37. The us banking system

The Federal Reserve System is the central banking system of the United States. The Federal Reserve System is composed of a central Board of Governors in Washington, D.C. and twelve regional Federal Reserve Banks located in major cities throughout the nation. The main tasks of the Federal Reserve are:

• Supervise and Regulate banks

• Implement Monetary Policy by buying and selling U.S. Treasury Bonds

• Maintain a strong payments system

  • Fed cannot issue U.S. Treasury Bonds

• Economic education

• Community outreach

• Economic research

The twelve regional Federal Reserve Banks, established by the Congress, are organized much like private corporations. The Reserve Banks are not operated for profit, and ownership of a certain amount of stock is, by law, a condition of membership in the System. The Federal Reserve System was created via the Federal Reserve Act of 1913. The Federal The Federal Reserve is subject to laws such as the Freedom of Information Act and the Privacy Act. Congress gave the Federal Reserve the autonomy to carry out its responsibilities insulated from political pressure. Each of the Federal Reserve's three parts – the Board of Governors, the regional Reserve banks and the Federal Open Market Committee – operates independently of the federal government. U.S. dollar banknotes have been printed by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing for the Federal Reserve since 1914. 3 main mechanism for manipulating money supply: 1.it can buy or sell treasury securities-selling means reducing the monetary base (take money out of circulation), purchasing – increases monetary base. 2. the discount rate can be changed. 3. can adjust the reserve requirement(only infrequently).

38. The us Population

over 310 million …..more than tripled during the 20th century

with California and Texas currently the most populous states

UN Human Development Index the United States is always in the top ten

two children

surplus of births over deaths

one of the lowest unemployment rates in the world

American babies are healthier than ever before in this country’s history and 99.3 percent will survive to their first birthday

the American population is younger than in other developed nations.

Because the U.S. population is young, education costs are higher

The states that attract newcomers, such as Alaska, Colorado, Georgia, and Texas, tend to have the highest proportion of young people and the smallest proportion of older people

Nearly 5 percent of the earth’s inhabitants live in the United States.

The most densely populated state is New Jersey (372 /sq.km).White 77.11%,

39 Immigration to the United States has been a major source of population growth and cultural change throughout much of the history of the United States. The economic, social, and political aspects of immigration have caused controversy regarding ethnicity, economic benefits, jobs for non-immigrants, settlement patterns, impact on upward social mobility, crime, and voting behavior. The leading emigrating countries to the United States - Mexico, India, the Philippines, and China.

The cheap airline travel post-1960 facilitated travel to the United States, but migration remains difficult, expensive, and dangerous for those who cross the United States–Mexico border illegally. The number of foreign nationals who became legal permanent residents (LPRs) of the U.S. in 2009 as a result of family reunification (66%) outpaced those who became LPRs on the basis of employment skills (13%) and humanitarian reasons (17%).

Recent debates on immigration have called for increasing enforcement of existing laws with regard to illegal immigration to the United States, building a barrier along some or all of the 2,000-mile (3,200 km) U.S.-Mexico border, or creating a new guest worker program. As of April 2010, few of these proposals had become law, though a partial border fence was approved and subsequently canceled.

40. American beliefs & values: American patriotism. American attitude to work. American family. Privacy. American individualism & pragmatism. The American Dream.

Americans value

the ideals of individual liberty, individualism, self-sufficiency, altruism, equality, Judeo-Christian morals, free markets, a republican form of government, democracy, populism, pluralism, feminism, and patriotism.

Individual Freedom: individual rights are guaranteed in the United States Constitution. It is part of the “American dream” to “be your own boss,” and being an entrepreneur.

Education is often regarded as the key to opportunity, including financial security.

a responsibility to improve themselves, to be the best they could be, to develop their talents

The Family

The main purpose is to bring about the happiness of each individual family member. The traditional family values include love and respect for parents, as well as for all members of the family

Privacy.

The notion of individual privacy may make it difficult to make friends

The pragmatism of Americans and their trust in an abundance of resources relates to the American habit of mobility. As a nation of immigrants, Americans have from the beginning shared the assumption that the practical solution to a problem is to move elsewhere and make a fresh start.

American Dream is the faith held by many in the US that through hard work, courage, and determination one can achieve financial prosperity.

The American Dream is popularized in countless rags-to-riches stories and in the portrayal of the good life in adver­tising and on TV shows. It teaches Americans to believe that contentment can be reached through the virtues of thrift, hard work, family loyalty, and faith in the free enterprise system.

The American Dream was a driving factor not only in the gold rushes of the mid to late 1800s, but also in the waves of immigration throughout that century and the following.

In modern times, the American Dream is seen as a possible accomplishment, as all children can go to school and get an education. Criticism: for various reasons, it simply is not possible for everyone to become prosperous through determination and hard work alone.

PATRIOTISM

In this century, national pride has become generally stronger than regional pride. Foreign visitors to America are quick to observe the prevalence of patriotic symbols: flags fly in suburban neighborhoods, bumper stickers announce "I'm proud to be American," the national anthem is played at every sporting event. National holidays such as Thanksgiving and Independence Day intensify the sense of national identity. Yet patriotism in America is in some ways distinct from patriotism in other countries. In many nations, patriotism is essentially the love of the land. American patriotism is concentrated instead upon the particular historic event of the nation's creation as a new start and upon the idea of freedom which inspired the nation's beginnings.

American Family. Privacy.

has one of the highest divorce rates in the world. The majority of divorced people eventually remarry.

the average age at which Americans married was 26.8 for men and 25.1 for women

about 95 percent of men and women are married

Children are expected to be out of the house by their mid 20s. a person over 25 living with their parents is viewed negatively by most Americans

41. US culture as melting pot

Popular use of the melting-pot metaphor is believed to have derived from Israel Zangwill's play The Melting Pot, which was first performed in Washington, D.C. in 1908. The play was an adaptation of William Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet, set by Zangwill in New York City. Traditionally, immigration scholars have seen the phenomenon of assimilation as a relentless economic progression. The hard-working new arrivals struggled along with a new language and at low-paying jobs in order for their sons and daughters to climb the economic ladder, each generation advancing a rung. The idea of multiculturalism which often comes along with political correctness is often put forward as an alternative to assimilation. This theory, which contrasts to the melting pot theory, is described as the salad bowl theory, or, as it is known in Canada, the cultural mosaic. In the multicultural approach, each "ingredient" retains its integrity and flavor, while contributing to a successful final product. Whichever theory is right, the democratic government of the United States lets both the multicultural and the melting-pot approaches to be equally represented and excercised in immigrant communities .

42. The Role of Various Cultural Patterns in the formation of the US Culture.

- political correctness an alternative to assimilation.

- salad bowl theory, or, as it is known in Canada, the cultural mosaic. In the multicultural approach, each "ingredient" retains its integrity and flavor, while contributing to a successful final product.

- hyphenated American is an epithet from the late 19th century to refer to Americans who consider themselves of a distinct cultural origin

- many Americans immigrants or children of immigrants pluralism and led to the formation of the new breed of people

- the major part of the population in the US is becoming bilingual. There are six things that we can see as particularly American: migration, individualism, optimism, religiosity, informality and expansiveness. It needs to be noted, also, that what we admire in ourselves is not always admired elsewhere. Americans are direct, which others often see as rude. We are informal, which others translate as slobbishness. We are optimistic, which can be taken as arrogance. We believe in individualism, which others see as selfishness.

43. Americanization…

A special term implies the influence that the United States of America has on the culture of other countries, substituting their culture with American culture. Americanization can also refer to the process of immigrants to the United States becoming American. During the 20th century, mass entertainment extended the reach of American culture, reversing the direction of influence as Europe and the world became consumers of American popular culture. America became the dominant cultural source for entertainment and popular fashion, from the jeans and T-shirts young people wear to the music groups and rock stars they listen to and the movies they see. People all over the world view American television programs. American entertainment is probably one of the strongest means by which American culture influences the world. The US culture was becoming more diverse as immigrants streamed into the country. American writers of German, Irish, Jewish, and Scandinavian ancestry began to find an audience. Globalization and its concerns have become accepted as the central object of the world agenda (English language). Cultural assimilation is an intense process of consistent integration whereby members of an ethno-cultural group, typically immigrants, or other minority groups, are "absorbed" into an established, generally larger community.

45. British English vs. American English.

number of mother-tongue speakers is now over 300 million, between 500 to 700 million people who use English as a foreign language.

The history of American English counts more than three centuries. The English language first came to North America at the beginning of the 17^th century.

The 1 (early) period ( beginning of the 17^th – end of the 18^th centuries) formation of American dialects of the English language.

The 2 period (19^th-20^th centuries) creation of American variant of the English language. These two periods are almost equal in their duration, but are different in importance.

Very often some words lost their usual meaning in Britain, while in America they continued to be in use. At the end of the 18^th century such English archaisms were considered to be Americanisms.

-driver’s license (am) – driving licence (br)

-gas – petrol

-truck – lorry

-rent a car – hire a car

words which are found in both variants, but which have different meaning in each:

-pavement(тротуар) in AE means any paved road whereas in BE it means the same as sidewalk in AE

-biscuits in AE mean a sort of baked salty bread whereas in BE they mean the same as cookies in AE.

-pants(am)-trousers (BE); pants in BE mean the same as underwear in AE; shorts in AE mean the same as men’s underwear in BE