美国国家公共电台 NPR Decades After An Iconic Protest, Tommie Smith Has Something Else On His MinWe Got Your Letters: Listeners Puzzled By Tom Wolfe's Words On Evolution

We Got Your Letters: Listeners Puzzled By Tom Wolfe's Words On Evolution 

play pause stop mute unmute max volume 00:0001:40repeat repeat off Update Required To play the media you will need to either update your browser¹ to a recent version or update your Flash plugin. SCOTT SIMON, HOST: 

My interview last week with Tom Wolfe sure struck a nerve. "The Kingdom Of Speech" is the first nonfiction book in 16 years by the author of "The Right Stuff" and "The Bonfire Of The Vanities," a writer who's previously² taken on modern art and Wall Street.

This time, it's Charles Darwin. Tom Wolfe is an atheist³ and not a creationist. But he says in this book that he doesn't believe human evolution, as propounded⁴ by Darwin, explains the development of speech, which he calls the attribute of attributes.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED BROADCAST)

TOM WOLFE: And I think it's misleading to say that human beings evolved from animals. I mean, actually, nobody knows whether they did or not.

SIMON: I'm surprised our inbox survived the onslaught. A listener named Paul Personne wrote (reading) I have read and enjoyed many of Tom Wolfe's books. But his past accomplishment⁵ is no reason that we should be subjected to his thoroughly⁶ ridiculous ideas about some sort of separate origin for humans that is scientifically several steps behind intelligent design.

Another listener, David Frye, writes (reading) listening to your interview with Tom Wolfe - I had to laugh. It was the equivalent of interviewing an expert on evolutionary⁷ biology who never reads novels to get his opinions about how novelists can write better stories.

And this from Susan Wernimont (reading) Tom Wolfe is not a scientist. He is wholly unqualified to talk about speech, evolution or the biological distinctions between humans and animals. This interview was a disappointment.

We enjoy hearing from you, though. You can reach us at npr.org - click on the contact tab - or WEEKEND EDITION's Facebook page. Or you can reach me directly on Twitter - @nprscottsimon - all one word.

1 browser   

n.浏览者

参考例句：

• View edits in a web browser.在浏览器中看编辑的效果。
• I think my browser has a list of shareware links.我想在浏览器中会有一系列的共享软件链接。

2 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

3 atheist   

n.无神论者

参考例句：

• She was an atheist but now she says she's seen the light.她本来是个无神论者，可是现在她说自己的信仰改变了。
• He is admittedly an atheist.他被公认是位无神论者。

4 propounded   

v.提出（问题、计划等）供考虑[讨论]，提议( propound的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• the theory of natural selection, first propounded by Charles Darwin 查尔斯∙达尔文首先提出的物竞天择理论
• Indeed it was first propounded by the ubiquitous Thomas Young. 实际上，它是由尽人皆知的杨氏首先提出来的。 来自辞典例句

5 accomplishment   

n.完成，成就，（pl.）造诣，技能

参考例句：

• The series of paintings is quite an accomplishment.这一系列的绘画真是了不起的成就。
• Money will be crucial to the accomplishment of our objectives.要实现我们的目标，钱是至关重要的。

6 thoroughly   

adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地

参考例句：

• The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。
• The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。

7 evolutionary   

adj.进化的；演化的，演变的；[生]进化论的

参考例句：

• Life has its own evolutionary process.生命有其自身的进化过程。
• These are fascinating questions to be resolved by the evolutionary studies of plants.这些十分吸引人的问题将在研究植物进化过程中得以解决。