(46) A major Antarctic glacier is at risk of disintegrating irreversibly if it passes a key tipping point, which could trigger the collapse of the entire West Antarctic ice sheet—and we can’t say when it might happen. Pine Island glacier is one of two glaciers flowing into Pine Island Bay, part of the Amundsen Sea off West Antarctica. The other is Thwaites glacier. Both have retreated rapidly due to climate change, contributing to rising sea levels. Worse, the two glaciers are the weak point of the West Antarctic ice sheet, which sits on bed rock below sea level. (47) A dramatic glacier retreat could let water get under the ice and thus collapse the entire ice sheet, leading to more than 3 meters of sea level rise,over centuries. The main reason the Pine Island glacier is retreating is a current of warmer water that now periodically flows under its floating tip, melting it from below. (48) Rosier and his colleagues simulated the glacier’s behavior as the oceanwater at its tip slowly warmed; they found that it passed through not one but three tipping points.The first two both led to rapid ice loss, even if the ocean was later cooled; the third caused the glacier to collapse entirely. This couldn’t be stopped by cooling the ocean. "Tipping point three is sort of game over," says Ted Scambos at the University of Colorado in Boulder. In the model, the third tipping point occurred when the ocean water had warmed by 1.2℃. A 2014 study found that the Amundsen Sea is warming by 0.1 to 0.3℃ per decade. However, Rosier says the 1.2℃ threshold is only "a rough ball park". "It’s highly likely that things might happen over a quicker period of time," he says. (49) Rapid ocean warming could even trigger a cascade, in which the first tipping point caused enough melting to unleash the second, and then the third.The real challenge is that the Amundsen Sea isn’t warming as if a thermostat were being turned up, says Scambos. (50) Instead, warmer water that used to be kept out by currents and winds is entering in pulses, controlled by shifts in winds across the Pacific Ocean. Could we see the tipping point coming? In the model, the researchers were able to spot warning signs: Pine Island glacier became slow to respond to perturbations in ocean temperature. But they needed 300 years of data for this to work out how the glacier behaved earlier in its history by studying sediment cores from the ocean floor just off Antarctica, says Scambos.

How should we tell the story of the digital century, now two decades old? We could focus, as journalists do, on the depredations of the connected life. As Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube have devoured the online world, they have undermined traditional media, empowered propagandists, and widened America’s political divides. The smart phone, for all its wonder and utility, has also proved to be an anaesthetic. (46) The internet age was praised as a third industrial revolution—a spur for individual ingenuity and an engine of employment, however, on these counts, it has not delivered.To the contrary, the digital age has coincided with a slump in America’s economic dynamism. The tech sector’s innovations have made a handful of people quite rich, (47) but it has failed to create enough middle-class jobs or to help solve the country’s most pressing problems: deteriorating infrastructure, climate change, low growth, rising economic inequality. Decades from now, historians will likely look back on the beginning of the 21st century as a period when the smartest minds in the world’s richest country sank their talent, time, and capital into a narrow band of human endeavor—digital technology. Their efforts have given us frictionless access to media, information, consumer goods, and chauffeurs. (48) Software has hardly remade the physical world when we were promised an industrial revolution, whereas what we got was a revolution in consumer convenience. The original Industrial Revolution freed humanity from the centuries-long prison of slow economic growth. In the early 19th century, productivity and income were skyrocketing, first in England and soon throughout Europe. While the transition was brutal for many, (49) the gains were broadly shared：Real wages for the working class doubled in the first half of the century, and life expectancy at birth rose dramatically in the second half. In the computer age, the economy has trended in the opposite direction. Look up from your textbooks：Everything is getting better except our ability to measure how much better everything is getting. (50) But no matter how aggressively you torture the numbers, the computer age has coincided with a decline in the rate of economic growth as well as innovation .The bulk of innovation has been shunted into the invisible realm of bytes and code. All of that code, technology advocates argue, has increased human ingenuity by allowing individuals to tinker, talk, and trade with unprecedented ease. This certainly feels true. But by most measures, individual innovation is in decline. In 2015, Americans were far less likely to start a company than they were in the 1980s.

Since culture is defined briefly as "the totality of beliefs and practices of a society," nothing is of greater strategic importance than the language through which its beliefs are expressed and transmitted and by which most interaction of its members takes place. (46) The relation between language and culture would not constitute such serious difficulties for cross-cultural understanding if it were not for the numerous misconceptions about language and its function within a society . Perhaps the most serious misconception is the idea that each language more or less controls the way people think, sometimes expressed as "We think the way we think because we talk the way we talk." (47) It is true that the particular structures of a language may reflect to a certain degree the way people think and they may be said to form "the paths for thinking," but they do not determine what or how people must think.Languages are too open-ended and human imagination is too creative to ever be rigidly ruled by the regulations of any feature of language. Some people have thought that each language is so distinct that there is no valid way in which the discourses of one language can be translated into another. But at least ninety percent of the fundamental structures of all languages are quite similar, and language universals far outweigh the distinctions. All languages employ figurative expressions and have a great number of literary forms. (48) One language-culture may emphasize the development and use of particular genres, e.g. epic poetry or animal folktales, which another language-culture may seldom employ and may even strongly reject. But the people of any language-culture have sufficient imagination and experience to understand how the people of another language-culture may rightly differ in their behavior and values, since the behavioral differences within a single culture are usually greater than those which exist between cultures. (49) The idea that some languages are far superior to other languages and that accordingly some cultures are far superior to other cultures is also a noted obstacle to understanding the relation between language and culture. When people speak about language superiority, they are usually talking about the literature which has been produced in such a language by creative writers. The oral and written literatures of different languages can differ considerably in quality, (50) but this is not the result of the formal structures of the language in question but of the ways in which the people of the society have invested creative talent in using the language as a medium for the production of valuable literary works .All languages have the potential for outstanding aesthetic expression. It is simply one of the "accidents" of history which determines the emergence of literary genius.

It helps to speak more than one language—even if the benefits are unquantifiable. Just a few generations ago, speaking two languages was supposed to be bad for you. Tests in America found that bilingual people had lower IQS, which seemed evidence enough. (46) Later it became clear that those surveys were really measuring the material poverty of immigrants; members of such families were more likely to be undernourished and understimulated, not to mention the obvious fact that they often sat the tests in a language that was not their best.How things have changed. In the past decade it has become almost common knowledge that bilingualism is good for you—witness articles such "Why Bilinguals are Smarter" and "The Amazing Benefits of Being Bilingual" by the New York Times and the BBC. (47) Most notably, they have shown that bilinguals get dementia on average four years later than monolinguals, and that they have an edge in "executive control"—a basket of abilities that aid people doing complex tasks. Why bilingualism would enhance these capabilities is unclear. (48) Researchers hypothesise that having two languages means suppressing one when speaking the other, a kind of constant mental exercise that makes the brain healthier.But as intellectual pendulums do, this one has begun to swing again, against the "bilingual advantage". Roberto Filippi of University College London and his colleagues have spent five years testing more than 600 people, from seven to 80 years old and including some who oscillate between two languages. They could find no statistically significant advantage in any age cohort. (49) In response to the scepticism, researchers who believe in the advantage have refined their studies—now acknowledging that bilingual people use their languages in varying ways that may account for the incongruent previous results. A second language expands the number of people you can talk to. It adds to the ways you can say things, and so offers a second point of view on the whole business of expression. (50) One study found that bilingual children are better at grasping other perspectives, perhaps because they are always keeping track of who speaks what, a regular reminder that everyone is different.

Before entering on the question of the relation of morality to our exiting social environment, it will be advisable to inquire what we mean by moral progress, and what evidence there is that any such progress has occurred in recent times, or even within the period of well-established history. (46) By morals we mean right conduct, not only in our immediate social relations, but also in our dealings with our fellow citizens and with the whole human race.It is based upon the possession of clear ideals as to what actions are right and what are wrong and the determination of our conduct by a constant reference to those ideals. (47) The beliefs was once prevalent, and is still held by many persons, that a knowledge of right and wrong is inherent or instinctive in everyone, and that the immoral person may be justly punished for such wrong doing as he commits.But that this cannot be wholly, if at all,true is shown by the fact that in different societies and at different periods the standard of right and wrong changes considerably.That which at one time and place is held to be right and proper is, at another time or place, considered to be not only wrong, but one of the greatest of crimes. We are obliged to conclude, therefore, that what is commonly termed morality is not wholly due to any inherent perception of what is right or wrong conduct, but that it is to some extent and often very largely a matter of convention, varying at different times and places in accordance with the degree and kind of social development which has been attained often under different conditions of existence.The actual morality of a community is largely a product of the environment, but it is local and temporary, not permanently affecting the character. (48) To bring together the evidence in support of this view, to distinguish between what is permanent and inherited and what is superficial and not inherited, and to trace out some of the consequences as regards what we term "morality" is the purpose of the present volume. Though much of what we term morality has no absolute sanction in human nature, yet it is to some extent, and perhaps very largely, based upon it.(49)It will be well, therefore, to consider briefly the nature and probable origin of what we term "character"—in individuals, in societies, and especially in those more ancient and more fundamental divisions of mankind which we term "races". Character may be defined as the integration of mental faculties and emotions which constitute personal or national individuality.It is very strongly inherited, yet it is probably subject to more inherent variation than is the form and structure of the body.(50) The combinations of its constituent elements are so numerous as, in common language, to be termed infinite; and this gives to each person a very distinct individuality, as manifested in speech, in emotional expression,and in action.

Ludwig van Beethoven is widely considered to be one of the outstanding classical music figures of the western world.This German musical genius created numerous works that are firmly entrenched in the repertoire.Except for a weakness in composing vocal and operatic music,Beethoven had complete mastery of the art form.Many of his works are ingeniously imaginative and innovative, such as his 3rd Symphony, his 9th Violin Sonata and so on. It is difficult to sum up briefly what his musical works represent or symbolize, since taken together they include a vast system of thought.Generally,however, those who understand his music sense that it reflects their own personal longings and sufferings.(46) It egoistically, and always intelligently, "discusses" with its listener his or her feelings in the wake of personal failure and personal triumph, from the lowest depths of despair to the highest heights of happy or triumphant fulfillment.In his music, he represents the feelings felt by those attempting to achieve their goals within their societies, whether they are competing for love, status, money, power or any other things individuals feel naturally inclined to attempt to acquire. In a thematic sense, Beethoven does not promote anarchist ideas.(47) The listener cannot, in listening to Beethoven’s music,understand ideas which, if applied, would compromise the welfare of his society.The music is thus "civically responsible," as is the music of Bach or Mozart.For Beethoven, the society exists as a bulwark （堡垒）with which the individual must function in harmony, or at least not function such as to harm or destroy it.And, (48) should the society marginalize or hurt the individual,as it often does, the individual must, according to Beethoven,humbly accept this, never considering the alternative act of attempting to harm or destroy the society in the wake of his or her personal frustrations.But, thanks to Beethoven, such an individual is provided with the means to soothe his or her misery in the wake of feeling "hurt" at the hands of society.(49) The means is this music and the pleasure that it can provide to minds possessing the psycho-intellectual "wiring" needed to understand it. Some post-World-War- Ⅱ composers reject the music of Beethoven because of its predominant reliance on "beauty" as way of communicating idealized concepts.(50) Also, since the music intimately reflects the desires and thought-processes of the natural human mind, which in numerous ways is emotionally and intellectually irrational, the music may itself be consequently irrational.

What is scientific creativity? (46) True scientific creativity is often presumed to be the preserve of independent investigators operating in an environment with none of the practical or political concerns that bother many other workers.In truth, far from being creative, most scientists spend much of their time worrying about funding, sitting in meetings and dealing with administrative bureaucracy.In this age of economic austerity, has the concept of absolute academic autonomy become a luxury that the scientific enterprise can no longer afford ? But, in many ways, academics do live very sheltered lives by today’s standards—how many other careers offer tenure or employment for life? (47)And, frequently, an individual’s insistence on working as free from restrictions as possible can be taken too far, forcing everyone and everything around them to accommodate their needs.This becomes a waste of time and effort—in other words, of money. Consultant Thomas Marty describes how, in some departments, faculty members insist on each doing their own course planning, choosing times and subjects independently.(48) This forces the administration to revise courses to ensure that the credits assigned to each are consistent, that students have taken the necessary knowledge the professors require, and that everything is presented in the format that the computer system recognizes, so that students can register online.Although this may sound like part of administrators’ responsibilities, the job can be so big that one department had to dedicate two full-time staff members to resolving such conflicts.Yet academics often complain about the resources their universities devote to administration. Scientists may rage against some of the suggestions proposed to improve the efficiency of the research enterprise.Increase the power of institute directors and university presidents so they can make more executive decisions without asking for faculty members’ input? Place a "tax" on the use of temporary workers such as graduate students and postdocs, to encourage scientists to hire more permanent staff scientists? But scientists should think twice about this instinctive, defensive approach.Something that may seem a threat to academic autonomy is often quite the opposite.(49) A standard pattern for course planning that all faculty members must adhere to, for example, with strict deadlines for each phase,could cut the number of course revisions.This would free staff to deal with other administrative issues, letting the scientists who had been shouldering that burden get back to research and teaching.(50) Although giving leaders more power to make executive decisions without consulting faculty members may seem to threaten academic independence, in this instance giving updecision-making powers allows scientists to spend more time doing creative,independent research.

The real question in thinking about the nature of civilization is connected with the issue of improving the quality of man’s interpersonal relationships. It is impossible to use the scientific method when the thinker is guided by what he wants to believe instead of making a full surrender to the truth seeking process.Civilized man has found it a necessary aspect of being normal to accept the standards of thinking and behaving imposed by the social system in which he lives.(46) If he goes outside this system his sense of being a well adjusted person vanishes,and he becomes a maverick （独行其是者） with attributes which he and others regard as strange, unconventional, and queer.The social system he requires himself to accept is filled with magical and wonderful mechanisms, which, when viewed from the outside, are based on ignorance and immorality.To be well adjusted in such a human situation requires that both ignorance and immorality pass unnoticed and unrecorded.In order that these negative forces remain unidentified, the place of truth seeking is usurped （篡夺） by doctrine, and moral integrity must give way to authoritarianism.The primacy of truth and right becomes lost when the individual has a prior obligation to conventional normalcy and the rewards it brings.It is apparent that this is a unique problem for psychological science.(47) The scientist who deals with rocks,weather,chemicals, or stars has no such tyrannical pressure coming from his relationship with the world of the unknown. How does it happen that a successful social adjustment requires of the individual that he defer to a large society in establishing what is true and right in human relationships? (48) What is the aspect of social stability which makes it appear to thrive on ignorant doctrine and the use of arbitrary violence? The real sources of our social ills, including injustice,prejudice, international war, and the like, is to be found within each individual himself.(49) There is something about the limitations man sets on his psychological growth which causes him to lose his way in understanding and controlling human nature. The expansion of the self in awareness and ability is the only reliable source of inner identity and the sense of personal importance which goes with it.(50) When an individual continues to grow throughout a lifetime he stays psychologically young and has access to an increasing sense of being valuable to others.The more a man has to give to others in a psychological way the more he is equipped to believe in love and responsible power in human relationships.

Strolling beside Amsterdam’s oldest canals, where buildings carry dates like 1541 and 1603, it is easy to imagine the city’s prosperity in the 17th century.(46) Replace today’s bicycles and cars with horse-drawn carts, add more barges on the waterways, and this is essentially how Amsterdam must have looked to Rembrandt as he did his rounds of wealthy merchants. Such musings are not, of course, unprompted.This year, Amsterdam is celebrating the 400th anniversary of Rembrandt’s birth,and it is hard to escape his shadow.His birthplace in Leiden, 20 miles south, has naturally organized its own festivities.(47) But Amsterdam has two advantages: it boasts the world’s largest Rembrandt collection—and tourists like to come here anyway. True,anniversaries can be pretty corny, but what city resists them? This year,Amsterdam is competing with Salzburg, where Mozart was born 250 years ago, and Aix-en-Provence, where Cezanne died a century ago.A sign in Amsterdam’s tourist office by the Central Station hints at one motive for such occasions："Buy your Rembrandt products here." Still, if you start off by liking Rembrandt, as I do, there is much to discover.(48) For instance, when in Amsterdam I always make a point of paying homage to the Rembrandt masterpieces in the Rijksmuseum, yet until now I had never bothered to visit Rembrandt House,where the painter lived from 1639 until driven out by bankruptcy in 1658.In brief,I had never much connected his art to his person. (49) Now, at least, I have made a stab at doing so because, for this anniversary (he was born on July 15, 1606),Amsterdam has organized a host of events that offer insights into Rembrandt’s world.They highlight not only what is known about his life, but also the people he painted and the city he lived in from the age of 25 until his death at 63 in 1669. Although the Rijksmuseum is undergoing amassive renovation through 2009, the museum is not snubbing its favorite son.(50) Throughout the year, in part of the building to be renovated last, it is presenting some 400 paintings and other 17th-century objects representing the Golden Age in which Rembrandt prospered.These include works by Jan Steen, Vermeer and Frans Hals as well as by Rembrandt and his pupils.And they climax with Rembrandt’s largest and best known oil The Night Watch itself the focus of "Night watehing", a light and sound installation by the British movie director and Amsterdam resident, Peter Greenaway.