1 . The Seychelles — that remote island chain off the coast of northern Africa is heaven for scuba divers (水肺潜水). With more than 100 islands, most of which are uninhabited, and a relatively small amount of tourists impacting the oceans and beaches, the Seychelles has some truly best scuba diving.

Fisherman’s Cove Reef

If you’re a beginner diver who loves gentle drop-offs and sea turtles, make sure Fisherman’s Cove Reef is on your scuba diving radar. The site is very popular as there’s rarely a current, it’s very shallow, and has a colorful reef with everything from eagle rays to small leaf fish, which can be very difficult to find against the seagrass and coral.

Ennerdale Wreck

If you love wreck diving, head right for the Ennerdale, a British oil tanker that accidentally sunk in 1970. Because of the medium-to-strong current and depth, it’s for divers with advanced open water cert. They’ll be able to swim around the wreck’s propellers, penetrate the frame, and likely see reef sharks and the occasional bull shark.

Baie Ternay Marine Park

The shallow, protected area of ocean has healthy and varied coral, and a lively reef. Both snorkelers and beginner divers are likely to see sea turtles grazing on the seagrass, coaching reef fish, and small eels poking out of the sandy ocean floor.   

Aldabra Atoll

It doesn’t get much more remote than the Aldabra Atoll, a UNESCO site. The coral reef continues underwater, which makes all the island’s dive sites stunning. Advanced divers can do drift dives in a channel with a chance of seeing sharks, while beginners can stay closer to the reefs, checking the various species of marine life in the Indian Ocean off their must-see list. The island is home to nearly 100,000 giant tortoises, as well as several other rare species

2 . Once the choice of royal household, the watermelon has gained popularity rapidly over the years, and an online grocer reported that the fruit’s sales on the platform had increased sixfold from 2020 to 2022, resulting in increasingly high demand for watermelon quality testers.

Lee, 32, is extremely busy in the summer months. Just by holding the watermelon near his ear and knocking on the surface with his fingers, Lee says, he can tell by the sound if the fruit is ripe enough to be eaten or not. He works for a rural cooperative set up by a group of watermelon farmers, and puts thousands of watermelons through the “knock test” daily, before they are shipped to downtown warehouses where the platform sources its supplies.

The practice of knocking on watermelons to determine their ripeness can be found across cultures. In China, it is considered a national habit. Smart buyers tap on the fruit before purchase to ensure their money is well-spent. Some buyers knock on the fruit despite not knowing what the hollow sound means just to negotiate a better deal from the seller.

As fruit sales have moved to online platforms in a big way, those who make a living by checking the quality of the fruits with their fingers are much in demand. Lee is one among the growing group. Their task is to conduct knock tests on behalf of e-buyers and ensure that the fruits selected to be sold online are uniform in size and quality.

Lee, who was once an award-winning soccer player, now describes himself as a “goalkeeper for watermelons”. He quit soccer about four years ago and learned about melon-knocking as an emerging profession and decided to become an apprentice(学徒) to an experienced farmer.

After a year’s trial and error, Lee worked independently as a quality checker. “It is a highly demanding task. During the apprenticeship, I often cracked open melons to confirm my judgment. There are just no shortcuts, ” he said.

3 . Student Film Festival

Student Film Festival celebrates learning across the curriculum through the exciting and dynamic medium of short film.

Through film, students can tell stories, investigate ideas, document learning in any area of study and express the complexity of their thinking through a range of genres and technical approaches.

With the creative use of digital media, students can integrate their personal perspectives to explore the diverse and challenging issues of our time.

It’s open to all students, regardless of school. We are accepting submissions in the following categories:

Cartoon (up to 30 mins)

Documentary(纪录片)(up to 60 mins)

Music Video(under 10 mins)

Science Fiction Short (up to 25 mins)

Situational Comedy (under 10 mins)

Web Series(up to three episodes, no more than 30 mins each)

So far, more than 20 entries have been selected across all categories. We will gradually announce the chosen entries for each category, giving you a chance to watch all the films online and vote for your favourites. Winners in all categories will be announced on Wednesday, 27 December.

Over the years, our film festivals have attracted thousands of filmmakers from around the world. Each festival features live screenings in our own school theater. Our 80-seat theater is outfitted with a 4K projector and seven speakers throughout the venue, delivering high quality in a first-class screening environment. Filmmakers whose works are accepted into our festival will receive free passes to the school theater, invitations to film masterclasses, and are considered for awards.

4 . If carbon dioxide(CO2) were a politician, it would be worried about its bad press. This greenhouse gas is the primary pollutant responsible for global warming. Scientists, leaders, and activists are trying to stop its production. This gas, however, also plays a key role in life on Earth.

Carbon helps form the protein and DNA found in living things. In the atmosphere, it combines with two oxygen atoms (原子) to form carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide is necessary for photosynthesis (光合作用) . In the process, plants use energy from the sun to turn water and carbon dioxide into sugar. In return, plants give off oxygen. As carbon dioxide concentrations increase in the atmosphere, scientists are trying to employ photosynthesis to promote plant growth. Laboratory studies show a higher concentration of the gas is making some plants grow more quickly in certain conditions, but in the wild and on outdoor farms the overall benefit is unclear. In the Netherlands, some commercial greenhouses are experimenting with ways to send carbon dioxide released from industry into greenhouses along a particular way where plants use the extra gas as fertilizer (肥料).

The first person to assume the existence of carbon dioxide was 16th-century Belgian scientist Jan Baptist van Helmont. After coal was burned, he noted, the weight of the remains was lower than the coal’s initial weight, which means some mass had been lost in the process. He was the first scientist to recognize different gases present in the air we breathe. It wasn’t until 1896 that Swedish scientist Svante Arrhenius linked the carbon dioxide released from burning coal and oil to atmospheric warming.

Yet, despite its being plentiful in the atmosphere, we have been light on commercially produced carbon dioxide because of rising energy costs. As a result, carbonated drink (碳酸饮料) companies have had to raise prices or reduce production.

5 . I’ve reached the turn-around point of the day’s kayaking (皮划艇) trip. Sweat runs down my cheek as I ______ my fingers through the cool water. I look around. It’s just me, a couple of seagulls, and shining freshwater to the horizon. This, I whisper to myself, is ______.

Solo outings had never ______ my mind before because I always had loyal friends willing to tag along. But three years ago, I moved to Cleveland. Meeting close friends in a new city is ______. And a world wide health crisis made ______ impossible.

In October 2022, I decided to ______ a whole day on a solo hiking trip. I went to Cuyahoga Valley National Park (CVNP) to ______ the autumn leaves. Five miles in, I couldn’t remember the last time I’d felt so alive. I was more ______ of my surroundings than I’d ever been while hiking that day. I studied the markings of trees, focused my ears on each forest sound and did something I had almost never spared ______ for: I listened to my own thoughts. Every word in my mind pointed to a newfound ______—solo hiking is my happy place. From then on, I have adjusted myself to any solo activity.

Pride ______ through my body when I first launched my kayak. My chest, ______ tightened by nerves, was bursting with happiness as I finally reached the middle of the river that I’d long ______ standing on shore before.

Adventuring alone has become like medicine for me! It’s also pushed me to go ______ my comfort zone and to meet new people. Through meetups and social media, my adventure friend circle has ______. But at least once per month, I schedule time to hit nature with my favorite trail buddy: me.

6 . What do the following places have in common: the Serengeti Desert, Edinburgh’s Old Town and the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve?

The Serengeti Desert is in Tanzania and Kenya, Africa. It contains (包含) thousands of kilometers of dry grasslands and many rare kinds of animals.

Edinburgh’s Old Town is in the capital city of Scotland. It has many old buildings and streets.There are very few new buildings in Edinburgh’s Old Town.

The Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve is near Mexico City in Mexico. It has beautiful flowers and forests. It is also the home of millions of butterflies in the winter.

There three places are very different. But they are all under special protection by UNESCO (联合国教科文组织). They are World Heritage Sites.

The story of World Heritage Sites begins more than 3, 000 years ago. At that time, the great king of Egypt built many temples. But after thousands of years, sand covered them.

Stories tell of a young boy named Abu Simbel who found the temples. One day, Abu Simbel saw something under the sand. Soon, the ancient temples of Ramses Ⅱ were officially rediscovered. But they were not safe. The government of Egypt planned to build a dam on the Nile River. It would create a large lake, which would cover the temples in water.

Many people did not want the temples destroyed. UNESCO agreed and raised 40 million dollars from around the world to save the temples. From 1964 to 1968, engineers took the temples apart in many pieces and rebuilt them hundreds of meters back from the Nile River. Today, they are called the Abu Simbel Temples, in memory of the young boy who first found them.

The effort to save the Abu Simbel Temples was a success. So in 1972, UNESCO formed the World Heritage Committee, which protects places on the earth that are of great cultural or natural value.

Any country in the world can ask for protection from UNESCO.The countries send a list of places to the World Heritage Committee. Once a year, the World Heritage Committee meets and votes on which places to protect. When they choose a place, it officially becomes a World Heritage Site.

9 . Four of the world’s greatest national parks

Komodo

Location: Indonesia; Area:1,733 km²

Home to the world’s largest lizard (蜥蜴), the Komodo dragon, Komodo National Park is made up of 29 islands. The park’s three main islands of Komodo, Rinca and Padar make ideal destinations for divers, as the coral reefs support an amount of oceanic diversity. With over 1,000 species of fish, 260 species of coral, and countless sea animals, this is an ideal spot to swim with whales, dolphins and more.

Namib-Naukluft

Location: Namibia; Area: 49,768 km²

In the world’s oldest desert, the landscape moves. The golden dunes shift as winds blow and seasons pass. Visitors come to explore the dunes and it can be a real adventure. You’ll need a permit and doctor’s letter to take on the longer hikes, but one-day hikes give anyone a chance to see more of the Namib.

Tongariro

Location: New Zealand; Area:795 km²

As New Zealand’s oldest national park, Tongariro National Park is home to three active volcanoes. And here’s the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, a 19.4-kilometre hike that takes you across beautiful landscapes. This park also draws in skiers during the winter seasons. The biggest ski area, Whakapapa, covers 5.5k㎡2 and has 15 lifts in all.

Teide

Location: Tenerife, Spain; Area:190 km²

This park is home to Mount Teide, the highest peak in Spain. With a height of 3,718 metres, Mount Teide is also the third largest volcanic structure on the planet. Besides, Teide National Park possesses unique plants. The most unusual among the 139 recorded species is red bugloss.

10 . Do you ever feel like an outsider? An outsider is not a strange person without friends. ________, they are someone who challenges accepted values and perspectives. The education system teaches you to think ________. However, brilliant work is always unconventional. The self-taught may produce fresh and ________ work.

Everything was against Eileen Gray. In the 1920s, you needed strict qualifications to become an architect. Men strictly ________ access to academic courses. Eileen Gray ________ to accept the conventional rules presented to her. No one in the system would help her, so she helped herself. Gray rolled up her sleeves, picked up a hammer and nails, and made her ________ a reality. She taught herself the ________ an architect needed from books and evening classes. Gray recognized that other architects work was predictable because they were insiders ________ the design rules of the profession. The famous architecture companies ________ the same old designs and practices. She realized if she did things ________ she would stand out.

Imagine someone without ________ to build a house from the very beginning: attracting the finance, producing detailed plans of electrical circuits, plumbing, and ________ form, and then making it. In 1926, Gray began building a house near Monaco. It was called E.-1027, a white beacon of enlightenment (启蒙灯塔) E.-1027 immediately ________ international recognition as a masterpiece, and lots of design tasks flooded in. Her ________ shocked architects who had spent years studying at university. Gray’s ________ to think and act independently contributed to her great success.