Author: 胡翌霖

Reading as a Way of Thinking

History of Science & Scholarship2007.11.10
Reading as a Way of Thinking
This piece was prepared for another column in *Gongqingyuan*, and it can also be regarded as a continuation of the previous essay, “Me and Philosophy.” In “Me and Philosophy,” I wanted to say that I have chosen to live the life of a philosopher—that is, to confront those “big questions” with persistence rather than evade them or deceive myself. But how is such a life possible? At least for me, this way of life as I understand it does not mean brooding day after day in deep contemplation, standing in the posture of a “thinker,” pondering problems without a moment’s pause. If it were like that, it would be far…
philosophy scholarship Wittgenstein reading
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2007年11月10日
Lecture 42 of the Science Forum: Science Matters (November 9)

History of Science & Scholarship2007.11.09
Lecture 42 of the Science Forum: Science Matters (November 9)
Science Forum Lecture No. 42: Science Matters (November 9) 2007.11.07 Peking University Forum on the History and Philosophy of Science and Technology, Lecture No. 42 Time: Friday, November 9, 2007, 2:00–4:00 p.m. Venue: Academic Lecture Hall, Center for the Study of Science and Society, Chengzeyuan Speaker: Lin Lei (Professor, Department of Physics, San Jose State University, California, USA) Topic: Science Matters: The Newest and Largest Interdisciplinary Field Commentator: Wu Guosheng Brief introduction to the talk: What is science? The answer is: “everything in the natural world is part of science.” What are generally called the “natural sciences” are in fact sciences of simple systems; the humanities/social sciences—fields of learning related…
science philosophy of science history humanities
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2007年11月9日
Philosophy and I: The Romance Chapter

Life & Notes2007.11.09
Philosophy and I: The Romance Chapter
Long before 《Gongqing Garden》 issued its call for submissions under the title “Me and Philosophy,” I had already been thinking of writing up some reflections on my contact with philosophy over these past few years. At the time, I roughly planned to divide it into three parts: encounter — romance — entanglement. Now that I am submitting something to 《Gongqing Garden》, and don’t want to write something long-winded and foul enough to annoy my junior classmates, I might as well write this middle piece first. What is meant by “romance” is nothing more than attachment and affection. Strictly speaking, there is quite a difference between the two words “romance” and…
philosophy autobiography pursuit love
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2007年11月9日
[U.S.] Daniel Hausman, ed.: The Philosophy of Economics

Philosophy & Thought2007.11.07
[U.S.] Daniel Hausman, ed.: The Philosophy of Economics
[U.S.] Daniel Hausman, ed., *The Philosophy of Economics*, translated by Ding Jianfeng, Shanghai People’s Publishing House, Century Publishing Group, January 2007, 38 yuan This book is about the “methodology” of economics, or rather, an inquiry into how it can count as a “science.” It shows the profound connection between economics and the philosophy of science; in fact, as I was reading it, I would sometimes have the illusion that I was reading an introduction to the philosophy of science rather than an introduction to economics. The introduction alone is almost a primer on the philosophy of science, including an overview of the entire line of development in the philosophy of…
book reading notes philosophy of science Scientific Revolution
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2007年11月7日
[U.S.] Daniel Hausman, ed.: The Philosophy of Economics

Life & Notes2007.11.07
[U.S.] Daniel Hausman, ed.: The Philosophy of Economics
[U.S.] Daniel Hausman, ed., *The Philosophy of Economics*, translated by Ding Jianfeng, Shanghai People’s Publishing House, Century Publishing Group, January 2007, 38 yuan This book is about the “methodology” of economics, or rather, an inquiry into how it can count as a “science.” It shows the profound connection between economics and the philosophy of science; in fact, as I was reading it, I sometimes had the illusion that I was reading an introduction to the philosophy of science rather than an introduction to economics. The introduction alone is already almost a primer on the philosophy of science, including an overview of the whole course of development in the philosophy of…
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2007年11月7日
[Repost] Triangle Floor (Ceiling)

Life & Notes2007.11.07
[Repost] Triangle Floor (Ceiling)
鸭梨’s words. Triangle Ground Ceiling @ 2007-11-07 09:25 http://ariela.ycool.com/post.2748610.html On Weiming, there is already a basic consensus on the matter of Triangle Ground: the demolition of Triangle Ground was by no means some premeditated move aimed at student freedom (like the near-mythical seizure of power on Weiming in 2002), but merely a decision hastily made by the leaders in the face of teaching evaluation, in order to tidy up the campus appearance. And yet the contrast between Triangle Ground’s weight in history and in the hearts of Peking University people—or more precisely, the weight it ought to have—and the silent way it has been restored to an ordinary patch…
everyday life culture history Peking University
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2007年11月7日
[Repost] Teaching evaluation is irresistible / Tearing down Peking University’s Triangle Ground, the university says it is only dismantling an information board

Life & Notes2007.11.04
[Repost] Teaching evaluation is irresistible / Tearing down Peking University’s Triangle Ground, the university says it is only dismantling an information board
Now that I’m living outside, and apart from the department forum I don’t browse BBS boards anymore, there are many things I inevitably find out only after the fact. Today I only learned that the Triangle Ground had actually been torn down! Of course, the real Triangle Ground died long ago; what exists now is only a “ruin,” but this ruin has after all borne witness to the old Peking University’s freedom of thought. Even though it had already become a bulletin board crammed with all sorts of messy advertisements, such a “Triangle Ground” still carried forward something of the old Triangle Ground—no matter who you were, whatever you wanted…
everyday life Peking University information
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2007年11月4日
Fragments, Episode 3

Philosophy & Thought2007.11.03
Fragments, Episode 3
l He—I—you; “I” — freedom; “you” — love; “he” — the real. (Don’t ask me; I don’t know just what I want to say.) l When you complain that others have not understood you, or even suffer because no one understands you, the first thing you should ask yourself is two questions: first, do you understand others (has anyone received your understanding, just as you hope others will for you); second, do you yourself understand yourself? If you never try to understand others, how can you deserve to expect understanding from others? And if even you cannot understand yourself (for example, if your thoughts are always hazy, ambiguous, changeable, so…
philosophy freedom Kant Schopenhauer
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2007年11月3日
Keke Forum Lecture 41: Two Kinds of Local Knowledge (November 2)

History of Science & Scholarship2007.11.03
Keke Forum Lecture 41: Two Kinds of Local Knowledge (November 2)
The task of activating KKBBS begins… Last week I tried testing the waters by posting a report, only to discover that there isn’t just a shortage of water there—it’s a complete desert! Where on earth am I supposed to begin………… Let’s be a little honest first and finish the basic task of reporting on each instance of the KeKe Forum~ But this post of mine doesn’t seem to be a news report; rather, it’s a discussion. I think news copy is pretty dull anyway, and besides, I’m not good at writing it. So I might as well keep hurling bricks and see whether I can stir up even a tiny…
philosophy culture science knowledge
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2007年11月3日
This Week’s Music: Harmonica Solo: The Dance Partner in My Dreams

Life & Notes2007.11.02
This Week’s Music: Harmonica Solo: The Dance Partner in My Dreams
http://www.wmlife.cn/uploadFile/_wmlife_audio/audioupload/folk/0706/kouqin/8.wma At last, the harmonica that had been gathering dust at home for many years has been found, and a couple of days ago it was sent to me. This harmonica was my dad’s treasure back in the day; they say it even played a role when he was pursuing my mom~ Too bad he has long since stopped playing it~ The good thing about the harmonica is that it’s cheap and easy to carry around. But in terms of timbre and expressive power, it really isn’t all that great, and it’s honestly a rather hard thing to control (though very easy to get started with). As for me, what…
everyday life music
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2007年11月2日