Question

    David Rees runs a truly distinctive business． He charges customers ﹩15 to sharpen their pencils to perfections， using a variety of tools．

I know what you're thinking ﹣ is this a joke？ The 39﹣year﹣old gets asked that question a lot． To clarify everything， he even created a special section on his website telling everyone he's actually providing a real service．

You can supply your own pencil or you can have Rees sharpen one of his own favorite 2B pencils． After that， he mails it to you in a display tube with the shavings in a separate bag， and an authentic certificate which just happens to mention the pencil is so sharp as to be a dangerous object．

To achieve the desired result， the master sharpener uses all kinds of tools， including general sandpapers， pocket knives and even a special﹩450 sharpening machine． "It depends on what the customer wants to use his/her pencil for，" he says． "That determines the most appropriate pencil﹣sharpening technique． Some customers buy pencils as inspirational symbols while others buy them because of their special memories of classic 2B pencils．"

﹩15 to have a pencil sharpened is a bit expensive though， right？ You're not the only one who feels that way， and David's unique business has really angered lots of people， who talk of inequality in America， saying it is so insane for the wealthy to pay﹩15 to sharpen a pencil． But others will say， "This is just our urge to put an end to the welfare state because new ideas arise along with the business．"

David admits his trade is sort of unusual． But there are those who actually value his service， as proven by the over 500 orders he has gotten．

1.How could David make money by sharpening pencils？

A. He invented new tools for the job．

B. He promoted his skill on his website．

C. He saved lots of time for other people．

D. He provided quality service to his customers．

2.2 From his words， we can infer that David Rees　   　．

A. knows all kinds of pencil users

B. provides personalized services

C. values ideas behind the pencils

D. always write with pencils

3.What does the underlined word "insane"（in Paragraph 5）mean？

A. Deliberate．

B. Rewarding．

C. Unreasonable．

D. Irresponsible．

4.What seems to be the author's attitude to David Rees' trade？

A. It's a fancy service．

B. It has a good reputation．

C. It's awfully expensive．

D. It wastes time and money．

Answer

1.D

2.B

3.C

4.A

【解析】

本文为记叙文，文章主要介绍了David Roes 通过帮别人削铅笔赚钱的独特生意。

1.细节理解题。根据文章第一段He charges customers$15 to sharpen their pencils to perfection，using a variety of tools.可知David是通过把铅笔削完美赚钱的，所以D正确。

2.推理判断题。根据文章第4段It depends on what the customer wants to use his/her pencil for，以及Some customers buy pencils as inspirational symbols while others buy them because of their special memories of classic 2B pencils.可知他是根据顾客的不同需求而提供不同的服务的，所以B正确。

3.词义猜测题。根据第五段David's unique business has really angered lots of people，who talk of inequality in America，saying it is so insane for the wealthy to pay$15 to sharpen a pencil.可知这些人不赞成这种想法，认为花15美元学铅笔太贵了，这是不合理的，所以C正确。

4.观点态度题。根据文章第一段David Rees runs a truly distinctive business以及最后一段But there are those who actually value his service，as is proven by the over 500 orders he has gotten.可知作者认为他的运营模式很独特，所以A正确。