9.2. Answer the questions:

1. Who is the head of the state?

2. How are the senators elected?

3. Who stands at the head of each state?

4. How many senators are there in the House of Representatives?

5. How many states are there in the USA?

Unit 10. Geographical position of the usа

10.1. Read and translate the text.

The USA occupies the central part of the North American continent. It borders on Canada in the north and Mexico in the south. It is washed by the Atlantic Ocean in the east, by the Pacific Ocean in the west and by the Gulf of Mexico in the south.

The present territory of the USA consists of three separate parts.

The USA proper and Alaska are situated in North America.

The Hawaii are situated in the central part of the Pacific Ocean.

The area of the country is about 9,400,000 km2. Its population is about 256 million people.

No general statement can be made about the landscape of the USA.

It is a country of mountains and prairies, valleys and deserts.

About one half of the territory in the west is occupied by the Cordilleras.

In the east there are the Appalachian Mountains. Between these great mountain chains central and large valleys lie. The Rocky Mountains extend from Alaska through Canada and the USA to Mexico. Together with the Sierra Nevada Mountains in California they have snow­capped peaks and clear mountain lakes.

The Great Lakes are situated in the north­east of the country. They are Lake Ontario, Lake Huron, Lake Erie, Lake Superior, Lake Michigan. The largest rivers of the USA are the Mississippi, the Missouri, the Columbia, the Colorado, and the Yukon. American rivers have very expressive names: the Snake River, the Milk River, the Green River, the Sweetwater River, the White River.

The USA has rich deposits of coal, oil, iron, zinc, copper, silver, phosphate rock, natural gas, uranium and non­ ferrous metals. The country has one fourth of the world’s coal deposits.

10.2. Answer the questions:

1. What is the territory of the USA?

2. Where is the country situated?

3. What is the population of the USA?

4. What are the Great Lakes? Where are they situated?

5. What is the longest river in the USA?

Unit 11. Climate and nature of the usа

11.1. Read and translate the text.

The USA is situated in the central part of the North American Continent. It is washed by the Atlantic Ocean in the east, by the Pacific Ocean in the west and by the Gulf of Mexico in the south.

The climate varies from moderate to subtropical continental. 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.

The largest rivers of the USA are the Mississippi, the Missouri, the Yukon, the Columbia, and the Colorado. The Great Lakes are situated in the northeast of the country.

The region of the Cordilleras has semi deserts, while the rest of the territory is rich in forests.

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.