Тема / Топик по английскому языку:
The United States of America

The United States of America are the fourth largest country in the world (after Russia, Canada and China). It occupies the southern part of North America and stretches from the Pacific to the Atlantic Ocean. It also includes Alaska in the north and Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean. The total area of the country is about nine and half million square kilometres. 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 Washington, the capital of the country, is situated. The population of the country is about 323 million.

If we look at the map of the USA, we can see lowlands and mountains. The highest mountains are the Rocky Mountains, the Cordillera and the Sierra Nevada. The highest peak is Mount McKinley which is located in Alaska. 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 climate of the country varies greatly. The coldest regions are in the North. The climate of Alaska is arctic; the climate of the central part is continental; the south has a subtropical climate. Hot winds blowing from the Gulf of Mexico often bring typhoons. The climate along the Pacific coast is much warmer than that of the Atlantic coast.

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 aircraft, cars, textiles, radio and television sets, armaments, furniture and paper industries.

Though mainly European and African in origin, Americans are made up of nearly all races and nations, including Chinese and native Americans.

The largest cities of the USA are: New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit, San Francisco, Washington and others.

The US is a federal Union of 50 states; each of them has its own government. The seat of the central (federal) government is Washington, D.C. According to the US Constitution, the government is divided into three branches: the executive branch headed by the President, the legislative branch exercised by the Congress, and the judicial branch. The Congress consists of the Senate and the House of Representatives. There are two main political parties in the USA: the Republican and the Democratic.

Topical Vocabulary

Answer the questions:

1. What territory does the USA occupy?
   
2. What is the USA made of?
   
3. How can the relief (рельеф) of the USA be characterized?
   
4. What are the rivers and lakes of the USA?
   
5. What is the climate of the country like?
   
6. How can you characterize the economy of the USA?
   
7. What nations are Americans made of?
   
8. What is the political system of the USA?
   

Translate into English:

1. США включают южную часть Северной Америки, Аляску и Гавайи.
   
2. США граничит с Канадой, Мексикой и Россией.
   
3. Общая площадь США — примерно 9,5 миллионов кв. километров, население составляет 323 миллионов человек.
   
4. Самые высокие горы в Америке - Скалистые горы, Кордильеры и Сьера-Невада, крупнейшие реки - Миссиссиппи, Миссури и Рио-Гранде.
   
5. Климат в стране разнообразный — от арктического до континентального и субтропического.
   
6. США — высокоразвитая промышленная страна, одна из ведущих производителей меди, нефти, железной руды и угля.
   
7. Ведущие отрасли обрабатывающей промышленности - производство самолетов, машин, текстиля, вооружений и т. д.
   
8. Американцы состоят из представителей многих рас и национальностей, в том числе китайцев и коренных американцев.
   
9. Правительство США, федерации 50 штатов, состоит из трех частей - законодательной, исполнительной и судебной.