A
China has long been tipped to be the next Silicon Valley, but now the finances and support are in place to make it happen.
There is a growing consensus (共识) that while Silicon Valley is not about to disappear anytime soon, its next biggest rival is already on_the_verge_of bursting onto the international scene — not in the US, nor in the EU, but in Asia.More specifically, China.
This is not just an observation based on the rise of companies like Alibaba, Baidu and Tencent.It is grounded in a more widespread move to fund startups in Asia to the point where more money is being invested there than in Europe.Just five years ago, Europe and Asia are neck and neck in terms of investment.
In 2013, Europe made slightly more deals, 1550 compared to Asia's 1071, but the total value of investment was $7bn.Just five years later, Asia was four times the size of Europe with twice as many deals carried out.
Between 2013 to 2018, the number of deals in Asia increased nearly fivefold, and their value leapt to $81bn, compared to the $21bn raised in Europe.The Asian figure also shows that the continent is closing the gap on the US which saw $105bn worth of deals.
One of the main reasons that makes the country so attractive is not just the huge growth in investment and high education standards, but also local and national governmental support benefiting tech companies.
In fact, one of the conclusions of a recent Fortune tech conference was that China's tech companies will soon be beating American companies on their home turf.One of the reasons is that investors believe US immigration policy is making it more difficult for the best talent around the world to find work there.Plus, Chinese companies are now able to start paying salaries that can keep pace with those on offer in Silicon Valley.
Hence, when Ian Roger, Chief Digital Official at luxury group LVMH was asked where he thought the next Facebook or Google would come from, he suggested it would be a close call between Silicon Valley and China.The latter had the investment that is needed as well as a hard work culture of a sixday week.It also has a superb education system and a huge population.
As Silicon Valley appears to be heating up a little too hard for some people, China would appear to be warming up at just the right pace.
语篇解读：本文是一篇说明文。文章讲述的是资金、高教育水平和支持使中国成为下一个硅谷成为可能。
1．What does the expression “on the verge of ” in Paragraph 2 refer to?
A．On the way of. B．On the list of.
C．On the condition of. D．On the point of.
解析：选D 词义猜测题。根据画线词所在句可知，画线句表示它的第二大竞争对手已经在国际舞台上崭露头角——不是在美国，也不是在欧盟，而是在亚洲。更具体地说，中国。所以画线词的意思是“正要……的时候”。
2．Which of the following is NOT a reason why China attracts foreign investment in tech companies?
A．High education standards.
B．Huge growth in investment.
C．Support from the government.
D．Higher salaries than those in Silicon Valley.
解析：选D 细节理解题。根据第六段可知，比硅谷更高的薪水并不是中国吸引外资投资科技公司的原因。
3．It can't be inferred from the passage that ________.
A．the US immigration policy is strict but talentfriendly
B．Ian Roger believes the next Google might come from China
C．employees of Baidu might be accustomed to overwork
D．Chinese tech companies can provide highly competitive salaries now.
解析：选A 推理判断题。根据第七段第二句可知，不能从文章中推断出美国的移民政策是严格的，但对人才是友好的。
4．What is the passage mainly about?
A．The total value of investment in Asia is four times that in Europe.
B．Finances, high education standards and support make it possible for China to become the next Silicon Valley.
C．Asia attracts worldwide best talents to tech companies.
D．American tech companies will soon be beaten by those in China.
解析：选B 主旨大意题。根据第一段及全文内容可知，本篇文章讲述的是资金、高教育水平和支持使中国成为下一个硅谷成为可能。
