A
Peter Huszcz once taught in an agricultural college. In the 1990s, he moved to Canada. Peter started out washing dishes in a restaurant in downtown Ottawa. When the manager asked him to help out rolling meatballs in the kitchen, he soon learned how to do the job very well. But it was boring and Peter suggested that the manager should buy a meatballmaking machine. When the manager told him there was no such thing as a meatball maker, Peter was quick to notice that something was missing in the market. Putting his engineering knowledge to good use, he quickly came up with a simple method — the Magic Meatball Maker.
He was sure there was a market for his machine, but it took him ten years of hard work to find it. He had to take risks, but he believed in his idea, and he managed to persuade other people to believe in him too. A local manufacturer (制造商) offered to produce the first 1,000 units in return for a share in the profits (收益), local shops offered to keep his meatball makers and a friend's daughter helped him out with his first sales.
But his lucky break came when he managed to persuade a TV shopping channel (频道) to help sell the Magic Meatball Maker. The channel broadcast a program about how the invention worked in the studio kitchen. Within minutes, they had sold more than 4,000 units.
This was just the start. Peter had been right. He had said his meatball maker would bring him great wealth, and it has: more than two million dollars so far and it's till selling to thousands of American housewives all across the USA.
1．Working in the restaurant, Peter ________.
A．was chosen to be the manager
B．found a chance to make money
C．broke a meatballmaking machine
D．was poor at making meatballs by hand
解析：选B 细节理解题。由第一段中的“When the manager told him ... something was missing in the market”可知，Peter看到了赚钱的机会，故选B项。
2．Which of the following helped Peter's business take off?
A．A local shop. B．A friend's daughter.
C．A local manufacturer. D．A TV shopping channel.
解析：选D 细节理解题。由第三段内容可知，Peter成功说服一家电视购物频道为其推销肉丸机，随后便开始大卖，故选D项。
3．What's the right order to describe Peter's life?
A．Teacher→dish washer→inventor→businessman.
B．Dish washer→teacher→inventor→businessman.
C．Businessman→dish washer→inventor→teacher.
D．Inventor→businessman→dish washer→teacher.
解析：选A 细节理解题。由第一段中的“Peter Huszcz once taught in an agricultural college.”可知，他曾当过老师；由“In the 1990s ...Peter started out washing dishes in a restaurant”可知，他之后做过洗碗工；由“Putting his engineering knowledge ... the Magic Meatball Maker”可知，随后他成了一位发明家；由第二、三、四段内容可知，他为了推销肉丸机付出了很大的辛苦，所以他还是一名商人。
4．What can we learn from the story?
A．Better late than never.
B．A friend in need is a friend indeed.
C．Where there is a will, there is a way.
D．In time of danger, one's mind works fast.
解析：选C 推理判断题。由第二段中的一二句和最后一段内容可知，Peter Huszcz坚信自己的肉丸机会受欢迎，为了推销其产品，他付出了艰辛的努力并最终取得成功，故选C项。
