Physical geography texts.pdf

Text 1. Physical Geography 1. Before you read on, answer the questions. 1.Which of the following countries is the nearest continental neighbor to Great Britain? a) Denmark b) Ukraine c) Portugal d) France 2. Which of these cities are close to the same line of 7 as London?...

Text 1. Physical Geography 1. Before you read on, answer the questions. 1.Which of the following countries is the nearest continental neighbor to Great Britain? a) Denmark b) Ukraine c) Portugal d) France 2. Which of these cities are close to the same line of 7 as London? a) Berlin, Kyiv and Moscow b) New York, Vancouver and Calcutta c) Warsaw, Vancouver and Calcutta d) Berlin, Warsaw and Vancouver 3.Which of these islands is about the same size as Great Britain? a) Ireland b) Iceland c) Cuba d) Honshu 4.Which areas in Britain have most rainfall? a) the West and North b) the West and East c) the North and South d) the North and East Now read the text below to check your answers Britain includes Great Britain (comprising England, Scotland and Wales) and Northern Ireland, and lies off the northwest coast of mainland Europe. It is 500km wide and nearly 1,000 km long. Its closest continental neighbors are France and Belgium. It lies between latitudes 50 North and 60 North. London, the capital, is close to the same line of latitude as Berlin, Vancouver and Warsaw. Great Britain is the largest island in Europe and the ninth largest in the world. It is about the same size as Honshu, the biggest of the islands that make up Japan, and about twice a size the size of Iceland or Cuba. Although it is as close to the North Pole as eastern Siberia or Hudson Bay, Britain has a warmer climate. While the British climate is very changeable, temperatures rarely fall below - 10 C (14 F) or go above 32C (90 F). Rainfall is fairly well distributed throughout a year. The wettest parts are the mountainous areas of the west and the north. Britain is a densely populated and industrialized nation, but much of the country is cultivated and around 28% of the land is covered by the legally protected National Parks. All in all, there are 15 National Parks in the UK – 10 in England, three in Wales and two in Scotland. Text 2. Human Geography 1. Before you read on, answer the questions. 1. How many people (to the nearest million) live in Great Britain? a) 48 million b) 56 million c) 64 million d) 69 million 2. Which languages are spoken in Scotland? a) English and French b) English and Welsh c) English and Gaelic d) English and German 3.What percentage of the British population belong to the ethnic minorities? a) 2% b) 5% c) 11% d) 20% 4.Which country has the lowest population density (number of people per sq km)? a) England b) Scotland c) Wales d) Northern Ireland 5. Which of the following cities is the most heavily populated? a) Manchester b) Cardiff c) London d) Belfast 6.What percentage of the population in Britain is under 16 years of age? a) 10% b) 20% c) 30% d) 40% Now read the text below to check your answers English is the official language, but many people know more than one language. Around 20% of the people in Wales speak Welsh and children learn it in Welsh schools. About 80, 000 people in Scotland speak Gaelic. For centuries people from overseas have settled in Britain to escape persecution or in search for the better standard of living. They have brought with them their languages, cultures and religions. The most widely spoken minority languages today are from the Asian sub-continent but other languages include Italian, Spanish, Greek, Turkish and Chinese. Ethnic minority communities make up about 5% of the total population. Population growth in Britain is generally low but fairly stable. The proportion of elderly people has been increasing as a result of better standards of living and health care. The percentage of young people in the population has been falling. At present only 20% of people in Britain are under the age of 16. Although Britain is quite small in terms of land area (244,376 km2), it has a large population of about 69 million, which ranks 21st in the word. With an average of 239 per sq km, Britain has the highest population density in Europe. Most people in Britain live in towns and cities. England has 370 people per sq km, Scotland has 66, Wales 139 and Northern Ireland 118. London is the one of the most heavily populated cities (9 million) in the world but still much smaller than Mexico City (21 million) and New York City (19 million)