历史与人物onbeing.org编辑精选
爱因斯坦：黑人问题（1946）
Einstein: The Negro Question (1946)
2014 — 2016，它一次次回到首页
黑点是上首页（≥ 50 分）的那次投稿，空心点是没冲上去的投稿，点越大分数越高。
导读
这是爱因斯坦1946年关于美国种族问题的短文：他剖析美国白人对平等与人的尊严的理解局限，并以自己作为犹太人感受到的偏见作参照。文章还讨论面对持错误观念者时应温和指出错误、促人自省，而非羞辱和斥责。
为什么经久不衰：它把一位科学家的道德反思与结构性种族偏见联系起来，既是对1946年美国的社会观察，也提醒今天的人如何面对偏见与异见。
HN 评论精选
非黑人有色人种借自身边缘经验理解种族压迫，并反思自己所享有的特权。
这真的很引人深思。尤其这段打动我：“[美国人]的平等和人的尊严感主要限于白人；即便在白人之中也存在偏见，而我作为犹太人清楚意识到这点。”作为非黑人有色人种，这是我理解种族与压迫问题的入口。想到自己经历的（相对）较小的偏见和屈辱，让我更能接受很多人的处境确实不对、压迫真实存在；也让我意识到自己作为受过大学教育的男性、父母也受过大学教育所享有的特权。这篇很有先见且相关。
kroy查看英文原文
This is really fascinating. This part particularly struck me: "[Americans'] sense of equality and human dignity is mainly limited to men of white skins. Even among these there are prejudices of which I as a Jew am clearly conscious" As a non-black person of color, this has been my access point to issues of race and oppression. Thinking about the (relatively) minor prejudices and indignities I've experienced made me a lot more receptive to the idea that things just aren't right for a lot of people. That oppression is real. And it's also made me aware of the privilege that I do enjoy as a college-educated male who's the son of college educated parents. This is a very prescient and relevant piece by Einstein. I'm glad it's on HN!
批评用羞辱代替说服，主张温和纠错以争取人心。
我喜欢文中提到亚里士多德。今天有些人太快把不同意自己开明观点的人骂成“白痴”之类，这样赢不了人心。更好的做法是温和指出那些本来值得尊重的人的錯誤，希望促使他们自省，而不是斥责、让人防御。我们需要更多这种态度。
mariodiana查看英文原文
The thing I like is the reference to Aristotle. Today, there are some people who are too quick to brand anyone who disagrees with their enlightened views as a "moron" or worse. There's no winning hearts and minds that way. It's better to gently point out the mistakes of those who are otherwise worthy of respect, in the hopes that this will spur others towards self-reflection, than to castigate and put people on the defensive. We could use more of that.
认为群体差异应作为科学假设讨论，反对把异见道德污名化。
许多真诚的人会回答：“我们对黑人的态度是共同生活中不利经验的结果……他们在智力、责任感、可靠性上不如我们。”爱因斯坦说相信这点的人有致命误解。但“他们不如我们”其实是一个科学假设。与爱因斯坦相反、甚至只是考虑其可能性的人，是否只被当成“弄错了”？没有——他们被斥责、贴上种族主义者或法西斯等标签、被逐出公民社会。没人否认奴隶祖先受虐待，但这不能排除文化或生物因素。不幸这个主题不被当作科学问题，而成了政治斗争。爱因斯坦显得“超前”不是科学论证胜利，而是政治盟友一直推进。
lexcorvus查看英文原文
Many a sincere person will answer: "Our attitude towards Negroes is the result of unfavorable experiences which we have had by living side by side with Negroes in this country. They are not our equals in intelligence, sense of responsibility, reliability." I am firmly convinced that whoever believes this suffers from a fatal misconception. Although it has clear political implications, the last part of the quote-within-a-quote ("They are not our equals…") is a scientific hypothesis. Does it strike you that people who take the opposite view of Einstein's—or who even consider its possibility—are treated as merely mistaken? As suffering from a misconception? No—they are treated with opprobrium, condemned with epithets (racist, fascist, etc.), and purged from civil society. No reasonable person denies that the ancestors of slaves were mistreated, but as an explanation for group differences this is not mutually exclusive with cultural or biological factors that may have nothing to do with past oppression. Unfortunately, this subject is not treated as a scientific matter—it has become a political fight. Einstein appears to be "ahead of his time" not because of the triumph of his scientific arguments but because his political allies have been consistently advancing.
爱因斯坦示范科学家可在本行外参与公共议题，黑客亦可。
在人们问这为什么与 Hacker News 相关之前：他是一个很好的例子，说明学者、科学家甚至技术专家能在本行之外产生影响。由于多种原因，黑客现在既有稳定就业又是文化英雄。我们可能不是爱因斯坦，但有些事可以做。
neilk查看英文原文
Before people ask why this is relevant to Hacker News: he's a great example of how academics, scientists, and even technologists can have effects outside their field of inquiry. For a mix of reasons, hackers are both securely employable and cultural heroes right now. We may not be Einstein, but there are things we can do. http://www.livescience.com/50051-albert-einstein-civil-rights.html
历次讨论
同类还值得读
开发者无薪坚持完成 Mac 图形计算器：一个秘密项目的故事
Dev stays without pay to finish Mac Graphing Calculator as skunkworks project
苹果 Mac 图形计算器（Graphing Calculator）开发者的亲述：在项目被砍后，几位工程师在没有报酬、没有正式授权的情况下，以“地下项目”方式偷偷留在公司把软件做完…
历史与人物上首页 6 次 · 2009–2022pacifict.com理查德·费曼与 Connection Machine
Richard Feynman and the Connection Machine
长文回忆费曼晚年参与 Connection Machine 并行计算机项目的经历：他分析路由器、用自创的并行 Basic 编写 QCD 程序，也涉足细胞自动机等主题。
历史与人物上首页 5 次 · 2010–2021longnow.org编辑精选负 2000 行代码
-2000 Lines of Code
folklore.org 上 Andy Hertzfeld 记录的一则苹果 Macintosh 开发轶事：Bill Atkinson 被问到写了多少行代码时，回答“-2000 行…
历史与人物上首页 4 次 · 2014–2022folklore.org编辑精选Dennis Ritchie 的第一版 C 编译器（约 1972 年）
Dennis Ritchie’s first C compiler (c. 1972)
这个 GitHub 仓库保存了 Dennis Ritchie 约 1972 年编写的最早 C 编译器源码，是 C 语言和 Unix 早期历史的一手材料。
历史与人物上首页 4 次 · 2013–2025github.com一位破解赛马密码的赌徒
A Gambler Who Cracked the Horse-Racing Code (2018)
彭博社 2018 年的长篇特写，讲述数学家 Bill Benter 如何用统计模型和算法在赛马博彩中持续盈利、累计赢得近十亿美元的故事。
历史与人物上首页 4 次 · 2018–2024bloomberg.com