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?

Tom was a clever boy, but his parents were poor, so he had to work in his spare time and during his holidays to pay for his education. In spite of this, he managed to get to the university, but it was so expensive to study there that during the holiday he found it necessary to get two jobs at the same time so as to make enough money to pay for his studies.
One summer he managed to get a job in a butcher’s shop(肉店)during the day-time, and another in a hospital at night. In the shop, he learnt to cut meat quite nicely, so the butcher often left him to do all the serving （服务）while he went to the back room to do the accounts(账目). In the hospital , on the other hand, he was , of course , allowed （允许）to do the simplest jobs, like helping to lift people and to carry them from one part of the hospital to another. Both at the butcher’s shop and at the hospital, Tom had to wear white clothes.
One evening at the hospital, Tom had to carry a woman from her bed to the place where she was to have an operation. The woman was already feeling frightened at the thought of the operation before he came to get her, but when she saw Tom, that finished her.
“No! No!” she cried． “Not my butcher! I won’t be operated on by my butcher!” and fainted away(昏厥).
【小题1】Tom made enough money by ________.

Just put your special clothes on in the morning and you could jump 3 meters into the air and even carry more than 60 kilograms without getting tired. The walk to school would be very, very easy. Such supercharged clothing is one of the products that could be created using "wearable robotics” technology.
Designed to improve a person's senses and skills, the device could be as simple as a hearing aid. Or it could be a full-body suit that senses what you're going to do, then helps you do it better.
“A superman suit would be the final result in wearable robot i cs ”，s a id Francois Pin, head of robot­ics and energy systems at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory(橡树林国家实验室), US. While these suits are at least ten years away, in some areas the technology is already in use.
Researchers are developing artificial- arms and legs that allow old，disabled or injured people to move freely. Thus US Army is interested in using wearable robot legs to help soldiers run faster, carry more equipment and be stronger in battle. Jobs that involve lifting heavy loads or saving lives from the rubble of an earthquake could also become much easier.
A robot is a device that responds to a command. You're probably with simple robots, such as toy cars or airplanes that respond to buttons you push on a remote control.
Wearable robotics goes further. Instead of just receiving information through a wire or remotecontrol- the robotic device can send information back to its controller.
Suppose you wore a sleeve that has sensors where your joints are. Every time you move your arm, the sleeve senses your movements and sends the information to a robot, which then moves its arm just as you did. When the robot hits or touches something, it sends a signal back to the sleeve and you sense the action.
In this way，scientists are working to wrap the robot around the person. Their goal is to make the sleeve, shoe or suit help you do what you want to do.
【小题1】Which of the following can replace the underlined word “supercharged” in Paragraph One?
A, expensive      B. overcharged C. advanced     D. full of electricity
【小题2】Products resulting from this wearable robotics technology do not include _______. 

In many cultures white is often associated with something positive. A white-collar job, for instance, is the kind of job many people look for, working with your brain and not your hands.
White has a clean and pure image. That is why doctors, dentists, and nurses usually wear white uniforms. Babies are dressed in white at baptisms（洗礼）and brides wear white wedding gowns at weddings. White in these cases is the symbol of innocence or purity.
Sometimes white is used in expressions that are not good. “Whitewash” is one such expression. At first, “whitewash” meant to paint over something with white paint to make it look better. However, it means something different today: to hide or to cover up mistakes or failures.
A “white elephant” is another example of white used in a negative way. In ancient Thailand, a white elephant was regarded as a sacred animal, but it was very expensive to keep. The kings of those days presented a white elephant to the people they wanted to ruin. Once they received this holy, royal animal as a gift, they were not allowed to sell or kill it. Today, a “white elephant” means something that is big, useless, and unwanted. In America, when people want to get rid of their furniture or clothes, they often have a “white elephant sale”.
【小题1】The text is mainly about________.

第三部分阅读技能（共两节，共16小题，满分26分）
第一节阅读理解（共12小题；每小题1.5分，满分18分）
One morning I was woken by my mother’s angry voice. I opened my eyes and found it was seven forty , so jumped out of bed and rushed to a nearby bus stop without breakfast. Fortunately the bus started going as soon as I got on it. I was sure I could reach the school before the bell rang.
However, the bus suddenly stopped. There was something wrong with it and we had to get off and wait for another one. I felt I couldn’t wait and the school was only fifteen minutes’ walk, so I ran to the school as fast as possible. Just at this moment, it began to rain hard. 
I reached the classroom with all my clothes wet through. Mr. Smith, our physics teacher, had begun his class. I was always afraid of him. I hesitated (犹豫) for a moment, and then I opened the door.
“It’s you again, Jim,” Mr. Smith said angrily. “I’ve told you not to be late, but you...” Then he suddenly stopped when he noticed my wet clothes. He quickly took off his own jacket and asked me to put it on. “I don’t want you to catch a cold,” he said kindly. I went to my seat with Mr. Smith’s jacket on. It was a bit large for me but I felt very warm in it. I found, for the first time, Mr. Smith’s physics class so interesting and I changed my mind, there and then, about being afraid of him.
49. According to this passage, classes in Jim’s school probably began at _______.
A. 9 am             B. 8 am            C. 7 am            D. 7:30 am
50. Why did Jim not open the door at first?
A. He was afraid of facing Mr. Smith.         
B. He didn’t like to have the physics class.
C. Mr. Smith didn’t let him go into the classroom.   
D. He didn’t want to interrupt others.
51. Jim found Mr. Smith’s physics lesson interesting that day because ________.
A. he knew physics was very important         B. he wanted to go to a famous college
C. he didn’t want to fall behind the others       D. he was moved by his physics teacher
52. We can infer from the passage that _______.
A. Jim usually went to school by bike        B. it was the first time Jim had been late
C. Jim was often late for school             D. Jim’s mother also got up late that morning