Bookish China Strive for life

The new era and new journey call on us to constantly grasp new knowledge, apply what we have learned, and create innovation. April 23 is the 27th World Book Day, we invite about 6 authors from different fields to share their reading and practical experiences, feel the pulse of the times with readers, and draw upward and forward spiritual strength from reading.

- Editor

Like a tree blossoming

Liang Xiaosheng

Books cannot be summed up in a few words. However, recently when I think of books, I think of Lin Huiyin's poem: "You are the blossom of a tree and a tree, a swallow / Whispering among the beams,—— You are love, is warm, / Is hope, you are the April day on earth!"

To say this is not to exclude another kind of book—works such as throwing guns, daggers, trumpets, war drums. No, I think that kind of book is also like "the blossom of one tree and one tree", the "flower" of the liturgical flower.

All scientific books are also like "the blossoming of one tree and one tree", and no type of book is not like it, and any kind of professional book is also like it. And I think that thinking like this is a compliment to all those who have contributed professional books.

And the children's book is indeed like "swallows whispering between the beams".

It is also true that fewer people read paper books, and more people read and listen to e-books. I was sad at first for books and for the people who wrote them, but now I don't. Old people have bad eyesight and enjoy the moment of listening to books? Young people don't have enough time, and reading e-books on the subway is also close to books!

Books have made long-term contributions to the nourishment of the human heart and the progress of human society, and reading and writing are the love and inheritance of this precious tradition, and reading and writing are equally important.

There are almost no illiterate youths anymore, on the contrary, highly educated young people abound. Young people always have to start a family, always have to be fathers and mothers. I think that young, knowledgeable parents who have read books on their own, on the child's 3rd birthday, should give their child a special gift - wrapped in colored paper, tied with a beautiful ribbon, opened by the child; when the children's book is presented, solemnly announce to the child that from this day on, parents take turns to read for their children's parent-child reading has begun. Also take a souvenir photo of the child reading the children's books, and say to him or her: "The way you read the book is beautiful!"

So there was a bookshelf in the house for the children.

When the child is in middle school and has his own room, the bookshelf moves to his or her room, and there are still souvenir photos of him or her reading when he or she was 3 years old on the wall - at that time they have begun to choose their own books to read, and their judgment will inevitably gradually form in the process of selection.

Later, children may not read much "idle books" due to the pressure of learning; then, they become college students, almost only have the energy to read professional books; then, they graduate, join the work, become e-books on the subway; when they get married and have children as parents, they will also send a gift wrapped in colored paper on the 3rd birthday of their children - books.

And when they are old, they become old people who enjoy listening to books...

Paper books never die in this cyclical process.

Young friends, so involved in the good traditions of watching, loving and inheriting, are not happy? Let the "blossoming of one tree and one tree" become the eternal scenery of human society, and will it not also contribute?

(The author is a writer)

Reading is expensive in the unity of knowledge and action

Lou Lou Lie

In traditional Chinese culture, observing and thinking about problems often starts with people. The fundamental feature of the humanistic spirit of people-oriented is to see that all problems are related to people, and we must think about what it teaches people.

Reading from this perspective means reading books, reading books, expanding knowledge and learning skills through reading, and understanding things and perfecting personality through reading. Read out wisdom, don't read it as a slave to knowledge. The Book of Rites and Learning says, "The study of questioning is not enough to be a teacher." "Just memorizing some knowledge is not being a teacher." Learning is not about how much knowledge you can remember, but whether you can understand the ideas behind the knowledge and the way to behave in the world, which is the main point emphasized in Chinese culture.

Traditional Chinese culture attaches great importance to "learning for oneself", which means that in order to learn, it is necessary to "enter the ear, the heart, the four bodies, and the shape and stillness". Not only listen to it, remember it in your heart, but also implement it in your daily words and deeds. In contrast, it is "into the ear, out of the mouth" - just to see learning as a talking point, to boast to others. This latter practice does not go through the "heart", let alone improve oneself, perfect oneself, and surpass oneself.

"Learning for yourself" means that reading books must ultimately be implemented in being a person. Reading and being a person is not two things, but one. To read books, we must work doing, and we must implement the books and sentences we read into ourselves, practice what we preach, and unite knowledge and action.

We often quote a Western philosopher: "Knowledge is power." "Knowledge itself cannot become power, only the flexible use of knowledge in life will produce power, and how to use it requires wisdom." Wisdom is the ability to discover, master, and apply knowledge. Wisdom is strength.

In particular, in the study of traditional Chinese culture, if we simply learn knowledge, objectify and fix knowledge, and do not directly relate it to our own conduct in the world, there is no power to speak of. Only by applying the principles of doing things as people and doing things that we have learned from traditional culture to our lives and work, improving ourselves, and making use of others and society from ourselves and others, from near and far, can such learning be more meaningful.

Books, there are books with words, and there are books without words. The book of words belongs to the predecessors and others, and we must read and absorb it; at the same time, we must also read the wordless book of social life, learn and understand it in practice. Real life is full of changes, historical, other people's experience may or may not work, to find a way to suit yourself in practice. "Erudition, interrogation, contemplation, discernment, and perseverance" must finally be implemented into action. Each of us inherits excellent traditional culture, and it must also be implemented into the practice of life.

(The author is a professor at Peking University)

Light up the vast starry sky with knowledge

Wang Yaping

Looking out from the porthole of the Chinese space station, the azure earth is full of life, surrounded by a deep universe, full of unknowns. In addition to the beautiful scenery that cannot be seen enough, the 3 space lectures are also vividly remembered. I sincerely hope that through the extraordinary space classroom, I will stimulate the interest of young people in advocating science and seeking knowledge and reading.

The first lesson in 2013, in just 40 minutes, opened a "science door" for children. After returning to the ground, I received many letters, which were full of childlike fun and full of curiosity. Some said, "I also want to fly into space and explore the mysteries." Some said, "Give me the baton!" Many other children asked, "When will there be more space classes?" With these expectations, after 8 years of unremitting efforts, "Teacher Yaping" finally pursued his dream again and succeeded in climbing the "podium". During the Shenzhou 13 mission, Zhai Zhigang and Ye Guangfu, I completed two space teaching activities. Astronauts in orbit work and life scene display, microgravity environment cytology experiments, space parabolic experiments... The content is richer and the scientific equipment is more advanced.

After listening to the class, some students wrote to me and uploaded it to the Chinese space station, and I happily replied: "As long as you dare to chase dreams and dare to chase dreams, you will definitely be able to usher in the launch moment of your dreams." "This interaction reflects the call and inspiration of the space industry to the scientific literacy of young people." As science fiction writer Liu Cixin said, the best thing about "space classroom" is that it is like a paintbrush, depicting a space world different from the gravitational world of The Earth for children.

Becoming an astronaut is also a process of constant curiosity. During the selection physical examination, I met Yang Liwei while walking and asked curiously: "What is the hardest thing about being an astronaut?" He said two words: "Study." After that, I became deeply aware of the weight of these two words. In the first year of joining the team, we systematically studied more than 30 courses such as aerodynamics, astronomy, advanced mathematics, and aerospace medicine. Knowledge reserve is like building a house, to come little by little, there is no shortcut. Classes are lined up during the day, homework, preview, and review are written at night, and the lamp on the desk is never extinguished before 12 o'clock in the evening.

In addition to "hardcore" expertise, literature and reading accompany our space life well. We Shenzhou 13 astronauts read the general sequence of Barkin's "Riptide Trilogy" in a group, which was called "poetry from afar". On weekdays, in addition to work training, I also watch movies to relax, especially science fiction themes. Whenever I see the experience of astronauts on the screen, my heart resonates strongly. As you watch, you reminisce about your days in space. Stepping out of the cinema, looking up at the sky, I can't help but think of the scene of myself lying on the porthole overlooking the earth, and my heart suddenly gave birth to the love for the space industry, which was an unforgettable intoxication.

Now that I have returned to the ground safely, I am still eager to fly to space again with my children's scientific dreams, complete new explorations, light up the vast starry sky with knowledge, and continue to write new glories in China and human spaceflight.

(The author is a Shenzhou 13 astronaut)

Architecture is the inheritance and creation of culture

Cheng Taining

As an architect, whenever I am asked whether "traditional Chinese gardens have a great influence on you", I always smile and reply: "Maybe classical Chinese poetry has a greater influence on me." ”

The gardening techniques of the ancient Chinese people and the artistic conception they created did bring me many enlightenments, but the traditional literature, art, aesthetics and philosophy, including poetry, had a more profound impact on my creation. Whether it is Su Dongpo, Xin Shuyi, or Liu Yong, Qin Guan, and Li Qingzhao, a large part of my perception of architectural artistic conception comes from their poems. I also often understand the composition of lines from the calligraphy of Huai Su and Huang Tingjian, feel the relationship between space real and virtual, ink thick and light, and draw the artistic concepts of "not being aware of the pen" and "between the like and the unlike" from traditional Chinese painting.

Lu You said: "Ru Guo wants to learn poetry, and his work is outside the poem." "Put it in architecture, it is "work outside the design." I have always believed that to really do a good job in architectural design, it takes not only techniques and skills, but also ideas and philosophical support. Behind those world-renowned architects, there is no philosophical background and aesthetic source. So, no matter what stage you are in, reading, learning and thinking are very important for architects. We often say that "literature is like its person", in fact, architectural works are also like its people, and the influence of the quality and taste of architects on the works is extremely obvious.

From Chinese literature and painting theory to Western literary and art history, Western architectural magazines, from traditional aesthetics to modern and postmodern philosophy, I have benefited a lot from reading. There are two books that I have read many times, one is Liu Xun's "Wenxin Carved Dragon" and the other is Danner's "Philosophy of Art". They're not talking about architecture, but for me, it leads to thinking about architecture everywhere.

Architects do design, it is impossible not to consider the form, it is impossible not to consider the function, technology, economy and other practical issues, but I do not want to simply present, but want to express something that can impact people's hearts, and improve the solution of formal and functional problems to the cultural level. Fundamentally, the mission of architects is not only to build a more ideal living environment, but also to inherit and create culture.

As Chinese architects, we have the responsibility to better inherit China's architectural culture. How to integrate tradition and modernity is a subject that cannot be bypassed. The good things in traditional Chinese culture should be preserved, and it is even more necessary to creatively transform and develop innovatively, and it must be combined with the value orientation and aesthetic pursuit of modern people. When I admire Wu Guanzhong's paintings, Lin Huaimin's dances, and Wang Liping's music, I often wonder how their road of transformation and innovation is taking place. Different art forms and cultural categories can completely inspire and learn from each other.

On the occasion of the humanities of heaven and earth, the changes through ancient and modern China and foreign countries have become the words of architecture. Architectural creation must have a cultural outlook and a historical outlook, and must have a conscious pursuit of values. This is what I ask of myself and what I expect from young people.

(The author is an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering)

Scientific training has allowed me to keep breaking through

Su Bingtian

In the men's 100m semi-finals at the Tokyo Olympics, I ran 9.83 seconds to reach the final and break the Asian record, while breaking the saying that "9.85 seconds is the limit for the yellow race".

I'm only 1.72 meters tall, and the 100m is 7 steps more than the 100-meter trapeze bolt. I am 33 years old, long past the traditional "golden age of exercise", and I am still full of injuries. But I believe that through our own efforts and scientific training, what other players in the world can do, we Asian players can also do.

In competitive sports competitions, when the athlete's level reaches a certain level, he is not only facing physical competition, but also the overall quality of the competition. Strengthening learning, improving literacy and scientific training is the only way for athletes to grow. I am not only an athlete, but also a university teacher, from the arena to the classroom, from the starting line to the podium, I have a deep feeling for the importance of reading and learning. In recent years, many athletes have realized the importance of cultural literacy and cherished the opportunity to learn. The improvement of the basic cultural level and the absorption of sports, psychology, and science and technology related knowledge help to accelerate and deepen the athletes' understanding of training, know it and know why it is so, and receive the training effect of doubling the results with half the effort.

In the weekday training, on the one hand, I summarize my many years of competition experience, on the other hand, through learning to make all-round adjustments to various aspects of sports fitness, technology, recovery, etc., and formulate a scientific training plan that conforms to the development law of special competitive ability, the law of human physiological function and the personal characteristics of athletes, and comprehensively improve my competitive ability. For example, through study and research, I found that in order to improve my grades, I had to solve my previous problems such as insufficient strength of the posterior femoral muscles and ankle joints, slow speed and force rate of active grounding, and unreasonable starting posture, so I changed my starting foot from my left foot to my right foot. It was a very big decision for the athletes and it ended up allowing me to break through and succeed. In addition, the optimization and adjustment of ankle down pressure and swing arm technology are also gradually formed in my continuous learning summary.

Athletics is known as the "mother of sport" and has a high degree of attention around the world, of which the 100-meter sprint is the most concerned sport in the history of the competition. Since 1932, when Liu Changchun represented China in the men's 100-meter sprint event of the Olympic Games, the Chinese men's sprint has gone through a long development process. Since the new era, China has produced a number of high-level athletes, with 100-meter single event and 4× 100-meter relay results among the top in the world.

At present, the starting gun of the fierce changes in the world's competitive sports has been launched, and the high-quality development of China's competitive sports is inseparable from the key kinetic energy of scientific training. I hope that science can provide a steady stream of wisdom for the "Chinese speed" to speed up and Chinese athletics to create brilliant results.

(The author is a track and field athlete)

Cultivate innovative thinking skills in daily life

Yin Ye

No era has placed as much emphasis on innovation as it does today. From the country to the family, we all want to cultivate the next generation with innovative ability. As a biological scientist and science popularizer, I am often asked: "How to cultivate children's ability to innovate?" ”

I think the family environment and atmosphere are the most important. The first environment of children's education is the family, parents tolerate children's curiosity, children dare to try, and brave attempt is the premise of all discovery and creation. I embarked on the path of science, thanks to my parents. My mother would often encourage me and even take me "into trouble", such as catching a nest of hedgehogs in the wild and bringing them home to raise. My father let me know from an early age that there is a bottom line in doing things and develop good habits. My father also consciously exercised my eloquence, and when I was four or five years old, he took me to the stage to speak cross-talk, and cultivated my ability to reason in vivid language, which was continuously improved with the expansion of reading and knowledge.

Innovation is a habit of mind. Low-tech innovation, combined innovation, etc. can happen anytime and anywhere in life. We can encourage and protect children's innovative power in daily life. For example, when a child says "1+1=2", we can expand and tell the child that 1+1 can not be equal to 2, and binary can be 1+1=10; for example, when it comes to whether penguins can fly, we can tell children that penguins of course can fly, but it is flying in the sea, if you think of water as more viscous air. In short, we must affirm the children's fantastic ideas, and learn to help them explain them logically, so that they are used to thinking from multiple angles and jumping out of the "box" from an early age, which is the greatest care for innovation.

High-quality science is also indispensable to creating a good environment for innovation. In recent years, the rise of short video platforms has made the form of popular science transfer from offline to online, and the communication medium has gradually transitioned from text and audio to video, which has played a significant role in promoting science popularization. On the one hand, videos can help everyone understand many macro and micro concepts and phenomena in a more visual and intuitive way; on the other hand, higher requirements are put forward for content creators, giving birth to more and more popular science works with scientific quality and expression forms, and satisfying people's desire for knowledge, especially children, which is of great benefit to improving the scientific literacy of the whole society and cultivating innovative talents.

Article 12 of the "Science and Technology Progress Law of the People's Republic of China", which was revised and adopted at the end of last year, emphasizes that the popularization of science and technology is the common responsibility of the whole society, which is undoubtedly a great encouragement to science popularization workers.

Since the beginning of the new century, China's scientific and technological innovation capabilities are making rapid breakthroughs. In particular, the recent introduction of a series of policies and measures to encourage scientific and technological innovation has made us more confident in the future.

(The author is a bioscientific worker)

Draft: Zhao Kairu

People's Daily ( 2022-04-22 20th edition)