Mark the statements T (true) or F (false) according to the information in the text. Find the part of the text that gives the correct information.

1. From the nation's earliest days, farming has held a vital place in the American economy and culture.

2. Sometimes farmer’s failure has created his biggest problem: the agricultural sector has suffered periodic bouts of product scarcity (underproduction) that have increased prices.

3. Lately such assistance has increased, reflecting government's desire to support agricultural sector.

4. The United States has some of the most tillable soil in the world.

5. Poor capital investments and decreasing use of highly trained labour also have contributed to the failure of American agriculture.

6. Fertilizers and pesticides are commonly used in crop production.

7. Scientists regularly introduce new food products and new methods for raising them, such as artificial ponds to raise fish.

8. Thefarm economy of the USA remains much the same during its development.

ACTIVITY 3

a) Read the following text and write short headings for each paragraph.

MEDIA

1._______________________________________

The US has the most highly-developed mass media in the world. Its dramas, comedies, soap operas, animations, music videos and films have a global audience and are part of the staple fare of broadcasters worldwide.

2,_______________________________________

TV is America's most popular medium. ABC, CBS and NBC ruled the roost for decades until the mass take-up of cable and satellite and the arrival of the Fox network. Fox News is the dominant US cable news network. Mainstream TV is slick, fast-moving and awash with advertising. Ratings and advertising revenues spell life or death for individual shows. The switchover to digital took place in June 2009.

3._______________________________________

There are around 10,000 commercial radio stations. In cities, there are services to satisfy almost every taste. News, sports and talk stations predominate on medium wave (AM), with music on FM. Subscription satellite radio offers hundreds of channels and has attracted millions of customers.

Freedom of expression is guaranteed by the constitution, and some broadcast outlets* give airtime to extreme hues of political - often right-wing - and religious thinking.

4.____________________________________

Public broadcasting is partly government-funded, but also supported by private grants. Universities and colleges operate outlets. National Public Radio - with more than 600 member stations - offers a more highbrow** mix of news, debate and music without advertising. Public TV services operated by PBS*** have a mission to provide "quality" and educational programming.

The government sponsors TV and radio stations aimed at audiences outside the US. Lately, services for audiences in the former Soviet bloc have been cut, while stations targeting audiences in the Middle East and Asia have been launched.

5.____________________________________

There are more than 1,500 daily newspapers in the US, most of them with a local or regional readership. Hard-copy circulations are in decline as readers turn to the web.

6.____________________________________

The US is the home of the internet. Some 270 million Americans are online (InternetWorldStats.com, March 2011), comprising more than 78 per cent of the population. Seventy-four per cent of Americans use social networks and blogs, and 62 per cent are active on Facebook. (Nielsen, 2010). (344)

*Outlet – місцева радіостанція, телестудія

**Highbrow - високоінтелектуальний

***Public Broadcasting Service - американска некомерційна громадська служба телевізійного мовлення.

b) Find words in the text which mean the following:

1. An electronic broadcast system in which special providers transmit a continuous program of video content to the public orsubscribers by way of antenna, cable, or satellite dish, often on multiple channels.

2. The ​system or ​work of ​broadcasting ​sound ​programs for the ​public to ​listen to.

3. A publication, usually issued daily or weekly, containing current news, editorials, feature articles, and usually advertising.

4. A publicly accessible system of networks that connects computers around the world.

5. A group or assembly of listeners, viewers, or spectators.

6. The communications media considered as a whole, especially the agencies that collect, publish, transmit, or broadcast news and other information to the public.

7. The activity of attracting public attention to a product or business, as by paid announcements in the print, broadcast, or electronic media.

8. Belonging to or characteristic of a principal, dominant, or widely accepted group, movement, style, etc.

9. The number of households with their radio/TV sets tuned to a particular station/channel or program for a specified length of time divided by the total number of households that have radio/TV.

10. The number of copies of each issue of a newspaper, magazine, etc. distributed.

ACTIVITY 4

a) Read the following text and write short headings for each paragraph.

Energy Sources

The USA is also one of the world's largest consumers of energy. In the U.S., the largest sources of energy are petroleum, natural gas and coal as well as renewable sources.

1. ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­ _________________________________

Petroleum includes crude oil, diesel fuel, propane, jet fuel and other products that are based on oil. It is one of the U.S.'s most desired energy sources as the entire transportation sector is based on it. Currently 40% of the energy used in the U.S. is based on oil. The U.S. also imports most of its petroleum and crude oil products from places like the Middle East (as does the rest of the world) because its demand far exceeds its supply.

2. _________________________________

Natural gas is a fuel that is produced in the U.S. and Canada and is a major source of energy for today and the future as it is cleaner burning than petroleum products. Currently, car companies are developing alternative fuel vehicles powered by natural gas, but infrastructure and the need for other fuel sources to create hydrogen fuel for the cars remains as the barrier to widespread use.

3. _________________________________

Coal is the main energy source that is produced in the U.S. as one quarter of the world's reserves of coal are found within the country's borders. Coal is also the main source of energy for the country's electricity generation and one half of American homes are powered by coal because of its abundant supply and low cost. Coal however, is not a favorable energy source for many locations because it is the dirtiest burning of the fossil fuels and it is unhealthy and dangerous for those mining it

4. _________________________________

Nuclear energy is one of the most controversial energy sources in the U.S. but it is being heavily promoted by the Department of Energy as one of the better alternatives to fossil fuel based energy sources as it is clean and can power large areas. There are many problems with nuclear energy though that make it unpopular in many areas. These include storage of radioactive nuclear waste, uranium supplies, accidents and security of the nuclear power generators or nuclear proliferation. Many U.S. states however, do have active nuclear power generators.

5. _________________________________

In addition to fossil fuels and nuclear power, the U.S. also has many renewable power resources and is looking to alternative energy sources for the future. Renewables include sources like solar, wind, hydroelectric, geothermal, and biomass. Each of these represents a different proportion of the energy mix in the U.S. based on location (because each does not work well everywhere) and each has positive and negative effects when used. For example, solar is being widely used in the U.S. southwest, while the California's Central Valley has nearby windfarms.

(All information was obtained from the U.S. Department of Energy). (467)

b) Summarize the text in 50 words.

ACTIVITY 5

a) Scan the article for the answers to the following questions.

1. What is theworld's largest economy?

2. What was the total output of the U.S. economy in 2014 in comparison with other countries?

3. Which country has the Highest Standards of Living in the world?

4. What measures a country's standard of living?

5. What country is called the global economic engine?

6. How many advantages does the USA have? What are they?

7. How did natural resources boost the U.S. Economy?