英国论坛
University of Cambridge(剑桥大学)
所在地区:英格兰所在城市:CambridgeTIMES排名:1
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剑桥大学出版社全球首席执行官潘仕勋(Stephen Bourne)
他是世界上最古老的国际出版社的掌舵者，引领着“全球诺贝尔奖获得者最青睐的出版机构”在知识传播的道路上播撒智慧；他是一个专业精湛、眼光独到的出版人，秉承传统，锐意创新，使知识的力量在数字化时代散发出更加耀眼的光芒；他是一个成功的商人，却以“教师”定位自己，把“促进学习、传播知识”当做事业的追求与使命；他是一位兴趣广泛、温文尔雅的英国绅士，“交响乐指挥”和“红酒专家”的头衔为他平添了几分个人魅力。他，就是——剑桥大学出版社全球首席执行官潘仕勋(Stephen Bourne)。
The Charm of Cambridge 剑桥的魅力
Ding: Mr. Bourne, Cambridge will celebrate its 800th birthday in 2009. As a member of its staff, what do you think makes it a distinguished world-famous university? What is it that attracts you most to work there?
Bourne: Our Vice-Chancellor, the University President, who used to be Provost1) of Yale University, said recently that she considered Cambridge to be the most beautiful university city in the world. I agree with that. That is part of the reason why it is a pleasure to come to work here each morning. However, there are a number of key attributes to Cambridge which make it a very special university: Most universities focus on either teaching or research, but Cambridge has ensured that it always gives equal importance to both teaching and research; high quality is absolutely the ethos2) of Cambridge; and finally, investment over hundreds of years has enabled Cambridge to be one of the world's leading universities, though we do of course wish that we had access to the same kind of resources that are available to universities such as Harvard and Stanford.
Ding: Compared with other universities in the world, are there anything special with Cambridge's staff and students?
Bourne: As I have said above, high quality standards are what distinguish Cambridge from lesser universities. There is great demand for student places at Cambridge, so the University can afford to set stiff admission criteria, which ensures that we get excellent students here. Once they arrive, they are educated in all aspects of critical reasoning, not just in learning facts.
Ding: If a Chinese student wishes to study in Cambridge, what qualities do you think they should have? How should an international student fit into the culture of CU?
Bourne: We do have quite a large proportion of international students at Cambridge, and they seem to mix very easily with other nationalities. What that tells us is that the common factor that provides a bond between those students is that they are intelligent, they are determined to succeed and to find new solutions, and they are prepared to work hard to do that. All of these features are to be found amongst the best students in China, so it is not surprising that we have a considerable number of Chinese students here at Cambridge.
How to Spend College Life
我的大学
Ding: Could you tell us something about your study years in University of Edinburgh? Are there any special people or experience that impressed you deepest while you were studying there?
Bourne: While Edinburgh has a good reputation in modern languages, I must admit that it was the City of Edinburgh itself that impressed me most of all. It is a beautiful city with fine architecture, but also with warm friendly people and delightful cultural traditions. I personally am very fond of Scottish things such as their dancing and music and their food. Unfortunately, all of these good things meant that I didn't study at all hard and my academic life was complicated by the fact that I met my future wife at university, so perhaps I focus more on my social life than I should have done. With luck, however, the Bourne family will soon be able to boast four Edinburgh graduates,as both my children chose to attend Edinburgh University.
Ding: So what do you think is the most important thing for a young person to pursue in college? As to the old question “how to spend your college life meaningfully”, could you give our young students some fresh advice or ideas?
Bourne: I am one of those people who does not believe in being too focused on a single academic subject. My recommendation is that students should take the opportunity of their university years to pursue a number of other areas of interest which are available within a university environment. In addition, I strongly recommend that students seek to achieve a good balance between their studies and their personal life. In that respect, it would perhaps be helpful to relate that my daughter spent quite a lot of time riding horses when she was at university, while my son is a sportsman who finds that playing sport gives his mind time to relax.
Suggestions to Chinese Students
致中国学子
Ding: Can you give some suggestions to Chinese students on how to learn English well as a second language?
Bourne: Anyone can learn English. It is not one of the most difficult languages and there are many courses available for foreign learners of English. However, I would of course recommend that students look for really good courses in English; that they should decide early on whether it is British English or American English that they wish to learn because there are different courses available for each of those forms of English; that they should not rely exclusively on printed material, but should make good use of radio, television, movies and video material to help them to understand how we pronounce English. Pronunciation is perhaps one of the most difficult problems for Mandarin speakers, particularly in the Beijing area, where the “r” sounds and the “sh” sounds are so different to any of the sounds that we make in English. So it is very important to listen to native speakers of English and to practice trying to speak in the same way as they do.
Ding: As a global CEO, Mr. Bourne, what do you think, from your own experience, makes one successful? What advice can you give to young people and students?
Bourne: If you are to be a successful player in the international market place, I think it is really important that you should have a genuine interest in foreign cultures, rather than just an academic interest in overseas market opportunities. To do that, and to feel comfortable working with those foreign cultures, I strongly recommend that you take every opportunity to go and live abroad in two or three countries, for at least two years in each place, learning both their languages and their cultures.
Ding: For many college students in China who are facing the pressure of employment, there is one question they must be very interested in: As a world-famous international publishing house, do you have any special or specific expectations of the college graduates who want to apply for a job in CUP? And what qualities do you think are most important that employees in CUP should have?
Bourne: Cambridge University Press is very fortunate to have been built up in a country whose native language is English, and which has now become the standard global language of business, academic, diplomacy and the internet. We recognize that our greatest asset3) is the English language and we therefore specialize in English language publications. So a high standard of English is very important to us with all our recruits4). I also look for people who are commercially-minded, but who are not greedy. It must be remembered that the mission of Cambridge University Press is to disseminate5) knowledge, rather than to make large amounts of money, so I want people who reflect that ethos. That also means that I look for people who have a desire to educate, to be teachers in addition to being business people; and who share my vision of aiming to build a global family.
A Businessman & Teacher
出版生涯，教师情怀
Ding: What is it that attracted or ushered you into the publishing industry? And what's the happiest thing as a publisher?
Bourne: For someone with the sort of international background that I have, the global reach of Cambridge University Press was, of course, an attraction to me when I first joined the Press. However, there are three other main features which I found appealing: the high standards of integrity here, which I have always believed is the best way of conducting a business if you want it to survive in the long-term; the intellectual content of what we produce, which is far more satisfying than some of the things that are produced in other kinds of business; and the fact that we also manufacture a physical product—books—which we can see and touch and which we know will survive for a very long time in libraries.
Ding: You've been in the publishing industry for more than 20 years, Mr. Bourne. Now how would you like to define yourself? A scholar or a businessman?
Bourne: I think of myself as an international businessman and a teacher. The first paid job that I did in my life was as an English language teacher in France, and I come from a family of teachers. So perhaps it is not surprising that, although I have now become a businessman, the mentality of a teacher remains with me and I get great satisfaction from that.
Ding: OK, the last question: What's the book that influenced you most, and why?
Bourne: Curiously, perhaps, the book that has made the greatest impression on me was by a French author, Gustave Flaubert6), and the book was Madame Bovary. What particularly impressed me was the fact that Flaubert had spent so long writing and re-writing the text until he was satisfied that his use of the French language was as perfect as it could be and it expressed his ideas in the very best way he was able to achieve. That search for perfection and the love of words in highly developed languages is something that has always remained with me.
1. provost n. (大学中某些学院的)院长；教务长
2. ethos n. 社会精神特质
3. asset n. 资源，优势
4. recruit n. 新成员
5. disseminate vt. 传播
6. Gustave Flaubert：古斯塔夫·福楼拜(1821～1880)，法国现实主义作家，代表作为《包法利夫人》(Madame Bovary)。
