英语国家概况知识点-美国

1、英语国家概况知识点-美国ContentsGeography1Climate3Natural Resources4People5Major Cities2 Watch the following map carefully and find clues to the following itemslocation (bordering neighbors )States (the smallest & the largest state)Size and LocationIn the central part of North America (except Alaska and Hawaii)

2、Canada on the north Mexico and the Gulf of Mexico on the south Atlantic Ocean on the east Pacific Ocean on the westtotal area9.5 million square kilometers; The whole country includes 50 states and a federal district, the District of Columbiathe seat of the Federal Government. States original 48 stat

3、es Alaska and Hawaii became the 49th in 1867 and 50th states in 1959.Alaska borders on northwestern CanadaHawaii lies in the central Pacific OceanAlaskathe largest (1717,854 sq km)Rhode Islandthe smallest Texasthe largest on the mainland (695,621 sq km)1. Three Geographical DivisionsGeographical Div

4、isionsCentral partEastern partWestern partThe Eastern PartThe eastern partthe highlands formed by the Appalachian Range (阿巴拉挈亚山系). one sixth of the national territory relatively low, with an average altitude of 800 meters above sea level The Western PartHigh plateaus (高原) and mountainsformed by the

5、Great Cordillera Range（科迪勒拉山系）, extending from Canada through the western part of the United States to Mexico and further south. One third of the countrys territoryRocky mountainswith an average altitudeof more than 3000meters above sea levels. The Great Central Plain（中部大平原）Between the Appalachians

6、in the east and the Rocky Mountains in the westhalf of Americas landmass on the continentstretch from the Great Lakes in the north to the Gulf of Mexico in the south five great lakes and Niagara FallsThe five Great Lakes: Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, Lake Huron, Lake Erie, Lake Ontario.Lake Superio

7、r: the largest freshwater lake of its kind Lake Michigan: wholly within United StatesNiagara Falls(尼亚加拉大瀑布)Niagara Falls-located on the U.S.Canadian border between Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. Niagara Falls2. Main Geographical Regions New England Region(新英格兰地区)The Mid-Atlantic States Region（大西洋中部地区）T

8、he South Region（南部地区）The Midwest Region（中西部地区）The West Region（西部地区）The Region of the Great Plains (大平原地区)Alaska (阿拉斯加地区)Hawaii (夏威夷地区)New Englandincluding six states in the northeastern cornerfeatured with mountains, valleys and riversMassachusetts: the largest populationRhode Island: the smallest i

9、n size, the most densely populated stateNot a farming area, poor soil Earliest settlers: English ProtestantsNew ENGLAND The Middle Atlantic RegionSix states north: New England south: the south regionImportant: a. population b. 1/3 products Marked by its industry, “Industrial Northeast”, many large f

10、actoriesRich in minerals good soil + temperate climate= agriculture is importantMany important cities: New York, Philadelphia The South Region a large section of US, including 11 states favorable climate agriculture, great profits by raising and selling cotton and tobacco The north: industrial (工业的)

11、 the south: agrarian (农业的，土地的)great size with few large cities New OrleansMiamiAtlanta BirminghamAmerican Southern AreaThe Midwest RegionIncludes 8 statesFertile soil abundant crops known as the countrys “breadbasket”Center: Chicago, Illinois, the third largest citySears Tower: at 443 meters, one of

12、 worlds tallest buildingsThe Region of the Great PlainsInclude 6 statesMarked by a. the smallest population b. few large cities c. vastness of flat land d. poor soil e. little rains in many partsIndians are natives here. 1/5 of the countrys Indians are now living in the state of Oklahoma.The West Re

13、gionOccupy a vast area, including 11 statesThe area of the Rocky Mountains + all territory west to the Rocky Mountains as far as to the Pacific OceanMountainous area: much of the land, can not be cultivated too high and mountainous too low and dryCalifornia dominates the whole regionPrinciple cities

14、: San Francisco, Los Angeles and SeattleOregon & CaliforniaAlaskaIn the northwestern part of North AmericaAs a world of glaciers(冰河), waterfalls and lakes Fishing is the chief economymain agriculture outputseafoodindustrial outputscrude petroleum(原油), natural gas, precious metals, seafood processing

15、, timber, and tourism, etc. AlaskaHawaiiThe climate here is comfortable and the temperature usually remains close to the average of 24 degrees centigradeHonolulu(火奴鲁鲁，檀香山): the capital, the largest city of the satePearl Harbortourist businesslargest source of incomeHawaiiHawaii Dance3.Rivers and Lak

16、esIn the system of Gulf: The Mississippi Riverthe longest and the most important river in the system of the Gulf(墨西哥湾水系).Known as the “father of waters” to American Indians As Mark Twain was raised on the river, his most popular and important writings are concerned with this areaThe Adventures of Hu

17、ckleberry Finn （哈克贝利费恩历险记）tells the story of how the boy Huckleberry Finn and his black friend Jim, a runaway slave, sailed down the Mississippi on a raft.In the system of the Pacific: the Columbia River and the Colorado RiverIn the system of the Atlantic a. The Potomac River (波托马克河) flow through th

18、e capital, Washington b. The Hudson River (哈得孙河)linked by canals with the five Great Lakesflows through the state of New York ClimateMajority: temperate Some: subtropical zones Only Florida and Hawaii: tropical50 centimeter rainfall linein the eastcomparatively more rains, so easy agriculture; in th

19、e westmuch less rain (less than 50 cm. a year) with the exception of the coastal areas along the Pacific. Natural Resourcesrich in mineral resources among the countries with the greatest reserves of coal, iron ore and oil. abounds in lead, copper, zinc, aluminum, rock, silver, and gold. one fourth o

20、f the territorycovered with forests which mainly concentrate upon three areas: the area along the north western coast of the Pacificthe area in the south the area in the northMajor Cities When talking about America, is there any city that you are familiar with? And why?Tips: New Yorkcommercial and f

21、inancial center of the United StatesWashington D.C.seat of the federal governmentLos Anglessecond largest city Chicagothe windy citySeattle; Philadelphia; San Francisco; etc. 1. New York Located in New York State, is the largest city and the chief port of the United States. Five boroughsManhattan(曼哈

22、顿), Brooklyn(布鲁克林), Bronx(布朗克斯), Richmond(里士满) and Queens(昆斯). the headquarter of the United Nations Became an important city early in the last century. A large portion of the national exports passed through New York harbor. New York has become one of the worlds busiest ports and also the financial,

23、 manufacturing, and travel center of the country. 1.1 Wall StreetAmericas financial centerThe world famous New York Stock Exchange(纽约证券交易所) is across the streetThe symbol of American monopoly capitalism.1.2 World Trade CenterThe tallest building in the U.S. and the worldcomposed of two buildings, tw

24、in structures, each rising 110 stories above the citys streets & collapsed in September, 11, 2001.1.3 BroadwayBroadway is an avenue in Manhattana symbol of the New York theatressurrounded by playhouses, first-run movies, night clubs, hotels and shops.1.4 Statue of Libertya huge sculpture located on

25、Liberty Island in New York Harbora gift from France on the centenary of American IndependenceFormal name: “Liberty Enlightening the World”(照耀世界的自由女神)It pictures a woman who has escaping the chains of tyranny (the broken chains lie at her feet). Libertys right hand holds a torch that is a symbol of l

26、iberty. Liberty was designed by the French sculptor Frederic Auguste Bartholdi. The statue was re-assembled in the USA and was completed on October 28, 1886. The seven rays of Libertys crown symbolize the seven continents of the world. Liberty holds a tablet in her left hand that reads July 4, 1776

27、(in Roman numerals), Independence Day of the United States of America. 2. Washington D.C.Located on the Potomac River(波托马克河)governed directly by the Federal government. District of Columbianamed after Christopher Columbuscitynamed after George Washington, the first president of U.S. Washington Monum

28、ent2.1 White Housethe official presidential residenceInside the House, there are more than 130 roomsPortraits of all the presidents hang on the walls2.2 Capitol 国会大厦The meeting place of the United States Congress, the legislature of the federal government of United StatesLocated in Washington D.C.,

29、it sits atop Capitol Hill.3. San FranciscoGolden Gate BridgeLocated on the central part of the California shoreline.Center of oil-refining, automobiles, chemicals, commerce, finance, and shipping industry. Over 300 000 Chinese, the largest Chinese settlement in America.4. Los Angelssecond largest ci

30、ty in the U.S.four times larger than San Franciscoimportant electronic center known for the manufacture of tires, automobiles and aircraft. Since the first American movie was made in Los Angeles in 1908, the city has remained the film center of the United States. Hollywood is located in this city.Ho

31、llywood the base of the film industry, is a world famous film producing center.The world famous Disneyland attracts millions of tourists every year. Disneyland has been built in California, Florida, Paris, Tokyo and Hong Kong.5. Chicagothe windy city; second most populous city after New York. Founde

32、d in the early 1800smain connection between the east coast cities and the West.the largest industrial city in the country, with highly developed heavy and light industriesthe center of industry, transportation, commerce and finance in the Midwest area, also a culture centerSears Tower (西尔斯大厦)Willis

33、Tower, still commonly referred to as Sears TowerCompletion in1973, the tallest building in the world, surpassing the World Trade Center towers in New York Held this rank for 25 yearsTallest building in United StatesOne of the most popular tourist attractions in ChicagoRenamed Willis Tower in 2009Peo

34、pleThe White74.7%Asians 4.3%The Black12.1%Mixed Races2.5% Native Indians &Hawaiians0.9%The United States is the third most populous nation in the world, ranking behind China and India. According to the U. S. Census Bureau(美国人口普查局), the resident population reached a milestone on Oct. 17, 2006, hittin

35、g 300 million.PopulationUneven distributionThe most densely populated regionthe northeastern part About one quarter of the total land area, about half of the total population. The Great Plainsa comparatively small population. The Southa population of almost 57.5 million people. The Westnot densely p

36、opulated; 20% of the populationexcept for some metropolitan centers like Los Angels, and San Francisco. Nation of ImmigrantsRace and ethnic groupsThe Indians The White Anglo-Saxons Protestants (WASP)The Black The HispanicsThe Asian-AmericansIndiansAbout 10 million Indians in North America When Colum

37、bus arrived.Westward movementthe destruction of the Indians. Today about 2.4 million Indians About one-third of them live on reservations, land that was set-aside for them. The rest lives in cities. Poverty and unemployment are major problems, especially on the reservations.WASPsEuropean descendants

38、White Anglo-Saxon Protestants who were largely responsible for the winning of Americas independence.Englishofficial languageThe BlackAbout 8 million black people were brought to America from Africa as slaves from 1620 to 1820.work on plantations or large farms of the South. poor and suffer from pove

39、rtyToday the black account for about 12% of the population Many of them live in the South and in the cities of Northeast and Midwest. Civil Rights MovementSegregation laws (隔离法) in Southern states in the US prevented black and white people from sitting together in movie theatres, eating in the same

40、restaurants, drinking from the same water fountain, etc. Although these are not Amendment (补充法案）to the US Constitution, the US government would not declare the Southern laws unconstitutional until there were cases brought in the federal courts. The civil rights movements began when black people spon

41、taneously protested segregation laws and created organizations to make the protests successful. Martin Luther Kinga black ministera great political and religious leader of the non-violent civil rights movement in 1950s. On August 28, 1963, he led over 250,000 Americans on a march in Washington D. C.

42、 to fight for the Civil Rights Law to guarantee equality for all people, and delivered his best-known speech “I Have a Dream” before the Lincoln Memorial .Thus he was awarded the Nobel Prize for peace in 1964. But he was tragically murdered four years later. By vote of Congress in 1968, the third Mo

43、nday of every January is now a federal holiday in Martin Luther Kings honor. I Have a Dream I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal. I have a dream that one day on the red

44、hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood. I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be tran

45、sformed into an oasis of freedom and justice. I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. I have a dream today! I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious

46、 racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification; one day right down in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers. I have a dream today! I have a dream that

47、 one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together.Hispanicsthe Spanish-speaking population of the Un

48、ited States Puerto Ricans波多黎各人Mexican-AmericansCuban-Americans123Three major Hispanic groups:Puerto Ricans The island of Puerto Rico(波多黎各) has been an American possession since the Spanish-American war of 1899 and Puerto Ricans have been American citizens since 1917. Better job opportunities in the

49、U.S. have drawn a large number of Puerto Ricans to the U.S., the majority of whom have settled in the large cities in the eastern seaboard. Cuban AmericansThe Cuban-Americans who got away from Cuba after the Cuban Revolution in 1959 and are now gathered in the Miami area. In general, the Cuban-Americans have done the best economically. They left Cuba in the early 60s and, over the past 40 years, they have created a prosperous “little Cuba” in the Miami area.Asian immigrantsChinese Among the Asian immigrants, the Chinese were the first Asians