Wednesday, April 22, 2009

"Life is not fair - get used to it." -- Bill Gates

Bill Gates recently gave a speech at a High School about 11 things they did not and will not learn in school. He talks about how feel-good, politically correct teachings created a generation of kids with no concept of reality and how this concept set them up for failure in the real world.

Rule 1 : Life is not fair - get used to it!

Rule 2 : The world won't care about your self-esteem. The world will expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself.

Rule 3 : You will NOT make $60,000 a year right out of high school. You won't be a vice-president with a car phone until you earn both.

Rule 4 : If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss.

Rule 5 : Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your Grandparents had a different word for burger flipping: they called it opportunity.

Rule 6 : If you mess up, it's not your parents' fault, so don't whine about your mistakes, learn from them.

Rule 7 : Before you were born, your parents weren't as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you thought you were. So before you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parent's generation, try delousing the closet in your own room.

Rule 8 : Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life HAS NOT. In some schools, they have abolished failing grades and they'll give you as MANY TIMES as you want to get the right answer. This doesn't bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.

Rule 9 : Life is not divided into semesters. You don't get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you FIND YOURSELF. Do that on your own time.

Rule 10 : Television is NOT real life. In real life people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.

Rule 11 : Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one.

Sunday, April 19, 2009

学然后知不足

■ 赵畅

孔子在《礼记·学记》中曰:“学然后知不足,教然后知困。知不足,然后能自反也;知困,然后能自强也。”是的,不登高山,不知天之高;不临深渊,不知地之厚。读书学习亦然,越读越感到自己知识的不足,越学越感到本领的缺少。

要真正做到知不足然后自省,首先自我要具备谦逊的态度,要敢于承认自己知识不足、学养欠缺,无论何时何地,不管面对何人何事。真正能够自省的人,必是态度谦卑者,必是那些有自知之明而见贤思齐者。夏衍生前在审查一个出国的京剧时,大概讲了句外行话,当时大家没有反应。散场时,马彦祥就跟他说:“你老兄,对京剧完全是外行,不要乱讲好不好?”又说:“你乱讲一气,下面不好办。”从此以后,夏衍奋发图强,到旧书店把能买得到的关于中国戏曲发展历史的书都弄来,拼命地看。作为时任文化部长的夏衍,其对待别人的批评,态度是诚恳的,其“拼命地看” 的行为,既说明他看到了自己知识的不足、学养的差距,也同时印证了他自省的决心。

其实,谁也不是全才,谁也不可能包罗万象什么都懂都会,但对待知识对待学习的态度,确乎很重要。读书学习,除了要树立谦虚的态度,还要倡导踏实的作风。我国现代训诂学泰斗陆宗达曾拜国学大师黄侃为师。见过先生以后,黄侃一个字也没给陆宗达讲,只给他一本没有标点的《说文解字》,说:“点上标点,点完见我。”陆宗达依教而行。再见老师时,黄侃翻了翻那卷了边的书说:“再买一本,重新点上。”就将书扔到了书堆上。又一次见老师时,陆宗达送上点点画画已经不成样子的《说文解字》。黄侃点点头,说:“再去买一本。”3个月后,陆宗达又将一本看得很破的《说文解字》拿来,说:“老师,是不是还要再点一本,我已经准备好了。”黄侃说:“已经点了3次,《说文解字》你已经烂熟在心,这文字之学你已得了大半,不用再点了。以后你做学问也用不着翻这书了。”说完,黄侃又将那书扔上书堆,这才给陆宗达讲起了做学问的事。黄侃可谓用心良苦,其让陆宗达三点《说文解字》,目的就是为了引导帮助他打牢学问功底。陆宗达后来常说,因为翻烂了3本《说文解字》,从此做起学问来,轻松得如庖丁解牛。

欲知不足,弄斧到班门,也不失为一条捷径。武侠小说中有所谓“找高手过招”,“过招”就是为了找出差距,究其实就是学习,就是请教,就是为了提升自我。我国著名数学家华罗庚说过:“弄斧到班门,对不是这一行的人,炫耀自己的长处于己于人都无好处。只有找上班门弄斧(献技),如果鲁班能够指指点点,那么我们进步能够快些。如果鲁班点头称许,那对我们攀登高峰,亦可增强信心。”华罗庚的话自是为学心得,不无启迪。

或许有人会说,读那么多书,学那么多知识又有何用?况且知识也会被人遗忘。是的,对于读书的人们,灌输有些知识今生今世不一定用得上,但什么知识可以用得上什么知识用不上,谁又能预测呢?只有多读书、多积累知识,才能以变应变。高士其说过:“知识犹如人体血液一样宝贵。人缺了血液,身体就要衰弱,人缺少知识,头脑就要枯竭。”吾生而有涯,而知也无涯,获得知识,读书学习是第一要务。热爱读书吧,读书是读书人的手段,也是读书人的目的。