Climate and Natural Resources

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The United States of America is a very diverse country. Its nature, climate, population varies from the East Coast to the west, from the northern border to the southern.

Climate is mostly temperate, but tropical in Hawaii and Florida, arctic in Alaska, semiarid in the Great Plains west of the Mississippi River, and arid in the southwest.

Natural resources include coal, copper, lead, molybdenum, phosphates, uranium, bauxite, gold, iron, mercury, nickel, silver, tungsten, zinc, petroleum, natural gas, and timber.

Natural hazards are a great deal of problems for the USA. Every year, they loose hundred millions of dollars, because of natural hazards. The USA is famous for hurricanes along the Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico coasts and tornadoes in the Midwest and southeast; mud slides in California; forest fires in the west; flooding.

Sometimes there are tsunamis, volcanoes and earthquakes happen. Earthquakes are very often in California.

Talking about environment, one should add that air pollution results in acid rains in both the US and Canada. The US is the largest single emitter of carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels.

Water pollution from runoff of pesticides and fertilizers takes place here.

The Weather in England

The English say «Other countries have a climate, in England we have weather*. It happens because the weather changes more often than in other countries. British winters are mild and springs are cool because of the winds that blow from the Atlantic Ocean. They blow 2 days out of every 3.

In spring sunshine and showers follow each other so often during the day that an umbrella or a raincoat is absolutely necessary in England. The weather changes so frequently that it is difficult to forecast. It is not unusual for people to complain that the weathermen were wrong.

The weather in spring is generally mild but sometimes the days are really fresh. Spring is the season when nature awakens from its long winter sleep: the temperature grows, the sky becomes blue, and the sun grows warmer. Everything is full of new life again. The days grow longer and warmer; the ground gets covered with green grass.

Summer is the hottest season in England. The sunrays become hot, the days are long, and the nights are short and warm. It's time for holidays, when people go to the seaside for sunbathing and swimming. It usually gets hot in July. The summer nights are short, but they are wonderful.

As for autumn it isn't so nice. It's a season of winds and beautiful sunsets. The leaves turn yellow and reddish and fall to the ground and the birds migrate to warm countries. In autumn the days become shorter. A spell of sunny weather in September is called Indian summer or «Golden Autumn». In England September and October are warm and dry, but November is the foggiest month. Late autumn is generally an unpleasant season. Everything begins to take a different colour. The trees look bare. The flowers have faded away. The sky is overcast with low clouds. Everything looks gloomy.

In winter in England they can hardly forecast their weather. Sometimes it rains and sometimes it snows. In England it isn't so cold in winter as in our country and they don't get so much snow as we get here in Ukraine. The rivers in England never freeze, that's why children there go skating very seldom. When there are 8 degrees of frost in England everyone complains of hazards.

My Friend

I have a lot of friends. Most of them are my former schoolmates. But my bosom friend is Lena. She is 16. Lena isn't very tall, but she is pretty in her own way.

She has red curly hair and a turn-up nose. Lena wears spectacles and when spring comes there are plenty of freckles on her cheeks, forehead and nose. But all that doesn't make her plain or ugly. I like Lena because she is well-bred, jolly and kind.

She does well at school though she has an unbreakable rule: never to study at night no matter how many written reviews are coming in the morning. She is also fond of reading plain books, and Lena sometimes thinks that one book isn't enough to read, she has two pr three books going at once. My friend has a lot of books at home, and she buys them wherever she goes.

She says that the books are of great help any time and they always must be at her hand. Her idea is that it's much easier to have a library of her own comprising lots of books than to try keeping everything in her head. Lena goes in for sports and she is a member of our school basket-ball team. She is terribly quick and strong.

It's a pleasure to watch her playing basket-ball: while others are hopping about in the air she always gets under their feet and grabs the ball. I don't like people who are bored at everything and who never make the slightest effort to be pleasant. That's why my friend is Lena, the most amusing person in the world. She thinks everything is funny — even flunking an exam.

Lena is a sunny soul by nature and always takes the slightest excuse to be amused. My friend has an imagination and her own style. Usually she writes nice compositions and once even won short-story contest that our school wallpaper holds every year.

Lena and me are good friends. We help each other a lot and try not to quarrel. But when sometimes it comes to quarrelling we try to make it up at once.

Overpopulation

The world's population is an important issue. For hundreds of thousands of years, the human population grew at a low but steadily increasing rate. Then, in less than last 200 years, the world population went from several hundreds of millions to more than 6 billion people.

The Earth has certain limitations and in particular, there are limits to growth of things that consume the Earth resources.

Many people believe that these resources, both the Earth and the human intellect are endless and population growth can continue and that there is no danger that we will ever run out of anything. " Yet, many people had predicted catastrophic shortages of natural resources that would follow, because of continued population growth. Countries try not to raise this subject to the public much, because they do not want to raise panic.

Nowadays they have to do something about it before it gets out of hand. They try to censor it and sometimes lie. Do you know that the USA itself consumes 50 per cent of all electricity produced on the Earth? The population of the USA is just around 285 millions people. It is an interesting fact.

Overpopulation is like a big magnifying glass making little problems into big ones.

Overpopulation is destroying our environment, lowering the standard of living, and generally degrading the quality of life.

Overpopulation also causes more violence, environmental pollution that reflects on land degradation, tropical forest destruction, global warming and destruction of coral reefs. 6 billion member society has to get a huge food infrastructure, so society start producing genetically made food, which is cheaper than ordinary one but might reflect in the nutrient balance. For example, in China it is prohibited to have more than one child for a couple. There is a very dangerous situation in India. By the year 2025 its population might reach 1.5 billion people.

The planet urgently needs population control. Birth control, abortion and quotas need to be supported, if the planet is to remain habitable in the long term.

Every second five people are born and two people die, so there is a gain of three people. At this rate, the world population is doubling every 40 years and would be: 12 billions in 40 years, 24 billions in 80 years and 48 billions in 120 years. But the Earth could provide food only for 20 billions people.

Sport in Our Life

People all over the world are fond of sports and games.

Sport makes people healthy, keeps them fit, more organized and better disciplined.

It unites people of different classes and nationalities. Many people do sports on their personal initiative. They go in for skiing, skating, table tennis, swimming, volley-ball, football, body-building, etc.

All necessary facilities are provided for them: stadiums, sport grounds, swimming pools, skating rinks, skiing stations, football fields.

Sport is paid much attention to in our activities in the kindergartens. Physical culture is ч compulsory subject at schools and colleges.

Professional sport is also paid much attention to in our country. In city, where I live, there are different sporting societies, clubs and complexes.

Practically all kinds of sports are popular in our country, but football, gymnastics and tennis enjoy the greatest popularity. As for me, I go in for table tennis (ping-pong). It needs mobility, liveliness and much energy. It keeps a person in a good form. I have been playing tennis for five years, but the more I play, the more I like it. I get a real joy taking part in competitions or simply playing with my friends. Sometimes, I go to tennis courts.

Certainly, there's a great distance between my manner of playing and such favourites as Jim Courier, Stephan Edberg, Pete Sampras, Boris Becker, Per Korda, but I do my training with great pleasure and hope to play as well as our best players do.

educational establishments. Gymnastics is a part of children's daily

The Olympic Games

The Olympic Games have a very long history. They began in 777 ВС in Greece and took place every four years for nearly twelve centuries at Olympia. They included many different kinds of sports: running, boxing, wrestling, etc. All the cities in Greece sent their best athletes to Olympia to compete in the Games.

For the period of the Games all the wars stopped. So the Olympic Games became the symbol of peace and friendship. In 394 AD the Games were abolished and were not renewed until many centuries later.

In 1894 French Baron Pierre de Coubertin, addressed all the sports governing bodies and pointed out the significance of sport and its educational value.

Two years later the first modern Olympic Games took place. Of course, the competitions were held in Greece to symbolize the continuation of the centuries-old tradition.

In 1896 the International Olympic Committee was set up. It is the central policy-making body of the Olympic movement. It is formed by the representatives of all countries, which take part in the Olympic Games.

Summer and Winter Games are held separately.

My future profession

Finishing school is the beginning of the independent life for millions of school leavers. Many roads are open before them: technical schools, institutes and universities. But it is not easy thing to choose a profession out of more than 2000 existing in the world. Some pupils follow the advice of their parents, others can't decide even after leaving school. As for me I have made my choice long ago. I want to become a teacher or the Russian language and literature. My choice of this occupation didn't come as sudden flash. During all school years literature was my favourite subject. I have read a lot of books by Russian and foreign writers. I understand that reading books helps people in self-education and in solving different life problems. My parents are also teachers and I know that teaching is a very specific and difficult job. Teachers do not only teach their subjects. They develop their pupils' intellect, form their views and characters, their attitudes to life and to other people. It's a great responsibility. It's not as easy as it may seem at first. But I think that love for children combined with the knowledge I'll get at the Institute would be quite enough to succeed in my work. I'm applying to the philological Department and I am sure my dream will come true sooner or later.

World of jobs

We spend great part of our lives at our jobs, so choosing a right career is one of the most important decisions you will make in your life. Many students finish high school and begin college without a clear idea of what they want to do in future. Part of the problem is the size of the job market itself. With so many kinds of jobs (2000) how can you tell which will interest you? Some of occupations are already overcrowded. In old industries there may be little need for new workers, while new and growing industries will offer jobs now and in the future. Therefor, it is extremely important to explore your choice of occupations from every angle, collect as much information as you can. But above all you must evaluate yourself. Find out where your interests and talents lie. Postponing a decision is an error people make. " I'll get started tomorrow or next week, or next year, " - many people think. These people refuse to face the problem, hoping it will go away. But if you don't take the first step now, how can you plan for the future, how can you take the right way? Such people miss many opportunities. First start with yourself, make a list of your interests, talents and abilities. Most people have a lot of these, but at the beginning they are undeveloped and may not seem outstanding. By concentrating on a few, or on one you may surprise yourself at how good you can get. The interest inventory that follows covers the major fields in which most people find careers: science, art, social service, business, sales and so on. Sometimes we say that someone we know is 'a square peg in a round hole'. This means that person we are talking about is not suited for the job he is doing. Unfortunately, many people in the world are 'square pegs'. But to be a 'square peg' is not a real problem, a real problem for millions of people is to be unemployed. Unemployment especially hits poor and working class families the hardest, not because this people are more likely to be unemployed, but because they don't have financial resource to fall back on. Unemployment exists primarily for two reasons: first - the existence of millions of unemployed people tends to present most of those working from asking for higher wages since they can be replaced easily, second - in their search for profits, corporations are interested in finding the cheapest labor. As for our country more than 10% of our people are unemployed. There is no lack of work force in Russia, but at the resent moment the need for professional workers is increasing. Old industries are overcrowded and it is hard to get new education for people whose age is 35-40 years. The problem of unemployment is also connected with the economic crisis in our country. And I think when this crisis comes to an end the problem of unemployment will not be so urgent.

Newspapers

Newspaper is a publication that presents and comments on the news. Newspapers play an important role in shaping public opinion and informing people of current events. The first newspapers were probably handwritten news-sheets posted in public places. The earliest daily newssheet was " ActaDiurna" (" Daily Events" ) which started in Rome in 59 B.C. The first printed newspaper was Chinese publication called " Dibao" (" Ti - pao" ) started in A.D.700's. It was printed from carved wooden blocks. The first regularly published newspaper in Europe was " Avisa Relation" or " Zeitung", started in Germany in 609

Newspapers have certain advantages over other mass media — magazines, TV and radio. Newspaper can cover more news and in much detail than TV or radio newcast can do. Magazines focus on major national and international events of the preceeding week. But newspaper focuses on local news as well and provides information and comments faster than magazine can do. There are about 1 700 daily and 7 500 weekly newspapers in the US. The circulation of some weeklies is no more than a few hundred of copies per issue and the circulation of some dailies is over a million of copies

There are daily newspapers and weekly newspapers. Daily newspapers print world, national and local news. Many dailies are morning papers, others are afternoon papers. Sunday issues of the dailies are usually larger than the weekday ones. They may include special sections on such topics as entertainment, finance and travel or Sunday magazine, a guide to TV programmes, colored comics. The major dailies in the US are " Christian Science Monitor", " New York Times", " USA Today", " Wall Street Journal", " Washington Post". Weekly newspapers serve usually for smaller areas. They are printed in small communities where people know each other and are interested in activities of their friends and neighbours. Weeklies report of weddings, births, deaths and news of local business and politics. Most weeklies do not print world or national news

Television

Television, also called TV, is one of our most important means of communication. It brings moving pictures and sounds from around the world into millions of homes. The name " Television" comes from Greek word meaning " far", and a Latin word meaning " to see", so the word " tele-vision" means " to see far". About three-fourths of the 1 500 TV stations in the US are commercial stations. They sell advertising time to pay for their operating costs and to make profit. The rest are public stations, which are nonprofit organizations.

Commercial TV stations broadcast mostly entertainment programs because they must attract larger numbers of viewers in order to sell advertising time at high prices. These programs include light dramas called situation comedies; ac- tion-packed dramas about life of detectives, police officers, lawyers and doctors; shows featuring comedians, dancers and singers; movies; quiz shows; soap operas; cartoons. Commercial TV broadcasts also documentaries and talk shows. Documentary is dramatic, but nonfictional presentation of information. It can be programs about people, animals in faraway places or programs on such issues as alcoholism, drug abuse, racial prejudice. On talk shows a host interviews. politicians, TV and movie stars, athlets, authors. There are also sport programs and brief summaries of local, national and international news. Advertising is an important part of commercial TV. Commercials appear between and during most programs. They urge viewers to buy different kinds of products - from dog food to hair spray, and from cars to insurance policies

Public television focuses mainly on education and culture. There are programs on wide range of subjects - from physics and literature to cooking and yoga. Public TV also broadcasts plays, ballets, symphonies as well as programs about art and history. Public TV attracts less viewer than commercial TV

Summer Holidays

The beach is a traditional summer destination for thousands of people. Everyone wants to go to the beach! Sun, surf, and sand are a magnetic lure for millions of visitors. The wealth of things to do includes sunbathing, jogging, boating, fishing and surfing. Ever presented breezes keep the temperature comfortable and the water warn.

Beach cities are the centres for easygoing life styles. The newest trends in youth culture often originate there. For example, the roller-skating craze started on the Venice boardwalk.

Though sea, sun and sand are the same, people try to go to a different place every year, because fauna, and flora, and the air are different.

Spending holidays on the beach is a great rest though many people combine sunbathing with visiting museums and places of interest.

Travelling/Holidays

Modern life is impossible without travelling. Thousands of people travel every day either on business or for pleasure. They can travel by air, by rail, by sea or by road.

Of course, travelling by air is the fastest and the most convenient way, but it is the most expensive too. Travelling by train is slower than by plane, but it has its advantages. You can see much more interesting places of the country you are travelling through.

Modern trains have very comfortable seats. There are also sleeping cars and dining cars which make even the longest journey enjoyable. Speed, comfort and safety are the main advantages of trains and planes. That is why many people prefer them to all other means.

Travelling by sea is very popular. Large ships and small river boats can visit foreign countries and different places of interest within their own country.

As for me, I prefer travelling by car. I think it's very convenient. You needn't reserve tour tickets. You needn't carry heavy suitcases. You can stop wherever you wish, and spend at any place as much time as you like.

Every year my friend and I go somewhere to the South for holidays. The Black Sea is one of the most wonderful places which attracts holiday-makers all over the world. There are many rest-homes, sanatoriums and tourist camps there.

But it is also possible to rent a room or a furnished house for a couple of weeks there. Sometimes, we can place ourselves in a tent on the sea shore enjoying fresh air and the sun all day long.

As a rule, I make new friends there. In the day-time we play volley-ball, tennis, swim in the warm water of the sea and sunbathe. In the evening.

I like to sit on the beach watching the sea and enjoying the sunset. I'm fond of mountaineering. So I do a lot of climbing together with my friends. Time passes quickly and soon we have to make our way back. We return home sunburnt and full of impressions.

Customs and traditions

I am going to tell you about English customs and traditions. First of all, it concerns United Kingdom political system. In Great Britain there is no written constitution, only customs, traditions and precedents. After the English Revolution of Great Britain is a constitutional monarchy headed by King (now Queen, Elizabeth the second). Traditionally the Queen acts only on the advice of her Ministers. She reigns but she does not rule.

Englishmen have traditions not only in political, but in social life. For example, London, the capital of England, is traditionally divided into three parts: the West End, the East end, and the City. The City is a historical, financial and business center of London. The East End is the district inhabited by the workers, and the West End is a fashionable shopping and entertaining center. English people like to spend their free time in numerous pubs where they can have a glass of beer and talk about different things with their friends.

The English are traditional about their meals. They eat eggs and bacon with toasts for breakfast, pudding or apple pie for dessert. Every English family has five o'clock tea. A typical feature of an English house is a fireplace, even when there is central heating in the house.

English people like domestic animals. Every family has a pet: a dog, a cat or a bird.

Politeness is a characteristic feature of Englishmen. They often say " Thank you", " Sorry", " Beg your pardon". Russian people, I think, have to learn this good custom.

Englishmen have many traditional holidays, such as Christmas, St.Valentine's Day, Mother's day, Easter and others.

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