重庆市名校联盟2023-2024学年度高三下学期英语第一次联考试题（音频暂未更新）

A

Your Garden Escape

Even in the big city you can find oases(绿洲)of calm and beauty.From a royal palace to a classical garden,we recommend great green spaces to escape the hustle and bustle of London.

Horniman Gardens

Horniman Gardens cover 16 acres with breathtaking views of London.Visitors can enjoy the Sound Garden,Meadow Field,and even a Prehistoric Garden,which features a display of "living fossils".The gardens are very popular with families,and dogs can be let off their leads in the Meadow Field

Chiswick House& Gardens

As a classical garden landscape in London,it was here that the English Landscape Movement was born with William Kent's designs.Enjoy fresh bread,seasonal food,and natural wines in the award-winning cafe,while admiring the beauty of the naturalistic landscape, spotted with impressive art and statues

Buckingham Palace Garden

The 39-acre garden boasts more than 350 types of wildflowers,over 200 trees and a three-acre lake.The garden also provides a habitat for native birds rarely seen in London.A tour of the garden can be completed by having a cream tea in the cafe overlooking the Palace's famous grassland and lake.

Kew Gardens

The Royal Botanic Garden at Kew is one of the world's most famous gardens and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.Have a walk through the vast garden,spot local wildlife at the lake, or get your hands dirty by trying a gardening lesson.Be sure to visit the Temperate House, which contains some of the rarest and most threatened plants.

B

I ask every student I interview for admission to my institution,Pitzer College,the same question,"What do you look forward to the most in college?"I was astonished and delighted recently when a student replied,"I look forward to the possibility of failure."Of course,this is not how most students respond to the question when sitting before the person who can make decisions about their academic futures,but this young man took a risk.

"You see,my parents have never let me fail,"he said."When I want to take a chance at something, they remind me it's not a safe route to take.Taking a more demanding course or trying an activity I may not succeed in,they tell me,will ruin my chances at college admission."

I wish I could tell you this is an uncommon story,but kids all over the world admit they are under great pressure to be per feet.When I was traveling in China last fall and asked a Chinese student what she did for fun,she replied:"I thought I wasn't supposed to tell you that? I wouldn't want you to think I am not serious about my work!"

Students are usually in shock when I laugh and tell them I never expect perfection.Of course,this goes against everything they've been told.How could a dean of admission at one of America's most selective institutions not want the best and the brightest?The reality is,perfection doesn't exist,and we don't expect to see it in a college application.In fact, admission officers tend to question students who present themselves as individuals without shortcomings.

We get the most excited when we read an application that seems real.It's so rare to hear stories of defeat.If their perspectives are of lessons learned,these applicants tend to jump to the top at highly selective colleges.We believe an error in high school should not define the rest of your life,but how you respond could shape you forever.

C

There is an increasing alarm about the extent of microplastics pollution,which has been found everywhere from Everest to the Arctic.However,it turns out there's an even smaller and more poisonous form of plastic pollution entering remote reaches of the globe.A new study published in Environmental Research found significant quantities of nanoplastic(纳米塑料)in ice samples from both the North and South Poles.

"Now we know that nanoplastic are transported to these corners of the Earth in these quantities.This indicates that nanoplastic are really a bigger pollution problem than we thought,"study lead author Dusan Materic said in a press release.

Nanoplastic are plastics that are smaller than a micrometer in size.Their small size means they are more difficult to study than microplastics,or plastics between five millimeters and a micrometer.But they may be even more dangerous.

"Nanoplastic are very toxicological active compared to,for instance,microplastics,and that's why this is very important,"Materic said.

Materic and his team used new methods to measure nanoplastic pollution in ice samples from Greenland and Antarctica.They sampled a 14-meter-deep ice core from the Greenland ice cap and sea ice from Antarctica's McMurdo Sound.They found that there were an average of 13.2 nanograms per-milliliter of nanoplastic in the Greenland ice and an average of 52.3 nanograms per milliliter in the Antarctic ice

But what was even more surprising than the amount of nanoplastic in the remote ice was just how long they had sat there."In the Greenland core,we see nanoplastic pollution happening all the way from the 1960s.So organisms,despite the lack of the solid evidence,likely all over the world,have been exposed to it for quite some time now,"Materic said.

The study also looked at the types of plastic present in the samples.Half of the Greenland nanoplastics were polyethylene(PE),the kind of plastic used for plastic bags and packaging.A quarter came from tires and a fifth were polyethylene terephthalate (PET),which is used for clothing and bottles.

D

When driving,Clara-Marina Martinez takes down any unusual behaviour she sees on the road.She then feeds these into machine-learning algorithms(算法),a form of Al,which are intended to produce a system reliable enough for a car to drive itself without any disturbance from the driver,and cope with all situations on the road.But this proving hard to achieve, carmakers choose to scale back many attempts to do so.Last year,for instance,Uber,a ride- hailing service,sold off its unit developing self-driving cars at a low price.

Autonomous vehicles are boasted as being not just convenient but potentially safer. However,just as people take time to learn how to drive safely,machines are no exception.The RAND Corporation,an American think-tank,calculates that to develop a system 20%safer than a human driver,a fleet of100 self-driving cars would have to operate 24 hours a day,365 days a year, and cover 14 billion kilometers.At average road speeds,that would take about 400 years.

Carmakers such as Porsche therefore accelerate the development process using simulators (模拟器).These teach software about danger only rarely encountered in reality.Dr Martinez and her colleagues employ"game engines",the programs that generate photo realistic images in computer games,to do this.These are used to create virtual worlds through which the software can drive.

How quickly,if ever,all this will translate into reality remains to be seen.Both regulators and customers will need to overcome doubt that a software driver really can be safer than human. From Porsche's point of view,though,there is one other relevant question.Given that much of the reason for owning a sports car is for owners to show off what they regard as their driving skills,just how big a market will there be for a version where software takes those boasting rights away?

Conscious(有意识的)living is not just a trend.It is about being intentional with everything you do—your words,actions,beliefs,habits,and choices.Accepting conscious living takes some efforts,but it is worthwhile.Here are some ways you can achieve this goal.

● Be conscious about your time.

Time is the most precious thing because there is no way to live a moment again.The way you spend your time determines the course of your life.If you waste your precious hours doing negative things,you will regret it later.The first step for living consciously is to be wise about your time.

● Know yourself better.

You cannot achieve them unless you understand your needs and intentions.Spend time thinking over and knowing your strengths and weaknesses.Once you know yourself better,you can create a plan to work towards becoming more patient,honest,and forgiving.

● Learn to be grateful.

Gratitude takes you a long way towards conscious living.It opens you up to a happier and a fulfilled mindset.Most people are unhappy because they see only the negatives in life. However,everyone has something to be grateful for.Writing a gratitude journal is a good start for counting your blessings.

●Believe in yourself

It is the key to making the right choices,yet not regretting the wrong ones.The best way to build self-belief is by reflecting on your own thoughts.Care for it and follow it to make it stronger down the line.

A.Accept the person you are.

B.Life can be a lot better with the right decisions.

C.Pick it as a daily habit,and you will notice the difference.

D.Be selective about things you spend it on,and allocate(分配)it for positive activities.

E.It is a healthy choice that enables you to be happy.

F.It is easier said than done because most people fail to make an effort to know themselves.

G.Spending time alone and thinking deeply are effective measures that enable you to identify the inner voice.

Hannah, an adventurous girl,lived on a small village in a land far away. All of the villagers were used to their 1 tasks and very few had the will to try something new. Unlike them, Hannah loved to 2 and would spend hours in the woods looking for new things.

One afternoon,she 3 an abandoned cottage.With curiosity she slowly opened the door and was left 4 .In front of her was a room full of books glittering in the dust!She gasped as she 5 that she had found a hidden treasure.She 6 two and decided to read them at her home.

From that day on,Hannah 7 read the books,which took her to a world of talking animals, mystical creatures,and daring knights.She read about characters who faced  8 with their determination and characters who bravely 9 for good.She learned the power of love and friendship,and that the true strength lies within one's own 10 !

With the good in heart,Hannah started to 11  the gold from the tales with the people of her village.Soon,the 12 of Hannah's storytelling spread.People traveled from different places to listen to her stories.Hannah got 13 and started writing stories of her own too!

Hannah's passion and 14 blew life into the tales and her words breathed new life into countless souls.She became a signal of 15 ,a reminder for everyone that even in the dustiest corners,there can be a hidden treasure.

Under the intense inspection of the public eye,the highly anticipated drama "Blossoms Shanghai "has finally announced its appearance on this year's Spring Festival Gala stage, has not only sparked excitement among viewers but has also emerged as a popular topic of conversation among the media.

"Blossoms Shanghai"is a TV drama (set)in the backdrop of the 1990s,telling the story of a group of ordinary people living in Shanghai's alleyways.With its realistic and delicate storyline and the (act)outstanding performances,the drama quickly gained (popular)and captured the hearts of many viewers after its broadcast.As one of the (large)stages in China,the Spring Festival Gala undoubtedly provides the"Blossoms Shanghai"crew with excellent opportunity to showcase their talents.

In preparation for the Spring Festival Gala performance,the drama crew has carefully prepared several attractive acts.It (report)that they will showcase classic scenes and characters from"Blossoms Shanghai"through various forms such as singing,dancing,and skits. (additional),renowned singers and performers have been specially invited to join the performance,(promise)to deliver a refreshing audio-visual feast for the audience.

The directorial team of the Spring Festival Gala has stated that the inclusion of the"Blossoms Shanghai"crew will add a unique charm this year's show.

1.活动目的和内容；

2.活动意义；

注意：

1.词数80词左右；

2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。

When I was in high school,there was nothing I loved more than going bowling-and no place I'd rather be than Al's Kingpin Lanes.That place was great:Friday 5-dollar foot-long hot dogs with all the toppings,old arcade(拱廊)cabinets in the back that had classics like Galaga, and always playing 1940sjazz and 1950s rockabilly music.I got so obsessed with bowling that I even managed to convince my high school to start a varsity(校队)and junior varsity bowling sports club.

During my high school years,from freshman to junior year,starting and leading my school's bowling club really helped me to come out of my shell.As time went on,our varsity team began winning local and even state tournaments.Soon enough,our school was getting bowling trophies(奖杯)to go alongside the trophies for more traditional sports like swimming and track and field.These victories not only boosted my popularity but also allowed me to form meaningful connections along the way!Life was great back then.

Still,the bowling memory that really stuck out to me was when I met Leroy.Although Leroy happened to go to the same high school as I did,we didn't really cross paths that much.I was already a junior by then,and as I found out later,he was still a young freshman.The strange thing about it,though,was how he would always hang out in the back,nervously watching everyone else play.Despite his regular presence,he seemed too nervous and shy to play or even talk with others.

Then,one evening while I was out with my friends at Kingpin Lanes,something remarkable happened.I witnessed Leroy actually picking up a bowling ball for the first time. His shoes were untied,he struggled to lift even the lightest ball up,and with each throw,the ball ended up in the gutter lane(边沟),resulting in straight zeroes across the board.

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。

That's when I finally made my way over to say hi to Leroy.

And that was the beginning of our friendship.