THE USA

The United States of America is the fourth largest country in the world (after Russia, Canada and China). It occupies the southern part of North America and stretches from the Pacific to the Atlantic Ocean. It also includes Alaska in the north and Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean. The total area of the country is about 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-boarder with Russia. The USA is made up of 50 states and the District of Columbia, a special federal area where the capital of the country, Washington, is situated. The population of the country is more than 270 million. If we look at the map of the USA, we can see lowlands and mountains. The highest mountains are the Rocky Mountains, the Cordillera and the Sierra Nevada. The highest peak is Mount McKinley which is located in Alaska. America's largest rivers are the Mississippi, the Missouri, the Rio Grande and the Columbia. The Great Lakes on the border with Canada are the largest and deepest in the USA. The climate of the country varies greatly. The coldest regions are in the north. The climate of Alaska is arctic. The climate of the central part is continental. The south has a subtropical climate. Hot winds blowing from the Gulf of Mexico often bring typhoons. The climate along the Pacific coast is much warmer than that of the Atlantic coast. The USA is a highly developed industrial country. It's the world's leading producer of copper and oil and the world's second producer of iron ore and coal. Among the most important manufacturing industries are aircraft, cars, textiles, radio and television sets, armaments, furniture and paper. Though mainly European and African in origin, Americans are made up from nearly all races and nations, including Chinese and native Americans. The largest cities are: New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit, San-Francisco, Washington and others. The United States is a federal union of 50 states, each of which has its own government. The seat of the central (federal) government is Washington, DC. According to the US Constitution the powers of the government are divided into 3 branches: the executive, headed by the President, the legislative, exercised by the Congress, and the judicial. The Congress consists of the Senate and the House of Representatives. There are two main political parties in the USA: the Republican and the Democratic, though there's hardly any difference between their political lines. Names the United [ju:'naitid] States of America Russia [tAja] Canada ['kaenade] China ['tjaina] North America the Pacific Ocean [pa,sifik 'aujn] the Atlantic Ocean [a,tlaentik 'aufn] Alaska [a'laeska] Hawaii [ha'wai-i] Mexico ['meksikau] District of Columbia [.distrikt av ka'lAmbia] Washington ['wofirjtan] the Rocky Mountains the Cordillera [,ko:di'jeera]

the Sierra Nevada [si,era nivaeda] - Mount McKinley [,maunt ma'kinli] - the Mississippi [,misi'sipi] the Missouri [mi'zuari] the Rio Grande [,\:()'] - the Columbia [ka'lAmbia] the Great Lakes (5 : , , , ) the Gulf of Mexico [, av 'meksikau] Florida ['florida] Los Angeles [bs 'aend3ali:z] - Chicago [fitegau] Philadelphia [,fila'delfia] Detroit [di'troit] San-Francisco [.saenfran'siskau] - the Congress ['koggres] the Senate ['senit] the House of Representatives [,repri'zentativz | the Republican [ri'pAblikan] and the Democratic Ldema'kraetik] parties Vocabulary to occupy ['okjupai] southern ['] to stretch , to include [in'klu:d] total area [ .tautl 'earia] to border [ bo:da] on sea-border federal ['federal] lowlands [laulandz] , , to be located [lau'keitid] , to vary [veari] , arctic ['a:ktik] continental [,kont'rnentl] subtropical [,sAb'tropikl] typhoon [tai'ftrn] coast ['kaust] highly developed [divelapt] copper oil ['oil] iron ore ['aian ,o:] coal ['kaul] manufacturing [,msenju'fsektjarir)] aircraft ['eakra:ft] , textile ['tekstail] armament ['a:mamant] origin ['orid3in]

Chinese [tfai'nhz] ; according [a'kotdirj] to , , powers f'pauaz] branch [bra:ntj] the executive [ig'zekjutiv] the legislative [,led3is'leitiv] the judicial [d3u:'dijal] Questions 1. Where is the USA situated? 2. What's the total area of the country? 3. What countries does the USA border on? 4. How many states does the USA consist of? 5. What is the capital of the country? 6. Can you name any other cities in the USA? 7. What is the population of the United States? 8. What mountains in the USA do you know? 9. What are the largest rivers? 10. What can you say about the climate of the country? 11. What does the USA produce? 12. According to the US Constitution the powers of the government are divided into 3 branches. What are they? 13. How many chambers does the Congress of the USA consist? 14. What are the main political parties in the USA? 15. Who is the US President now?