广西贵港市2022-2023学年高二上学期期中教学质量检测英...

Saving a drowning (溺水的) woman is all in a day's work for two boys who had already collected their swimming and lifesaving merit medals (功绩奖章).

A June heavy storm hit Columbia in Missouri with little warning, causing floodwaters from rivers to burst their banks and overflow zones to turn into ponds.

When 15-year-old Dominic Viet and 16-year-old Joseph Diener passed a basketball court that had turned into a pool, they heard the frantic shouting of a young woman desperately trying to keep her head above water under the force of a current. The boys had seen the girl swimming with a friend there before, but it was now obvious she was drowning.

"The first thing that came into my mind was to get into the water," Dominic recalled. "We didn't have time to think, her head was barely above the water and we could see her sinking more down every second. We didn't think about the risks, we had to get her out."

Heroes will do as heroes do, and pulling her up onto their shoulders, Dominic and Joseph got her ashore, where emergency services arriving at someone else's call performed first aid and rushed her to the hospital.

Floodwaters are no conditions to be swimming in. There can be waste water runoff, loose chemicals, downed power lines charging the current with electricity, or pieces of wood, metal, or brick, etc.

Assistant Fire Chief Jerry Jenkins described the boys' act as heroic and courageous. The fire department honored the two boys with a "Citizen Life Safety Award".

If you look around your city, you might spot girls wearing hanfu in subways or people wearing, T-shirts with Chinese characters on the streets. A new trend is taking hold in China-guochao or "China-chic".

According to a recently published report, searches related to guochao on Dianping, a lifestyle information platform, have risen by 170 percent from the same period last year, and reviews have risen by nearly 40 percent. China-chic is happening, but what is it?

The term characterizes the rise of China's native fashion trends. It has expanded the concept of "Made in China", which has been recognized as the representation of Chinese culture and aesthetics (审美) offered by homegrown Chinese brands, according to CGTN.

China-chic came into the spotlight in 2018. Before that, big-name foreign companies dominated the world market. To win market share, many Chinese brands followed in the footsteps of these Western brands. But that year, Chinese sportswear brand Li-Ning changed things up. During the 2018 New York Fashion Week, Li-Ning introduced its Taoism-inspired Wu Dao collection. The collection not only had a trendy look, but also included elements of traditional Chinese culture. It immediately grabbed attention at home and abroad. As a result, the company recorded 20 percent revenue growth in 2018, marking the first time the brand's revenue had hit the 10-billion-yuan mark since its founding. 

The trend to embrace (欣然) domestic brands has since spread rapidly to various sectors (领域) and products, from food and drinks to clothing, mobile phones and electric vehicles. For example, White Rabbit, whose sweet candy brings back childhood memories for many, launched its perfume (香水) and lip balm (唇膏). "We want White Rabbit to be a brand that young people want to share," Shen Qinfeng, the company's marketing manager, told People's Daily.

Now, the guochao trend is "moving to the next stage", where its success will rely, first and foremost on gaining cultural confidence rather than Western validation (认可), according to Kerra Zhou, founder or brand strategy consultancy Kerrisma.

This March, several Western brands boycotted Xinjiang cotton over "forced labor" allegations (指控). To show national pride and cultural confidence, the "I support Xinjiang cotton" campaign spread across the country. Many Chinese boycotted these Western brands and turned to Chinese domestic brands support Xinjiang cotton, like Li-Ning and Anta.

"No matter how the guochao trend evolves, there's one thing that won't change: Behind the craze is people's positive attitude toward the country's development and their recognition of and growing confidence in national culture," said Yao Linqing, a professor in the School of Economics and Management at Communication University of China.

After months of expectation and secrecy, the official mascot (吉祥物) of the 2022 Winter Olympic Games－a giant panda-inspired cartoon character－made its first public debut with cheers at Beijing's Shougang Ice Hockey Arena.

The panda is named "Bing Dwen Dwen" in Chinese. Bing means "ice" in Chinese, while Dwen Dwen suggests "health and cleverness"－characteristics also shared by pandas. Pandas are perhaps the most recognized animal species in China, organizers said.

"Pandas combine China's traditional culture and its modern appearance together with winter sports elements in a fascinating image (形象) that shows our great expectations for the Games and shows that we welcome the world," said Beijing Mayor Chen Jining, who also serves as an executive president on the organizing committee.

"I have already seen the mascot and from what I've seen, it's a wonderful choice," IOC President Thomas Bach said before introducing the character." "The mascot really takes in the best elements and characteristics of China and the Chinese people. It will be a great ambassador (大使) for the country and the 24th Winter Olympics."

The ring of light surrounding the mascot's face is suggestive of ice and snow tracks, as well as the flowing "ribbons" of the National Speed Skating Oval. The oval is one of two new competition sites in downtown Beijing expected to become a landmark of the Games, according to its chief designer Cao Xue.

   The introduction of the mascots marks the key point of a journey that began in August 2018, when Beijing organizers started a global design competition for the mascots. A total of 5,816 designs were received from 35 countries, and were reviewed by Chinese and international experts in a comprehensive evaluation and selection process.

The new mascot will serve as spirited symbol of the Games that will take place in the three zones of downtown Beijing, the suburban district of Yanqing and co-host city Zhangjiakou in surrounding Hebei province.

Do high school grades matter? In most cases yes, especially when you are applying to a good college after high school. So, how to get better grades?

Turn your homework into a pleasant routine. Homework is not always a pleasant thing, but if you do it at a clean and pleasant place that you like, it'll be less exhausting. Besides, you can get into a habit of doing your homework at the same time every day. For example, you may come home, relax for half an hour, and then start your homework. Or you may have more energy to do homework in the evening.

Try to turn to others for help. If you feel that you're lost in some subjects, you can talk with your teacher. They can always give you some advice on how to broaden your mind. They can either get you a private teacher or send you to a training class. This will allow you to spend your time more wisely on difficult things.

If you are studying for an exam, don't leave everything for the last day. Start studying as early as possible and process a small part of information every day for one hour or so. Have a rest on a final night before the exam, so your brain will process the information while you are sleeping. This will make sure that you will get your grades up fast in high school.

These methods can go a long way into helping you become more focused on your work towards improving your grades. And you'll soon make great progress.

A. Also, you can ask your parents for help.

B. Break down your study materials into small pieces.

C. Decide for yourself which time works best for you.

D. Try to use them along with a strong wish to do everything better.

E. Actually, exercising during breaks between your tasks is also helpful.

F. Your grades will be better if you feel comfortable talking to your teachers.

G. What's more, studies show that high grades can benefit your future career.

Natalie Browning married the love of her life on June 27. Two weeks before the 1 day, her grandfather, Nelson May, had a stroke (中风) and couldn't be at the 2. He dreamed of being able to 3 with her in her wedding dress. And since he was unable to travel to the 4, the bride came to him!

After the wedding, Natalie took a 5 from Virginia to Florida, where her grandpa lives. She 6 her wedding dress and did her makeup at the airport. Then she arrived at her grandpa's 7 ready to dance with him in his living room. "For months he'd been so8to dance with me on my wedding and I'm just so happy that I was able to 9 him that experience," Natalie shared.

The video of their dance was 10 on Facebook, and it soon spread quickly. Natalie, the owner of a jewelry business in Virginia Beach, was so happy to have shared that 11 moment with her grandpa.

"I 12 a small business called Great Value that is centered on reminding people that they are deeply valuable," she said. "I've been 13 to share that belief more in my own life and wanted my grandpa to know that he is very 14 to me. And even though he was unable to come to my wedding, the dance he so 15 to have with me was valuable too. So, we made it happen."

In the Arctic, snowy owls (雪鸮) stick close to their nests, so scientists can  (easy) observe them. But once the owls fly south for the winter, experts aren't exactly sure  they go or what they do. Project SNOWstorm is trying to solve these mysteries.

 (introduce) in 2013, the program uses GPS tracking devices to follow snowy owls across the United States and Canada on their winter migration paths. First, scientists catch an owl

 (use) a harmless net trap. Then the bird  (fit) with a light weight backpack that won't affect its ability to fly. The solar-powered tracker sends the bird's location back scientists through cellphone towers.

So far, Project SNOWstorm  (track) nearly a hundred owls. Scientists have discovered that though some birds remain in  same small patch of land (小块土地) every winter, others travel hundreds of miles in a few weeks.

The tracking data also shows that owls in some areas are making lots of short  (flight), which is because the birds keep having to fly away from curious people in populous (人口密集的) areas. "Humans might love snowy owls a little too much," Weidensaul says. "If you're (luck) enough to see one, give it plenty of space."

1）阅读英语文章的好处；2）你的建议。

注意：

1）词数80左右；

2）可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；

3）开头和结尾已给出，不计入总词数。

Dear students,

From the recent survey, we have found that less than 3 percent of students in our school are interested in reading English articles.

……

Students' Union

I always wonder how people will react if I want a total stranger for help in a busy place like a street corner or in a crowded station. I personally have always hurried past a stranger who tried to catch my attention in a busy place or when I am rushing around.

Yesterday I was stuck in such a hopeless situation where my only hope of help would have to come from a total stranger.

I was in a busy shopping mall (中心) buying a large piece of luggage. After the purchase in one of the large, fancy, expensive shops, I picked up my phone from my pocket to call my driver waiting in the parking lot and my phone was dead.

I then requested the shop assistant who had just sold me the luggage, which was not cheap at all, if she could help me telephone my driver. She replied, still all smiles, "I'm sorry, Sir, but it is the shop policy that we cannot use mobile phones while working in the shop."

As I was wondering what kind of policy that was, I saw a nice-looking teenage boy coming toward me. Remembering my wife's interesting theory (理论) that beautiful people are more likely to give you a hand when you're in trouble, I thought I might have a chance. But before I could say a word, he walked past me. It turned out he simply didn't see me.

I waited a bit longer in the mall but it seemed nobody bothered to look at me. Disappointed and tired, I got out of the shop on to the busy street in front. I stood there with people rushing by, looking at their faces to see if there was a sign of kindness on their face. I began wondering how many times I had reacted to strangers like the shop girl and the teenager.

注意：

1）续写词数应为150左右；

2）请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。

At that point I saw a young mother with her two kids.

……

Finally, a man wearing a cheap T-shirt and dirty jeans seemed to notice me.