Industry. About 98% of all manufacturing firms of Australia are small businesses. The main industries are chemicals, aerospace, electrical and electronics, information technology, engineering, food processing, motor vehicles, iron and steel, paper, woodchips and forestry.
Due to a sizeable resource base, Australia has developed an efficient and internationally competitive agricultural industry. Agricultural ouput contributes about 2.5% to GDP (Gross Domestic Product). Australia leads the world in wool production and is a significant supplier of cereals, dairy produce, meat, sugar and fruit.
Australian wines are receiving increasing attention due to their high quality and distinctive flavour. Exports have grown rapidly in recent years.
Fisheries products are exported mainly to East Asia and the USA.
The services industry, the largest segment of the economy is the fastest growing industry. It covers construction, trade, property, finance, communications, education, tourism, business services and it accounts for 70% of GDP. Tourism is the largest and fastest growing sector of the services industry.
Resources and energy. Australia is a major producer and exporter of energy resources and is one of the world’s biggest producers of minerals and metals. More than 60 different minerals are mined such as bauxite, mineral sands, diamonds, black and brown coal as well as ores containing gold, silver, lead, zinc, iron, copper, nickel, tin, manganese and uranium. Although Australia imports heavy crude, it exports light crude oil and liquefied natural gas.
Australia is also an important producer of precious and semiprecious stones such as diamonds, sapphire, opal and pearls.
Most electricity is produced using coal fired power plants and the large coal deposits enable Australia to produce electricity at a relatively low cost.
Transport. Although Australia is a vast country it is easily explored by airplane, train and tourist bus. The need to overcome long distances contributed to the development of transport that has evolved rapidly and Australia has made advances in this field. About 810, 000 km of roads and 40,000 km rail networks span the continent.
Trains operate in all states except Tasmania and there are interstate 2 lines offering exciting journeys into the Outback or along the east coast, as well as commuter services in the most capital cities.
Australia has about 70 ports of commercial significance and it trades with about 200 countries around the world exporting almost 320 million tons of freight by sea annually.
The biggest cities of Australia are Canberra, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide. Canberra, as the capital of the country, is the seat of Parliament and other branches of goverment. Sydney is the largest city and port and it is the chief commercial and industrial centre not only of New South Wales, but of all Australia. Main rail lines and coastal shipping facilities connect Sydney with Brisbane, Melbourne and other harbour cities. Sydney’s manufacturing activities are particularly notable for their wide variety. There are slaughter-houses, canneries, wool-scouring works, flour-mills, sugar refineries, tanneries, dairy plants, breweries, textile and clothing mills, saw-mills, oil refineries, and automobile assembly plants and others. The Sydney area is famous for its sandy beaches around which several resort suburbs have grown, attracting tourists for swimming and surf-boarding.
Monday, March 5, 2007
Australia
Australia is entirely situated in the Southern hemisphere. “Australis” means ‘Southern” in Latin. Australia is the only country occupying a whole continent, the smallest one, lying on and extending north and south from the Tropic of Capricorn. With an area covering 7,682,300 square kilometers it is the sixth largest country in the world.The coastline consisting of tranquil bays, wonderful beaches with pounding surf,rocky outcrops and dramatic sheer cliffs is 36,735 km long. Austalia is bounded by the dark blue waters of the Pacific Ocean to the east, the Arafura Sea to the north, lapped by the turquoise waves of the Indian Ocean to the west, and the mighty Southern Ocean to the south.Australia occupies one of the oldest landmass and the flattest of all continents, the highest point, Mount Kosciuszko being 2,228 m in the Australian Alps. The fertile coastal strip hides a dry and inhospitable centre, the Outback with its colours of red, brown, yellow and orange interspersed by green colour of low scrub and white trunks of gum trees. This endless land is broken by stark beautiful mountains like the MacDonnel Ranges near Alice Springs, Flinders Ranges in South Australia and the mysterious rock formations of Ayers Rok/Uluru, Mount Olga/Kata Tjuta, and Mount Augustus.The northern part of Australia is not far from Equator, the middle part is crossed by the Southern tropics.Spending Christmas at the beach or skiing in August may seem strange but the fact is, Australia’s seasons are the opposite of the northern hemisphere – summer starts in December, autumn in March, winter in June and spring in September. Due to its size, geographical location and the lack of extensive high mountain ranges Australia has a wide range of climates but generally no extremes. The fact that Australia is the driest continent on eurth makes this land a great all-year destination. It’s fact thet in winter one can ski in the southern states one day and be diving at the Great Barrier Reef in Queensland the next.Australia’s climate is generally pleasant, without extremes. Broadly there are two climate zones: tropical in the north and temperature below the Tropic of Capricorn.Average summer temperature in January is +300 C in the northern part, and +20° C in the southern part.In winter (July) the average temperature is correspondingly +20° C in the northern part and +10° C in the southern part.There are not many rivers there. The largest river Murray and its tributary Darling both rise in the mountains on the wet East and flow into the Indian Ocean. There are no flows of the inner rivers into the ocean, they are temporary, named сreeks and become dry often. The Eastern part suffers from wet seasons, when rains pour without stopping and become real plague for the country.
An energy industry overview
In Canada, the abundance of petroleum, uranium, coal and hydroelectric power has driven this nation’s industrial development, and allowed Canadians to have one of the highest standards of living in the world.
Available and affordable energy is crucial in Canada, where homes and workplaces must be regulated agaisnt temperature extremes, and goods shipped long distances.
Energy production, distribution and exports account for 7.5% of Canada’s gross domestic product (GDP). The energy sector attracts $21.8 billion a year in new investment, more than one-sixth of the Canadian total. 90% of Canada’s energy exports go to the USA.
Canada is a pionner in developping nuclear energy for peaceful uses. The industry spans the nuclear fuel cycle, from uranium mining and electricity production to decommissioning, managing nuclear fuel waste, nuclear research and development, and applying nuclear technology in the medical field.
The petroleum industry plays a key role in Canada’s $40.5 billion sector. This represents 4.3% of Canada’s GDP and nearly 200,000 jobs.
An associated industry has grown around Canada’s extensive electricity-generating operations. More than 300 companies manufacture equipment for hydro-thermal and nuclear-generating stations. There is also a related services industry, including 35 consulting engeneering firms. The combined output of this sector, employing 35, 000 people, is $6.8 billion.
Available and affordable energy is crucial in Canada, where homes and workplaces must be regulated agaisnt temperature extremes, and goods shipped long distances.
Energy production, distribution and exports account for 7.5% of Canada’s gross domestic product (GDP). The energy sector attracts $21.8 billion a year in new investment, more than one-sixth of the Canadian total. 90% of Canada’s energy exports go to the USA.
Canada is a pionner in developping nuclear energy for peaceful uses. The industry spans the nuclear fuel cycle, from uranium mining and electricity production to decommissioning, managing nuclear fuel waste, nuclear research and development, and applying nuclear technology in the medical field.
The petroleum industry plays a key role in Canada’s $40.5 billion sector. This represents 4.3% of Canada’s GDP and nearly 200,000 jobs.
An associated industry has grown around Canada’s extensive electricity-generating operations. More than 300 companies manufacture equipment for hydro-thermal and nuclear-generating stations. There is also a related services industry, including 35 consulting engeneering firms. The combined output of this sector, employing 35, 000 people, is $6.8 billion.
American economy in figures
1.Today, service industries make up the most important sector of the economy, employing almost ¾ of the workforce.2. Industry employs approximately 23% of the labour force and agriculture, forestry and fishing about 3% of the workers.3. Forests cover a little less than 1/3 of the United States, or ≈ 298 million hectares. ≈ 198 million ha produce commercially valuable trees for making lumber, paper and other wood products.4.≈73% of the commercial forestland is privately owned by farmers, lumber companies, paper mills and other wood-using industries.5. Softwoods make up ¾ of the producition, and hardwood ≈ 1/5. 6. ¾ of all married couples own their own homes. The size of all dwelling units has increased in living space. The medium number of rooms occupied in each dwelling unit has increased from 4.9 rooms per unit in 1960 to 5.2 rooms today, despite the shrinking family size. About 3.6% of all Americans live in public housing.
Tables of equivalentsBritish-American units of measurement to metric systemLinear measure
1 mile (ml) =1,609 kilometres
1 yard (yd) =91.44 centimetres
1 foot (ft) =30.48 centimetres
1 inch (in.) = 2.54 centimetres
Сanada (Lady of the Snows )
Before reading this text answer the following questions, please: Would you like to go to Canada one day? What is the capital of Canada? What is associated with Canada?Сanada is an independent federative state consisting of 10 provinces and 2 territories, a member of the Commonwealth, headed by the Queen of Great Britain. Occupying the northen half of the North American continent, Canada has a landmass 0f 9,970,620 sq km, making it the second-largest country in the world after Russia. From east to west, Canada encompasses six time zones. To the south, Canada shares a boundary with the USA. To the North, the Arctic Islands come within 800 km of the North Pole. Canada’s neighbour across the Arctic Ocean is Russia.Because of the harsh northen climate, only 12% of the land is suitable for agriculture. Thus , most of the population of 30 million live within a few hundred kilometers of the southern border, where the climate is milder, in a long thin band stretching between the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans. If you fly over Manitoba or the nothern Ontario in summer, you will see more water than land: lakes, big and small, so many that they could not possibly be counted. It has been estimated that Canada has one-seventh of the world’s fresh water. In addition to the Great Lakes, which it shares with the USA, Canada has many large rivers and lakes. Canada is divided into 7 regions, each with a very different landscape and climate.
1.The Pacific Coast, indented by deep fjords and shielded from the Pacific storms by Vancouver Island, has the most moderate climate of Canada’s regions. Vancouver Island’s west coast recieves an exceptional amount of rain, giving it a temperate rain forest climate. The island’s west coast has the oldest and tallest trees in Canada: Western Red Cedars 1300 years old and Douglas firs 90 m high.
2.The Cordillera is a young land with rugge mountains and high plateaus. The Rocky Mountains, the Coastal Mountains and other ranges, running north to south, pose major engineering problems for the builders of the transcontinental railways amd highways.
3.The Prairies. To drive across the Prairies is to see endless fields of wheat ripening under a sky that seems to go on forever. The plains of Alberta, Saskatchevan and Manitoba are among the richest grain-producing regions in the world.
4.The Canadian Shield. A huge inland sea called Hudson bay extends into the heart of Canada, and wrapped around this bay is a rocky region called the Canadian Shield. The Shield is considered to be the nucleus of the North American continent. The region is a storehouse of minerals, including gold, silver, zinc, copper and uranium.
5.The Great Lakes – St.Lawrence Lowlands. Southern Quebec and Ontario, the industrial heartland of Canada, contain Canada’s 2 largest cities, Montreal and Toronto. In this small region, 50% of Canadians live and 70% of Canada’s manufactured goods are produced. The region also has prime agricultural land, for example, the Niagara Peninsula. The large expenses of lakes Erie and Ontario extend the number of frost free days, permitting the cultivation of grapes, peaches, pears and others. The Great Lakes and St.Lawrence region is sugar maple country.
6.The Atlantis Provinces – Appalachian Region. New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland are the smallest Canadian provinces, and were the first to be settled by Europeans, The Grand Banks have been called the “wheat fields” of Newfoundlands. This shallow continental shelf extends 400km of the east coast, where the mixing of ocean currents has created one of the richest fishing grounds in the world. The Atlantic provinces are an extension of the Appalachians. Much of the region has low, rugged hills and plateaus and a deeply indented coastline. Prince Edward Island has a gently rolling landscape with a rich, red soil. This fertile island is Canada’s smallest province, making up a mere 0,1% of Canada’s landmass.
7.The Arctic. North of tree-line is a land of harsh beauty. During the short summer, when the daylight is nearly continuous and a profusion of flowers blooms on the tundra, the temperature can reach 30 C. Yet the winters are long, bitterly cold and dark.
NotesLanguages. English and French are both official languages, but only 20% of the population speak only French, while 13% speak both French and English.Currency. Dollar.Government. Head of government: Prime Minister. Legislative body is Parliament consisting of a Senate and a House of Commons.Largest cities: Ottawa, Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary
Tables of equivalentsBritish-American units of measurement to metric systemLinear measure
1 mile (ml) =1,609 kilometres
1 yard (yd) =91.44 centimetres
1 foot (ft) =30.48 centimetres
1 inch (in.) = 2.54 centimetres
Сanada (Lady of the Snows )
Before reading this text answer the following questions, please: Would you like to go to Canada one day? What is the capital of Canada? What is associated with Canada?Сanada is an independent federative state consisting of 10 provinces and 2 territories, a member of the Commonwealth, headed by the Queen of Great Britain. Occupying the northen half of the North American continent, Canada has a landmass 0f 9,970,620 sq km, making it the second-largest country in the world after Russia. From east to west, Canada encompasses six time zones. To the south, Canada shares a boundary with the USA. To the North, the Arctic Islands come within 800 km of the North Pole. Canada’s neighbour across the Arctic Ocean is Russia.Because of the harsh northen climate, only 12% of the land is suitable for agriculture. Thus , most of the population of 30 million live within a few hundred kilometers of the southern border, where the climate is milder, in a long thin band stretching between the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans. If you fly over Manitoba or the nothern Ontario in summer, you will see more water than land: lakes, big and small, so many that they could not possibly be counted. It has been estimated that Canada has one-seventh of the world’s fresh water. In addition to the Great Lakes, which it shares with the USA, Canada has many large rivers and lakes. Canada is divided into 7 regions, each with a very different landscape and climate.
1.The Pacific Coast, indented by deep fjords and shielded from the Pacific storms by Vancouver Island, has the most moderate climate of Canada’s regions. Vancouver Island’s west coast recieves an exceptional amount of rain, giving it a temperate rain forest climate. The island’s west coast has the oldest and tallest trees in Canada: Western Red Cedars 1300 years old and Douglas firs 90 m high.
2.The Cordillera is a young land with rugge mountains and high plateaus. The Rocky Mountains, the Coastal Mountains and other ranges, running north to south, pose major engineering problems for the builders of the transcontinental railways amd highways.
3.The Prairies. To drive across the Prairies is to see endless fields of wheat ripening under a sky that seems to go on forever. The plains of Alberta, Saskatchevan and Manitoba are among the richest grain-producing regions in the world.
4.The Canadian Shield. A huge inland sea called Hudson bay extends into the heart of Canada, and wrapped around this bay is a rocky region called the Canadian Shield. The Shield is considered to be the nucleus of the North American continent. The region is a storehouse of minerals, including gold, silver, zinc, copper and uranium.
5.The Great Lakes – St.Lawrence Lowlands. Southern Quebec and Ontario, the industrial heartland of Canada, contain Canada’s 2 largest cities, Montreal and Toronto. In this small region, 50% of Canadians live and 70% of Canada’s manufactured goods are produced. The region also has prime agricultural land, for example, the Niagara Peninsula. The large expenses of lakes Erie and Ontario extend the number of frost free days, permitting the cultivation of grapes, peaches, pears and others. The Great Lakes and St.Lawrence region is sugar maple country.
6.The Atlantis Provinces – Appalachian Region. New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland are the smallest Canadian provinces, and were the first to be settled by Europeans, The Grand Banks have been called the “wheat fields” of Newfoundlands. This shallow continental shelf extends 400km of the east coast, where the mixing of ocean currents has created one of the richest fishing grounds in the world. The Atlantic provinces are an extension of the Appalachians. Much of the region has low, rugged hills and plateaus and a deeply indented coastline. Prince Edward Island has a gently rolling landscape with a rich, red soil. This fertile island is Canada’s smallest province, making up a mere 0,1% of Canada’s landmass.
7.The Arctic. North of tree-line is a land of harsh beauty. During the short summer, when the daylight is nearly continuous and a profusion of flowers blooms on the tundra, the temperature can reach 30 C. Yet the winters are long, bitterly cold and dark.
NotesLanguages. English and French are both official languages, but only 20% of the population speak only French, while 13% speak both French and English.Currency. Dollar.Government. Head of government: Prime Minister. Legislative body is Parliament consisting of a Senate and a House of Commons.Largest cities: Ottawa, Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary
Economy of the USA
The United States is the country of highly developed economy. Heavy industry includes such brunches as mining, metallurgical engineering and chemical industries. Detroit is a large motor-car industry centre. Shipbuilding is developed along the Atlantic coast and in Sam Francisco on the Pacific coast. Textile industry is also well-developed, especially in the South near large cotton plantations.
Agriculture is very widespread, above all in the prairie regions, where wheat and other grain crops are grown. Cotton is grown in the Mississipi Valley, tobacco in Maryland and Virginia. California is famous for its fruit plantations, and the West – for its cattle-farming. Poultry-farming is wide-spread in the country side near all big cities.
Manufacturing is an important economic activity in the US. In spite of the presence of items manufactured outside the country, domestic industry remains paramount, and it is rare for any medium-sized US town to be without at least some local employment in manufacturing.
The northeastern United States, excluding northern New England, is the country’s single most significant region of manufacturing. This region is loosely defined on three sides by the Ohio River Valley, Megapolis, and the Southern Great Lakes.
In spite of the region’s moderate extent and the grouth of manufacturing elsewhere, the Manufacturing Core continues to be of tremendous economic significance in American geography. Its factories produce most of the country’s steel, as well as a significant percentage of its motor vehicles and motor vehicles parts. Most of the important ports, the main entres of communication, and the primary financial centres are within or near the region, and the country’s political capital being on the immediate margins. The region includes the two largest clusters of coalescing metropolitan areas: Megapolis, and the group of large urban regions between Milwaukee (Wisconsin) and Chicago (Illinois) on the west, and Cleveland (Ohio) and Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania) on the east.
Most of the important ports, the main centre of communication, and the primary financial centres are within or near the region, and the country’s political capital being on the immediate margins.
The interior portion of America’s Manufacturing Core is known to possess great accessibility resources. Connecting the mineral-rich Canadian Shield and the fuel-rich interior plains, the five Great Lakes – Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario – represent an internal waterway unlike any other in the world.
So this unique combination of spatial and mineral resources and technological changes that affected the manufacturing geography of the US encouraged the growth of heavy manufacturing industries and all of the related human activities that have come to dominate here.
Agriculture is very widespread, above all in the prairie regions, where wheat and other grain crops are grown. Cotton is grown in the Mississipi Valley, tobacco in Maryland and Virginia. California is famous for its fruit plantations, and the West – for its cattle-farming. Poultry-farming is wide-spread in the country side near all big cities.
Manufacturing is an important economic activity in the US. In spite of the presence of items manufactured outside the country, domestic industry remains paramount, and it is rare for any medium-sized US town to be without at least some local employment in manufacturing.
The northeastern United States, excluding northern New England, is the country’s single most significant region of manufacturing. This region is loosely defined on three sides by the Ohio River Valley, Megapolis, and the Southern Great Lakes.
In spite of the region’s moderate extent and the grouth of manufacturing elsewhere, the Manufacturing Core continues to be of tremendous economic significance in American geography. Its factories produce most of the country’s steel, as well as a significant percentage of its motor vehicles and motor vehicles parts. Most of the important ports, the main entres of communication, and the primary financial centres are within or near the region, and the country’s political capital being on the immediate margins. The region includes the two largest clusters of coalescing metropolitan areas: Megapolis, and the group of large urban regions between Milwaukee (Wisconsin) and Chicago (Illinois) on the west, and Cleveland (Ohio) and Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania) on the east.
Most of the important ports, the main centre of communication, and the primary financial centres are within or near the region, and the country’s political capital being on the immediate margins.
The interior portion of America’s Manufacturing Core is known to possess great accessibility resources. Connecting the mineral-rich Canadian Shield and the fuel-rich interior plains, the five Great Lakes – Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario – represent an internal waterway unlike any other in the world.
So this unique combination of spatial and mineral resources and technological changes that affected the manufacturing geography of the US encouraged the growth of heavy manufacturing industries and all of the related human activities that have come to dominate here.
Human geography and ethnic diversity in the USA
America is the nation of immigrants who call America home. But in fact they have their origin in every part of the world. A roll call of school children will include such names as Adams, Ali, Bykowwsky, Caparella, Fujita, Gonzales, Nusseibeh and Wong. Mostly these diverse backgrounds have not been blended in the so-called American “melting pot”. In fact the idea that America is a “melting pot” is largely a myth. What exist more often is a kind of side-by-side living in wnich ethnic groups retain many of their own customs and social traditions. They merge into American stream only in certain aspects of life – in schools, sports,business and science, but keep many of their customs and patterns socially and at home. Many tensions now appear in American life stem from the interplay of varied cultures. The plus side of the situation is the richness that comes with variety, the wide freedom of choice that exists in ideas and dress, in food and customs. The minus side is that unseen barriers still exist for some people, most often in the world of busness and housing – particularly at lower income levels. Nontheless, everyone can find his own familiar world here – be it in spices or fruits, churhes, newspapers and music. With more than 245 mln. inhabitants the US is the fourth country in the world in terms of population. About 75% of the population live in urban areas and there are 170 cities of more tnan 100,000 inhabitants, 24 of which have populations of over 500,000. Most of these urban centres lie along the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, the Gulf of Mexico and the Great Lakes. The first settlements in America were made up of people who had come from Britain, Holland, Ireland and Germany (between the years 1600 and 1700). In the 18th century the slaves from Africa were brought to America. In the first half of the 19th century a lot of people came from Scandinavia and Ireland. At the turn of the century many immigrants came from Italy, Russia, Poland and Hungary to settle in the industrial cities of the USA. After the WW II many settlers from Asia and Latin America (Latinos) came to settle in California and prosperous cities of the USA. In 1990 the US Bureau of Census conducted a new census of the American people which showed that some important demographic changes were taking place.The vast majority of the population was WASP (white Anglo-Saxon Protestant) until about 1860. The country was actually founded wholly by White, Anglo-Saxons, mostly Protestant people. WASPs are now a marked minority in many parts of the country.Between 1860 and 1920 almost 30 million immigrants arrived from central and southeastern Europe in particular. These mainly Italian, Russian, Polish and Hungarian immigrants quickly formed their own culturally homogenous neihbourhoods (Little Italys, etc.) and became the second economic class behind the WASPs. The almost 12% of the population that are black are bottom of the economic and educational table, with far higher unemployment than whites, especially as a result of racial discrimination. The most rapidly growing ethnic group is the Hispanics (almost 7% of Americans), who still continue to use Spanish in their homes even though the vast majority were born in the USA. Like the blacks, they have a generally lower economic and educational level than the rest of the population. There are almost 2 millilon generally prosperous Oriental Americans (predominantly from Japan, China and the Philippines), who are concentrated mainly in California. The native Americans live mainly in reserves in the southwestern states in usually deep poverty and there has been little or no integration into American society.
American Geography
The United States of America is a federal republic of 50 states. The 50 states form an area of 3,615,122 sq. miles (31 times the size of Italy), making the United States the 4th largest country in the world. Washington, D.C. (District of Columbia) is between the states of Maryland and Virginia. It is a federal district and does not belong to any state. Puerto Rico and The United States Virgin Islands are not states but they are associated with United States.LAND. Alaska is the largest state. It is about the same size as Portugal, Spain, France and Germany together. Alaska is very mountanous. The highest mountain is Mount McKinley, which is 6,914 meters high – the highest in North America.Hawaii is a group of 20 islands in the Pacific Ocean, 2,397 miles from California. Only 7 of the islands are inhabited. The mountanous islands were formed by volcanic activity and ther are still a number of active volcanoes. The islands are actually the tops of volcanoes. Hawaii is one of the smallest states. It is a little smaller than Kuwait.The other 48 states stretch across the North American continent from the Atlantic to the Pacific. There is a wide variety of land forms; flat land, mountainous areas, rivers and lakes. Along the Atlantic Coast the land is flat. In land from the coast there is a low range of mountains, the Appalachian mountains.The highest point is mount Mitchell in North Carolina (2,037meters).In the middle of the continent is the great Mississipi River which flows south to the Gulf of Mexico, and the Great Lakes and the Saint Lawrence River which flows north-east through Canada to the Atlantic Ocean. The middle part of the country is generally flat, and toward the west, it is very open – from Texas to the Dacotas this area is called the Great Plains.MOUNTAINS. To the west of the Great Plains is the Cordillera, which accounts for one-third of the United States. It is a region of tremendous variety, which can be subdivided into various other regions. The west is mountanous. There are 2 main mountain systems: the Rocky Mountains and nearer the Pacific, the Sierra Nevada and the Coast/Cascade Range. There is a dry, semi-desert area between the mountain ranges which is called the Great Basin. Geat Salt Lake is in the middle of this basin. The highest mountain in the west is mount Whithey (4,418meters) in the Sierra Nevada of California.RIVERS. The U.S. has several immensly long rivers. There are many rivers in the eastern part of the nation, the longest of which is the Missouri (3942km), a tributary of the Mississipi (3,760km). Two other tributaries of the Mississsipi – the Ohio and Tennessee – are more than 1,250 km. long. In the west the Rio grande, which forms part of the United States – Mexico border, flows for 3,016 km. and only the Colorado, Columbia and the San Joaquim-Sacramento river systems reach the Pacific.CLIMATE. Most of the country has a humid continental climate. In general, the climate of the U.S. is temperate with 4 distinct seasons. The northen half of the country usually has snow in the winter.The coldest months are December, January and February, and the warmest are June, July and August. The coldest places are Alaska, Montana, Dacotas, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Northern Michigan, Northern New York, and Northern New England. The hottest places are Carolina, Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississipi, Louisiana, Texas, New Mexico and Arizona.Southern Florida and Hawaii are subtropical. Southern California has a Mediterranean-type of climate. The driest areas are sothern California, Nevada,Utah, Arizona, New Mexico and northern Alaska. The East is much wetter than the west, and the wettest areas are in the lower Mississipi basin. The U.S. is notourious for its tornadoes. There is a tornado belt which is lying from the southern part of Missouri state.NATURAL RESOURCES. The U.S. posseses vast non-fuel natural resources. The major resource is iron, three quaters of which come from the Lake Superior region of the Great Lakes. Other basic metals and minerals mined on a large scale are zinc, copper, silver and phosphate rock (used for fertilizers). This wealth is distributed throughout most of the country, but Texas and the West (especially California) are the most important mineral-producing areas. Mining and quarring account for only 2% of General National Product (GNP).The U.S. produces one-quarter of the world’s coal and one-seventh of its petroleum, with sufficient coal reserves to last for hundred years. About half of the nation’s electric power comes from coal-fired power stations, while natural and manufactured gas supply more than 33% of the nation’s power. The main gas fields are found near the main oil fields in Texas, Lousiana and Alaska. Nuclear power is also used in many places, using uranium mined in New Mexico and Wyoming, and produces over 10% of the nation’s energy output. The Rocky Mountains contain many important metals such as lead, uranium and gold.
Wales
Wales is a small country, bounded on the north and west by the Irish Sea, and on the south by Bristol Channel. Its total area is 8,06 square miles and its total population is about 3 million people.Wales is divided into 13 counties, but 70% of the population resides in the three industrial counties on the South – Glamorgan, Monmouth and Carmarthen. Agriculture is the main occupation in the remaining 10 counties in Mid-Wales and North-Wales.Of the three industrial counties in the South, Glamorgan is the biggest, with nearly one-half of the total population of Wales. Its main industries are coal-mining, iron, and steel, and engineering. About two-thirds of the population live in the South Wales coastal area, where the three biggest towns are located: Swansea, Cardiff and Newport.Cardiff (280,000), the modern national capital of Wales is the largest city in industrial South Wales. It rose to importance with the coal mining and iron industries. Today the cargoes it handles, are mainly imports, to be distributed throughout South Wales.The main port of Wales today is Milford Hayen (situated in the very south-west because of its oil tanker traffic). It is one of the leading oil terminals of Britain. Refineries grew up on opposite shores and Milford Hayen became an important refining centre. A pipeline takes petroleum to a refinery near Swansea.South Wales is a region of contrasts. The industrial cities of Swansea, Cardiff and Newport are only a short journey away from sandy beaches and busy holiday resorts.Mid Wales is rather sparsely populated. Along the coast there are many fishing ports. North Wales has several impressive castles built by English kings. Anglesey is flat, but the rest of the region is very mountainous. Reсently 2 nuclear power stations were built: on the North Wales, the other in Anglesey.Tourism is mainly concentrated in the northern coastal strip. Surrounded on three sides by an attractive coastline, Wales has become a popular holiday resort. It is also well known for its hills and dales, and in these places a great number of people derive their livelihood from tourists and holiday-makers.There are several more lakes and artificial reservoirs, some of them providing the water supply for the cities of Birmingham and Liverpool in England as well as one or two power dams providing electricity.The highest mountain in Wales is Snowdon, which is famous for the very difficult climbing that can be practiced on its slopes.
Scotland (Land of Cakes)
Scotland is part of the United Kingdom and is governed from London. The capital is Edinburgh, one of the most beautiful cities in Europe, which is full of historical monuments of great interest. There is a special minister in the Government, the Secretary of State for Scotland, who is responsible for education, local government and other important matters in Scotland. Although the legal education and banking system are slightly different from those in England, life is very similar to the rest of the UK.Scotland has a population of just over 5 million people of whom about one third live in the cities of Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Dundee.All the inhabitants speak English although about 100,000 still speak Scottish Gaelic. Many of the Scottish accents of English are very strong, and visitors from abroad (or even England) sometimes have difficulty in understanding them.Scotland can be divided into the Southern Uplands, which never rise to much more than about 2,500feet, the Central Lowlands, which include the valleys of the rivers Tay, Clyde and Forth, and the Northen Highlands which are themselves divided by the Great glen which runs from Fort William to Inverness. In this area are the tallest peaks, the highest of which is Ben Nevis. The Northen Highlands are sparsely populated but contain much of the most beautiful and impressive lochs, moorland, mountain and coastal scenery in the country. Scotland is famous for its beautiful large lakes with mountains round them. There are many rivers in Scotland, but they are not long.Scottish steel has long been used chiefly by the heavy industries of the Glasgow area where shipbuilding has been paramount. Shipyards extended along both banks of the Clyde estuary for about 30 km.Nowadays practically as many workers are in the service industries as in manufacturing of the latter, textile and clothing production has long been important, and carpets are among woolen goods. Food products, furniture and office equipment are also manufactured. An activity which is extremely important in Scotland’s export trade is the blending of Scotch whisky produced in Highland distilleries.Scotland is a country with an intence and living national tradition of a kind only too rare in the modern world. it has its distinctive national dress, the kilt, worn only by men. It has its own typical musical instruments (the pipes, sometimes called “the bagpipes”), its own national form of dancing, its own songs, language, traditions and education. Scotland has even its own national drink, a fact so widely known that one need only ask for “Scotch”.
England
Historically England proper is divided into the following economic regions: the South Industrial and Agricultural region (the South of England), Central England or the Midlands, Lancashire, Yorkshire and Northen England.The South of England is the most important region in the country in terms of industry, agriculture and population. This includes both the South East and the South West. London is Britain’s and England’s capital and main communication centre, one of the world’s most important financial centres, one of the world’s three largest cities (with Tokyo and New York), and one of the largest ports (with New York and Rotterdam). London is the main centre in Britain of printing, cinema film production and of manufacture of clothing, food and drink, furniture, materials of arts, precision instruments and many other specialized products. London is also important for light engineering, chemicals and consumer goods. There are heavy –engineering plants and a number of leading research establishments in this area. Some of the aircraft plants are near London and factories manufacturing motor vehicles – lorries – are also situated here. The first metro (underground ) in the world was built in London.In the estuaries of the Thames and other rivers of the region there are large oil refineries as well as shipyards.Major motor vehicles manufacturing plants are some 50 miles from north-west of London, near Oxford. Oxford and Cambridge are famous university centres, Oxford being also a car-manufacturing centre, while Cambridge includes industries which have depended to a considerable extent on university connections and orders, as diverse as instrument making, printing, electronics.The South-West is known for its extensive grassland which is three times as extensive as the area under cultivation. The grouth of grass is promoted by frequent rains and mild warm climate. The principal activity here is farming. Although there are some big farms, most are small family farms with a mixture of cows, sheep and cereal crops. Butter, cheese and cream are the chief products. In the eastern part of the region there are many pigs and the production of bacon and other products, including pork sausages, is prominent.Industry is centered on three large ports: Bristol in the North and Portsmouth and Southampton in the south-east. In Bristol aircrafts are designed and built. In Portsmouth and Southampton, the main industries are shipbuilding and oil-refining.
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