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The small unframed painting called “Fisherman” was signed by a little-known Italian artist, Maveleone (1669-1740). When it was sold recently in New York for $27,000, the seller, Mr. Oliver Pitt, was asked to explain how the picture had come into his possession.
Pitt said, “I didn’t know it was so valuable. I’m not an art expert. Photography is my hobby. I bought ‘Fisherman’ in Italy in 1970 for $140. The picture was dirty, and I couldn’t see the artist’s signature. But anyway it wasn’t the picture that I liked. I bought it because of the frame. ”
“It’s a most unusual frame, made of tiny, silvery sea-shells. They are set in such a way that they reflect perfect light onto the surface of a picture. I now have a photograph of my wife in that frame, and I’ll never part with it.”
“When I returned to New York I showed the painting in its frame to a customs officer. I told him that I had paid $140 for it but admitted I didn’t know its actual worth. The customs man valued it at $140, and I was asked to pay duty on that value. I did so, there and then. ” 
“Later, I took off the frame, and that uncovered Maveleone’s signature. My wife suggested in fun that the painting might be a valuable one, so I cleaned it and put it up for sale.”
As a result of this explanation, Oliver Pitt had to appear in court. He was accused of knowingly making a false statement of the value of a picture so as to cheat the Customs Department.
Pitt was not happy. “I told the truth as I knew it then,” he said, “What else could I say?”
And then the judge agreed with him. “The Customs Department is to be responsible,” he said, “for making a true valuation of goods brought into the country, so that the correct amount of duty may be charged. Mr. Pitt did not cause or try to cause the mistake that was made. He paid the duty that was demanded. If, now, the Customs Department finds that its valuation was not correct, it cannot be allowed to have another try. Pitt is not guilty”.
When Oliver Pitt bought the picture, ________.

A.it was unframed B.Maveleone signed the deal
C.he suggested that it was valuable D.it was the frame that attracted him

From the passage we can infer that if Maveleone had been a well-known artist,        _.

A.the painting would have cost much more than $ 140
B.he wouldn’t have sold his painting
C.the customs officer wouldn’t have been cheated
D.Pitt wouldn’t have had the intention to buy any of his paintings

Pitt took off the frame probably in order to        _.

A.clean the painting to put it up for sale
B.look for the artist’s signature
C.use it for his wife’s photograph
D.find the painting’s true value

Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the story?  

A.In the end Pitt was asked to pay the correct amount of duty.
B.In the end Pitt sold the frame of the painting at an even higher price.
C.In the end the Customs Department had no right to revalue the painting.
D.In the end Pitt’s wife was regarded as an expert because of her wise suggestion.
科目 英语   题型 阅读理解   难度 中等
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If you're not a fan of KFC's famous Double Down hot dog, don't worry! KFC in the UK is developing a new treat: an edible coffee cup.
The product is still in the trial stage and not yet available for purchase, but according to a KFC news report, the treat is made from a unique biscuit, wrapped in sugar paper, and lined with a layer of heat-resistant white chocolate, which helps keep the coffee hot. As you drink the coffee in the cup, the white chocolate lining will begin to melt slowly, and the biscuit begins to soften.
But it doesn't end there --- the cups are not only edible, they also have a pleasant smell. KFC partnered with The Robin Collective, an experimental food company, to make the cups with coconut sun cream, freshly cut grass and wild flowers scents. According to the news report, that's because the scents arouse the positive memories we associate with warm weather, sunshine and summer holidays. Sounds ... delicious?
A manager at KFC said, “We have been experimenting with the edible packaging in limited quantities to see if it could be a popular product in the market. We believe if our customers occasionally like to have their cake and eat it, why wouldn’t they want to have their cup and eat it instead! ”
The edible cups will only be available in the UK when it comes out. According to a spokesperson for KFC, there are at present no plans to bring it to the U.S. yet.
The cup is lined with a layer of white chocolate to_________.

A.make the cup smell delicious
B.prevent the heat giving off soon
C.help the cup look beautiful
D.keep the biscuit tasting soft

What does KFC do with the new product in its trial stage?

A.Promote it by adding different scents.
B.Sell it at a lower price in the US first.
C.Invite customers to eat it for free.
D.Test it in the market in small quantities.

Which statement is NOT true according to the passage?

A.The cup not only tastes good but also smells delicious.
B.The cup is developed with the help of The Robin Collective
C.Customers all over the world can soon try the edible cup.
D.The cup is made from biscuit, sugar paper and chocolate.

What is the best title for the passage?

A.KFC’s new product---Edible coffee cups
B.A new treat---Coffee cups and positive memories
C.Coffee cups made from biscuits and chocolate
D.The development of KFC company in the UK

Have you ever had a science class that you look forward to? It doesn’t happen often. But when you have a teacher like Mrs. Field, it’s more than a science class. It’s a science class where learning is easy and fun. There is no getting down to a huge textbook or listening to a teacher about something you don’t care about.
My experience with Mrs. Field didn’t start with science class, but with her as my tutor. I was always a weak reader and wasn’t getting any better. My parents told me I needed to be tutored. One day after school, I went into the library with my mom for my first tutoring time. I had no idea who was tutoring me. My mom practically had to drag me into the library. The first thing we did was to play a game to get to know each other and get rid of the awkwardness. We didn’t even play a reading game.
We also went around the library and I got to pick out a book I wanted to read. She didn’t make me read a boring textbook about something I didn’t care about. I didn’t even pick a book. I picked out a magazine about remote control cars. I thought to myself, how bad could it be? To my surprise, She told me even though I was reading a magazine, I was still reading. After the first magazine, she picked out a book she liked. I would read a chapter and then she would read a chapter to me, in this way I didn’t have to read for long periods of time.
As I got better and faster at reading, I was able to read two chapters in the same amount of time, which used to take me to read one chapter.
Reading is one of the most important things in high school and college to be successful. If it were not for her, I would not be the reader I am today !
The writer tutored by Mrs. Field because____________.

A.he was too shy to talk with others.
B.he found science fun but hard.
C.he was eager to learn science.
D.he lacked the skills of reading.

It can be inferred from the second paragraph that __________.

A.the writer knew Mrs. Field very well
B.the writer was unwilling to be tutored
C.the writer felt awkward to read in the library
D.the writer went to the library to play a reading game

At the library, the writer __________.

A.chose any book he was interested in
B.played a reading game with Mrs. Field
C.was asked to read one chapter after another
D.had to read textbooks rather than magazines

What’s the author’s feeling about Mrs. Field according to the last paragraph?

A.unsatisfied B.worried
C.grateful D.regretful

Your car is a necessary part of your life. You use it every day. Of course, you want to hold on to it so you make sure it has the latest alarm and immobilizer. But despite all these, cars like yours are still stolen every day. In fact, in this country, one car is stolen almost every minute! And if your car is stolen, you only have a 50:50 chance of seeing it again.
Each year, car crime costs nearly £3 billion. Of course, if you’re insured, you won’t lose out, or will you? Firstly, you will have to pay extra insurance later on, and then you may not be offered the full amount by the agent. You will probably have to hire a car and you will also lose the value of the contents and accessories (配件) in the car.
Now comes the solution. An RAC Trackstar system, hidden in one of 47 possible secret locations in your car, is the key of our system. If your car is stolen, radio signals are sent at twenty-second intervals from the car to the RAC Trackstar National Control Center via a satellite network. Then a computer gives the vehicle’s exact location, speed and direction.
The RAC Trackstar National Control Center, which operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, will immediately inform the police in the area where the car is located. Because the police receive information every twenty seconds, they will always know the vehicle’s location. Once the thief has been arrested, your car will be returned to you.
RAC Trackstar is unique in being able to provide the National Control Center with details of the exact location of your car, its speed and direction. And speed is the key to successful recovery of a stolen vehicle. RAC Trackstar Control will immediately tell the police if you report your car stolen and under the 24-hour Guardian Option. It will also tell you if your car has been stolen. RAC Trackstar’s constant updates mean the police are kept informed of the car’s location. All these greatly improve your chances of seeing your car again.
If your car is stolen, you will have to ______.

A.hire a new car
B.pay more insurance
C.buy a RAC Trackstar system
D.inform the National Control Center

The Trackstar system can tell the police ______.

A.how the car is stolen B.who the thief is
C.what brand the car is D.where the car is

The underlined word “It” in the last paragraph refers to ______.

A.the local police station
B.the Guardian Option
C.the insurance company
D.the RAC Trackstar Control

According to the passage, people with RAC Trackstar ______.

A.automatically find directions
B.seldom get their vehicles damaged
C.have less chance of being in an accident
D.are more likely to get the stolen cars back

A castle is a type of fortified(加固的)structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages. This is different from a palace, which is no fortified-though there are many similarities among these types of construction. Usage of the term has varied over time and has been applied to diverse structures.
The European castles originated in the 9th and 10th centuries, resulting in its land divided among nobles. These nobles built castles to control the area surrounding them, and they were both offensive and defensive structures. Although army uses are often emphasized in castle studies, the structures also served as centres of administration and symbols of power. Urban castles were used to control the local people and important travel routes, and rural castles were often built near farmland.
Many castles were originally built from earth and wood, but had their defences supplanted later by stone. In the late 12th and early 13th centuries, scientific approaches to castle defence appeared, and could function to maximize the castle’s firepower. These changes in defence came from a mixture of castle technology. Although gunpowder was introduced to be built well into the 16th century, improved cannon(大炮)fire made them uncomfortable places to live in. As a result, true castles went into decline.
From the 18th century onwards, there was a renewed interest in castles with the construction of mock(仿造的)castles, part of a romantic revival(复活)of Gothic architecture, but they had no defensive purpose.
According to the first paragraph, we can know .

A.the palace is a fortified structure
B.the castle is different from the palace
C.the palace changed over time
D.the structures of the castle in different ages look the same.

what does the second paragraph mainly talk about?

A.Symbols of the European castles.
B.Functions of the European castles.
C.Influences of the European castles.
D.Characteristics of the European castles.

The underlined word “ supplanted ” in the third paragraph is closet in meaning to “ “.

A.produced B.saved C.protected D.replaced

What can be inferred from the river?

A.Castles have nothing in common with palaces.
B.Castles have a history of more than 1,000 years in Europe.
C.Castles were mainly used for defensive purposes after the 18th century.
D.The introduction of gunpowder instantly influenced castle building in Europe.

Photography has been my interest ever since I was old enough to pick up a camera, but today I want to share with you the 15 most treasured photos of mine, and I didn’t take any of them. There were no art directors, no stylists, no chance for reshoots, not even any regard for lighting. In fact, most of them were taken by random tourists.
My story begins when I was in New York City for a speech, and my wife took a picture of me holding my daughter on her first birthday. We’re on the corner of the 57th and 5th avenue. We happened to be back in New York exactly a year later, so we decided to take the same picture.
Well you can see where this is going. Approaching my daughter’s third birthday, my wife said, “Hey, why don’t you take Sabina back to New York and make it a father-daughter trip, and continue the ceremony?” This is when we started asking passing tourists to take the picture.
So these photos are far more than representatives for a single moment, or even a specific trip. They’re also ways for us to freeze time for one week in October and reflect on our times and how we change from year to year, and nor just physically, but in every way. Because while we take the same photo, our viewpoints change, and she reaches new milestones and I get to see life through her eyes, and how she communicates with and sees everything. This very focused time we get to spend together is something we value and expect the entire year.
What can we know about the author from the first paragraph?

A.He is fond of being photographed alone.
B.He hardly ever asks strangers to take pictures of him.
C.He has been interested in photography since childhood.
D.He’s proud of the 15 most treasured photos taken by himself.

Who came up with the idea of having a father-daughter trip when Sabina was 3 years old?

A.Her mother. B.Her father.
C.Sabina herself D.An unknown tourist.

It can be inferred from the last paragraph that .

A.children usually get to see life through adults’ eyes
B.the 15 photos are meaningful to the author’s family
C.it takes the author a whole week to have a family photo taken
D.the viewpoints of the author’s family never change with the time.

What can be the best title of the text?

A.Believe it or not; photos do change
B.Photos help a family become rich
C.Even strangers can help take photographs
D.A father-daughter bond, one photo at a time

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