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focus on exploration (new species, etc.
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You might like Fredrik Pohl the Heeche saga.
Basically - humanity has discovered an abandoned alien base with space ships. They don't understand the controls but they seem to be able to set a destination, fly the ships out and most of the time - fly the ships back.
There is a lottery and Earths poor (the usual food source of the Lotto) fight for a chance to man a ship out and back. The crew who discovers something valuable, share in the profits & become rich.
It was a novel that grew into a 5 book series, but not designed as a series.
http://www.amazon.com/Gateway-Heeche...s=heechee+saga