很久很久以前，战场上征尘未尽的退伍上校 Switzer 有一天遇到了新泽西大街散步的爱因斯坦。斯氏好奇地请教爱氏：科学在中国是有，还是有？[1] 

爱因斯坦稍作沉吟，用含混不清的英语而非德语答道：[2]

In my opinion one has not to be astonished that the Chinese sages have not made those steps. The astonishing thing is that those discoveries were made at all.

多少年之后，在滚滚红尘之中，中国贤哲的后人对那些 those 疑惑不解，发出了“屈氏天问”：到底是 these steps 还是 those steps?

这一问题同样困惑远在圣城耶路撒冷、爱因斯坦档案馆的芭芭拉女士，她是这样来信的

Dear Dr. XX,

as I wrote yesterday:

Since this transcript is the only extant (or known) copy of the letter, we don't know the exact wording of its original text. 

瑕疵未定，余音未了。一旦爱氏拎得清这些、那些，说的是 these steps，那么如果斯氏向爱氏请教的是对古代中国发现的评价，令人惊讶的那些发现 those discoveries 是不是指古代中国发现呢？ 

只道是：褒姒烽火戏诸侯，爱氏一语娱天下，远处狼烟又起。

[1]斯氏的原问在 A.F. Wright 信中是这样：science or no science in China 见爱因斯坦档案61-382

[2]Wright 教授在信中如是说：Dr. Einstein wrote a very nice letter, apparently typing it himself