A Brief Survey of the American Physical Geography

Read the States

Utah

Vermont Virginia

Washington West Virginia Wyoming

Lead-inListen to this song and learn the pronunciation of the 50 states names in the USA. Fifty Nifty United States

Fifty Nifty United StatesFifty Nifty United States from thirteen original colonies; Fifty Nifty stars in the flag that billows so beautifully in the breeze. Each individual state contributes a quality that is great. Each individual state deserves a bow, We salute them now. Fifty Nifty United States from thirteen original colonies, Shout 'em, scout 'em, Tell all about 'em, One by one, til we've given a name to every state in the USAAlabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan. Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming

North, South, East, West in our common, objective opinion Is the Best of the Fifty Nifty United States from thirteen original colonies Shout 'em, scout'em, tell all about 'em One by One, till we've given a name to every state in the good old U....S...A

Brief factsArea: 9,372,610 km250 states48 conterminous statesHawaii and AlaskaVariety in physical features and climate Moist rain forestArid desertBald mountain

Mount McKinley (Denali) In Alaska (6,194 m)- the highest point in North America

Death Valley the lowest pointIn California - lowest point, 89 meters below sea level - a land of extremes (-0C 540C

Division of regionsThe regions of the United States can be grouped by history, traditions, economy, climate, and geography

Division of regions

The Eastern PartThe coastal plainsThe Appalachian MountainsThe Central PartThe Central Plains The Great PlainsThe Western Part = CordilleraThe Rocky MountainsThe Sierra Nevada and the CascadesThe Coastal Ranges along the western coast

Main physical features in the regionsGood soilCordilleras(Alaska- Nicagagua)

The Western edge of the American Cordillera

River systemThe Mississippi river is the second-longest river in the US; The longest is the Missouri River, which flows into the Mississippi

MississippiIndian word meaning great river or gathering of waters is one of the world's major river systems in size, habitat diversity, and biological productivity

Weather and Climate

Weather and ClimateHot and humid summer and cold winter

Extreme variations in temperature and precipitation

Especially in DakotaMaximum temperature: 49oCMinimum temperature: -60oC

Summer sunflowers in North Dakota

North Dakota winter

Weather and ClimateA range of climate-related calamitiesHurricanes in the Southeasttornadoes on the Plains, flooding around main rivers, snowstorms in the mountains forest fires in the dry West and California

Lack of natural barriersCold, dry airHot, humid air=> TORNADOES

Tornadoes

HURRICANES

Florida hurricanes

Hurricane Katrina 2005 in Louisiana

Calamities in the U.S.2007 Midwest flood along Kishwaukee River, Illinois

Calamities in the U.S.Snowstorms or blizzards happenBlizzard of 1888, Park Place in Brooklyn NY. In this blizzard, 400 people were killed and 200 ships were sunk

Calamities in the U.S.Forest fires in the West and CaliforniaForest fire in Oregon

Wildfire in California, October 2007

Natural ResourcesHuge array of natural resources (Timber, coal, petroleum and natural gas)

Large metal deposits (Iron, zinc, copper, silver, lead, gold, nickel)

The nations power supply

An exploration of the American Human Geography

HUMAN geography1. Population2. Ethnic groups3. Languages in the US

1. Population-General Statistics (2005 )

Total: 295,734,134 3rd largestMale: 48.9Female: 51.1%Population density: 31.8 persons/km2Population distribution: 80% urban20% ruralA lot of immigrants

2. Ethnic groups (2003)White: 81.7%Black: 12.9%Asian (Orient American): 4.2%Amerindian (Native American) and Alaska native: 1%Native Hawaiian and other Pacific islander: 0.2%

Hispanic is not included

HispanicsLatin American descent - Mexican (50%), El Salvador, Colombia, Cuban, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rican)Living in the US = of any race or ethnic group (white, black, Asian, etc.)Using Spanish in their homesHaving lower economic and educational levelLiving mostly in California, Texas, New York, Illinois, and Florida

The White Americans

The ASIAN Americans

States by Total Population1234

INCOMES AMONG THE ETHNIC GROUPS

Languages spoken in the US

LanguagesNo official languageEnglish is used for legislation, regulations, executive orders, treaties, etc.English, Hawaiian and Spanish are official in some states

Top Ten Languages in the USAccording to the 2000 census, the main languages by number of speakers older than 5 are:English - 215 millionSpanish - 28 million Chinese - 2.0 millionFrench - 1.6 million German - 1.4 million Tagalog - 1.2 million (Philippines) Vietnamese - 1.01 million Italian - 1.01 millionKorean - 890,000 Russian - 710,000 Native American languages: moribund = dying(200,000 speakers)

Nifty= dung mot , dien sop, thuan tienScout: theo doi sat saoThe U.S. is located in the center of the North American continent. It is bordered by Canada to the north, and Mexico to the south. On the east is the Atlantic Ocean, and on the west, is the Pacific Ocean. In addition to the 48 continental states, Alaska and Hawaii are included, for a grand total of 50 states.

5,825,115 square miles 45% of the continent the United States is the third-largest country on earth (by size), right behind Russia and Canada.Hawaii islands were formed by volcanic activity and there are still a number of active volcanoesLargest state: AlaskaSmallest state: Rhode Islandthe highest mountain peak in North America and is located in the central portion of the Alaska Range has a larger bulk and rise than Mount Everest coldest mountain in the world outside of Antarctica--its combination of great height, high latitude, and terrible weather are literally unique. The summit area is below zero degrees Fahrenheit almost all of the time, Hottest, Driest, Lowest:Temperatures in the Valley can range from up to 130F (54 C) in the day in the summer, to below freezing at night in the winter. )Death Valley is located on the border of California and Nevada The Appalachian Mountains =including areas in the states of Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, and North Carolina The Great Plains = North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, parts of New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming and Montana

Appalachian mountains: huge concentration of heavy industry (pl'chn Cordilleras: mountain system of Western North America from Alaska to Nicaragua. In America, the Cordilleras account for 1/3 of the area

The western edge of the American Cordillera is characterized by a coastal chain of high mountains among which there are broad fertile valleys. The most important ranges are the Sierra Nevada and the Cascades in the eastern part and the Coastal Ranges along the western coast. The Mississippi River has the third largest drainage basin ("catchment") in the world, exceeded in size only by the watersheds of the Amazon River and Congo River. Every type of climateMost has a temperate climateArid (desert-like) - The hottest semiarid (dry, almost desert-like)Hurricanes and tornadoes both form in warm, damp air when winds blow into each other from opposite directions. Hurricanes develop over warm, tropical oceans, while tornadoes form over land and are more violent. Not only does it have very different geographic regions, but the U.S. has a huge array of natural resources such as timber, coal, petroleum, and natural gas. In addition, it has large metal deposits of copper, lead, uranium, gold, iron, nickel, silver and zinc. As you can imagine, the mining industry in the U.S. is extensive. The third most populous country in the world, after China and India A lot of immigrants

The black are at the bottom of the economic and educational table (higher unemployment rate due to racial discrimination)Most populous states: California, Texas, New York (NY- 19m=1/2CA 36m), Florida