中英双语散文汇总精选
Two trains are traveling side by side and at the same speed along parallel tracks. We are seated in one of the trains, and with us we have a special speedometer that measures their relative speed. Since the trains are traveling at the same speed, their relative speed is zero; the speedometer therefore reads "0."
两列火车以相同的车速并排地沿着两条平行的轨道往前行驰。我们坐在其中的一列火车上带着特制的速度测量仪，可以测出两列火车之间的相对速度。因为这两列火车是以相同的车速前进的，所以二者的相对速度是零；因此，测速仪上的读数为“0”。
Suddenly the other train seems to start pulling ahead of ours. The speedometer shows a reading of 10 miles per hour. The other train has apparently increased its speed. But can we be absolutely certain of this increase?
突然间另一列火车使我们觉得好像是开始赶到我们所乘坐的火车前头去了。这时测速仪上显示出来的读数是每小时10英里。很显然，另一列火车已经加快了速度。但是，我们能不能肯定是另外那辆火车加快了速度呢？
If your answer is yes, you are wrong. You are wrong because all that we know is that the relative speed between the two trains changed from 0 mph to 10 mph. Nothing more. This change could have been brought about in one of two ways:
如果你回答说是的，那你就错了。你之所以是错了，我们所知道的仅仅是这两辆火车之间的相对速度由每小时0英里增加到了每小时10英里。仅此而已，这车速的变化很可能是由于下列两种原因中的任何一个原因所造成的：
The other train increased its speed.
另一列火车增加了车速。
Our train decreased its speed.
我们的火车降低了车速。
There are thus two possible explanations to account for the change in speed, but we don't know which one is right. Furthermore, regardless of which explanation we choose, the end result will be the same: the other train will arrive at the station first. So it makes no difference whether we say that the other train increased its speed or that our train decreased its speed.
因而对于车速的改变就可能有两种不同的解释，但是我们不知道哪一种解释是对的。进一步来说，不管我们选定了上述两种解释中的哪一种，反正最终的结果是同样的：另一列火车将首先抵达终点站。所以，不论我们说另一列火车加快了车速，还是说我们所乘的火车减慢了车速，实际上这两种说法没有什么区别。
Since both explanations lead to the same result, you can choose either one. Whenever two things are relative, you can choose either one of them. The converse is also true: whenever you have a choice between two things that are equally possible, then the things are relative.
既然上述两种解释会导致同样的结果，那么你选定任何一种解释都可以。不论任何时候，只要两件事物两种情况是相对的，那你就可以选定其中一种解释。逆真理亦真，每当你从有同样可能的两件事物中选定其中之一时，那么这两种事物之间就是相对的。
There is no reason, except convenience, for choosing one explanation over the other. The relative speed between the trains remains the same, 10 mph; and the end result will be the same.
除为了方便这个理由而外，我们选定了一种解释而不选另一种解释根本就没有其他别的原因。如果两列火车之间的相对速度依然相同，都是每小时10英里，那么最终的结果也会是相同的。
Now let's suppose that both trains are at the railroad station loading and unloading passengers and baggage. A half-hour passes. As we look at the other train through our window, we see that our train seems to start moving, smoothly and slowly. For a minute or so, our train seems to travel at a uniform speed. Our special speedometer shows that the relative speed between the two trains is 20 mph. But as we look out our window, we suddenly see the last coach of the other train disappear from sight and notice the motionless station behind it. So we are not moving after all. The other train has been moving!
现在我们假设两列火车都在火车站上在上下乘客或装卸行李。过了半小时以后，当我们透过车窗看另一列火车时，我们看到我们所乘的火车好像是在缓慢地平稳地开始开动了。约有一分钟左右，我们所乘的火车似乎是在以均匀的速度向前运行。我们特制的测速仪显示这两列火车的相对速度是每小时20英里。但当我们往窗外一看，这才突然看见另一列火车的最后一节车厢从我们的视野中正在消失，于是我们看到那一列火车后面留下的是不动的火车站。所以，我们所乘的火车根本就没有开动。原来是另外一辆火车在开动！
This peculiar and often frustrating experience is an effect of relative motion. At the train station we cannot tell whether it was our train that changed its speed from 0 mph to 20 mph or whether it was the other train that changed its speed from 0 mph to 20 mph. Only after the other train pulled out of the station could we see that it, and not our train, was moving.
这种奇特的而又经常使人沮丧的经历就是相对运动所产生的效应。在火车站上我们辨别不出是不是我们所乘坐的那一列火车把车速从每小时0英里改变成每小时20英里。只有当另一列火车驶出火车站之后，这我们才能明白原来是它在开动，而不是我们所乘坐的这列火车在开动。
Now let us again raise the question that was raised at the beginning of this article: can we be absolutely certain that the other train did indeed increase its speed, and in this case pull out of the station?
现在让我们再次提出本文开头所提出过的那个问题：我们能否绝对肯定确实是另一列火车加快了车速，在此情此景驶出了火车站呢？
If your answer is yes, then you are wrong again. All we can be certain of is that the relative speed between the two trains changed.
如果你回答说是的，那么你就又错了。我们所能够完全肯定的一点只是这两列火车之间的相对速度变了。
These examples illustrate an important principle in the special theory of relativity. If A appears to be moving at a steady speed relative to B, we cannot know for sure if it is A that is really moving. Perhaps A is standing still, and B is moving. Or perhaps both are moving. According to relativity, there is no experiment that can be devised to solve the problem. As there is no way of deciding which of the two objects is moving, we can choose either one as the moving object. The reason is that their motion is relative, and relativity, as we have seen, means that we have a choice.
这些例子阐明了特殊的相对论中的一个重要的原理。假如我们觉得A似乎是在用相对于B的一种很均匀的速度在移动，我们就不能肯定地确切知道是否就是A在真的移动。也许A仍在原地不动而是B在移动。或者，AB两者都在移动。根据相对论的说法，根本就不能构想出任何一个实验去解答这个问题。因为根本没有办法来确定这两个物体中哪一个物体在移动，所以我们可以把两个物体中的任何一个物体认定是在移动着的物体。理由就是他们的运动是相对的。正如我们所理解的那样，相对论就意味着我们可以选用一种解释了。
This principle - that if two objects are in uniform motion relative to each other, it is impossible to decide which one is moving and which one is at rest - applies to all objects moving uniformly in a straight line through the universe.
如果两个物体在以相互间相对的同等的运动速度在运动，若想判定哪一个物体在动，哪一个物体原地不动，这是不可能的。这一原理适用于整个宇宙中凡是作直线等速运动的一切物体。
In relativity you'll find that whenever you have a choice among things that are equally possible, you are dealing with relative things. For example, time, which is measured with clocks and watches, is relative because it can be shown that there is more than one system of time. All systems of time are equally possible and you can choose any system you with.
按着相对论的说法你就会发现，每当你在众多同样可能的事物中需要选定一种解释时，你就是在跟相对的事物打交道。例如，时间，虽然能用钟表加以测量，也是相对的，因为有不止一种时间体系可以来表示时间。所有的时间体系都同样有可能表示时间，所以你可以选用你所喜欢的时间体系来表示时间。
A Parable of a Child
A Parable of a Child
一个孩子的寓言
by Steve Goodier 李 瑾 译
父母说：“我有一个孩子，他/她将来会成为一名……”
孩子说：“我是你们的孩子，我将来会成为一名……”
省略号的内容由你决定！教育与经验之间是有区别的。教育就是从阅读文字所得到的`，而经验是从不阅读而得到的。看一个故事，你就会明白“伟大的学习来自于教育和经验的结合”。
一名青年教师梦见天使出现在他面前，对他说：“你将会有一个孩子，他/她将来会成为一名世界领袖。你得让她意识到自己的智慧，增长自信心，开发她果断不失细腻，虚心而又坚韧的性格特质，你会如何为她做准备呢？”
梦醒时，青年教师一身冷汗。他从没经历过这种事情。照梦中所说的，他现在或将来的学生之中的任何一个人都有可能有成为他梦中听到的那个人物。他准备好了要去帮助他们实现每一个志向吗？他默默想：“既然知道了某一个学生会成为那个人物，那么我的教学方式该怎么改变一下呢？”一步一步地，他已经开始暗自筹划了。
这名学生不仅需要有经历，而且需要有人指导。他的教学方式改变了。对他而言，每一个走过他教室的年轻人都有可能成为未来的世界领袖。他看这些学生时，不是看他们曾经是什么样子，而是看他们将来可能成为什么样子。他以一种平和的心态期盼学生发挥最大的潜力。他在教育学生时，仿佛世界的未来完全掌握在他的教导中。
多年以后，他所认识的一名女子成为举世瞩目的人物。这时他才悟出，她就是那晚梦中天使所说的那个女孩。只是，她不是他的学生，而是他的女儿。在女儿一生所遇到的老师之中，他是最棒的。
我听过这样一句话：“孩子是我们给自己无法预见的某个时间、某个地点所发送出去的活信息。”可这并不仅仅是一则有关一个无名教师的寓言，而是有关你我的寓言——不论我们是为人父母，还是为人师表。而这个故事——我们的故事，其实是这样开始的：
“你将有一个孩子，他/她将来会成为一名……”你来填完这个句子吧，如果不填“世界领袖”，那么“绝世好爸”也行；再要不“优秀教师”？“妙手神医”？“不按常理出牌的问题克星”？“鼓舞人心的艺术家”？或是“慷慨无私的慈善家”？
你会在何地、如何遇见这个孩子，那是一个谜。可是，你要相信，一个孩子的将来很有可能就取决于你给他/她所造成的影响；也要相信，孩子会出人头地的。对你来说，任何孩子都是不平凡的，你也因此脱胎换骨。
A young school teacher had a dream that an angel appeared to him and said, “You will be given a child who will grow up to become a world leader. How will you prepare her so that she will realize her intelligence, grow in confidence, develop both her assertiveness and sensitivity, be open-minded, yet strong in character？”
The young teacher awoke in a cold sweat. It had never occurred to him before——any ONE of his present or future students could be the person described in his dream. Was he preparing them to rise to ANY POSITION to which they may aspire？ He thought, “How might my teaching change if I KNEW that one of my students were this person？” He gradually began to formulate a plan in his mind.
This student would need experience as well as instruction. His teaching changed. Every young person who walked through his classroom became, for him, a future world leader. He saw each one, not as they were, but as they could be. He expected the best from his students, yet tempered it with compassion. He taught each one as if the future of the world depended on his instruction.
After many years, a woman he knew rose to a position of world prominence. He realized that she must surely have been the girl described in his dream. Only she was not one of his students, but rather his daughter. For of all the various teachers in her life, her father was the best.
I’ve heard it said that “Children are living messages we send to a time and place we will never see.” But this isn’t simply a parable about an unnamed school teacher. It is a parable about you and me——whether or not we are parents or even teachers. And the story, OUR story, actually begins like this:
“You will be given a child who will grow up to become…” You finish the sentence. If not a world leader, then a superb father？ An excellent teacher？ A gifted healer？ An innovative problem solver？ An inspiring artist？ A generous philanthropist？
Where and how you will encounter this child is a mystery. But believe that one child’s future may depend upon influence only you can provide, and something remarkable will happen. For no young person will ever be ordinary to you again. And you will never be the same.
·父亲节的由来（一）
父亲节的由来（一）
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Father’s Day, contrary to popular misconception, was not established as a holiday in order to help greeting card manufacturers sell more cards. In fact when a “father’s day” was first proposed there were no Father’s Day cards!
父亲节与普遍的误解不同的是，它并非是一个为了帮助贺卡制作厂商销售更多贺卡的节日。事实上，当“父亲节”的提议首先被提出时，父亲节贺卡根本就不存在。
Mrs. John B Dodd, of Washington, first proposed the idea of a “father’s day” in 1909. Mrs. Dodd wanted a special day to honor her father William, whose wife died while giving birth to their sixth child. Mr. Smart was left to raise the newborn and his other five children by himself on a rural farm in eastern Washington state. It was after Mrs. Dodd became an adult that she realized the strength and selflessness her father had shown in raising his children as a single parent.
华盛顿州的约翰·布鲁斯·多德夫人在1909年首先提出了设立“父亲节”的提议。多德夫人希望有一个特殊的日子来向她的父亲———威廉·斯玛特表示敬意。他的妻子在生他们第六个孩子时因难产而死。斯玛特先生在华盛顿州东部乡下的农场里独自养大了六个孩子。多德太太成人后她才意识到她的父亲一个人养大孩子所表现的力量和无私。
The first Father’s Day was observed on June 19,1910 in Washington. And it was in 1966 that President Lyndon Johnson officially declared the 3rd Sunday of June as Father’s Day.
1910年的6月19日人们在华盛顿庆祝了第一个父亲节。林登·约翰逊总统最终于1966年宣布每年六月的第3个星期天为父亲节。
Father’s Day has become a day to not only honor your father, but all men who act as a father figure. Stepfathers, uncles, grandfathers, and adult male friends are all honored on Father’s Day.
父亲节现在已经成为向父亲及所有扮演父亲角色的人表达敬意的节日。继父，伯父，祖父所有成年男性都将在父亲节受到尊敬。
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·当你老去
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当你老去 When You Are Old
When you are old and gray and full of sleep
And nodding by the fire, take down this book,
And slowly read, and dream of the soft look
Your eyes had once, and of their shadows deep;
当你老了，头白了，睡思昏沉，
炉火边打盹，请取下这部诗歌，
慢慢读，回想你过去眼神的柔和，
回想它们过去浓重的阴影；
How many loved your moments of glad grace,
And loved your beauty with love false or true;
But one man loved the pilgrim soul in you,
And loved the sorrows of your changing face;
多少人爱你年轻欢畅的时候，
爱慕你的美貌，出于假意或者真心
只有一个人爱你那朝圣者的灵魂，
爱你已改的容颜痛苦的皱纹
And bending down beside the glowing bars
Murmur, a little sadly, how love fled
And paced upon the mountains overhead,
And hid his face amid a crowd of stars.
躬身在红光闪耀的炉火旁，
凄然低语，爱为何消逝，
它漫步走上高高山峦，
将脸庞隐没在了群星间。
·当你老去
<OBJECT
当你老去 When You Are Old
When you are old and gray and full of sleep
And nodding by the fire, take down this book,
And slowly read, and dream of the soft look
Your eyes had once, and of their shadows deep;
当你老了，头白了，睡思昏沉，
炉火边打盹，请取下这部诗歌，
慢慢读，回想你过去眼神的柔和，
回想它们过去浓重的阴影；
How many loved your moments of glad grace,
And loved your beauty with love false or true;
But one man loved the pilgrim soul in you,
And loved the sorrows of your changing face;
多少人爱你年轻欢畅的时候，
爱慕你的美貌，出于假意或者真心
只有一个人爱你那朝圣者的灵魂，
爱你已改的容颜痛苦的皱纹
And bending down beside the glowing bars
Murmur, a little sadly, how love fled
And paced upon the mountains overhead,
And hid his face amid a crowd of stars.
躬身在红光闪耀的炉火旁，
凄然低语，爱为何消逝，
它漫步走上高高山峦，
将脸庞隐没在了群星间。
·肇事的兔子
The rabbits who cause all the trouble 肇事的兔子
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Within the memory of the youngest child there was a family of rabbits who lived behind a pack of wolves. The wolves announced that they did not like the way the rabbits were wolves were crazy about the way they themselves were 1iving,because it was the only way to live.
在最小的孩子还记得的那个时候,在狼群的附近居住着兔子一家。狼们公开宣布,他们不喜欢兔子的生活方式。狼对自己的生活方式推崇备至,因为这是唯一可行的生活方式。
One night several wolves were killed in an earthquake and this was blamed on the rabbits, for it is well known that rabbits pound on the ground with their hind legs and cause earthquakes. On another night one of the wolves was killed by a bolt of lightning and this was also named on the rabbits, for it is well known that lettuce-eaters cause wolves threatened to civilize the rabbits if they didn't behave.
一天晚上,几只狼在地震中死亡。这件事是兔子的责任,因为众所周知,兔子用两条腿蹬地造成了地震。另一个晚上,一只狼被雷电劈毙,这件事也怪罪于兔子,因为众所周知,雷电是由吃莴苣的动物引发的。狼威胁说,如果兔子继续为非作歹,它们将施以管教。
The rabbits decided to move away to a desert island. But the animals, who lived at a great distance, shamed them, saying, "You must stay where you are and be brave. There is no world for escapists. If the wolves attack you, we will come to your aid all probability." So the rabbits continued to live near the wolves.
兔子决定逃到一个荒岛上去。但是其它住在远处的动物奚落它们说:"你们必须守住阵脚,要勇敢。这个世界决没有逃避主义者的容身之地。如果狼攻击你们,我们多半会来相助。"于是兔子继续在狼群附近生活。
One day them was a terrible flood which drowned a great many wolves. This was blamed on the rabbits, for it is well known that carrot-nibblers with long ear cause floods. The wolves descended on the rabbits, for their own good, and imprisoned them in a dark cave, for their own protection.
有一天,发生了一场可怕的洪水,许多狼被淹死。责任怪罪到兔子头上,因为众所周知,长耳朵并小口小口吃胡萝卜的动物会引起洪水。为了兔子着想,狼对它们下手了,把它们关在黑洞里进行保护。
When nothing was heard about the rabbits for some weeks, the other animals demands to know what had happened to them. The wolves replied that the rabbits had been eaten and since they had been eaten the affair was a purely internal matter. But the other animals warned that they might possibly unite against the wolves unless some reason was given for the destruction of the rabbits. So the wolves gave them one. “They were trying to escape,” sad the wolves, "and, as you know, there is no world for escapists."
由于连续几星期没有听到兔子的消息,其它动物要求知道它们的行踪。狼回答说兔子已经被吃了;既然已经吃到肚里,此事就纯属内政。但其它动物警告说,除非有消灭兔子的正当理由,不然它们可能团结起来,一致对狼。于是,狼给了它们一条理由。"它们企图逃走",狼说。"你们也知道,这个世界决没有逃避主义者的容身之地。”
