首页
登录
职称英语
[originaltext] When I tell people what my particular branch of science is, I
[originaltext] When I tell people what my particular branch of science is, I
游客
2023-12-22
68
管理
问题
When I tell people what my particular branch of science is, I often get funny looks. In a way, I understand because astrobiology is the study of life on other planets. Well, obviously, life has not been discovered on other planets, which would appear to make astrobiology a science without a subject! However, everything we know about life on our own planet suggests we have to try to understand if there are any universal requirements for life to evolve, as well as the processes involved in evolution. Consequently, scientists are deeply interested in the beginnings of life on Earth. Once we know more about what happened on home ground, as it were, we will be in a better position to understand any life forms we may one day find on other planets.
When most people think of extra-terrestrial life, they conjure up images of so-called "higher" life forms: they imagine humanoid creatures or bizarre and probably dangerous animals of some kind. But if we consider the whole history of life on Earth, a very different picture emerges. For billions of years the only forms of life on the planet were organisms consisting of single cells. It was only about 550 million years ago that the seas suddenly became filled with a whole array of multicellular life.
So how do humans fit into this time frame? Well, human-like creatures first appear in the fossil record about five or so million years ago: in geological terms, this is just a blink of an eye compared to the long history of life on Earth. And Homo sapiens, our own species, has only been around for about 130,000 years. The point is if we do find life on other planets, it will almost certainly be relatively simple, of the sort that populated the Earth for most of its existence so far.
And of course, we must be prepared for these life forms to look very different from life on Earth. We must not forget that many modern life forms came about as a result of chance, their fate shaped by floods, continental drift and comet or meteor strikes. It is interesting to reflect that if a giant asteroid had not hit the Earth and wiped out the dinosaurs, they might still be ruling the planet and we might never have evolved.
Question No. 16 Which of the following does astrobiology study?
Question No. 17 When telling people what branch of science he studies, why does the speaker often get funny looks?
Question No. 18 With what life forms did the seas suddenly become filled some 550 million years ago?
Question No. 19 For how long has Homo sapiens, our own species, has been existing on Earth?
Question No. 20 Many modern life forms came about as a result of a series of chance factors. Which of the following is NOT one of these factors mentioned in the talk?
选项
A、Because he studies such a difficult science.
B、Because he studies a science without a subject.
C、Because they don’t understand what it is about.
D、Because they think his study has no practical value.
答案
B
解析
转载请注明原文地址:https://tihaiku.com/zcyy/3295118.html
相关试题推荐
Wehaveallheardofcounterfeitingbefore.Usuallyitreferstopeoplemakin
Wehaveallheardofcounterfeitingbefore.Usuallyitreferstopeoplemakin
Somepeoplebelievethatinternationalsportcreatesgoodwillbetweenthenat
Somepeoplebelievethatinternationalsportcreatesgoodwillbetweenthenat
[originaltext]Investingmoneyinthestockmarketisnotthesafestwayint
[originaltext]ForoverahundredyearsHongKonghaddevelopfromaself-suffic
[originaltext]M:Hi.Ihaveareservationfortonight.W:Andyourname?
[originaltext]M:Hi.Ihaveareservationfortonight.W:Andyourname?
[originaltext]Today,I’dliketoprefacemyremarksfromastoryfrommyown
[originaltext]Today,I’dliketoprefacemyremarksfromastoryfrommyown
随机试题
Itwasrecommendedthatpassengers___smokeduringtheflight.A、notB、neednotC
Let’sproceedtothemainexhibithallandlookatsomeoftheactualvehicl
SydneyOperaHousemustbeoneofthemostrecognizableimagesofthemodern
Riskmanagement’s()istoassureuncertai
肿物质地柔软似海绵,常呈局限性半球形、扁平或高出皮面的隆起物,有很大压缩性属于A
无机非金属硅酸盐材料包括水泥、玻璃棉、( )等。 A、橡胶 B、陶瓷
学校可以解聘教师的情形有() A.不能团结同事,其他教师不愿与之共事的 B
草豆蔻的功效是A.燥湿行气,温中止呕 B.芳化湿浊,降逆止呕 C.温胃化湿,
我国刑法在时间效力方面采用的原则是()。 A.从旧兼从重B.从旧兼从轻
可行性研究报告市场预测分析中,市场风险分析包括()。A.编制风险报告 B.识
最新回复
(
0
)