The tough economy is bringing new shoppers to the secondhand market. Plato’s Closet in Chaelotte, NC is a private company, which mainly buys and sells used clothes. While Charlotte has outstanding secondhand stores offering high-end and graceful brands for women, most of their stock applies to adults. Plato’s closet targets teens and those in their 20s. Plato’s Closet , with stores in Matthews and the university area, sells clothes and accessories(装饰品) that are currently popular at about one third the retail prices(零售价).
The two hottest brands, for buying and selling, are Hollister and Abercrombie &Fitch. Even though the offerings tend to be suitable for young people, there are a variety of shoppers at Plato’s Closet of varying ages. Women in their 30s, 40s, and older could easily find a purse, jacket or piece of jewelry they like.
If you are selling
Unlike higher-end resale stores which usually work on consignment(寄售),Plato’s Closet buys on the spot.
Items can be gently used, but must be in very good condition.
Clothes should be less than two years old and styles should be the same as those still being sold at the shopping center.
There is no negotiation; prices are set company-wide. If what you sell amounts to $30 or less, they’ll give you cash. More than that, you’ll get a Visa cash card.
Secondhand success
Don’t get discouraged if you can’t find something on your first trip. Resale shops are always getting new lists of goods and change their styles with each season.
Be sure to check each piece carefully before buying.
Price comparison
Jackets: New York & Company black blazer, $12; retail: $37
Pants: Express Editor-style pants, $12; retail: $69.90.
Shoes: Nine West black peep-toe pumps, $12; retail: $89.
Jewelry: Necklaces, $3-$5; retail: $18-$30.
1.What is the difference between Plato’s Closet and other resale shops?
A. They offer service for people of different ages.
B. The offerings in Plato’s Closet are more expensive.
C. Plato’s Closet only offers high-end brands for women.
D. Plato’s Closet also sells books to customers.
2. Which of the following about Plato’s Closet is NOT true?
A. Hollister and Abercrombie &Fitch are the two hottest brands in Plato’s Closet.
B. Women in their fifties can’t find proper clothes and accessories in Plato’s Closet.
C. Goods in Plato’s Closet are sold at 67 percent off retail prices or so.
D. Plato’s Closet targets teens and those in their 20s.
3. In Plato’s Closet, which of the following is not accepted?
A. Items you sell must be in very good condition.
B. You can negotiate with buyers about prices of goods.
C. The clothes you sell should be less than two years old.
D. You can sell your goods on the spot instead of on consignment.
4. If you buy a pair of Express Editor-style pants in Plato’s Closet, you can save _______.
A. 57.9 dollars B. 15 dollars
C. 77 dollars D. 25 dollars.
A widow’s wish to hear her late husband’s voice again has pushed London’s Subway system to restore a 40-year-old recording of the subway’s famous “ Mind the gap” announcement.
The underground, or the tube, first opened in 1863, tracked down the voice recording by Oswald Lawrence after his widow, Margaret McCollum, told them what it meant to her.
McCollum, 65, said she used to frequently visit Embankment tube station or plan her journeys around the stop to listen to Lawrence’s voice, even before his death. She was taken aback in November when she noticed it had been replaced by a different voice.
“Lawrence was a drama school graduate when he auditioned (试音) for a tour company. For six years after his death, I’d stay on the platform—just sit and listen to it again,” she added.
When Margaret approached the tube, she was told it had a new broadcast system and it couldn’t use the old recording anymore.
Nigel Holness, director of London Underground, said its staff has been so moved by McCollum’s story that they dug up the recording and gave the widow a copy of the announcement on a CD for her to keep. “Tube staff is also working to restore Lawrence’s announcement at the station,” he added. “It is celebrating its 150th anniversary this year. The tube’s ‘Mind the gap’ messages, voiced by various actors, have accompanied countless London commuter journeys since the 1960s. Train drivers and staff made the warnings themselves before that.”
“I’m very pleased that people are interested in Oswald’s old recording,” Margaret said. “He was a great London transport user all his life .He would be amused, touched, and delighted to know he’s back where he belonged.”
1.The best title for the passage is________.
A. A Replaced Recording B. Mind the Gap
C. A Widow’s Wish D. The Tube’s Struggle
2. The underlined phrase “ taken aback” means_________.
A. disappointed B. annoyed
C. excited D. shocked
3. What can we infer from the passage?
A. The tube always uses recordings to remind passengers.
B. Oswald’s voice is great comfort to Margaret.
C. No recording can be equal to Oswald’s voice.
D. Oswald was an outstanding actor in London.
假如你是中学生李明，家住泉州。你的英国笔友Jason来信谈到了他的故乡London，并希望了解你家乡泉州的情况。请你用英文写一封回信。
回信必须包括以下内容：
（1）自然情况：地理位置优越、气候风景宜人等；
（2）发展成就：经济发展迅速、城市高楼林立等；
（3）存在问题：交通拥堵现象、空气污染问题等；
（4）对泉州发展的看法：内容由考生自己拟定。
注意：
（1）请勿提及与考生相关的真实信息；
（2）可适当加入细节，使内容充实、行文连贯；
（3）词数不少于120；书信格式已给出，不计入总词数。
参考词汇：高层建筑 high-rise building
Well，we’re here in New York at last!
Our flight left at 2:30pm and for the next hours everything was great. But when we were about 30 minutes away from New York，there was a 1.________ (暴风雨) in the city．The pilot told us that we had to 2.l in Washington DC and the airline was going to take 3.________by bus to New York．However, we couldn’t get4._______the plane in Washington DC because there were too many planes5.________ (到达) at the same time．It had to fly in circles for three hours before we finally 6.l the plane．
The airline then 7. i us that we’d have to stay in a hotel and set off for New York the next morning．So off we went to find the bus to the hotel．We found the bus stop and then stood in the rain8. ________ (焦急地) waiting for the bus．40 minutes later, we reached the hotel but there was only one room9.a for my brothers and I．So we had to share one single bed． 10.________you can imagine，we didn’t get much sleep．
What a journey!
I started to learn English when I was in elementary school. Together with my two friends, I had English classes with a private teacher. I lacked motivation and I learned very little. This stage was insignificant and could just as well have not happened at all.
I began to learn English in earnest when I went to high school. I was in the same class with Michael, but in different groups. I was in a group for students who were to learn English from scratch, and he was in a group for those who had already known some English. Very soon, my teacher noticed that my English was improving rapidly and he told me to join the group for the advanced learners. This was the worst thing that could have happened to me. My new teacher, who was Irish, didn’t speak Polish so I couldn’t understand her and I never knew what I was supposed to do. I was completely at a loss. My English didn’t improve at all. As a result, at the end of that year I was sent back to the group for beginners.
My stay with the advanced group made me realize what kind of learning strategies I should use in the future. I discovered that I cannot pick up a new language directly from foreigners. I started to learn hard again.
I translated into Polish all new words that appeared in my course-book. Before a test I would memorize dozens of words with their Polish equivalents (对等物). However, later I would never revise those words so I would soon forget most of them.
I knew that I should improve my learning techniques and I decided to ask for help those who had the best results in our class, that is Michael. That wasn’t easy because in the second grade, they seemed to look down on girls. So after a few attempts to approach them I decided to give up. For two years I learned English using the method described above. My English was improving but I was still forgetting new words. Finally, in the fourth grade I got closer to Michael, who started to show me how to learn English more efficiently, which was a breakthrough in the whole process of my learning English.
Michael encouraged me to read books in English with monolingual dictionaries. Several months later, I began to write e-mail messages in English.
I have been using these techniques for four years, and in my opinion, I have achieved pretty good results.
1. Which of the author’s English learning experiences was not worthy of notice?
A. In elementary school.
B. The first year in high school.
C. The second and third years in high school.
D. The fourth year in high school.
2.Of the following experiences, which one made the greatest suffering to the author?
A. She shared a private English teacher with his two friends.
B. She was moved to the advanced group in the first high school year.
C. She was sent back to the group for beginners.
D. She got Michael to help her in English.
3. What did the author learn from her study in the advanced group?
A. She could not learn a new language quite well.
B. Learning strategies are not important.
C. The Irish teacher is not suitable for her.
D. She had to ask for help those who had the best results in her class.
4. What is the most important thing in the author’s process of English learning?
A. Michael began to teach her an efficient way of learning English.
B. She tried to read books in English.
C. She tried to use monolingual dictionaries.
D. She tried to write e-mail messages in English.
Disney has adapted a series of beloved animated films into its live-action（真人） movies, and that trend has not even begun to slow.
On Monday, the company announced that the newest movie to get the live-action treatment would be Mulan.
Based on the same Chinese legend as the 1998 animated movie, Mulan will follow in the footsteps of Cinderella, Maleficent, and several already-announced upcoming movies.
Since 2010, Disney has released three live-action adaptations of formerly animated movies: Alice In Wonderland, Maleficent, and Cinderella.
All three have proven to be financial successes, with Alice In Wonderland earning over $1 billion and Maleficent bringing in $758 million.
Even the most recent offering, Cinderella, has managed to earn over $330 million in its first three weeks of wide release.
Fans of live-action remakes will not have to wait for Mulan, since Disney has already planned four other adaptations to hit theatres first.
The Jungle Book is the next movie to get a live-action revival, planned for 2016。
A retelling of Beauty And The Beast - starring Emma Watson, Dan Stevens, and Audra McDonald - will begin production in May, with an expected release date of March 17, 2017.
Surprisingly, the other Disney cartoon getting an adaptation is 1941's Dumbo, the story of a flying elephant.
Tim Burton signed on to direct that tricky movie on March 10.
1.Mulan will get the live action treatment because__________
A. it’s a famous Chinese legend.
B. it’s a trend to remake beloved animated films into live action ones
C. it earned over $330 million at the box office.
D. it’s better than Cinderella.
2. Which of the following film has not been adapted into a live action movie?
A. Dumbo B. Cinderella
C. Alice In Wonderland D. Maleficent
3.Which of the following is the right order of time when the live action remakes come out?
a. Cinderella b. Beauty And The Beast
c. The Jungle Book d. Alice In Wonderland
A. abcd B. cdba C. dacb D. bdca
4.What is the text mainly about?
A. The present situation of the film market.
B. The introduction of some famous animated films.
C. The live action remakes of some animated films.
D. An advertisement of an animated film Mulan.
