English Speaking countries

Text 1. The USA

The USA is situated in the central part of the North American Continent. The USA is the 4-th largest country in the world after Russia, Canada and China. The total area of the USA (including the District of Columbia) is 9,809,155 sq. km. It is washed by 3 oceans: the Arctic, the Atlantic and the Pacific. [3] The population of the USA is over 317 million people.

There are any rivers on the US territory. The longest of them are the Mississippi, the Missouri, the Yukon, the Columbia, and the Colorado. The country has many lakes, with the Great Lakes included. The Great Lakes are situated in the northeast of the country. On the US territory there are mountains and lowlands. The highest mountains are the Rocky Mountains, the Cordillera and the Sierra Nevada. The highest peak, Mount McKinley, is located in Alaska. [3] The region of the Cordilleras has semi deserts, while the rest of the territory is rich in forests.

Officially the country comprises 50 states and one District of Columbia. The capital of the USA is Washington. It is situated in the District of Columbia on the banks of the Potomac River and named after the 1^st US President. There are many large cities in the USA: New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit, San-Francisco, Cleveland and some others. The national symbol of the USA is its national flag “Stars and Strips”, having 50 white stars and 13 white and red strips on its field, symbolising the number of the original and present day states. [3]

The climate varies from moderate to subtropical. Along the Pacific and Atlantic coasts it is oceanic. Most of the USA territory is marked by sharp differences between winter and summer. Average winter temperature is about 25 degrees below zero in Alaska and up to 20 degrees above zero in Florida. Average summer temperature varies from 14 degrees above zero in the western part and up to 32 degrees above zero in the southeast. The largest amount of rainfall is noted in Alaska and the southwest of the country. In winter the northern part of the USA usually has a steady snow cover.

In California, where the climate is usually mild, the famous fruit-raising area is located. Californian oranges, grapefruit and lemons are sold all over the USA and other parts of the world.

The plains of Wyoming, stretching for hundreds of miles, are covered with short grass and sagebrush. This is the land of cattle- and sheep breeding. The south of the country has been an agricultural region for many years. It raises the nation's cotton and tobacco. The USA also grows wheat, corn and different vegetables.

There are a lot of national parks in the USA, the aim of which is to preserve the beauty and treasures of the nature.