The tough economy is bringing new shoppers to the secondhand market. Plato’s Clo
题型：不详难度：来源：
The tough economy is bringing new shoppers to the secondhand market. Plato’s Closet in Charlotte, NC is a private company which mainly buys and sells used clothes. While Charlotte has outstanding secondhand stores offering high-end and sophisticated (高雅时尚的) 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 up to 70 percent off 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.
Customer Beth Gibbs, 52, who has three teenage daughters, said she used to shop at name-brand stores, but “this year I"m shopping more in secondhand stores”, because of the economy.
If you"re 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. (365)
小题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 the customers. |
小题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．Only young people can buy proper clothes and accessories in Plato"s Closet. | | C．Goods in Plato"s Closet are sold at up to 70 percent off retail prices. | | D．Plato"s Closet targets teens and those in their 20s. |
小题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 bargain with buyers about the 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. |
小题4: If you buy a pair of Express Editor-style pants in Plato"s Closet, you can save_______.| A．57.9 dollars | B．44 dollars | C．77 dollars | D．25 dollars |
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答案
小题1:A
小题2:B
小题3:B
小题4:A |
解析
试题分析：
小题1:A 细节题。根据第一段第四行most of their stock applies to adults. Plato"s Closet targets teens and those in their 20s.说明大部分这样的商店都针对成年人，而Plato"s Closet更多是针对年轻人和20多岁的人，故A正确。
小题2:B 细节题。根据第二段2,3,4行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.说明不仅仅是年轻人，30多岁的，40多岁的人都可以在这里买到喜欢的东西，故B的说法错误，故B正确。
小题3:B 细节题。There is no negotiation; prices are set company-wide.说明在这家商店是不能讨价还价的，故B的做法是不能接受的。B复合要求。
小题4:A 细节题。根据文章倒数第三行Express Editor-style pants, $12; retail: $69.90.可知零售价格为$69.90而在Plato’s Closet中价格为$12;故可以节省57.9 dollars故A正确。
点评：因为经济下滑，一些出售二手产品的商店变得更受欢迎，本文介绍了Plato"s Closet的一些细节情况。本文特别注重对细节题的考查，4题都是细节题，提醒考生在以后的阅读中狠抓细节的理解。 |
举一反三
Britain Today
Food
British people like good food, and more than half of them go to a restaurant every month. Fast food is also very popular— 30% of all adults have a hamburger every three months, but 46% have fish and chips!
Sports
British people don’t do a lot of sports. Only 17% of people go swimming every week, about 9% go cycling and 8% play golf—and only 6% of people play football (but 32% go to watch it).
Cinema and TV
Films are very popular in Britain, and about 60% of people between 15 and 24 go to the cinema every month. At home, men watch TV for about three hours every day — two quarters more than women.
Holidays
British people love going on holiday, and have 56 million holidays every year. Most of these holidays aren"t in the UK—27% are in Spain, 10% are in the USA, and 9% are in France. Maybe this is because the weather in Britain isn"t very good!
小题1:Which food could be more popular among British adults, a hamburger or fish and chips?| A．A hamburger. | B．Fish and chips. | C．Both. | D．Neither. |
小题2: Those who are interested in movies are ____. | A．men | B．women | C．old people | D．young people |
小题3: How long do British women spend watching TV every day?| A．Three hours. | B．Three hours and a half | | C．Two hours | D．Two hours and a half |
小题4:British people"s favorite country for a holiday is ____.| A．Spain | B．France | C．America | D．Australia |
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Many cities have subways and underground public transportation to take locals and tourists alike rapidly around the city．However, there’s something different about riding a London subway．It may not look different, but the historical value of one of England’s most popular forms of transportation is enough to make riding the subway a must when visiting London．With a little under 300 different stations, the subway can take you almost anywhere you need to go．
Riding a London subway, a person from other countries will notice one major difference: in London, people do not look at each other．In fact, eye contact is avoided at all times．That’s not rudeness―people are just too busy to bother looking．
Busy doing what, you ask? Well, they’re certainly not using the time for a moment of quiet thinking．Nor are they reading a book．New technology has replaced quiet habits．Today the only acceptable form of book on the London underground is an e-book．
Apple must earn a fortune from London commuters（使用月票上下班者）．Since the launch of the iPhone in 2007, over 40,000―yes, that’s 40,000 “apps” have been designed．
Commuters love them because they are the perfect time-fillers．One “app”, called iShoot, is a game that features tanks．Another one, Tube Exits, tells passengers where to sit on the train to be closest to the exit of their destination．iSteam clouds the iPhone screen when you breathe into the microphone．You can then write in the “steam” on your phone screen．
For those without an iPhone, another Apple product, the iPod, may be the distraction（消遣）of choice．It’s not just teenagers who “plug in” to their music－iPods are a popular way to pass the time for all ages．
And if games, e-books and music aren’t enough to keep you occupied, then perhaps you would prefer a film? The development of palm DVD technology means many commuters watch their favorite TV shows or films on the way to work．With all these distractions, it’s amazing that people still remember to get off the train．
小题1:Those who want to save time to reach where they go can download ______ to their iPhones．| A．iShoot | B．iPod | C．iSteam | D．Tube Exits |
小题2:People in London do not make eye contact on the subway because ______．| A．they are going to work and have no time to communicate with each other | | B．they are busy playing games, reading e-books, listening to music or watching film | | C．they feel sleepy because of getting up early | | D．they love reading books and do not want to be disturbed |
小题3:The underlined word “apps” in the fourth paragraph means ______．| A．computers | | B．fortune from London commuters | | C．computer companies | | D．programs downloaded for the iPhone |
小题4:Which word best describes the writer’s attitude towards commuters’ behaviors ?| A．for | B．neutral | C．against | D．hateful |
小题5:The main idea of the passage is that ______．| A．London commuters are unfriendly to strangers | | B．technology is changing how London commuters spend their traveling time | | C．Apple has earned a lot of money from selling 40,000 apps | | D．riding a London subway is a must when visiting London |
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Here is your best chance to travel around the UK in 2012: More than 200 B&Bs (bed & breakfast) across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are selected to offer you amazing services for your stay at their lowest prices! Don’t miss it. Just collect the vouchers（活动券） in our B&B Daily printed from 01/ 04/ 2012 to 07/ 04/ 2012 and book the stays for your travel following the terms and conditions below:
● The offer includes a room for the night and a breakfast the next morning.
● The offer is of two kinds: £20 per room, per night, valid（有效的） during stay period of 2/ 04/ 2012--- 31/ 05/ 2012 and then again 01/ 08/ 2012--- 31/ 10/ 2012; £35 per room, per night, valid during stay period of 01/ 06/ 2012 --- 31/ 08/ 2012.
● The offer is valid for a basic twin or double room only.
● The stay must be booked directly with the chosen B&Bs before 28/ 04/ 2012.
● If voucher holders book either the £20 or £35 per room per night, any additional services such as
lunch, evening meal or activities may require an extra charge. But these are not required in order to take up the offer. Please check directly with your chosen B&Bs to see what extra services are available.
● Vouchers must be presented on arrival. If no vouchers are presented, the B&Bs may reserve（保留） the right to charge at full price for every night of stay.
● Vouchers may not be used together with any other offer.
● The voucher holders must pay for the stay in full at the time of booking. Additional £10 may be paid to confirm（确认） the booking and will be returned on arrival.
● The B&Bs reserve the right to refuse voucher holders’ bookings for people under the age of 18.
小题1:The voucher can be used for a stay at the chosen B&B on .| A．09/ 01/ 2012 | B．04/ 02/ 2012 | C．01/ 03/ 2012 | D．28/ 04/ 2012 |
小题2:How much should be paid for a two-night stay in October 2012 at a chosen B&B?| A．£ 70. | B．£40. | C．£35. | D．£30. |
小题3:By taking up the offer, the voucher holders can choose to .| A．book either a basic twin or double room at the chosen B&Bs | | B．have lunch or evening meal without paying extra money | | C．use the B&B offer together with other offers | | D．book the stays through B&B Daily |
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It was the summer of 1965. DeLuca, then 17, visited Peter Buck, a family friend. Buck asked Deluca about his plans for the future. “I’m going to college, but I need a way to pay for it,” Deluca recalls saying. “Buck said, ‘you should open a sandwich shop.’ ”
That afternoon, they agreed to be partners. And they set a goal: to open 32 stores in ten years. After doing some research, Buck wrote a check for $ 1,000. DeLuca rented a storefront (店面) in Connecticut, and when they couldn’t cover their start-up costs, Buck kicked in another $1,000.
But business didn’t go smoothly as they expected. DeLuca says, “After six months, we were doing poorly, but we didn’t know how badly, because we didn’t have any financial controls.” All he and Buck knew was that their sales were lower than their costs.
DeLuca was managing the store and going to the University of Bridgeport at the same time. Buck was working at his day job as a nuclear physicist in New York. They’d meet Monday evenings and brainstorm ideas for keeping the business running. “We convinced ourselves to open a second store. We figured we could tell the public, ‘ We are so successful, we are opening a second store.’” And they did — in the spring of 1966. Still, it was a lot of learning by trial and error.
But the partners’ learn-as-you-go approach turned out to be their greatest strength. Every Friday, DeLuca would drive around and hand-deliver the checks to pay their suppliers. “It probably took me two and a half hours and it wasn’t necessary but as a result, the suppliers got to know me very well, and the personal relationships established really helped out,” DeLuca says.
And having a goal was also important. “There are so many problems that can get you down. You just have to keep working toward your goal,” DeLuca adds.
DeLuca ended up founding Subway Sandwich, the multi-million-dollar restaurant chain.
小题1:Deluca opened the first sandwich shop in order to _________________________.| A．support his family | B．pay for his college education | | C．help his partner expand business | D．do some research |
小题2:Which of the following is true of Buck? | A．He put money into the sandwich business. | | B．He was a professor of business administration (管理). | | C．He was studying at the University of Bridgeport. | | D．He rented a storefront for DeLuca. |
小题3:What can we learn about their first shop? | A．It stood at an unfavorable place. | | B．It lowered the prices to promote sales. | | C．It made no profits due to poor management. | | D．It lacked control over the quality of sandwiches. |
小题4:They decided to open a second store because they ______________________. | A．had enough money to do it | | B．had succeeded in their business | | C．wished to meet the increasing demand of customers | | D．wanted to make believe that they were successful |
小题5:What contributes most to their success according to the author? | A．Learning by trial and error. | B．Making friends with suppliers. | | C．Finding a good partner. | D．Opening chain stores. |
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If there is one thing I’m quite sure about, it is that in a hundred years from now we still be reading newspapers. Not those newspapers are a necessity. Even now some people get most of the news from the television or have the radio switched on in the background or in the car. Many buy a paper only on Saturday or Sunday. But for most people a newspaper has become a habit passed down from generation to generation.
The basic British character won’t change, and one of the characteristics of the British is that we don’t much like talking to each other when we get up. So what better way is there to keep yourself thinking in the morning than to wrap yourself in a newspaper?
Over the past couple of centuries, human beings have developed a close relationship with the newspaper. It has become as natural as breathing or enjoying the sun. And it is not just the British who love newspapers. On suburban trains in Calcutta, for instance, just one person in the whole car will buy a newspaper and read aloud the best bits to his fellow passengers, much to everybody’s enjoyment.
The nature of what is news may change. What essentially (本质上) makes news is what affects our lives and the big political stories, the coverage of the wars, earthquakes and other disasters, will continue much the same. I think there will be more coverage of scientific research, though. It’s already happening in areas that may directly affect our lives, like genetic engineering. In the future I think there will be more coverage of scientific explanations of why we feel as we do, whether it’s love or depression. We develop a better understanding of how the brain operates and what our feelings really are.
It’s quite possible that in the next century newspaper will be transmitted electronically from the national equivalents of Fleet Street (伦敦的舰队街，以报馆集中而著称) and printed out in our own homes. In fact, I’m pretty sure that that is how it will happen in future. You’ll be probably selecting from a menu, making up your own bespoke newspaper by picking out the things you want to read and say. You might even have an intelligent screening device (装置) to do the job for you.
I think people have got it wrong when they talk about the competition between the different media. They actually have a relationship, feeding off each other. It was once predicted that television would kill off newspapers, which hasn’t happened. What is read on the printed page is more enduring (持久的) than pictures on a flickering screen or sound lost in the sky. And as for the Internet, it’s never really satisfying to read something just on a screen.
小题1:The author of the passage is most probably from _______________.| A．Russia | B．India | C．Britain | D．America |
小题2:According to the passage, the future of newspapers ____________.| A．will be mainly connected with scientific research | | B．will report more important political activities | | C．will directly cover more on scientific research | | D．will build a bridge between different people |
小题3:The underlined part “bespoke newspaper” of the passage probably refers to _____________.| A．a newspaper which dares to report the truth | | B．a newspaper edited to one’s own interest | | C．a newspaper edited and published for the public | | D．a newspaper which only covers the life of family members |
小题4:Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?| A．It was centuries ago that newspapers came into being . | | B．Televisions have taken the place of newspapers . | | C．The Internet will gradually take the place of newspapers. | | D．The nature of news may remain the same over generations. |
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