The United States of America

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. In the north it borders on Canada and in the south the USA borders on Mexico. The total area of the USA is over 9 million square kilometers.

The continental part of the country consists of the highland regions and two lowlands regions. The highland regions are the Appalachian Mountains in the east and the Cordillera in the west.

Between the Cordillera and the Appalachian Mountains are the central lowlands which are called the prairie, and eastern lowlands called the Mississippi valley. The chief rivers of the USA are the Mississippi, the longest river in the world ( 7330 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 USA 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 and religious beliefs. That’s why in America there are representatives of practically all racial and national groups.

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. 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 motorcar industry. The 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 motorcar industry is concentrated in and around Detroit. Ship-building is developed along the Atlantic coast and in San Francisco. The USA has a highly developed railway system. It also has the best network of roads in the world. They are called highways.

The USA is a federal country of 50 states and the District of Columbia. The Government is divided into three branches: legislative ( Congress ), executive ( the President and his Administration ) and judicial ( the Supreme Court ). 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 is the head of the state and the government. He is elected by the whole nation for four years. The flag of the USA is called “Stars and Stripes”. The 50 stars – white on a blue field – represent the 50 states, 13 stripes represent 13 original English colonies, which in 1776 became independent of England.

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