Post by America on Jan 10, 2006 20:32:43 GMT -5
United States of America
Geography
Location: North America, bordering both the North Atlantic Ocean and the North Pacific Ocean, between Canada and Mexico.
Area: 9,629,091 sq km
land: 9,158,960 sq km 9,629,091 sq km
water: 470,131 sq km
Land Boundaries: 12,034 km total
border countries: Canada 8,893 km (including 2,477 km with Alaska), Mexico 3,141 km
note: US Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba is leased by the US and is part of Cuba; the base boundary is 29 km
Coastline: 19,924 km
Natural Resources: coal, copper, lead, molybdenum, phosphates, uranium, bauxite, gold, iron, mercury, nickel, potash, silver, tungsten, zinc, petroleum, natural gas, timber
People
Population: 884,000,000
Ethnic Groups:
white 81.7%, black 12.9%, Asian 4.2%, Amerindian and Alaska native 1%, native Hawaiian and other Pacific islander 0.2% (2003 est.)
note: a separate listing for Hispanic is not included because the US Census Bureau considers Hispanic to mean a person of Latin American descent (including persons of Cuban, Mexican, or Puerto Rican origin) living in the US who may be of any race or ethnic group (white, black, Asian, etc.)
Religions:
Protestant 52%, Roman Catholic 24%, Mormon 2%, Jewish 1%, Muslim 1%, other 10%, none 10%
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97%
Government
Country Name:
conventional long form: United States of America
conventional short form: United States
abbreviation: US or USA
Government Type:
Constitution-based federal republic; strong democratic tradition
Capital:
Washington, DC
Administrative Divisions:
50 states and 1 district*; Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia*, 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
Independance:
4 July 1776 (from Great Britain)
National Holiday:
Independence Day, 4 July
Constitution:
17 September 1787, effective 4 March 1789
Legal Sytem:
federal court system based on English common law; each state has its own unique legal system, of which all but one (Louisiana's) is based on English common law; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive Branch:
chief of state: the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: president is both the chief of state and head of government
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president with Senate approval
elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by a college of representatives who are elected directly from each state; president and vice president serve four-year terms.
Legislative Branch:
bicameral Congress consists of the Senate (100 seats, one-third are renewed every two years; two members are elected from each state by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and the House of Representatives (435 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote to serve two-year terms)
Judicial Branch:
Supreme Court (its nine justices are appointed for life on condition of good behavior by the president with confirmation by the Senate); United States Courts of Appeal; United States District Courts; State and County Courts
Military
Military Branches: Army, Navy and Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard (Coast Guard administered in peacetime by the Department of Homeland Security, but in wartime reports to the Department of the Navy)
Military Service Age and Obligation:
18 years of age
Current Manpower, Active Duty:
1,427,000
Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 67,742,879
females age 18-49: 67,070,144
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 54,609,050
females age 18-49: 54,696,706
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$400 billion
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
3.7%