The United States of America

The United States of America is the 4^th largest country in the world after Russia, Canada and China. It lies in the central part of the North American Continent between the two oceans: the Atlantic Ocean in the East and the Pacific Ocean in the West.

Canada in the North and Mexico in the South are the only countries that have borders with the USA. The total area of the USA is about 9 million square kilometres. The current U.S.A. population is over 310 million people (310,300,000 was in 2010), so the United States has the world's third largest population (after China and India).

As the world's population is approximately 6.8 billion, the current United States population represents 4.5% of the world's population. So, about one in every twenty people on the planet is a resident of the United States of America.

The country is washed by 3 oceans: The Arctic, the Atlantic and the Pacific. The country has many lakes, including the Great Lakes and many rivers, the longest of which are the Mississippi, the Missouri, the Columbia and others. The highest mountains are the Rocky Mountains, the Appalachian, the Cordillera and the Sierra Nevada. The highest peak, Mount McKinley, is in Alaska.

The climate conditions are rather various. The country is rich in natural and mineral resources: oil, gas, iron ore, coal and various metals.

The USA is a highly developed industrial and agricultural country. The main industrial branches are aircraft, rocket, automobile, electronics, radio engineering and others. Nowadays the USA is one of the leading powers of the world due to its economic, political and military influence.

The United States of America is a federal state and a parliamentary republic, headed by the President. According to the US Constitution the powers of the Government are divided into 3 branches: legislative (the Congress), executive (the President), and judicial (the Supreme Court). The Congress has two houses - the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Supreme Court is the highest court in the country.

There are two main political parties in the United States: the Democratic Party (their symbol is a donkey), and the Republican Party (their symbol is an elephant). The president is elected for a 4-year term and not more than two times.

СЛОВАРЬ

total area общая площадь

borders границы

Appalachian Аппалачи

Great Lakes Великие озера

Rocky Mountains Скалистые горы

Sierra Nevada Сьерра-Невада

Cordillera Кордильеры

highly developed высокоразвитый

climate conditions климатические условия

branch ['brAnC] ветвь, отрасль (промышленности)

aircraft ['FqkrRft] авиация

automobile ['O:tqmqbi:l]

electronics [Ilek'trOnIks] электроника

radio engineering радиотехника

influence влияние

leading ведущий

due to благодаря

military военный

to head возглавлять

parliamentary republic парламентская республика

government ['gAvqnmqnt] правительство

power власть

legislative ['leGIslqtIv]

judicial [Gu'dISl] законодательная

executive [Ig'zekjutiv] исполнительная

donkey ['dONkI] осел

elephant ['elIfqnt] слон

symbol символ

to elect избирать

term ['tq:m] срок

Senate ['senIt] Сенат

House of Representatives палата представителей

Supreme Court Верховный суд

Задание 7.1 Напишите рассказ о США используя следующие вопросы.

1. What is the geographical position of United States?

2. What countries have borders with the United States?

3. What are the highest mountainsin US?

4. What are the biggest riversin US?

5. What are the main industrial branches of US economy?

6. What are the biggest cities of the Unites States?

7. What is the political system of United States?

8. What are the three branches of US' government?

Text 2

Washington

The capital of the United States of America is Washington. It was named after the first President of the United States – George Washington. It is situated on the Potomac River in the District of Columbia. The district is a piece of land, which does not belong to any one state but to all the states. The district is named in honour of Christopher Columbus, the discoverer of America.

Washington was founded in 1791 as the capital. It’s quite a new city. The population of the city is nearly one million people. Washington is not a very large city, but it is very important as the capital of the USA.

Photo: the Capitol

Washington has many historical places. The largest and tallest is the Capitol, where the Congress meets. It is a very beautiful building with white marble columns. There is a law in Washington against building structures higher than the Capitol. Not far from the Capitol there is the Library of Congress. It holds five million books.

Photo: Monument to George Washington

Photo: the White House

The White House, the residence of the president is the oldest public structure in the capital and one of the most beautiful. It was built in 1799. It is a two storey white building. Not far from the Capitol is the Washington monument, which looks like a very big pencil. It is 160 metres high and it is empty inside. A special lift brings visitors to the top in 70 seconds, from where they can enjoy the view of the city.

The Jefferson Memorial was built in memory of the third President of the USA Thomas Jefferson, who was also the author of the Declaration of Independence. The Memorial is surrounded by cherry trees.

The Lincoln Memorial is devoted to the memory of the sixteenth President of the USA, the author of the Emancipation Proclamation, which gave freedom to Negro slaves in America.

СЛОВАРЬ

District of Columbia округ Колумбия

named after названный в честь

indication указание

piece of land участок земли

nearly ['nIqlI] около, приблизительно

marble [mRbl] мраморный

empty ['emptI] пустой, полый

two storey двухэтажный

Declaration of Independence Декларация независимости

Задание 7.2 Напишите рассказ о Вашингтоне используя следующие вопросы.

1. When was Washington D.C. founded?

2. Where is Washington situated?

3. What state does District of Columbia belong to?

4. What are the most important places of interest in Washington?

5. What is the nickname of the Washington memorial?

6. What is the design of Lincoln memorial?

7. What is the population of Washington?

8. Are there any specific laws about the height of the buildings in Washington, D.C.?

Text 3

New York

New York is one of the largest cities in the world. It was founded three hundred years ago in the mouth of the Hudson River.

The centre of New York is Manhattan Island. In 1626 it was bought from the Indians for twenty-four dollars. Today Manhattan is the centre of business and commercial life of the country. There are many skyscrapers, banks and offices of American businessmen in Manhattan. Broadway begins here; the Stock Exchange is located here. Not many people live in Manhattan, although the majority work here. Numerous bridges link Manhattan Island with the other parts of New York.

People from almost all parts of the world live New York. It is even called "Modern Babylon". A lot of immigrants came to the USA from different countries at the beginning of the 20-th century. They entered the USA through New York - the Gateway of America.

New York is one of the leading manufacturing cities in the world. The most important branches of industry are those producing paper products, vehicles, glass, chemicals, and machinery. The city traffic is very busy.

СЛОВАРЬ

mouth устье

Stock Exchange Нью-йоркская фондовая биржа

majority [mq'GOrItI] большинство

numerous ['njumqrqs] многочисленный

to link соединять

to inhabit [In'hxbIt] проживать, населять

Babylon Вавилон

vehicle ['vIIkl] средства передвижения (автомобили и т.п.)

opposite напротив, противоположный

gateway ворота

skyscrapers небоскребы

branches of industry отрасли промышленности

city traffic движение городского транспорта

Задание 7.3 Напишите рассказ о Нью-Йорке используя следующие вопросы.

1. When was New York founded?

2. What was the price of the Manhattan Island in 1626?

3. What is Manhattan today?

4. Do many people live in Manhattan?

5. What is Broadway famous for?

6. Why is New York called "Modern Babylon"?

7. What are the most important branches of industry in New York?

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