Tang Zhou and his wife are planning to have their second child,a test—tube baby.His wife had a natural delivery when she was 34 and their first child,a boy, is now 7.The couple are now hoping to have a daughter through a surrogate mother(代孕)in the US.“My wife couldn’t bear another delivery because of her heart condition and her age.Surrogacy helps avoid the risks to older mothers,”Tang said,“Moreover, our second child will be born in the US and become a citizen there.That is not a bad choice.”

The couple spent weeks researching their move,looking for a reliable agency that provides surrogacy services overseas.Surrogacy is still illegal in many countries,including China.“We will be taking much higher risks by relying on a surrogate mother in China because we are not protected by any regulation or law.You pay a lot of money but may meet with many problems,”Tang said.“You might not even get your baby back.’’

Tang and his wife are part of an increasing number of Chinese couples who are turning to surrogacy services.Tang also considered surrogacy in Thailand but dropped the idea after recent reports about a baby with Down Syndrome(唐氏综合症)who was delivered through surrogacy and said to have been deserted in Thailand by the biological parents from Australia.Instead,Tang chose the California Surrogacy Center agency as his first option after reading the detailed introduction on its website.Compared with many other agencies that he could contact only via e.mail.the center has a consulting office in Beijing,Tang said.

The center is in San Diego,California,and has satellite offices in Los Angeles and Beijing.According to Liu,the center has been operating for more than eight years,and about 100 surrogate mothers live in California.

1.Which of the following is True according to the passage?

A.Chinese couples prefer t0 have a test—tube baby.

B.Couples face no risks in surrogacy services.

C.Unhealthy test—tube babies can be legally abandoned.

D.A sick test—tube baby was deserted in Thailand.

2.Tang and his wife turned to overseas surrogacy services because .

A.it is more convenient to contact them by email

B.they call for less money

C.surrogacy remains illegal in China

D.most of them are experienced

3.The passage mainly tells US that .

A.Chinese couples are turning to surrogacy

B.an old woman can take a risk of delivering a baby more

C.it’s not a bad choice to have a baby born overseas

D.biological couples may fail to get their babies back

Have you ever noticed that the more you have the more you want? Let’s face it. Thinking our life is good enough doesn’t come naturally to many people. When we have high expectations of everything in life we will run into disappointment. Only when we are aware that needs are different from desires can we live with satisfaction. Here are a few ideas to help you be happier with what you have and who you are.

Focus on what you are thankful for. Most people want things to be better than they are, or when things are going well, we forget to appreciate what we have. Learn to reflect on how much better things are than they could be. Focus on what you are thankful for. Write down 5 things you are grateful for right now.

When we hold onto regrets from decisions we have made, it can really poison our well-being. Many people regret something they can no longer change, which ends up holding them back from moving forward in a more positive manner. What happened in the past is done and gone, so work to stay present and be mindful of the current moment to find more joy and fulfillment.

When we use other people as the measuring stick for our personal success and quality of life we are likely to be less satisfied. Social comparisons can provide useful information when we try to learn from others, but they also hold our perspective in a discontented position. Compare yourself less with others so you can be satisfied more.

When you are focused on your big ambitions and future goals you might elide the daily pleasures that surround you. Learn to slow down and absorb the wonder and beauty around you. Stay present and focus on the task you’re undertaking at the moment. Don’t let the life pass you by because you’re always on the go and distracted by ambition.

Practice looking at life through the lens of contentment and it will become more natural.

1.How can we live with contentment?

A. To change our lifestyle.

B. To have a motivation in life.

C. To give less attention to what we are grateful for.

D. To realize the difference between needs and desires.

2.What’s the main idea of Paragraph 3?

A. Make wise decisions.

B. Know the present situation

C. Let go of regrets.

D. Remember the past.

3.The underlined word “elide”(in Paragraph 5) probably means “__”.

A. enjoy B. change C. create D. neglect

4.What should you do to put yourself in a good mood?

A. Make time for simple pleasures.

B. Learn from successful people.

C. Focus on your future goals.

D. Create chance to learn more.

It’s the place where smart people make smart machines work even smarter. It’s also in the heart of sunny California, a great place to start a family and raise kids. What could be better?

But something is happening to their children. Up until the age of two they develop normally. But then everything seems to go backwards. The children become locked into their own small world, unable to communicate at all.

They call it the “curse(诅咒)of Silicon Valley,” but the medical name for the condition is autism(自闭症). It used to be thought that autism was a kind of mental illness. Now doctors are sure that it is a neurological disease transmitted genetically. It seems that the people leading the communications revolution are having children who cannot communicate at all.

But even the parents have trouble communicating. Asperger’s Syndrome is a mild version of autism. People who have it are highly intelligent and often brilliant with numbers or system but have no social skill. This very combination of symptoms makes Asperger’s sufferers into ideal computer professionals.

The Asperger’s sufferer has always been a well-known figure in popular culture. He or she was the eccentric but dedicated scholar or the strange uncle or auntie who never married. But the high numbers of such people in Silicon Valley mean that they can meet others who understand them and share their interests. And while they might not be personally attractive, they can earn truly attractive amounts of money. They can get married and have kids. Unfortunately, many of the children of two Asperger’s parents seem to be developing serious autism.

There is little anyone can do. It takes hours of work just to make autistic child realize that anyone else exists. And there is no cure in sight. Some argue that no cure should be found. “It may be that autistics are essentially different from normal people, but that these differences make them invaluable for the evolution of the human race,” says Dr. Kirk Whilhelmsen of the University of California. “To eliminate the genes for autism could be disastrous. ”

It seems that the children of Silicon Valley are paying the price of genius.

1.What is the best title of the passage?

A. The Price of Genius

B. Asperger’s Syndrome, a Mild Version of Autism

C. No Cure Should Be Found

D. Ideal Computer Professionals

2.What does Dr Kirk Whilhelmsen think of autism?

A.It is disastrous to society.

B.It is not completely a bad thing.

C.It is a punishment to those working in Silicon Valley.

D.People with autism should never marry.

3.What can we learn about autism according to the passage?

A.It is believed to be a kind of mental illness that can be cured.

B.People with autism can’t find people sharing their interests.

C.They do not care about the presence of others.

D.They are a burden for the society.

4.Why do people call autism “curse of Silicon Valley”?

A.Because autistic people live in Silicon Valley.

B.Because many people working in Silicon Valley have autism children.

C.Because people with autism will be driven out of Silicon Valley.

D.Because people with autism are not personally attractive and not liked by others.

5.What can we know about Asperger’s Syndrome according to the passage?

A.Asperger’s sufferers are ideal computer professionals.

B.Asperger’s sufferers never get married and have children.

C.Asperger’s sufferers are ashamed of themselves and locked into their own world.

D.Asperger’s sufferers can be beneficial to society if they are cured.

A month after Hurricane Katrina, I returned home in New Orleans. There lay my house, reduced to waist-high rains, smelly and dirty.

Before the trip, I’d had my car fixed. When the office employee of the garage was writing up the bill, she noticed my Louisiana license plate. “You from New Orleans?” she asked. I said I was, “No charge.” She said, and firmly shook her head when I reached for my wallet. The next day I went for a haircut, and the same thing happened.

As my wife was studying in Florida, we decided to move there and tried to find a rental house that we could afford while also paying off a mortgage (抵押贷款) on our ruined house. We looked at many places, but none was satisfactory. We’d begun to accept that we’d have to live in extremely reduced circumstances for a while, when I got a very curious e-mail from a James Kennedy in California. He’d read some pieces I’d written about our sufferings for Slate, the online magazine and wanted to give us (“no conditions attached”) a new house across the lake from New Orleans.

It sounded too good to be true, but I replied, thanking him for his exceptional generosity, that we had no places to go back. Then a poet at the University of Florida offered to rent his house to me while he went to England on his one-year-paid leave. The rent was rather reasonable. I mentioned the poet’s offer to James Kennedy, and the next day he sent a check covering our entire rent for eight months.

Throughout this painful experience, the kindness of strangers has done much to bring back my faith in humanity. It’s almost worth losing your worldly possessions to be reminded that people are really nice when given half a chance.

1.The garage employee’s attitude toward the author was that of ________.

A. unconcern B. sympathy

C. doubt D. tolerance

2.What do we know about James Kennedy?

A. He was a writer of an online magazine.

B. He was a poet at the University of Florida.

C. He learned about the author’s sufferings via e-mail.

D. He offered the author a new house free of charge.

3.It can be inferred from the text that ________.

A. the author’s family was in financial difficulty

B. rents were comparatively reasonable despite the disaster

C. houses were difficult to find in the hurricane-stricken area

D. the mortgage on the ruined house was paid off by the bank

4. From Paragraph 4, we can know that the author’s new house ________.

A. was located in the University of Florida

B. was offered by a poet and the rent was expensive

C. was sponsored by James Kennedy with its 8-month rent

D. was well-equipped but the rent was low

5.The author learned from his experience that ________.

A. worldly possessions can be given up when necessary

B. generosity should be encouraged in some cases

C. people benefit from their sad stories

D. human beings are kind after all

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