What Happened in 2022, and What Didn’t

Sometimes, what does not happen is what matters most.

By the evening of February 25 this year, Russia's troops had reached the edge of Kyiv, Ukraine's capital. The day before, Russian troops had crossed into Ukraine in the largest military attack in Europe since World War II.

Ukraine's defense¹ ministry² urged its people to build bombs to fight off the invaders³. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy filmed himself on the streets of the city, promising⁴ to defend his country.

"Tonight, they will launch an assault," Zelenskyy said. "All of us must understand what awaits us. We must withstand this night."

Many had expected a quick Russian victory. But the assault never came. And 10 months later, Russia has pulled back its "special military operation" in some places.

Russian forces still control large areas of Ukraine's east and south. At least 40,000 civilians⁵ have been killed and 14 million displaced in the conflict. But Ukrainian forces, supported by billions of dollars in Western weapons, have effectively fought against the Russians.

U.S. politics

In the United States, the sitting president's party, in this case, President Joe Biden's Democrats⁶, usually loses many seats in the midterm elections.

So, many observers had predicted a large victory for the Republican Party. The Republicans did win control of the House of Representatives. But it was a small victory with a majority of fewer than 10 seats.

The Republicans ended up losing one seat in the Senate and several more races for governor.

Economy

In economics, most of the world's big central banks waited until March to begin raising interest rates. The European Central Bank did not move until July. Some complained that the delay enabled inflation to increase. And some feared that it could be costly⁷ in the long term.

There are early signs that inflation may have reached its highest point in some economies. The price of oil has gone down but could increase as European nations established a price limit on Russian oil products.

Climate change

At the United Nations climate talks in Egypt, countries agreed to create a fund to help poor nations threatened by climate disasters. But they failed to agree on plans to cut emissions⁸ faster.

Meanwhile, there have been record heatwaves in China, floods in Pakistan and Europe, and glacier⁹ collapses¹¹ in India, Italy and Chile. They were reminders¹² of how fast our planet's climate is warming.

Protests in Iran

This was also the year that protests exploded in Iran after the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini. She was arrested by the morality police for wearing an "improper¹³" head covering called the hijab. Witnesses said she was beaten, though Iranian officials denied that.

The protests, led mostly by women, spread throughout the country. They represented a threat to the government. In recent weeks, fewer morality police officers have been seen in Iranian cities. And more women have been walking the city's streets without wearing the hijab.

What else happened?

What else happened in 2022?

Cryptocurrencies greatly dropped in value following the collapse¹⁰ of FTX, one of the world's largest digital money exchanges.

Elon Musk¹⁴ bought Twitter. The billionaire cut half of its workforce¹⁵ and the social media company is in disorder¹⁶.

It was the year Latin America moved to the political left, a ceasefire finally came in Ethiopia's civil war, and North Korea launched more missiles. It was also the year Britain lost a queen, gained a king, and saw three Prime Ministers.

Words in This Story

assault — n. a military attack

emissions — n. the act of producing or sending out something

glacier — n. a very large area of ice that moves slowly down a slope or valley or over a wide area of land

exchange — n. a place where things or services are traded

1 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

2 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

3 invaders   

入侵者，侵略者，侵入物( invader的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They prepared to repel the invaders. 他们准备赶走侵略军。
• The family has traced its ancestry to the Norman invaders. 这个家族将自己的世系追溯到诺曼征服者。

4 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

5 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

6 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

8 emissions   

排放物( emission的名词复数 )； 散发物（尤指气体）

参考例句：

• Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
• Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。

9 glacier   

n.冰川，冰河

参考例句：

• The glacier calved a large iceberg.冰河崩解而形成一个大冰山。
• The upper surface of glacier is riven by crevasses.冰川的上表面已裂成冰隙。

10 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

11 collapses   

折叠( collapse的第三人称单数 )； 倒塌； 崩溃； （尤指工作劳累后）坐下

参考例句：

• This bridge table collapses. 这张桥牌桌子能折叠。
• Once Russia collapses, the last chance to stop Hitler will be gone. 一旦俄国垮台，抑止希特勒的最后机会就没有了。

12 reminders   

n.令人回忆起…的东西( reminder的名词复数 )；提醒…的东西；（告知该做某事的）通知单；提示信

参考例句：

• The film evokes chilling reminders of the war. 这部电影使人们回忆起战争的可怕场景。
• The strike has delayed the mailing of tax reminders. 罢工耽搁了催税单的投寄。

13 improper   

adj.不适当的，不合适的，不正确的，不合礼仪的

参考例句：

• Short trousers are improper at a dance.舞会上穿短裤不成体统。
• Laughing and joking are improper at a funeral.葬礼时大笑和开玩笑是不合适的。

14 musk   

n.麝香, 能发出麝香的各种各样的植物，香猫

参考例句：

• Musk is used for perfume and stimulant.麝香可以用作香料和兴奋剂。
• She scented her clothes with musk.她用麝香使衣服充满了香味。

15 workforce   

n.劳动大军，劳动力

参考例句：

• A large part of the workforce is employed in agriculture.劳动人口中一大部分受雇于农业。
• A quarter of the local workforce is unemployed.本地劳动力中有四分之一失业。

16 disorder   

n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调

参考例句：

• When returning back,he discovered the room to be in disorder.回家后，他发现屋子里乱七八糟。
• It contained a vast number of letters in great disorder.里面七零八落地装着许多信件。