1、CanadaGeographyCanada makes up 41 percent of North America.The northernmost perminant settlement is in Canada, Canadian Forces Station (CFS) Alert on the northern tip of Ellesmere Island, just 834 kilometres from the North PoleCanada is the worlds second largest province or territory, after Russia.
2、Even with its size, Canada is one of the lowest population density of any of the provinces or territories in the world.HistoryThe Vikings were the first known Europeans to have settled in Canada, several centuries before Columbus, though their settlements did not last.The French were the first Europ
3、eans to make lasting settlements, starting with Arcadia and Quebec.England gained control over Canada by the 1763 Treaty of Paris after they defeated France in the French and Indian wars.The United States invaded Canada during the war of 1812.The road to Canadas independence started with the 1840 Ac
4、t of Union.CultureThe Inuit, better known as the Eskimos, are one of the many native tribes of Canada.The Hudson Bay Company, which began with the Canadian fur trade, is the oldest company in North America.The French of Quebec struggles with desires to become independent.EcologyThe moose is native t
5、o Canada and a national symbol, appearing in the coat of arms of several provinces.The Canadian goose is often to be seen as it migrates south for the winter.Polar Bears live in the cold artic parts of Canada.了解美国到内战的历史Christopher Columbus (1451-1506) was an Italian explorer who sailed across the At
6、lantic Ocean in 1492, hoping to find a route to India (in order to trade for spices). He made a total of four trips to the Caribbean and South America during the years 1492-1504, sailing for King Ferdinand II and Queen Isabella of Spain. On his first trip, Columbus led an expedition with three ships
7、, the Nia, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria. 2Vespucci, AmerigoAmerigo Vespucci (1454-1512) was an Italian explorer who was the first person to realize that the Americas were separate from the continent of Asia. America was named for him in 1507, when the German mapmaker Martin Waldseemller, printed t
8、he first map that used the name America for the New World. 3. MayflowerThe Mayflower was the name of the ship in which the 102 Pilgrims sailed from England to what is now Massachusetts, on the northeastern coast of the USA. The Pilgrims landed on December 11, 1620.4colonies1. The thirteen colonies w
9、ere colonies of what country? _ 2. Which colony was farthest north? _ 3. Which colony was farthest south? _ 4. The colonies were bounded by the Appalachian Mountains on the west. What ocean bordered the colonies on the east? _ 5. The oldest colony was Virginia (founded in 1607). Which colony was jus
10、t south of Virginia? _ 6. The colony of Virginia contained what are now the states of Virginia and West Virginia. What colony bordered Virginia to the northeast? _ 7. The colony of Massachusetts was composed of what are now the states of Massachusetts and Maine. What colony was between the two parts
11、 of Massachusetts? _ 8. What colony was located east of Connecticut? _ 9. The colony of New York contained what are now the states of Vermont and New York. What two colonies bordered the colony of New York on the south? _ and _ 10. In what year did the 13 colonies declare their independence from Bri
12、tain? _ 5. Declaration of IndependenceThe Declaration of Independence is a document drafted by Thomas Jefferson and issued on 4th of July, 1776, in which the 13 United Colonies declared that they were free and not subject to the government of Great Britain.6. American Revolutionary WarThe American R
13、evolutionary War (1775-1783), also known as the American War of Independence, was a war started by the 13 colonies in North America, who wanted their indpendence from Great Britian. The colonists revolted against British rule and taxation without representation. The war began on April 19, when Briti
14、sh regulars fired on the Minutemen of Lexington, Mass. France, Spain, and the Netherlands helped the colonists against Britian. In 1783, the Treaty of Paris formalized the independence of the United States of America.7.Founding FathersThe the “Founding Fathers“ of the USA are those men who participa
15、ted in the creation of the United States of America and the US Constitution. Some of the more famous of these writers and signers of the Declaration of Independence and/or the US Constitution are George Washington (the first President of the USA), Thomas Jefferson, James Madison (the fourth Presiden
16、t of the USA), Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, John Hancock, Alexander Hamilton, and others.8. Civil WarThe US Civil War (April 12, 1861 - April 9, 1865) was a deadly conflict fought within the USA. The 11 southern US states (who called themselves the Confederate States of America) wanted to leave th
17、e United States of America over issues of slavery and states rights (the exact cause of the Civil War is still hotly debated, but the South wanted to continue owning slaves, who labored on cotton plantations, and did not want the Federal Government to interfere with their local laws). The Confederac
18、y fought the Union (the 23 northern US states). The Civil War began soon after President Abraham Lincoln was elected; Lincoln opposed the expansion of slavery into new US states. The war began on April 12, 1861, when Confederate troops attaked Fort Sumter, South Carolina. The South did well at the s
19、tart of the war, but began to lose tothe North around 1863 (the time of the Battle of Gettysburg in Pennsylvania). Lincoln was assassinated soon before the end of the war. During the Civil War, over half a million Americans died and almost one million were injured. On April 9, 1865, the southern Gen
20、eral Robert E. Lee surrendered to the nothern General Ulysses S. Grant. The North won the war, and slavery in the USA was abolished. Gettysburg AddressThe Gettysburg Address was a short speech given by President Abraham Lincoln at the dedication of the National Cemetary at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania,
21、during the Civil War (November 1863). In his two-minute speech, Linoln stated how a country must be dedicated to human freedom in order to survive. Lincolns historic speech follows: “Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth, upon this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, an
22、d dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation, so conceived, and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met here on a great battlefield of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of it as a final
23、 resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this. But in a larger sense we can not dedicate - we can not consecrate - we can not hallow this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled, here, have con
24、secrated it far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember, what we say here, but can never forget what they did here. It is for us, the living, rather to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they have, thus far, so nobly carried on. It is rather
25、for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us - that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they here gave the last full measure of devotion - that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain; that this nation shall have
26、a new birth of freedom; and that this government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.“1.Ku Klux klan Ku Klux Klan, often abbreviated KKK and informally known as the Klan, is the name of three distinct past and present far-right5678 organizations in the Unite
27、d States, which have advocated extremist reactionary currents such as white supremacy, white nationalism, and anti-immigration, historically expressed through terrorism.6. Why did USA enter the World war II?7. Great DepressionThe Great Depression began with the Wall Street Crash of October, 1929 and
28、 rapidly spread worldwide. The market crash marked the beginning of a decade of high unemployment, poverty, low profits, deflation, plunging farm incomes, and lost opportunities for economic growth and personal advancement. Although its causes are still uncertain and controversial, the net effect wa
29、s a sudden and general loss of confidence in the economic future.18. New DealThe New Deal was a series of economic programs implemented in the United States between 1933 and 1936. They were passed by the U.S. Congress during the first term of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The programs were Roosev
30、elts responses to the Great Depression, and focused on what historians call the “3 Rs“: Relief, Recovery, and Reform.11. The Black American Civil RightsKing Jr., Martin LutherMartin Luther King, Jr. (1929-1968) was a great man who worked for racial equality in the USA. He was born on January 15, 192
31、9, in Atlanta, Georgia. After graduating from college and getting married, Dr. King became a minister and moved to Alabama. During the 1950s, Dr. King became active in the movement for civil rights and racial equality. He participated in the Montgomery, Alabama, bus boycott and many other peaceful d
32、emonstrations that protested the unfair treatment of African-Americans. He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. Dr. King was assassinated on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee. Commemorating the life of a tremendously important leader, we celebrate Martin Luther King Day each year in January.14Parks
33、, RosaRosa Parks (February 4, 1913 - October 24, 2005) was a pivotal figure in the fight for civil rights. On December 1, 1955, a Montgomery, Alabama, bus driver ordered Mrs. Parks to give up her seat to a white man. When she refused, she was fined and arrested. This incident prompted a city-wide bu
34、s boycott, which eventually resulted in a Supreme Court ruling that segregation on city buses is unconstitutional.Pre-test1. What is the most important river in England? The Thames2. Which season is generally regarded the best in Britain? summer3. Whats the most important port in Great Britain? Lond
35、on4. What does the term “old university” in Britain refer to? OxbridgeOxford MA, MS; Ph. D (MBA-NBA)Bachelors / Masters/ Doctors Degrees 6. What is Reuters? news service/ agency7. What does BBC stand for? (p.212/211)radio companyBritish Broadcasting Corporation (1922)B.B.C. World Service8. What is t
36、he most typical British sport? cricket (p.215)9. Is it possible for the young people to get married without their parents consent? Y10. What is the most influential character of the English people? exclusiveness(p.278/287)11. What is TOEFL?Test of English as a Foreign LanguageGRE - Graduate Record E
37、xaminationIELTS-International English Language Testing System雅思-国际英语语言测试系统12. What is the “Stars two crashed into the twin towers of the World Trade Center, one crashed into the Pentagon and the fourth crashed in a field in Pennsylvania. Over three thousand people were killed.14、13 equal horizontal
38、stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white; there is a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner bearing 50 small, white, five-pointed stars arranged in nine offset horizontal rows of six stars (top and bottom) alternating with rows of five stars; the 50 stars represent the 50 states
39、, the 13 stripes represent the 13 original colonies; known as Old Glory; the design and colors have been the basis for a number of other flags, including Chile, Liberia, Malaysia, and Puerto RicoBackground:Britains American colonies broke with the mother country in 1776 and were recognized as the ne
40、w nation of the United States of America following the Treaty of Paris in 1783. During the 19th and 20th centuries, 37 new states were added to the original 13 as the nation expanded across the North American continent and acquired a number of overseas possessions. The two most traumatic experiences
41、 in the nations history were the Civil War (1861-65) and the Great Depression of the 1930s. Buoyed by victories in World Wars I and II and the end of the Cold War in 1991, the US remains the worlds most powerful nation state. The economy is marked by steady growth, low unemployment and inflation, an
42、d rapid advances in technology. 1. Origin of the Name Alabama - Alabama means “tribal town“ in the language of the local Creek IndiansOrigin of the Name Alaska - The word Alaska is from the Aleut Indian word “alaxsxaq“ or “agunalaksh“ that mean the mainland or shore. Origin of the Name Colorado - Th
43、e word Colorado is Spanish for the “color red,“ and refers to the muddy Colorado RiverThe name Connecticut is from a Mohican/Algonquin Indian word “quonehtacut“, which means “long tidal river.“ Illinois comes from the word Illini, a confederation of the Cahokia, Kaskaskia, Michigamea, Moingwena, Peo
44、ria and Tamaroa Indian tribes.Origin of the Name Kansas - Kansas was named for Konza (also called Kansa or Kaw) Indians who lived in the area. Kentucky is from the Iroquois Indian word “Ken-tah-ten,“ which means “land of tomorrow.“ Massachusetts was named for an Algonquian Indian word that means “a
45、big hill place.“ Origin of the Name Mississippi - Mississippi is perhaps from the Ojibwa (Chippewa) Indian words “mici zibi,“ which means “great river“ or “gathering of waters“Origin of the Name Oregon - The origin is unknown. It may have come from the French word Ouragan (which means Hurricane) and
46、 was a former name of the Columbia RiverOrigin of the Name Texas - The Caddo Indians of eastern Texas called their group of tribes the “Tejas,“ meaning “those who are friends“.Origin of the Name Virginia - Virginia was named for Queen Elizabeth I of England (she was known as the Virgin Queen). Sir W
47、alter Raleigh may have suggested this name around 1584. Origin of the Name New York - The English took over of the area that had been called “New Netherland“ in 1664, and renamed it New York to honor of the Duke of York (York is a city in England). Origin of the Name Missouri - Missouri was named fo
48、r an Algonquian Indian word that means “river of the big canoes.“ State Nickname - The Show Me State艾美奖An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as an Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards (for film), the Tony Award (for theatre), and the Grammy Awards (for music).121. General Election21. Primaries22. National convention23. General election24. Election day25. Electoral collegeThe CabinetT
