2023届高考英语三轮复习·冲刺押题·外刊阅读理解训练 (35)

2023届高考英语三轮复习·冲刺押题 外刊阅读理解训练35 ——改编自Should You Follow the Data? Don’t Believe the Hype. 【文章】 In the 17th century, philosophers like Francis Bacon and John Locke advocated for empiricism, which urged people to follow the data or facts given through observation or sensory experience. Despite being revolutionary then, this advice may seem common knowledge today. At that time, authority figures convinced their followers that all necessary knowledge had already been obtained from holy books, ancient texts, and official pronouncements of elites, which impeded scientific progress. However, the notion of following the data proved not totally accurate in practice. We need theories, as they explain how the world works and make sense of data. Moreover, data can be incomplete, frequently incorrect, or distorted by our senses. According to physicist David Deutsch, scientists often amend or reject data when pursuing new discoveries. Galileo’s heliocentrism theory is an example of discovery through violent opposition to sense data. Scientists gain new knowledge not from following data blindly but by using it to criticize existing theories with problems or weaknesses. They then conjecture new theories and subject them to severe criticism. Data serves as a potential destroyer of theories, testing their validity and exposing flaws. If one theory emerges as the best among its rivals, we consider it a provisional explanation without claiming it as true or justified. Even the best theories are conjectural and expected to be overthrown by superior theories in the future. Empiricism has propelled science forward and initiated unprecedented knowledge growth. Still, even as the advice to rebel against authority remains useful, relying on data alone to derive concrete knowledge is a fabrication, a fairy tale, and a fiction. Therefore, rather than believing conclusive knowledge can be mechanically derived from data, we should continue to challenge accepted truths and test theories to achieve