THE UNITED STATES
AKA # 30, 31, 33-52
The Natural Regions of the U.S.
Coastal Plains
Appalachian Highlands
Interior Plains / Central Plains (page 88)
Interior Highlands
Canadian Shield
Rocky Mtns.
Inter mountain Region
Pacific Mtns. & Valleys
History of North America & United States
The first people on the N.A. continent:
Where did they come from?
How did they get here?
Why did many Europeans come to the New World in the 1500's? Recent Immigration - page 107-108
Spain is the most powerful country until 1588
The French settled in the St. Lawrence River valley
The English settled along the Atlantic coast
French & Indian War -1763 for control of N. America - page 112-114
We get our independence in 1776/1783
Canada gets their independence in 1931
Today - U.S. is the #1 economic & military power in the world - Why?
Industrialization takes three critical things:
People / Labor Supply
Resources
Transportation - 50,000 mile network of freeways - about 25% of the total freight hauled in the U.S. is carried by the trucking industry.
U.S. Population - 265 - 275 million
U.S. Rank in size - (cartogram on page 144)
WHAT IS OUR U.S. GOVERNMENT LIKE TODAY & HOW IS IT SET UP?
SEPARATION OF POWERS & THE THREE BRANCHES OF GOVERNMENT
LEGISLATIVE - CONGRESS - MAKES LAWS
EXECUTIVE - PRESIDENT - ENFORCES THE LAWS
JUDICIAL - COURTS (SUPREME) - INTERPRET LAWS
CONGRESS
House of Reps Senate
435 # 100
2 years TERM 6 years
none TERM LIMIT none
PRESIDENT SUPREME COURT
SYSTEM OF CHECKS & BALANCES
Presidential Election -- Electoral College -- Do you know how it works?
Northeastern USA
Middle ^^^^^ New
Atlantic ^^^^^ England
States ^^^^^ States
(Green Mtns.
of Vermont)
Approximately 1/20 of the U.S. land is here, but about 1/4 of the population lives here - Population Density p. 87
Land is hilly & rocky / farming is difficult
MFG - employs more northeasterners than any other industry
Oldest U.S. cities are here / Urban Renewal
Largest city is here / New York City
Megalopolis / Urban Sprawl
National Capital / Washington, D.C. - service industry - #1 here - they serve people instead of producing something (the service industry employs more people than any other industry in our economy)
Financial Capital / New York City
Insurance center of the country - NY/CN
Pittsburgh, PA is the #1 steel city
Midwest USA
This region has excellent:
Land - flat & fertile
Climate
Resources
Transportation
Population
*** Therefore, this is the #1 AG and IND region the country!
AGRICULTURE
Midwest Farms produce:
40% of the world supply of corn
50% of the world supply of soybean
10% of the world supply of wheat
Kansas & N. Dakota are the two leading wheat producing states
Wisconsin leads in dairy farming and has more milk cows than any other state
INDUSTRY
The largest STEEL producing region in the country is Gary, IN ------- Chicago, IL
Automobile Industry - Detroit, MI
SOUTHERN USA
aka "The Sunbelt"
Land is made up of Coastal Plains & Highlands
Farming has historically been centered around cotton & tobacco / large plantations created the need for large supplies of slave labor in early history
Piedmont / Fall Line determined the development of cities
Forest - Appalachian region produces 1/2 of all the U.S. lumber
Coal - W. Va. & KY produce 1/2 of all U.S. coal
Steel - Birmingham is called the "Pittsburgh of the South"
Textiles - this region leads the country in the production of textiles
Texas produces (or can produce) more oil than any other country in the world except S. Arabia, former USSR, Iran
Texas produces 1/6 of the world supply of Natural Gas
Western USA
The fastest growing region
Continental Divide is here / Rocky Mtns.
AG is limited to certain valleys like the Central Valley & Willamette Valley
Large scale livestock raising / grazing
Ranches - Cattle
Farmers - Wheat
This region lacks supplies of fresh water
Industry - primarily located in the states of CA, OR, WA
Timber 1/2 of the U.S. supply comes from CA, WA, OR, AK
California has 25-30 million people (Canada) - if it were a nation it would rank about the 8th largest industrial power in the world.
CANADA
Made up of 10 Provinces & 3 Territories
(Nunavut is the new territory)
Physical size -
Population - (Map page 95)
Capital city -
Canada's Government is tied to Britain - page 117
Canadian provinces are much more independent from the national gov't than our U.S. states are --- example is Quebec p. 90
Canada's major trading partner is the U.S.A.
Capitalist economy just like the USA
Bilingual nation --- page 119
Major cities are usually located around the Great Lakes - due to the Canadian Shield effects on the land
Forest cover about 1/2 of Canada
#1 in the world in newsprint
#2 in the world in wood pulp production
AGRICULTURE
80% of their farms are located in the "Prairie Provinces" of Manitoba, Alberta & Saskatchewan
Dairy Farming #1 in Quebec & Ontario
Fishing - the Grand Banks off the coast of Newfoundland
INDUSTRY
MFG is the #1 industry in Canada / most MFG is located in Ontario along the Great Lakes region
Mining is the fastest growing industry in Canada
The service industry employs more people than any other industry
Most industries are U.S. owned & the U.S. is Canada's largest trading partner --- 70%
The economy of the U.S. & Canada are very "interdependent"
Most Important Waterway is the Great Lakes & the St. Lawrence Seaway - p. 91 - the St. Lawrence Seaway is a system of canals and locks connecting the Great Lakes and the Atlantic Ocean - TRADE
NAFTA - North American Free Trade Agreement
(US, Mexico, Canada)
Acid Rain - What is it?
Pollution from the burning of gas, oil, and coal that mixes with water vapor.
15,000 Canadian lakes have "died" from acid rain
Use the Back Button on the Browser to Return to the main page.
