科学精神与“杞人忧天”

Scientific Spirit and "Groundless Fears

本文重新审视了杞人忧天这一成语 ,探讨了在东西方文化的背景下 ,杞人忧天与自然科学的关系。中国传统对杞人忧天的否定态度 ,是中国古代缺乏科学精神 ,近代自然科学难以在中国产生的根本原因。从中国的历史和现实出发 ,为有利于科学技术的发展 ,我们应该学习和提倡杞人忧天的精神。

Chinese allegory idiom 'like the man of QI who feared that the sky might fall' is dealt with a new perspective.Discussed is the relationship between imagined fears and natural sciences in eastern and western contexts.It is argued that the negative attitude toward the groundless fears is the principal reason for the lack of scientific spirit in ancient China and the want of natural sciences in modern China.Based on the Chinese history and present reality,it is suggested that groundless fears spirit be encouraged to facilitate the scientific and technological development.