你見過最差勁的老師什么樣？

My Freshman Football Coach in high school. He wasa grade-A asshole.

我上高一時的橄欖球教練，他是頭號大混蛋。

We were doing drills practicing catching the football. He threw me a pass and I dropped it. He startedyelling at me. I went back in line embarrassed. Myfriend was up next. Coach throws him the football. He drops it, too. Coach says nothing. Annoyed, Imumbled under my breath, “Why didn’t he get yelledat?” Coach: “What was that Doherty?!” (I forgot Iwhispered like a freight train) Me: “Uhh…” Coach: “Take off, Doherty! TAKE OFF!!!” He didn’t say where to take off to, and I wasn’t going to ask. So, like Forest Gump, I just started running until practice was over.

我們正在訓練接球，他把球扔給我，我沒接住。他開始朝我大喊，我尷尬地回到排里。接著我朋友上場，教練把球扔給他，他也沒接住，教練什么都沒說。我生氣地小聲咕噥：“為什么不朝他喊?”教練說：“Doherty，你在說什么?”(我忘了自己說話的聲音像運貨的火車一樣大)，我說：“嗯…”教練說：“滾，Doherty!滾!!!”他沒說讓我往哪兒滾，我也沒打算問，就開始像阿甘一樣跑，一直跑到訓練結束。

After practice he came and talked to me. Stephen - the reason I yelled at you and not the otherguy is because I expect more out of you. If I am yelling at you, then it’s because I expect moreout of you and know you can get better.” It’s when we stop yelling at you when you mess upthat you should begin to worry. Because if the day comes we stop yelling when you mess up, itmeans we’ve given up on you.

訓練結束后他來跟我說：“Stephen，我對你喊而沒對別人喊是因為我對你期望更高。如果我對你喊了，那是因為我對你期望更高，而且知道你能變得更好。你表現(xiàn)不好我們卻不對你喊時你才該擔心，因為如果有哪一天你表現(xiàn)不好我們也不對你喊了，那就意味著我們放棄你了。”

Wow. That single sentence by a football coach taught me more about life in one sentence thanany other teacher or class ever had. He was the biggest asshole I ever met. But he was thegreatest teacher I ever had.

哇哦，橄欖球教練的一句話教給我的生活道理要比其他任何老師或課上教給我的都多。他是我見過的頭號混蛋，但也是我最棒的老師。

 

The one who first springs to mind was my PhD supervisor, Ken Crowe. He had a reputation formaking grown men cry when they crewed on his racing sailboat, and other grad students wereterrified of him, but I was fascinated by the topic he was working on, so I joined his group.

第一個出現(xiàn)在我腦海中的是我讀博時的導師Ken Crowe。他名聲在外，據(jù)說能把跟著他做項目的成年人弄哭，其他研究生都很怕他。但我對他正在做的項目很感興趣，所以加入了他的團隊。

He gave me an assignment: to figure out what was causing muons to get depolarized inliquids. I knew it involved muonium formation, so I went off to learn all about muonium. Aftera week or two I came to Ken’s office to tell him about it. He listened for a few minutes andthen yelled at me, “You have no idea what you’re talking about! Get out and don’t come backuntil you do!”

他給我一個任務：弄清楚什么能導致μ(介)子在液體中去極化。我知道這涉及到 μ子素的形成，所以我去了解了所有關于μ子素的知識。一兩周后我去Ken的辦公室向他匯報，他聽了幾分鐘就朝我吼起來：“你根本不知道自己在說什么!滾，弄明白了再回來!”

So I went away and learned more, better, about muonium. I really got into it, and a week laterI came back to tell Ken about it. Again he listened for a few minutes and then threw me out.

然后我就走了，關于μ子素我了解得更多更好了。我真的鉆研了，一周以后我回去向Ken匯報，他又聽了幾分鐘就把我趕了出來。

Now I was starting to get mad. I bored down on the problem until I understood it so well thatto this day it is one of my most proud accomplishments. Then I went back to tell Ken what Ihad figured out. Again he interrupted me a few minutes into my presentation, at whichpoint I said, “Shut up and listen!” Which he did. And when I finished he complimented me ondoing some very original research. From that day forward he supported and promoted me untilwe became great friends and respected colleagues.

現(xiàn)在我開始要瘋了，我深入研究了這個問題，弄得非常明白，直到今天都是我最自豪的成果之一。我又回去告訴Ken我弄明白了什么，我說了幾分鐘之后他再次打斷我，就在那時我說：“閉嘴，聽我說!”他照做了，我說完之后他稱贊我真是做了原創(chuàng)研究。從那天起他支持并提拔我，最后我們成了好朋友和互相尊重的同事。

So don’t ever begrudge your “mean” teachers their high standards. They may spur you toaccomplishments you will be proud of decades later.

所以永遠不要抱怨“刻薄”老師的高標準，他們可能會激勵你取得幾十年后仍引以為傲的成就。