USA

  "The USA is the fourth largest country in the world after Russia, Canada and China.New-York is the largest city in the USA and one of the largest cities in the world. Two good ways to get the larger picture of New York are to circle it in a bout and to hover over it in helicopter..."

    

    The USA is the fourth largest country in the world after Russia, Canada and China. It occupies the Southern part of the North America and stretches from the Pacific to the Atlantic Ocean. It also includes Alaska in the north and Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean. In 1959 Alaska became 49th state of the USA. Alaska is America’s largest state, but very few people live there. The capital of Alaska is Juneau. After fishing Alaska’s chief industry is lumber and paper production. There are also deposits of coal, copper, gold and other important minerals. The largest island, Hawaii lies at the South-Eastern End of the chain and is almost twice at large as all other islands combined.
    The total area of the USA is about 9 and a half million square kilometers. The USA borders on Canada in the North and on Mexico in the South. It also has a sea-border 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 about 250 million. 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. It was named after the first US president – George Washington. It is one of the most beautiful and unusual cities in the US. There are some important museums in Washington, where you can see all kinds of things: famous paintings and sculptures, the original of the Declaration of Independence and etc. People from all parts of the USA come to see their capital.
    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 the deepest in the USA. The existence of the Great Salt Lakes was known to early travelers. The climate of the USA varies greatly. The coldest regions are in the North. The climate of the central part is continental. The South has a subtropical climate.
The USA is a highly developed industrial country. It is 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 air-crafts, cars, textiles, radio and TV sets and etc.
    The largest cities are New-York, Los-Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, Boston, San-Francisco and Washington. New-York is the largest city in the USA and one of the largest cities in the world. It is situated in the natural harbor of the mouth of the Hudson river. Manhattan is the smallest island in New-York. The US has its head-quarters there. New-York is the city of sky-scrapers, those incredible high buildings which Americans invented. The city is the national leader in business, finance, manufacturing, advertising, fashion and the arts.
The US is a federal union of 50 states each of which has its own government. The seat of the central 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 Republicans and the Democratic.
    American society seems to be much more informal than the British and in some way is characterized by less of social distinction. Students don’t stand up when the teacher enters the room. They use names when calling each other, joke and are much freer in their speech which is more slangy than the conversational British English. As a description of character democracy is generally used to signify that a person of high social or economic status in such a way that his or her inferiors are not reminded of their inferiority. Certain other forms of politeness are observed on social occasions: women may wear hats in church. Men who do wear hats ordinarily remove them in elevators, churches, restaurants, private homes, business offices – in fact in most public situations when they wish to show respect.

    The United States of America is a federal republic consisting of 50 states. Each of which has its own goverment ("state goverment"). In some ways the United States is like 50 small countries. Each state has its own governor, its own police and its own laws. The present constitution was proclaimed in 1787 in Philadelphia, the President is the head of the whole country and the goverment and "commandering chief" of the armed forces. He makes the most important decisions and chooses the ministers, the members of his cabinet. But the President cannot do just what he wants. The Congress must agree first. Americans choose a new president every four years. The residence of the President is the White House in Washington, the Capital city. The goverment of the whole country (the Federal goverment) works from Washington, this is where the Congress is based. The Capitol is the seat of the US Congress. Congress is the American parliament which consists of 2 chambers. The Senate and the House of Representatives. The first Congress met in 1789 in New York city. The membership then consisted of 22 senators and 59 representatives. Today the House of Representatives has 435 members. Elections to the house take place every 2 years. There are 100 senators (2 from each state), they are elected to serve for a period of six years, but every two years elections to the senate took place when one/third of its members must be changed or re-elected. Election day is always in the month of November, on the first Tuesday, after the first Monday. Americans who aren't yet 25 years old have no right to be elected to the House of Representatives. Whose, who are under 30 can't be elected in the Senate. The main political parties in the United States of America are the Democratic Party and the Republlican Party.

    The city of Washington, the capital of the United States of America is located in the District of Columbia (DC for short) Many people consider Washington DC to be one of the most beatiful cities in the world. It is filled with many parks, wide streets and impressive buildings. In the centre of the city, in Capitol Park, visitors' eyes focus on the Capitol, where Congress convence to inect laws. Many visitors come to Washington DC to see the White House. It is the greatest attraction for many of them. The White House, the official residence of the President, is situated at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. The largest room in this building of over the hundreds room is the East Room, scene of many state receptions, balls and musicals. Other famous rooms are: the Green Room, the Blue Room, the Red Room, which are used for afternoon teas and for receptions held before state dinners. The Blue Room, the most formal of these "colors" room is an oval-shaped room connecting the Green and the Red Rooms. On the second floor, the floor with the family quarters and quests rooms, is the Lincoln Room, which one served as an office for president Lincoln but today serves as an honor guest room. In this room Lincoln signed the emansipation proclamation of 1863. Other landmarks in Washington DC include memorials to three Presidents: The Washington Memorial, The Lincoln Memorial and The Jefferson Memorial; The Library of Congress, The National Gallary of Art, The John F. Kennedy center for the Perfoming Arts. The Capitol is in the very center of Washington. It is located on the Capitol Hill, the highest point in the city. The Capitol is the highest building in Washington. There is a law in Washington not to build buildings higher than the Capitol. The conrer stone of the Capitol was laid by George Washington on Sep 18th, 1793. The Capitol is the seat of the goverment of the United States of America.