Exercises

1. Translate into Russian.

The official language; at the beginning, European colonies; mostly belonged to Britain; economic policy; the War of Independence; the equality of all people; to be independent of Great Britain; the equality of all people; the pursuit of happiness; stars and stripes; the economy is dominated; a giant new industry.

2. Complete the following sentences.

1. The United States of America is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the east, the Pacific to the west, Canada ….

2. At the beginning of the 17^th century European colonies began ….

3. The War of Independence of the American began….

4. The new state was called the United States of America and July 4….

5. From 1959 the federation ….

6. The President of the USA is the head ….

7. The head of the legislative power ….

8. The philosophy of US government proclaims ….

9. The flag of the United States is called ….

10. The main political parties in the USA ….

11. Large reserves of oil, coal, iron and other minerals are ….

12. The economy is dominated by ….

3. Answer the questions.

1. Where is the USA situated?

2. What´s the total area of the country?

3. What countries does the USA border on?

4. What´s the population of the United States?

5. When the Declaration of Independence was adopted?

6. Who was the first President of the USA?

7. How many states are there in the USA?

8. What can you say about the US political system?

9. What are the President´s functions?

10. What do you know about the American Flag?

11. What are the main political parties?

12. Is the country rich in natural resources?

13. How can you characterize the industrial development of the country?

14. Is the US agriculture highly mechanized and commercialized?

4. Read the following texts. What do you think? Try to guess the main idea of the texts. Discuss each text in group.

a). “The business of America is business”, US President Calvin Coolidge once said. Millions of people are employed in business. Secretaries, accountants and computer operators work for many different kinds of companies. Many office workers dream of working their way up to the top from messenger to president of the corporation. It is still possible to start out at the bottom and go all the way to the top, for example, some accountants become top executives; people with an engineering background can also rise to the top. Nowadays, however, education plays a central role in the selection of men and women for management jobs. Many US universities have courses in business administration.

b). The United States is rich in natural resources, the main being iron ore, coal and oil. The nation produces more than 100 million tons of iron a year. Four fifth of the ore mined in the USA comes from the Great Lakes region. Most of the coal mined in the USA is used by power plants to produce electricity. Coal is also used in the chemical industries for the manufacture of plastics and other synthetics. The production, processing and marketing of such oil products as petrol make up one of America´s largest industries.

The USA is an industrial country with various branches of heavy industry prevailing, namely, mining, metallurgical, automobile and chemical industries. Many branches of light industry are also developed, among them are textile, food and woodworking industries.

New industries are created as new discoveries are made in physics, chemistry and other sciences. Atomic energy has created a wide range of new industries. Electronics has become a major industry.

Rapid development of communication means has facilitated cooperation and control but increased competition. Competition is a struggle for survival, victory being on the side of professionals. Special emphasis is being laid on management training. A great number of schools and colleges are training people to become industrial leaders.

5. Speak about the USA