霍金也感到困惑的问题

美国时代周刊有个专栏叫10 Questions，每期都用一页的篇幅，请一位公众人物简短回答读者提出的10个问题。上个星期参与这个专栏的名人是英国物理学家斯蒂芬•霍金，他的回答翻译转载如下（译文来自译言网invoquer）：


霍金也感到困惑的问题

问题1：

Q: If God doesn't exist, why did the concept of his existence become almost universal（如果上帝不存在, 为什么关于他存在概念已经几乎被全世界接受了）?——来自Basanta Borah, BASEL,  瑞士

A:  I don't claim that God doesn't exist. God is the name people give to the reason we are here. But I think that reason is the laws of physics rather than someone with whom one can have a personal relationship. An impersonal God （我并没有说上帝不存在. 上帝实际上是人们给我们为什么得以存在的原因取的一个名字. 但是我认为,我们得以存在的原因是基本的物理定律, 而不是一个我们可以与之建立个人关系的某个个体. 也就是非人格的上帝）.

问题2：

Q: Does the universe end? If so, what is beyond it（宇宙有终结吗?如果有,那么之后是啥）?——来自 Paul Pearson, HULL, 英格兰

A: Observations indicate that the universe is expanding at an ever increasing rate. It will expand forever, getting emptier and darker. Although the universe doesn't have an end, it had a beginning in the Big Bang. One might ask what is before that, but the answer is that there is nowhere before the Big Bang, just as there is nowhere south of the South Pole（目前的观测表明宇宙正在加速膨胀. 它将永远膨胀下去,变得更加空旷黑暗. 虽然宇宙没有终结, 但是她有一个大爆炸的诞生起点. 也许有人要问宇宙诞生之前是什么? 答案就是根本没有所谓的"大爆炸之前", 就像是说没有比南极点更南方的地方一样）。

问题3：

Q: Do you think our civilization will survive long enough to make the leap to deeper space（你认为我们的人类文明能够存在足够长的时间使得我们得以去探索更深的宇宙吗）?——来自 Harvey Bethea, STONE MOUNTAIN, GA.

A: I think we have a good chance of surviving long enough to colonize the solar system. However, there is nowhere else in the solar system as suitable as the Earth, so it is not clear if we would survive if the Earth was made unfit for habitation. To ensure our long-term survival, we need to reach the stars. That will take much longer. Let's hope we can last until then （我认为我们的文明还是有很大的机会存活到我们可以殖民太阳系其它行星的. 但是,我们太阳系没有一个象地球一样适合据住得地方. 所以,我不太清楚如果我们把地球弄得不适合居住以后我们是否还可以生存. 为了确保我们长久的生存, 我们需要去探索其它星系, 但这需要更长更长的时间。让我们期望我们能够熬到那个时候吧。


问题4：

Q: If you could talk to Albert Einstein, what would you say（如果你能够和爱因斯坦对话,你要说啥）?——来自 Ju Huang, STAMFORD, 康涅狄格洲

A: I would ask him why he didn't believe in black holes. The field equations of his theory of relativity imply that a large star or cloud of gas would collapse in on itself and form a black hole. Einstein was aware of this but somehow managed to convince himself that something like an explosion would always occur to throw off mass and prevent the formation of a black hole. What if there was no explosion（我会问他"为啥你就不信黑洞嘞?" 他的相对论中域方程解出来的结果就是,大型恒星或者空间气团会被自身的引力塌陷而形成黑洞. 爱因斯坦很不喜欢这个结果,但是他说服了自己说这个过程会被一些爆发而中断从而阻止黑洞的形成. 但是,要是没有这些爆发嘞）?

问题5：

Q: Which scientific discovery or advance would you like to see in your lifetime（在你有生之年,你希望看到什么样的科技进步）?——Luca Zanzi, ALLSTON, MASS.

A: I would like nuclear fusion to become a practical power source. It would provide an inexhaustible supply of energy, without pollution or global warming（我期望聚变可以成为实用的能源. 聚变将提供永不枯竭的能源, 没有污染,也不会造成全球变暖）。

问题6：

Q: What do you believe happens to our consciousness after death（你觉得我们死后,意识上那去了）?——来自Elliot Giberson, 西雅图

A: I think the brain is essentially a computer and consciousness is like a computer program. It will cease to run when the computer is turned off. Theoretically, it could be re-created on a neural network, but that would be very difficult, as it would require all one's memories（我觉得大脑就像计算机,意识就像是软件程序. 你关了电脑,程序也就终止运行了. 理论上说, 意识应该可以在神经元网络中被重建,但是这非常非常困难,因为这需要一个人的所有记忆的信息）。

问题7：

Q: Given your reputation as a brilliant physicist, what ordinary interests do you have that might surprise people（你做为一个声望卓著的物理学家,你有啥普通爱好来晒晒么）?——来自Carol Gilmore, JEFFERSON CITY, MO.

A: I enjoy all forms of music--pop, classical and opera. I also share an interest in Formula One racing with my son Tim （我喜欢各种音乐..从流行风到古典到歌剧. 我还喜欢和我的儿子Tim一起发烧F1方程式赛车）.


问题8：

Q: Do you feel that your physical limitations have helped or hindered your study（你认为你的身体不便是限制了还是帮助了你的研究）?——来自: Marianne Vikkula, ESPOO, 芬兰

A: Although I was unfortunate enough to get motor neuron disease, I have been very fortunate in almost everything else. I was lucky to be working in theoretical physics, one of the few areas in which disability was not a serious handicap, and to hit the jackpot with my popular books（虽然我不幸的得了运动神经疾病, 但是我非常幸运的在几乎所有其他方面. 我幸运的在做理论物理的工作,很少有其它领域身体的残疾不会造成工作障碍. 我也很幸运我的那些书非常成功）。

问题9：

Q: Does it feel like a huge responsibility to have people expecting you to have all the answers to life's mysteries（当人们期望你能够回答所有生活的困惑问题时,你是否感到鸭梨很大）?—Susan Leslie, BOSTON

A: I certainly don't have the answers to all life's problems. While physics and mathematics may tell us how the universe began, they are not much use in predicting human behavior because there are far too many equations to solve. I'm no better than anyone else at understanding what makes people tick, particularly women（我显然不能回答生活的所有问题. 虽然数学家或者物理学家可以回答关于宇宙起源的问题,但是这对于预测人的行为没有任何帮助, 因为那需要解更多更多的方程才行. 我并不比其他任何人更理解怎样让别人开心, 恩..尤其是女人）。


问题10：

Q: Do you think there will ever come a time when mankind understands all there is to understand about physics（你认为有一天人类可以理解所有物理现象么）?——来自: Karsten Kurze, BAD HONNEF, 德国

A: I hope not. I would be out of a job(我期望不要, 否则我就失业了……)。