She is widely seen as proof that good looks can last forever．But, at nearly 1,500 years of age, time is catching up with the Mona Lisa．
The health of the famous picture, painted by Leonardo Da Vinci(莱昂纳多·达·芬奇)in 1505, is getting worse by the year, according to the Louvre Museum(卢浮宫博物馆)where it is housed．“The thin, wooden panel on which the Mona Lisa is painted in oil has changed shape since experts checked it two years ago,”the museum said．Visitors have noticed the changes but repairing the world' s most famous painting is not easy．Experts are not sure about the materials the Italian artist used and their current(现在的)chemical state．
Nearly 6 million people go to see the Mona Lisa every year, many are attracted by the mystery of her smile．“It is very interesting that when you' re not looking at her, she seems to be smiling, and then you look at her and she stops,”said Professor Margaret Livingstone of Harvard University．“It's because direct vision(视觉)is excellent at picking up details, but less suited to look at shadows．Da Vinci painted the smile in shadows．”
However, the actual history of the Mona Lisa is just as mysterious as the smile．Da Vinci himself loved it so much that he always carried it with him, until it was eventually said to France's King Francis I in 1169．
In 1911, the painting was stolen from the Louvre by a former employee, who took it out of the museum hidden under his coat．He said he planned to return it to Italy．The painting was sent back to France two years later．
During World War Ⅱ, French hid the painting in small towns to keep it out of the hands of German forces．
Like many old ladies, the Mona Lisa has some interesting stories to tell．
(1)
The underlined sentence in the first paragraph means the Mona Lisa ________．
[ ]
A．
is losing its value
B．
is being damaged after so many years
C．
is getting more valuable with years passing
D．
will rot away
(2)
Experts don't have any repairs on the Mona Lisa because ________．
[ ]
A．
it is now in a poor chemical state
B．
they don't know how to replace the wooden panel
C．
they don't have the materials Da Vinci used
D．
they are afraid it'll be done further damage
(3)
The smile of the Mona Lisa can only be seen ________．
[ ]
A．
by indirect vision
B．
at a distance
C．
by direct vision
D．
in shadows
(4)
From the last paragraph, we can infer that ________．
[ ]
A．
many interesting stories have been written about the Mona Lisa
B．
people are interested in the stories about the Mona Lisa
C．
some mysteries still remain to be solved about the Mona Lisa
D．
many more stories will be told about the Mona Lisa
One night when my wife was preparing dinner, our little son took a piece of paper to her which read：
For washing the car ＄5.00
For making my own bed this week ＄1.00
Going to the provision shop ＄0.50
Playing with little sister ＄0.25
Taking out the rubbish ＄1.00
Getting a good report card ＄5.00
And for sweeping the common corridor ＄2.00
Total ＄14.75
His mother looked at him standing there expecting payment．I could see a thousand memories flashed through her mind．So she picked up the pen and turning the paper over, this is what she wrote：
For nine months I carried you, growing inside me No Charge
For the nights I sat up with you, doctored and prayed for you No Charge
For the toys, food and clothes and wiping your nose No Charge
When you add it all up, the full cost of my love No Charge
Well, when he finished reading, he had big tears in his eyes．He looked at his mother and said,“Mummy, I love you．”Then he took the pen and in great big letters wrote on the“bill”“All paid．”
(1)
What's the best title for this passage?
[ ]
A．
Part-time Job
B．
Mother's Love, No Charge
C．
Payment for House Work
D．
Greedy Mother
(2)
The write wrote the passage in order to ________．
[ ]
A．
show that children should be paid for their housework
B．
show that children should not be paid for their housework
C．
show a clever way of teaching children
D．
tell children how to spend their spare time
(3)
How do you think of the mother in the passage?
[ ]
A．
Clever
B．
Greedy
C．
Cold－hearted
D．
Selfish
(4)
From the last passage we know that ________
[ ]
A．
the boy got all the money he wanted
B．
the mother was unwilling to give the money to the boy
C．
the boy realized that it was not right to ask for money for the housework
D．
the mother was angry with what the boy said
阅读理解
Below is a web page from http：//www．tvguide．com/．
Tonight's TV Hot List：Sunday January 31, 2010
Grammy Awards 8/7c CBS
Beyoncé and Taylor Swift are ready to take home a lot of hardware tonight as they lead all artists with 10 and eight nominations．The ladies also perform, along with fellow Album of the Year nominees the Black Eyed Peas, Lady Gaga and the Dave Matthews Band．In addition, Bon Jovi, Green Day, Lady Antebellum, Maxwell, Pink and Zac Brown Band will also take the stage．But perhaps the most expected moment is the Michael Jackson tribute(吊唁礼物), which features the 3-D mini-movie "Earth Song" and will be highlighted by performers Celine Dion, Jennifer Hudson, Smokey Robinson, Carrie Underwood and Usher．
Maurer 9/8c NBC
A mysterious company named Sabre, headed by an attractive, stubborn CEO(Kathy Bates), appears out of nowhere and buys out(买断股份)Dunder Mifflin．As Michael is unwilling to follow Sabre's new policies, Andy and Erin write a welcome song to greet the company．Meanwhile, Pam and Jim hope to get accepted into a desired local day-care center．
Surviving Survivor 8/7c CBS
It's hard to believe it's been 10 years since the first season of Survivor．But tonight ten of the game's most iconic players, including previous winners Richard Hatch, Parvati Shallow and Tom Westman, discuss the series in detail and provide insights into how the game is actually played and the impact it's had on their lives．In addition, updates on beloved former castaways, like Ethan Zohn, Rupert Boneham and Elisabeth Hasselbeck, are given．
Private Practice 10∶01/9∶01c ABC
So Maya's pregnant and wants to have the baby．What to do now? Dink(Stephen Lunsford), the boy who did his part to get her into this mess, has a solution：He wants to marry her．You can imagine how Sam and Naomi will feel about that．And if that won't raise the histrionic level enough for you, how about this：A couple has two dying daughters, and only one can be saved．Their choice．And Brian Benben is back, so expect more Pete-Violet- Sheldon angst．
(1)
Edna is crazy about pop stars, so she will most likely choose ________ to enjoy．
[ ]
A．
Grammy Awards
B．
Maurer
C．
Surviving Survivor
D．
Private Practice
(2)
From the passage, we can learn that Dunder Mifflin is ________．
[ ]
A．
a CEO
B．
a company
C．
an employee in the company
D．
a piece of office equipment
(3)
According to the passage, Surviving Survivor is most probably ________．
[ ]
A．
a musical play
B．
a game show
C．
a love story
D．
a cultural documentary
(4)
The above programs ________．
[ ]
A．
are loved by all viewers
B．
are on the top list for the week
C．
are broadcast on the same channel
D．
are accessible on the same night
阅读理解
A few days ago I asked my son's governess(女家庭教师)Julia to come into my study．“Be seated, Julia,”I said, “Let's settle our accounts．I guess you most likely need some money, but maybe you're too polite to mention it．Now then, we agreed on thirty dollars a month…”
“Forty．”
“No, thirty．I made a note of it．I always pay our governess thirty．Well, um, you've been here two months, so…”
“Two months and five days．”
“Exactly two months．I made a special note of it．That means you have sixty dollars coming to you．Take off nine Sundays…you know you didn't work with Tom on Sundays, you only took walks．And three holidays…”Julia was biting her finger nail nervously, her face red, but－not a word．
“Three holidays, therefore take off twelve dollars．Four days Tom was sick and there were no lessons, as you were occupied(从事)only with Dick．Three days you had a toothache and my wife gave you permission not to work after lunch．Twelve and seven-nineteen．Take nineteen off…that leaves…hmm…forty one dollars．Correct?”
Julia's left eye reddened with tears welling up．Her chin trembled; she coughed nervously and blew her nose, but－still not a word．
“Around New Year's Day you broke a teacup and a saucer; take off two dollars．The cup cost more, it was a treasure of the family, but － forget it．When didn't I take a loss! Then, due to your neglect(疏忽), Tom climbed a tree and tore his jacket; take away ten．Also due to your carelessness the maid stole Dick's shoes．You ought to watch everything! You get paid for it．So, that means five more dollars off．The tenth of January I gave ten dollars．”
“You didn't．” sobbed Julia．
“But I made a note of it．”
“Well…if you say so．”
“Take twenty seven from forty one－that leaves fourteen．”
Both her eyes were filled with tears．Beads of sweat stood on the thin pretty little nose．Poor girl!
“Only once was I given any money,” she whispered, her voice trembling, “and that was by your wife．Three dollars, nothing more．”
“Really? You see now, and I didn't know that! Take three from fourteen－that leaves eleven．Here's your money, my dear．Three, three, three, one and one．Here it is!”
I handed her eleven dollars．She took them and pocketed them．
“Merci(法语：谢谢),”she whispered．
I jumped to my feet and started pacing the room．I was overcome with anger．“For what, this ‘merci'?” I asked．
“For the money．”
“But you know I've cheated you－robbed you! I have actually stolen from you! Why this ‘merci'?”
“In my other places they didn't give me anything at all．”
“They didn't give you anything? No wonder! I played a little joke on you, a cruel lesson, just to teach you．．．I m going to give you all the eighty dollars! Here they are in the envelope all ready for you．．．Is it really possible to be so spineless(懦弱)?Why didn't you protest? Why were you silent? Is it possible in this world to be without teeth and claws(爪)－to be such a fool?”
Embarrassed, she smiled．And I could read her expression, “It is possible．”
I asked her pardon for the cruel lesson and, to her great surprise, gave her the eighty dollars．She murmured her little “merci” several times and went out．I looked after her and thought, “How easy it is to crush(压榨)the weak in this world !”
(1)
What shocked the writer was Julia's ________．
[ ]
A．
nervousness in front of her boss
B．
acceptance of injustice(不公平)
C．
shyness when talking about money
D．
unwilling to express herself
(2)
The writer said, “Is it possible in this world to be without teeth and claws?” He was actually telling the governess ________．
[ ]
A．
to be more aggressive(侵略的)
B．
to be more careful in her work
C．
to protect her right
D．
to live independently
(3)
At the end of the story, the writer said, “How easy it is to crush the weak in this world!” to show ________．
[ ]
A．
his understanding of Julia's anxiety
B．
his worry about Julia's future
C．
his concern on the living condition of working - class people
D．
his sympathy(同情)for the mental state of the weak
(4)
From the story, we can tell that Julia's employer was ________．
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