UNIT 1:
WHY EXPLORE?
GROUP
IDEAS
1. What do people like to explore when
getting new places?
2. Where is the best place to explore new
things?
Compare 2 pictures
Explore 100 years ago Explore today
PRE-READING
Restless genes ? Exploring beyond ? The urge to explore is a
“defining part of human
identity”
behaviors or
• curiosity, ambition, and
tendencies that drive the drive to missions to • the urge to explore
exploration, risk- other planets, moons in allowed human to
taking, and space / new ideas, migrate to new regions,
adaptability. cultures, and find resources, adapt to
encouraged our perspectives that diverse environments,
ancestors to migrate, broaden one’s and survive challenges.
innovate, or adapt to understanding of the
new environments. world.
Paragraph
1
In 1769, Polynesian priest Tupaia gave Captain
James Cook a map of the South Pacific, providing
Europeans with their first descriptive/understanding
view of the region, including all major island groups
across 3,000 miles.
Paragraph 2
Tupaia, a Polynesian navigator aboard Cook's ship
Endeavour, amazed/impressed the crew by
navigating without instruments and consistently
guiding the ship accurately between islands,
including pointing precisely to Tahiti at any time.
Paragraph 3
Cook recognized that South Pacific islanders were
once a unified people who had explored, settled,
and mentally mapped the vast ocean without
navigational tools.
Paragraph 4
Svante Pääbo, an expert in human origins,
highlights humanity's unique drive to explore, from
ocean voyages to space travel, questioning the
persistent curiosity.
Paragraph 5
The DRD4-7R gene variant, present in about 20%
of humans, is linked to curiosity, restlessness, risk-
taking, and a drive for exploration and adventure,
potentially rooting humanity's urge to explore in our
genetics.
Paragraph 6
Kenneth Kidd, who helped discover the 7R gene
variant, cautions against oversimplifying exploration as
linked to a single gene. He suggests that multiple
genes likely contribute to both the urge and the abilities
necessary for exploration, with 7R possibly playing a
role in pushing humans to explore.
• Section 1: The Age of
Exploration
A- Exploration began long before
Getting main there were maps and other tools
for navigation.
ideas
Section 2: Restless Genes
C. Several different genes
probably contribute to the Section 3: Exploring Beyond
human impulse to explore
B. Much of our planet has been
explored, but curiosity is pushing
us to explore beyond Earth.
Which statement best describes the
main idea for the whole reading
passage?
B. The compulsion to explore
is an essential part of human
identity .
IDENTIFYING SUPPORTING
INFORMATION
C/E B/F A/D
B. From “Child Explorers” section, answer the
questions below
1. What abilities or traits do humans have that make them
uniquely equipped to explore?
Curiosity
2. How are these traits developed in childhood?
Humans have a long childhood, allows us to focus less
on survival and more on developing our intelligence
through curiosity
3. In what ways could playing be connected to landing a
rover on Mars?
The brain development during childhood gives us the
tools needed to explore. We take risks, test out
possibilities and strategies, and challenge ourselves
B. MAKING INFERENCES
1. “Tupaia amazed the sailors again and again. On request, at any time, day or night,
cloudy or clear, he could point precisely toward Tahiti.”
a. They were amazed because of the tools he used in order to do this.
b. They were amazed because they could not do what Tupaia could do.
2. DRD4 controls dopamine, a chemical messenger in the brain that plays a major role in
reward-motivated behavior.
a. Changes in dopamine levels cause some genes to mutate.
b. The chemical dopamine may encourage people to take risks.
3. “Michael Barratt says, ‘It works this way at every point in human history. A society
develops an enabling technology, whether it’s the ability to preserve and carry food or build
a ship or launch a rocket.’”
a. “Enabling technology” often makes new exploration possible.
b. “Enabling technology” limits our exploration instincts.
BUILDING VOCABULARY
visiona
ry
Obsessed
with prospe
ct
encountere
d
consul
BUILDING VOCABULARY
