英语四级阅读练习是提升英语能力不可或缺的环节。通过深入的阅读练习，我们不仅能够锤炼语言技巧，还能有效扩充四级考试的词汇库，进一步加深对语法知识的理解。这种综合性的学习方式，无疑为全面提升英语水平打下了坚实的基础。以下，我们将以一篇科学探究方法的文章为例，进行英语四级阅读练习。
英文原文
Method of Scientific Inquiry
科学探究方法
Why the inductive and mathematical sciences, after their first rapid development at theculmination of Greek civilization, advanced so slowly for two thousand years—and why in thefollowing two hundred years a knowledge of natural and mathematical science hasaccumulated, which so vastly exceeds all that was previously known that these sciences maybe justly regarded as the products of our own times—are questions which have interested themodern philosopher not less than the objects with which these sciences are more immediatelyconversant. Was it the employment of a new method of research, or in the exercise of greatervirtue in the use of the old methods, that this singular modern phenomenon had its origin? Was the long period one of arrested development, and is the modern era one of normal growth? Or should we ascribe the characteristics of both periods to so-called historical accidents—tothe influence of conjunctions in circumstances of which no explanation is possible, save in theomnipotence and wisdom of a guiding Providence?
为什么归纳法和数理科学在希腊文明起源之初迅速发展之后，在两千年里发展如此缓慢，为什么在随后的两百年里，自然科学和数理科学的知识积累如此之多，远远超过了以前所知道的一切，以至于这些科学可以名正言顺地被视为我们这个时代的产物，这些问题引起了现代哲学家的兴趣，其程度丝毫不亚于这些科学更直接涉及的对象。是采用了新的研究方法，还是在使用旧方法时发挥了更大的智慧，才产生了这一奇特的现代现象？漫长的时期是否是发展停滞的时期，而现代是否是正常发展的时期？或者，我们应该把这两个时期的特征归因于所谓的历史偶然事件--在无法解释的情况下，只能归因于天意的全能和智慧的影响？
The explanation which has become commonplace, that the ancients employed deductionchiefly in their scientific inquiries, while the moderns employ induction, proves to be toonarrow, and fails upon close examination to point with sufficient distinctness the contrastthat is evident between ancient and modern scientific doctrines and inquiries. For all knowledgeis founded on observation, and proceeds from this by analysis, by synthesis and analysis, by induction and deduction, and if possible by verification, or by new appeals toobservation under the guidance of deduction—by steps which are indeed correlative parts ofone method; and the ancient sciences afford examples of every one of these methods, or partsof one method, which have been generalized from the examples of science.
古人在科学探究中主要使用演绎法，而现代人则使用归纳法，这种解释已成为司空见惯的说法，但事实证明，这种解释过于狭窄，仔细研究也无法充分鲜明地指出古今科学学说和探究之间的明显对比。因为所有的知识都建立在观察的基础上，然后通过分析、综合和分析、归纳和演绎，如果可能的话，通过验证，或者在演绎的指导下对观察提出新的要求，这些步骤实际上是一种方法的相关部分；古代科学提供了这些方法中的每一种方法或一种方法的一部分的例子，这些例子是从科学的例子中概括出来的。
A failure to employ or to employ adequately any one of these partial methods, animperfection in the arts and resources of observation and experiment, carelessness inobservation, neglect of relevant facts, by appeal to experiment and observation—theseare the faults which cause all failures to ascertain truth, whether among the ancients or themoderns; but this statement does not explain why the modern is possessed of a greatervirtue, and by what means he attained his superiority. Much less does it explain the suddengrowth of science in recent times.
没有使用或没有充分使用这些部分方法中的任何一种，在观察和实验的艺术和资源方面不够完善，在观察中粗心大意，忽视相关的事实，诉诸实验和观察--这些都是导致查明真相的所有失败的缺点，无论是在古人还是在现代人中间都是如此；但这种说法并不能解释为什么现代人拥有一种伟大的美德，以及他是通过什么手段获得这种优越性的。更无法解释近代科学的突然发展。
The attempt to discover the explanation of this phenomenon in the antithesis of “facts” and“theories” or “facts” and “ideas”—in the neglect among the ancients of the former, and theirtoo exclusive attention to the latter—proves also to be too narrow, as well as open to thecharge of vagueness. For in the first place, the antithesis is not complete. Facts and theoriesare not coordinate species. Theories, if true, are facts—a particular class of facts indeed, generally complex, and if a logical connection subsists between their constituents, have allthe positive attributes of theories.
试图从 “事实 ”与 “理论 ”或 “事实 ”与 “观念 ”的对立中--从古人对前者的忽视和对后者过于专一的关注中--发现对这一现象的解释，也显得过于狭隘，而且容易招致含糊不清的指控。首先，对立面并不完整。事实与理论并不是相互协调的物种。理论如果是真实的，就是事实--确实是一类特殊的事实，一般来说是复杂的，而且如果其构成要素之间存在逻辑联系，就具有理论的所有积极属性。
Nevertheless, this distinction, however inadequate it may be to explain the source of truemethod in science, is well founded, and connotes an important character in true method. A factis a proposition of simple. A theory, on the other hand, if true has all the characteristics of afact, except that its verification is possible only by indirect, remote, and difficult means. Toconvert theories into facts is to add simple verification, and the theory thus acquires the fullcharacteristics of a fact.
尽管如此，这种区分无论如何不足以解释科学中真正方法的来源，但它是有根据的，并且包含了真正方法的一个重要特征。事实是一个简单的命题。另一方面，理论如果是真实的，就具有事实的所有特征，只是其验证只能通过间接、遥远和困难的手段。将理论转化为事实，就是增加了简单的验证，理论因此获得了事实的全部特征。
问题
1.The title that best expresses the ideas of this passage is
A. Philosophy of mathematics.
B. The RecentGrowth in Science.
C. The Verification of Facts.
D. Methods of Scientific Inquiry.
2.According to the author, one possible reason for the growth of science during thedays of the ancient Greeks and in modern times is
A. the similarity between the two periods.
B. that it was an act of God.
C. that both tried to develop the inductive method.
D. due to the decline of the deductive method.
3.The difference between “fact” and “theory”
A. is that the latter needs confirmation.
B. rests on the simplicity of the former.
C. is the difference between the modern scientists and the ancient Greeks.
D. helps us to understand the deductive method.
4.According to the author, mathematics is
A. an inductive science.
B. in need of simple verification.
C. a deductive science.
D. based on fact and theory.
5.The statement “Theories are facts” may be called.
A. a metaphor.
B. a paradox.
C. an appraisal of the inductive and deductive methods.
D. a pun.
答案解析
1. D. 科学研究/探索的方法。文章一开始就提出问题，为什么从希腊文化顶峰时期后两千年来归纳法和数学科学发展如此缓慢，而后的两百年又超越了前人，是应用新，旧方法关系还是其它。第二段讲埃及古代在科学探索中运用了演绎推理法，而现在应用了归纳法。这种解释太狭隘，经仔细审核，难以很清晰地点明古代和现代科学教义和探究上明显的差别。因为一切知识都基于观察，通过分析，综合，或综合分析，归纳演绎推理，有可能的话，经过校正或经由演绎指导下再观察而向前推进。第三段进一步阐明不用这些方法观察，实验;忽略相关事实，推理不慎;不能答出理论的结论，再用实验或观察来检验等或用得不全，不论在古代还是现代都会失败。但这不能说明为什么现代科学具有较高的功效，通过什么方式方法，超越了前人，更不用说说明最近科学突飞猛进的原因。第四，五段涉及事实和理论的关系。
2. B. 是上天的安排，这是作家在用方法论等失败后得出的结论。见难句译注4，第一段最后一句话。
3. A. 后者需要证实。答案在第四，五段，死段试图在事实的对立面和理论，或事实和思想中发现上述现象的解释看起来有饿太狭隘，也会因模糊不清遭批评。因为，对立面不全面，事实和理论不是同类的事物。理论，如果是真正的理论，就是事实——一种特殊类别的事实，一般复杂，但仍是事实。而事实，从词的狭义来说，如果很复杂，如果各成分中存在着逻辑的联系，就具有理论的一切主要特征。第五段第二句，事实是一个提议，通过运用知识的源泉和经验而证实的提议直接而又简单。而理论，若是真理论，就有事实的一切特性(除非其证实只能通过非直接的，遥远的和困难的方式方法)，把理论转成事实必须用简单的核实，理论因此具有事实的一切特性。
4. C. 是推理演绎科学，这个问题常识就能回答。
5. B. 是一个悖论。
以上就是英语四级阅读练习：科学探究方法的文章示例，希望这些练习能够成为你英语学习路上的得力助手，助你轻松应对四级考试！
