People have almost shaken their heads and thrown up their hands in despair and thought, this is never gonna come to anything.

人们几乎绝望地摇了摇头， 举起了双手，心想，这永远不会有任何结果。

The textbooks refused even to discuss theories, frankly throwing up their hands and avowing that progress depended on studying each rock as a law to itself.

教科书甚至拒绝讨论理论，坦率地举起手来，承认进步取决于研究每块岩石作为自身的规律。