2013年春季上海中高级口译考试于今日3月17日开考，沪江英语在考后第一时间提供真题、解析、答案信息，本文为2013年3月高级口译听力真题Note Taking and Gap Filling 部分（含解析），由沪江网校提供。

Note Taking and Gap Filling

Why should mankind explore space? Why should money, time and effort be spent in exploring, investigating and researching something with so few benefits? Why should resources be spent on space rather than on conditions and people on earth or in our own country? Perhaps the best answer lies in our genetic make-up. What drove our distant ancestors to move from the trees onto the plains? Was it the lack of skills to compete in one ecological niche? If so the adaptation selected for after the move have resulted in the species expanding into all possible areas and environment，the drive to spread genetic material and ensure the success of not just the species but of one type of genetic material. The wider the distribution of a species, the better the chance of survival. Perhaps the best reason for exploring space is the built-in genetic predisposition to expand into all possible niches. Culturally nearly every successful civilization has been willing to explore. In exploring, dangers of surrounding areas may be learned and prepared for. Dangers may be political enemies in neighboring cultures, physical features of the area, a change in the area which might affect food supplies or any other number of factors. All pose a real danger and all may be made less dangerous if certain preparations are made. Without knowledge, the danger may strike and completely destroy, with knowledge, the effects or consequences may be lessened. Exploration also allows resources to be located. Resources translate into power and success at survival. Whether the success be financial, political or genetic additional resources are always a boon when used wisely. In any of the three manners, use of resources allows a heightened percentage for survival. If the resources have no immediate need, then perhaps later the resources will be used. Resources may be more than physical assets. Knowledge or techniques acquired in exploring or preparing to explore always filter from the developers to the general populace. Techniques may be medical applications, uses for drugs or ways of living to increase the quantity of time lived or the quality of that time. Techniques may be social, allowing the people in a society to better understand those within or outside the culture. Better understanding may lead to better use of resources or a lessening of outright competition for the resources. 

While many resources are spent on what seems a small return, the exploration of space allows the creative, the brave, the intelligence of our species to focus on that may serve to save us. While space may hold many wonders and explanations of how the universe was formed or how it works, it also holds dangers. The chance of a large asteroid or comet hitting he earth is small. But given time, it will happen. Several current models of evolution propose many changes in a very short time period. Some explanations for the drastic speed of extinction and evolution include strikes by asteroids or comets. Human technology is reaching the point where it might be able to detect such a threat and allow us to do something about it. The danger exists, but knowledge can allow us as a species to survive. Without the ability to reach out across space, the chance to save ourselves might not exist. While earth is the only planet known to sustain life, surely the adaptive ability of humans would allow other planets and moons to become inhabited. True the life style would be different, but human life and cultures have adapted in the past and surely could in the future. Our genetic make-up will allow humans to move into unoccupied niches and flourish. The culture group holding the high ground has attained a great advantage over outer groups. It can see farther, act sooner and be safer from attack. In space all of these things are true. The culture which expands is like and organism which adapts. It may be found everywhere. If one group is eliminated, the species as a whole survives. The old adage, do not put all your eggs in one basket holds true for humans and cultures. The more a culture expands, the less chance of it becoming extinct. Space allows us to expand and succeed.

解析：

文章大意：
人类为什么要探索外太空，在这项获益甚少的项目上花费大量的财力物力？这可能和人类的天性有关。人来的远古祖先从树上来到地上，其实也是一种对领域的开拓。物种扩散的越光，存活的几率就越大。人类探索外太空也基于同样的理由。但是探索也会有危险，所以需要有一定的准备。而探索的过程中还会涉及到资源的使用：这种资源包括有形和无形的。只有充分了解才能更好的使用资源。只有通过合理利用技术和资源，才能在灾难毁灭人类前找到适合人类继续繁衍的地方。

本篇文章主要在谈论人类为何要向外太空进发，属于科学类文章。其中的有一些词汇可能会对考生造成困难。例如： niche: 原意表示壁龛，在文中可以表示某个地域或空间；general populace：普通大众；asteroid or comet：小行星或流星；inhabited：适宜居住的；adage：谚语、格言。

除此之外，本篇文章的有些句式结构也比较复杂，可能会对考生的理解上造成压力。总体来说，对本篇文章的理解、记录以及最后的填空有一定难度。