The case for curiosity-driven research | Suzie Sheehy

譯者: Lilian Chiu 審譯者: 易帆 余

In the late 19th century, scientists were trying to solve a mystery.

在十九世紀末，科學家 試圖想要破解一個謎。

They found that if they had a vacuum tube like this one

他們發現，如果他們有 一支像這樣真空管，

and applied a high voltage across it,

接著讓高電壓通過它，

something strange happened.

會發生很奇怪的現象。

They called them cathode rays.

他們稱之為陰極射線。

But the question was: What were they made of?

但，問題是，陰極射線 是什麼做成的？

In England, the 19th-century physicist J.J. Thompson

十九世紀，在英國， 物理學家 J.J. 湯普森

conducted experiments using magnets and electricity, like this.

用磁鐵和電來進行實驗，像這樣。

And he came to an incredible revelation.

他得到了很難以置信的意外發現。

These rays were made of negatively charged particles

這些射線是由 帶負電的粒子所構成，

around 2,000 times lighter than the hydrogen atom,

粒子的重量比氫原子 還要輕兩千倍，

the smallest thing they knew.

氫原子是我們所知最小的東西。

So Thompson had discovered the first subatomic particle,

所以，湯普森發現了 第一個亞原子粒子，

which we now call electrons.

現在我們稱之為電子。

Now, at the time, this seemed to be a completely impractical discovery.

在當時，這似乎是個 完全不實際的發現。

I mean, Thompson didn't think there were any applications of electrons.

我是指，湯普森不認為 電子可以做任何應用。

Around his lab in Cambridge, he used to like to propose a toast:

在他在劍橋的實驗室， 他以前會這樣子敬酒：

"To the electron.

「敬電子。願它永遠 不會對任何人有用。」

May it never be of use to anybody."

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

He was strongly in favor of doing research out of sheer curiosity,

他非常支持 單純出於好奇心來做研究，

to arrive at a deeper understanding of the world.

以對世界有更深的了解。

And what he found did cause a revolution in science.

他的發現，確實造成了 一次科學的革命。

But it also caused a second, unexpected revolution in technology.

但，它也造成了科技的 第二次且是未預期的革命。

Today, I'd like to make a case for curiosity-driven research,

今天，我想要提出幾個例子來說明， 由好奇心驅使的研究，

because without it,

因為若沒有這樣的好奇心 今天我要談得這些科技

none of the technologies I'll talk about today

would have been possible.

通通都不可能發生。

Now, what Thompson found here has actually changed our view of reality.

湯普森的發現，改變了 我們對於現實的觀點。

I mean, I think I'm standing on a stage,

我的意思是，我認為 我站在一個舞台上，

and you think you're sitting in a seat.

而你認為你坐在一張椅子上。

But that's just the electrons in your body

但那只是你體內的電子

pushing back against the electrons in the seat,

在對抗著椅子的電子，

opposing the force of gravity.

抵抗地心引力。

You're not even really touching the seat.

你甚至沒有觸碰到椅子。

You're hovering ever so slightly above it.

你其實是停留在椅子 上方一點點的位置。

But in many ways, our modern society was actually built on this discovery.

但，就許多層面來說，我們的現代 社會是建立在這項發現之上的。

I mean, these tubes were the start of electronics.

我是指，這些真空管 是電子的開端。

And then for many years,

接著，許多年來，

most of us actually had one of these, if you remember, in your living room,

如果你記得的話，很多人 在客廳中都有一個這樣的東西，

in cathode-ray tube televisions.

就在映像管電視裡。

But -- I mean, how impoverished would our lives be

但——我是指， 我們的人生會有多麼無趣，

if the only invention that had come from here was the television?

如果從這個發現產生的發明 就只有電視而已？

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

Thankfully, this tube was just a start,

謝天謝地，這個射線管只是個開端，

because something else happens when the electrons here

因為，當這裡的電子 撞到管內的一片金屬時，

hit the piece of metal inside the tube.

會發生另一種現象。

Let me show you.

讓我示範給各位看。

Pop this one back on.

把這個重新打開。

So as the electrons screech to a halt inside the metal,

所以，當電子碰撞金屬 並停在金屬內的時候，

their energy gets thrown out again

它們的能量會再次被丟出來，

in a form of high-energy light, which we call X-rays.

形式是高能光， 也就是我們所謂的 X 光。

(Buzzing)

（嘈雜聲）

(Buzzing)

（嘈雜聲）

And within 15 years of discovering the electron,

在發現電子之後的十五年內，

these X-rays were being used to make images inside the human body,

這些 X 光就被用來 製造人體內的影像，

helping soldiers' lives being saved by surgeons,

協助外科醫生拯救士兵的性命，

who could then find pieces of bullets and shrapnel inside their bodies.

在士兵的體內找到 子彈碎片以及砲彈碎片。

But there's no way we could have come up with that technology

我們不可能要求科學家

by asking scientists to build better surgical probes.

藉由找到更好的手術方法來 發現這類的科技，

Only research done out of sheer curiosity, with no application in mind,

唯有腦子沒有雜念， 靠著好奇心所做出來的研究，

could have given us the discovery of the electron and X-rays.

才能發現電子和 X 光。

Now, this tube also threw open the gates for our understanding of the universe

如今，這射線管為我們打開了一扇門，

讓我們能了解宇宙

and the field of particle physics,

以及粒子物理學的領域，

because it's also the first, very simple particle accelerator.

因為它也是第一個 非常陽春的粒子加速器。

Now, I'm an accelerator physicist, so I design particle accelerators,

我是加速器物理學家， 我設計粒子加速器，

and I try and understand how beams behave.

我試圖了解光束的行為。

And my field's a bit unusual,

我的領域有一點不尋常，

because it crosses between curiosity-driven research

因為它跨在好奇心驅使的研究

and technology with real-world applications.

和真實世界應用 所需要的技術之間。

But it's the combination of those two things

但，正是因為這兩者的結合，

that gets me really excited about what I do.

讓我對於我的工作感到非常興奮。

Now, over the last 100 years,

在過去一百年間，

there have been far too many examples for me to list them all.

有太多例子了，我無法一一列舉。

But I want to share with you just a few.

但我想和各位分享其中幾個。

In 1928, a physicist named Paul Dirac found something strange in his equations.

1928 年，物理學家保羅狄拉克

發現他的方程式有點奇怪。

And he predicted, based purely on mathematical insight,

他完全憑著數學上的洞見，

that there ought to be a second kind of matter,

預測到應該還有第二種

the opposite to normal matter,

與正常物質相反的東西存在，

that literally annihilates when it comes in contact:

就在碰觸的時候，會消失不見：

antimatter.

反物質。

I mean, the idea sounded ridiculous.

這個想法聽起來很可笑。

But within four years, they'd found it.

但在四年後，他們終於找到了。

And nowadays, we use it every day in hospitals,

現今，我們每天都會 在醫院中用到它，

in positron emission tomography, or PET scans, used for detecting disease.

用在正電子發射電腦斷層掃描， 或簡稱 PET 掃描，用來偵測疾病。

Or, take these X-rays.

或者，比如這些 X 光。

If you can get these electrons up to a higher energy,

如果你能讓這些電子的 能量提升到更高，

so about 1,000 times higher than this tube,

比這種射線管還要高一千倍，

the X-rays that those produce

產生出來的 X 光

can actually deliver enough ionizing radiation to kill human cells.

就會有足夠的游離輻射， 可以殺死人類細胞。

And if you can shape and direct those X-rays where you want them to go,

如果你能夠操控 這些 X 光的形狀和方向，

that allows us to do an incredible thing:

就能讓我們做到 一件很了不起的事：

to treat cancer without drugs or surgery,

不用藥物或手術就能治療癌症，

which we call radiotherapy.

這就是所謂的放射線療法。

In countries like Australia and the UK,

在像是澳洲和英國這些國家，

around half of all cancer patients are treated using radiotherapy.

癌症病人有一半左右 都是用放射線療法來治療。

And so, electron accelerators are actually standard equipment

所以，電子加速器

其實是大部分醫院的標準配備。

in most hospitals.

Or, a little closer to home:

或者，更樸實一點的例子：

if you have a smartphone or a computer --

如果你有智慧手機或是電腦——

and this is TEDx, so you've got both with you right now, right?

這是 TEDx，所以你們現在應該 兩種都帶在身上，對吧？

Well, inside those devices

在那些裝置內的晶片

are chips that are made by implanting single ions into silicon,

製作方式是將單獨的 離子植入到矽當中，

in a process called ion implantation.

這個過程叫做離子佈植。

And that uses a particle accelerator.

這過程會運用到粒子加速器。

Without curiosity-driven research, though,

不過，若沒有好奇心驅使的研究，

none of these things would exist at all.

這些東西都完全不會存在。

So, over the years, we really learned to explore inside the atom.

所以，多年來，

我們真的在學習探索原子的內部。

And to do that, we had to learn to develop particle accelerators.

為了做到這一點， 我們得要開發出離子加速器。

The first ones we developed let us split the atom.

我們最早開發出來的加速器， 讓我們能把原子分割。

And then we got to higher and higher energies;

接著，我們朝向 越來越高的能量前進；

we created circular accelerators that let us delve into the nucleus

我們創造出環形加速器， 讓我們能鑽研原子核，

and then create new elements, even.

接著，甚至創造出新的元素。

And at that point, we were no longer just exploring inside the atom.

現在，我們不再 只是在探索原子的內部了。

We'd actually learned how to control these particles.

我們已經學會控制 這些粒子的方法。

We'd learned how to interact with our world

我們已經學會在微小規模上，

on a scale that's too small for humans to see or touch

和我們的世界互動，微小到 人類肉眼看不到也摸不到，

or even sense that it's there.

甚至無法感覺到它的存在。

And then we built larger and larger accelerators,

接著，我們建立的 加速器越來越大，

because we were curious about the nature of the universe.

因為我們很好奇宇宙的本質。

As we went deeper and deeper, new particles started popping up.

隨著我們越挖越深， 新的粒子不斷出現。

Eventually, we got to huge ring-like machines

最終，我們做出了 巨大的環型機器，

that take two beams of particles in opposite directions,

採用來自相反方向的兩道粒子束，

squeeze them down to less than the width of a hair

將它們擠壓到比 一根頭髮的寬度還小，

and smash them together.

讓它們猛撞在一起。

And then, using Einstein's E=mc2,

接著，用愛因斯坦的 E=mc2，

you can take all of that energy and convert it into new matter,

可以把所有產生的能量 轉換成新的物質，

new particles which we rip from the very fabric of the universe.

我們從宇宙的構造中 扯下來的新粒子。

Nowadays, there are about 35,000 accelerators in the world,

現今，世界上有大約 三萬五千台加速器，

not including televisions.

不包括電視機。

And inside each one of these incredible machines,

在每個加速器中， 都是很了不起的機器，

there are hundreds of billions of tiny particles,

有數百、數十億個小粒子，

dancing and swirling in systems that are more complex

在比銀河形成還要複雜的

系統中飛舞、旋轉。

than the formation of galaxies.

You guys, I can't even begin to explain how incredible it is

各位，我實在不知道 要如何解釋我們能做到這些

that we can do this.

是多麼不可思議的事。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

(Applause)

（掌聲）

So I want to encourage you to invest your time and energy

所以，我想要鼓勵各位， 把你們的時間和能量投資給

in people that do curiosity-driven research.

出於好奇心而去做研究的人。

It was Jonathan Swift who once said,

強納森史威夫特曾經說過：

"Vision is the art of seeing the invisible."

「遠見就是能洞見 大家尚未能見的一門藝術。」

And over a century ago, J.J. Thompson did just that,

這也正是超過一個世紀之前， J.J. 湯普森所做的，

when he pulled back the veil on the subatomic world.

他揭開了亞原子粒子世界的面紗。

And now we need to invest in curiosity-driven research,

現在，我們需要投資 由好奇心驅使的研究，

because we have so many challenges that we face.

因為我們要面對好多挑戰。

And we need patience;

我們需要耐心；

we need to give scientists the time, the space and the means

我們需要給科學家 時間、空間，和方法，

to continue their quest,

來持續他們的追尋，

because history tells us

因為歷史告訴我們，

that if we can remain curious and open-minded

如果我們能對研究的結果

about the outcomes of research,

保持好奇心和開放的心態，

the more world-changing our discoveries will be.

我們的發現就更有可能 可以改變世界。

Thank you.

謝謝。

(Applause)

（掌聲）