A

Participants in an online forum were asked whether space exploration was worthwhile. Here are some of the comments they posted:

Planet Girl 7.17 pm

Our world is ravaged by war, famine and poverty. Billions of people struggle just to survive from day to day. Meanwhile the US space agency has US$16 billion to play with every year. We must deal with the world’s urgent problems. Space exploration is a luxury we cannot afford.

Dragon 7.18 pm

That $16 billion spent on space is nothing compared to the $370 billion spent on the military.

JJ 7.20 pm

Exploring space is investing in the future. Everyone knows we’re running out of resources. There’s massive over-population too. The solar system has heaps of resources we can use for mining, and maybe we can colonise other planets. If we don’t do it now, it might be too late.

Planet Girl 7.22 pm

We have to tackle problems of over-population and resource depletion here on Earth, instead of chasing science fiction dreams. Otherwise we will just export our unsustainable lifestyle to another planet. We might consume the whole universe!!

JJ 7.23 pm

Space explorers rock! They know what they are in for, and they still do it anyway. That’s what I call courage! We humans have always struggled to expand our horizons. We want to know what else is out there. Who knows, maybe we’ll discover the solution to all our problems out there!

Switched-on 7.25 pm

Space exploration has had a huge effect on our lives. Want to talk to someone halfway around the world? Sure. Get the weather forecast? Coming right up. Check exactly where you are? Absolutely. It’s all possible, thanks to satellite technology, global positioning systems, and the rest. If there was no space exploration, we’d be sitting around in the dark, not talking online!

Penny 7.50 pm

Satellites are launched by private companies — for profit. Planet Earth doesn’t always benefit. Exploring remote planets certainly does not contribute to life on Earth.

21. From the online forum Planet Girl means that space exploration is______.

A. expensive but necessary.

B. expensive and unnecessary

C. very important but too expensive.

D. not very important but affordable.

22. What is the most likely reason that JJ does not discuss the cost of space exploration?

A. He agrees that space exploration costs too much.

B. He does not know how much space exploration costs.

C. He thinks space exploration is worthwhile, whatever the cost.

D. He knows Planet Girl is wrong about the cost of space exploration.

23. What is one point that Planet Girl and JJ are most likely to agree about?

A. Earth’s resources are fast disappearing.

B. Spending money on war is unnecessary.

C. Space exploration encourages creativity.

D. Living on other planets is a real possibility.