湖北省荆、荆、襄、宜四地七校考试联盟2022-2023学年高二上学期期中联考英语试题

To celebrate the 100th anniversary of Reader's Digest, we're relaunching our much-loved 100-Word-Story Competition with prizes of up to £1,000 to be won.

Our 100-Word-Story Competition is your chance to show the world your story-telling talents. There are three categories—one for adults and two for schools: one for children aged 12–18 and one for children under 12. Your stories should be new, unpublished, and exactly 100 words—not a single word shorter or longer! Multiple entries are allowed per person. We are unfortunately only able to consider UK based entries.

The editorial team will pick a shortlist of three in each category and post them online on 1st November 2022.

You can vote for your favourite, and the one with the most votes will get the top prize. Voting will close on 30th November 2022 and winners will be published in our December issue.

More details:

Complete the entry form below to enter. Include your full name, address, email and phone number when filling in the form.

●Prizes:

Adults category: the winner will receive £1,000 and a Serious Readers High Definition Floor or Table Light (value up to £399.99).

12–18s category: the winner will receive a £200 book voucher.

Under 12 category: the winner will receive £100 of book vouchers.

●Need some help with writing your story? Click here to check out our handy guide!

●Please keep an eye on our Twitter or Facebook for more up-to-date news.

Zhu Dejun's first job after graduating from college was as a road design engineer at an institute in his hometown, Alshaa League, North Chin's Inner Mongolia autonomous region. In 2011, when Zhu was conducting a road survey along with his colleagues, he saw a plant that he didn't recognize. Later, Zhu learned that the plant was a saxaul tree which is an excellent tree species for sand fixation and afforestation(造林) in desert areas. It's commonly seen, though easily ignored. Known as a desert guardian, a fully grown saxaul tree can hold together a 10-square-meter patch of desert land, according to Zhu.

Zhu quit his job at the design institute in 2014 and joined a nonprofit organization, the Society of Entrepreneurs and Ecology Conservation, or SEE, in the same year, concentrating on tackling desertification.

The organization, devoted to ecological protection and social responsibility, was located in the Alshaa League of Inner Mongolia. During the past eight years, Zhu has been leading a team from SEE to plant saxaul trees in sandy areas in Alshaa League and other places of Inner Mongolia.

In 2014, the SEE launched a project titled "one million saxaul trees", aiming to reach that number from 2014 to 2023, turning the desert of more than 133,330 hectares back into a satisfying ecosystem. By the end of 2018, half of the organization's goal had been achieved.

In 2016, Ant Finance cooperated with SEE to introduce the Ant Forest platform, not only encouraging people to choose "a low-carbon way" of shopping, traveling and living, but also to help control desertification.

Through the participation of a greater number of online users, who grow virtual trees, the SEE Foundation, set up in 2008, has been providing subsidies (补助金) for local herdsmen and farmers while also offering technological support to plant saxaul trees in desert areas. Now, Zhu is the head of the foundation's project to fight desertification. He also gives lectures about saxaul trees and the fight against desertification at schools, hoping to raise awareness among young people.

Germany's factories, which power Europe's economy, produced less during September than at any time in the past two years, which experts say could be an indicator of an approaching European recession (经济衰退).

The S&P Global Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index, or S&P Global PMI, found that Germany's manufacturing activity dropped to 47.8 in September, from 49.1 in August. The survey said the drop in factory output was due to customers either putting off or canceling orders because of fast-rising prices caused by more expensive fuel bills.

Joe Hayes, a senior economist at S&P Global, said while the whole world is in the middle of a manufacturing decline, Europe appears to be at the slowdown's center. "Production fell at a rate which has only been larger during crisis periods," Hayes told The Telegraph. "New orders also fell at a rapid pace, reflecting the hesitancy among clients to buy goods at expensive prices."

The analysis also showed that Europe's other manufacturing powerhouse, France, is struggling to remain competitive. The S&P Global PMI said French companies' order books shrank during September, with around one-third of businesses reporting customers had canceled orders because of rising prices.

Phil Smith, an associate director at S&P Global, said Europe is experiencing "a continuous downturn". He added that producers had been "coming under pressure from a deepening drop in demand as well as an energy-led rise in cost inflation (通货膨胀)".

A "secretive" new species of frog has been discovered on the forest floor in India's Western Ghat mountain range. Named the starry dwarf frog after the markings on its dark brown back, it is just 2 centimeters long.

The frog, whose closest relatives are a group of species native to India and Sri Linka, is the only member of an ancient lineage (血统) dating back to millions of years ago, according to researchers from India and the US. It is unclear whether the species is descended from African or Asian frogs.

A group of Indian and US researchers first came across the local species hidden in leaf-litter as part of a wider project to look for new frogs, lizards and snakes in the richly biodiverse region and stored it in a jar for later study. Genetic testing and a closer look at its shape, colouring and other features has shown that it doesn't match any existing species.

Kartik Shanker of the Indian Institute of Science, who helped design the study, says while it is common to find new frogs in India, this one needs to be noticed. "This particular species not just is a new species, but also belongs to a new genus (属), and that makes it a little more special," says Shanker.

The number of known species of frog identified in India has climbed from around 200 to above 400 over the past two decades. While many species new to science are frequently immediately sorted as endangered, it is too early to say whether the starry dwarf frog is threatened. "They are very secretive," says Shanker, adding that the team didn't know the size of its population. The frog is active at night and lives near water.

Habitat loss is a serious risk to frogs in tropical forests around the world, alongside threats such as a deadly Fungus (真菌) that has been killing off amphibians (两栖动物) for the past four decades. But the new species was found in a reserved forest, meaning it will enjoy a degree of protection by Indian government agencies.

Anger is the most destructive emotion. When you are angry, you make ill-considered decisions that you will probably regret. How to stop being angry? Here are ways that you can reduce the causes of anger.

You need to change your attitude to the way the world works. You have to accept that sometimes things go wrong and that people are not always lovely and perfect. So realizing others may behave in an unproper way will help you prevent your annoyance.

. There are occasions when anger can be directed in such a way as to achieve great things. Martin Luther King was angry about the lack of civil rights and Gandhi was angry about British domination. They both used that anger to motivate themselves to fight against injustice.

It is beneficial to stop trying to manage your anger. Anger management used to be promoted as a way of dealing with anger.. A better way of facing anger is to identify the root cause. Once you know why you get mad, it is possible to deal with the cause.

Don't take the easy way when you get angry. We would like to throw something, hit something, or scream when we are angry. A reaction like that is the easy way. It is much harder to stay calm, walk away and act normally. That, however, is what you must do if you are to stop anger from becoming your master. By learning control, you can become a much calmer and less violent person.

A. Don't regard anger as a bad emotion

B. The trick is to manage your anger well.

C. Recognize that anger is something you can control.

D. However, all that happens is that anger is overcontroled.

E. You will also regret the language spoken without thought.

F. You will be better liked and better placed to influence others.

G. The actions of other people can be a significant cause of anger.

My two adult sons still live with me. Both of them have Autism (自闭症) and other mental disabilities. My oldest boy works at a local sheltered workshop while his younger brother suffers a(n)1disorder in the brain and stays home with me full time.

The other day I was walking into a restaurant2his finger when I noticed a teenage girl staring at my youngest son. She quickly3perhaps because she didn't want to4us. I wasn't mad at her. Many people have done the same thing over the years. I only wished that they could see what I see when I look at my sons and5that they could see behind the6. I have been7to be able to care for them, to love them, and to8from them all these years. I am sure that both of them come to this world to help teach us all how to love more deeply and9.

I have been my sons'10as well as teacher in this life. As their father, I did my best to teach them how to do things with their11intellectual abilities. And they successfully12how to laugh more freely, love more openly, and have joy more easily.

When you see the mentally13in this world, then don't just look with your eyes. Look with your heart. See14their disguise to their soul. Let the light inside them15your own light as well. Let the love they share help you to share your own love too. They truly are God's angels in disguise.

One of the largest research libraries in the world, the British Library houses more than 170 million items.

The library usually selects works based on(they) popularity or by considering an item's value.

Recently, 16 Chinese online novels have been added to the(collect) of the British Library, including Great Power, Heavy Industry, Good Spring Time,The Wisdom of Great Song Dynasty.

(cover) themes of science fiction, history, reality and fantasy, these works are considered the classics of Chinese online literature from the past 20 years. Readers can check the information about the 16 books on the library's website, and borrow(print) copies.

Good Spring Time(focus) on Chinese porcelain culture, conveying a spirit that encourages people to fight against fate, and pictures women's independence, as well as the love and care among family members.

Readers can seesplendid and elegant China through the tradition, struggles and beauty described in the novel.

Great Power, Heavy Industry tells of how China's manufacturing industries have rapidly grown(strong) in recent decades, and foreign readers can learn about the Chinese system and culture behind the country's swift(economy) development. The author,online pen name is Qicheng, said I hope through this novel, overseas readers can experience the charm of Chinese culture.

1）祝贺演讲成功；

2）你的感受。

注意：

1）词数80 左右；

2） 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；

3）开头和结尾已写好，不计入总词数。

Dear David,
 

……

Yours
Li Hua

The Leap

Once a twelve-year-old boy was traveling around the world by sea. His father was the captain of the ship. Now, the ship was sailing home at last. It was a pleasant day. All the passengers were on the deck (甲板).

A monkey was making funny faces at the passengers. It became funnier as more passengers came closer, enjoying its tricks. Suddenly the monkey ran towards the captain's son and took his hat. It then put the hat on its own head. Soon after that, it climbed up the tall pole with two crossbeams (横梁) that supported the sails (帆) on the ship.

Everyone laughed, but the boy was not sure whether to laugh or cry. It had come as a surprise. The monkey sat on the first crossbeam of the pole, took off the hat and began to tear it.

The hat was too important for the boy. So he shouted with extreme anger, "You terrible creature! Return my hat or you are going to pay for it." He went after the monkey on the pole, which continued to climb higher.

"I am not going to forgive you," the boy shouted, as he climbed higher and higher. After a while, the monkey stretched itself to its full length and hung what remained of the hat on the end of the second crossbeam. Then it climbed to the very tip of the pole and sat there, making fun of the boy.

The distance from the pole to the end of the crossbeam, where the hat was, was about two meters. To reach the hat, the boy had to let go of the pole. Everyone froze with fear when they saw the boy had stepped onto the crossbeam without support. One wrong step, and he would fall hard to the board of the ship, which would lead to death. The only solution was to jump into the water. However, the boy didn't realize the danger, as his mind was focused only on getting the hat.

注意：

1） 续写词数应为150左右；

2）请按如下格式作答。

Just then the captain came on deck.

……

Seeing his son wet but alive, the captain breathed a sigh of relief.