Europe, and whether there was any land on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, Christopher Columbus decides to act. He gathered some men, invited them to go on board his three ships, and set out across the dangerous waters of the Atlantic Ocean. He was successful in finding land, but it was not India. The result of his action was that the arguments came to the end.
Any young man who wishes to do research must be courageous enough to question old beliefs and do some original thinking about them. Although we seem to know so much, there are many things we don’t know. Even when we pull an atom to pieces, we do not really know what the pieces are, we often do not reach the reality behind what we discover, and the more we learn, the better we realize our ignorance.
小题1:Christopher Columbus decided to set out his trip because he wants to ________
A．travel round the world
B．bring words into action
C．discover the truth with action
D．bring the argument to an end小题2:According to the passage, the more we learn _______
A．the more ignorance we will become
B．the more brilliant we are
C．the more confident we are of ourselves
D．the more we know about our ignorance小题3:Our present wonderful world has been built up by _______
A．men who do not believe in others but themselves
B．those who work hard and dare to break way from old ideas
C．those who can make improvements on other people’s work
D．men who work extremely hard in following their teachers小题4:Columbus succeeded in finding out that_______
A．the Atlantic was dangerous to get across
B．India was to the west of the Atlantic
C．There was land on the other side of the Atlantic
D．it was possible sail to India by crossing the Atlantic