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2. a) Listen, then read the article and match its seven paragraphs to the topics from a) to g) noted after the text.
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THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(1) 'The United States of America' is a name of the country composed of 50 states joined in a federal republic, and its citizens are known as 'Americans'.
In the north the US is bordered by Canada, and in the south it borders on Mexico. It is washed by the Atlantic Ocean in the East and by the Pacific Ocean in the West.
(2) Hawaii, which became the 50th state in 1959, is situated in the Pacific Ocean halfway between the west-coast states and the Far East.
Alaska is separated from Russia by only about 50 miles across the Bering Strait.
(3) The main part of the United States consists of several physical divisions', including highland and lowland regions. Major highlands are the Appalachian [.asps'leitjian] Mountains in the east and the Rocky Mountains in the west.
The Rocky Mountains extend from Mexico to Canada. The mountains are crossed by streams which flow through deep canyons and fall into the Pacific Ocean. The largest among them are the Colorado LkDla'raidao] and the Columbia [,кз'Іа:тЬіз] rivers.
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These rivers are unsuitable for navigation, but they serve as an immense source of electric power.
The central lowland between the two main mountain ranges makes up the basin2 of the Mississippi [.misi'si pi] River. Its main tributaries are the Missouri [mi'soari] and the Ohio [ao'haiao] Rivers. The Mississippi together with the Missouri form the longest river in the world (7,300 km).
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