According to Mark Twain, the famed American author and humorist, man’s noblest delight in life is DISCOVERY – to know that you are walking where no others have walked; that you are beholding what no human eye has seen; that you are breathing a virgin atmosphere. Indeed, what better joy can there be for a scientist than to discover a new material, a new phenomenon or a theory; for a philosopher than to give birth to a new thought; for an entrepreneur than to create new wealth; for a university president than to develop a haven for innovation and creativity; or for an explorer to find a new world? Discovery goes beyond science. It is discovery that has changed for the better this world where we live.
To discover involves pushing back the frontier, thinking outside the box, dreaming the impossible dream and taking the unthinkable risk. The human spirit, courage and ingenuity displayed by these discoverers are always a great inspiration for us all. In the 18th Century, the US had Ben Franklin who was an embodiment of these all: a scientist, a statesman, a diplomat and an entrepreneur. In the 20th Century, China had Professor Wu Chien-Shiung, a dedicated mother and wife, as evidenced by her accomplished son, Vincent, and a distinguished physicist husband, Yuan Chia-Liu; a great physicist, as exemplified by her Nobel quality work on beta-decay among others; and an able administrator, as demonstrated as the President of the American Physical Society.
The path of discovery is full of excitement although occasionally dotted with the agony of defeat. In this talk, similar to Professor Wu but in a smaller way, I would like to share with you the excitements of a scientist in finding his new compounds in a laboratory in Houston since 1977, developing an intellectual powerhouse in Hong Kong (2001-2009) and searching for room temperature superconductivity in Houston since 2001. Life is full of never ending dreams and excitements and life of a scientist goes beyond science. I am confident that, similarly, many dreams and much excitement are waiting for you.
根據馬克吐溫 (Mark Twain)的說法，美國著名的幽默作家，一個人在生活上最崇高的喜悅就是「發現」—知道你正走在沒有其他人曾經走過的地方；你正在看沒有其他人曾經看過的東西；你正在呼吸最原始純潔的空氣。的確，對科學家而言，還有什麼樣的喜悅會超過發現一個新材料、一個新現象、或是一個新理論？ 對哲學家而言，最大的喜悅莫過於孕育出一個新思想；對企業家而言，則是創造新財富；對大學校長而言，則是發展出一所創新和創造的樂園；或者對探險家而言，則是發現一處新世界。「發現」超越了科學，也由於「發現」而使我們生活的世界變得更好。
「發現」推展了我們的思維邊界，讓我們跳出框外思想，夢想不可能的夢境和闖蕩超乎想像的風險。那些發現者的精神、勇氣、和才智給予我們很大的鼓舞。十八世紀時，美國有富蘭克林(Benjamin Franklin) 做為發現者的典範，他是一位科學家、政治家、外交家、和企業家。二十世紀時，中國有吳健雄教授作為典範，她是一位非常顧家的母親和妻子，這可從她相夫教子的成就看出來：兒子袁緯承事業有成；夫婿袁家騮是一位傑出的物理學家。她也是一位偉大的物理學家，在貝他(β)衰變的研究工作上，她做出了諾貝爾獎等級的成就；她也是一名能幹的行政工作者，獲選擔任美國物理學會的會長。
通往「發現」的道路上，充滿了興奮，但偶而也點綴著挫折的痛苦。在本演講中，我的生活歷程類似吳健雄教授，但相較之下小得多，我將和你們分享一位科學家的興奮歷程：自1977年以來，在休士頓實驗室發現新化合物超導體的喜悅；在2001至2009年期間，在香港發展出一所創生知識的動力機房；以及在2001年之後，在休士頓探索室溫超導體。生活中充滿了永無止盡的夢想和興奮，科學家的生活超越了科學本身。我相信許許多多的夢想和興奮同樣地正在等待你們！
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In 2006, I was invited by the organizer to speak at “The Dalai Lama Symposium on Spirituality and Science in the Modern World” and to have a dialogue with the Dalai Lama in Houston. I immediately found common ground between Buddhism and superconductivity: the state of nothingness, i.e. the absence of material desires for Buddha and the absence of electrical resistance for a superconductor. It turns out that the state of nothingness is also a state of richness. To acquire such a state demands extreme dedication and total effort. In return, it offers enlightenment and joy in the life of the practitioner. As a physicist, I have been a beneficiary of such a state for decades. I continue to enjoy the excitement of new discoveries in the field of superconductivity and continue to practice my hobby while getting paid. Indeed, to be a scientist is perhaps the best job on earth. In this lecture I shall share with you some of the excitement of triumph as well as the agony of defeat in the world of nothingness, during the long search for novel superconductors with higher transition temperature, after a brief review of the attainment of low temperature and of superconductivity.
2006年我受邀在「達賴喇嘛論壇：現代世界的心靈與科學」上致詞，並和達賴喇嘛在休士頓進行一場對談。當時我立即發現佛教和超導體的共通之處：虛無的狀態；就是佛陀對物質的無慾和超導體的零電阻。結果是這種虛無的狀態也是最富足的。想要到達這種境界，需要極度的奉獻與十足的努力，而得到的回報是實踐者在生活上的啟發和快樂。身為物理學家，我在過去的數十年間，從這樣的境界中獲益良多。我在超導體的領域中，持續享受發現新事物的興奮；持續把研究作為嗜好，同時也能得到報酬。說實在的，當科學家應該是世界上最好的一份工作。在本演講中，我會先簡短回顧過去有關低溫和超導的研究成果，接著我將和大家分享在漫長的探索新穎高溫超導體的過程中，在虛無世界裡獲得成功的喜悅和遭受挫折的痛苦。
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