英美概况-美.doc

An Introduction to USA Part Ⅶ The U. S. A. Geographical Features 1. Vast area: bigger in area than the whole of Europe, spreading from the Pacific coast to the Atlantic coast. 9,360,000 square kilo2. 2. Diversity of land features: it comprehends land features like forest, desert, swamp, mountains, plains and rivers. Geographical Divisions Three basic areas: 1. the Atlantic Seacoast west to the Appalachian Mountains. 2. the great Mississippi River Basin between the Appalachian and the Rocky Mountains. 3. the Rockies west to the Pacific Ocean. New England 1. north-eastern six states: Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island. 2. This area resembles old England in many ways. 3. small-scale, long-established and urban. The South 1. It refers to the area across the Potomac River and southwards down the Atlantic coast. 2. This was slave-owning area before the Civil War, mainly produced tobacco and cotton. 3. Economically backward. The Middle West 1. the north-eastern part of the central plain, except for the states close to the Atlantic. 2. In terms of political geography, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Wisconsin, Ohio. 3. first developed for farming. 4. 2 big cities: Chicago, Detroit. Rivers and Lakes 1. Mississippi River: 6,400 kilos from its northwestern source in the Rockies to the Gulf of Mexico. 2. The Missouri River: 3,725 kilos, rises in southwest Montana and joins the Mississippi at St. Louis. 3. The Ohio River: 1,500 kilos, runs from the rainy east and joins the Mississippi at Cario, Illinois. 4. The Colorado River: 2,330 kilos, rises in the snow-capped Rocky mountains. 1. Great Lakes Five big lakes: Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, Lake Huron, Lake Erie, and Lake Ontario. 2. the great Salt Lake in northwest Utah. The People Population: 230,000,000 1. White: 83.2% 2. Black: 11.7% 3. Other races: 5.1% (1,420,000 Indians, 17,000,000 Hispanics, 800,000 Chinese) American Indians They were migrants from eastern Siberia an