The human brain contains 10 thousand million cells and each of these may have a thousand connections. So enormous ___1___ numbers used to discourage us and causing us to dismiss the ___2___ possibility of making a machine with human-like ability, but now that we have grown used to move forward at such a pace we can ___3___ be less sure. Quite soon, in only 10 or 20 years perhaps, we will be able to assemble a machine as complex as the human brain, and if we can we will. It may then take us a long time to render it intelligently by loading in the right software or by altering the ___4___ architecture but that too will happen. I think it certain that in decades, no centuries, machines of silicon will arise first to rival ___5___ and then exceed their human ancestors. Once they exceed us they will be capable of their own design. In real sense they will ___6___ be able to reproduce themselves. Silicon will have ended carbon’s long control. And we will no longer be able to claim ourselves to be the fine intelligence in the known universe. As ___7___ the intelligence of robots increase to match that of humans and ___8___ as their cost declines through economics of scale that we may use ___9___ them to expand our frontiers, first on earth through their ability to withstand environments, beneficial to ourselves. Thus, deserts ___10___ may bloom and the ocean beds are minded. Further ahead, by a combination of the great wealth this new age will bring and the technology it will provide, the construction of a vast, man-created world in space, home to thousands or millions of people, will be within our power.
答案及解析: 1. So ->. Such 名词前有形容词时，so和such都可以被用来修饰，但要注意不定冠词a / an的位置，如so big a city / such a big city；如果修饰的对象是复数或不可数名词时，则只能用such修饰。
2. causing ->. cause 本行中used to do意为“过去常做某事”，后接动词原形；discourage和causing由and连接成并列结构，动词形式应保持一致，都应为动词原形。
3. move ->. moving 此处have grown used to ….相当于have been used to….，意为“习惯于做某事”，其后接名词或动名词，故将move改为moving。
9. that ->. / 分析整个句子可知，本句为含有并列原因状语从句“As…and as…”的复合句。从句为As…and as..scale，主句为we may use ….frontiers，主句不应该由引导词that来引导；如果保留that，就会形成that引导的从句，从而造成主句的缺失，故将that去掉。
10. beneficial ->. harmful environment意为“环境，周围情况”时，既可以为单数，也可以为复数；此处beneficial to ourselves前省略了which are 的非限制性定语从句，修饰environments。根据文意，人类之所以利用机器人向更广阔的疆域挺进，是因为它们能适应某些环境的特性，而这些环境应该是对人类有害的。故将beneficial改为harmful。