lecture美国综述

1、lecture general features of americageographic positionz the continental us stretches across north america from sea to shining sea. it borders canada to the north and mexico to the south. zalaska juts （突出，伸出） from north-western canada and hawaii lies 2,500 miles (4000km) off the countrys western coas

2、t, in the middle of the pacific. locationzsouth of the continent of north americazbounded in the north with canada by the great lakes; in the southwest with mexico by the rio grande; in the southeast with the west indian islands by the mexican bay; to the east with the atlantic, to the west with the

3、 pacific. zthere are altogether 50 states & a special district: washington d.c. the 2 overseas states: alaska & hawaii. important facts about usa(1)zfull country name: the united states of america (usa)zpopulation: 275,000,000 zarea: 3,618,000 sq miles (9,370,000 sq km). the 4th largest in t

4、he world.zcapital city: washington, dc (pop: 607,000) zpeople: caucasian（高加索人，白种人） (74%), african american (12%), latino (9%), asian (3%), native american (0.8%)zlanguages: english (official language), plus many secondary language, chiefly spanishzreligion: protestant (56%), roman catholic (28%), je

5、wish (2%), muslim (1%)zgovernment: federal republic of 50 statescaucasian: member of the indo-european group of people.zpresident: bush zgdp: us$9 trillionzgdp per head: us$25,850zannual growth: 4.1%zinflation: 2.6%zmajor industries: oil, electronics, computers, automobile manufacturing, aerospace i

6、ndustries, agriculture. major trading partners: canada, japan, the eu important facts about usa(3)zthe longest river: mississippi river, the longest in the world.zthe great lakes: (from west to east) lake superior, lake michigan, lake huron, lake erie, & lake ontario. lake michigan belongs to us

7、a. the other 4 belong to both usa & canada.zthe famous niagara falls. zthe three most famous national parks are z1.the rocky mountain & yellowstone national parkz2.the great canyon of colorado in arizonaz3. yosemite in the sierra nevadadifferent parts of uszthe atlantic coast is the most hea

8、vily populated area and retains strong traces of its european heritage. this is where the oldest american cities like boston, new york, washington dc and philadelphia are located, and where most of the major events in early american history took place. zthe central north-east is marked by the great

9、lakes (superior, michigan, huron, erie and ontario), which occupy an area larger than most european countries. the rivers and canals linking the lakes to the atlantic ocean made virtual seaports out of midwestern cities like chicago and detroit. zthe central area drained by the mississippi, missouri

10、 and ohio rivers is the grain basket of the country.zfurther west, on the great plains, are the countrys chief grazing(放牧) areas. this is cowboy country.zdesert predominates in the south-west, where the climate and degraded soils keep population density to a minimum, and where you really dont need m

11、uch of a wind to see tumbleweed(风滚草) bouncing across the highway. zcross the sierra nevada is the west coast, which was settled by americans only 150 years ago but has been on a headlong(头向前) rush into the future ever since.important mountainszthere are three major mountain ranges: the appalachians

12、in the east, the rocky mountains in the west, and the sierra nevada along the border of nevada and california. zappalachian mts阿巴拉契亚山脉zrocky mts落基山脉zsierra nevada内华达山脉zcordillera range科迪勒拉山脉zcascade range喀斯喀特山脉zcoast range海岸山脉important riversz(national rivers)z1* hudson riverz2* mississippi riverz3*

13、 missouri riverz4* ohio riverz(international rivers)z1* colorado riverz2* columbia riverz3* rio grandaz4* st. lawrence rivernatural resourceszamerica is very rich in natural resources and energy resources. the country has abundant natural resources zvast swathes（带） of fertile（肥沃的） soil. zit ranks am

14、ong the first countries that are rich in coal, iron, oil, natural gas, minerals (zinc, lead, silver, copper, & so on), forest & hypo.zthough it is rich in natural resources, it still depends greatly on imports.the climatezthe climate is temperate in most parts of the us. zgenerally speaking,

15、 it gets hotter the further south you go and seasonally more extreme the further you are north and inland from the coasts. zwinters in the northeast and upper midwest can have long periods below freezing while its still warm enough to swim at the beaches in florida (which has a tropical climate) and

16、 southern california. flora植物群zwith such varied topography, the us has extremely diverse ecosystems. the most impressive flora are the huge evergreens of the west coast, the sequoia（美洲杉，红杉，美国加州高大常青树） and the redwood, some of which are believed to be the oldest living things on earth. the eastern sta

17、tes are home to leafy hardwood（硬木，阔叶树） forests of maple, oak, and elm(榆树), which burst into color in fall (autumn). animals home to us the largest land mammals, such as black and grizzly bears （灰熊）, elk（麋鹿） & deer, roam the northwestern states. the southern states are home to some of the most in

18、teresting fauna(动物群): the marsupial(有袋类动物) opossum(负鼠) & the mean old alligator(产于美洲的鳄鱼,短吻鳄). beasties to avoid include rattlesnakes(响尾蛇), bears, wild boar(野猪), & alligators. the national flagzstripes and stars:星条旗z50 stars represent the 50 states of america.z13 stripes represent the first 1

19、3 states that used to be the colonies.zthis pattern was approved in 1777. then, there were 13 stars & 13 stripes. later when other states joined the federation one by one, the number of stars increased. by 1959, when the last state hawaii was added to the federation, the number eventually became

20、 50. from july 4 1960, the pattern remained till now.the history of the national flag(1)zduring the discovery & settlement of what is now the united states, the flags of various european nations were flown over the land, as symbols of possession. later, in the colonial & revolutionary war pe

21、riods, flags representing famous persons, places, & events were flown in the american colonies.zthe 1st official flag of the us was created by congress on june 14, 1777. it consisted of 13 alternate red & white stripes & 13 white stars in a field of blue, representing the 13 colonies tha

22、t had declared their independence in 1776.the history of the national flag(2)zcongress adopted a new flag of 15 stars & 15 stripes in 1795 to give representation to the 2 new states admitted into the union, vermont & kentucky.zby 1817, there were 20 states in the union, & it became appar

23、ent that adding one stripe for each new state would destroy the shape of flag. as a result, congress in 1818 restored the original design & provided that each state was to be represented by one star.the history of the national flag(3)zin 1912 president william h. taft made the 1st official provi

24、sion for the arrangement of the stars. he ordered that there be 6 even rows of 8 stars each. previously, the arrangement of the stars had been left to the flag-makers fancy. 国徽，国花和国鸟z国徽:中央-国鸟秃鹰，左爪13利箭，右爪有13片叶子的橄榄枝，象征决定战争与和平的权力。背面拉丁文箴言上帝福佑我们的事业。（in god we trust）z国花: rose which stands for beauty, frag

25、rance, love & passion.z国鸟：白头海雕（秃鹰）which symbolizes bravery, power & victory.main citieszwashington d.c.znew york cityzchicagozdetroitzhoustonzlos angeleszsan franciscozbostonzphiladelphiacapital city: washington d.c.zwashington d.c (washington district of columbia) was named after (in honor

26、of) george washington, the first president of the u.s.a., who decided upon its location in the 1st place . zit was built in 1790 & was put to use in 1800. zit is the political & cultural center. the white house, the capitol, department of state & department of defense (the pentagon), the

27、 washington museum, the jefferson memorial, the lincoln memorial, & many other famous places are all located here.more information about washington, d. c.zwashington, the capital of the united states, is situated on the potomac river in the district of columbia. the district is a piece of land t

28、en miles square & it does not belong to any state but to all the states. the district is named in honor of columbus, the discoverer of america. zthe capital owns much to the first president of the united states, george washington. it was washington who chose the place for the district and laid i

29、n 1790 the corner stone of the capitol, where congress sits.zthere are many historical sites in washington, d. c. the largest & tallest among the buildings is the capitol with its great hall of representatives and senate chamber. there are no skyscrapers in washington because no other building s

30、hould be taller than the capitol.the white housezthe presidents residence. all american presidents except george washington have lived in the white house. it is a 2-storied white building constructed in 1799. in 1814, during the war with england, the white house was burnt down. after the war the cha

31、rred remains of the building were white-washed, so as not to spoil the view. since that time, the residence of the american presidents has always been painted white. new york cityzlargest city & port in america.zone of the largest cities in the world(with a population of more than 10 million).zm

32、anhattan: bought from the indians in 1626 by peter minute, a dutch colonial governor, he paid for this area of 31 square miles with beads (珠等饰物), cloth & trinkets (价值微小的珠宝饰物) worth only $24.zmanhattan (island) is one of the commercial, financial & cultural centers of the world. it has many f

33、amous landmarks & tourist attractions. they include broadway, chinatown, the empire state building (102 stories, 390 meter high), world trade center building (110 stories, higher), greenwich village, times square, the united nations headquarters, wall street, & many churches, colleges, skysc

34、rapers, & theatres. most of new yorks municipal buildings stand on manhattan island. when people think of new york city, they are usually thinking of manhattan, the core of the city.chicagozthe second largest city in america.zcenter of railway and lake port.zthe biggest center of iron and steel

35、industry.zmay 1 1886, chicago workers went on strike, demanding the right to 8-hour work. hence the labor day every may 1.zmarch 8 1909, women workers in chicago went on strike, demanding equality of women workers & hence the womens day every march 8. detroitzcapital of michigan state. zthe bigg

36、est car-making center, also called the city of cars.zmany car-making monopoly organizations are located here: ford motor company（福特）, general motors（通用汽车）, chrysler corporation（克莱斯勒）. houstonzthe biggest city in southern america & an important port.zcapital city of texas state.zthe largest cente

37、r of oil industry, also called the city of oil in the world.zapollo program（阿波罗登月计划）: the center of american aerospace & aeronautics, also called the city of aerospace & aeronautics. los angeleszan important port in the west coast. the third largest city secondary only to new york city &

38、 chicago.zthe industrial center of the western america, famous for airplane-making & oil industry.zhollywood: center of film-making industry, also known as the city of films.zdisneyland: amusement park.san franciscoz旧金山，三藩市. the second largest city in the west coast (secondary only to los angele

39、s).zan important port.zchina town唐人街，中国城bostonza famous city in independence war.波士顿倾茶事件。 lexington莱克星顿的枪声。za cultural center: famous universities such as harvard university哈佛大学(founded in 1636) & massachusetts institute of technology麻省理工学院 philadelphia费城,费拉德尔菲亚 zan important port & a railwa

40、y center.zan old city with a long history. built in 1701, it was the largest american city in the mid 18th century. in 1776, the 13 states declared independence here. zthere are many historical buildings in the city: independence hall, the place where continental congress was held during the indepen

41、dence war and the declaration of independence was approved. therefore, it is the symbol of american independence.independence dayzthe 4th of july, the birthday of the usa, celebrates that famous day in 1776 when the americans declared their independence. congress made the declaration in philadelphia

42、, and that night there were joyful celebrations in the city which soon became nationwide. ever since, the 4th of july has been marked in the american calendar as independence day, and there are parades & festivities of all kinds.zin this public document the colonists in america solemnly proclaim

43、ed their independence from british rule.zit marked the beginning of a new nation-the united states of america, & hence july 4 has become the national birthday.zthis epoch-making document falls into 2 parts. the first part tells of the rights that belong to everybody & the second part recount

44、s the wrongs that the british did against the colonies. these were charges against george iii, king of england.information about the 50 states: 9 northeastern states(1)statestatemain nicknamemain nickname capitalcapitalmainemainepine tree state augustanewnewhampshirehampshiregranite stateconcordverm

45、ontvermontgreenmountain statemontpeliermassachusettsmassachusetts bay statebostonstatestatemainmainnicknamenicknamecapitalcapitalconnecticutconstitutionstatehartfordrhode islandlittle rhodyprovidencenew yorkempire statealbanypennsylvaniakeystone state harrisburgnew jerseygarden statetrenton 9 northe

46、astern states(2)12 middle northern states(1)statenicknamecapitalohiobuckeye statecolumbusindianahoosier stateindianapolismichiganwolverinestatelansingillinoisprairie statespringfieldwisconsinbadger statemadisonminnesotanorth star state st. paul12 middle northern states(2)statenicknamecapitalnorth da

47、kotasioux statebismarcksouth dakotacoyote statepierrenebraskacornhuskerstatelincolniowahawkeye statedes moineskansasjayhawker state topekamissourishow-me statejefferson citythe 16 southern states(1)statenicknamecapitaldelawareblue hen statedovermarylandfree stateannapolisvirginiaold dominionrichmondwest virginia mountain statecharl