Text 6 the United States of America

 

1. Read the text and point out new and important information to you and be ready to speak on the symbol of American way of life.

 

The USA is the most powerful and highly developed country of the world. It is situated in the central part of the North American continent. Its western coast is washed by the Pacific Ocean and its eastern coast is washed by the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico.

The USA is separated from Canada in the north by the 49th parallel and the Great Lakes, and from Mexico in the south by a line following the Rio Grande River and continuing across the highlands to the Pacific Ocean.

The total area of the USA is over 9 million square kilometres. The continental part of the USA consists of the highland regions and two lowland regions. The highland regions are the Appalachia mountains in the east and the Cordillera in the west.

Between the Cordillera and the Appalachian Montains are the central lowlands which are called the prairie, and eastern lowlands called the Mississippi valley.

The principal rivers of the USA are the Mississippi, the longest river in the world (7,330 km) and the Hudson river. The climate of the USA differs greatly from one part of the country to another. The coldest climate is in the northern part, where there is heavy snow in winter and the temperature may go down to 40 degrees below zero. The south has a subtropical climate, with temperature as high as 49 degrees in summer.

The population of the United States of America is about 250 million people, who are called Americans. Most of the people live in towns and the population of the countryside is becoming smaller and smaller. For many decades the USA has been the place where lots of people sought refuge from persecution for political or religious beliefs. That's why in America there are representatives of practically all racial and national groups.

There are about 25 million Negroes in the country and a little over half a million Indians.

The capital of the USA is Washington. It is situated in the District of Columbia. Washington is a beautiful administrative city with practically no industry.

The USA is a highly developed industrial state. Its agriculture is also highly mechanized. There are coal-mines in the Cordillera Mountains, in the Kansas City region. Iron is mined near the Great Lakes. The USA has rich oil - fields in California, Texas and some other regions. It occupies one of the first places among the countries of the world for production of coal, iron and oil.

The USA has a highly developed motor-car industry. It would be no exaggeration to say that cars have become the symbol of American way of life. The vehicles produced at such companies as Ford and the General Motors are known world-wide. The motor-car industry is concentrated in and around Detroit. Ship-building is developed along the Atlantic coast and in San Francisco. The t extile industry is to be found in the north-east and in the south of the country.

The USA has a highly developed railway system. It also has the best network of roads in the world. They are called highways.

After 350 years of development the United States of America still holds the leading position in the western world.

The USA is a federal country of 50 states and the District of Columbia. The political life of the country has always been dominated by the two major parties: the Democratic party and the Republican party. At an election time they contest presidency and the majority of seats in the Congress. The Congress is the highest legislative body of the country. It consists of two chambers — the House of Representatives and the Senate.

The President, elected by the whole nation for four years, is head of the state and the Government.

 

2. Pay attention to the marked words and word combinations. Give your versions of translation

 

3. Match the English words to Russian ones:

chamber богатые месторождения нефти

to seek (sought, sought) refuge символ

network of roads прерии

lowland regions мощный

powerful палата

prairie низменность

rich oil fields возвышенность

symbol преследование

persecution искать убежище

the highest legislative body сеть дорог

textile высший законода тельный орган

highland regions текстильная промышленность

4. Find the answers to the following questions in the text:

 

1) What kind of state is the USA?

2) Where is it situated?

3) What is the USA washed by in the east and in the west?

4) What is the USA separated from Canada by?

5) What is the total area of the country?

6) What are the principal rivers of the USA?

7) What is the population of the country?

8) Where do most people live?

9) What did many people seek in the USA?

10) Why are there representatives of all racial and national groups in America?

11) Where is the capital of the country situated?

12) Is the agriculture in America highly mechanized?

13) What raw materials is America rich in?

14) What has become the symbol of American way of life?

15) Where is the motor-car industry situated?

16) Where is the textile industry to be found?

17) Has the USA a highly developed railway system?

18) How many states are there in the USA?

19) By what party has the political life in America been dominated?

20) What do the two parties contest at an election time?

21) What is the highest legislative body of the country?

 

Complete the sentences.

1) The USA is…

2) It is washed by…

3) The total area of the USA is…

4) The continental part of the USA consists of…

5) The principal rivers of the USA are…

6) Most of the people live in…

7) The capital of the USA is…

8) The USA is a highly…

6. Give suitable English equivalents to the following sentences:

1) США — самая мощная и высокоразвитая страна в мире. Она расположена в центральной части Северной Америки.

2) Ее западное побережье омывается Тихим океаном, а восточное — Атлантическим океаном и Мексиканским заливом.

3) Между Кордильерами и Аппалачами находится Центральная низменность, которая называется прериями, и восточная низменность, называемая долиной Миссисипи.

4) Население Соединенных Штатов Америки составляет около 250 млн человек, они называются американцами. Большинство людей живет в городах, а население в сельской местности уменьшается.

5) В течение многих десятилетий США являются страной, куда приезжают люди, которые ищут убежище от преследований за политические и религиозные убеждения. Поэтому в Америке имеются представители практически всех рас и национальных групп.

6) Вашингтон расположен в округе Колумбия. Вашингтон — красивый административный город, практически без промышленности.

7) США — высокоразвитая индустриальная страна. Ее сельское хозяйство также высокомеханизированно.

8) Около Великих озер добывается железная руда. В США имеются богатые месторождения нефти на территории Калифорнии, в Техасе и других регионах.

9) Штаты занимают одно из первых мест среди стран мира по добыче угля, железной руды, нефти.

10) В США высокоразвитая автомобильная промышленность. Не будет преувеличением сказать, что автомобили стали символом американского образа жизни.

11) Машины, производимые такими компаниями, как "Форд" и "Дженерал Моторс", известны во всем мире. Автомобильная промышленность сосредоточена в Детройте и вокруг него.

12) В США высокоразвитая система железных дорог. Здесь также находится лучшая в мире сеть автомобильных дорог. Их называют автострадами.

7. Find some additional facts about The United States of America and prepare a report/presentation on the following points:

 

Political Life

Major Political Parties

Geographical Position.

Climate.

Natural Resources

Industry and Agriculture