Deng Xiaoping said to Ding Zhaozhong: "Science is an honest and honest thing, and we must not cheat at all, and we must do a good job in scientific research." Science and technology is the wealth created by mankind, and only by learning advanced things can we surpass the advanced. ”
Ding Zhaozhong, a famous Chinese physicist and Nobel laureate, has returned to the mainland of the motherland many times to assist China in developing its own scientific and educational undertakings. As a descendant of Yan Huang and the "descendant of the dragon", he not only contributed his life to experimental physics, but also to the Chinese nation. As early as the 1970s, Ding Zhaozhong said internationally that our Chinese population accounts for a quarter of the world's population, and it is rightful that our contribution to science Chinese should also account for a quarter. In order to promote the progress of Chinese science, Professor Ding Zhaozhong has not only traveled around and given speeches everywhere for many years, but also helped the motherland with practical actions.
In August 1977, Ding Zhaozhong and his family returned to the mainland of the motherland for the second time and were received by Comrade Deng Xiaoping, then vice chairman of the CPC Central Committee. Also accompanying the meeting were Fang Yi, president of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and vice premier of the State Council, and Wu Youxun, vice president of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. At the meeting, Professor Ding Zhaozhong said to Deng Xiaoping: "When I visited China this time, I saw that everyone was very motivated and wanted to get science and technology up. I was very relieved. I believe that China has such a large area, a large population, and such a long history of scientific research, it will certainly produce talented people and will soon catch up with the advanced level of science. Deng Xiaoping said frankly to Professor Ding Zhaozhong: Our country is still very backward. You must first admit that you are backward before you can progress.
On August 17, 1977, Deng Xiaoping met with the Chinese-American physicist Ding Zhaozhong
Mr. Deng told him that he hoped Mr. Ding would help China cultivate talents in physics experiments. Professor Ding Zhaozhong immediately promised. He is not a person who promises easily, and if he promises people, he will definitely do his best. He told Deng Xiaoping on the spot, "I very much welcome Chinese scientists to participate in experiments, but according to international practice, scientists participating in such international cooperation belong to the international community, and they need to pay a certain fee to the laboratory." Since my experiment was done on an accelerator at the Electron Synchrotron Research Center in Hamburg, Federal Republic of Germany, I had to consult the government of the Federal Republic of Germany. Tonight, I'll call back and ask, and I'll get back to you tomorrow. That night, Ding Zhaozhong immediately dialed a transoceanic telephone and applied to the research center and the government of the Federal Republic of Germany. But the other side said that they had to study it for a while. Ding Zhaozhong also called Professor Pelle, the director of the research center with a personal relationship, and asked him to quickly communicate with the relevant departments. Professor Pelle accepted Professor Ding Zhaozhong's instructions and consulted urgently with the German minister in charge of science and technology departments, and got a satisfactory answer.
The next day, Professor Ding Zhaozhong personally brought the good news to Deng Xiaoping, saying that everything was fine, and that both the research center and the government of the Federal Republic of Germany had agreed to allow scientists from China to participate in the experiment. Deng Xiaoping was very surprised, he did not expect things to go so smoothly, and it was really done. He said happily to Professor Ding Zhaozhong, Professor Ding, you are really a trustworthy person. He said to Ding Zhaozhong, "How about I personally select 100 people to participate in your experimental group?" Ding Zhaozhong understood Deng Xiaoping's desire to improve China's scientific research level as soon as possible, but he told Deng Xiaoping, "Scientific research is not the same as military training, it is best to have a smaller number, but the quality must be good!" Deng Xiaoping said, "Then send 20 people." Ding Zhaozhong smiled and said, "There are only 20 people in our experimental group." Later, the two held some consultations, and finally decided that the Chinese government would send 10 people to Ding Zhaozhong's experimental group every year to participate in scientific research work. With this as the beginning, a group of young and promising Chinese scientists have gone abroad, deeply participated in international scientific cooperation, improved the scientific level, and won wide acclaim in the world. Together with Yang Zhenning, he also established a foundation in North America to provide funding to domestic research institutions. The establishment of the Institute for Advanced Study of Tsinghua University has a credit to Ding Zhaozhong.
Ding Zhaozhong gave a speech at the 2019 opening ceremony of Fudan University
Professor Ding Zhaozhong said that he particularly agreed with what Deng Xiaoping said to him when he met with him at that time. Deng Xiaoping said to Ding Zhaozhong: "Science is an honest and honest thing, and we must not cheat at all, and we must do a good job in scientific research." Science and technology is the wealth created by mankind, and only by learning advanced things can we surpass the advanced. He took Deng Xiaoping's words as his motto and preached them everywhere. He spoke to his team's scientists, to his students, and to his own families. Ding Zhaozhong said that I was very touched that Mr. Deng Xiaoping had such a profound understanding of the nature of science. I agree with Mr. Deng's statement that science is an honest thing and cannot be deceived at all. I think that scientists must adhere to the truth, obey the truth, and not tolerate the slightest falsehood. Later, Ding Zhaozhong also actively participated in the fight against pseudoscience, and together with China's anti-pseudo-fighters, he practiced the work of upholding scientific truth and opposing pseudoscience all his life.
Since the 1980s, due to the proliferation of pseudoscience movements such as "qigong fever" in the land of Shenzhou, this matter has also attracted the wide attention of Professor Ding Zhaozhong. At that time, on the mainland, some old scientists with high status and high moral standing also made a statement of support for "Qigong" due to confusion, and many people in the domestic scientific community failed to stand up in time to expose the truth out of concern. Ding Zhaozhong felt the need to tell some truth. Ding Zhaozhong said to his colleagues in China, I know that what I say will offend people, and you may not like to listen. But I had to stick to my personal beliefs. That is, no matter what you do, you must always insist on obedience to the truth. For authority, we cannot blindly follow it, and authority does not mean the truth. What is right is right, what is wrong is wrong, and it does not change because of the reputation, identity, or status of certain authorities.
In the 1990s, Ding Zhaozhong repeatedly told Chinese comrades that in order to realize the "four modernizations," we must not give up cracking down on pseudoscience. As an individual, I will always insist on true science and oppose pseudoscience. The pseudoscience he spoke of at that time not only included "qigong", but also "water to oil", "perpetual motion machine", "Qiu's rat poison" and so on. For these specific pseudoscience phenomena or events, Ding Zhaozhong gave a clear criticism. But the most critical thing he criticized was "Qigong". It should be noted that when he criticizes "Qigong", he does not completely deny Qigong, but points out that the so-called "Qigong" has no "external qi". Ding Zhaozhong stressed that the "external qi" and specific functions of Qigong are pseudoscience, which do not conform to scientific laws and have no historical basis. Professor Zhang Honglin, director of the Qigong Research Office of the Chinese Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, also affirmed Ding Zhaozhong's statement on the scientific research of "Qigong". Professor Zhang Honglin pointed out that if you practice Qigong reasonably, it can indeed bring beneficial changes to people's physical and mental health, but these working principles of Qigong have nothing to do with any "external qi" and "specific functions", which is some psychological therapy. In other words, Qigong is the application of psychology.
Professor Zhang Honglin
Ding Zhaozhong said that many of my colleagues and friends in China are on the front line of criticizing pseudoscience, and I agree with their great work. The colleagues and friends he spoke of were Academicians and senior scholars such as He Zuoxiu, Zhou Guangzhao, Zhu Guangya, Yu Guangyuan, Pan Jiazheng, and Wang Dayan. In the tide of pseudoscience prevailing and smoking miasma everywhere, these people stepped forward, appeared and said, tit-for-tat with all kinds of pseudo-"qigong masters", and exposed various pseudoscience scams with real scientific experiments, which not only defended the dignity of the Chinese scientific community, but also made great contributions to the cause of human science. They shouted that Chinese scientists should have a sense of responsibility and bravely stand up to "clean up the garbage" and "clean up the portal". Ding Zhaozhong greatly appreciated the work of these people in combating pseudoscience. As a scientist, he said, it is an unshirkable responsibility. He wrote that he recalled that he had been invited to personally watch the performances of popular "qigong masters" such as Zhang Baosheng, as well as various other "special function" performances, although he did not see through the flaws for a while, he was not convinced of this, but maintained a skeptical attitude for a long time.
Later, because He Zuoxiu, Academician Zhou Guangzhao, and others spoke up for science, they caused great dissatisfaction among some people in society, criticizing them as "Jiang Lang's talents" and "not doing the right thing", which caused a great fierce debate about "science" and "pseudoscience". The reality at that time was that there were very few domestic scientists who dared to publicly support Academician He Zuoxiu, Zhou Guangzhao, and others, because He Zuoxiu and Zhou Guangzhao were already "not in power" at the Chinese Academy of Sciences. However, some powerful figures who support "Qigong" can promote those who support "Qigong" from other places to Beijing with a single order, but transfer those who oppose it. Openly standing on the side of Academicians He Zuoxiu and Zhou Guangzhao is tantamount to offending powerful figures. But Ding Zhaozhong did not "hang high on his own" but made a clear statement, saying that this controversy is a very big thing in the scientific and technological community and needs to be handled well. He openly expressed his support for the scientific views of He Zuoxiu and others, personally adhered to the truth, and opposed pseudoscientific theories such as qigong, which caused great repercussions at home and abroad. So much so that the "writer" Ke Moumou, who supported the "external qi" and special functions of qigong, was very dissatisfied with Ding Zhaozhong and wrote an open letter to him.
The former "Qigong Fever"
But Ding Zhaozhong did not flinch in the face of critics, but gave greater public support to He Zuoxiu, Academician Zhou Guangzhao and others. From August 5 to 9, 1995, the first "International Chinese Physics Conference" was held in Shantou, Shandong. As one of the few Nobel Laureates among the Chinese in the world, Professor Ding Zhaozhong attended the conference as a special guest and made a series of important speeches. When it came to the topic of "pseudoscience", Ding Zhaozhong stood up three times and supported Academician He Zuoxiu, who criticized pseudo-qigong. Ding Zhaozhong was very excited, and he told the participants that the anti-pseudoscience article published by Academician He Zuoxiu was very good, and what he did was of particular significance, and I resolutely opposed pseudo-qigong. He introduced to the overseas scientists attending the meeting: "Mr. He Zuoxiu has done a very meaningful thing, which is much more important than the study of high-energy physics - high-energy physics research is a local problem, and opposing pseudoscience involves the development of science and technology and is related to the improvement of national quality. In the heart of Professor Ding Zhaozhong, he has the meaning and conscience of Chinese scientists to work together, actively promote the development of science and technology of the Chinese nation, and clear the obstacles on the way forward to improve the quality of the nation.
Academician He Zuoxiu
Professor Ding Zhaozhong said that he strongly agreed with the saying: "Scientifically, whoever is right obeys whom." "We can't be convinced of Qigong just because it's revered by certain authorities. It is true that certain authorities represent a great power in science and have made great contributions, but this does not mean that his words are the truth and can replace scientific experiments. If scientific experiments prove that "qigong" does not exist "external qi" and "energy field", then we obey this scientific experiment instead of obeying authority. If anyone insists that "Qigong" is a specific function and has "external qi", we must criticize him for propagating pseudo-qigong and pseudo-science.
I also pointed out in the articles "Logical Traps: "Invisible does not mean non-existent" and "Science cannot explain" that you should not blindly follow the "authority" argument. Even if it is authority, he can make mistakes. I also pointed out that science never forces you to believe, but rather gives you a lot of facts and evidence to tell you how to explain it most reliably, so that you can understand that if I don't follow the guidance of science, I will be stupid and will suffer a big loss myself.
There is also a saying: "The core of science is exploration, and science cannot deny the unknown." ”
But at the heart of science is not exploration, but the search for the most reliable knowledge. Theories are not the main thing in the scientific system, experiments are the main ones. Science encourages "reasonable exploration" rather than "anything is possible."
In fact, science is denying the known, not denying the unknown. Many of the known ones are derived from personal or subjective experience, and even include ancient legends. However, these are often unreliable, but they are reluctant to admit that they have cognitive defects. For example, many people say that they see "external qi flowing in the meridians" and "out-of-body experience", but in fact they are suffering from mental illness or physiological hallucinations. This has been confirmed by doctors specializing in Qigong.
Denying the known is that the scientific community has already studied and explained some "known" "phenomena", and it can be judged that a certain thing does not exist. For example, science judges that telepathy is pseudoscience, and qigong does not have "external qi", and these scientific conclusions are scientifically known, not "unknown that science cannot yet judge.". Science is the conquest of the "unknown". With the foundation of "unknown", there is a qualification to continue to discuss "unknown". Some people can't even grasp the "known", and what qualifications do they have to talk about the "unknown"?
Science is not a total denial of the "unknown". For the real unknown, such as the mystery of the "magnetic monopole" and the mystery of the "Grand Unified Theory", the scientific community has never denied their existence.
I think Professor Ding Zhaozhong will definitely agree with me.
Ding Zhaozhong introduced the AMS Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer
The Science and Technology Museum of Rizhao City, Shandong Province, once invited Professor Ding Zhaozhong to provide reference opinions to the amS alpha magnetic spectrometer and other experimental models built in the museum. Unexpectedly, the 82-year-old did not make any perfunctory, he spent more than 3 hours, carefully reviewing the design of the experimental model, constantly questioning, correcting, questioning, correcting, and correcting, and the atmosphere was like an exam. At the two briefing meetings, Ding Zhaozhong corrected 42 errors in the design scheme of the AMS Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer model. It is precisely because of this meticulous, serious and harsh attitude that he can consistently adhere to scientific truth and say "no" to pseudoscience. Because any pseudoscience must have flaws, in the face of Ding Zhaozhong, who has such a serious attitude, even if it cannot be exposed for the time being, it will lead to his high degree of suspicion. And some of us, only superstitious about our own "eyes" and other personal feelings or rumors, we are convinced of supernatural phenomena, and they also say that it is "true and true". All I can say is that these people are just too "weak" in terms of scientific literacy.
Author: Skeptical Explorer