阅读下面短文，从短文后所给各题的四个选项（A、B、C 和D）中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。

Have you ever heard of Agatha Christie, an excellent writer? Agatha Christie is, without a doubt,   16   mystery writer in the world. Her books have been translated into more than 100 languages. All 77 novels and story collections she wrote are still on the market 25 years after her   17  .

    Agatha Christie was born in 1890 in a southwest England seaside town. She enjoyed a very comfortable childhood in a big house with   18   servants(仆人). Agatha was known   19   an imaginative child. With her sister and brother away at school, she often played alone. She passed the time by making up stories which she told to   20  .

Agatha Christie’s first novel was published in 1920. In it, she   21   one of her most popular characters, Belgian detective Hercule Poirot. He went on to appear in 33 of her novels, and in several movies   22  . Although Poirot appears again and again in her novels, Christie certainly could not be considered as repeating her ideas. Her powers of invention and her ability to surprise continue to attract   23  readers around the world.

Christie also wrote several   24  . One of these, “The Mousetrap”, became the longest-running play in the history of theater. It is about a murder mystery that   25   in a country house. All these mysterious stories earned her the title “Queen of Crime”.

1.

A. more practical                  B. more famous         

 C. the most famous                 D. the most practical                          

2.

 A. loss           B. birth           C. death        D. arrival

3.

A. much         B. plenty of        C. lots          D. a lot

4.

A. as            B. like             C. by           D. for

5.

 A. her brother    B. her             C. herself        D. her sister

6.

 A. created       B. produced        C. built          D. continued

7.

A. also          B. besides          C. as well        D. either

8.

 A. million        B. millions         C. millions of     D. million of

9.

A. stories        B. plays            C. movies        D. comedies

10.

 A. takes place    B. takes in          C. takes off       D. takes down

Martin Lynch, an American businessman, had been going on vacation to a small Mexican fishing village for a number of ears. One morning while going for a walk along the beach, he saw his friend Pablo Perez, a local fisherman. Martin watched Pablo unload his boat and pack the fish in a box.

   Martin noticed Pablo was smiling and looked very happy. He could also see several large fish in the boat. Martin greeted Pablo and asked how long it took to catch the fish. “Just a few hours,” replied Pablo. Martin asked, “Why didn’t you stay longer and catch more fish?” “I have enough for my family,” Pablo said. “And what do you do with the rest of your day?” asked Martin. “I take a nap, play with my children, spend time with my wife, and go into the village to see my friends and play cards, I have a full and busy life.” Martin explained that if Pablo worked longer hours and caught more fish, he could make more money. With the extra money, Pablo could buy more boats and catch money more fish. By selling the fish, Pablo could open his own factory and sell direct to supermarkets.

   “Then what?” asked Pablo. “Well you would probably have to move to Mexico City to run the business. Finally, you would be able to sell your business and make millions of dollars,” replied Martin. “How long will that take?” asked Pablo.

   Martin thought for a while and said it would probably take at least 15 years.

   “And then what” asked Pablo.

   “Well, that’s the best part,” Martin said. “You will be able to retire, buy a house near the ocean, sleep longer, play with your children, spend more time with your wife, see your friends, and play cards.”

1.What is the story mainly about?

A. A businessman and a fisherman have become friends.

B. A businessman learns how to fish from a fisherman.

C. A businessman wants to become a businessman.

D. A businessman gives advice to a fisherman.

2.What makes the Mexican fisherman happy is ______________.

A. many friends to visit him

B. a full and busy life

C. more boats and more fish

D. the house near the ocean

3.How can the fisherman make more money in the businessman’s view?

A. By buying a supermarket.

B. To move to Mexico City.

C. By selling his own business.

D. To work longer and catch more fish.

4.The underlined word “unload” in the passage means ____________.

A. put … into               B. take … away from

C. break down               D. set off

5.We can infer from the passage that ____________.

A. the fisherman will stay the same with his life

B. the fisherman will leave the village for Mexico City

C. the business man will buy the fisherman’s boat

D. it takes all day for the fisherman to catch large fish

Is it difficult for you to get up in the morning? Hiroyuki’s bed will solve your problem! Here is how it works.
The bed is connected to an alarm clock. First, the alarm clock rings. You have a few minutes to wake up. Next, a tape recorder in the bed plays soft music. The tape recorder in Hiroyuki’s bed plays a recording of his girlfriend. She whispered in a soft voice, “Wake up, darling, please.” After minutes later, Hiroyuki hears a recording of his boss. His boss shouts, “Wake up at once , or you’ll be late !”
If you don’t get up after the second recording, a mechanical “foot” in the bed will kick you in the head. The bed waits a few more minutes. What! You’re still in bed! Slowly the top of the bed rises higher and higher. The foot of the bed goes lower and lower. Finally you slide off the bed and onto the floor. You are out of bed awake!
Hiroyuki’s bed is not in stores. There is only one bed--- the bed Hiroyuki made for a contest. Maybe someday a company will make Hiroyuki’s bed and sell it in stores. Maybe people will buy millions of beds. Then Hiroyuki will be rich. If the bed makes Hiroyuki rich, he won’t need to work, and he won’t need to get up early!
【小题1】 The bed is useful to the people _______.