Human beings were 'more intelligent' than the other animals, but were not accorded a mention of 'soul'. The process of cellular division and differentiation was something no one had yet begun to understand – but there was no suggestion that it required the interference of angels. So if Alan was indeed 'watching the daisies grow', he could have been thinking that while it looked as though the daisy knew what to do, it really depended upon a system of cells working like a machine. And what about himself? How did he know what to do? There was plenty to dream about while the hockey ball whizzed past.

现在还搞不清楚细胞分裂或变异的具体过程，但是看起来，这确实不像和天使有什么关系。艾伦经常观察雏菊的生长，他也许会想到：雏菊似乎知道自己该做什么，它确实是基于一系列细胞，像机器一样地工作着。那么我自己呢？我的身体是怎么知道自己该做什么的？当冰球嗖嗖地从他眼前飞过时，他思考了许多许多问题。

Besides watching the daisies, Alan liked inventing things. On 11 February 1923 he wrote:9

除了观察雏菊之外，艾伦还喜欢搞些小发明。1923年2月11日，他写信说注：

Dear Mother and Daddy,

亲爱的爸爸妈妈：

I have got a lovely cinema kind of thing Micheal* sills gave it to me and you can draw new films for it and I am making a copy of it for you for an easter present I am sending it in another envelope if you want any more films for it write for them there are 16 pictures in each but I worked out that I could draw 'The boy stood at the tea table' you know the Rhyme made up from casabianca I was 2nd this week again. Matron sends her love GB said that as I wrote so thick I was to get some new nibs from T. Wells and I am writing with them now there is a lecture tomorrow Wainwright was next to bottom this week this is my patent ink

我得到了一台可爱的相机是麦克尔希尔斯送我的可以换胶卷的如果你们想看看我复制了一份给你们放在另一个信封里里面有16张照片我还可以做出你们知道的押韵短诗站在茶桌旁的男孩这周我又考了第二名迈顿发来问候GB说我写得太粗了应该向威尔斯要一些新的钢笔尖我现在用的就是新的笔尖明天有场讲座这是我自己发明的墨水

There was nothing about science, inventions, or the modern world in the Common Entrance examination – the public school admission test, which was the raison d'être of schools like Hazelhurst. Casabianca was nearer the mark. In the American Natural Wonders everything had to have a reason. But the British system was building different 'thinking spots' – the virtue of Casabianca, the boy on the burning deck, was that he carried out his instructions literally, losing his life in the process.

像海兹赫斯特这样的学校，存在的意义是为了普通入学考试，然而在这考试中，却没有什么关于科学、发明或现代世界的内容。《自然奇迹》中说，每件事情都是有原因的，但是这些学校，只是像机器一样运转着，似乎是没有原因的。这就是在英国体制下建立起来的思维区──即使在燃烧的甲板上，人们也是一样按部就班地工作，直至烧死。