Directions: Put the following paragraph into Chinese. Write your Chinese version in the proper space on Answer Sheet.
Under the impact of modern science, the very conception of the task of philosophy has undergone a radical reorientation. In very broad historical perspective it may be said that the philosophers throughout the ages have been engaged in three major endeavors: they have been searching for absolute truths regarding basic reality, and for absolute standards of morality; they have tried to construct a synthesis, a view of the universe and of man's place in it, i.e., a perspective that would integrate the various contributions of the sciences into an intelligible and harmonious whole; finally, philosophers have attempted to clarify the meaning and the validity of the fundamental concepts, assumptions, and methods of knowledge and of evaluation.
In the light of modern science, i.e., not only of its results and conclusions but especially of its open-minded attitude and critical approach, the search for absolute truth is largely being abandoned as fruitless, if not as meaningless. The spirit of contemporary science is "critical" in the sense that all its conclusions are considered sound or tenable only "until further notice". In other words, neither of the extremes-dogmatism or skepticism—is acceptable. The police of the open mind indicates that while we should keep all our convictions in principle open for criticism and revision, it is perfectly reasonable to reply on well-confirmed assumptions until strong evidence forces us to modify or to replace them by other assumptions that are more strongly supported by relevant evidence.
