USA
The United States of America is situated in the southern part of North America. It occupies a favourable geographical position. The USA is washed by the Atlantic Ocean in the East and by the Pacific Ocean in the West. It covers the area of nine and a half million square kilometres. The USA borders on Canada in the North and on Mexico in the South. It also has a sea border with the Russian Federation.
The USA has a continental climate. The most important mountain ranges are the Rocky Mountains in the west and the Appalachian Mountains in the east. The biggest river in the United States is the Mississippi. The Great Lakes on the border with Canada are the largest and the deepest in the USA. The USA is a highly developed country. Heavy industry includes mining, metallurgical, machine-building and chemical industries. Light industry includes textile, leather and footwear industries. The country is rich in many mineral resources, first of all, in oil, natural gas, coal, iron ore, and gold. It helps to develop all branches of industry.
The country consists of fifty states and the District of Columbia.
The population is more than 235 million. Alaska is the largest state by its territory.
The USA became an independent country after the War of Independence against Great Britain, when thirteen states, former British colonies, formed a new sovereign, federative country. Later the US began its expansion to the West and conquered vast new territories which had belonged to Spain, Mexico and the tribes of American Indians.
The colours of the US National flag are red, white and blue. There are 13 stripes symbolizing the original 13 states and 50 stars representing the 50 states. There are many big cities in the USA, such as New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, Dallas, Boston, San Francisco, etc.
Washington D. C. is the capital of the United States of America. It is situated on the Potomac River in the District of Columbia. The capital was named in honour of George Washington, the first US president. The District of Columbia was named after Christopher Columbus, the discoverer of America. Washington D. C. is the seat of government of the nation. It is one of the most beautiful and unusual cities in the United States. It has little industry, and only one million people. There are no skyscrapers, because they would hide the city's many monuments from view. One can easily find a park, a square or an open area in Washington D. C. The most impressive and the best-known monuments are the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument. The White House, where the US President lives and works, the Capitol, the home of the US Congress and the Supreme Court are all in Washington D. C. Pentagon is also situated in Washington D. C.
New York, the largest industrial, commercial and banking centre of the US is not a very old city. Its territory is 310 square miles. New York City is made up of five boroughs - Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Richmond and the Bronx, all of them are islands with the exception of the Bronx which is a part of the continent. The Statue of Liberty stands on a small island in New York Harbour.
The population of New York is over 9 million people.
New York is famous for its skyscrapers - one of the tallest in the world Empire State Building which is 102 stores high, Rockefeller Centre of 15 skyscrapers, and many others. New York is the largest seaport of the USA.
Vocabulary
1. to occupy - занимать
2. to cover – покрывать, охватывать
3. mountain ranges – горные хребты
5. to border on - граничит с
6. mineral resources – полезные ископаемые
7. to consist of – состоять из
8. to include – включать
9. heavy industry - тяжелая промышленность
10. sovereign federative country - суверенная федеративная страна
11. former – бывший
12. original - первоначальный
13. branch – ветвь, отрасль
14. mining - угледобывающая промышленность
16. machine-building - машиностроение
17. leather and footwear industries - кожевенно-обувная промышленность
18. monument – памятник
19.skyscrapers - небоскребы
20. to divide into - делить на
21. the seat of the government - место заседания правительства
the District of Columbia - округ Колумбия
the Capitol - Капитолий
the Congress - Конгресс
the Supreme Court - Верховный Суд
Pentagon – пентагон (штаб-квартира вооруженных сил США)
the Statue of Liberty - статуя Свободы
New York Harbour - Нью-йоркская гавань
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