| Part 1 comprise - contiguous - archipelago - estimated - ; diverse - descend - indigenous - , conquistador - hemisphere - issue - , independence - self-determination - establishment - , rebellious - defeat - ; ratification - , amendment - fundamental - , everglade - , tributary - abundant- , sulfur - salt - | corn - ; soybean - per-capita - vehicle - ownership - , currency - confirm - military - ; permanent - dissolution - Part 2 secede - ; representative - declare - ; approve - veto - ; appoint - officer - , enforce - ; overturn - ; () election - competitive - ranking - spectator - ; predate - influence - |
4. Readand translate the following text.
Part 1. The USA. History, geography and economy
1. The United States of America (commonly called the United States, the U.S., the USA, America, and the States) is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its forty-eight contiguous states and Washington, D.C., the capital district, lie between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, bordered by Canada to the north and Mexico to the south. The state of Alaska is in the northwest of the continent, with Canada to the east and Russia to the west across the Bering Strait. The state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific. The country also possesses several territories in the Pacific and Caribbean.
2. At 3.79 million square miles (9.83 million km2) and with over 309 million people (including an estimated 11.2 million illegal immigrants) the United States is the world's third largest nation by total area (land and water). It is, by far, one of the world's most ethnically diverse (White 63.7%, Black/African American - 12.3%, Hispanic/Latino (of any race) 16.4%, Asian 4.7%, other 2.9%) and multicultural nations, the product of large-scale immigration from many countries. 80% of the people in the United States descend from European immigrants. The largest cities with populations over 2 million are New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Houston.
3. In 1492, Genoese explorer Christopher Columbus, under contract to the Spanish crown, reached several Caribbean islands, making first contact with the indigenous people. On April 2, 1513, Spanish conquistador Juan Ponce de León landed on what he called "La Florida"the first documented European arrival on what would become the U.S. mainland. In 1507, German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller produced a world map on which he named the lands of the Western Hemisphere "America" after Italian explorer and cartographer Amerigo Vespucci.
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4. The United States was founded by thirteen British colonies located along the Atlantic seaboard. On July 4, 1776, they issued the Declaration of Independence, which proclaimed their right to self-determination and their establishment of a cooperative union. The rebellious states defeated the British Empire in the American Revolution, the first successful colonial war of independence. The current United States Constitution was adopted on September 17, 1787; its ratification the following year made the states part of a single republic with a stronger central government. The Bill of Rights, comprising ten constitutional amendments guaranteeing many fundamental civil rights and freedoms, was ratified in 1791.
5. The United States, with its large size and geographic variety, includes most climate types. Extreme weather is not uncommonthe states bordering the Gulf of Mexico are prone to hurricanes, and most of the world's tornadoes occur within the country. The USA geography varies a lot and includes: forests and grass fields on the east coast; the Appalachian Mountains in the east; the Great Plains in the middle of the country; the Mississippi-Missouri river in the middle of the country; the Rocky Mountains west of the plains; deserts and coastal areas west of the Rocky Mountains; forests in the Pacific Northwest; Arctic regions of Alaska; volcanic islands in Hawaii; a long coastline with many beaches; the everglades in Florida. The greatest rivers of the USA are the Colorado, the Columbia, the Mississippi with its tributaries the Missouri and the Ohio, the St. Lawrence river and the Hudson river.
6. The United States has a capitalist mixed economy, which is fueled by abundant natural resources, a well-developed infrastructure, and high productivity. It is the world's number one producer of electrical and nuclear energy, as well as liquid natural gas, sulfur, phosphates, and salt. The United States is the world's top producer of corn and soybeans. The United States has the highest rate of per-capita vehicle ownership in the world, two for every three Americans. The U.S. dollar is the world's primary reserve currency.
7. The SpanishAmerican War and World War I confirmed the country's status as a military power. It emerged from World War II as the first country with nuclear weapons and a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council. The end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union left the United States as the sole superpower. The country accounts for 41% of global military spending, and is a leading economic, political, and cultural force in the world.
