United States

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United States

United States of America

CAPITAL: Washington, D.C. (District of Columbia).

FLAG: The flag consists of 13 alternate stripes, 7 red and 6 white; these represent the 13 original colonies. Fifty 5-pointed white stars, representing the present number of states in the Union, are placed in 9 horizontal rows alternately of 6 and 5 against a blue field in the upper left corner of the flag.

OFFICIAL SEAL: Obverse: An American eagle with outstretched wings bears a shield consisting of 13 alternating white and red stripes with a broad blue band across the top. The right talon clutches an olive branch, representing peace; in the left are 13 arrows, symbolizing military strength. The eagle's beak holds a banner with the motto "E pluribus unum" (From many, one); overhead is a constellation of 13 five-pointed stars in a glory. Reverse: Above a truncated pyramid is an all-seeing eye within a triangle; at the bottom of this triangle appear the roman numerals MDCCLXXVI (1776). The pyramid stands on a grassy ground, against a backdrop of mountains. The words "Annuit Coeptis" (He has favored our undertakings) and, on a banner, "Novus Ordo Seclorum" (A new order of the ages) surround the whole.

ANTHEM: The Star-Spangled Banner.

MOTTO: In God We Trust.

MONETARY UNIT: The dollar ($) of 100 cents is a paper currency with a floating rate. There are coins of 1, 5, 10, 25, and 50 cents and 1 dollar, and notes of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, and 100 dollars. Although issuance of higher notes ceased in 1969, a limited number of notes of 500, 1,000, 5,000, and 10,000 dollars remain in circulation. A gold-colored 1 dollar coin featuring Sacagawea was introduced in 2000.

WEIGHTS AND MEASURES: The imperial system is in common use; however, the use of metrics in industry is increasing, and the metric system is taught in public schools throughout the United States. Common avoirdupois units in use are the avoirdupois pound of 16 oz or 453.5924277 gm; the long ton of 2,240 lb or 35,840 oz; and the short ton, more commonly used, of 2,000 lb or 32,000 oz. (Unless otherwise indicated, all measures given in tons are in short tons.) Liquid measures: 1 gallon = 231 cu in = 4 quarts = 8 pints. Dry measures: 1 bushel = 4 pecks = 32 dry quarts = 64 dry pints. Linear measures: 1 ft = 12 in; 1 statute mi = 1,760 yd = 5,280 ft. Metric equivalent: 1 m = 39.37 in.

FEDERAL HOLIDAYS: New Year's Day, 1 January; Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., 3rd Monday in January; Lincoln's Birthday, 12 February (only in the northern and western states); Washington's Birthday, 3rd Monday in February; Memorial or Decoration Day, last Monday in May; Independence Day, 4 July; Labor Day, 1st Monday in September; Columbus Day, 2nd Monday in October; Election Day, 1st Tuesday after the 1st Monday in November; Veterans or Armistice Day, 11 November; Thanksgiving Day, 4th Thursday in November; Christmas, 25 December.

TIME: Eastern, 7 am = noon GMT; Central, 6 am = noon GMT; Mountain, 5 am = noon GMT; Pacific (includes the Alaska panhandle), 4 am = noon GMT; Yukon, 3 am = noon GMT; Alaska and Hawaii, 2 am = noon GMT; western Alaska, 1 am = noon GMT.

LOCATION, SIZE, AND EXTENT

Located in the Western Hemisphere on the continent of North America, the United States is the fourth-largest country in the world. Its total area, including Alaska and Hawaii, is 9,629,091 sq km (3,717,813 sq mi). The conterminous United States extends 4,662 km (2,897 mi) enewsw and 4,583 km (2,848 mi) sse-nnw. It is bordered on the n by Canada, on the e by the Atlantic Ocean, on the s by the Gulf of Mexico and Mexico, and on the w by the Pacific Ocean, with a total boundary length of 17,563 km (10,913 mi). Alaska, the 49th state, extends 3,639 km (2,261 mi) e-w and 2,185 km (1,358 mi) n-s. It is bounded on the n by the Arctic Ocean and Beaufort Sea, on the e by Canada, on the s by the Gulf of Alaska, Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea, and on the w by the Bering Sea, Bering Strait, Chukchi Sea, and Arctic Ocean, with a total land boundary of 12,034 km (7,593 mi) and a coastline of 19,924 km (12,380 mi). The 50th state, Hawaii, consists of islands in the Pacific Ocean extending 2,536 km (1,576 mi) n-s and 2,293 km (1,425 mi) e-w, with a general coastline of 1,207 km (750 mi).

The nation's capital, Washington, D.C., is located on the mid-Atlantic coast.

TOPOGRAPHY

Although the northern New England coast is rocky, along the rest of the eastern seaboard the Atlantic Coastal Plain rises gradually from the shoreline. Narrow in the north, the plain widens to about 320 km (200 mi) in the south and in Georgia merges with the Gulf Coastal Plain that borders the Gulf of Mexico and extends through Mexico as far as the Yucatán. West of the Atlantic Coastal Plain is the Piedmont Plateau, bounded by the Appalachian Mountains. The Appalachians, which extend from southwest Maine into central Alabamawith special names in some areasare old mountains, largely eroded away, with rounded contours and forested, as a rule, to the top. Few of their summits rise much above 1,100 m (3,500 ft), although the highest, Mt. Mitchell in North Carolina, reaches 2,037 m (6,684 ft).

Between the Appalachians and the Rocky Mountains, more than 1,600 km (1,000 mi) to the west, lies the vast interior plain of the United States. Running south through the center of this plain and draining almost two-thirds of the area of the continental United States is the Mississippi River. Waters starting from the source of the Missouri, the longest of its tributaries, travel almost 6,450 km (4,000 mi) to the Gulf of Mexico.

The eastern reaches of the great interior plain are bounded on the north by the Great Lakes, which are thought to contain about half the world's total supply of fresh water. Under US jurisdiction are 57,441 sq km (22,178 sq mi) of Lake Michigan, 54,696 sq km (21,118 sq mi) of Lake Superior, 23,245 sq km (8,975 sq mi) of Lake Huron, 12,955 sq km (5,002 sq mi) of Lake Erie, and 7,855 sq km (3,033 sq mi) of Lake Ontario. The five lakes are now accessible to oceangoing vessels from the Atlantic via the St. Lawrence Seaway. The basins of the Great Lakes were formed by the glacial ice cap that moved down over large parts of North America some 25,000 years ago. The glaciers also determined the direction of flow of the Missouri River and, it is believed, were responsible for carrying soil from what is now Canada down into the central agricultural basin of the United States.

The great interior plain consists of two major subregions: the fertile Central Plains, extending from the Appalachian highlands to a line drawn approximately 480 km (300 mi) west of the Mississippi, broken by the Ozark Plateau; and the more arid Great Plains, extending from that line to the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. Although they appear flat, the Great Plains rise gradually from about 460 m (1,500 ft) to more than 1,500 m (5,000 ft) at their western extremity.

The Continental Divide, the Atlantic-Pacific watershed, runs along the crest of the Rocky Mountains. The Rockies and the ranges to the west are parts of the great system of young, rugged mountains, shaped like a gigantic spinal column, that runs along western North, Central, and South America from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego, Chile. In the continental United States, the series of western ranges, most of them paralleling the Pacific coast, are the Sierra Nevada, the Coast Ranges, the Cascade Range, and the Tehachapi and San Bernardino mountains. Between the Rockies and the Sierra Nevada-Cascade mountain barrier to the west lies the Great Basin, a group of vast arid plateaus containing most of the desert areas of the United States, in the south eroded by deep canyons.

The coastal plains along the Pacific are narrow, and in many places the mountains plunge directly into the sea. The most extensive lowland near the west coast is the Great Valley of California, lying between the Sierra Nevada and the Coast Ranges. There are 71 peaks in these western ranges of the continental United States that rise to an altitude of 4,267 m (14,000 ft) or more, Mt. Whitney in California at 4,418 m (14,494 ft) being the highest. The greatest rivers of the Far West are the Colorado in the south, flowing into the Gulf of California, and the Columbia in the northwest, flowing to the Pacific. Each is more than 1,900 km (1,200 mi) long; both have been intensively developed to generate electric power, and both are important sources of irrigation.

Separated from the continental United States by Canadian territory, the state of Alaska occupies the extreme northwest portion of the North American continent. A series of precipitous mountain ranges separates the heavily indented Pacific coast on the south from Alaska's broad central basin, through which the Yukon River flows from Canada in the east to the Bering Sea in the west. The central basin is bounded on the north by the Brooks Range, which slopes down gradually to the Arctic Ocean. The Alaskan Peninsula and the Aleutian Islands, sweeping west far out to sea, consist of a chain of volcanoes, many still active.

The state of Hawaii consists of a group of Pacific islands formed by volcanoes rising sharply from the ocean floor. The highest of these volcanoes, Mauna Loa, at 4,168 m (13,675 ft), is located on the largest of the islands, Hawaii, and is still active.

The lowest point in the United States is Death Valley in California, 86 m (282 ft) below sea level. At 6,194 m (20,320 ft), Mt. McKinley in Alaska is the highest peak in North America. These topographic extremes suggest the geological instability of the Pacific Coast region, which is part of the "Ring of Fire," a seismically active band surrounding the Pacific Ocean. Major earthquakes destroyed San Francisco in 1906 and Anchorage, Alaska, in 1964, and the San Andreas Fault in California still causes frequent earth tremors. In 2004, there was a total of 3550 U.S. earthquakes documented by the United States Geological Survey National Earthquake Information Center. Washington State's Mt. St. Helens erupted in 1980, spewing volcanic ash over much of the Northwest.

CLIMATE

The eastern continental region is well watered, with annual rainfall generally in excess of 100 cm (40 in). It includes all of the Atlantic seaboard and southeastern states and extends west to cover Indiana, southern Illinois, most of Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, and easternmost Texas. The eastern seaboard is affected primarily by the masses of air moving from west to east across the continent rather than by air moving in from the Atlantic. Hence its climate is basically continental rather than maritime. The midwestern and Atlantic seaboard states experience hot summers and cold winters; spring and autumn are clearly defined periods of climatic transition. Only Florida, with the Gulf of Mexico lying to its west, experiences moderate differences between summer and winter temperatures. Mean annual temperatures vary considerably between north and south: Boston, 11°c (51°f); New York City, 13°c (55°f); Charlotte, N.C., 16°c (61°f); Miami, Fla., 24°c (76°f).

The Gulf and South Atlantic states are often hit by severe tropical storms originating in the Caribbean in late summer and early autumn. In the past few years, the number of hurricanes and their severity have measurably increased. From 197094, there were about three hurricanes per year. From 1995 to 2003, there were a total of 32 major hurricanes with sustained winds of 111 miles per hour or greater.

In 2005 there were a record-breaking 23 named Atlantic hurricanes, three of which caused severe damage to the Gulf Coast region. On 25 August 2005, Hurricane Katrina hit Florida as a category 1 hurricane. By 29 August, the storm developed into a category 4 hurricane that made landfall in southern Louisiana. Several levees protecting the low-lying city of New Orleans broke, flooding the entire region under waters that rose over the rooftops of homes. Over 1,000 were killed by the storm. Over 500,000 people were left homeless and without jobs.

One month later, Hurricane Rita swept first into Florida and continued to make landfall between Sabine Pass, Texas, and Johnson's Bayou, Louisiana, on 24 September 2005 as a category 3 hurricane. Before reaching land, however, the storm had peaked as a category 5 hurricane that was placed on record as the strongest measured hurricane to ever have entered the Gulf of Mexico and the fourth most intense hurricane ever in the Atlantic Basin. Over 100 people were killed.

Hurricane Wilma followed on 24 October when it made landfall north of Everglades City in Florida as a category 3 hurricane. There were about 22 deaths in the United States from Wilma; however, the storm also hit Cuba, Haiti, Jamaica, and Mexico, reaching a death toll of at least 25 people from those countries combined.

The prairie lands lying to the west constitute a subhumid region. Precipitation usually exceeds evaporation by only a small amount; hence the region experiences drought more often than excessive rainfall. Dryness generally increases from east to west. The average midwinter temperature in the extreme northMinnesota and North Dakotais about 13°c (9°f) or less, while the average July temperature is 18°c (65 °f). In the Texas prairie region to the south, January temperatures average 10-13°c (50-55 °f) and July temperatures 27-29°c (80-85 °f). Rainfall along the western border of the prairie region is as low as 46 cm (18 in) per year in the north and 64 cm (25 in) in the south. Precipitation is greatest in the early summera matter of great importance to agriculture, particularly in the growing of grain crops. In dry years, the prevailing winds may carry the topsoil eastward (particularly from the southern region) for hundreds of miles in clouds that obscure the sun.

The Great Plains constitute a semiarid climatic region. Rainfall in the southern plains averages about 50 cm (20 in) per year and in the northern plains about 25 cm (10 in), but extreme year-to-year variations are common. The tropical air masses that move northward across the plains originate on the fairly high plateaus of Mexico and contain little water vapor. Periods as long as 120 days without rain have been experienced in this region. The rains that do occur are often violent, and a third of the total annual rainfall may be recorded in a single day at certain weather stations. The contrast between summer and winter temperatures is extreme throughout the Great Plains. Maximum summer temperatures of over 43°c (110°f) have been recorded in the northern as well as in the southern plains. From the Texas panhandle north, blizzards are common in the winter, and tornadoes at other seasons. The average minimum temperature for January in Duluth, Minn., is 19°c (3 °f).

The higher reaches of the Rockies and the mountains paralleling the Pacific coast to the west are characterized by a typical alpine climate. Precipitation as a rule is heavier on the western slopes of the ranges. The great intermontane arid region of the West shows

United StatesOutlying Areas of the United States1
NAMEAREA SQ MISQ KMCAPITALYEAR OF ACQUISITIONPOPULATION 1980POPULATION 1999
1Excludes minor and uninhabited islands.
2Although governed under separate constitutional arrangements by the mid-1980s, these territories formally remained part of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands pending action by the US Congress, the US president, and the UN Security Council.
3Centers of constitutional government. The entire Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands is administered from Saipan.
Puerto Rico3,5159,104San Juan18983,196,5203,887,652
Virgin Islands of the United States136352Charlotte Amalie191796,569119,827
Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, of which:7131,847Saipan1947132,92987,865
  Northern Marianas2182471Saipan3-16,78069,398
  Republic of Palau2191495Koror3-12,11618,467
Other Pacific territories:
  American Samoa77199Pago Pago189932,29763,786
  Guam209541Agaña1898105,979151,716
  Midway Islands25-1867468n.a.
  Wake Island38-1899302n.a.

considerable climatic variation between its northern and southern portions. In New Mexico, Arizona, and southeastern California, the greatest precipitation occurs in July, August, and September, mean annual rainfall ranging from 8 cm (3 in) in Yuma, Ariz., to 76 cm (30 in) in the mountains of northern Arizona and New Mexico. Phoenix has a mean annual temperature of 22°c (71°f), rising to 33°c (92°f) in July and falling to 11°c (52°f) in January. North of the Utah-Arizona line, the summer months usually are very dry; maximum precipitation occurs in the winter and early spring. In the desert valleys west of Great Salt Lake, mean annual precipitation adds up to only 10 cm (4 in). Although the northern plateaus are generally arid, some of the mountainous areas of central Washington and Idaho receive at least 152 cm (60 in) of rain per year. Throughout the intermontane region, the uneven availability of water is the principal factor shaping the habitat.

The Pacific coast, separated by tall mountain barriers from the severe continental climate to the east, is a region of mild winters and moderately warm, dry summers. Its climate is basically maritime, the westerly winds from the Pacific Ocean moderating the extremes of both winter and summer temperatures. Los Angeles in the south has an average temperature of 13°c (56 °f) in January and 21°c (69°f) in July; Seattle in the north has an average temperature of 4°c (39°f) in January and 18°c (65°f) in July. Precipitation in general increases along the coast from south to north, extremes ranging from an annual average of 4.52 cm (1.78 in) at Death Valley in California (the lowest in the United States) to more than 356 cm (140 in) in Washington's Olympic Mountains.

Climatic conditions vary considerably in the vastness of Alaska. In the fogbound Aleutians and in the coastal panhandle strip that extends southeastward along the Gulf of Alaska and includes the capital, Juneau, a relatively moderate maritime climate prevails. The interior is characterized by short, hot summers and long, bitterly cold winters, and in the region bordering the Arctic Ocean a polar climate prevails, the soil hundreds of feet below the surface remaining frozen the year round. Although snowy in winter, continental Alaska is relatively dry.

Hawaii has a remarkably mild and stable climate with only slight seasonal variations in temperature, as a result of northeast ocean winds. The mean January temperature in Honolulu is 23°c (73 °f); the mean July temperature 27°c (80°f). Rainfall is moderateabout 71 cm (28 in) per yearbut much greater in the mountains; Mt. Waialeale on Kauai has a mean annual rainfall of 1,168 cm (460 in), highest in the world.

The lowest temperature recorded in the United States was 62°c (79.8°f) at Prospect Creek Camp, Alaska, on 23 January 1971; the highest, 57°c (134°f) at Greenland Ranch, in Death Valley, Calif., on 10 July 1913. The record annual rainfall is 1,878 cm (739 in) recorded at Kukui, Maui in 1982; the previous record for a one-year period was 1,468 cm (578 in) recorded at Fuu Kukui, Maui, in 1950; in 1 hour, 30 cm (12 in), at Holt, Mo., on 22 June 1947, and on Kauai, Hawaii, on 24-25 January 1956.

FLORA AND FAUNA

At least 7,000 species and subspecies of indigenous US flora have been categorized. The eastern forests contain a mixture of softwoods and hardwoods that includes pine, oak, maple, spruce, beech, birch, hemlock, walnut, gum, and hickory. The central hardwood forest, which originally stretched unbroken from Cape Cod to Texas and northwest to Minnesotastill an important timber sourcesupports oak, hickory, ash, maple, and walnut. Pine, hickory, tupelo, pecan, gum, birch, and sycamore are found in the southern forest that stretches along the Gulf coast into the eastern half of Texas. The Pacific forest is the most spectacular of all because of its enormous redwoods and Douglas firs. In the southwest are saguaro (giant cactus), yucca, candlewood, and the Joshua tree.

The central grasslands lie in the interior of the continent, where the moisture is not sufficient to support the growth of large forests. The tall grassland or prairie (now almost entirely under cultivation) lies to the east of the 100th meridian. To the west of this line, where rainfall is frequently less than 50 cm (20 in) per year, is the short grassland. Mesquite grass covers parts of west Texas, southern New Mexico, and Arizona. Short grass may be found in the highlands of the latter two states, while tall grass covers large portions of the coastal regions of Texas and Louisiana and occurs in some parts of Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida. The Pacific grassland includes northern Idaho, the higher plateaus of eastern Washington and Oregon, and the mountain valleys of California.

The intermontane region of the Western Cordillera is for the most part covered with desert shrubs. Sagebrush predominates in the northern part of this area, creosote in the southern, with salt-brush near the Great Salt Lake and in Death Valley.

The lower slopes of the mountains running up to the coastline of Alaska are covered with coniferous forests as far north as the Seward Peninsula. The central part of the Yukon Basin is also a region of softwood forests. The rest of Alaska is heath or tundra. Hawaii has extensive forests of bamboo and ferns. Sugarcane and pineapple, although not native to the islands, now cover a large portion of the cultivated land.

Small trees and shrubs common to most of the United States include hackberry, hawthorn, serviceberry, blackberry, wild cherry, dogwood, and snowberry. Wildflowers bloom in all areas, from the seldom-seen blossoms of rare desert cacti to the hardiest alpine species. Wildflowers include forget-me-not, fringed and closed gentians, jack-in-the-pulpit, black-eyed Susan, columbine, and common dandelion, along with numerous varieties of aster, orchid, lady's slipper, and wild rose.

An estimated 428 species of mammals characterize the animal life of the continental United States. Among the larger game animals are the white-tailed deer, moose, pronghorn antelope, bighorn sheep, mountain goat, black bear, and grizzly bear. The Alaskan brown bear often reaches a weight of 1,200-1,400 lbs. Some 25 important furbearers are common, including the muskrat, red and gray foxes, mink, raccoon, beaver, opossum, striped skunk, wood-chuck, common cottontail, snowshoe hare, and various squirrels. Human encroachment has transformed the mammalian habitat over the last two centuries. The American buffalo (bison), millions of which once roamed the plains, is now found only on select reserves. Other mammals, such as the elk and gray wolf, have been restricted to much smaller ranges.

Year-round and migratory birds abound. Loons, wild ducks, and wild geese are found in lake country; terns, gulls, sandpipers, herons, and other seabirds live along the coasts. Wrens, thrushes, owls, hummingbirds, sparrows, woodpeckers, swallows, chickadees, vireos, warblers, and finches appear in profusion, along with the robin, common crow, cardinal, Baltimore oriole, eastern and western meadowlarks, and various blackbirds. Wild turkey, ruffed grouse, and ring-necked pheasant (introduced from Europe) are popular game birds. There are at least 508 species of birds found throughout the country.

Lakes, rivers, and streams teem with trout, bass, perch, muskellunge, carp, catfish, and pike; sea bass, cod, snapper, and flounder are abundant along the coasts, along with such shellfish as lobster, shrimp, clams, oysters, and mussels. Garter, pine, and milk snakes are found in most regions. Four poisonous snakes survive, of which the rattlesnake is the most common. Alligators appear in southern waterways and the Gila monster makes its home in the Southwest.

Laws and lists designed to protect threatened and endangered flora and fauna have been adopted throughout the United States. Generally, each species listed as protected by the federal government is also protected by the states, but some states may list species not included on federal lists or on the lists of neighboring states. (Conversely, a species threatened throughout most of the United States may be abundant in one or two states.) As of November 2005, the US Fish and Wildlife Service listed 997 endangered US species (up from 751 listed in 1996), including 68 species of mammals, 77 birds, 74 fish, and 599 plants; and 275 threatened species (209 in 1996), including 11 species of mammals, 13 birds, 42 fish, and 146 plants. The agency listed another 520 endangered and 46 threatened foreign species by international agreement.

Threatened species, likely to become endangered if recent trends continue, include such plants as Lee pincushion cactus. Among the endangered floral species (in imminent danger of extinction in the wild) are the Virginia round-leaf birch, San Clemente Island broom, Texas wildrice, Furbish lousewort, Truckee barberry, Sneed pincushion cactus, spineless hedgehog cactus, Knowlton cactus, persistent trillium, dwarf bear-poppy, and small whorled pogonia.

Endangered mammals included the red wolf, black-footed ferret, jaguar, key deer, northern swift fox, San Joaquin kit fox, jaguar, jaguarundi, Florida manatee, ocelot, Florida panther, Utah prairie dog, Sonoran pronghorn, and numerous whale species. Endangered species of rodents included the Delmarva Peninsula fox squirrel, beach mouse, salt-marsh harvest mouse, 7 species of bat (Virginia and Ozark big-eared Sanborn's and Mexican long-nosed, Hawaiian hoary, Indiana, and gray), and the Morro Ba, Fresno, Stephens', and Tipton Kangaroo rats and rice rat.

Endangered species of birds included the California condor, bald eagle, three species of falcon (American peregrine, tundra peregrine, and northern aplomado), Eskimo curlew, two species of crane (whooping and Mississippi sandhill), three species of warbler (Kirtland's, Bachman's, and golden-cheeked), dusky seaside sparrow, light-footed clapper rail, least tern, San Clemente loggerhead shrike, bald eagle (endangered in most states, but only threatened in the Northwest and the Great Lakes region), Hawaii creeper, Everglade kite, California clapper rail, and red-cockaded woodpecker. Endangered amphibians included four species of salamander (Santa Cruz long-toed, Shenandoah, desert slender, and Texas blind), Houston and Wyoming toad, and six species of turtle (green sea, hawksbill, Kemp's ridley, Plymouth and Alabama redbellied, and leatherback). Endangered reptiles included the American crocodile, (blunt nosed leopard and island night), and San Francisco garter snake.

Aquatic species included the shortnose sturgeon, Gila trout, eight species of chub (humpback, Pahranagat, Yaqui, Mohave tui, Owens tui, bonytail, Virgin River, and Borax lake), Colorado River squawfish, five species of dace (Kendall Warm Springs, and Clover Valley, Independence Valley, Moapa and Ash Meadows speckled), Modoc sucker, cui-ui, Smoky and Scioto madtom, seven species of pupfish (Leon Springs, Gila Desert, Ash Meadows Amargosa, Warm Springs, Owens, Devil's Hole, and Comanche Springs), Pahrump killifish, four species of gambusia (San Marcos, Pecos, Amistad, Big Bend, and Clear Creek), six species of darter (fountain, watercress, Okaloosa, boulder, Maryland, and amber), totoaba, and 32 species of mussel and pearly mussel. Also classified as endangered were two species of earthworm (Washington giant and Oregon giant), the Socorro isopod, San Francisco forktail damselfly, Ohio emerald dragonfly, three species of beetle (Kretschmarr Cave, Tooth Cave, and giant carrion), Belkin's dune tabanid fly, and 10 species of butterfly (Schaus' swallowtail, lotis, mission, El Segundo, and Palos Verde blue, Mitchell's satyr, Uncompahgre fritillary, Lange's metalmark, San Bruno elfin, and Smith's blue).

Endangered plants in the United States include: aster, cactus, pea, mustard, mint, mallow, bellflower and pink family, snapdragon, and buckwheat. Several species on the federal list of endangered and threatened wildlife and plants are found only in Hawaii. Endangered bird species in Hawaii included the Hawaiian dark-rumped petrel, Hawaiian gallinule, Hawaiian crow, three species of thrush (Kauai, Molokai, and puaiohi), Kauai 'o'o, Kauai nukupu'u, Kauai 'alialoa, 'akiapola'au, Maui'akepa, Molokai creeper, Oahu creeper, palila, and 'o'u.

Species formerly listed as threatened or endangered that have been removed from the list include (with delisting year and reason) American alligator (1987, recovered); coastal cutthroat trout (2000, taxonomic revision); Bahama swallowtail butterfly (1984, amendment); gray whale (1994, recovered); brown pelican (1984, recovered); Rydberg milk-vetch (1987, new information); Lloyd's hedgehog cactus (1999, taxonomic revision), and Columbian white-tailed Douglas County Deer (2003, recovered).

There are at least 250 species of plants and animals that have become extinct, including the Wyoming toad, the Central Valley grasshopper, Labrador duck, Carolina parakeet, Hawaiian crow, chestnut moth, and the Franklin tree.

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

The Council on Environmental Quality, an advisory body contained within the Executive Office of the President, was established by the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, which mandated an assessment of environmental impact for every federally funded project. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), created in 1970, is an independent body with primary regulatory responsibility in the fields of air and noise pollution, water and waste management, and control of toxic substances. Other federal agencies with environmental responsibilities are the Forest Service and Soil Conservation Service within the Department of Agriculture, the Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Park Service within the Department of the Interior, the Department of Energy, and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. In addition to the 1969 legislation, landmark federal laws protecting the environment include the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1970 and 1990, controlling automobile and electric utility emissions; the Water Pollution Act of 1972, setting clean-water criteria for fishing and swimming; and the Endangered Species Act of 1973, protecting wildlife near extinction.

A measure enacted in December 1980 established a $1.6-billion "Superfund," financed largely by excise taxes on chemical companies, to clean up toxic waste dumps such as the one in the Love Canal district of Niagara Falls, N.Y. In 2005, there were 1,238 hazardous waste sites on the Superfund's national priority list.

The most influential environmental lobbies include the Sierra Club (founded in 1892; 700,000 members in 2003) and its legal arm, the Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund. Large conservation groups include the National Wildlife Federation (1936; over 4,000,000), the National Audubon Society (1905; 600,000), and the Nature Conservancy (1917; 1,000,000). Greenpeace USA (founded in 1979) has gained international attention by seeking to disrupt hunts for whales and seals.

Among the environmental movement's most notable successes have been the inauguration (and mandating in some states) of recycling programs; the banning in the United States of the insecticide dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT); the successful fight against construction of a supersonic transport (SST); and the protection of more than 40 million hectares (100 million acres) of Alaska lands (after a fruitless fight to halt construction of the trans-Alaska pipeline); and the gradual elimination of chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) production by 2000. In March 2003, the US Senate narrowly voted to reject a Bush administration plan to begin oil exploration in the 19 million acre (7.7 million hectare) Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). In 2003, about 25.9% of the total land area was protected. The United States has 12 natural UNESCO World Heritage Sites and 22 Ramsar wetland sites. Yellowstone National Park, founded in 1872, was the first national park established worldwide.

Outstanding problems include acid rain (precipitation contaminated by fossil fuel wastes); inadequate facilities for solid waste disposal; air pollution from industrial emissions (the United States leads the world in carbon dioxide emissions from the burning of fossil fuels); the contamination of homes by radon, a radio

United StatesState Areas, Entry Dates, and Populations
TOTAL AREAPOPULATION
STATESQ MILESQ KMRANKCAPITALENTRY ORDERDATE OF ENTRYAT ENTRYCENSUS 1990CENSUS 2000
Census closest to entry date.
Date fixed in 1953 by congressional resolution.
*One of original 13 colonies.
Alabama51,705133,91619Montgomery2214 December 1819127,9014,040,5874,447,100
Alaska591,0041,530,6991Juneau493 January 1959226,167550,043626,932
Arizona114,000295,2606Phoenix4814 February 1912204,3543,665,2285,130,632
Arkansas53,187137,75427Little Rock2515 June 183657,5742,350,7252,673,400
California158,706411,0483Sacramento319 September 185092,59729,760,02133,871,648
Colorado104,091269,5958Denver381 August 187639,8643,294,3944,301,261
Connecticut*5,01812,99748Hartford59 January 1788237,9463,287,1163,405,565
Delaware*2,0445,29449Dover17 December 178759,096666,168783,600
Florida58,664151,94022Tallahassee273 March 184587,44512,937,92615,982,378
Georgia*58,910152,57721Atlanta42 January 178882,5486,478,3168,186,453
Hawaii6,47116,76047Honolulu5021 August 1959632,7721,108,2291,211,537
Idaho83,564216,43113Boise433 July 189088,5481,006,7491,293,953
Illinois56,345145,93324Springfield213 December 181855,21111,430,60212,419,293
Indiana36,18593,71938Indianapolis1911 December 1816147,1785,544,1596,080,485
Iowa56,275145,75225Des Moines2928 December 1846192,2142,776,7552,926,324
Kansas82,277213,09714Topeka3429 January 1861107,2062,477,5742,688,418
Kentucky40,409104,65937Frankfort151 June 179273,6773,685,2964,041,769
Louisiana47,752123,67831Baton Rouge1830 April 181276,5564,219,9734,468,976
Maine33,26586,15639Augusta2315 March 1820298,3351,227,9281,274,923
Maryland*10,46027,09142Annapolis728 April 1788319,7284,781,4685,296,486
Massachusetts*8,28421,45645Boston66 February 1788378,7876,016,4256,349,097
Michigan58,527151,58523Lansing2626 January 1837212,2679,295,2979,938,444
Minnesota84,402218,60112St. Paul3211 May 1858172,0234,375,0994,919,497
Mississippi47,689123,51432Jackson2010 December 181775,4482,573,2162,844,658
Missouri69,697180,51519Jefferson City2410 August 182166,5865,117,0735,595,211
Montana147,046380,8494Helena418 November 1889142,924799,065902,195
Nebraska77,355200,34915Lincoln371 March 1867122,9931,578,3851,711,263
Nevada110,561286,3537Carson City3631 October 186442,4911,201,8331,998,257
New Hampshire*9,27924,03344Concord921 June 1788141,8851,109,2521,235,786
New Jersey*7,78720,16846Trenton318 December 1787184,1397,730,1888,414,350
New Mexico121,593314,9265Santa Fe476 January 1912327,3011,515,0691,819,046
New York*49,108127,19030Albany1126 July 1788340,12017,990,45518,976,457
North Carolina*52,669136,41328Raleigh1221 November 1789393,7516,628,6378,049,313
North Dakota70,702183,11817Bismarck392 November 1889190,983638,800642,200
Ohio41,330107,04535Columbus171 March 180343,36510,847,11511,353,140
Oklahoma69,956181,18618Oklahoma City4616 November 1907657,1553,145,5853,450,654
Oregon97,073251,41910Salem3314 February 185952,4652,842,3213,421,399
Pennsylvania*45,308117,34833Harrisburg212 December 1787434,37311,003,46412,281,054
Rhode Island*1,2123,13950Providence1329 May 179068,8251,003,4641,048,319
South Carolina*31,11380,58340Columbia823 May 1788393,7513,486,7034,012,012
South Dakota77,116199,73016Pierre402 November 1889348,600696,004754,844
Tennessee42,144109,15334Nashville161 June 179635,6914,877,1855,689,283
Texas266,807691,0302Austin2829 December 1845212,59216,986,51020,851,820
Utah84,899219,88811Salt Lake City454 January 1896276,7491,722,8502,233,169
Vermont9,61424,90043Montpelier144 March 179185,425562,758608,827
Virginia*40,767105,58636Richmond1025 June 1788747,6106,187,3587,078,515
Washington68,139176,48020Olympia4211 November 1889357,2324,866,6925,894,121
West Virginia24,23162,75841Charleston3520 June 1863442,0141,793,4771,808,344
Wisconsin56,153145,43626Madison3029 May 1848305,3914,891,7695,363,675
Wyoming97,809253,3259Cheyenne4410 July 189062,555453,588493,782

active gas that is produced by the decay of underground deposits of radium and can cause cancer; runoffs of agricultural pesticides, pollutants deadly to fishing streams and very difficult to regulate; continued dumping of raw or partially treated sewage from major cities into US waterways; falling water tables in many western states; the decrease in arable land because of depletion, erosion, and urbanization; the need for reclamation of strip-mined lands and for regulation of present and future strip mining; and the expansion of the US nuclear industry in the absence of a fully satisfactory technique for the handling and permanent disposal of radioactive wastes.

POPULATION

The population of United States in 2005 was estimated by the United Nations (UN) at 296,483,000, which placed it at number 3 in population among the 193 nations of the world. In 2005, approximately 12% of the population was over 65 years of age, with another 21% of the population under 15 years of age. There were 97 males for every 100 females in the country. According to the UN, the annual population rate of change for 20052010 was expected to be 0.6%, a rate the government viewed as satisfactory. The projected population for the year 2025 was 349,419,000. The population density was 207 per sq km (80 per sq mi), with major population concentrations are along the northeast Atlantic coast and the southwest Pacific coast. The population is most dense between New York City and Washington, D.C.

At the time of the first federal census, in 1790, the population of the United States was 3,929,214. Between 1800 and 1850, the population almost quadrupled; between 1850 and 1900, it tripled; and between 1900 and 1950, it almost doubled. During the 1960s and 1970s, however, the growth rate slowed steadily, declining from 2.9% annually in 1960 to 2% in 1969 and to less than 1% from the 1980s through 2000. The population has aged: the median age of the population increased from 16.7 years in 1820 to 22.9 years in 1900 and to 34.3 years in 1995.

Suburbs have absorbed most of the shift in population distribution since 1950. The UN estimated that 79% of the population lived in urban areas in 2005, and that urban areas were growing at an annual rate of 1.33%. The capital city, Washington, D.C. (District of Columbia), had a population of 4,098,000 in that year. Other major metropolitan areas and their estimated populations include: New York, 18,498,000; Los Angeles, 12,146,000; Chicago, 8,711,000; Dallas, 4,612,000; Houston, 4,283,000; Philadelphia, 5,325,000; San Diego, 2,818,000; and Phoenix, 3,393,000. Major cities can be found throughout the United States.

ETHNIC GROUPS

The majority of the population of the United States is of European origin, with the largest groups having primary ancestry traceable to the United Kingdom, Germany, and Ireland; many Americans report multiple ancestries. According to 2004 American Community Survey estimates, about 75.6% of the total population are white, 12.1% are blacks and African Americans, and 4.2% are Asian. Native Americans (including Alaskan Natives) account for about 0.8% of the total population. About 1.8% of the population claim a mixed ancestry of two or more races. About 11.9% of all US citizens are foreign-born, with the largest numbers of people coming from Latin America (17,973,287) and Asia (9,254,705).

Some Native American societies survived the initial warfare with land-hungry white settlers and retained their tribal cultures. Their survival, however, has been on the fringes of North American society, especially as a result of the implementation of a national policy of resettling Native American tribes on reservations. In 2004, estimates place the number of Native Americans (including Alaska Natives) at 2,151,322. The number of those who claim mixed Native American and white racial backgrounds is estimated at 1,370,675; the 2004 estimate for mixed Native American and African American ancestry was 204,832. The largest single tribal grouping is the Cherokee, with about 331,491 people. The Navajo account for about 230,401 people, the Chippewa fro 92,041 people, and the Sioux for 67,666 people. Groups of Native Americans are found most numerously in the southwestern states of Oklahoma, Arizona, New Mexico, and California. The 1960s and 1970s saw successful court fights by Native Americans in Alaska, Maine, South Dakota, and other states to regain tribal lands or to receive cash settlements for lands taken from them in violation of treaties during the 1800s.

The black and African American population in 2004 was estimated at 34,772,381, with the majority still residing in the South, the region that absorbed most of the slaves brought from Africa in the 18th and 19th centuries. About 1,141,232 people claimed mixed black and white ethnicity. Two important regional migrations of blacks have taken place: (1) a "Great Migration" to the North, commencing in 1915, and (2) a small but then unprecedented westward movement beginning about 1940. Both migrations were fostered by wartime demands for labor and by postwar job opportunities in northern and western urban centers. More than three out of four black Americans live in metropolitan areas, notably in Washington, D.C., Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, New Orleans, Newark, Baltimore, and New York City, which had the largest number of black residents. Large-scale federal programs to ensure equality for African Americans in voting rights, public education, employment, and housing were initiated after the historic 1954 Supreme Court ruling that barred racial segregation in public schools. By 1966, however, in the midst of growing and increasingly violent expressions of dissatisfaction by black residents of northern cities and southern rural areas, the federal Civil Rights Commission reported that integration programs were lagging. Throughout the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, the unemployment rate among nonwhites in the United States was at least double that for whites, and school integration proceeded slowly, especially outside the South.

Also included in the US population are a substantial number of persons whose lineage can be traced to Asian and Pacific nationalities, chiefly Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Indian, Korean, and Vietnamese. The Chinese population is highly urbanized and concentrated particularly in cities of over 100,000 population, mostly on the West Coast and in New York City. According to 2004 estimates, there are over 2.8 million Chinese in the United States. Asian Indians are the next largest group of Asians with over 2.2 million people in 2004. About 2.1 million people are Filipino. The Japanese population has risen steadily from a level of 72,157 in 1910 to about 832,039 in 2004. Hawaii has been the most popular magnet of Japanese emigration. Most Japanese in California were farmers until the outbreak of World War II, when they were interned and deprived of their landholdings; after the war, most entered the professions and other urban occupations.

Hispanics or Latinos make up about 14% of the population according to 2004 estimates. It is important to note, however, that the designation of Hispanic or Latino applies to those who are of Latin American descent; these individuals may also belong to white, Asian, or black racial groups. Although Mexicans in the 21st century were still concentrated in the Southwest, they have settled throughout the United States; there are over 25 million Mexicans in the country. Spanish-speaking Puerto Ricans, who often represent an amalgam of racial strains, have largely settled in the New York metropolitan area, where they partake in considerable measure of the hardships and problems experienced by other immigrant groups in the process of settling in the United States; there are about 3.8 million Puerto Ricans in the country. Since 1959, many Cubans have settled in Florida and other eastern states. As of 2004, there are about 1.4 mullion Cubans in the Untied States.

LANGUAGES

The primary language of the United States is English, enriched by words borrowed from the languages of Indians and immigrants, predominantly European. Very early English borrowed from neighboring French speakers such words as shivaree, butte, levee, and prairie; from German, sauerkraut, smearcase, and cranberry; from Dutch, stoop, spook, and cookie; and from Spanish, tornado, corral, ranch, and canyon. From various West African languages, blacks have given English jazz, voodoo, and okra. According to 2004 estimates of primary languages spoken at home, about 81% of the population speak English only.

When European settlement began, Indians living north of Mexico spoke about 300 different languages now held to belong to 58 different language families. Only 2 such families have contributed noticeably to the American vocabulary: Algonkian in the Northeast and Aztec-Tanoan in the Southwest. From Algonkian languages, directly or sometimes through Canadian French, English has taken such words as moose, skunk, caribou, opossum, wood-chuck, and raccoon for New World animals; hickory, squash, and tamarack for New World flora; and succotash, hominy, mackinaw, moccasin, tomahawk, toboggan, and totem for various cultural items. From Nahuatl, the language of the Aztecs, terms such as tomato, mesquite, coyote, chili, tamale, chocolate, and ocelot have entered English, largely by way of Spanish. A bare handful of words come from other Indian language groups, such as tepee from Dakota Siouan, catalpa from Creek, sequoia from Cherokee, hogan from Navaho, and sockeye from Salish, as well as cayuse from Chinook.

Professional dialect research, initiated in Germany in 1878 and in France in 1902, did not begin in the United States until 1931, in connection with the Linguistic Atlas of New England (193943). This kind of research, requiring trained field-workers to interview representative informants in their homes, subsequently was extended to the entire Atlantic Coast, the north-central states, the upper Midwest, the Pacific Coast, the Gulf states, and Oklahoma. The New England atlas, the Linguistic Atlas of the Upper Midwest (197376), and the first two fascicles of the Linguistic Atlas of the Middle and South Atlantic States (1980) have been published, along with three volumes based on Atlantic Coast field materials. Also published or nearing publication are atlases of the north-central states, the Gulf states, and Oklahoma. In other areas, individual dialect researchers have produced more specialized studies. The definitive work on dialect speech, the American Dialect Society's monumental Dictionary of American Regional English, began publication in 1985.

Dialect studies confirm that standard English is not uniform throughout the country. Major regional variations reflect patterns of colonial settlement, dialect features from England having dominated particular areas along the Atlantic Coast and then spread westward along the three main migration routes through the Appalachian system. Dialectologists recognize three main dialectsNorthern, Midland, and Southerneach with subdivisions related to the effect of mountain ranges and rivers and railroads on population movement.

The Northern dialect is that of New England and its derivative settlements in New York; the northern parts of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Iowa; and Michigan, Wisconsin, northeastern South Dakota, and North Dakota. A major subdivision is that of New England east of the Connecticut River, an area noted typically by the loss of /r/ after a vowel, and by the pronunciation of can't, dance, half, and bath with a vowel more like that in father than that in fat. Generally, however, Northern speech has a strong /r/ after a vowel, the same vowel in can't and cat, a conspicuous contrast between cot and caught, the /s/ sound in greasy, creek rhyming with pick, and with ending with the same consonant sound as at the end of breath.

Midland speech extends in a wide band across the United States: there are two main subdivisions, North Midland and South Midland. North Midland speech extends westward from New Jersey, Delaware, and Pennsylvania into Ohio, Illinois, southern Iowa, and northern Missouri. Its speakers generally end with with the consonant sound that begins the word thin, pronounce cot and caught alike, and say cow and down as /caow/ and /daown/. South Midland speech was carried by the Scotch-Irish from Pennsylvania down the Shenandoah Valley into the southern Appalachians, where it acquired many Southern speech features before it spread westward into Kentucky, Tennessee, southern Missouri, Arkansas, and northeast Texas. Its speakers are likely to say plum peach rather than clingstone peach and snake doctor rather than dragonfly.

Southern speech typically, though not always, lacks the consonant /r/ after a vowel, lengthens the first part of the diphthong in write so that to Northern ears it sounds almost like rat, and diphthongizes the vowels in bed and hit so that they sound like /beuhd/ and /hiuht/. Horse and hoarse do not sound alike, and creek rhymes with meek. Corn bread is corn pone, and you-all is standard for the plural.

In the western part of the United States, migration routes so crossed and intermingled that no neat dialect boundaries can be drawn, although there are a few rather clear population pockets.

Spanish is spoken by a sizable minority in the United States; according to 2004 estimates, about 11.4% of the population speak Spanish as the primary language of their household. The majority of Spanish speakers live in the Southwest, Florida, and eastern urban centers. Refugee immigration since the 1950s has greatly increased the number of foreign-language speakers from Latin America and Asia.

Educational problems raised by the presence of large blocs of non-English speakers led to the passage in 1976 of the Bilingual Educational Act, enabling children to study basic courses in their first language while they learn English. A related school problem is that of black English, a Southern dialect variant that is the vernacular of many black students now in northern schools.

RELIGIONS

US religious traditions are predominantly Judeo-Christian and most Americans identify themselves as Protestants (of various denominations), Roman Catholics, or Jews. As of 2000, over 141 million Americans reported affiliation with a religious group. The single largest Christian denomination is the Roman Catholic Church, with membership in 2004 estimated at 66.4 million. Immigration from Ireland, Italy, Eastern Europe, French Canada, and the Caribbean accounts for the predominance of Roman Catholicism in the Northeast, Northwest, and some parts of the Great Lakes region, while Hispanic traditions and more recent immigration from Mexico and other Latin American countries account for the historical importance of Roman Catholicism in California and throughout most of the sunbelt. More than any other US religious body, the Roman Catholic Church maintains an extensive network of parochial schools.

Jewish immigrants settled first in the Northeast, where the largest Jewish population remains; at last estimates, about 6.1 million Jews live in the United States. According to data from 1995, there are about 3.7 million Muslims in the country. About 1.8 million people are Buddhist and 795,000 are Hindu. Approximately 874,000 people are proclaimed atheists.

Over 94 million persons in the United States report affiliation with a Protestant denomination. Baptists predominate below the Mason-Dixon line and west to Texas. By far the nation's largest Protestant group is the Southern Baptist Convention, which has about 16.2 million members; the American Baptist Churches in the USA claim some 1.4 million members. A concentration of Methodist groups extends westward in a band from Delaware to eastern Colorado; the largest of these groups, the United Methodist Church has about 8.2 million members. A related group, the African Methodist Episcopal Church, has about 2.5 million members. Lutheran denominations, reflecting in part the patterns of German and Scandinavian settlement, are most highly concentrated in the north-central states, especially Minnesota and the Dakotas. Two Lutheran synods, the Lutheran Church in America and the American Lutheran Church, merged in 1987 to form the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, with more than 5 million adherents in 2004. In June 1983, the two major Presbyterian churches, the northern-based United Presbyterian Church in the USA and the southern-based Presbyterian Church in the United States, formally merged as the Presbyterian Church (USA), ending a division that began with the Civil War. This group claimed 3.4 adherents in 2004. Other prominent Protestant denominations and their estimated adherents (2004) include the Episcopal Church 2,334,000, and the United Church of Christ 1,331,000.

A number of Orthodox Christian denominations are represented in the United States, established by immigrants hoping to maintain their language and culture in a new world. The largest group of Orthodox belong to the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, which has about 1.5 million members.

A number of religious groups, which now have a worldwide presence, originated in the United States. One such group, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons), was organized in New York in 1830 by Joseph Smith, Jr., who claimed to receive a revelation concerning an ancient American prophet named Mormon. The group migrated westward, in part to escape persecution, and has played a leading role in the political, economic, and religious life of Utah; Salt Lake City is the headquarters for the church. As of 2004, there are about 5.4 million members of the, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. The Jehovah's Witnesses were established by Charles Taze Russell in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1872. They believe that Biblical prophecies are being fulfilled through world events and that the kingdom of God will be established on earth at the end of the great war described in the Bible. In 2004, there were about 1 million members in the Untied States.

The Church of Christ Scientist was established by Mary Baker Eddy (18211910) and her book Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures. A primary belief of the group is that physical injury and illness might be healed through the power of prayer and the correction of false beliefs. The Mother Church is located in Boston, Massachusetts. Christian Scientists have over 1,000 congregations in the nation. The Seventh-Day Adventists were also established in the Untied States by William Miller, a preacher who believed that the second coming of Christ would occur between 1843 and 1844. Though his prediction did not come true, many of his followers continued to embrace other practices such as worship on Saturday, vegetarianism, and a focus on preparation for the second coming. In 2004, the Seventh-Day Adventist Church had 919,000 members in the United States.

TRANSPORTATION

Railroads have lost not only the largest share of intercity freight traffic, their chief source of revenue, but passenger traffic as well. Despite an attempt to revive passenger transport through the development of a national network (Amtrak) in the 1970s, the rail sector has continued to experience heavy losses and declining revenues. In 1998 there were nine Class I rail companies in the United States, down from 13 in 1994, with a total of 178,222 employees and operating revenues of $32.2 billion. In 2003 there were 227,736 km (141,424 mi) of railway, all standard gauge. In 2000, Amtrak carried 84.1 million passengers.

The most conspicuous form of transportation is the automobile, and the extent and quality of the United States road-transport system are without parallel in the world. Over 226.06 million vehiclesa record numberwere registered in 2003, including more than 130.8 million passenger cars and over 95.3. commercial vehicles. In 2000, there were some 4,346,068 motorcycles registered.

The United States has a vast network of public roads, whose total length as of 2003 was 6,393,603 km (3,976,821 mi), of which, 4,180,053 km (2,599,993 mi) were paved, including 74,406 km (46,281 mi) of expressways. The United States also has 41,009 km (25,483 mi) of navigable inland channels, exclusive of the Great Lakes. Of that total, 19,312 km (12,012 mi) are still in commercial use, as of 2004.

Major ocean ports or port areas are New York, the Delaware River areas (Philadelphia), the Chesapeake Bay area (Baltimore, Norfolk, Newport News), New Orleans, Houston, and the San Francisco Bay area. The inland port of Duluth on Lake Superior handles more freight than all but the top-ranking ocean ports. The importance of this port, along with those of Chicago and Detroit, was enhanced with the opening in 1959 of the St. Lawrence Seaway. Waterborne freight consists primarily of bulk commodities such as petroleum and its products, coal and coke, iron ore and steel, sand, gravel and stone, grains, and lumber. The US merchant marine industry has been decreasing gradually since the 1950s. In 2005, the United States had a merchant shipping fleet of 486 vessels of 1,000 GRT or more, with a combined GRT of 12,436,658.

In 2004, the United States had an estimated 14,857 airports. In 2005 a total of 5,120 had paved runways, and there were also 153 heliports. Principal airports include Hartsfield at Atlanta; Logan International at Boston; O'Hare International at Chicago; Dallas-Fort Worth at Dallas; Detroit Metropolitan; Honolulu International; Houston Intercontinental; Los Angeles International; John F. Kennedy, La Guardia, and Newark International at or near New York; Philadelphia International; Orlando International; Miami International; San Francisco International; L. Munoz Marin at San Juan, Seattle-Tacoma at Seattle, and Dulles International at Wash-ington. Revenue passengers carried by the airlines in 1940 totaled 2.7 million. By 2003, the figure was estimated at 588.997 million for US domestic and international carriers, along with freight traffic estimated at 34,206 million freight ton-km.

HISTORY

The first Americansdistant ancestors of the Native Americansprobably crossed the Bering Strait from Asia at least 12,000 years ago. By the time Christopher Columbus came to the New World in 1492 there were probably no more than 2 million Native Americans living in the land that was to become the United States.

Following exploration of the American coasts by English, Portuguese, Spanish, Dutch, and French sea captains from the late 15th century onward, European settlements sprang up in the latter part of the 16th century. The Spanish established the first permanent settlement at St. Augustine in the future state of Florida in 1565, and another in New Mexico in 1599. During the early 17th century, the English founded Jamestown in Virginia Colony (1607) and Plymouth Colony in present-day Massachusetts (1620). The Dutch established settlements at Ft. Orange (now Albany, N.Y.) in 1624, New Amsterdam (now New York City) in 1626, and at Bergen (now part of Jersey City, N.J.) in 1660; they conquered New Swedenthe Swedish colony in Delaware and New Jerseyin 1655. Nine years later, however, the English seized this New Netherland Colony and subsequently monopolized settlement of the East Coast except for Florida, where Spanish rule prevailed until 1821. In the Southwest, California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas also were part of the Spanish empire until the 19th century. Meanwhile, in the Great Lakes area south of present-day Canada, France set up a few trading posts and settlements but never established effective control; New Orleans was one of the few areas of the United States where France pursued an active colonial policy.

From the founding of Jamestown to the outbreak of the American Revolution more than 150 years later, the British government administered its American colonies within the context of mercantilism: the colonies existed primarily for the economic benefit of the empire. Great Britain valued its American colonies especially for their tobacco, lumber, indigo, rice, furs, fish, grain, and naval stores, relying particularly in the southern colonies on black slave labor.

The colonies enjoyed a large measure of internal self-government until the end of the French and Indian War (174563), which resulted in the loss of French Canada to the British. To prevent further troubles with the Indians, the British government in 1763 prohibited the American colonists from settling beyond the Appalachian Mountains. Heavy debts forced London to decree that the colonists should assume the costs of their own defense, and the British government enacted a series of revenue measures to provide funds for that purpose. But soon, the colonists began to insist that they could be taxed only with their consent and the struggle grew to become one of local versus imperial authority.

Widening cultural and intellectual differences also served to divide the colonies and the mother country. Life on the edge of the civilized world had brought about changes in the colonists' attitudes and outlook, emphasizing their remoteness from English life. In view of the long tradition of virtual self-government in the colonies, strict enforcement of imperial regulations and British efforts to curtail the power of colonial legislatures presaged inevitable conflict between the colonies and the mother country. When citizens of Massachusetts, protesting the tax on tea, dumped a shipload of tea belonging to the East India Company into Boston harbor in 1773, the British felt compelled to act in defense of their authority as well as in defense of private property. Punitive measuresreferred to as the Intolerable Acts by the colonistsstruck at the foundations of self-government.

In response, the First Continental Congress, composed of delegates from 12 of the 13 coloniesGeorgia was not representedmet in Philadelphia in September 1774, and proposed a general boycott of English goods, together with the organizing of a militia. British troops marched to Concord, Mass., on 19 April 1775 and destroyed the supplies that the colonists had assembled there. American "minutemen" assembled on the nearby Lexington green and fired "the shot heard round the world," although no one knows who actually fired the first shot that morning. The British soldiers withdrew and fought their way back to Boston.

Voices in favor of conciliation were raised in the Second Continental Congress that assembled in Philadelphia on 10 May 1775, this time including Georgia; but with news of the Restraining Act (30 March 1775), which denied the colonies the right to trade with countries outside the British Empire, all hopes for peace vanished. George Washington was appointed commander in chief of the new American army, and on 4 July 1776, the 13 American colonies adopted the Declaration of Independence, justifying the right of revolution by the theory of natural rights.

British and American forces met in their first organized encounter near Boston on 17 June 1775. Numerous battles up and down the coast followed. The British seized and held the principal cities but were unable to inflict a decisive defeat on Washington's troops. The entry of France into the war on the American side eventually tipped the balance. On 19 October 1781, the British commander, Cornwallis, cut off from reinforcements by the French fleet on one side and besieged by French and American forces on the other, surrendered his army at Yorktown, Va. American independence was acknowledged by the British in a treaty of peace signed in Paris on 3 September 1783.

The first constitution uniting the 13 original statesthe Articles of Confederationreflected all the suspicions that Americans entertained about a strong central government. Congress was denied power to raise taxes or regulate commerce, and many of the powers it was authorized to exercise required the approval of a minimum of nine states. Dissatisfaction with the Articles of Confederation was aggravated by the hardships of a postwar depression, and in 1787the same year that Congress passed the Northwest Ordinance, providing for the organization of new territories and states on the frontiera convention assembled in Philadelphia to revise the articles. The convention adopted an altogether new constitution, the present Constitution of the United States, which greatly increased the powers of the central government at the expense of the states. This document was ratified by the states with the understanding that it would be amended to include a bill of rights guaranteeing certain fundamental freedoms. These freedomsincluding the rights of free speech, press, and assembly, freedom from unreasonable search and seizure, and the right to a speedy and public trial by an impartial juryare assured by the first 10 amendments to the constitution, adopted on 5 December 1791; the constitution did however recognize slavery, and did not provide for universal suffrage. On 30 April 1789 George Washington was inaugurated as the first president of the United States.

During Washington's administration, the credit of the new nation was bolstered by acts providing for a revenue tariff and an excise tax; opposition to the excise on whiskey sparked the Whiskey Rebellion, suppressed on Washington's orders in 1794. Alexander Hamilton's proposals for funding the domestic and foreign debt and permitting the national government to assume the debts of the states were also implemented. Hamilton, the secretary of the treasury, also created the first national bank, and was the founder of the Federalist Party. Opposition to the bank as well as to the rest of the Hamiltonian program, which tended to favor northeastern commercial and business interests, led to the formation of an anti-Federalist party, the Democratic-Republicans, led by Thomas Jefferson.

The Federalist Party, to which Washington belonged, regarded the French Revolution as a threat to security and property; the Democratic-Republicans, while condemning the violence of the revolutionists, hailed the overthrow of the French monarchy as a blow to tyranny. The split of the nation's leadership into rival camps was the first manifestation of the two-party system, which has since been the dominant characteristic of the US political scene (Jefferson's party should not be confused with the modern Republican Party, formed in 1854.)

The 1800 election brought the defeat of Federalist President John Adams, Washington's successor, by Jefferson; a key factor in Adam's loss was the unpopularity of the Alien and Sedition Acts (1798), Federalist-sponsored measures that had abridged certain freedoms guaranteed in the Bill of Rights. In 1803, Jefferson achieved the purchase from France of the Louisiana Territory, including all the present territory of the United States west of the Mississippi drained by that river and its tributaries; exploration and mapping of the new territory, notably through the expeditions of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, began almost immediately. Under Chief Justice John Marshall, the US Supreme Court, in the landmark case of Marbury v. Madison, established the principle of federal supremacy in conflicts with the states and enunciated the doctrine of judicial review.

During Jefferson's second term in office, the United States became involved in a protracted struggle between Britain and Napoleonic France. Seizures of US ships and the impressment of US seamen by the British navy led the administration to pass the Embargo Act of 1807, under which no US ships were to put out to sea. After the act was repealed in 1809, ship seizures and impressment of seamen by the British continued, and were the ostensible reasons for the declaration of war on Britain in 1812 during the administration of James Madison. An underlying cause of the War of 1812, however, was land-hungry Westerners' coveting of southern Canada as potential US territory.

The war was largely a standoff. A few surprising US naval victories countered British successes on land. The Treaty of Ghent (24 December 1814), which ended the war, made no mention of impressment and provided for no territorial changes. The occasion for further maritime conflict with Britain, however, disappeared with the defeat of Napoleon in 1815.

Now the nation became occupied primarily with domestic problems and westward expansion. Because the United States had been cut off from its normal sources of manufactured goods in Great Britain during the war, textiles and other industries developed and prospered in New England. To protect these infant industries, Congress adopted a high-tariff policy in 1816.

Three events of the late 1810s and the 1820s were of considerable importance for the future of the country. The federal government in 1817 began a policy of forcibly resettling the Indians, already decimated by war and disease, in what later became known as Indian Territory (now Oklahoma); those Indians not forced to move were restricted to reservations. The Missouri Compromise (1820) was an attempt to find a nationally acceptable solution to the volatile dispute over the extension of black slavery to new territories. It provided for admission of Missouri into the Union as a slave state but banned slavery in territories to the west that lay north of 36°30. As a result of the establishment of independent Latin American republics and threats by France and Spain to reestablish colonial rule, President James Monroe in 1823 asserted that the Western Hemisphere was closed to further colonization by European powers. The Monroe Doctrine declared that any effort by such powers to recover territories whose independence the United States had recognized would be regarded as an unfriendly act.

From the 1820s to the outbreak of the Civil War, the growth of manufacturing continued, mainly in the North, and was accelerated by inventions and technological advances. Farming expanded with westward migration. The South discovered that its future lay in the cultivation of cotton. The cotton gin, invented by Eli Whitney in 1793, greatly simplified the problems of production; the growth of the textile industry in New England and Great Britain assured a firm market for cotton. Hence, during the first half of the 19th century, the South remained a fundamentally agrarian society based increasingly on a one-crop economy. Large numbers of field hands were required for cotton cultivation, and black slavery became solidly entrenched in the southern economy.

The construction of roads and canals paralleled the country's growth and economic expansion. The successful completion of the Erie Canal (1825), linking the Great Lakes with the Atlantic, ushered in a canal-building boom. Railroad building began in earnest in the 1830s, and by 1840, about 3,300 mi (5,300 km) of track had been laid. The development of the telegraph a few years later gave the nation the beginnings of a modern telecommunications network. As a result of the establishment of the factory system, a laboring class appeared in the North by the 1830s, bringing with it the earliest unionization efforts.

Western states admitted into the Union following the War of 1812 provided for free white male suffrage without property qualifications and helped spark a democratic revolution. As eastern states began to broaden the franchise, mass appeal became an important requisite for political candidates. The election to the presidency in 1928 of Andrew Jackson, a military hero and Indian fighter from Tennessee, was no doubt a result of this widening of the democratic process. By this time, the United States consisted of 24 states and had a population of nearly 13 million.

The relentless westward thrust of the United States population ultimately involved the United States in foreign conflict. In 1836, US settlers in Texas revolted against Mexican rule and established an independent republic. Texas was admitted to the Union as a state in 1845, and relations between Mexico and the United States steadily worsened. A dispute arose over the southern boundary of Texas, and a Mexican attack on a US patrol in May 1846 gave President James K. Polk a pretext to declare war. After a rapid advance, US forces captured Mexico City, and on 2 February 1848, Mexico formally gave up the unequal fight by signing the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, providing for the cession of California and the territory of New Mexico to the United States. With the Gadsden Purchase of 1853, the United States acquired from Mexico for $10 million large strips of land forming the balance of southern Arizona and New Mexico. A dispute with Britain over the Oregon Territory was settled in 1846 by a treaty that established the 49th parallel as the boundary with Canada. Thenceforth the United States was to be a Pacific as well as an Atlantic power.

Westward expansion exacerbated the issue of slavery in the territories. By 1840, abolition of slavery constituted a fundamental aspect of a movement for moral reform, which also encompassed women's rights, universal education, alleviation of working class hardships, and temperance. In 1849, a year after the discovery of gold had precipitated a rush of new settlers to California, that territory (whose constitution prohibited slavery) demanded admission to the Union. A compromise engineered in Congress by Senator Henry Clay in 1850 provided for California's admission as a free state in return for various concessions to the South. But enmities dividing North and South could not be silenced. The issue of slavery in the territories came to a head with the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, which repealed the Missouri Compromise and left the question of slavery in those territories to be decided by the settlers themselves. The ensuing conflicts in Kansas between northern and southern settlers earned the territory the name "bleeding Kansas."

In 1860, the Democratic Party, split along northern and southern lines, offered two presidential candidates. The new Republican Party, organized in 1854 and opposed to the expansion of slavery, nominated Abraham Lincoln. Owing to the defection in Democratic ranks, Lincoln was able to carry the election in the electoral college, although he did not obtain a majority of the popular vote. To ardent supporters of slavery, Lincoln's election provided a reason for immediate secession. Between December 1860 and February 1861, the seven states of the Deep SouthSouth Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texaswithdrew from the Union and formed a separate government, known as the Confederate States of America, under the presidency of Jefferson Davis. The secessionists soon began to confiscate federal property in the South. On 12 April 1861, the Confederates opened fire on Ft. Sumter in the harbor of Charleston, S.C., and thus precipitated the US Civil War. Following the outbreak of hostilities, Arkansas, North Carolina, Virginia, and Tennessee joined the Confederacy.

For the next four years, war raged between the Confederate and Union forces, largely in southern territories. An estimated 360,000 men in the Union forces died of various causes, including 110,000 killed in battle. Confederate dead were estimated at 250,000, including 94,000 killed in battle. The North, with great superiority in manpower and resources, finally prevailed. A Confederate invasion of the North was repulsed at the battle of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, in July 1863; a Union army took Atlanta in September 1864; and Confederate forces evacuated Richmond, the Confederate capital, in early April 1865. With much of the South in Union hands, Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee surrendered to Gen. Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Courthouse in Virginia on 9 April.

The outcome of the war brought great changes in US life. Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 was the initial step in freeing some 4 million black slaves; their liberation was completed soon after the war's end by amendments to the Constitution. Lincoln's plan for the reconstruction of the rebellious states was compassionate, but only five days after Lee's surrender, Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth as part of a conspiracy in which US Secretary of State William H. Seward was seriously wounded.

During the Reconstruction era (186577), the defeated South was governed by Union Army commanders, and the resultant bitterness of southerners toward northern Republican rule, which enfranchised blacks, persisted for years afterward. Vice President Andrew Johnson, who succeeded Lincoln as president, tried to carry out Lincoln's conciliatory policies but was opposed by radical Republican leaders in Congress who demanded harsher treatment of the South. On the pretext that he had failed to carry out an act of Congress, the House of Representatives voted to impeach Johnson in 1868, but the Senate failed by one vote to convict him and remove him from office. It was during Johnson's presidency that Secretary of State Seward negotiated the purchase of Alaska (which attained statehood in 1959) from Russia for $7.2 million.

The efforts of southern whites to regain political control of their states led to the formation of terrorist organizations like the Ku Klux Klan, which employed violence to prevent blacks from voting. By the end of the Reconstruction era, whites had reestablished their political domination over blacks in the southern states and had begun to enforce patterns of segregation in education and social organization that were to last for nearly a century.

In many southern states, the decades following the Civil War were ones of economic devastation, in which rural whites as well as blacks were reduced to sharecropper status. Outside the South, however, a great period of economic expansion began. Transcontinental railroads were constructed, corporate enterprise spurted ahead, and the remaining western frontier lands were rapidly occupied and settled. The age of big business tycoons dawned. As heavy manufacturing developed, Pittsburgh, Chicago, and New York emerged as the nation's great industrial centers. The Knights of Labor, founded in 1869, engaged in numerous strikes, and violent conflicts between strikers and strikebreakers were common. The American Federation of Labor, founded in 1886, established a nationwide system of craft unionism that remained dominant for many decades. During this period, too, the woman's rights movement organized actively to secure the vote (although woman's suffrage was not enacted nationally until 1920), and groups outraged by the depletion of forests and wildlife in the West pressed for the conservation of natural resources.

During the latter half of the 19th century, the acceleration of westward expansion made room for millions of immigrants from Europe. The country's population grew to more than 76 million by 1900. As homesteaders, prospectors, and other settlers tamed the frontier, the federal government forced Indians west of the Mississippi to cede vast tracts of land to the whites, precipitating a series of wars with various tribes. By 1890, only 250,000 Indians remained in the United States, virtually all of them residing on reservations.

The 1890s marked the closing of the United States frontier for settlement and the beginning of US overseas expansion. By 1892, Hawaiian sugar planters of US origin had become strong enough to bring about the downfall of the native queen and to establish a republic, which in 1898, at its own request, was annexed as a territory by the United States. The sympathies of the United States with the Cuban nationalists who were battling for independence from Spain were aroused by a lurid press and by expansionist elements. A series of events climaxed by the sinking of the USS Maine in Havana harbor finally forced a reluctant President William McKinley to declare war on Spain on 25 April 1898. US forces overwhelmed those of Spain in Cuba, and as a result of the Spanish-American War, the United States added to its territories the Philippines, Guam, and Puerto Rico. A newly independent Cuba was drawn into the United States orbit as a virtual protectorate through the 1950s. Many eminent citizens saw these new departures into imperialism as a betrayal of the time-honored US doctrine of government by the consent of the governed.

With the marked expansion of big business came increasing protests against the oppressive policies of large corporations and their dominant role in the public life of the nation. A demand emerged for strict control of monopolistic business practice through the enforcement of antitrust laws. Two US presidents, Theodore Roosevelt (190109), a Republican and Woodrow Wilson (191321), a Democrat, approved of the general movement for reform, which came to be called progressivism. Roosevelt developed a considerable reputation as a trustbuster, while Wilson's program, known as the New Freedom, called for reform of tariffs, business procedures, and banking. During Roosevelt's first term, the United States leased the Panama Canal Zone and started construction of a 42-mi (68-km) canal, completed in 1914.

US involvement in World War I marked the country's active emergence as one of the great powers of the world. When war broke out in 1914 between Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Turkey on one side and Britain, France, and Russia on the other, sentiment in the United States was strongly opposed to participation in the conflict, although a large segment of the American people sympathized with the British and the French. While both sides violated US maritime rights on the high seas, the Germans, enmeshed in a British blockade, resorted to unrestricted submarine warfare. On 6 April 1917, Congress declared war on Germany. Through a national draft of all able-bodied men between the ages of 18 and 45, some 4 million US soldiers were trained, of whom more than 2 million were sent overseas to France. By late 1917, when US troops began to take part in the fighting on the western front, the European armies were approaching exhaustion, and US intervention may well have been decisive in ensuring the eventual victory of the Allies. In a series of great battles in which US soldiers took an increasingly major part, the German forces were rolled back in the west, and in the autumn of 1918 were compelled to sue for peace. Fighting ended with the armistice of 11 November 1918. President Wilson played an active role in drawing up the 1919 Versailles peace treaty, which embodied his dream of establishing a League of Nations to preserve the peace, but the isolationist bloc in the Senate was able to prevent US ratification of the treaty.

In the 1920s, the United States had little enthusiasm left for crusades, either for democracy abroad or for reform at home; a rare instance of idealism in action was the Kellogg-Briand Pact (1928), an antiwar accord negotiated on behalf of the United States by Secretary of State Frank B. Kellogg. In general, however, the philosophy of the Republican administrations from 1921 to 1933 was expressed in the aphorism "The business of America is business," and the 1920s saw a great business boom. The years 192324 also witnessed the unraveling of the Teapot Dome scandal: the revelation that President Warren G. Harding's secretary of the interior, Albert B. Fall, had secretly leased federal oil reserves in California and Wyoming to private oil companies in return for gifts and loans.

The great stock market crash of October 1929 ushered in the most serious and most prolonged economic depression the country had ever known. By 1933, an estimated 12 million men and women were out of work; personal savings were wiped out on a vast scale through a disastrous series of corporate bankruptcies and bank failures. Relief for the unemployed was left to private charities and local governments, which were incapable of handling the enormous task.

The inauguration of the successful Democratic presidential candidate, Franklin D. Roosevelt, in March 1933 ushered in a new era of US history, in which the federal government was to assume a much more prominent role in the nation's economic affairs. Proposing to give the country a "New Deal," Roosevelt accepted national responsibility for alleviating the hardships of unemployment; relief measures were instituted, work projects were established, the deficit spending was accepted in preference to ignoring public distress. The federal Social Security program was inaugurated, as were various measures designed to stimulate and develop the economy through federal intervention. Unions were strengthened through the National Labor Relations Act, which established the right of employees' organizations to bargain collectively with employers. Union membership increased rapidly, and the dominance of the American Federation of Labor was challenged by the newly formed Congress of Industrial Organizations, which organized workers along industrial lines.

The depression of the 1930s was worldwide, and certain nations attempted to counter economic stagnation by building large military establishments and embarking on foreign adventures. Following German, Italian, and Japanese aggression, World War II broke out in Europe during September 1939. In 1940, Roosevelt, disregarding a tradition dating back to Washington that no president should serve more than two terms, ran again for reelection. He easily defeated his Republican opponent, Wendell Willkie, who, along with Roosevelt, advocated increased rearmament and all possible aid to victims of aggression. The United States was brought actively into the war by the Japanese attack on the Pearl Harbor naval base in Hawaii on 7 December 1941. The forces of Germany, Italy, and Japan were now arrayed over a vast theater of war against those of the United States and the British Commonwealth; in Europe, Germany was locked in a bloody struggle with the Soviet Union. US forces waged war across the vast expanses of the Pacific, in Africa, in Asia, and in Europe. Italy surrendered in 1943; Germany was successfully invaded in 1944 and conquered in May 1945; and after the United States dropped the world's first atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Japanese capitulated in August. The Philippines became an independent republic soon after the war, but the United States retained most of its other Pacific possessions, with Hawaii becoming the 50th state in 1959.

Roosevelt, who had been elected to a fourth term in 1944, died in April 1945 and was succeeded by Harry S Truman, his vice president. Under the Truman administration, the United States became an active member of the new world organization, the United Nations. The Truman administration embarked on large-scale programs of military aid and economic support to check the expansion of communism. Aid to Greece and Turkey in 1948 and the Marshall Plan, a program designed to accelerate the economic recovery of Western Europe, were outstanding features of US postwar foreign policy. The North Atlantic Treaty (1949) established a defensive alliance among a number of West European nations and the United States. Truman's Point Four program gave technical and scientific aid to developing nations. When, following the North Korean attack on South Korea on 25 June 1950, the UN Security Council resolved that members of the UN should proceed to the aid of South Korea. US naval, air, and ground forces were immediately dispatched by President Truman. An undeclared war ensued, which eventually was brought to a halt by an armistice signed on 27 June 1953.

In 1952, Dwight D. Eisenhower, supreme commander of Allied forces in Europe during World War II, was elected president on the Republican ticket, thereby bringing to an end 20 years of Democratic presidential leadership. In foreign affairs, the Eisenhower administration continued the Truman policy of containing the USSR and threatened "massive retaliation" in the event of Soviet aggression, thus heightening the Cold War between the world's two great nuclear powers. Although Republican domestic policies were more conservative than those of the Democrats, the Eisenhower administration extended certain major social and economic programs of the Roosevelt and Truman administrations, notably Social Security and public housing. The early years of the Eisenhower administration were marked by agitation (arising in 1950) over charges of Communist and other allegedly subversive activities in the United Statesa phenomenon known as McCarthyism, after Republican Senator Joseph R. McCarthy of Wisconsin, who aroused much controversy with unsubstantiated allegations that Communists had penetrated the US government, especially the Army and the Department of State. Even those who personally opposed McCarthy lent their support to the imposition of loyalty oaths and the blacklisting of persons with left-wing backgrounds.

A major event of the Eisenhower years was the US Supreme Court's decision in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954) outlawing segregation of whites and blacks in public schools. In the aftermath of this ruling, desegregation proceeded slowly and painfully. In the early 1960s, sit-ins, "freedom rides," and similar expressions of nonviolent resistance by blacks and their sympathizers led to a lessening of segregation practices in public facilities. Under Chief Justice Earl Warren, the high court in 1962 mandated the reapportionment of state and federal legislative districts according to a "one person, one vote" formula. It also broadly extended the rights of defendants in criminal trials to include the provision of a defense lawyer at public expense for an accused person unable to afford one, and established the duty of police to advise an accused person of his or her legal rights immediately upon arrest.

In the early 1960s, during the administration of Eisenhower's Democratic successor, John F. Kennedy, the Cold War heated up as Cuba, under the regime of Fidel Castro, aligned itself with the Soviet Union. Attempts by anti-Communist Cuban exiles to invade their homeland in the spring of 1961 failed despite US aid. In October 1962, President Kennedy successfully forced a showdown with the Soviet Union over Cuba in demanding the withdrawal of Soviet-supplied "offensive weapons"missilesfrom the nearby island. On 22 November 1963, President Kennedy was assassinated while riding in a motorcade through Dallas, Texas; hours later, Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson was inaugurated president. In the November 1964 elections, Johnson overwhelmingly defeated his Republican opponent, Barry M. Goldwater, and embarked on a vigorous program of social legislation unprecedented since Roosevelt's New Deal. His "Great Society" program sought to ensure black Americans' rights in voting and public housing, to give the underprivileged job training, and to provide persons 65 and over with hospitalization and other medical benefits (Medicare). Measures ensuring equal opportunity for minority groups may have contributed to the growth of the woman's rights movement in the late 1960s. This same period also saw the growth of a powerful environmental protection movement.

US military and economic aid to anti-Communist forces in Vietnam, which had its beginnings during the Truman administration (while Vietnam was still part of French Indochina) and was increased gradually by presidents Eisenhower and Kennedy, escalated in 1965. In that year, President Johnson sent US combat troops to South Vietnam and ordered US bombing raids on North Vietnam, after Congress (in the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution of 1964) had given him practically carte blanche authority to wage war in that region. By the end of 1968, American forces in Vietnam numbered 536,100 men, but US military might was unable to defeat the Vietnamese guerrillas, and the American people were badly split over continuing the undeclared (and, some thought, ill-advised or even immoral) war, with its high price in casualties and materiel. Reacting to widespread dissatisfaction with his Vietnam policies, Johnson withdrew in March 1968 from the upcoming presidential race, and in November, Republican Richard M. Nixon, who had been the vice president under Eisenhower, was elected president. Thus, the Johnson yearswhich had begun with the new hopes of a Great Society but had soured with a rising tide of racial violence in US cities and the assassinations of civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr., and US senator Robert F. Kennedy, among othersdrew to a close.

President Nixon gradually withdrew US ground troops from Vietnam but expanded aerial bombardment throughout Indochina, and the increasingly unpopular and costly war continued for four more years before a cease-firenegotiated by Nixon's national security adviser, Henry Kissingerwas finally signed on 27 January 1973 and the last US soldiers were withdrawn. The most protracted conflict in American history had resulted in 46,163 US combat deaths and 303,654 wounded soldiers, and had cost the US government $112 billion in military allocations. Two years later, the South Vietnamese army collapsed, and the North Vietnamese Communist regime united the country.

In 1972, during the last year of his first administration, Nixon initiated the normalization of relationsruptured in 1949with the People's Republic of China and signed a strategic arms limita-tion agreement with the Soviet Union as part of a Nixon-Kissinger policy of pursuing détente with both major Communist powers. (Earlier, in July 1969, American technology had achieved a national triumph by landing the first astronaut on the moon.) The Nixon administration sought to muster a "silent majority" in support of its Indochina policies and its conservative social outlook in domestic affairs. The most momentous domestic development, however, was the Watergate scandal, which began on 17 June 1972 with the arrest of five men associated with Nixon's reelection campaign, during a break-in at Democratic Party headquarters in the Watergate office building in Washington, D.C. Although Nixon was reelected in 1972, subsequent disclosures by the press and by a Senate investigating committee revealed a complex pattern of political "dirty tricks" and illegal domestic surveillance throughout his first term. The president's apparent attempts to obstruct justice by helping his aides cover up the scandal were confirmed by tape recordings (made by Nixon himself) of his private conversations, which the Supreme Court ordered him to release for use as evidence in criminal proceedings. The House voted to begin impeachment proceedings, and in late July 1974, its Judiciary Committee approved three articles of impeachment. On 9 August, Nixon became the first president to resign the office. The following year, Nixon's top aides and former attorney general, John N. Mitchell, were convicted of obstruction and were subsequently sentenced to prison.

Nixon's successor was Gerald R. Ford, who in October 1973 had been appointed to succeed Vice President Spiro T. Agnew when Agnew resigned following his plea of nolo contendere to charges that he had evaded paying income tax on moneys he had received from contractors while governor of Maryland. Less than a month after taking office, President Ford granted a full pardon to Nixon for any crimes he may have committed as president. In August 1974, Ford nominated Nelson A. Rockefeller as vice president (he was not confirmed until December), thus giving the country the first instance of a nonelected president and an appointed vice president serving simultaneously. Ford's pardon of Nixon, as well as continued inflation and unemployment, probably contributed to his narrow defeat by a Georgia Democrat, Jimmy Carter, in 1976.

President Carter's forthright championing of human rightsthough consistent with the Helsinki accords, the "final act" of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe, signed by the United States and 34 other nations in July 1974contributed to strained relations with the USSR and with some US allies. During 197879, the president concluded and secured Senate passage of treaties ending US sovereignty over the Panama Canal Zone. His major accomplishment in foreign affairs, however, was his role in mediating a peace agreement between Israel and Egypt, signed at the camp David, Md., retreat in September 1978. Domestically, the Carter administration initiated a national energy program to reduce US dependence on foreign oil by cutting gasoline and oil consumption and by encouraging the development of alternative energy resources. But the continuing decline of the economy because of double-digit inflation and high unemployment caused his popularity to wane, and confusing shifts in economic policy (coupled with a lack of clear goals in foreign affairs) characterized his administration during 1979 and 1980; a prolonged quarrel with Iran over more than 50 US hostages seized in Tehrān on 4 November 1979 contributed to public doubts about his presidency. Exactly a year after the hostages were taken, former California Governor Ronald Reagan defeated Carter in an election that saw the Republican Party score major gains throughout the United States. The hostages were released on 20 January 1981, the day of Reagan's inauguration.

Reagan, who survived a chest wound from an assassination attempt in Washington, D.C., in 1981, used his popularity to push through significant policy changes. He succeeded in enacting income tax cuts of 25%, reducing the maximum tax rate on unearned income from 70% to 50%, and accelerating depreciation allowances for businesses. At the same time, he more than doubled the military budget, in constant 1985 dollars, between 1980 and 1989. Vowing to reduce domestic spending, Reagan cut benefits for the working poor, reduced allocations for food stamps and Aid to Families With Dependent Children by 13%, and decreased grants for the education of disadvantaged children. He slashed the budget of the Environmental Protection Agency and instituted a flat rate reimbursement system for the treatment of Medicare patients with particular illnesses, replacing a more flexible arrangement in which hospitals had been reimbursed for "reasonable charges."

Reagan's appointment of Sandra Day O'Connor as the first woman justice of the Supreme Court was widely praised and won unanimous confirmation from the Senate. However, some of his other high-level choices were extremely controversialnone more so than that of his secretary of the interior, James G. Watt, who finally resigned on October 1983. To direct foreign affairs, Reagan named Alexander M. Haig, Jr., former NATO supreme commander for Europe, to the post of secretary of state; Haig, who clashed frequently with other administration officials, resigned in June 1982 and was replaced by George P. Shultz. In framing his foreign and defense policy, Reagan insisted on a military buildup as a precondition for arms-control talks with the USSR. His administration sent money and advisers to help the government of El Salvador in its war against leftist rebels, and US advisers were also sent to Honduras, reportedly to aid groups of Nicaraguans trying to overthrow the Sandinista government in their country. Troops were also dispatched to Lebanon in September 1982, as part of a multinational peacekeeping force in Beirut, and to Grenada in October 1983 to oust a leftist government there.

Reelected in 1984, President Reagan embarked on his second term with a legislative agenda that included reduction of federal budget deficits (which had mounted rapidly during his first term in office), further cuts in domestic spending, and reform of the federal tax code. In military affairs, Reagan persuaded Congress to fund on a modest scale his Strategic Defense Initiative, commonly known as Star Wars, a highly complex and extremely costly space-based antimissile system. In 1987, the downing of an aircraft carrying arms to Nicaragua led to the disclosure that a group of National Security Council members had secretly diverted $48 million that the federal government had received in payment from Iran for American arms to rebel forces in Nicaragua. The disclosure prompted the resignation of two of the leaders of the group, Vice Admiral John Poindexter and Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North, as well as investigations by House and Senate committees and a special prosecutor, Lawrence Walsh. The congressional investigations found no conclusive evidence that Reagan had authorized or known of the diversion. Yet they noted that because Reagan had approved of the sale of arms to Iran and had encouraged his staff to assist Nicaraguan rebels despite the prohibition of such assistance by Congress, "the President created or at least tolerated an environment where those who did know of the diversion believed with certainty that they were carrying out the President's policies."

Reagan was succeeded in 1988 by his vice president, George H.W. Bush. Benefiting from a prolonged economic expansion, Bush handily defeated Michael Dukakis, governor of Massachusetts and a liberal Democrat. On domestic issues, Bush sought to maintain policies introduced by the Reagan administration. His few legislative initiatives included the passage of legislation establishing strict regulations of air pollution, providing subsidies for child care, and protecting the rights of the disabled. Abroad, Bush showed more confidence and energy. While he responded cautiously to revolutions in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union, he used his personal relationships with foreign leaders to bring about comprehensive peace talks between Israel and its Arab neighbors, to encourage a peaceful unification of Germany, and to negotiate broad and substantial arms cuts with the Russians. Bush reacted to Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1990 by sending 400,000 soldiers to form the basis of a multinational coalition, which he assembled and which destroyed Iraq's main force within seven months. This conflict became known as the Gulf War.

One of the biggest crises that the Bush administration encountered was the collapse of the savings and loan industry in the late eighties. Thrift institutions were required by law to pay low interest rates for deposits and long-term loans. The creation of money market funds for the small investor in the eighties which paid higher rates of return than savings accounts prompted depositors to withdraw their money from banks and invest it in the higher yielding mutual funds. To finance the withdrawals, banks began selling assets at a loss. The deregulation of the savings and loan industry, combined with the increase in federal deposit insurance from $40,000 to $100,000 per account, encouraged many desperate savings institutions to invest in high-risk real-estate ventures, for which no state supervision or regulation existed. When the majority of such ventures predictably failed, the federal government found itself compelled by law to rescue the thrifts. It is estimated that this will cost to taxpayers $345 billion, in settlements that will continue through 2029.

In his bid for reelection in 1992, Bush faced not only Democratic nominee Bill Clinton, Governor of Arkansas, but also third-party candidate Ross Perot, a Dallas billionaire who had made his fortune in the computer industry. In contrast to Bush's first run for the presidency, when the nation had enjoyed an unusually long period of economic expansion, the economy in 1992 was just beginning to recover from a recession. Although data released the following year indicated that a healthy rebound had already begun in 1992, the public perceived the economy during election year as weak. Clinton took advantage of this perception in his campaign, focusing on the financial concerns of what he called "the forgotten middle class." He also took a more centrist position on many issues than more traditional Democrats, promising fiscal responsibility and economic growth. Clinton defeated Bush, winning 43% of the vote to Bush's 38%. Perot garnered 18% of the vote.

At its outset, Clinton's presidency was plagued by numerous setbacks, most notably the failure of his controversial health care reform plan, drawn up under the leadership of first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton. Major accomplishments included the passage, by a narrow margin, of a deficit-reduction bill calling for tax increases and spending cuts and Congressional approval of the North American Free Trade Agreement, which removed or reduced tariffs on most goods moving across the borders of the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Although supporters and critics agreed that the treaty would create or eliminate relatively few jobstwo hundred thousandthe accord prompted heated debate. Labor strenuously opposed the agreement, seeing it as accelerating the flight of factory jobs to countries with low labor costs such as Mexico, the third largest trading partner of the United States. Business, on the other hand, lobbied heavily for the treaty, arguing that it would create new markets for American goods and insisting that competition from Mexico would benefit the American economy.

By the fall of 1994, many American workers, still confronting stagnating wages, benefits, and living standards, had yet to feel the effects of the nation's recovery from the recession of 199091. The resulting disillusionment with the actions of the Clinton administration and the Democrat-controlled Congress, combined with the widespread climate of social conservatism resulting from a perceived erosion of traditional moral values led to an overwhelming upset by the Republican party in the 1994 midterm elections. The GOP gained control of both houses of Congress for the first time in over 40 years, also winning 11 gubernatorial races, for control of a total of 30 governorships nationwide. The Republican agendaincreased defense spending and cuts in taxes, social programs, and farm subsidieshad been popularized under the label "Contract with America," the title of a manifesto circulated during the campaign.

The ensuing confrontation between the nation's Democratic president and Republican-controlled Congress came to a head at the end of 1995, when Congress responded to presidential vetoes of appropriations and budget bills by refusing to pass stop gap spending measures, resulting in major shutdowns of the federal government in November and December. The following summer, however, the president and Congress joined forces to reform the welfare system through a bill replacing Aid to Families with Dependent Children with block grants through which welfare funding would largely become the province of the states.

The nation's economic recovery gained strength as the decade advanced, with healthy growth, falling unemployment, and moderate interest and inflation levels. Public confidence in the economy was reflected in a bull market on the stock exchange, which gained 60% between 1995 and 1997. Bolstered by a favorable economy at home and peace abroad, Clinton's faltering popularity rebounded and in 1996 he became the first Democratic president elected to a second term since Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1936, defeating the Republican candidate, former Senate majority leader Robert Dole, and Independent Ross Perot, whose electoral support was greatly reduced from its 1992 level. The Republicans retained control of both houses of Congress. In 1997, President Clinton signed into law a bipartisan budget plan designed to balance the federal budget by 2002 for the first time since 1969, through a combination of tax and spending cuts. In 199899, the federal government experienced two straight years of budget surpluses.

In 1998, special prosecutor Kenneth Starr submitted a report to Congress that resulted in the House of Representatives pass-ing four articles of impeachment against President Clinton. In the subsequent trial in the Senate, the articles were defeated.

Regulation of the three large financial industries underwent significant change in late 1999. The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (also known as the Financial Modernization Act) was passed by Congress in November 1999. It cleared the way for banks, insurance companies, and securities companies to sell each other's services and to engage in merger and acquisition activity. Prior to the Act's passage, activities of the banking, insurance and securities industries were strictly limited by the Glass Steagall Act of 1933, which Gramm-Leach-Bliley repealed.

Health care issues received significant attention in 2000. On 23 November 1998, 46 states and the District of Columbia together reached a settlement with the large US tobacco companies over compensation for smoking-related health-care costs incurred by the states. Payments to the states, totaling $206 billion, were scheduled to be made over 25 years beginning in 1999. Most states passed Patients' Rights legislation, and all 50 states and the District of Columbia passed Children's Health Insurance Programs (CHIP) legislation to provide health care to children in low-income families.

The ongoing strong economy continued through the late 1990s and into 2000. Economic expansion set a record for longevity, andexcept for higher gasoline prices during summer 2000, stemming from higher crude oil pricesinflation continued to be relatively low. By 2000, there was additional evidence that productivity growth had improved substantially since the mid-1990s, boosting living standards while helping to hold down increases in costs and prices despite very tight labor markets.

In 2000, Hispanics replaced African Americans as the largest minority group in the United States. (Hispanics numbered 35.3 million in 2000, or 12.5% of the population, compared with 34.7 million blacks, or 12.3% of the population.)

The 2000 presidential election was one of the closest in US history, pitting Democratic Vice President Al Gore against Republican Party candidate George W. Bush, son of former President George H. W. Bush. The vote count in Florida became the determining factor in the 7 November election, as each candidate needed to obtain the state's 25 electoral college votes in order to capture the 270 needed to win the presidency. When in the early hours of 8 November Bush appeared to have won the state's 25 votes, Gore called Bush to concede the election. He soon retracted the concession, however, after the extremely thin margin of victory triggered an automatic recount of the vote in Florida. The Democrats subsequently mounted a series of legal challenges to the vote count in Florida, which favored Bush. Eventually, the US Supreme Court, in Bush v. Gore, was summoned to rule on the election. On 12 December 2000, the Court, divided 5-4, reversed the Florida state supreme court decision that had ordered new recounts called for by Al Gore. George W. Bush was declared president. Gore had won the popular vote, however, capturing 48.4% of votes cast to Bush's 47.9%.

Once inaugurated, Bush called education his top priority, stating that "no child should be left behind" in America. He affirmed support for Medicare and Social Security, and called for pay and benefit increases for the military. He called upon charities and faith-based community groups to aid the disadvantaged. Bush announced a $1.6 trillion tax cut plan (subsequently reduced to $1.35 trillion) in his first State of the Union Address as an economic stimulus package designed to respond to an economy that had begun to falter. He called for research and development of a missile-defense program, and warned of the threat of international terrorism.

The threat of international terrorism was made all too real on 11 September 2001, when 19 hijackers crashed 4 passenger aircraft into the North and South towers of the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and a field in Stony Creek Township in Pennsylvania. The World Trade Center towers were destroyed. Approximately 3,000 people were confirmed or reported dead as a result of all four 11 September 2001 attacks. The terrorist organization al-Qaeda, led by Saudi-born Osama bin Laden, was believed to be responsible for the attacks, and a manhunt for bin Laden began.

On 7 October 2001, the United States and Britain launched air strikes against known terrorist training camps and military installations within Afghanistan, ruled by the Taliban regime that supported the al-Qaeda organization. The air strikes were supported by leaders of the European Union and Russia, as well as other nations. By December 2001, the Taliban were defeated, and Afghan leader Hamid Karzai was chosen to lead an interim administration for the country. Remnants of al-Qaeda still remained in Afghanistan and the surrounding region, and a year after the 2001 offensive more than 10,000 US soldiers remained in Afghanistan to suppress efforts by either the Taliban or al-Qaeda to regroup. As of 2005, Allied soldiers continued to come under periodic attack in Afghanistan.

As a response to the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks, the US Congress that October approved the USA Patriot Act, proposed by the Bush administration. The act gave the government greater powers to detain suspected terrorists (or also immigrants), to counter money-laundering, and increase surveillance by domestic law enforcement and international intelligence agencies. Critics claimed the law did not provide for the system of checks and balances that safeguard civil liberties in the United States.

Beginning in late 2001, corporate America suffered a crisis of confidence. In December 2001, the energy giant Enron Corporation declared bankruptcy after massive false accounting practices came to light. Eclipsing the Enron scandal, telecommunications giant WorldCom in June 2002 disclosed that it had hid $3.8 billion in expenses over 15 months. The fraud led to WorldCom's bankruptcy, the largest in US history (the company had $107 billion in assets).

In his January 2002 State of the Union Address, President Bush announced that Iran, Iraq, and North Korea constituted an "axis of evil," sponsoring terrorism and threatening the United States and its allies with weapons of mass destruction. Throughout 2002, the United States pressed its case against Iraq, stating that the Iraqi regime had to disarm itself of weapons of mass destruction. In November 2002, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 1441, calling upon Iraq to disarm itself of any chemical, biological, or nuclear weapons it might possess and to allow for the immediate return of weapons inspectors (they had been expelled in 1998). UN and IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) weapons inspectors returned to the country, but the United States and the United Kingdom expressed dissatisfaction with their progress, and indicated military force might be necessary to remove the Iraqi regime, led by Saddam Hussein. France and Russia, per-manent members of the UN Security Council, and Germany, a nonpermanent member, in particular, opposed the use of military force. The disagreement caused a diplomatic rift in the West that was slow to repair.

After diplomatic efforts at conflict resolution failed by March 2003, the United States, on 19 March, launched air strikes against targets in Baghdād and war began. On 9 April, Baghdād fell to US forces, and work began on restoring basic services to the Iraqi population, including providing safe drinking water, electricity, and sanitation. On 1 May, President Bush declared major combat operations had been completed. Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein was captured by US forces on 13 December 2003 and placed in custody.

In May 2004, the Abu Ghraib scandal erupted. Photographs of US soldiers engaged in acts of abuseincluding physical, sexual, and psychologicalagainst Iraqi prisoners being held at the Abu Ghraib military prison outside Baghdād were made public. The fact that the prison had been a place of torture and execution under Saddam Hussein's rule made the abuse seem even more degrading. Seven US suspects were named for carrying out the abuse; most were given prison sentences on charges ranging from conspiracy to assault, but some thought higher-ranking officials, including Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, should resign as well.

US forces increasingly became the targets of attacks in Iraq as an insurgency against the US military presence began. By late 2005, nearly 1,900 US soldiers had been killed since major combat operations were declared over on 1 May 2003. Some 138,000 US troops remained in Iraq in late 2005, and that number was expected to increase as a referendum on a new Iraqi constitution in October 2005 and national elections in December 2005 were to be held.

The 2004 presidential election was held on 2 November. President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney defeated Democratic challengers John F. Kerry and John R. Edwards. Bush received approximately 3 million more popular votes than Kerry, and won the electoral vote 286 to 251 (One electoral vote went to John Edwards when an elector pledged to Kerry voted for "John Edwards" instead.) The vote in Ohio was the deciding factor, and upon conceding Ohio, Kerry conceded the election. The campaign was run on such issues as terrorism, the War in Iraq, the economy, and to a lesser extent issues of morality and values (Anti-gay marriage measures were on the ballots in 11 states, and all passed.)

In August 2005, Hurricane Katrina landed on the Gulf Coast of the United States, in what was one of the worst natural disasters in US history. The city of New Orleans, Louisiana, was evacuated, but some 150,000 people were unable to leave before the storm hit. A day after the storm appeared to have bypassed the city's center, levees were breached by the storm surge and water submerged the metropolis. Rescuers initially ignored the bodies of the dead in the search to find the living. Those unable to leave the city were sheltered in the Louisiana Superdome and New Orleans Convention Center; air conditioning, electricity, and running water failed, making for unsanitary and uncomfortable conditions. They were later transferred to other shelters, including the Houston Astrodome. Looting, shootings, and carjackings exacerbated already devastating conditions. The costs of the hurricane and flooding were exceedingly high in terms of both loss of life and economic damage: more than 1,000 people died and damages were estimated to reach $200 billion. Katrina had global economic consequences, as imports, exports, and oil suppliesincluding production, importation, and refiningwere disrupted. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) of the Department of Homeland Security, and President Bush were criticized in varying degrees for their lack of adequate response to the disaster. FEMA director Michael D. Brown resigned his position amid the furor. Race and class issues also came to the fore, as the majority of New Orleans residents unable to evacuate the city and affected by the catastrophe were poor and African American.

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

The Constitution of the United States, signed in 1787, is the nation's governing document. In the first 10 amendments to the Constitution, ratified in 1791 and known as the Bill of Rights, the federal government is denied the power to infringe on rights generally regarded as fundamental to the civil liberties of the people. These amendments prohibit the establishment of a state religion and the abridgment of freedom of speech, press, and the right to assemble. They protect all persons against unreasonable searches and seizures, guarantee trial by jury, and prohibit excessive bail and cruel and unusual punishments. No person may be required to testify against himself, nor may he be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law. The 13th Amendment (1865) banned slavery; the 15th (1870) protected the freed slaves' right to vote; and the 19th (1920) guaranteed the franchise to women. In all, there have been 27 amendments, the last of which, proposed in 1789 but ratified in 1992, denied the variation of the compensation of Senators and Representatives until an election intervened. The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), approved by Congress in 1972, would have mandated equality between the sexes; only 35 of the required 38 states had ratified the ERA by the time the ratification deadline expired on 30 June 1982.

The United States has a federal form of government, with the distribution of powers between the federal government and the states constitutionally defined. The legislative powers of the federal government are vested in Congress, which consists of the House of Representatives and the Senate. There are 435 members of the House of Representatives. Each state is allotted a number of representatives in proportion to its population as determined by the decennial census. Representatives are elected for two-year terms in every even-numbered year. A representative must be at least 25 years old, must be a resident of the state represented, and must have been a citizen of the United States for at least seven years. The Senate consists of two senators from each state, elected for six-year terms. Senators must be at least 30 years old, must be residents of the states from which they are elected, and must have been citizens of the United States for at least nine years. One-third of the Senate is elected in every even-numbered year.

Congress legislates on matters of taxation, borrowing, regulation of international and interstate commerce, formulation of rules of naturalization, bankruptcy, coinage, weights and measures, post offices and post roads, courts inferior to the Supreme Court, provision for the armed forces, among many other matters. A broad interpretation of the "necessary and proper" clause of the Constitution has widened considerably the scope of congressional legislation based on the enumerated powers.

A bill that is passed by both houses of Congress in the same form is submitted to the president, who may sign it or veto it. If the president chooses to veto the bill, it is returned to the house in which it originated with the reasons for the veto. The bill may become law despite the president's veto if it is passed again by a two-thirds vote in both houses. A bill becomes law without the president's signature if retained for 10 days while Congress is in session. After Congress adjourns, if the president does not sign a bill within 10 days, an automatic veto ensues.

The president must be "a natural born citizen" at least 35 years old, and must have been a resident of the United States for 14 years. Under the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution, adopted in 1951, a president may not be elected more than twice. Each state is allotted a number of electors based on its combined total of US senators and representatives, and, technically, it is these electors who, constituted as the electoral college, cast their vote for president, with all of the state's electoral votes customarily going to the candidate who won the largest share of the popular vote of the state (the District of Columbia also has three electors, making a total of 538 votes). Thus, the candidate who wins the greatest share of the popular vote throughout the United States may, in rare cases, fail to win a majority of the electoral vote. If no candidate gains a majority in the electoral college, the choice passes to the House of Representatives.

The vice president, elected at the same time and on the same ballot as the president, serves as ex officio president of the Senate. The vice president assumes the power and duties of the presidency on the president's removal from office or as a result of the president's death, resignation, or inability to perform his duties. In the case of a vacancy in the vice presidency, the president nominates a successor, who must be approved by a majority in both houses of Congress. The Congress has the power to determine the line of presidential succession in case of the death or disability of both the president and vice president.

Under the Constitution, the president is enjoined to "take care that the laws be faithfully executed." In reality, the president has a considerable amount of leeway in determining to what extent a law is or is not enforced. Congress's only recourse is impeachment, to which it has resorted only three times, in proceedings against presidents Andrew Johnson, Richard Nixon, and Bill Clinton. Both the president and the vice president are removable from office after impeachment by the House and conviction at a Senate trial for "treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors." The president has the power to grant reprieves and pardons for offenses against the United States except in cases of impeachment.

The president nominates and "by and with the advice and consent of the Senate" appoints ambassadors, public ministers, consuls, and all federal judges, including the justices of the Supreme Court. As commander in chief, the president is ultimately responsible for the disposition of the land, naval, and air forces, but the power to declare war belongs to Congress. The president conducts foreign relations and makes treaties with the advice and consent of the Senate. No treaty is binding unless it wins the approval of two-thirds of the Senate. The president's independence is also limited by the House of Representatives, where all money bills originate.

The president also appoints as his cabinet, subject to Senate confirmation, the secretaries who head the departments of the executive branch. As of 2005, the executive branch included the following cabinet departments: Agriculture (created in 1862), Commerce (1913), Defense (1947), Education (1980), Energy (1977), Health and Human Services (1980), Housing and Urban Development (1965), Interior (1849), Justice (1870), Labor (1913), State (1789), Transportation (1966), Treasury (1789), Veterans' Affairs (1989), and Homeland Security (2002). The Department of Defenseheadquartered in the Pentagon, the world's largest office buildingalso administers the various branches of the military: Air Force, Army, Navy, defense agencies, and joint-service schools. The Department of Justice administers the Federal Bureau of Investigation, which originated in 1908; the Central Intelligence Agency (1947) is under the aegis of the Executive office. Among the several hundred quasi-independent agencies are the Federal Reserve System (1913), serving as the nation's central bank, and the major regulatory bodies, notably the Environmental Protection Agency (1970), Federal Communications Commission (1934), Federal Power Commission (1920), Federal Trade Commission (1914), and Interstate Commerce Commission (1887).

Regulations for voting are determined by the individual states for federal as well as for local offices, and requirements vary from state to state. In the past, various southern states used literacy tests, poll taxes, "grandfather" clauses, and other methods to disfranchise black voters, but Supreme Court decisions and congressional measures, including the Voting Rights Act of 1965, more than doubled the number of black registrants in Deep South states between 1964 and 1992. In 1960, only 29.1% of the black voting-age population was registered to vote; by the mid-1990s, that percentage had risen to over 65%.

As of the November 2004 presidential election, there were over 16 million registered African American voters (64.4% of those African Americans eligible to vote). The number of registered Hispanic voters increased from 2.5 million in 1972 to 9 million in 2004 (34.3% of eligible Hispanic voters). Sixty-four percent of eligible voters cast ballots in the 2004 presidential election, up from 60% in 2000. Voter registration was reported to be 72% nationwide. The next presidential election was to be held November 2008.

POLITICAL PARTIES

Two major parties, Democratic and Republican, have dominated national, state, and local politics since 1860. These parties are made up of clusters of small autonomous local groups primarily concerned with local politics and the election of local candidates to office. Within each party, such groups frequently differ drastically in policies and beliefs on many issues, but once every four years, they successfully bury their differences and rally around a candidate for the presidency. Minority parties have been formed at various periods in US political history, but most have generally allied with one of the two major parties, and none has achieved sustained national prominence. The most successful minority party in recent decadesthat of Texas billionaire Ross Perot in 1992was little more than a protest vote. Various extreme groups on the right and left, including a small US Communist Party, have had little political significance on a national scale; in 1980, the Libertarian Party became the first minor party since 1916 to appear on the ballot in all 50 states. The Green Party increased its showing in the 2000 election, with presidential candidate Ralph Nader winning 2.7% of the vote. Independent candidates have won state and local office, but no candidate has won the presidency without major party backing.

Traditionally, the Republican Party is more solicitous of business interests and gets greater support from business than does the Democratic Party. A majority of blue-collar workers, by contrast, have generally supported the Democratic Party, which favors more lenient labor laws, particularly as they affect labor unions; the Republican Party often (though not always) supports legislation that restricts the power of labor unions. Republicans favor the enhancement of the private sector of the economy, while Democrats generally urge the cause of greater government participation and regulatory authority, especially at the federal level.

Within both parties there are sharp differences on a great many issues; for example, northeastern Democrats in the past almost uniformly favored strong federal civil rights legislation, which was anathema to the Deep South; eastern Republicans in foreign policy are internationalist-minded, while midwesterners of the same party constituted from 1910 through 1940 the hard core of isolationist sentiment in the country. More recently, "conservative" headings have been adopted by members of both parties who emphasize decentralized government power, strengthened private enterprise, and a strong US military posture overseas, while the designation "liberal" has been applied to those favoring an in-

US Popular Vote for President by National Political Parties, 19482004
YEARWINNERVOTES CASTVOTERSDEMOCRATREPUBLICANPROHBITIONSOC. LABORSOC. WORKERSSOCIALISTPROGRESSIVESTATES' RRIGHTS DEMOCRATCONSTITUTIONOTHER1
1Includes votes for state parties, independent candidates and unpledged electors.
2Total includes votes for several candidates in different states under the same party label.
3Includes 756,631 votes for Eugene McCarthy, an independent.
4Includes 5,719,437 votes for John Anderson, an independent.
5Includes 78,807 votes for Lyndon H. LaRouche, an independent.
6Includes 19,742,267 votes for Ross Perot, an independent.
7Includes 8,085,402 votes for Ross Perot, a Reform candidate.
8Includes 7,102 votes for James Harris and 3,689 for Róger Calero
1948Truman (D)48,692,4425124,105,58721,970,017103,48929,03813,614138,9731,157,0571,169,1345,533
1952Eisenhower (R)61,551,1186227,314,64933,936,13773,41330,25010,31220,065140,41617,2008,676
1956Eisenhower (R)62,025,3725926,030,17235,585,24541,93744,3007,7972,0442,657108,055203,165
NATL. STATES' RIGHTS
1960Kennedy (D)68,828,9606334,221,34434,106,76144,08747,52240,166209,314159,856
UNPLEDGED DEM
1964Johnson (D)70,641,1046243,126,58427,177,83823,26645,18732,7016,953210,73217,843
COMMUNISTPEACE AND FREEDOMAMERICAN IND.
1968Nixon (R)73,203,3706131,274,50331,785,14814,91552,59141,3901,07683,72029,901,15148,876
LIBERTARIANAMERIAN
1972Nixon (R)77,727,5905529,171,79147,170,17912,81853,81194,415225,3433,6711,090,673104,889
US LABOR
1976Carter (D)81,552,3315440,829,04639,146,00615,95840,04191,31058,992173,019170,531160,773866,6553
CITIZENSRESPECT FOR LIFE
1980Reagan (R)86,495,6785435,481,43543,899,248230,37732,31940,10543,871920,85941,1726,5395,799,7534
POPULISTIND. ALLIANCE
1984Reagan (R)92,652,7935337,577,13754,455,07472,20066,33624,70636,386228,31446,85213,161132,6275
1988Bush(R)91,594,8095041,809,07448,886,09730,90547,04715,604432,179217,2193,475153,209
US TAX PAYER
1992Clinton(D)104,426,6595544,909,88939,104,54543,398107,00223,09139,163291,62873,7083,87519,830,3606
US TAX PAYERGREENLIBERTARIANNATURAL LAW
1996Clinton (D)96,277,2234947,402,35739,198,755184,658684,9028,4764,765485,798113,6681,8478,196,7627
REFORM
2000Bush,GW (R)105,405,1004850,999,89750,456,002448,8952,882,9557,378384,43187,71498,02039,808
2004Bush,GW (R)122,295,3455759,028,44462,040,610465,650119,85910,7918397,26510,837143,63078,259

creased federal government role in economic and social affairs, disengagement from foreign military commitments, and safe-guards for civil liberties.

President Nixon's resignation and the accompanying scandal surrounding the Republican Party hierarchy had a telling, if predictable, effect on party morale, as indicated by Republican losses in the 1974 and 1976 elections. The latent consequences of the Vietnam and Watergate years appeared to take their toll on both parties, however, in growing apathy toward politics and mistrust of politicians among the electorate. Ronald Reagan's successful 1980 presidential bid cut into traditional Democratic strongholds throughout the United States, as Republicans won control of the US Senate and eroded state and local Democratic majorities. On the strength of an economic recovery, President Reagan won re-election in November 1984, carrying 49 of 50 states (with a combined total of 525 electoral votes) and 58.8% of the popular vote; the Republicans retained control of the Senate, but the Democrats held on to the House. Benefiting from a six-year expansion of the economy, Republican George H.W. Bush won 54% of the vote in 1988. As Reagan had, Bush successfully penetrated traditionally Democratic regions. He carried every state in the South as well as the industrial states of the North.

Bush's approval rating reached a high of 91% in March of 1991 in the wake of the Persian Gulf War. By July of 1992, however, that rating had plummeted to 25%, in part because Bush appeared to be disengaged from domestic issues, particularly the 1991 recession. Bill Clinton, governor of Arkansas and twenty years younger than Bush, presented himself to the electorate as a "New Democrat." He took more moderate positions than traditional New Deal Democrats, including calling for a middle-class tax cut, welfare reform, national service, and such traditionally Republican goals as getting tough on crime. The presidential race took on an unpredictable dimension with the entrance of Independent Ross Perot, a Texas billionaire. Perot, who attacked the budget deficit and called for shared sacrifice, withdrew from the race in July and then reentered it in October. Clinton won the election with 43% of the vote, Bush received 38%, and Perot captured 18%, more than any third-party presidential candidate since Theodore Roosevelt in 1912. As of 1992, Democrats enjoyed a large advantage over Republicans in voter registration, held both houses of congress, had a majority of state governorships, and controlled most state legislative bodies. In 1996 Bill Clinton became the first Democratic president since Franklin Roosevelt to be elected to a second term, with 49% of the popular vote to 41% for Republican Bob Dole, and 8% for Ross Perot, who once again ran as an Independent. Republicans retained control of the House and Senate.

Aided by a growing climate of conservatism on moral issues and popular discontent with the pace of economic recovery from the recent recession, the Republicans accomplished an historic upset in the 1994 midterm elections, gaining control of both houses of Congress for the first time since 1952. They gained 52 seats in the House, for a majority of 230-204, and 8 seats in the Senate, for a majority that came to 53-47 once Democrat Richard Shelby of Alabama changed parties shortly after the election. The Republicans also increased their power at the state level, winning 11 governorships, for a national total of 30. The number of state legislatures under Republican control increased from 8 to 19, with 18 controlled by the Democrats and 12 under split control. After the 1998 election, the Republican majority had eroded slightly in the House, with the 106th Congress including 223 Republicans, 210 Democrats, and 2 Independents; the Senate included 55 Republicans and 45 Democrats.

The major candidates in the 2000 presidential election were Republican George W. Bush, son of former president George H.W. Bush; his vice presidential running mate was Dick Cheney. The Democratic candidate was Vice President Al Gore, Jr. (Clinton administration 19922000). Gore chose Joseph Lieberman, senator from Connecticut, as his running mate. Lieberman, an Orthodox Jew, became the first Jew to run for national office. Following the contested presidential election of 2000, George W. Bush emerged as president following a ruling by the US Supreme Court. Gore won the popular vote, with 48.4%, to 47.9% for Bush, but Bush won the electoral college vote, 271-266, with one blank vote in the electoral college cast. Sectional and demographic differences were evident in the 2000 election, with the Northeast, parts of the Mid-west, the Pacific states, and most urban areas voting Democratic, and the South, West, and rural communities voting Republican.

Following the November 2002 mid-term elections, Republicans held 229 of 435 seats in the House of Representatives, and there were 205 Democrats and 1 independent in the House. The Republicans held an extremely thin margin in the Senate, of 51 seats, to the Democrats' 48. There was one independent in the Senate, former Republican Jim Jeffords. Following the election, Nancy Pelosi became the Democratic Majority Leader in the House of Representatives, the first woman to head either party in Congress. As a result of the 2002 election, there were 60 women, 37 African Americans, and 22 Hispanics in the House of Representatives, and 14 women in the Senate. There were no African American or Hispanic senators following the 2002 election.

The 2004 presidential election was won by incumbent George W. Bush and his running mate Dick Cheney. They defeated Democrats John F. Kerry and John Edwards. Bush received 286 electoral votes, Kerry 251, and Edwards 1 when an elector wrote the name "John Edwards" in on the electoral ballot. Bush received a majority of the popular vote50.73%, to Kerry's 48.27%or 3 million more votes than Kerry. Voter turnout was the highest since 1968, at 64%. The composition of the 109th Congress after the 2004 election was as follows: 55 Republicans, 44 Democrats, and 1 Independent in the Senate, and 232 Republicans, 202 Democrats, and 1 Independent in the House of Representatives. The next elections for the Senate and House of Representatives were to be held November 2006.

The 1984 election marked a turning point for women in national politics. Geraldine A. Ferraro, a Democrat, became the first female vice presidential nominee of a major US political party; no woman has ever captured a major-party presidential nomination. In the 109th Congress (200506), 14 women served in the US Senate, and 68 women held seats in the US House of Representatives (including delegates).

The 1984 presidential candidacy of Jesse L. Jackson, election, the first African American ever to win a plurality in a statewide presidential preference primary, likewise marked the emergence of African Americans as a political force, especially within the Democratic Party. In 1992 an African American woman, Democrat Carol Moseley Braun of Illinois, won election to the Senate, becoming the first black senator; Moseley Braun lost her reelection bid in 1998. She was a candidate for president in 2004.

There were 42 African Americans in the House of Representatives and one in the Senate in the 109th Congress. Twenty-six Hispanics were serving in the House and two in the Senate, a record number. Eight members of Congress were of Asian/Hawaiian/or other Pacific Islander ethnicity, six in the House of Representatives and two in the Senate. There was one Native American in the House. (These numbers include delegates.)

LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Governmental units within each state comprise counties, municipalities, and such special districts as those for water, sanitation, highways, and parks. and recreation. There are more than 3,000 counties in the United States; more than 19,000 municipalities, including cities, villages, towns, and boroughs; nearly 15,000 school districts; and at least 31,000 special districts. Additional town-ships, authorities, commissions, and boards make up the rest of the nearly 85,000 local governmental units.

The 50 states are autonomous within their own spheres of government, and their autonomy is defined in broad terms by the 10th Amendment to the US Constitution, which reserves to the states such powers as are not granted to the federal government and not denied to the states. The states may not, among other restrictions, issue paper money, conduct foreign relations, impair the obligations of contracts, or establish a government that is not republican in form. Subsequent amendments to the Constitution and many Supreme Court decisions added to the restrictions placed on the states. The 13th Amendment prohibited the states from legalizing the ownership of one person by another (slavery); the 14th Amendment deprived the states of their power to determine qualifications for citizenship; the 15th Amendment prohibited the states from denying the right to vote because of race, color, or previous condition of servitude; and the 19th, from denying the vote to women.

Since the Civil War, the functions of the state have expanded. Local businessthat is, business not involved in foreign or inter-state commerceis regulated by the state. The states create subordinate governmental bodies such as counties, cities, towns, villages, and boroughs, whose charters they either issue or, where home rule is permitted, approve. States regulate employment of children and women in industry, and enact safety laws to prevent industrial accidents. Unemployment insurance is a state function, as are education, public health, highway construction and safety, operation of a state highway patrol, and various kinds of personal relief. The state and local governments still are primarily responsible for providing public assistance, despite the large part the federal government plays in financing welfare.

Each state is headed by an elected governor. State legislatures are bicameral except Nebraska's, which has been unicameral since 1934. Generally, the upper house is called the senate, and the lower house the house of representatives or the assembly. Bills must be passed by both houses, and the governor has a suspensive veto, which usually may be overridden by a two-thirds vote.

The number, population, and geographic extent of the more than 3,000 counties in the United Statesincluding the analogous units called boroughs in Alaska and parishes in Louisianashow no uniformity from state to state. The county is the most conspicuous unit of rural local government and has a variety of powers, including location and repair of highways, county poor relief, determination of voting precincts and of polling places, and organization of school and road districts. City governments, usually headed by a mayor or city manager, have the power to levy taxes; to borrow; to pass, amend, and repeal local ordinances; and to grant franchises for public service corporations. Township government through an annual town meeting is an important New England tradition.

From the 1960s into the 21st century, a number of large cities began to suffer severe fiscal crises brought on by a combination of factors. Loss of tax revenues stemmed from the migration of middle-class residents to the suburbs and the flight of many small and large firms seeking to avoid the usually higher costs of doing business in urban areas. Low-income groups, many of them unskilled blacks and Hispanic migrants, came to constitute large segments of city populations, placing added burdens on locally funded welfare, medical, housing, and other services without providing the commensurate tax base for additional revenues.

STATE SERVICES

All state governments provide services in the fields of education, transportation, health and social welfare, public protection (including state police and prison personnel), housing, and labor. The 1970s saw an expansion of state services in four key areas: energy, environment, consumer protection, and governmental ethics. Each state provides some form of consumer advocacy, either through a separate department or agency or through the office of the attorney general. State government in the 1970s and early 1980s also showed the effects of the so-called post-Watergate morality. Laws mandating financial disclosure by public officials, once rare, had become common by 1983. Also notable were "sunshine laws," opening legislative committee meetings and administrative hearings to the public, and the use of an ombudsman either with general jurisdiction or with special powers relating, for example, to the problems of businesses, prisoners, the elderly, or racial minorities. Other trends in state administration, reflected on the federal level, include the separation of education from other services and the consolidation of social welfare programs in departments of human resources.

The distribution of federal funds to state, local, and territorial governments was placed at more than $2.1 trillion in 2004. The largest outlays of aid were for retirement and disability funds, at $666.9 billion; Medicare, $259 billion; Medicaid, $172 billion; and supplemental security income, $36.9 billion.

California received more funds than any other state, $232.3 billion, followed by New York state at $143.9 billion; Texas at $141.8 billion; Florida, at $121.9 billion; Pennsylvania at $94.9 billion, and Virginia at $90.6 billion.

JUDICIAL SYSTEM

The Supreme Court, established by the US Constitution, is the nation's highest judicial body, consisting of the chief justice of the United States and eight associate justices. All justices are appointed by the president with the advice and consent of the Senate. Appointments are for life "during good behavior," otherwise terminating only by resignation or impeachment and conviction.

The original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court is relatively narrow; as an appellate court, it is open to appeal from decisions of federal district courts, circuit courts of appeals, and the highest courts in the states, although it may dismiss an appeal if it sees fit to do so. The Supreme Court, by means of a writ of certiorari, may call up a case from a district court for review. Regardless of how cases reach it, the Court enforces a kind of unity on the decisions of the lower courts. It also exercises the power of judicial review, determining the constitutionality of state laws, state constitutions, congressional statutes, and federal regulations, but only when these are specifically challenged.

The Constitution empowers Congress to establish all federal courts inferior to the Supreme Court. On the lowest level and handling the greatest proportion of federal cases are the district courtsincluding one each in Puerto Rico, Guam, the Virgin Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the District of Columbiawhere all offenses against the laws of the United States are tried. Civil actions that involve cases arising under treaties and laws of the United States and under the Constitution, where the amount in dispute is greater than $5,000, also fall within the jurisdiction of the district courts. District courts have no appellate jurisdiction; their decisions may be carried to the courts of appeals, organized into 13 circuits. These courts also hear appeals from decisions made by administrative commissions. For most cases, this is usually the last stage of appeal, except where the court rules that a statute of a state conflicts with the Constitution of the United States, with federal law, or with a treaty. Special federal courts include the Court of Claims, Court of Customs and Patent Appeals, and Tax Court.

State courts operate independently of the federal judiciary. Most states adhere to a court system that begins on the lowest level with a justice of the peace and includes courts of general trial jurisdiction, appellate courts, and, at the apex of the system, a state supreme court. The court of trial jurisdiction, sometimes called the county or superior court, has both original and appellate jurisdiction; all criminal cases (except those of a petty kind) and some civil cases are tried in this court. The state's highest court, like the Supreme Court of the United States, interprets the constitution and the laws of the state.

The grand jury is a body of from 13 to 24 persons that brings indictments against individuals suspected of having violated the law. Initially, evidence is presented to it by either a justice of the peace or a prosecuting county or district attorney. The trial or petit jury of 12 persons is used in trials of common law, both criminal and civil, except where the right to a jury trial is waived by consent of all parties at law. It judges the facts of the case, while the court is concerned exclusively with questions of law. The US accepts the compulsory jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice with reservations.

ARMED FORCES

The armed forces of the United States of America in 2005 numbered 1.473 million on active duty and 1.29 million in the Ready Reserve, a category of participation that allows regular training with pay and extended active duty periods for training. Membership in all U.S. armed forces is voluntary and has been since 1973 when conscription expired as the Vietnam war was winding down. The active duty force includes 196,100 women, who serve in all grades and all occupational specialties except direct ground combat units and some aviation billets.

In the 1990s, the armed forces reduced their personnel numbers and force structure because of the diminished threat of a nuclear war with the former Soviet Union or a major conflict in central Europe. Despite the interlude of the Gulf War, 199091, the force reductions continued throughout the decade, forcing some restructuring of the active duty forces, with emphasis on rapid deployment to deter or fight major regional conflicts much like the Gulf War, in Korea, elsewhere in the Middle East, or Latin America (e.g. Cuba). The conventional force debate centered on whether the United States could or should maintain forces to fight two regional conflicts simultaneously. In the spring of 1999, the United States took part in the NATO air campaign in response to the crisis in Kosovo, and the ensuing US participation in peacekeeping operations in the region brought with it the prospect of another long-term overseas deployment.

For the purposes of administration, personnel management, logistics, and training, the traditional four military services in the Department of Defense remain central to strategic planning. The US Army numbers 502,000 soldiers on active duty, and are deployed into 10 divisions (two armored, four mechanized infantry, two light infantry, one air assault and one airborne), as well as into various armored cavalry, aviation, artillery, signals, psychological operations, ranger, Special Forces, civil affairs and air defense units. Army missions involving special operations are given to Special Forces groups, an airborne ranger regiment, an aviation group, and a psychological warfare group, with civil affairs and communications support units. The Army had 7,620 main battle tanks, 6,719 infantry fighting vehicles, 14,900 armored personnel carriers, 6,530 towed or self-propelled artillery pieces, some 268 fixed wing aircraft, and 4,431 armed and transport helicopters. The Army National Guard (355,900) emphasizes the preparation of combat units up to division size for major regional conflicts, while the Army Reserve (351,350) prepares individuals to fill active units or provide combat support or service support/technical/medical units upon mobilization. In addition, the National Guard retains a residual state role in suppressing civil disturbances and providing disaster relief.

The US Navy had 376,750 active personnel. The service has seen its role shift from nuclear strategic deterrence and control of sea routes to Europe and Asia, to the projection of naval power from the sea. Naval task forces normally combine three combat elements: air, surface, and subsurface. The Navy had up to 80 nuclear-powered submarines, that consisted of 16 strategic ballistic missile (SSBN) and 64 tactical/attack (SSGN and SSN) submarines. The latter ships can launch cruise missiles at land targets.

As of 2005, naval aviation was centered on 12 carriers (nine nuclear-powered) and 11 carrier aircraft wings, which included armed ASW helicopters and armed long-range ASW patrol aircraft, as well as a large fleet of communications and support aircraft. The Navy controled 983 combat capable fixed wing aircraft and 608 helicopters of all types. Naval aviation reserves provided additional wings for carrier deployment. The surface force included 27 cruisers (22 with advanced anti-air suites), 49 destroyers, 30 frigates, 38 amphibious ships, 26 mine warfare ships, and 21 patrol and coastal combatants. More ships are kept in ready reserve or were manned by surface line reserve units. The fleet support force also included specialized ships for global logistics that are not base-dependent.

The Marine Corps, a separate branch of the Navy, was organized into three active divisions and three aircraft wings of the Fleet Marine Force, which also included three Force Service Support groups and special operations and anti-terrorism units. The Marine Corps (173,350; 11,311 reservists) emphasized amphibious landings but trained for a wide-range of contingency employments. The Marines had 344 combat capable fixed wing aircraft, 304 helicopters of all types, 403 main battle tanks, 1,311 amphibious armored vehicles, and about 1,511 artillery pieces (926 towed).

As of 2005, the US Air Force had 379,500 active personnel, and was focused on becoming rapidly deployable rather than US-based. Almost all its aircraft are now dedicated to nonstrategic roles in support of forward deployed ground and naval forces. The Air Force stressed the missions of air superiority and interdiction with complementary operations in electronic warfare and reconnaissance, but it also included 29 transport squadrons. Air Force personnel manage the US radar and satellite early-warning and intelligence effort. The Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard (roughly 183,200 active reserves) provided a wide range of flying and support units, and its flying squadrons had demonstrated exceptional readiness and combat skills on contingency missions. Air Force reserves, for example, were the backbone of the air refueling and transport fleets.

The armed forces were deployed among a range of functional unified or specified commands for actual missions. Strategic forces were under the US Strategic Command, which was a combined service command that controled the U.S.' strategic nuclear deterrence forces, which as of 2005, was made up of 550 land-based ICBMs, 16 Navy fleet ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs), and 85 operational long-range bombers (B-52s and B-1As). Land-based ICBMs are under the Air Force Space Command, while the long-range bomber force was under the Air Force Air Combat Command. The Strategic Command was also responsible for strategic reconnaissance and intelligence collection, and the strategic early warning and air defense forces. In 2002 the Treaty of Moscow was signed between the United States and Russia to reduce deployed nuclear weapons by two-thirds by the year 2012. As of 2002, the United States had more than 10,000 operational nuclear warheads.

The conventional forces were deployed to a mix of geographic and organizational commands, including the Atlantic, European, Central, Southern, Northern and Pacific commands, as well as to specific organizational commands such as the Transportation Command, Special Operations Command and Air Mobility Command. Major operational units are deployed to Germany, Korea, and Japan as part of collective security alliances, in addition to forces stationed throughout other countries in the Middle East, Africa, Southeast Asia, Western and Eastern Europe, and Latin America. Approximately 19,000 US troops are stationed in Afghanistan with Operation Enduring Freedom.

Patterns of defense spending reflected the movement away from Cold War assumptions and confrontation with the former Soviet Union and the People's Republic of China. During the 1980s when defense spending hovered around $300 billion a year and increased roughly 30% over the decade, defense spending absorbed roughly 6% of the gross domestic spending, 25% of federal spending, and 16% of net public spending. In the early 1990s, when the defense budget slipped back to the $250-$260 billion level, the respective percentages were 4.5, 18, and 11, the lowest levels of support for defense since the Korean War (1950). In 1999, the defense budget was $276.7 million or 3.2% of GDP. In 2005, US defense budget outlays totaled $465 billion.

MIGRATION

Between 1840 and 1930, some 37 million immigrants, the overwhelming majority of them Europeans, arrived in the United States. Immigration reached its peak in the first decade of the 20th century, when nearly 9 million came. Following the end of World War I, the tradition of almost unlimited immigration was abandoned, and through the National Origins Act of 1924, a quota system was established as the basis of a carefully restricted policy of immigration. Under the McCarran Act of 1952, one-sixth of 1% of the number of inhabitants from each European nation residing in the continental United States as of 1920 could be admitted annually. In practice, this system favored nations of northern and western Europe, with the UK, Germany, and Ireland being the chief beneficiaries. The quota system was radically reformed in 1965, under a new law that established an annual ceiling of 170,000 for Eastern Hemisphere immigrants and 120,000 for entrants from the Western Hemisphere; in October 1978, these limits were replaced by a worldwide limit of 290,000, which was lowered to 270,000 by 1981. A major 1990 overhaul set a total annual ceiling of 700,000 (675,000 beginning in fiscal 1995), of which 480,000 would be family sponsored and 140,000 employment based. The 1996 Immigration Reform Law addressed concerns about illegal immigration and border enforcement. The 1996 Welfare Reform Law revised legal and illegal immigrants' access to different forms of public assistance, and raised the standards for US residents who sponsor immigrants. The 2000 H-1B Visa Legislation increased temporary immigration visas for high-tech workers. In 2004, President Bush proposed a fair and secure immigration reform with a new temporary worker program.

In 2002, 1,063,732 immigrants entered the United States, of whom 416,860 were subject to the numerical limits. Some 342,099 immigrants in 2002 were from Asia; 404,437 were from North America; 74,506 were from South America; 174,209 from Europe; 60,269 from Africa, and 5,557 from Oceania. A direct result of the immigration law revisions has been a sharp rise in the influx of Asians (primarily Chinese, Filipinos, Indians, Japanese, and Koreans), of whom 2,738,157 entered the country during 198190, as compared with 153,249 during the entire decade of the 1950s. Most immigrants in 2002 came from Mexico (219,380).

Since 1961, the federal government supported and financed the Cuban Refugee Program; in 1995, new accords were agreed to by the two countries. More than 500,000 Cubans were living in southern Florida by 1980, when another 125,000 Cuban refugees arrived; by 1990, 4% of Florida's population was of Cuban descent. Some 169,322 Cubans arrived from 19912000, and 27,520 arrived in 2002. Between 1975 and 1978, following the defeat of the US-backed Saigon (Vietnam) government, several hundred thousand Vietnamese refugees came to the United States. Under the Refugee Act of 1980, a ceiling for the number of admissible refugees is set annually; in fiscal 2002, the ceiling for refugees was 70,000. Since Puerto Ricans are American citizens, no special authorization is required for their admission to the continental United States. The population of refugees, resettled refugees, and asylum-seekers with pending claims was estimated at 5,250,954 in June 2003, a 34% increase over June 2002. During the same year, the newly-formed Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services (BCISformerly the Immigration and Naturalization Service or INS) received 66,577 applications for asylum, a decline of 36% from 2002. In 2004, the US hosted 684,564 persons of concern to UNHCR, 420,854 refugees, and 263,710 asylum-seekers. For that year, the US was the fifth largest asylum country. UNHCR reports the United States as the leading destination of refugees, accounting for 63% of all resettlement worldwide.

Large numbers of aliensmainly from Latin America, especially Mexicohave illegally established residence in the United States after entering the country as tourists, students, or temporary visitors engaged in work or business. In November 1986, Congress passed a bill allowing illegal aliens who had lived and worked in the United States since 1982 the opportunity to become permanent residents. By the end of fiscal year 1992, 2,650,000 of a potential 2,760,000 eligible for permanent residence under this bill had attained that status. In 1996 the number of illegal alien residents was estimated at 5 million, of which 2 million were believed to be in California. As of 2002, an estimated 33.1 million immigrants (legal and illegal) lived in the United States. Of this total, the Census Bureau estimated in 2000 that 8-9 million of them were illegal alien residents. In 2004, there were 36 million foreign-born US residents, almost 30% were unauthorized, or some 10.3 million foreigners. Of these 57% are unauthorized Mexicans. Foreign-born persons are 11 % of the US population, and 14 % of US workers.

As of 2006, there are three major immigration-related agencies in the US: the Department of Homeland Security; the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency which apprehends foreigners; and, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) which is responsible for enforcement of immigration laws within the US, together with identifying and removing unauthorized foreigners, and those ordered removed.

The major migratory trends within the United States have been a general westward movement during the 19th century; a long-term movement from farms and other rural settlements to metropolitan areas, which showed signs of reversing in some states during the 1970s; an exodus of southern blacks to the cities of the North and Midwest, especially after World War I; a shift of whites from central cities to surrounding suburbs since World War II; and, also during the post-World War II period, a massive shift from the North and East to the Sunbelt region of the South and Southwest.

In 2005, the net migration rate was estimated as 3.31 migrants per 1,000 population.

INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION

The United States is a charter member of the United Nations, having joined on 24 October 1945. The United States participates in ECE, ECLAC, ESCAP, and all the nonregional specialized agencies. The United States is a permanent member of the UN Security Council. The United States participates in numerous intergovernmental organizations, including the Asian Development Bank, the African Development Bank, OECD, APEC, the Colombo Plan, the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, G-5, G-7. G-8, the Paris Club (G-10), OSCE, and the WTO. Hemispheric agencies include the Inter-American Development Bank and the OAS. The country is an observer in the Council of Europe and a dialogue partner with ASEAN.

In 1992, the United States, Canada, and Mexico signed the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), creating a free-trade zone among the three countries. It was ratified by all three governments in 1993 and took effect the following year.

NATO is the principal military alliance to which the United States belongs. The ANZUS alliance was a mutual defense pact between Australia, New Zealand, and the United States; in 1986, following New Zealand's decision to ban US nuclear-armed or nuclear-powered ships from its ports, the United States renounced its ANZUS treaty security commitments to New Zealand. The country is a signatory of the 1947 Rio Treaty, an inter-American security agreement. The Untied States has supported UN missions and operations in Kosovo (est. 1999), Liberia (est. 2003), Georgia (est. 1993), and Haiti (est. 2004). The Untied States belongs to the Nuclear Suppliers Group (London Group), the Zangger Committee, the Nuclear Energy Agency, and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. It holds observe status in the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN).

In environmental cooperation, the United States is part of the Central American-US Joint Declaration (CONCAUSA), the Antarctic Treaty, Conventions on Air Pollution and Whaling, Ramsar, CITES, the London Convention, International Tropical Timber Agreements, the Montréal Protocol, MARPOL, the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, and the UN Conventions on Climate Change and Desertification.

ECONOMY

The US economy is the world's largest. In variety and quantity, the natural resources of the United States probably exceed those of any other nation, with the possible exception of the former Soviet Union. The United States is among the world's leading exporters of coal, wheat, corn, and soybeans. However, because of its vast economic growth, the United States depends increasingly on foreign sources for a long list of raw materials, including oil.

By the middle of the 20th century, the United States was a leading consumer of nearly every important industrial raw material. The industry of the United States produced about 40% of the world's total output of goods, despite the fact that the country's population comprised about 6% of the world total and its land area about 7% of the earth's surface.

In absolute terms the United States far exceeds every other nation in the size of its gross domestic product (GDP), which more than tripled between 1970 and 1983. In 1998 the nation's GDP in purchasing power parity terms (PPP) reached a record $8.5 trillion in current dollars, with per capita GDP reaching $31,500. Per capita GDP (PPP) stood at $40,100 in 2004, and the nation's GDP (PPP) was $11.75 trillion.

Inflation was not as significant a factor in the US economy in the 1990s and early 2000s as it was in the 1970s and 1980s. The US inflation rate tends to be lower than that of the majority of industrialized nations. For the period 197078, for example, consumer prices increased by an annual average of 6.7%, less than in every other Western country except Austria, Luxembourg, Switzerland, and West Germany, and well below the price increase in Japan. The double-digit inflation of 197981 came as a rude shock to most Americans, with economists and politicians variously blaming international oil price rises, federal monetary policies, and US government spending.

The United States entered the post-World War II era with the world's largest, and strongest, economy. Public confidence in both business and government was strong, the nation enjoyed the largest peacetime trade surplus in its history, and the gross national product grew to a record $482.7 billion by the end of the 1950s. In the sixties the country enjoyed the most sustained period of economic expansion it had known, accompanied by rising productivity and low unemployment. Real income rose 50% during the decade, and US investment in foreign countries reached $49 billion in 1965, up from $11.8 billion in 1950. Big business and big government were both powerful forces in the economy during this period, when large industrial corporations accounted for vast portions of the national income, and the federal government expanded its role in such areas as social welfare, scientific research, space technology, and development of the nation's highway system.

After two decades of prosperity, Americans experienced an economic downturn in the 1970s, a period known for the unprecedented combination of lagging economic growth and inflation that gave birth to the term stagflation. Foreign competitors in Japan and Europe challenged the global dominance of American manufacturers, and oil crises in 197374 and 1979 shook public confidence in the institutions of both government and business. The forced bailouts of Chrysler and Lockheed were symbolic of the difficult transition to a new economic era, marked by the growing importance of the service sector and the ascendancy of small businesses.

During Ronald Reagan's first presidential term, from 1980 to 1984, the nation endured two years of severe recession followed by two years of robust recovery. The inflation rate was brought down, and millions of new jobs were created. The economic boom of the early and mid-eighties, however, coincided with a number of alarming developments. Federal budget deficits, caused by dramatic increases in the military budget and by rising costs of entitlement programs such as Medicaid and Medicare, averaged more than $150 billion annually. By 1992, the total deficit reached $290 billion, or $1,150 for every American. In addition, corporate debt rose dramatically, and household borrowing grew twice as fast as personal income. The eighties also witnessed a crisis in the banking industry, caused by a combination of factors, including high inflation and interest rates, problem loans to developing countries, and speculative real estate ventures that caused thousands of banks to fail when the real estate boom of the early eighties collapsed.

The disparity between the affluent and the poor widened at the end of the 20th century. The share of the nation's income received by the richest 5% of American families rose from 18.6% in 1977 to 24.5% in 1990, while the share of the poorest 20% fell from 5.7% to 4.3%. Externally, the nation's trade position deteriorated, as a high level of foreign investment combined with an uncompetitive US dollar to create a ballooning trade deficit. In 1990, the American economy plunged into a recession. Factors contributing to the slump included rising oil prices following Iraq's invasion of Kuwait, a sharp increase in interest rates, and declining availability of credit. Output fell 1.6% and 1.7 million jobs were cut. Unemployment rose from 5.2% in 1989 to 7.5% in 1991, but had fallen to 4.5% by 1998.

The recovery that began in March 1991 inaugurated a sustained period of expansion that, as of mid-2000, was the third longest since World War II, characterized by moderation in the key areas of growth, inflation, unemployment, and interest rates. Real GDP growth, which fluctuated between 2% and 3.5% throughout the period, was 3.9% for 1998. After peaking at 7.5%, unemployment declined steadily throughout the early and mid-1990s, falling to 5.6% in 1995, 5.3% at the end of 1996, and in 1998, remaining below 5%. After 1993/94, inflation mostly remained under 3%. One exception to the generally moderate character of the economy was the stock market, which rose 60% between 1995 and 1997, buoyed by the combination of low unemployment and low inflation, as well as strong corporate earnings. Further cause for optimism was the bipartisan balanced-budget legislation enacted and signed into law in 1997. The plan, combining tax and spending cuts over a five-year period, was aimed at balancing the federal budget by 2002 for the first time since 1969. In early 2001, the government projected a budget surplus of $275 billion for the fiscal year ending that September. That surplus would soon be reversed.

At the beginning of the 21st century, significant economic concernsaside from the inevitable worry over how long the boom could last without an eventual downturnincluded the nation's sizable trade deficit, the increasing medical costs of an aging population, and the failure of the strong economy to improve conditions for the poor. Since 1975, gains in household income were experienced almost exclusively by the top 20% of households. However, in the late 1990s and early 2000s, productivity was continuing to grow, inflation was relatively low, and the labor market was tight.

Economic growth came to a standstill in the middle of 2001, largely due to the end of the long investment boom, especially in the information technology sector. The economy was in recession in the second half of 2001, and the service sector was affected as well as manufacturing. The 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States exacerbated the poor economic situation. Average real GDP growth rose by only 0.3% in 2001. The US economy, which had driven global economic growth during the 1990s, became the cause of a worldwide economic downturn, including in the rest of North America, Europe, Japan, and in the developing economies of Latin America and Southeast Asia strongly influenced by trends in the US economy.

The economy began to recover, slowly, in 2002, with GDP growth estimated at 2.45%. Analysts attributed the modest recovery to the ability of business decision-makers to respond to economic imbalances based on real-time information, on deregulation, and on innovation in financial and product markets. Nevertheless, domestic confidence in the economy remained low, and coupled with major corporate failures (including Enron and WorldCom) and additional stock market declines, growth remained sluggish and uneven. Economic growth slowed at the end of 2002 and into 2003, and the unemployment rate rose to 6.3% in July 2003. The CPI inflation rate fell to under 1.5% at the beginning of 2003, which raised concerns over the risk of deflation. As well, there was a substantial rise in military spending as a result of the war in Iraq which began in March 2003.

Following the start of the war in Iraq, consumer spending rebounded, as did stock prices; the housing market remained strong; inflation was low; the dollar depreciated on world markets; additional tax cuts were passed; there was an easing of oil prices; and productivity growth was strong. Nevertheless, in 2003, the federal budget deficit was projected to reach $455 billion, the largest shortfall on record.

The American economy grew at the rate of 4.3% in the third quarter of 2005, despite the ravages of Hurricane Katrina, which destroyed the port city of New Orleans and closed down a large portion of the energy industry. Unemployment hovered around 5% in 2005. Productivity had grown by 4.7%. But the nation's fast-growing economy had shaky underpinnings. Oil prices were at their highest level in real terms since the early 1980s, at $53.27/barrel. The inflation rate, which ran above 4% in late 2005, was at its highest level since 1991 (although core inflation, which excludes volatile energy and food prices, was still relatively modest). Wage growth was sluggish, and the jobs market was lagging the recovery. The current account deficit ballooned to record levels, and consumer spending was increasingly tied to prices in the overinflated housing market. The government ran a deficit of $412 billion in 2004, or 3.6% of GDP, but the deficit was forecast to narrow to $331 billion in 2006. Analysts project US deficits will average about 3.5% of GDP until about 2015.

INCOME

The US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) reports that in 2005 the United States's gross domestic product (GDP) was estimated at $12.4 trillion. The CIA defines GDP as the value of all final goods and services produced within a nation in a given year and computed on the basis of purchasing power parity (PPP) rather than value as measured on the basis of the rate of exchange based on current dollars. The per capita GDP was estimated at $41,800. The annual growth rate of GDP was estimated at 3.5%. The average inflation rate in 2002 was 3.2%. It was estimated that agriculture accounted for 1% of GDP, industry 0.7%, and services 78.3%.

According to the World Bank, in 2003 remittances from citizens working abroad totaled $3.031 billion or about $10 per capita.

The World Bank reports that in 2003 household consumption in United States totaled $7.385 trillion or about $25,379 per capita based on a GDP of $10.9 trillion, measured in current dollars rather than PPP. Household consumption includes expenditures of individuals, households, and nongovernmental organizations on goods and services, excluding purchases of dwellings. It was estimated that for the period 1990 to 2003 household consumption grew at an average annual rate of 3.7%. In 2001 it was estimated that approximately 13% of household consumption was spent on food, 9% on fuel, 4% on health care, and 6% on education. It was estimated that in 2004 about 12% of the population had incomes below the poverty line.

LABOR

The US labor force, including those who were unemployed, totaled 149.3 million in 2005. Of that total in that same year, farming, fishing and forestry accounted fo 0.7% of the workforce, with manufacturing, extraction, transportation and crafts at 22.9%, managerial, professional and technical at 34.7%, sales and office at 25.4% and other services at 16.3%. Also that year, the unemployment rate was put at 5.1%. Earnings of workers vary considerably with type of work and section of country. In the first quarter of 2003, the national average wage was $15.27 per hour for nonagricultural workers, with an average workweek of 33.8 hours. Workers in manufacturing had a national average wage of $15.64, (including overtime), with the longest average workweek of all categories of workers at 40.4 hours in the first quarter of 2003.

In 2002, 13.2% of wage and salary workers were union members16.1 million US citizens belonged to a union that year. In 1983, union membership was 20.1%. In 2002, there were 34 national labor unions with over 100,000 members, the largest being the National Educational Association with 2.7 million members as of 2003. The most important federation of organized workers in the United States is the American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), whose affiliated unions had 13 million members as of 2003, down from 14.1 million members in 1992. The major independent industrial and labor unions and their estimated 2002 memberships are the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, 1,398,412, and the United Automobile Workers, some 710,000 (the majority of whom work for General Motors, Ford, and Daimler-Chrylser). Most of the other unaffiliated unions are confined to a single establishment or locality. US labor unions exercise economic and political influence not only through the power of strikes and slowdowns but also through the human and financial resources they allocate to political campaigns (usually on behalf of Democratic candidates) and through the selective investment of multibillion-dollar pension funds.

The National Labor Relations Act of 1935 (the Wagner Act), the basic labor law of the United States, was considerably modified by the Labor-Management Relations Act of 1947 (the Taft-Hartley Act) and the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 (the Landrum-Griffin Act). Closed-shop agreements, which require employers to hire only union members, are banned. The union shop agreement, however, is permitted, if it allows the hiring of nonunion members on the condition that they join the union within a given period of time.

As of 2003, 23 states had right-to-work laws, forbidding the imposition of union membership as a condition of employment. Under the Taft-Hartley Act, the president of the United States may postpone a strike for 90 days in the national interest. The act of 1959 requires all labor organizations to file constitutions, bylaws, and detailed financial reports with the Secretary of Labor, and stipulates methods of union elections. The National Labor Relations Board seeks to remedy or prevent unfair labor practices and supervises union elections, while the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission seeks to prevent discrimination in hiring, firing, and apprenticeship programs.

The number of work stoppages and of workers involved reached a peak in the late 1960s and early 1970s, declining steadily thereafter. In 2002, there were 19 major stoppages involving 46,000 workers resulting in 660,000 workdays idle, compared with 1995, when there were 31 major stoppages involving 191,500 workers resulting in 5,771,000 days idle; a major stoppage was defined as one involving 1,000 workers or more for a minimum of one day or shift.

AGRICULTURE

In 2004, the United States produced a substantial share of the world's agricultural commodities. Agricultural exports reached almost $63.9 billion in 2004.The United States had an agricultural trade surplus of $4 billion in 2004, 14th highest among the nations.

Between 1930 and 2004, the number of farms in the United States declined from 6,546,000 to an estimated 2,110,000. The total amount of farmland increased from 399 million hectares (986 million acres) in 1930 to 479 million hectares (1.18 billion acres) in 1959 but declined to 380 million hectares (938 million acres) in 2002. From 1930 to 2004, the size of the average farm tripled from 61 to 179 hectares (from 151 to 443 acres), a result of the consolidation effected by large-scale mechanized production. The farm population, which comprised 35% of the total US population in 1910, declined to 25% during the Great Depression of the 1930s, and dwindled to less than 2% by 2004.

A remarkable increase in the application of machinery to farms took place during and after World War II (193945). Tractors, trucks, milking machines, grain combines, corn pickers, and pickup bailers became virtual necessities in farming. In 1920 there was less than one tractor in use for every 400 hectares (1,000 acres) of cropland harvested; by 2003 there were five tractors per 400 hectares. Two other elements essential to US farm productivity are chemical fertilizers and irrigation. Fertilizers and lime represent more than 6% of farm operating expenses. Arable land under irrigation amounted to 12% of the total in 2003.

Substantial quantities of corn, the most valuable crop produced in the United States, are grown in almost every state; its yield and price are important factors in the economies of the regions where it is grown. Production of selected US crops in 2004 (in 1,000 metric tons), and their percent of world production were wheat, 58,737 (9.3%); corn, 299,917 (33.2%); rice, 10,469 (1.7%); soybeans, 85,013 (41.6%); cotton, 5,062 (20.5%); and tobacco, 398.8 (6.1%).

ANIMAL HUSBANDRY

The livestock population in 2005 included an estimated 95.8 million head of cattle, 60.6 million hogs, and 6.1 million sheep and lambs. That year, there were 1.9 billion chickens, and 88 million turkeys. Milk production totaled 80.1 million metric tons in that year, with Wisconsin, California, and New York together accounting for much of the total. Wisconsin, Minnesota, and California account for more than half of all US butter production, which totaled 608,900 metric tons in 2005; in that year, the United States was the world's largest producer of cheese, with almost 4.5 million metric tons (24% of the world's total). The United States produced an estimated 15% of the world's meat supply in 2005. In 2005, meat animals accounted for $4.97 billion in exports; dairy and eggs, $1.17 billion.

FISHING

The 2003 commercial catch was 5.48 million tons. Food fish make up 80% of the catch, and nonfood fish, processed for fertilizer and oil, 20%. Aquaculture accounts for about 10% of total production.

Alaska pollock, with landings of 1,524,904 tons, was the most important species in quantity among the commercial fishery landings in the United States in 2003. Other leading species by volume included Gulf menhaden, 522,195 tons; Atlantic menhaden, 203,263 tons; Pacific cod, 257,436 tons; North Pacific hake, 140,327 tons; and American cupped oyster, 183,940 tons. In 2003, exports of fish products totaled $3,398 million (fourth after China, Thailand, and Norway).

Aquacultural production consists mostly of catfish, oysters, trout, and crayfish. In 2004, there were 1,147 catfish and 601 trout farms in the United States, with sales of $425 million and $64 million, respectively.

Pollution is a problem of increasing concern to the US fishing industry; dumping of raw sewage, industrial wastes, spillage from oil tankers, and blowouts of offshore wells are the main threats to the fishing grounds. Overfishing is also a threat to the viability of the industry in some areas, especially Alaska.

FORESTRY

US forestland covers about 226 million hectares (558.4 million acres), or 25% of the land area. Major forest regions include the eastern, central hardwood, southern, Rocky Mountain, and Pacific coast areas. The National Forest Service lands account for approximately 19% of the nation's forestland. Extensive tracts of land (4 million acres or more) are under ownership of private lumber companies in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Maine, Oregon, and Washington. During 19902000, forested area increased by an annual average of 38,000 hectares (93,900 acres) per year.

Domestic production of roundwood during 2004 amounted to 458.3 million cu m (16.2 billion cu ft), or 1.7% of world production, of which softwoods accounted for roughly 60%. Other forest products in 2004 included 54.3 million metric tons of wood pulp, 83.6 million metric tons of paper and paperboard (excluding newsprint), and 44.2 million cu m (1.56 billion cu ft) of wood-based panels. Rising petroleum prices in the late 1970s sparked a revival in the use of wood as home heating fuel, especially in the Northeast. Fuelwood and charcoal production amounted to 43.6 million cu m (1.5 billion cu ft) in 2004.

Throughout the 19th century, the federal government distributed forestlands lavishly as a means of subsidizing railroads and education. By the turn of the century, the realization that the forests were not inexhaustible led to the growth of a vigorous conservation movement, which was given increased impetus during the 1930s and again in the late 1960s. Federal timberlands are no longer open for private acquisition, although the lands can be leased for timber cutting and for grazing. In recent decades, the states also have moved in the direction of retaining forestlands and adding to their holdings when possible.

MINING

Rich in a variety of mineral resources, the United States was a world leader in the production of many important mineral commodities, such as aluminum, cement, copper, pig iron, lead, molybdenum, phosphates, potash, salt, sulfur, uranium, and zinc. The leading mineral-producing states were Arizona (copper, sand and gravel, portland cement, molybdenum); California (portland cement, sand and gravel, gold, boron); Michigan (iron ore, portland cement, sand and gravel, magnesium compounds); Georgia (clays, crushed and broken stone, portland and masonry cement, sand and gravel); Florida (phosphate rock, crushed and broken stone, portland cement, sand and gravel); Utah (copper, gold, magnesium metal, sand and gravel); Texas (portland cement, crushed and broken stone, magnesium metal, sand and gravel); and Minnesota (iron ore, construction and industrial sand and gravel, crushed and broken stone). Oklahoma and New Mexico were important for petroleum and natural gas, and Kentucky, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania, for coal. Iron ore supported the nation's most basic nonagricultural industry, iron and steel manufacture; the major domestic sources were in the Lake Superior area, with Minnesota and Michigan leading all other states in iron ore yields.

ENERGY AND POWER

The United States (US) is the world's leading energy producer and consumer.

According to British Petroleum (BP), as of end 2003, the US had proven oil reserves of 29.4 billion barrels. Oil production that year averaged 7,400,000 barrels per day, with domestic demand averaging 20,033,000 barrels per day. As a result, the US in 2003 was a net oil importer. In 2003, imports of all oil products averaged 12,264.380 barrels per day, of which crude oil accounted for an average of 9,664,920 barrels per day. Refined oil production in 2003 averaged 17,793,990 barrels per day.

As of end 2003, the US had proven reserves of natural gas totaling 5.29 trillion cu m (186.9 trillion cu ft), according to BP. Gross production that year, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), totaled 24,056.00 billion cu ft. Of that amount in 2003, 98 billion cu ft was vented or flared, and 3,548 billion cu ft was re-injected. Marketed production totaled 19,912 billion cu ft, with dry production at 19,036 billion cu ft. Demand in that same year for dry production totaled 22,375 billion cu ft. As with oil, the US was a net importer of natural gas. Imports of dry natural gas in 2003 totaled 3,996 billion cu ft, while dry exports totaled 692 billion cu ft, according to the EIA.

The US had recoverable coal reserves of 246,643 million metric tons at the end of 2004, according to BP. Of that amount, anthracite and bituminous coal reserves totaled 111,338 million metric tons, with sub-bituminous and lignite reserves totaling 135,305 million metric tons, according to BP. In 2003 according to the EIA, coal production by the US totaled 1,069,496,000 short tons, of which 987,613,000 short tons consisted of bituminous coal, with anthracite output totaling 1,289,000 short tons. Lignite or brown coal output that year totaled 80,595,000 short tons, according to the EIA.

In 2003, US electric power generation capacity by public and private generating plants totaled 932.832 million kW, of which 736.728 million kW of capacity belonged to conventional thermal fuel plants, followed by nuclear plant at 98.794 million kW. Hydroelectric capacity that year totaled 79.366 million kW, with geothermal/other capacity at 17.944 million kW. Electric power output in 2003 totaled 3,891.720 billion kWh, of which conventional thermal plants generated 2,758.650 billion kWh, followed by nuclear plants at 763.733 billion kWh, hydroelectric facilities at 275.806 billion kWh and geothermal/other facilities at 93.531 billion kWh.

During the 1980s, increasing attention was focused on the development of solar power, synthetic fuels, geothermal resources, and other energy technologies. Such energy conservation measures as mandatory automobile fuel-efficiency standards and tax incentives for home insulation were promoted by the federal government, which also decontrolled oil and gas prices in the expectation that a rise in domestic costs to world-market levels would provide a powerful economic incentive for consumers to conserve fuel. In 2001 the United States had 1,694 MW of installed wind power.

INDUSTRY

Although the United States remains one of the world's preeminent industrial powers, manufacturing no longer plays as dominant a role in the economy as it once did.

Between 1979 and 1998, manufacturing employment fell from 20.9 million to 18.7 million, or from 21.8% to 14.8% of national employment. Throughout the 1960s, manufacturing accounted for about 29% of total national income; by 1987, the proportion was down to about 19%. In 2002, manufacturing was experiencing a decline due to the recession that began in March 2001. In 2004, industry accounted for 19.7% of GDP. That year, 22.7% of the labor force was engaged in manufacturing, extraction, transportation, and crafts.

Industrial activity within the United States has been expanding southward and westward for much of the 20th century, most rapidly since World War II. Louisiana, Oklahoma, and especially Texas are centers of industrial expansion based on petroleum refining; aerospace and other high technology industries are the basis of the new wealth of Texas and California, the nation's leading manufacturing state. The industrial heartland of the United States is the east-north-central region, comprising Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin, with steelmaking and automobile manufacturing among the leading industries. The Middle Atlantic states (New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania) and the Northeast are also highly industrialized; but of the major industrial states in these two regions, Massachusetts has taken the lead in reorienting itself toward such high-technology industries as electronics and information processing.

Large corporations are dominant especially in sectors such as steel, automobiles, pharmaceuticals, aircraft, petroleum refining, computers, soaps and detergents, tires, and communications equipment. The growth of multinational activities of US corporations has been rapid in recent decades.

The history of US industry has been marked by the introduction of increasingly sophisticated technology in the manufacturing process. Advances in chemistry and electronics have revolutionized many industries through new products and methods: examples include the impact of plastics on petrochemicals, the use of lasers and electronic sensors as measuring and controlling devices, and the application of microprocessors to computing machines, home entertainment products, and a variety of other industries. Science has vastly expanded the number of metals available for industrial purposes, notably such light metals as aluminum, magnesium, and titanium. Integrated machines now perform a complex number of successive operations that formerly were done on the assembly line at separate stations. Those industries have prospered that have been best able to make use of the new technology, and the economies of some states have been largely based on it.

In the 1980s and 1990s, the United States was the world leader in computer manufacturing. At the beginning of the 21st century, however, the high-tech manufacturing industry registered a decline. Semiconductor manufacturing had been migrating out of the United States to East Asian countries, especially China, Taiwan, and Singapore, and research and development in that sector declined from 19992003. Certain long-established industriesespecially clothing and steelmakinghave suffered from outmoded facilities that (coupled with high US labor costs) have forced the price of their products above the world market level. In 2005, the United States was the world's third-leading steel producer (after China and Japan). Employment in the steel-producing industry fell from 521,000 in 1974 to 187,500 in 2002. Automobile manufacturing was an ailing industry in the 1980s, but rebounded in the 1990s. The "Big Three" US automakersGeneral Motors, Ford, and Daimler-Chryslermanufactured over 60% of the passenger cars sold in the United States in 1995. In 2005, however, General Motors announced it was cutting 30,000 North American manufacturing jobs, the deepest cuts since 1991, when GM eliminated 74,000 jobs over four years. Passenger car production, which had fallen from 7.1 million units in 1987 to 5.4 million in 1991, rose to 6.3 million by 1995 and to 8.3 million in 1999. In 2003, over 12 million motor vehicles were produced in the United States.

The United States had a total of 148 oil refineries as of January 2005, with a production capacity as of September 2004 of 17.1 million barrels per day. Crude oil and refined petroleum products are crucial imports, however.

COMMERCE

Total retail sales for 2004 were $3.5 trillion. Total e-commerce sales were estimated at $69.2 billion, an increase of 23.5% over 2003. The growth of great chains of retail stores, particularly in the form of the supermarket, was one of the most conspicuous developments in retail trade following the end of World War II. Nearly 100,000 single-unit grocery stores went out of business between 1948 and 1958; the independent grocer's share of the food market dropped from 50% to 30% of the total in the same period. With the great suburban expansion of the 1960s emerged the planned shopping center, usually designed by a single development organization and intended to provide different kinds of stores in order to meet all the shopping needs of the particular area. Between 1974 and 2000, the square footage occupied by shopping centers in the United States grew at a far greater rate than the nation's population.

Installment credit is a major support for consumer purchases in the United States. Most US families own and use credit cards, and their frequency of use has grown significantly in the 1990s and 2000s with aggressive marketing by credit card companies which have made cards available to households that didn't qualify in the past. The number of credit cards per household in 2004 was 8. The number of credit cards in circulation in 2004 was 641 million. The average household credit card debt in the United States in 2004 was approximately $8,650, and the total credit card debt in the United States in 2004 was some $800 billion. The use of debit cards was expected to exceed the use of credit cards in 2005.

The US advertising industry is the world's most highly developed. Particularly with the expansion of television audiences, spending for advertising has increased almost annually to successive record levels. Advertising expenditures in 2003 reached an estimated $249 billion, up from $66.58 billion in 1982 and $11.96 billion in 1960. Of the 2003 total, $87.8 billion was spent in radio, broadcast television, and cable television; $57.2 billion was spent on print media (newspapers and magazines); and internet advertising amounted to $5.6 billion.

In 2003 merchant wholesalers had combined total sales of $2.88 trillion.

CONSUMER PROTECTION

Consumer protection has become a major government enterprise during the 20th century. The Federal Trade commission (FTC), established in 1914, administers laws governing the granting and use of credit and the activities of credit bureaus; it also investigates unfair or deceptive trade practices, including price fixing and false advertising. The Securities and Exchange Commission, created in 1934, seeks to protect investors, while the Consumer Product Safety Commission, created in 1972, has the authority to establish product safety standards and to ban hazardous products. Overseeing the safety of air and highway transport is the National Transportation Safety Board, established in 1975. The Consumer Information Center Program of the General Services Administration (Pueblo, Colo.) and the Food Safety and Inspection Service and Food and Nutrition Service of the Department of Agriculture also serve consumer interests. Legislation that would have established a Department of Consumer Affairs failed to win congressional approval several times during the 1970s, however.

Public interest groups have been exceptionally effective in promoting consumer issues. The Consumer Federation of America (CFA; founded in 1967), with 220 member organizations, is the largest US consumer advocacy body; its concerns include product pricing, credit, and the cost and quality of health care, education, and housing. The CFA also serves as a clearinghouse for consumer information. Consumers Union of the US, founded in 1936, publishes the widely read monthly Consumer Reports, which tests, grades, and comments on a variety of retail products. The National Consumers League, founded in 1899, was a pioneer in the consumer movement, focusing especially on labor laws and working conditions. Much of the growth of consumerism in the 1970s resulted from the public relations efforts of one manRalph Nader. Already a well-known consumer advocate concerned particularly with automobile safety, Nader founded Public Citizen in 1971 and an affiliated litigation group the following year. In 1994, Public Citizen claimed 100,000 supporters; its activities include research committees on tax reform, health care, work safety, and energy.

Other avenues open to consumers in most states include small claims courts, generally open to claims between $100 and $1,500 at modest legal cost. Complaints involving professional malpractice may also be brought to state licensing or regulatory boards. Supported by the business community, the US Better Business Bureau provides general consumer information and can help arbitrate some customer-company disputes.

The US government also publishes helpful consumer guides. A listing of the guides is available from the US government through its "Consumer Information Catalog." This catalog is free and lists about 142 of the best federal consumer publications. The federal publications range from planning a diet to financial planning. The publication, published quarterly by the Consumer Information Center of the US General Services Administration is available in most public libraries or online at www.pueblo.gsa.gov.

BANKING AND SECURITIES

The Federal Reserve Act of 1913 provided the United States with a central banking system. The Federal Reserve System dominates US banking, is a strong influence in the affairs of commercial banks, and exercises virtually unlimited control over the money supply. The Federal Reserve Bank system is an independent government organization, with important posts appointed by the President and approved by the Senate.

Each of the 12 federal reserve districts contains a federal reserve bank. A board of nine directors presides over each reserve bank. Six are elected by the member banks in the district: of this group, three may be bankers; the other three represent business, industry, or agriculture. The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (usually known as the Federal Reserve Board) appoints the remaining three, who may not be officers, directors, stockholders, or employees of any bank and who are presumed therefore to represent the public.

The Federal Reserve Board regulates the money supply and the amount of credit available to the public by asserting its power to alter the rediscount rate, by buying and selling securities in the open market, by setting margin requirements for securities purchases, by altering reserve requirements of member banks in the

United States2005 Exports, Imports, and Trade Balance by Country and Area
In millions of dollars. Details may not equal totals due to rounding. (X) Not applicable. (-) Represents zero or less than one-half of value shown. January-December, Cumulative.
COUNTRYTRADE BALANCERANKEXPORTS F.A.S.RANKIMPORTS CUSTOMSRANK
Total, BOP Basis782,740.2(X)894,630.8(X)1,677,371.0(X)
Net Adjustments15,263.3(X)11,346.8(X)3,916.5(X)
Total, Census Basis767,476.9(X)905,977.6(X)1,673,454.5(X)
Afghanistan194.8205262.29367.3132
Albania18.710218.517937.2146
Algeria9,279.0201,167.46010,446.427
Andorra9.915210.51870.7203
Angola7,555.324929.0668,484.433
Anguilla28.416832.21603.8180
Antigua and Barbuda186.0204190.41054.4177
Argentina461.8674,121.9324,583.646
Armenia19.316065.514246.2143
Aruba2,360.836558.9762,919.754
Australia8,486.022915,828.2147,342.235
Austria3,509.7302,593.3426,102.939
Azerbaijan87.1193132.511645.4144
Bahamas1,086.82221,786.751699.980
Bahrain80.892350.888431.689
Bangladesh2,373.335319.8902,693.056
Barbados363.0212394.98431.9150
Belarus310.27134.9158345.297
Belgium5,667.722618,690.61213,022.924
Belize119.3199217.610198.3124
Benin71.818772.31380.5205
Bermuda403.2216490.58287.3128
Bhutan2.41353.12080.6204
Bolivia73.794219.599293.2102
Bosnia-Herzegovina52.99617.618170.5131
Botswana110.98867.3141178.2112
Brazil9,063.82115,371.71524,435.515
British Indian Ocean Territories0.41250.82190.4208
British Virgin Islands91.3194124.911733.6148
Brunei513.16449.6150562.782
Bulgaria186.381267.992454.385
Burkina23.016325.11742.1188
Burma (Myanmar)5.41425.52010.1220
Burundi3.71378.11984.4176
Cambodia1,697.34569.71391,767.064
Cameroon40.898117.3119158.2117
Canada78,485.63211,898.71290,384.31
Cape Verde7.21489.91902.6185
Cayman Islands627.2219680.77053.5138
Central African Republic9.115114.81835.7171
Chad1,444.34953.81491,498.167
Chile1,441.7505,222.6296,664.337
China201,544.8141,925.34243,470.12
Christmas Island1.61322.02140.4210
Cocos (Keeling) Island0.61281.02170.5207
Colombia3,387.0315,462.4288,849.431
Comoros1.21130.32241.4192
Congo (DROC)198.67865.0143263.6107
Congo (ROC)1,518.847104.11231,622.965
Cook Islands0.41161.42161.7189
Costa Rica183.32033,598.6363,415.350
Côte d'Ivoire1,073.755124.21181,198.072
Croatia205.777158.6109364.394
Cuba369.0213369.086(-)226
Cyprus53.618184.213130.5152
Czech Republic1,139.3541,053.6632,192.959
Denmark3,225.8321,918.4495,144.243
Djibouti46.517747.61511.1198
Dominica58.218361.51463.3183
Dominican Republic115.01984,718.7304,603.745
East Timor8.61508.71970.1219
Ecuador3,794.9291,963.8475,758.741
Egypt1,068.02213,159.3382,091.260
El Salvador134.5861,854.3501,988.862
United States2005 Exports, Imports, and Trade Balance by Country and Area (cont.)
COUNTRYTRADE BALANCERANKEXPORTS F.A.S.RANKIMPORTS CUSTOMSRANK
Equatorial Guinea1,279.751281.5911,561.166
Eritrea29.817231.11631.3196
Estonia366.070145.4113511.484
Ethiopia448.3217510.18161.8134
Falkland Islands0.21179.01959.3164
Faroe Islands1.71112.52104.3178
Federal Republic of Germany50,567.2434,183.7684,750.95
Federated States of Micronesia23.816425.31731.6191
Fiji141.38528.2169169.5114
Finland2,087.6402,254.1444,341.747
France11,431.71622,410.4933,842.110
French Guiana26.916727.01720.1217
French Polynesia51.7179111.812160.1135
French Southern and Antarctic Lands0.21240.32250.1222
Gabon2,716.53499.11252,815.655
Gambia30.217330.61650.4209
Gaza Strip Administered by Israel1.21120.22261.4193
Georgia19.5161213.9102194.4111
Ghana179.0202337.489158.4116
Gibraltar158.6201163.31084.6174
Greece308.52111,192.259883.778
Greenland12.21055.120217.3156
Grenada76.618882.41335.9169
Guadeloupe52.418054.51482.1187
Guatemala302.0722,835.4403,137.453
Guinea18.915993.612974.7130
Guinea-Bissau2.01332.12130.1218
Guyana56.8182176.7107119.9121
Haiti262.4209709.669447.287
Heard and McDonald Islands0.11220.2227(-)225
Honduras495.4663,253.8373,749.249
Hong Kong7,459.322816,351.0138,891.730
Hungary1,537.9461,023.3642,561.257
Iceland243.0208512.080269.0105
India10,814.8187,989.42218,804.218
Indonesia8,960.4223,053.93912,014.326
Iran78.79395.8127174.5113
Iraq7,679.7231,374.0559,053.729
Ireland19,397.4119,335.72028,733.113
Israel7,093.1259,737.31916,830.519
Italy19,484.91011,524.31631,009.312
Jamaica1,325.22231,700.852375.693
Japan82,519.2255,484.53138,003.74
Jordan622.759644.2711,266.869
Kazakhstan562.962538.3771,101.174
Kenya284.5210632.572348.096
Kiribati1.31302.42111.1197
Korea, North5.81455.8199(-)227
Korea, South16,016.51227,765.0743,781.47
Kuwait2,359.9371,974.9464,334.848
Kyrgyzstan26.516631.11624.6175
Laos5.61449.81914.2179
Latvia184.682177.5106362.295
Lebanon379.3214465.78386.4129
Lesotho399.6684.0205403.691
Liberia21.510069.314090.8127
Libya1,506.54883.81321,590.3(X)
Liechtenstein276.07419.7178295.7101
Lithuania243.975390.085633.981
Luxembourg393.6215782.468388.892
Macao1,147.453101.61241,249.070
Macedonia (Skopje)16.610431.616148.1142
Madagascar295.47328.2168323.699
Malawi87.59028.0170115.5122
Malaysia23,224.3710,460.81833,685.211
Maldives3.81389.31935.5172
Mali28.817032.41593.6182
Malta88.989193.7104282.7103
Marshall Islands58.318475.513617.2157
United States2005 Exports, Imports, and Trade Balance by Country and Area (cont.)
COUNTRYTRADE BALANCERANKEXPORTS F.A.S.RANKIMPORTS CUSTOMSRANK
Martinique12.715735.015722.2155
Mauritania85.319286.11300.8202
Mauritius191.07930.9164221.9109
Mayotte(-)120(-)230(-)228
Mexico49,743.85120,364.82170,108.63
Moldova10.210640.115450.2140
Monaco20.710116.818237.5145
Mongolia121.88721.9177143.6118
Montserrat3.91394.82031.0201
Morocco79.2190525.079445.888
Mozambique50.917862.814411.9160
Namibia17.3103112.2120129.6120
Nauru1.51311.62150.1215
Nepal86.59124.7175111.2123
Netherlands11,622.623026,484.6814,862.022
Netherlands Antilles215.22061,137.661922.477
New Caledonia11.215438.415527.2153
New Zealand503.4652,651.8413,155.252
Nicaragua555.363625.5731,180.873
Niger13.015878.513565.5133
Nigeria22,618.281,621.25324,239.416
Niue0.51270.62200.1216
Norfolk Island0.21230.42230.2214
Norway4,834.4281,941.9486,776.336
Oman39.9175594.975555.083
Pakistan2,001.6411,251.6573,253.251
Palau11.715512.21850.5206
Panama1,835.02242,162.045327.198
Papua New Guinea3.110755.314758.5136
Paraguay844.2220895.86751.6139
Peru2,809.7332,309.4435,119.244
Philippines2,355.0386,895.4259,250.428
Pitcairn Island0.61140.52211.0200
Poland680.8581,267.7561,948.663
Portugal1,196.8521,131.9622,328.758
Qatar538.8218986.665447.986
Republic of Yemen59.695219.0100278.6104
Reunion2.01103.82065.8170
Romania598.760608.9741,207.671
Russia11,344.3173,962.43315,306.720
Rwanda4.214010.51886.3167
San Marino3.31364.72041.4194
Sao Tomé and Príncipe9.915310.21890.2213
Saudi Arabia20,379.896,812.82627,192.614
Senegal154.8200158.51103.7181
Serbia and Montenegro77.9189132.511554.6137
Seychelles12.015617.91805.9168
Sierra Leone28.516937.81569.3163
Singapore5,532.222520,642.21115,110.121
Slovakia810.957149.8112960.776
Slovenia179.283233.898413.090
Solomon Islands0.91292.32121.4195
Somalia8.51498.81960.3211
South Africa1,978.7423,906.9345,885.640
Spain1,701.0446,913.6248,614.632
Sri Lanka1,885.343197.61032,082.961
St. Helena0.51152.72093.3184
St. Kitts and Nevis44.417694.112849.7141
St. Lucia103.0197135.411432.4149
St. Pierre and Miquelon0.11181.02181.1199
St. Vincent and the Grenadines29.817145.415315.7158
Sudan94.5195108.112213.6159
Suriname80.4191245.795165.3115
Svalbard, Jan Mayen Island5.61435.7200(-)223
Swaziland187.08011.9186198.9110
Sweden10,105.6193,715.43513,821.023
Switzerland2,280.03910,719.81712,999.925
Syria168.584155.0111323.6100
Taiwan12,756.61322,069.21034,825.88
United States2005 Exports, Imports, and Trade Balance by Country and Area (cont.)
COUNTRYTRADE BALANCERANKEXPORTS F.A.S.RANKIMPORTS CUSTOMSRANK
(1) Detailed data are presented on a Census basis. The information needed to convert to a BOP basis is not available.
(2) Countries included in Euro Area are also included in European Union. See Page 27 of the FT-900 release for a list of countries.
(3) Selected countries are included in more than one area grouping. Indonesia is included in both OPEC and Pacific Rim; Venezuela is included in both OPEC and Other South/Central America.
(4) The export totals reflect shipments of certain grains, oilseeds, and satellites that are not included in the country/area totals.
NOTE: For information on data sources, nonsampling errors and definitions, see the information section on page 27 of the FT-900 release, or at www.census.gov/ft900 or www.bea.gov/bea/di/home/trade.htm.
Tajikistan212.27628.8167241.0108
Tanzania62.718596.412633.7147
Thailand12,633.1147,256.62319,889.817
Togo21.516227.91716.4166
Tokelau69.018679.813410.8161
Tonga4.31419.71925.4173
Trinidad and Tobago6,474.1261,416.7547,890.934
Tunisia2.6108261.294263.8106
Turkey913.1564,269.0315,182.142
Turkmenistan101.8196237.197135.3119
Turks and Caicos Islands228.3207237.8969.4162
Tuvalu(-)119(-)2280.1221
Uganda36.817462.614525.8154
Ukraine565.161533.0781,098.075
United Arab Emirates7,014.12278,482.4211,468.368
United Kingdom12,444.81538,587.8551,032.66
Uruguay375.669356.787732.379
Uzbekistan21.89973.813795.6125
Vanuatu6.61479.11942.5186
Vatican City23.916524.21760.3212
Venezuela27,557.266,420.92733,978.19
Vietnam5,438.0271,193.2586,631.238
Wallis and Futuna0.41260.4222(-)224
West Bank Administered by Israel2.11343.72071.6190
Western Sahara(-)121(-)229(-)229
Western Samoa6.614614.51847.9165
Zambia2.610929.116631.7151
Zimbabwe48.89745.515294.3126
Unidentified216.3(X)216.3(X)(-)(X)
North America128,229.4(X)332,263.5(X)460,492.9(X)
Western Europe125,453.7(X)200,260.3(X)325,714.0(X)
Euro Area91,384.0(X)137,496.7(X)228,880.7(X)
European Union (25)122,338.2(X)186,437.3(X)308,775.5(X)
European Union (15)117,160.3(X)181,718.3(X)298,878.5(X)
European Free Trade Association7,147.4(X)13,193.5(X)20,340.9(X)
Eastern Europe18,539.6(X)10,994.0(X)29,533.6(X)
Former Soviet Republics13,566.9(X)6,604.3(X)20,171.2(X)
Organization for Economic Cooperation & Development (OECD) in Europe125,232.5(X)199,207.8(X)324,440.4(X)
Pacific Rim Countries328,066.4(X)223,334.0(X)551,400.4(X)
Asia-Near East30,550.8(X)31,893.6(X)62,444.3(X)
Asia-(NICS)15,781.6(X)86,827.5(X)102,609.1(X)
Asia-South16,966.6(X)10,045.2(X)27,011.8(X)
Assoc. of South East Asia Nations (ASEAN)49,278.2(X)49,636.7(X)98,914.9(X)
APEC488,815.3(X)575,440.1(X)1,064,255.4(X)
South/Central America50,460.1(X)72,413.0(X)122,873.0(X)
Twenty Latin American Republics96,587.6(X)182,836.4(X)279,424.0(X)
Central American Common Market1,304.0(X)12,167.5(X)13,471.5(X)
Latin American Free Trade Association97,865.1(X)162,709.5(X)260,574.6(X)
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Allies198,120.9(X)406,259.2(X)604,380.0(X)
Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)92,866.6(X)32,073.8(X)124,940.4(X)
Unidentified216.3(X)216.3(X)(-)(X)

system, and by resorting to a specific number of selective controls at its disposal. The Federal Reserve Board's role in regulating the money supply is held by economists of the monetarist school to be the single most important factor in determining the nation's inflation rate.

Member banks increase their reserves or cash holdings by rediscounting commercial notes at the federal reserve bank at a rate of interest ultimately determined by the Board of Governors. A change in the discount rate, therefore, directly affects the capacity of the member banks to accommodate their customers with loans. Similarly, the purchase or sale of securities in the open market, as determined by the Federal Open Market Committee, is the most commonly used device whereby the amount of credit available to the public is expanded or contracted. The same effect is achieved in some measure by the power of the Board of Governors to raise or lower the reserves that member banks must keep against demand deposits. Credit tightening by federal authorities in early 1980 pushed the prime rate-the rate that commercial banks charge their most creditworthy customers-above 20% for the first time since the financial panics of 1837 and 1839, when rates reached 36%. As federal monetary policies eased, the prime rate dropped below 12% in late 1984; as of 2000 it was below 10%. In mid-2003 the federal funds rate was reduced to 1%, a 45-year low.

The financial sector is dominated by commercial banks, insurance companies, and mutual funds. There was little change in the nature of the sector between the 1930s, when it was rescued through the creation of regulatory bodies and deposit insurance, and the 1980s, when the market was deregulated. In the 1980s, the capital markets underwent extensive reforms. The markets became increasingly internationalized, as deregulation allowed foreign-owned banks to extend their operations. There was also extensive restructuring of domestic financial markets-interest-rate ceilings were abolished and competition between different financial institution intensified, facilitated by greater diversification.

Commercial and investment banking activities are separated in the United States by the Glass Steagall Act, which was passed in 1933 during the Great Depression. Fears that investment banking activities put deposits at risk led to a situation where commercial banks were unable to deal in non-bank financial instruments. This put them at severe commercial disadvantage, and the pressure for reform became so strong that the Federal Reserve Board has allowed the affiliates of commercial banks to enter a wide range of securities activities since 1986. Attempts to repeal the act were unsuccessful until November 1999, when the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (also known as the Financial Modernization Act) was passed by Congress. The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act repealed Glass-Steagall and allows banks, insurance companies, and stock brokers and mutual fund companies to sell each other's products and services. These companies are also now free to merge or acquire one another.

The expansion and diversification in financial services was facilitated by information technology. Financial deregulation led to the collapse of many commercial banks and savings and loan associations in the second half of the 1980s. In the 1990s, change has continued in the form of a proliferation of bank mergers; with the passage in 1999 of Gramm-Leach-Bliley, further consolidation of the industry was predicted.

Prior to 1994 the banking system was highly fragmented; national banks were not allowed to establish branches at will, as they were subject to the banking laws of each state. Within states, local banks faced similar restraints on their branching activities. In 1988, only 22 states permitted statewide banking of national banks, while 18 allowed limited banking and ten permitted no branches. Consequently in 1988 over 60% of US commercial banks had assets of less the $150 million, while only 3% had assets valued at $500 million or more.

Such regulation rendered US banks vulnerable to merger and acquisition. Acquisitions have generally taken place through

United StatesGovernment Finances
(Dollar amounts in thousands. Per capita amounts in dollars.)
AMOUNTPER CAPITA
Abbreviations and symbols: - zero or rounds to zero; (NA) not available; (X) not applicable.
source: U.S. Census Bureau, Governments Division, 2004 Survey of State Government Finances, January 2006.
Total Revenue1,589,856,2425,424.22
  General revenue1,197,346,8124,085.07
    Intergovernmental revenue394,497,4921,345.93
    Taxes593,821,6492,025.98
      General sales198,208,985676.24
      Selective sales95,567,053326.05
      License taxes39,626,991135.20
      Individual income tax197,878,965675.12
      Corporate income tax30,896,860105.41
      Other taxes31,642,795107.96
    Current charges114,842,943391.82
    Miscellaneous general revenue94,184,728321.34
  Utility revenue12,954,91344.20
  Liquor store revenue4,865,70316.60
  Insurance trust revenue374,688,8141,278.35
Total expenditure1,406,039,8004,797.08
  Intergovernmental expenditure389,706,2021,329.59
  Direct expenditure1,016,333,5983,467.50
    Current operation691,570,7272,359.48
    Capital outlay91,189,148311.12
    Insurance benefits and repayments170,914,840583.12
    Assistance and subsidies28,104,47195.89
    Interest on debt34,554,412117.89
Exhibit: Salaries and wages185,827,096634.00
Total expenditure1,406,039,8004,797.08
  General expenditure1,209,524,6294,126.62
   Intergovernmental expenditure389,706,2021,329.59
    Direct expenditure819,818,4272,797.03
  General expenditures, by function:
    Education429,340,5691,464.81
    Public welfare339,408,7781,157.98
    Hospitals40,425,954137.92
    Health49,559,091169.08
    Highways86,428,773294.88
    Police protection10,766,13436.73
    Correction39,313,812134.13
    Natural resources18,651,54263.63
    Parks and recreation5,843,27419.94
    Government administration44,682,549152.45
    Interest on general debt32,883,864112.19
    Other and unallocable112,220,289382.87
  Utility expenditure21,676,25873.95
  Liquor store expenditure3,924,07313.39
  Insurance trust expenditure170,914,840583.12
Debt at end of fiscal year750,409,8952,560.23
Cash and security holdings2,928,805,8059,992.41

bank holding companies, which then fall under the jurisdiction of the Federal Reserve System. This has allowed banks to extend their business into non-bank activities such as insurance, financial planning, and mortgages, as well as opening up geographical markets. The number of such holding companies is estimated at 6,500. These companies are believed to control over 90% of total bank assets.

The Riegle-Neal Interstate Banking and Branching Efficiency Act of 1994 removed most of the barriers to interstate bank acquisitions and interstate banking. The new act allowed banks to merge with banks in other states although they must operate them as separate banks. In addition, banks are allowed to establish branches in neighboring states. Restrictions on branching activity were lifted as of June 1997. The legislation allowed banks to lessen their exposure to regional economic downturns. It also ensured a continuing stream of bank mergers. Liberalization has encouraged a proliferation of in-store banking at supermarkets. International Banking Technologies, Inc., reported that the number of supermarket bank branches rose to 7,100 in 1998, up from 2,191 in 1994. In the mid-1990s, the number of supermarket branch banks grew at an annual rate of around 30%, but growth from 1997 to 1998 slowed to just over 10%.

Under the provisions of the Banking Act of 1935, all members of the Federal Reserve System (and other banks that wish to do so) participate in a plan of deposit insurance (up to $100,000 for each individual account as of 2003) administered by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).

Savings and loan associations are insured by the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation (FSLIC). Individual accounts were insured up to a limit of $100,000. Savings and loans failed at an alarming rate in the 1980s. In 1989 the government signed legislation that created the Resolution Trust Corporation. The RTC's job is to handle the savings and loans bailout, expected to cost taxpayers $345 billion through 2029. Approximately 30 million members participated in thousands of credit unions chartered by a federal agency; state-chartered credit unions had over 20 million members.

The International Monetary Fund reports that in 2001, currency and demand depositsan aggregate commonly known as M1were equal to $1,595.5 billion. In that same year, M2an aggregate equal to M1 plus savings deposits, small time deposits, and money market mutual fundswas $6,961.2 billion. The money market rate, the rate at which financial institutions lend to one another in the short term, was 3.89%. The discount rate, the interest rate at which the central bank lends to financial institutions in the short term, was 1.25%.

INSURANCE

The number of life insurance companies has shrunk in recent years. Between 1985 and 1995 the number fell from 2,261 to 1,840. In 1998, there were 51 life insurance mergers and acquisitions. Competition between financial institutions has been healthy and premium income has risen steadily. The overwhelming majority of US families have some life insurance with a legal reserve company, the Veterans Administration, or fraternal, assessment, burial, or savings bank organization. The passage in 1999 of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act allowed insurance companies, banks, and securities firms to sell each other's products and services; restrictions were also lifted on cross-industry mergers and acquisitions. In 2003, the value of all direct insurance premiums written totaled $1,055.498 billion, of which nonlife premiums accounted for $574.579 billion. In that same year, State Farm Mutual Group was the top nonlife insurer, with direct written nonlife premiums of $47,226 million, while Metropolitan Life and Affiliated was the nation's leading life insurer, with direct written life insurance premiums of $27,649.1 million.

Hundreds of varieties of insurance may be purchased. Besides life, the more important coverages include accident, fire, hospital and medical expense, group accident and health, automobile liability, automobile damage, workers' compensation, ocean marine, and inland marine. Americans buy more life and health insurance than any other group except Canadians and Japanese. During the 1970s, many states enacted a "no fault" form of automobile insurance, under which damages may be awarded automatically, without recourse to a lawsuit.

SECURITIES

When the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) opened in 1817, its trading volume was 100 shares a day. On 17 December 1999, 1.35 billion shares were traded, a record high for shares traded in a single day. Record-setting trading volume occurred for 1999 as a whole, with 203.9 billion shares traded (a 20% increase over 1998) for a total value of $8.9 trillion, up from $7.3 trillion in 1998. In 1996, 51 million individuals and 10,000 institutional investors owned stocks or shares in mutual funds traded on the NYSE. The two other major stock markets in the United States are the American Stock Exchange (AMEX) and the NASDAQ (National Association of Securities Dealers). The NASD (National Association of Securities Dealers) is regulated by the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission). As of 2004, the New York Stock Exchange, the NASDAQ and the American Stock Exchange had a combined total of 5,231 companies listed. Total market capitalization that same year came to $16,323.726 billion.

PUBLIC FINANCE

Under the Budget and Accounting Act of 1921, the president is responsible for preparing the federal government budget. In fact, the budget is prepared by the Office of Management and Budget (established in 1970), based on requests from the heads of all federal departments and agencies and advice from the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Council of Economic Advisers, and the Treasury Department. The president submits a budget message to Congress in January. Under the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Congress establishes, by concurrent resolution, targets for overall expenditures and broad functional categories, as well as targets for revenues, the budget deficit, and the public debt. The Congressional Budget Office monitors the actions of Congress on individual appropriations bills with reference to those targets. The president exercises fiscal control over executive agencies, which issue periodic reports subject to presidential perusal. Congress exercises control through the comptroller general, head of the General Accounting Office, who sees to it that all funds have been spent and accounted for according to legislative intent. The fiscal year runs from 1 October to 30 September. The public debt, subject to a statutory debt limit, has been raised by Congress 70 times since 1950. The debt rose from $43 billion in 1939/40 to more than $3.3 trillion in 1993 to more than $8.2 trillion in early 2006. In fiscal year 1991/92, the federal deficit reached $290 million, a record high. Pressured by Congressional Republicans, President Clinton introduced a taxing and spending plan to reduce the rate of growth of the federal deficit when he began his term in 1993. The Clinton Administration calculated the package of tax increases and spending would cut the deficit by $500 billion over a four-year period; in fiscal year 1997/98, the budget experienced an estimated surplus of $69 billion. However, the tax cuts and extensive military spending of President George W. Bush in the first term of the new millenium erased the surplus and pushed the economy toward a record $455 billion deficit projected for the 2003 fiscal year ($475 billion projected for 2004). The total public debt as of March 2006 exceeded $8 trillion.

The US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) estimated that in 2005 the United States' central government took in revenues of approximately $2.1 trillion and had expenditures of $2.4 trillion. Revenues minus expenditures totaled approximately $347 billion. Public debt in 2005 amounted to 64.7% of GDP. Total external debt was $8.837 trillion.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) reported that in 2003, the most recent year for which it had data, central government revenues in billions of dollars were 1,902.4 and expenditures were 2,311.9. The value of revenues in millions of US dollars was $1,902 and expenditures $2,312. Government outlays by function were as follows: general public services, 12.2%; defense, 19.1%; public order and safety, 1.4%; economic affairs, 7.0%; housing and community amenities, 2.0%; health, 23.4%; recreation, culture, and religion, 0.2%; education, 2.6%; and social protection, 32.0%.

TAXATION

Measured as a proportion of the GDP, the total US tax burden is less than that in most industrialized countries. Federal, state, and local taxes are levied in a variety of forms. The greatest source of revenue for the federal government is the personal income tax, which is paid by citizens and resident aliens on their worldwide income. The main state-level taxes are sales and income taxes. The main local taxes are property and local income taxes.

Generally, corporations are expected to prepay, through four installments, 100% of estimated tax liability. US corporate taxes are famous for their complexity, and it is estimated that amount spent trying to comply with, minimize and/or avoid business taxes is equal to half the tax yield. As of 2004, the US had a top corporate federal tax rate of 35%, although the effective rate is actually 39.5%. Generally, corporations having taxable income in excess of $75,000 but not over $10 million are taxed at a 34% rate, with the first $75,000 taxed at graduated rates of 15% to 25%. However those whose income falls between $335,000 and $10 million are taxed at the full 34% which includes the initial $75,000. Corporations with income of over $15 million but not over $18,333,333 are subject to an additional 3% tax, while those corporations whose taxable income is over $18,333,333 are taxed at the 35% rate. The federal government also imposes an Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT). The purpose of the AMT is to prevent what is considered an overuse of tax deductions. As a result, the AMT is effectively a separate tax system with its own credit limitations and allowable deductions. Under the AMT, a 20% flat rate is applied to alternative minimum taxable income (AMTI), which the corporation must pay if the calculated AMT is greater than the regular tax. Conversely, if the calculated regular tax is more than the calculated AMT, then the regular tax must be paid. State and local governments may also impose their own corporate income taxes. Generally, these taxes use the federal definitions of taxable income as the starting point when applying their income taxes. Capital gains from assets held as investments are taxed at the same rates as ordinary income. Dividends, interest and royalties paid to non-residents are subject to a withholding tax of 30%.

The United States has a progressive personal income tax structure that as of 2004, had a top rate of 35%. As with corporations, individuals can be subject to an AMT. With rates of 26% and 28%, the AMT, as it applies to individuals, is similar to the AMT charged to corporations in that the individual must pay whichever is highest, the regular tax or the AMT. Individuals may also be subject to inheritance and gift taxes, as well as state and local income taxes, all of which vary from state-to-state and locality-to-locality. Capital gains from assets held for under a year (short term) are taxed at higher rates than gains derived from assets held for more than a year (long term). Long term capital gains for individuals are taxed at a 15% rate, while those individuals who fall into lower-income tax brackets would be subject to a 5% rate. Certain capital gains derived from real estate are subject to a 25% tax rate.

The United States has not adopted a national value-added tax (VAT) system. The main indirect taxes are state sales taxes. There is an importation duty of 0.7% on imported goods. Excise taxes are levied on certain motor vehicles, personal air transportation, some motor fuels (excluding gasohol), alcoholic beverages, tobacco products, tires and tubes, telephone charges, and gifts and estates.

ECONOMIC POLICY

By the end of the 19th century, regulation rather than subsidy had become the characteristic form of government intervention in US economic life. The abuses of the railroads with respect to rates and services gave rise to the Interstate Commerce Commission in 1887, which was subsequently strengthened by numerous acts that now stringently regulate all aspects of US railroad operations.

The growth of large-scale corporate enterprises, capable of exercising monopolistic or near-monopolistic control of given segments of the economy, resulted in federal legislation designed to control trusts. The Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890, reinforced by the Clayton Act of 1914 and subsequent acts, established the federal government as regulator of large-scale business. This tradition of government intervention in the economy was reinforced during the Great Depression of the 1930s, when the Securities and Exchange Commission and the National Labor Relations Board were established. The expansion of regulatory programs accelerated during the 1960s and early 1970s with the creation of the federal Environmental Protection Agency, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and Consumer Product Safety Commission, among other bodies. Subsidy programs were not entirely abandoned, however. Federal price supports and production subsidies remained a major force in stabilizing US agriculture. Moreover, the federal government stepped in to arrange for guaranteed loans for two large private firmsLockheed in 1971 and Chrysler in 1980where thousands of jobs would have been lost in the event of bankruptcy.

During this period, a general consensus emerged that, at least in some areas, government regulation was contributing to inefficiency and higher prices. The Carter administration moved to deregulate the airline, trucking, and communications industries; subsequently, the Reagan administration relaxed government regulation of bank savings accounts and automobile manufacture as it decontrolled oil and gas prices. The Reagan administration also sought to slow the growth of social-welfare spending and attempted, with only partial success, to transfer control over certain federal social programs to the states and to reduce or eliminate some programs entirely. Ironically, it was a Democrat, Bill Clinton, who, in 1996, signed legislation that replaced Aid to Families with Dependent Children with a system of block grants that would enable the states to design and run their own welfare programs.

Some areas of federal involvement in social welfare, however, seem safely entrenched. Old age and survivors' insurance, unemployment insurance, and other aspects of the Social Security program have been accepted areas of governmental responsibility for decades. With the start of the 21st century, the government faced the challenge of keeping the Medicare program solvent as the postwar baby-boomer generation reached retirement age. Federal responsibility has also been extended to insurance of bank deposits, to mortgage insurance, and to regulation of stock transactions. The government fulfills a supervisory and regulatory role in labor-management relations. Labor and management customarily disagree on what the role should be, but neither side advocates total removal of government from this field.

Since the Reciprocal Trade Agreement Act of 1934, government regulation of foreign trade has tended toward decreased levels of protection, a trend maintained by the 1945 Trade Agreements Extension Act, the 1962 Trade Expansion Act, and the 1974 Trade Act. The goals of free trade have also been furthered since World War II by US participation in the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank, and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). With the formation in 1995 of the World Trade Organization (WTO), most-favored-nation policies were expanded to trade in services and other areas.

In 1993, Congress approved the North American Free Trade Agreement, which extended the Free Trade Agreement between Canada and the United States to include Mexico. NAFTA, by eliminating tariffs and other trade barriers, created a free trade zone with a combined market size of $6.5 trillion and 370 million consumers. The effect on employment was uncertainestimates varied from a loss of 150,000 jobs over the ensuing ten years to a net gain of 200,000. Labor intensive goods-producing industries, such as apparel and textiles, were expected to suffer, while it was predicted that capital goods industries would benefit. It was anticipated that US automakers would benefit in the short run by taking advantage of the low wages in Mexico and that US grain farmers and the US banking, financial, and telecommunications sectors would gain enormous new markets. As of 2005, the pros and cons of NAFTA were still being hotly debated. Spokespersons for organized labor claimed in 2000 that the agreement had resulted in a net loss of 420,000 jobs, while advocates of free trade insisted that 311,000 new jobs had been created to support record US exports to Canada and Mexico, with only 116,000 workers displaceda net gain of 195,000 jobs.

In 2003, President George W. Bush introduced, and Congress passed a tax cut of $350 billion designed to stimulate the economy, which was in a period of slow growth. This came on the heels of a $1.35 trillion tax cut passed in 2001 and a $96 billion stimulus package in 2002. Democrats cited the loss of 2.7 million private sector jobs during the first three years of the Bush administration as evidence that the president did not have control over the economy. In 1998, for the first time since 1969, the federal budget closed the fiscal year with a surplus. In 2000, the government was running a surplus of $236 billion, or a projected $5.6 trillion over 10 years. By mid-2003, the federal budget had fallen into deficit; the deficit stood at $455 billion, which was 4.2% of gross domestic product (GDP). The budget deficit stood at $412 billion in 2004, or 3.6% of GDP, and was forecast to decline to $331 billion in 2006.

US businesses are at or near the forefront of technological advances, but the onrush of technology has created a "two-tier" labor market, in which those at the bottom lack the education and professional and technical skills of those at the top, and, increasingly, fail to receive comparable pay raises, health insurance coverage, and other benefits. Since 1975, practically all the gains in household income have gone to the top 20% of households. Other long-term problems facing the US economy are inadequate investment in economic infrastructure, the rapidly rising medical and pension costs of an aging population, significant trade, current account, and budget deficits, and the stagnation of family income in the lower economic groups. Congress in 2003 passed an overhaul of the Medicare program, to provide prescription drug coverage for the elderly and disabled, which went into effect in January 2006.

HEALTH

The US health care system is among the most advanced in the world. Escalating health care costs resulted in several proposals for a national health care program in the 1970s, early 1980s, and early 1990s. Most reform measures relied either on market-oriented approaches designed to widen insurance coverage through tax subsidies on a federally controlled single-payer plan, or on mandatory employer payments for insurance coverage. The health care industry continues to struggle with continued rising costs, as well as the financial burden of providing care to over 40 million people who were uninsured. The percentage among the nation's poor was much higher.

In response to rising costs, the popularity of managed care grew rapidly in the latter half of the 1990s. By 2000, 59% of the population was insured by either an HMO (health maintenance organization) or PPO (preferred provider organization). In such organizations, medical treatment, laboratory tests, and other health services for each patient are subject to the approval of the insurer before they can be covered. From 1987 to 1996, enrollment in health maintenance organizations (HMOs) doubled. By the end of the decade, however, the quality of treatment under managed care organizations was coming under increased scrutiny.

Life expectancy for someone born in 2005 was 77.71 years. Infant mortality has fallen from 38.3 per 1,000 live births in 1945 to 6.50 per 1,000 live births in 2005. The birth rate in 2002 was 14.1 per 1,000 people. In 1999, 56.5% of US adults were overweight and 21.1% were obese. Although health indicators continued to improve overall 2004, pronounced disparities between different segments of the population remained.

The overall death rate is comparable to that of most nationsan estimated 8.7 per 1,000 people as of 2002. Leading causes of death were: heart disease, cancer, cerebrovascular diseases, chronic lower respiratory diseases, accidents, diabetes mellitus, pneumonia and influenza, Alzheimer's disease, suicide and homicide.

Cigarette smoking has been linked to heart and lung disease; about 20% of all deaths in the United States were attributed to cigarette smoking. Smoking has decreased overall since the late 1980s. The overall trend in smoking mortality suggests a decrease in smoking among males since the 1960s, but an increase in mortality for female smokers. On 23 November 1998, the Master Settlement Agreement was signed, the result of a lawsuit brought by 46 states and the District of Columbia against tobacco companies for damages related to smoking. Payments from the settlement, totaling $206 billion, began in 1999.

The rate of HIV infection (resulting in acquired immune deficiency syndromeAIDS), first identified in 1981, has risen in the intervening years. There were a cumulative total of 750,000 AIDS cases in the 1980s and 1990s, with 450,000 deaths from the disease. In the latter 1990s, both incidence and mortality decreased with the introduction of new drug combinations to combat the disease. The number of AIDS cases declined by 30% between 1996 and 1998 and deaths were cut in half. In 2004, the number of people living with HIV/AIDS was estimated at 950,000, with the number of deaths from AIDS that year estimated at 14,000. AIDS continued to affect racial and ethnic minorities disproportionately. HIV prevalence was 0.60 per 100 adults in 1999.

Medical facilities in the United States included 5,810 hospitals in 2000, with 984,000 beds (down from 6,965 hospitals and 1,365,000 beds in 1980). As of 2004, there were an estimated 549 physicians, 773 nurses, 59 dentists and 69 pharmacists per 100,000 people. Of the total number of active classified physicians, the largest areas of activity were internal medicine, followed by general and family practice, then pediatrics.

Per capita health care expenditures rose from $247 in 1967 to about $3,380 in 1993. National health care spending reached $1 trillion in 1996 and is projected to rise to $1.9 trillion by 2006. Hospital costs, amounting to over $371 billion in 1997, represented 34% of national health care spending in that year. In the late 1990s, total health care expenditures stabilized at around 13% of GDP, with most expenditures being made by the private sector.

Medicare payments have lagged behind escalating hospital costs; payments in 2000 totaled $215.9 billion. Meanwhile, the elderly population in the United States is projected to increase to 18% of the total population by 2020, thus exacerbating the conundrum of health care finance.

SOCIAL WELFARE

Social welfare programs in the United States depend on both the federal government and the state governments for resources and administration. Old age, survivors', disability, and the Medicare (health) programs are administered by the federal government; unemployment insurance, dependent child care, and a variety of other public assistance programs are state administered, although the federal government contributes to all of them through grants to the states.

The Food and Nutrition Service of the US Department of Agriculture oversees several food assistance programs. Eligible Americans take part in the food stamp program, and eligible pupils participate in the school lunch program. The federal government also expends money for school breakfasts, nutrition programs for the elderly, and in commodity aid for the needy. The present Social Security program differs greatly from that created by the Social Security Act of 1935, which provided that retirement benefits be paid to retired workers aged 65 or older. Since 1939, Congress has attached a series of amendments to the program, including provisions for workers who retire at age 62, for widows, for dependent children under 18 years of age, and for children who are disabled prior to age 18. Disabled workers between 50 and 65 years of age are also entitled to monthly benefits. Other measures increased the number of years a person may work; among these reforms was a 1977 law banning mandatory retirement in private industry before age 70. The actuarial basis for the Social Security system has also changed. In 1935 there were about nine US wage earners for each American aged 65 or more; by the mid-1990s, however, the ratio was closer to three to one.

In 1940, the first year benefits were payable, $35 million was paid out. By 1983, Social Security benefits totaled $268.1 billion, paid to more than 40.6 million beneficiaries. The average monthly benefit for a retired worker with no dependents in 1960 was $74; in 1983, the average benefit was $629.30. Under legislation enacted in the early 1970s, increases in monthly benefits were pegged to the inflation rate, as expressed through the Consumer Price Index. Employers, employees, and the self-employed are legally required to make contributions to the Social Security fund. Currently, 6.2% of employee earnings (12.4% of self-employed earnings) went toward old-age, disability, and survivor benefits. Wage and salary earners pay Social Security taxes under the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA). As the amount of benefits and the number of beneficiaries have increased, so has the maximum FICA payment. As of 2004 the maximum annual earnings for contribution and benefit purposes was $87,000.

Workers compensation laws vary according to states. Most laws were enacted before 1920; the program covering federal employees was instituted in 1908. Insurance is compulsory through public or private carriers. In most states the employer fund the total cost. There is a special federal program for miners with black lung disease (pneumoconiosis). The laws governing unemployment compensation originate in the states as well, and therefore benefits vary from state to state in duration and amount. Generally unemployment benefits amount to 50% of earnings, and federal law provides an additional 13 weeks of payments in states with high unemployment. Federal and state systems provide aid in the form of cash payments, social services, and job training to assist needy families.

Private philanthropy plays a major role in the support of relief and health services. The private sector plays an especially important role in pension management.

HOUSING

The housing resources of the United States far exceed those of any other country, with 122,671,734 housing units serving about 109,902,090 households, according to 2004 American Community Survey estimates. About 67% of all occupied units were owner-occupied. About 10% of the total housing stock was vacant. The average household had 2.6 people. The median home value was estimated at $151,366. The median payment for rent and utilities of rental properties was $694 per month. California had the highest number of housing units at over 12 million (in 2000); the state also had the highest median housing value of owner-occupied units at $391,102 (2004 est.). Wyoming had the lowest number of housing stock with 223,854 (2000). The lowest median housing value of owner-occupied units was found in Arkansas at $79,006 (2004 est.).

The vast majority of housing units are single-unit structures; 61% are single-family detached homes. Over 9.5 million dwellings are found in buildings of 20 units or more. Over 8.7 million dwellings are mobile homes. About 14.9% of the total housing stock was built in 1939 or before. The decade of 197079 had the most homes built, with 21,462,868 units, 17.6% of the existing stock. During the period 199099, there were 19,007,934 units built, about 15% of the existing stick. Houses being built in the 1990s were significantly larger than those built in the 1970s. The average area of single-family housing built in 1993 was 180.88 sq m (1,947 sq ft), compared to 139.35 sq m (1,500 sq ft) in 1970. The median number of rooms per dwelling was estimated at 5.4 in 2004.

EDUCATION

Education is the responsibility of state and the local governments. However, federal funds are available to meet special needs at primary, secondary, or higher levels. Each state specifies the age and circumstances for compulsory attendance. The most common program of compulsory education requires attendance for ages 6 to 16; however, most school programs continue through twelve years of study, with students graduating at age 17 or 18. The high school diploma is only granted to students who complete this course of study, no certificates of completion are granted at previous intervals. Those who leave school before completion of grade 12 may choose to take a General Educational Development Test (GED) that is generally considered to be the equivalent to a state-approved diploma.

"Regular" schools, which educate a person toward a diploma or degree, include both public and private schools. Public schools are controlled and supported by the local authorities, as well as state or federal governmental agencies. Private schools are controlled and supported by religious or private organizations. Elementary schooling generally extends from grade one through grade five or six. Junior high or middle school programs may cover grades six through eight, depending on the structure of the particular school district. High schools generally cover grades 9 through 12. At the secondary level, many schools offer choices of general studies or college preparatory studies. Vocational and technical programs are also available. Some schools offer advanced placement programs through which students (after appropriate exams) may earn college credits while still in high school. The school year begins in September and ends in June.

In 2003, about 58% of children between the ages of three and five were enrolled in some type of preschool program. Primary school enrollment in 2003 was estimated at about 92% of age-eligible students. The student-to-teacher ratio for primary school was at about 14:1 in 2003; the ratio for secondary school was about 15:1. In 2003, private schools accounted for about 10.8% of primary school enrollment and 9.2% of secondary enrollment. As of 2003, about 87% percent of all 25- to 29-year-olds had received a high school diploma or equivalency certificate.

In 2003, about 1.1 million students were home schooled. In a home schooling program, students are taught at home by their parents or tutors using state-approved curriculum resources. Most of these students (about 82%) receive their entire education at home. Others may attend some classes at local schools or choose to attend public high school after completing preliminary grades through home schooling.

Colleges include junior or community colleges, offering two-year associate degrees; regular four-year colleges and universities; and graduate or professional schools. Both public and private institutions are plentiful. Eight of the most prestigious institutions in the country are collective known as the Ivy League. These schools are some of the oldest in the country and are known for high academic standards and an extremely selective admissions process. Though they are all now independent, nonsectarian organizations, most of them were founded or influenced by religious groups. They include: Yale University (1701, Puritans), University of Pennsylvania (1740, Quaker influence), Princeton University (1746, Presbyterian), Harvard University (1638, Puritan), Dartmouth College (1769, Puritan), Cornell University (1865), Colombia University (1754, Anglican), and Brown University (1764, Baptist).

The cost of college education varies considerably depending on the institution. There are county and state universities that receive government funding and offer reduced tuition for residents of the region. Students attending both public and private institutions may be eligible for federal aid in the form of grants or loans. Institutions generally offer their own scholarship and grant programs as well.

There are over 4,000 non-degree institutions of higher learning, including educational centers offering continuing education credits for professionals as well as general skill-based learning programs. Certificate programs are available in a number of professions and trades. Technical and vocational schools are also available for adults. In 2003, it was estimated that about 83% of the tertiary age population were enrolled in tertiary education programs. The adult literacy rate has been estimated at about 97%.

Beyond this, there are numerous public and private community organizations that offer educational programming in the form of workshops, lectures, seminars, and classes for adults interested in expanding their educational horizons.

As of 2003, public expenditure on education was estimated at 5.7% of GDP, or 17.1% of total government expenditures.

ARTS

The nation's arts centers are emblems of the importance of the performing arts in US life. New York City's Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, whose first concert hall opened in 1962, is now the site of the Metropolitan Opera House, three halls for concerts and other musical performances, two theaters, the New York Public Library's Library and Museum of the Performing Arts, and the Juilliard School. The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., opened in 1971; it comprises two main theaters, two smaller theaters, an opera house, and a concert hall.

The New York Philharmonic, founded in 1842, is the nation's oldest professional musical ensemble. Other leading orchestras include those of Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Washington, D.C. (the National Symphony). Particularly renowned for artistic excellence are the Lyric Opera of Chicago, San Francisco Opera, Opera Company of Boston, Santa Fe Opera, New York City Opera, and the Metropolitan Opera.

The recording industry is an integral part of the music world. The US accounts for fully one-third of the global total of $33 billion in sales. Popular music (mostly rock), performed in halls and arenas in every major city and on college campuses throughout the US, dominates record sales. The Internet website Napster has challenged the recording industry's copyright rights by offering free downloads of popular music. The industry, threatened by the freedom that the Internet granted to those wishing to share music, succeeded in having Napster's operations suspended by an appeals judge in 2001.

Though still financially insecure, dance is winning an increasingly wide following. The American Ballet Theater, founded in 1940, is the nation's oldest dance company still active today; the New York City Ballet is equally acclaimed. Other important companies include those of Martha Graham, Merce Cunningham, Alvin Ailey, Paul Taylor, and Twyla Tharp, as well as the Feld Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, and Pilobolus.

Drama remains a principal performing art, not only in New York City's renowned theater district but also in regional, university, summer, and dinner theaters throughout the US. Television and the motion picture industry have made film the dominant modern medium.

The National Council on the Arts, established in 1964, advises the Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). Fourteen members of the Council, and six members of Congress serve in this function. As the largest single funder of the nonprofit arts sector in the United States, the NEA generated a total budget of $115.7 million in 2003. Grants are awarded to state, local, and regional organizations for projects in the following categories: creation and presentation, education and access, heritage and preservation, and planning and stabilization. Fellowship awards are made in the categories of Literature, American Jazz Masters, and National Heritage.

Since 1985, the NEA has assisted in the selection process for the National Medal of Arts, which is awarded by the president of the United States. Several winners are chosen each year, representing a variety of fields. Past medalists include: Dolly Parton (singer, 2005); Ray Bradbury (author, 2004); Ron Howard (director and actor, 2003); William "Smokey" Robinson (songwriter and musician, 2002); Al Hirschfeld (illustrator, 2002); Johnny Cash (singer, 2001); Yo-Yo Ma (cellist, 2001); Kirk Douglas (actor and producer, 2001); Mikhail Baryshnikov (dancer and director, 2000); Maya Angelou (poet and writer, 2000); Aretha Franklin (singer, 1999); Michael Graves (architect, 1999); Frank Gehry (architect, 1998); Edward Albee (playwright, 1997); Harry Callahan (photographer, 1996); Bob Hope (entertainer, 1995); Gene Kelly (dancer, 1994); Arthur Miller (playwright, 1993); and Frank Capra (film director, 1986), to name just a few. Organizations that have received medals include the Alvin Ailey Dance Foundation (2001), National Public Radio (2000), the Julliard School (1999), Steppenwolf Theater Company (1998), the Sarah Lee Corporation (corporate arts patron, 1998), and the Boys Choir of Harlem (1994).

The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) was created as an independent federal agency in 1965. It is the largest funder of humanities programs in the country. Grants are distributed to state and local programs in the following categories: Challenge Grants, Education Programs, Preservation and Access, Public Programs, and Research Programs. Besides offering support to outside organizations, the NEH sponsors touring exhibitions and programs through chapters in most states. The NEH budget request for the year 2006 was $138.6 million.

The NEH sponsors the Jefferson Lecture in the Humanities award, which was established in 1972 as the highest honor the federal government bestows for distinguished intellectual and public achievement in the humanities. Recipients have included Tom Wolfe (2006); David McCullough (2003); Henry Louis Gates, Jr., (2002); Arthur Miller (2001); Toni Morrison (1996); Gwendolyn Brooks (1994); Saul Bellow (1977); and Robert Penn Warren (1974). The National Humanities Medals, established in 1997, are awarded to individuals or groups whose work has had an impact on the understanding and preservation of the humanities. Medalists include the Iowa Writers' Workshop (2002); Donald Kagan (2002); Art Linkletter (2002); Richard Peck (2001); Ernest J. Gaines (2000); Garrison Keillor (1999); Jim Lehrer (1999); Steven Spielberg (1999); Stephen Ambrose (1998); Don Henley (1997); and Maxine Hong Kingston (1997).

Since 1950, the National Book Foundation, based in New York, has sponsored the National Book Awards, which have become the nation's preeminent literary prizes. The 2005 prizes went to Europe Central by William Vollman (fiction), Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion (non-fiction), New and Selected Poems by W.S. Merwin (poetry), and The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall (young people's literature). Notable past winners include: United States: Essays 19521992 by Gore Vidal (1993); Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier (1997); The White House by Henry A. Kissinger (1980); A Swiftly Tilting Planet by Madeleine L'Engle (1980); The Fall of America: Poems of these States, 19651971 by Allen Ginsberg (1974); Death at an Early Age by Jonathan Kozol (1968); The Centaur by John Updike (1964); The Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison (1953); Collected Poems by Marianne Moore (1952); and The Collected Stories of William Faulkner (1951).

LIBRARIES AND MUSEUMS

The American Library Association has reported that, as of 2004, there were an estimated 117,664 libraries in the country, including 9,211 public libraries (with over 16,500 buildings), 3,527 academic libraries, 93,861 school libraries, 9,526 special libraries, 314 armed forces libraries, and 1,225 government libraries.

The largest library in the country and the world is the Library of Congress, with holdings of over 130 million items, including 29 million books and other printed materials, 2.7 million recordings, 12 million photographs, 4.8 million maps, and 58 million manuscripts. The Library of Congress serves as the national library and the site of the U.S. Copyright Office. The government maintains a system of Presidential Libraries and Museums which serve as archive and research centers that preserve documents and other ma-terials of historical value related to the presidency. Starting with Herbert Hoover, the 31st president of the United States, there has been a library and museum established for each president. State governments maintain their own libraries as well.

The country's vast public library system is administered primarily by municipalities. The largest of these is the New York Public Library system with 89 branch locations and over 42.7 million items, including 14.9 million bound volumes. Other major public library systems include the Cleveland Public Library (over 9.7 million items), Los Angeles County Public Library (over 9.6 million items, 8.7 million books), the Chicago Public Library (6.5 million), the Boston Public Library system (6.1 million books, including 1.2 million rare books and manuscripts), and the Free Library of Philadelphia (6 million items).

Noted special collections are those of the Pierpont Morgan Library in New York; the Huntington Library in San Marino, Calif.; the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, D.C.; the Hoover Library at Stanford University; and the rare book divisions of Harvard, Yale, Indiana, Texas, and Virginia universities.

Among the leading university libraries are those of Harvard (with about 15 million volumes in 90 libraries), Yale, Illinois (Urbana-Champaign), Michigan (Ann Arbor), California (Berkeley), Columbia, Stanford, Cornell, California (Los Angeles), Chicago, Wisconsin (Madison), and Washington (Seattle).

There are over 5,000 nonprofit museums in the United States. The most numerous type is the historic building, followed in descending order by college and university museums, museums of science, public museums of history, and public museums of art. The Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D.C., sponsors 18 national museums and the National Zoo. Sixteen of the Smithsonian national museums are located in the Smithsonian complex of Washington, D.C.; these include the Natural History Museum, the American History Museum, the Air and Space Museum, American Art Museum, and the American Indian Museum. The American Indian Museum, Heye Center, and the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum are Smithsonian-sponsored museums located in New York.

Other eminent US museums include the American Museum of Natural History, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art, the Guggenheim Museum, the Whitney Collection of American Art, the Frick Collection, and the Brooklyn Museum, all in New York City; the Boston Museum of Fine Arts; the Art Institute of Chicago and the Chicago Museum of Natural History; the Franklin Institute and Philadelphia Museum of Art, both in Philadelphia; and the M. H. de Young Memorial Museum in San Francisco. Also of prominence are the Cleveland Museum of Art, the St. Louis Museum of Art, and the Baltimore Museum of Art.

COMMUNICATIONS

All major electric communications systems are privately owned but regulated by the Federal Communications Commission. The United States uses wire and radio services for communications more extensively than any other country in the world. In 2003, there were an estimated 621 mainline telephones for every 1,000 people. The same year, there were approximately 543 mobile phones in use for every 1,000 people. The Post Office Department of the United States was replaced on 1 July 1971 by the US Postal Service, a financially autonomous federal agency. In addition to mail delivery, the Postal Service provides registered, certified, insured, express and COD mail service, issues money orders, and operates a postal savings system. Since the 1970s, numerous privately owned overnight mail and package delivery services have been established.

Radio serves a variety of purposes other than broadcasting. It is widely used by ships and aircraft for safety; it has become an important tool in the movement of buses, trucks, and taxicabs. Forest conservators, fire departments, and the police operate with radio as a necessary aid; it is used in logging operations, surveying, construction work, and dispatching of repair crews. In 2004, broadcasting stations on the air comprised over 12,000 radio stations (both AM and FM) and more than 1,500 television stations. Nearly 1,000 stations were affiliated with five major networks: NBC, ABC, CBS, FOX (all commercial), and PBS (Public Broadcasting System). As of 1997 the United States had some 9,000 cable television systems. In 2003, there were an estimated 2,109 radios and 938 television sets for every 1,000 people. About 255 of every 1,000 people were cable subscribers. Also in 2003, there were 658.9 personal computers for every 1,000 people and 551 of every 1,000 people had access to the Internet. There were 198,098 secure Internet servers in the country in 2004.

PRESS

In 2005 there were over 1,500 daily newspapers in the United States. It has been estimated that about 20 large newspaper chains account for almost 60% of the total daily circulation. The US daily newspapers with the largest circulations as of 2004 were: USA Today (national), 2,220,863; Wall Street Journal (national), 2,106,774; New York Times, 1,121,057; Los Angeles Times (CA), 902,3164; New York Daily News, 715,052; Washington Post (DC), 707,690; New York Post, 686,207; Chicago Tribune (IL), 600,988; Houston Chronicle (TX), 554,783; Dallas Morning News (TX), 519,014; San Francisco Chronicle (CA), 505,022; Chicago Sun-Times (IL), 481,980; Long Island/New York Newsday, 481,816; Boston Globe (MA), 451,471; Arizona Republic, 413,268; Star-Ledger (Newark, NJ), 400,042; Journal-Constitution (Atlanta, GA), 386,015; Star Tribune (Minneapolis, MN), 381,094; Philadelphia Inquirer (PA), 368,883; and Cleveland Plain Dealer (OH), 354,309. The Christian Science Monitor is published for daily national circulation by the Christian Science Church based in Massachusetts; circulation in 2004 was about 60,723. Investor's Business Daily, based in Los Angeles, California, also has a national circulation, reaching about 191,846 in 2004.

In 2004, the most popular consumer magazine in the country was AARP the Magazine, published bimonthly by the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) with a circulation of over 22.6 million. The AARP Bulletin came in second with a circulation of about 22.1 million. The two general circulation magazines that appealed to the largest audiences were Reader 's Digest (about 10 million) and TV Guide (about 9 million). Time and Newsweek were the leading news magazines, with 2004 weekly circulations of 4,034,272 and 3,135,476 respectively.

The US book-publishing industry consists of the major book companies (mainly in the New York metro area), nonprofit university presses distributed throughout the United States, and numerous small publishing firms. In 1994, 51,863 book titles were published in the United States.

The US Constitution provides for freedom of speech and of the press in its Bill of Rights, and the government supports these rights. Citizens enjoy a wide range of opinions in all media, where debate, editorial opinion, and government opposition viewpoints are represented in some form or another. Nearly all media are privately owned.

ORGANIZATIONS

A number of industrial and commercial organizations exercise considerable influence on economic policy. The National Association of Manufacturers and the US Chamber of Commerce, with numerous local branches, are the two central bodies of business and commerce. Various industries have their own associations, concerned with cooperative research and questions of policy alike.

Practically every profession in the United States is represented by one or more professional organizations. Among the most powerful of these are the American Medical Association, comprising regional, state, and local medical societies; the American Bar Association, also comprising state and local associations; the American Hospital Association; and the National Education Association. The most prestigious scientific and technical institution s are the National Academy of Sciences (founded 1863) and the National Academy of Engineering (1964).

Many private organizations are dedicated to programs of political and social action. Prominent in this realm are the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the Urban League, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Common Cause, and the Anti-Defamation League. The League of Women Voters, which provides the public with nonpartisan information about candidates and election issues, began sponsoring televised debates between the major presidential candidates in 1976. The National Organization for Women, and the National Rifle Association have each mounted nationwide lobbying campaigns on issues affecting their members. There are thousands of political action committees (PACs) that disburse funds to candidates for the House and Senate and other elected offices.

The great privately endowed philanthropic foundations and trusts play an important part in encouraging the development of education, art, science, and social progress in the United States. Prominent foundations include the Carnegie Corporation and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the Ford Foundation, the Guggenheim Foundation, the Mayo Association for the Advancement of Medical Research and Education, and the Rockefeller Foundation.

Private philanthropy was responsible for the establishment of many of the nation's most eminent libraries, concert halls, museums, and university and medical facilities; private bequests were also responsible for the establishment of the Pulitzer Prizes. Merit awards offered by industry and professional groups include the "Oscars" of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the "Emmys" of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, and the "Grammys" of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences.

Funds for a variety of community health and welfare services are funneled through United Way campaigns, which raise funds annually. The American Red Cross has over 3,000 chapters, which pay for services and activities ranging from disaster relief to blood donor programs. The Salvation Army is also a prominent national organization supporting programs of social welfare and advancement. There are several national associations dedicated to research and education for specific fields of medicine and particular diseases and conditions, such as the American Cancer Society, the American Heart Association, and the March of Dimes.

There are numerous youth clubs and associations across the country. The Boy Scouts of America, the Girl Scouts of the USA, rural 4-H Clubs, and the Young Men's and the Young Women's Christian Associations are among the organizations devoted to recreation, sports, camping, and education. There are youth organizations for political parties, such as the Young Republicans and Young Democrats, and Junior ROTC (Reserve Officers' Training Corps) for the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines. Most national religious and service associations have youth chapters.

The largest religious organization in the United States is the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA, which embraces 32 Protestant and Orthodox denominations, whose adherents total more than 42 million. Many organizations, such as the American Philosophical Society, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the National Geographic Society, are dedicated to the enlargement of various branches of human knowledge. National, state, and local historical societies abound, and there are numerous educational, sports, and hobbyist groups.

The larger veterans' organizations are the American Legion, the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, the Catholic War Veterans, and the Jewish War Veterans. Fraternal organizations, in addition to such international organizations as the Masons, include indigenous groups such as the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, the Loyal Order of Moose, and the Woodmen of the World. Many, such as the Ancient Order of Hibernians in America, commemorate the national origin of their members. One of the largest fraternal organizations is the Roman Catholic Knights of Columbus.

TOURISM, TRAVEL, AND RECREATION

Among the most striking scenic attractions in the United States are: the Grand Canyon in Arizona; Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico; Yosemite National Park in California; Yellowstone National Park in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming; Niagara Falls, partly in New York; and the Everglades in Florida. The United States has a total of 49 national parks. Popular coastal resorts include those of Florida, California, and Cape Cod in Massachusetts. Historical attractions include the Liberty Bell and Constitution Hall in Philadelphia; the Statue of Liberty in New York City; the White House, the Capitol, and the monuments to Washington, Jefferson, and Lincoln in the District of Columbia; the Williamsburg historical restoration in Virginia; various Revolutionary and Civil War battlefields and monuments in the East and South; the Alamo in San Antonio; and Mt. Rushmore in South Dakota. Among many other popular tourist attractions are the movie and television studios in Los Angeles; the cable cars in San Francisco; casino gambling in Las Vegas and in Atlantic City, N.J.; thoroughbred horse racing in Kentucky; the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tenn.; the many jazz clubs of New Orleans; and such amusement parks as Disneyland (Anaheim, Calif.) and Walt Disney World (near Orlando, Fla.). For abundance and diversity of entertainmenttheater, movies, music, dance, and sportsNew York City has few rivals. In April 1993, Amtrak began the country's first regularly scheduled transcontinental passenger service, from Los Angeles to Miami.

Americans' recreational activities range from the major spectator sportsprofessional baseball, football, basketball, ice hockey, soccer; and horse racing; and collegiate football and basketballto home gardening. Participant sports are a favorite form of recreation, including jogging, aerobics, tennis, and golf. Skiing is a popular recreation in New England and the western mountain ranges, while sailing, power boating, rafting, and canoeing are popular water sports.

Foreign visitors to the United States numbered 41,212,213 in 2003, down from 51 million in 2000. Of these visitors, 31% came from Canada and 25% from Mexico. Hotel rooms numbered 4,415,696 with an occupancy rate of 61%. With a few exceptions, such as Canadians entering from the Western Hemisphere, all visitors to the United States are required to have passports and visas.

The cost of traveling in the United States varies from city to city. According to 2005 US government estimates, daily expenses were approximately $187 in Chicago, $272 in New York, $230 in Washington, D.C., and $174 in Miami. Costs are lower in smaller cities and rural areas.

SPORTS

Baseball, long honored as the national pastime, is the nation's leading professional team sport, with two major leagues having 30 teams (one in Canada). In the 1998 season, two teams were added to Major League Baseballthe Arizona Diamondbacks, playing in the National League West, and the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, playing in the American League East. In 2005, the Montreal Expos became the Washington DC Nationals, following the team's move to Washington DC from Montreal. During the 2005 regular season, almost 75 million fans attended Major League Baseball games. In 1992, the Toronto Blue Jays became the first non-US team to win the World Series. In addition, there is an extensive network of minor league baseball teams, each of them related to a major league franchise. The National Basketball Association, created in 1946, included 30 teams in 2005. A labor dispute resulted in a lockout of the players for nearly half the 19992000 NBA season. The Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), founded in 1997, included 14 teams as of 2005. During the WNBA's third season (1999), 1,959,733 fans attended regular season games, establishing an attendance record for women's professional sports. In 2005, WNBA attendance totaled 1,805,937. In 2005, the National Football League included 32 teams; Houston, Texas, was awarded a franchise in 2002 to establish the 32nd team. The National Hockey League (NHL) expanded to 30 teams in 2000, when teams in St. Paul, Minnesota (Minnesota Wild), and Columbus, Ohio (Columbus Blue Jackets), played their inaugural seasons. Prior expansion occurred in the 199899 season, with the Nashville Predators, and in 19992000, with the Atlanta Thrashers. In the 2003/2004 season, 20.3 million fans attended regular NHL season games. However, the entire NHL schedule for the 2004/2005 season was cancelled because of a labor dispute between the players and the team owners. Hockey players also held strikes in 1992 and 1994. Play resumed for the 2005/2006 season after both sides agreed to a new labor contract. The North American Soccer League (NASL), which appeared to be growing popular in the late 1970s, discontinued outdoor play in 1985. Indoor soccer continued, however, with the Major Indoor Soccer League. In 1994, however, soccer's World Cup games were played in nine US cities, with the final match held in Los Angeles. As of 2005, Major League Soccer fielded 12 teams in two divisions. Radio and television contracts are integral to the popular and financial success of all professional team sports. In 1994, a strike by baseball players caused the World Series to be canceled for the first time since 1904.

Several other professional sports are popular nationwide. Thoroughbred racing is among the nation's most popular spectator sports, with an estimated 12 million fans visiting horse-racing tracks annually. Annual highlights of thoroughbred racing are the three jewels of the Triple Crownthe Kentucky Derby, the Preakness, and the Belmont Stakesmost recently won by Seattle Slew in 1977 and by Affirmed in 1978. In 2000, jockey Julie Krone became the first woman jockey to be inducted into the Horse Racing Hall of Fame. Harness racing is also popular; attracting millions of spectators annually and involving over $1.5 billion in wagering. In 1997, over 14.3 million fans watched greyhound racing. The prize money that Henry Ford won on a 1901 auto race helped him start his now-famous car company two years later; since then, automobile manufacturers have backed sports car, stock car, and motorcycle racing at tracks throughout the US. From John L. Sullivan to Muhammad Ali, the personality and power of the great boxing champions have drawn millions of spectators ringside. Glamour and top prizes also draw national followings for tennis and golf, two professional sports in which women are nationally prominent. Other professional sports include bowling and rodeo.

Football has been part of US college life since the game was born on 6 November 1869 with a New Jersey match between Rutgers and Princeton. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) coordinate collegiate football and basketball. Colleges recruit top athletes with sports scholarships in order to win media attention, and to keep the loyalty of the alumni, thereby boosting fund-raising. Baseball, hockey, swimming, gymnastics, crew, lacrosse, track and field, and a variety of other sports also fill the intercollegiate competitive program

The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), a national nonprofit organization founded in 1888, conducts the AAU/USA Junior Olympics, offering competition in 22 sports in order to help identify candidates for international Olympic competition. St. Louis hosted the 1904 summer Olympics; Los Angeles was home to the games in 1932 and 1984. The winter Olympic games were held in Squaw Valley, Calif., in 1960, and at Lake Placid, New York, in 1932 and 1980. Atlanta hosted the summer Olympic games in 1996. Salt Lake City, Utah, was the site of the 2002 winter Olympic games.

FAMOUS AMERICANS

Printer, publisher, inventor, scientist, statesman, and diplomat, Benjamin Franklin (170690) was America's outstanding figure of the colonial period. George Washington (173299), leader of the colonial army in the American Revolution, became first president of the United States and is known as the "father of his country." Chief author of the Declaration of Independence, founder of the US political party system, and third president was Thomas Jefferson (17431826). His leading political opponents were John Adams (17351826), second president, and Alexander Hamilton (b.West Indies, 17551804), first secretary of the treasury, who secured the new nation's credit. James Madison (17511836), a leading figure in drawing up the US Constitution, served as fourth president. John Quincy Adams (17671848), sixth president, was an outstanding diplomat and secretary of state.

Andrew Jackson (17671845), seventh president, was an ardent champion of the common people and opponent of vested interests. Outstanding senators during the Jackson era were John Caldwell Calhoun (17821850), spokesman of the southern planter aristocracy and leading exponent of the supremacy of states' rights over federal powers; Henry Clay (17771852), the great compromiser, who sought to reconcile the conflicting views of the North and the South; and Daniel Webster (17821852), statesman and orator, who championed the preservation of the Union against sectional interests and division. Abraham Lincoln (180965) led the United States through its most difficult period, the Civil War, in the course of which he issued the Emancipation Proclamation. Jefferson Davis (180889) served as the only president of the short-lived Confederacy. Stephen Grover Cleveland (18371908), a conservative reformer, was the strongest president in the latter part of the 19th century. Among the foremost presidents of the 20th century have been Nobel Peace Prize winner Theodore Roosevelt (18581919); Woodrow Wilson (18561924), who led the nation during World War I and helped establish the League of Nations; and Franklin Delano Roosevelt (18821945), elected to four terms spanning the Great Depression and World War II. The presidents during the 19612000 period have been John Fitzgerald Kennedy (191763), Lyndon Baines Johnson (190873), Richard Milhous Nixon (191394), Gerald Rudolph Ford (Leslie Lynch King, Jr., b.1913), Jimmy Carter (James Earl Carter, Jr., b.1924), Ronald Wilson Reagan (19112004), George Herbert Walker Bush (b.1924), and Bill Clinton (William Jefferson Blythe III, b.1946). George Walker Bush (b.1946) became the 43rd president and first president of the 21st century.

Of the outstanding US military leaders, four were produced by the Civil War: Union generals Ulysses Simpson Grant (182285), who later served as the eighteenth president, and William Tecumseh Sherman (182091); and Confederate generals Robert Edward Lee (180770) and Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson (182463). George Catlett Marshall (18801959), army chief of staff during World War II, in his later capacity as secretary of state under President Harry S Truman (18841972), formulated the Marshall Plan, which did much to revitalize Western Europe. George Smith Patton, Jr. (18851945) was a leading general who commanded major units in North Africa, Sicily, and Europe in World War II. Douglas MacArthur (18801964) commanded the US forces in Asia during World War II, oversaw the postwar occupation and reorganization of Japan, and directed UN forces in the first year of the Korean conflict. Dwight D. Eisenhower (18901969) served as supreme Allied commander during World War II, later becoming the thirty-fourth president. William Childs Westmoreland (19142005) commanded US military operations in the Vietnam War from 1964 to 1968 and served as US Army Chief of Staff from 1968 to 1972. H. Norman Schwarzkopf (b.1934) commanded the successful allied invasion of Iraq in the Persian Gulf War. General Colin Luther Powell (b.1937), former Secretary of State (20012005) and highest ranking African American government official in the history of the US (a position assumed by Condoleezza Rice in 2005), was a general in the army who also served as National Security Advisor (19871989) and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (19891993).

John Marshall (17551835), chief justice of the United States from 1801 to 1835, established the power of the Supreme Court through the principle of judicial review. Other important chief justices were Edward Douglass White (18451921), former president William Howard Taft (18571930), and Earl Warren (18911974), whose tenure as chief justice from 1953 to 1969 saw important decisions on desegregation, reapportionment, and civil liberties. The justice who enjoyed the longest tenure on the court was William O. Douglas (18981980), who served from 1939 to 1975; other prominent associate justices were Oliver Wendell Holmes (18411935), Louis Dembitz Brandeis (18561941), and Hugo Lafayette Black (18861971).

Indian chiefs renowned for their resistance to white encroachment were Pontiac (1729?69), Black Hawk (17671838), Tecumseh (17681813), Osceola (1804?38), Cochise (1812?74), Geronimo (1829?1909), Sitting Bull (1831?90), Chief Joseph (1840?1904), and Crazy Horse (1849?77). Other significant Indian chiefs were Hiawatha (fl. 1500), Squanto (d.1622), and Sequoya (1770?1843). Historical figures who have become part of American folklore include pioneer Daniel Boone (17341820); silversmith, engraver, and patriot Paul Revere (17351818); frontiersman David "Davy" Crockett (17861836); scout and Indian agent Christopher "Kit" Carson (180968); James Butler "Wild Bill" Hickok (183776); William Frederick "Buffalo Bill" Cody (18461917); and the outlaws Jesse Woodson James (184782) and Billy the Kid (William H. Bonney, 185981).

Inventors and Scientists

Outstanding inventors were Robert Fulton (17651815), who developed the steamboat; Eli Whitney (17651825), inventor of the cotton gin and mass production techniques; Samuel Finley Breese Morse (17911872), who invented the telegraph; and Elias Howe (181967), who invented the sewing machine. Alexander Graham Bell (b.Scotland, 18471922) gave the world the telephone. Thomas Alva Edison (18471931) was responsible for hundreds of inventions, among them the long-burning incandescent electric lamp, the phonograph, automatic telegraph devices, a motion picture camera and projector, the microphone, and the mimeograph. Lee De Forest (18731961), the "father of the radio," developed the vacuum tube and many other inventions. Vladimir Kosma Zworykin (b.Russia, 18891982) was principally responsible for the invention of television. Two brothers, Wilbur Wright (18671912) and Orville Wright (18711948), designed, built, and few the first successful motor-powered airplane. Amelia Earhart (18981937) and Charles Lindbergh (190274) were aviation pioneers. Pioneers in the space program include John Glenn (b.1921), the first US astronaut to orbit the earth, and Neil Armstrong (b.1930), the first man to set foot on the moon.

Benjamin Thompson, Count Rumford (17531814), developed devices for measuring light and heat, and the physicist Joseph Henry (17971878) did important work in magnetism and electricity. Outstanding botanists and naturalists were John Bartram (16991777); his son William Bartram (17391832); Louis Agassiz (b.Switzerland, 180773); Asa Gray (181088); Luther Burbank (18491926), developer of a vast number of new and improved

Presidents of the United States
NAMEBORNDIEDOTHER MAJOR OFFICES HELDRESIDENCE AT ELECTION
1George WashingtonWestmoreland County, Va., 22 February 1732Mt. Vernon, Va., 14 December 1799Commander in Chief, Continental Army (177583)Mt. Vernon, Va.
2John AdamsBraintree (later Quincy), Mass., 30 October 1735Quincy, Mass., 4 July 1826Representative, Continental Congress (177477); US vice president (179797)Quincy, Mass.
3Thomas JeffersonGoochland (now Albemarle) County, Va., 13 April 1743Monticello, Va., 4 July 1826Representative, Continental Congress (177576); governor of Virginia (177981); secretary of state (179093); US vice president (17971801)Monticello, Va.
4James MadisonPort Conway, Va., 16 March 1751Montpelier, Va., 28 June 1836Representative, Continental Congress (178083; 178688); US representative (178997); secretary of state (18019)Montpelier, Va.
5James MonroeWestmoreland County, Va. 28 April 1758New York, N.Y., 4 July 1831US senator (179094); governor of Virginia (17991802); secretary of state (181117); secretary of war (181415)Leesburg, Va.
6John Quincy AdamsBraintree (later Quincy), Mass., 11 July 1767Washington, D.C., 23 February 1848US senator (18038); secretary of state (181725); US representative (183148)Quincy, Mass.
7Andrew JacksonWaxhaw, Carolina frontier, 15 March 1767The Hermitage, Tenn., 8 June 1845US representative (179697); US senator (179798)The Hermitage, Tenn.
8Martin Van BurenKinderhook, N.Y., 5 December 1782Kinderhook, N.Y., 24 July 1862US senator (182128); governor of New York (1829); secretary of state (182931); US vice president (183337)New York
9William Henry HarrisonCharles City County, Va., 9 February 1773Washington, D.C., 4 April 1841Governor of Indiana Territory (180113); US representative (181619); US senator (182528)North Bend, Ohio
10John TylerCharles City County, Va., 29 March 1790Richmond, Va., 18 January 1862US representative (181621); governor of Virginia (182527); US senator (182736); US vice president (1841)Richmond, Va.
11James K. PolkMecklenburg County, N.C., 2 November 1795Nashville, Tenn., 15 June 1849US representative (182539); governor of Tennessee (183941)Nashville, Tenn.
12Zachary TaylorOrange County, Va., 24 November 1784Washington, D.C., 9 July 1850Louisiana
13Millard FillmoreCayuga County, N.Y., 7 January 1800Buffalo, N.Y., 8 March 1874US representative (183335; 183743); US vice president (184950)Buffalo, N.Y.
14Franklin PierceHillsboro, N.H., 23 November 1804Concord, N.H., 8 October 1869US representative, (183337); US senator (183743)Concord, N.H.
15James BuchananMercersburg, Pa., 23 April 1791Lancaster, Pa., 1 June 1868US representative (182131); US senator (183445); secretary of state (184549)Lancaster, Pa.
16Abraham LincolnHodgenville, Ky., 12 February 1809Washington, D.C., 15 April 1865US representative (184749)Springfield, Ill.
17Andrew JohnsonRaleigh, N.C., 29 December 1808Carter Station, Tenn., 31 July 1875US representative (184353); governor of Tennessee (185357; 186265); US senator (185762); US vice president (1865)Greeneville, Tenn.
18Ulysses S. GrantPoint Pleasant, Ohio, 27 April 1822Mount McGregor, N.Y., 23 July 1885Commander, Union Army (186465); secretary of war (186768)Galena, Ill.
19Rutherford B. HayesDelaware, Ohio, 4 October 1822Fremont, Ohio, 17 January 1893US representative (186567); governor of Ohio (186872; 187677)Fremont, Ohio
20James A. GarfieldOrange, Ohio, 19 November 1831Elberon, N.J., 19 September 1881US representative (186380)Mentor, Ohio
21Chester A. ArthurFairfield, Vt., 5 October 1829New York, N.Y., 18 November 1886US vice president (1881)New York, N.Y.
22Grover ClevelandCaldwell, N.J., 18 March 1837Princeton, N.J., 24 June 1908Governor of New York (188284)Albany, N.Y.
23Benjamin HarrisonNorth Bend, Ohio 20 August 1833Indianapolis, Ind., 13 March 1901US senator (188187)Indianapolis, Ind.
PARTY% OF POPULAR VOTE% OF ELECTORAL VOTE1,2TERMS IN OFFICE5VICE PRESIDENTSNOTABLE EVENTS
Federalist50.030 April 17894 March 1793John AdamsFederal government organized; Bill of Rights enacted (1791); Whiskey Rebellion suppressed (1794); North Carolina, Rhode Island, Vermont, Kentucky, Tennessee enter Union.1
Federalist25.74 March 17974 March 1801Thomas JeffersonAlien and Sedition Acts passed (1798); Washington, D.C., becomes US capital (1800)2
Dem.-Rep.26.43
92.0
4 March 18014 March 1805Aaron Burr
George Clinton
Louisiana Purchase (1803); Lewis and Clark Expedition (18036); Ohio enters Union.3
Dem.-Rep.69.7
58.9
4 March 18094 March 1818
4 March 18134 March 1817
George Clinton
Elbridge Gerry
War of 1812 (181214); protective tariffs passed (1816); Louisiana, Indiana enter Union.4
Dem.-Rep.84.34 March 18174 March 1821
4 March 18214 March 1825
Daniel D. Tompkins
Daniel D. Tompkins
Florida purchased from Spain (181921); Missouri Compromise (1820); Monroe Doctrine (1823); Mississippi, Illinois, Alabama, Maine, Missouri enter Union.5
National Republican30.938.044 March 18254 March 1829John C. CalhounPeriod of political antagonisms, producing little legislation; road and canal construction supported; Erie Canal opens (1825).6
Democrat56.0
54.2
68.2
76.6
4 March 18294 March 1833John C. Calhoun
Martin Van Buren
Introduction of spoils system; Texas Republic established (1836); Arkansas, Michigan enter Union.7
Democrat50.857.84 March 18374 March 1841Richard M. JohnsonFinancial panic (1837) and subsequent depression.8
Whig52.979.64 March 18414 April 1841John TylerDied of pneumonia one month after taking office.9
Whig4 April 18414 March 1845Monroe Doctrine extended to Hawaiian Islands (1842); Second Seminole War in Florida ends (1842).10
Democrat49.561.84 March 18454 March 1849George M. DallasBoundary between US and Canada set at 49th parallel (1846); Mexican War (184648), ending with Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848); California gold rush begins (1848); Florida, Texas, Iowa, Wisconsin enter Union.11
Whig47.356.24 March 18499 July 1850Millard FillmoreDied after 16 months in office.12
Whig9 July 18504 March 1853Fugitive Slave Law (1850); California enters Union.13
Democrat50.885.84 March 18534 March 1857William R. KingGadsden Purchase (1853); Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854); trade opened with Japan (1854).14
Democrat45.358.84 March 18574 March 1861John C. BreckinridgeJohn Brown's raid at Harpers Ferry, Va. (now W. Va.; 1859); South Carolina secedes (1860); Minnesota, Oregon, Kansas enter Union.15
Republican39.8
55.0
59.4
91.0
4 March 18614 March 1865
4 March 186515 April 1865
Hannibal Hamlin
Andrew Johnson
Confederacy established, Civil War begins (1851); Emancipation Proclamation (1863); Confederacy defeated (1865); Lincoln assassinated (1865); West Virginia, Nevada attain statehood.16
Republican15 April 18654 March 1869Reconstruction Acts (1867); Alaska purchased from Russia (1867); Johnson impeached but acquitted (1868); Nebraska enters Union.17
Republican52.7
55.6
72.8
78.1
4 March 18694 March 1873
4 March 18734 March 1877
Schuyler Colfax
Numerous government scandals; financial panic (1873); Colorado enters Union.18
Republican48.050.14 March 18774 March 1881William A. WheelerFederal troops withdrawn from South (1877); civil service reform begun.19
Republican48.358.04 March 188119 Sept. 1881Chester A. ArthurShot after 4 months in office, dead 2 1/2 months later.20
Republican19 Sept. 18814 March 1885Chinese immigration banned despite presidential veto (1882); Civil Service Commission established by Pendleton Act (1883).21
Democrat48.554.64 March 18854 March 1889Thomas A. HendricksInterstate Commerce Act (1887)22
Republican47.858.14 March 18894 March 1893Levi P. MortonSherman Silver Purchase Act (1890); North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Washington, Idaho, Wyoming enter Union.23
NAMEBORNDIEDOTHER MAJOR OFFICES HELDRESIDENCE AT ELECTION
1Percentage of electors actually voting.
2In the elections of 1789, 1792, 1796, and 1800, each elector voted for two candidates for president. The candidate receiving the highest number of votes was elected president; the next highest, vice president. Percentages in table are of total vote cast. From 1804 onward, electors were required to designate which vote was for president and which for vice president, and an electoral majority was required.
24Grover ClevelandCaldwel, N.J., 18 March 1837Princeton, N. J., 24 June 1908Governor of New York (188284)New York, N.Y.
25William McKinleyNiles, Ohio 29 January 1843Buffalo, N.Y., 14 September 1901US representative (187383; 188591); governor of Ohio (189296)Canton, Ohio
26Theodore RooseveltNew York, N.Y., 27 October 1858Oyster Bay, N.Y., 6 January. 1919Governor of New York (18891900); US vice president (1901)Oyster Bay, N.Y.
27William H. TaftCincinnati, Ohio, 15 September 1857Washington, D. C., 8 March 1930Governor of Philippines (19014); secretary of ware (19048); chef justice of the US (192130)Washington, D.C.
28Woodrow WilsonStaunton, Va, 28 December 1850Washington, D.C., 3 February 1924.Governor of New Jersey (191113)Trenton, N.J.
29Warren G, HardingBlooming Grove Ohio, 2 November 1865San Francisco, Calif., 2 August 1923US senator (191521)Marion, Ohio
30Calvin CoolidgePlymouth Notch; Vt., 4 July 1872Northampton, Mass., 5 January 1933Governor of Massachusetts (191920); US vice president (192123)Boston, Mass.
31Herbert HooverWest Branch, Iowa, 10 August 1874New York. N.Y., 20 October 1964Secretary of commerce (192129)Stanford, Calif
32Franklin D. RooseveltHyde Par, N.Y., 30 January 1882Warm Springs, Ga., 12 April 1945Governor of New York (19291933)Hyde Park, N.Y.
33Harry S TrumanLamar, Mo., 8 May 1884Kansas City, Mo., 26 December 1972US senator (193545); US vice president (1945)Independence, Mo.
34Dwight D. EisenhowerDenison, Tex., 14 October 1890Washington, D. C., 28 March 1969Supreme allied commander in Europe (194344); Army chief of staff (194548)New York
35John F. KennedyBookline, Mass., 29 May 1917Dallas, Tex., 22 November 1963US representative (194752); US senator (195360)Masschusetts
36Lyndon B JohnsonStonewall, Tex, 27 August 1908Johnson City, Tex., 22 January 1973Us representative (193748); US senator (194960); Us vice president (196163)Johnson City, Tex.
37Richard M. NixonYorba Linda, Calif., 9 January 1913New York, N. Y., 22 April 1994US representative (194751); US senator (195153); US vice president (195361)New York, N.Y.
38Gerald R. FordOmaha, Neb., 14 July 1913US representative (194973); US vice president (197374)Grand Rapids, Mich.
39James E. CarterPlains, Ga., 1 October 1924Governor of Georgia (195175)Plains; Ga.
40Ronald W. ReaganTampico, III., 6 February 1911Bel-Air, Calif., 5 June 2004Governor of California (196776)Los Angeles, Calif.
41George H. W. BushMilton, Mass., 12 June 1924US representative (196771) Vice president (198088)Houston, Texas
42William J. ClintonHope, Arkansas, 19 August. 1946Attorney general of Arkansas (197779) Governor of Arkansas (197981; 198392)Little Rock, Arkansas
43George W. Bush.New Haven, Conn. 6 July 1946Governor of Texas (19942000)Midland, Texas
PARTY% OF POPULAR VOTE% OF ELECTORAL VOTE1,2TERMS IN OFFICE5VICE PRESIDENTSNOTABLE EVENTS
3Electoral vote tied between Jefferson and Aaron Burr; elections decided in House of Representatives.
4No candidate received a majority; election decided in House.
5In the event of a president's death or removal from office, his duties are assumed to devolve immediately upon his successor, even if he does not immediately take the oath of office.
Democrat46.162.44 March 18934 March 1897Adlai E. StevensonFinancial panic (1893); Sherman Silver Purchase Act repealed (1893); Utah enters Union.24
Republican51.060.64 March 19874 March 1901Garret A. Hobart
Theodore Roosevelt
Spanish-American War (1898); Puerto Rico, Guam, Philippines ceded by Spain; independent Republic of Hawaii annexed; US troops sent to China to suppress Boxer Rebellion (1990); McKinley assassinated.25
Republican56.470.614 Sept. 19014 March 1905
4 March 19054 March 1909
Charles W. FaibanksAntitrust and conservation policies emphasized; Roosevelt awarded Nobel Peace Prize (1906) for mediating settlement of Russo-Japanese War; Panama Canal construction begun (1907); Oklahoma enters Union.26
Republican51.666.54 March 19094 March 1913James S. ShermanFederal income tax ratified (1913); New Mexico, Arizona enter Union.27
Democrat41.8
49.2
81.9
52.2
4 March 19134 March 1917
4 March 19174 March 1921
Thomas R. Marshall
Thomas R. Marshall
Clayton Antitrust Act (1914); US Virgin Islands purchased from Denmark (1917); US enters World War I (1917); Treaty of Versailles signed (1919) but not ratified by US; constitutional amendments enforce prohibition (1919), enfranchise women (1920).28
Republican60.376.14 March 19212 Aug 1923Calvin CoolidgeTeapot Dome Scandal (192324)29
Republican54.171.93 Aug. 19234 March 1925
4 March 19274 March 1929
Charles G. DawesKellogg-Briand Pact (1928)30
Republican58.283.64 March 19294 March 1933Charles CurtisStock market crash (1929) inaugurates Great Depression.31
Democrat57.4
60.8
54.7
53.4
88.9
88.5
84.6
81.4
4 March 193320 Jan. 1937
20 Jan. 193720 Jan. 1941
20 Jan. 194120 Jan. 1945
20 Jan. 194512 April 1945
John N. Garher
John N. Garner
Henry A. Wallace
Harry S Truman
New Deal social reforms; prohibition repealed (1933); US enters World War II (1941).32
Democrat12 April 194520 Jan. 1949
20 Jan. 194920 Jan. 1953
Alben W. BarkleyUnited Nations founded (1954); US nuclear bombs dropped on Japan (1954); World War II ends (1945); Philippines granted independence (1946); Marshall plan (1945); Korean conflict begins (1950); era of McCarthyism.33
Republican55.1
57.4
83.2
86.1
20 Jan. 195320 Jan. 1957
20 Jan. 195720 Jan. 1961
Richard M. Nixon
Richard M. Nixon
Korean conflict ended (1953); Supreme Court orders school desegregation (1954); Alaska, Hawaii enter Union.34
Democrat49.756.420 Jan. 196122 Nov. 1963Lyndon B. Johnson.Conflicts with Cuba (196162); aboveground nuclear test ban treaty (1963); Kennedy assassinated.35
Democrat61.190.322 Nov. 196220 Jan. 1965
20 Jan. 196520 Jan. 1969
Hubert H. HumphreyGreat Society programs; Voting Rights Act (1965); escalation of US military role in Indochina; race riots, political assassinations.36
Republican43.4
60.7
55.9
96.7
20 Jan. 196920 Jan. 1973Spiro T. Agnew
Spiro T. Agnew
Gerald R. Ford
First lunar landing (1969); arms limitation treaty with Soviet union (1972); US withdraws from Viet-Nam (1973); Agnew resigns in tax scandal (1973); Nixon resigns at height of Watergate scandal (1974).37
Republican9 Aug 197420 Jan. 1977Nelson A. RockefellerFirst combination of unelected president and vice president; Nixon pardoned (1974).38
Democrat50.155.220 Jan. 197720 Jan. 1981Walter F. MondaleCarter mediates Israel-Egypt peace accord (1978); panama Canal treaties ratified (1979); tensions with Iran(197981).39
Republican50.8
58.8
90.9
97.6
20 Jan. 198120 Jan. 1985
20 Jan. 198520 Jan. 1989
George H. W. Bush
George H. W. Bush
Defense buildup; social spending cuts; rising trade and budget deficits; tensions with Nicaragua.40
Republican54.079.220 Jan. 198920 Jan. 1993J. Danforth QuayleMulti-national force repelled Iraqi invaders from Kuwait; savings and loan crisis; 1991 recession.41
Democrat43.0
49.2
69.7
70.4
20 Jan. 199320 Jan. 1997
20 Jan. 199720 Jan. 2001
Albert Gore, Jr.Passed North American Free Trade Agreement; enacted crime bill banning assault weapons; sent troops to Haiti to restore first democratically elected Haitian president to power after military coup.42
Republican47.87
50.73
50.37
53.1
20 Jan. 200120 Jan. 2005
20 Jan. 2005
Richard B. Cheney
Richard B. Cheney
Lowered taxes. Engaged in war in Afghanistan and Iraq after terrorist attacks on Washington and New York. Created the Department of Homeland Secruity. Substantially increased the federal deficit43

varieties of fruits, vegetables, and flowers; and George Washington Carver (18641943), known especially for his work on industrial applications for peanuts. John James Audubon (17851851) won fame as an ornithologist and artist.

Distinguished physical scientists include Samuel Pierpont Langley (18341906), astronomer and aviation pioneer; Josiah Willard Gibbs (18391903), mathematical physicist, whose work laid the basis for physical chemistry; Henry Augustus Rowland (18481901), who did important research in magnetism and optics; and Albert Abraham Michelson (b.Germany, 18521931), who measured the speed of light and became the first of a long line of US Nobel Prize winners. The chemists Gilbert Newton Lewis (18751946) and Irving Langmuir (18811957) developed a theory of atomic structure.

The theory of relativity was conceived by Albert Einstein (b.Germany, 18791955), generally considered the greatest mind in the physical sciences since Newton. Percy Williams Bridgman (18821961) was the father of operationalism and studied the effect of high pressures on materials. Arthur Holly Compton (18921962) made discoveries in the field of X rays and cosmic rays. The physical chemist Harold Clayton Urey (18931981) discovered heavy hydrogen. Isidor Isaac Rabi (b.Austria, 18981988), nuclear physicist, did important work in magnetism, quantum mechanics, and radiation. Enrico Fermi (b.Italy, 190154) created the first nuclear chain reaction, in Chicago in 1942, and contributed to the development of the atomic and hydrogen bombs. Also prominent in the splitting of the atom were Leo Szilard (b.Hungary, 18981964), J. Robert Oppenheimer (190467), and Edward Teller (b.Hungary, 19082003). Ernest Orlando Lawrence (190158) developed the cyclotron. Carl David Anderson (190591) discovered the positron. Mathematician Norbert Wiener (18941964) developed the science of cybernetics.

Outstanding figures in the biological sciences include Theobald Smith (18591934), who developed immunization theory and practical immunization techniques for animals; the geneticist Thomas Hunt Morgan (18661945), who discovered the heredity functions of chromosomes; and neurosurgeon Harvey William Cushing (18691939). Selman Abraham Waksman (b.Russia, 18881973), a microbiologist specializing in antibiotics, was codiscoverer of streptomycin. Edwin Joseph Cohn (18921953) is noted for his work in the protein fractionalization of blood, particularly the isolation of serum albumin. Philip Showalter Hench (18961965) isolated and synthesized cortisone. Wendell Meredith Stanley (190471) was the first to isolate and crystallize a virus. Jonas Edward Salk (191495) developed an effective killed-virus poliomyelitis vaccine, and Albert Bruce Sabin (190693) contributed oral, attenuated live-virus polio vaccines.

Adolf Meyer (b.Switzerland, 18661950) developed the concepts of mental hygiene and dementia praecox and the theory of psychobiology; Harry Stack Sullivan (18921949) created the interpersonal theory of psychiatry. Social psychologist George Herbert Mead (18631931) and behaviorist Burrhus Frederic Skinner (190490) were influential in the 20th century. Psychiatrist Aaron Temkin Beck (b.1921) is regarded as the founder of cognitive therapy, and Albert Ellis (b.1913) developed rational-emotive therapy.

A pioneer in psychology who was also an influential philosopher was William James (18421910). Other leading US philosophers are Charles Sanders Peirce (18391914); Josiah Royce (18551916); John Dewey (18591952), also famous for his theories of education; George Santayana (b.Spain, 18631952); Rudolf Carnap (b.Germany, 18911970); Willard Van Orman Quine (19082000), Richard Rorty (b.1931), Hilary Putnam (b.1926), John Rawls (19212002), Robert Nozick (19382002), and linguist and political philosopher Noam Chomsky (b.1928). Educators of note include Horace Mann (17961859), Henry Barnard (18111900), and Charles William Eliot (18341926). Noah Webster (17581843) was the outstanding US lexicographer, and Melvil Dewey (18511931) was a leader in the development of library science. Thorstein Bunde Veblen (18571929) wrote books that have strongly influenced economic and social thinking. Also important in the social sciences have been sociologists Talcott Parsons (190279) and William Graham Sumner (18401910) and anthropologist Margaret Mead (190178).

Social Reformers

Social reformers of note include Dorothea Lynde Dix (180287), who led movements for the reform of prisons and insane asylums; William Lloyd Garrison (180579) and Frederick Douglass (Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, 181795), prominent abolitionists; Elizabeth Cady Stanton (18151902) and Susan Brownell Anthony (18201906), leaders in the women's suffrage movement; Clara Barton (18211912), founder of the American Red Cross; economist Henry George (183997), advocate of the single-tax theory; Eugene Victor Debs (18551926), labor leader and an outstanding organizer of the Socialist movement in the United States; Jane Addams (18601935), who pioneered in settlement house work; Robert Marion La Follette (18551925), a leader for progressive political reform in Wisconsin and in the US Senate; Margaret Higgins Sanger (18831966), pioneer in birth control; Norman Thomas (18841968), Socialist Party leader; and Martin Luther King, Jr. (192968), a central figure in the black civil rights movement and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. Betty Friedan (19212006), Gloria Steinem (b.1934), and bell hooks (b. Gloria Jean Watkins, 1952) are contemporary feminists.

Religious leaders include Roger Williams (160383), an early advocate of religious tolerance in the United States; Jonathan Edwards (170358), New England preacher and theologian; Elizabeth Ann Seton (17741821), the first American canonized in the Roman Catholic Church; William Ellery Channing (17801842), a founder of American Unitarianism; Joseph Smith (180544), founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon) and his chief associate, Brigham Young (180177); and Mary Baker Eddy (18211910), founder of the Christian Science Church. Paul Tillich (b.Germany, 18861965) and Reinhold Niebuhr (18921971) were outstanding Protestant theologians of international influence. Pat Robertson (b.1930), televangelist and leader of the Christian Coalition organization, and Jerry Falwell (b.1933), a fundamentalist Baptist pastor, televangelist, and founder of the Moral Majority movement and Liberty University, are contemporary leaders of the Christian religious right.

Famous US businessmen include Éleùthere Irénée du Pont de Nemours (b.France, 17711834), John Jacob Astor (Johann Jakob Ashdour, b.Germany, 17631848), Cornelius Vanderbilt (17941877), Andrew Carnegie (b.Scotland, 18351919), John Pierpont Morgan (18371913), John Davison Rockefeller (18391937),

Chief Justices of the United States, 17892006
NEMEBORNDIEDAPPOINTEDSUPREME COURT TERMMAJOR COURT DEVELOPMENTS
1John JayNew York City 12 December 1745Bedford, N.Y., 17 May 1829WashingtonOctober 1789
June 1795
Organized court, established procedures.
2John RutledgeSeptember 1739Charleston, S.C., 18 July 1800WashingtonPresided for one term in 1795, but Senate refused to confirm his appointment.
3Oliver EllsworthWindsor, Conn., 29 April 1745Windsor, Conn. 26 Nov. 1807WashingtonMarch 1796
December 1800
4John MarshallFauquier County, Va., 24 September 1755Philadelphia, Pa. 6 July 1835AdamsFebruary 1801
July 1835
Established principle of judicial review (Marbury v. Madison, 1803); formulated concept of implied powers (McCulloch v. Maryland, 1819).
5Roger Brooke TaneyCalvert County, Md., 17 March 1777Washington, D.C., 12 October 1864JacksonMarch 1836
October 1864
Held that slaves could not become citizens, ruled Missouri Compromise illegal (Dred Scott v. Sanford, 1857).
6Salmon Portland ChaseCornish, N.H., 13 January 1808New York, N.Y 7 May 1873LincolnDecember 1864
May 1873
Ruled military trials of civilians illegal (Ex parte Milligan, 1866); Chase presided at A. Johnson's impeachment trial.
7Morrison Remick WaiteOld Lynne, Conn., 29 November 1816Washington, D.C., 23 March 1888GrantMarch 1874
March 1888
Held that businesses affecting the "public interest" are subject to state regulation (Munn v. Illinois, 1877).
8Salmon Portland ChasbAugusta, Me., 11 February 1833Sorvento, Me., 4 July 1910ClevelandOctober 1888
July 1910
Issued first opinions on cases under the Sherman Antitrust Act. (US v. E.C. Knight Co., 1895; Northern Securities Co. v. US, 1904); held the income tax unconstitutional (Pollock v. Farmers' Loan, 1895).
9Edward Douglass WhiteLafourche Parish, La., 3 November 1845Washington, D.C., 19 May 1921TaftDecember 1910
May 1921
Further qualified the Sherman Antitrust Act (Standard Oil Co. v. US, 1911) by applying the "rule of reason."
10William Howard TaftCincinnati, Ohio 15 September 1857Washington, D.C., 8 March 1930HardingJuly 1921
February 1930
Held against congressional use of taxes for social reform (Bailey v. Drexel Furniture, 1922).
11Charles Evans HughesGlens Falls, N.Y., 11 April 1862Osterville, Mass., 27 August 1948HooverFebruary 1930
June 1941
Upheld constitutionality of National Labor Relations Act, Social Security Act, invalidated National Industrial Recovery Act (Schechter v. US, 1935); F. Roosevelt's attempt to pack Court opposed.
12Hartlan Fiske StoneChesterfield, N.H., 11 October 1872Washington, D.C., 22 April 1946F. RooseveltJuly 1941
April 1946
Upheld Court's power to invalidate state laws (Southern Pacific Co. v. Arizona, 1945).
13Frederick Moore VinsonLouisa, Ky., 22 January 1890Washington, D.C., 8 September 1953TrumanJune 1946
September 1953
Overturned federal seizure of steel mills (Youngstown Sheet and Tube Co. v. Sawyer, 1952), Vinson dissenting.
14Ear WarrenLos Angeles, Calif., 19 March 1891Washington, D.C., 9 July 1974EisenhowerOctober 1953
June 1969
Mandated public school desegregation (Brown v. Topeka, Kans., Board of Education, 1954) and reapportionment of state legislatures (Baker v. Carr, 1962); upheld rights of suspects in police custody (Miranda v. Arizona, 1966).
15Warren Earl BurgerSt. Paul, Minn., 17 September 1907Washington, D.C., 25 June 1995NixonJune 1969
August 1986
Legalized abortion (Roe v. Wade, 1973); rejected claim of executive privilege in a criminal case (US v. Nixon, 1974); first female justice (1981).
16William Hubbs RehnquistShorewood Village, Wis., 1 October 1924Arlington, Va., 3 September 2005NixonSeptember 1986
September 2005
Applied constitutional prohibition against taking of property without compensation to invalidate government regulation of property. (Nollan v. California Coastal Commission, 1987). Strengthened states' rights although invalidated Florida election procedures (Bush v. Gore, 2000) on equal protection grounds. Limited enforcement of school desegregation. Narrowed the scope of affirmative action.
17John Glover Roberts, JrBuffalo, New York, 27 January 1955BushSeokenberm 2005

Andrew William Mellon (18551937), Henry Ford (18631947), and Thomas John Watson (18741956). William Henry "Bill" Gates III (b.1955), cofounder of the Microsoft Corp., was the richest person in the world as of 2006. Other corporate leaders in the 21st century include: Warren Edward Buffett (b.1930), Louis V. Gerstner, Jr., (b.1942), H. Wayne Huizenga (b.1937), Steve Jobs (b.1955), Sam Walton (19181992), John Francis "Jack" Welch Jr. (b.1935), and Sanford I. Weill (b.1933).

Literary Figures

The first US author to be widely read outside the United States was Washington Irving (17831859). James Fenimore Cooper (17891851) was the first popular US novelist. Three noted historians were William Hickling Prescott (17961859), John Lothrop Motley (181477), and Francis Parkman (182393). The writings of two men of Concord, Mass.Ralph Waldo Emerson (180382) and Henry David Thoreau (181762)influenced philosophers, political leaders, and ordinary men and women in many parts of the world. The novels and short stories of Nathaniel Hawthorne (180464) explore New England's Puritan heritage. Herman Melville (181991) wrote the powerful novel Moby-Dick, a symbolic work about a whale hunt that has become an American classic. Mark Twain (Samuel Langhorne Clemens, 18351910) is the best-known US humorist. Other leading novelists of the later 19th and early 20th centuries were William Dean Howells (18371920), Henry James (18431916), Edith Wharton (18621937), Stephen Crane (18711900), Theodore Dreiser (18711945), Willa Cather (18731947), and Sinclair Lewis (18851951), first US winner of the Nobel Prize for literature (1930). Later Nobel Prize-winning US novelists include Pearl Sydenstricker Buck (18921973), in 1938; William Faulkner (18971962), in 1949; Ernest Hemingway (18991961), in 1954; John Steinbeck (190268), in 1962; Saul Bellow (b.Canada, 19152005), in 1976; Isaac Bashevis Singer (b.Poland, 190491), in 1978; and Toni Morrison (b.1931), in 1993. Among other noteworthy writers are Zora Neale Hurston (18911960), Henry Miller (18911980), James Thurber (18941961), Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald (18961940), Vladimir Nabokov (b. Russia, 18991977), Thomas Wolfe (19001938), Richard Wright (190860), Eudora Welty (19092001), John Cheever (191282), Bernard Malamud (19141986), Carson McCullers (19171967), Norman Mailer (b.1923), James Baldwin (192487), Jack Kerouac (19221969), John Updike (b.1932), Philip Roth (b.1933), Paul Auster (b.1947), John Barth (b.1930), Donald Barthelme (19311989), T. Coraghessan Boyle (b.1948), Sandra Cisneros (b.1954), Joan Didion (b.1934), Stephen Dixon (b.1936), E.L. Doctorow (b.1931), Louise Erdrich (b.1954), William Gaddis (19221998), Carl Hiaasen (b.1953), Oscar Hijuelos (b.1951), John Irving (b.1942), Jamaica Kincaid (b. Elaine Cynthia Potter Richardson, 1949), Jhumpa Lahiri (b. Nilanjana Sudeshna, 1967), Jonathan Lethem (b.1964), Cormac McCarthy (b.1933), Larry McMurtry (b.1936), Bharati Mukherjee (b.1940), Joyce Carol Oates (b.1938), Marge Piercy (b.1936), E. Annie Proulx (b.1935), Thomas Pynchon (b.1937), J.D. Salinger (b.1919), Wallace Stegner (190993), Gore Vidal (b.1925), Kurt Vonnegut Jr. (b.1922), Alice Walker (b.1944), Tom Wolfe (b.1931), and Tobias Wolff (b.1945).

Noted US poets include Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (180782), Edgar Allan Poe (180949), Walt Whitman (181992), Emily Dickinson (183086), Edwin Arlington Robinson (18691935), Robert Frost (18741963), Wallace Stevens (18791955), William Carlos Williams (18831963), Marianne Moore (18871972), Edward Estlin Cummings (18941962), Hart Crane (18991932), Langston Hughes (190267), and Rita Dove (b.1952). Ezra Pound (18851972) and Nobel laureate Thomas Stearns Eliot (18881965) lived and worked abroad for most of their careers. Wystan Hugh Auden (b.England, 190773), who became an American citizen in 1946, published poetry and criticism. Elizabeth Bishop (191179), Robert Lowell (191777), Allen Ginsberg (192697), and Sylvia Plath (193263) are among the best-known poets since World War II. Robert Penn Warren (190589) won the Pulitzer Prize for both fiction and poetry and became the first US poet laureate. Carl Sandburg (18781967) was a noted poet, historian, novelist, and folklorist. The foremost US dramatists are Eugene (Gladstone) O'Neill (18881953), who won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1936; Tennessee Williams (Thomas Lanier Williams, 191183); Arthur Miller (19152005); and Edward Albee (b.1928). Neil Simon (b.1927) is among the nation's most popular playwrights and screenwriters. August Wilson (19452005) won the Pulitzer Prize twice, for Fences (1985) and The Piano Lesson (1990), both of which depicted the African American experience.

Artists

Two renowned painters of the early period were John Singleton Copley (17381815) and Gilbert Stuart (17551828). Outstanding 19th-century painters were James Abbott McNeill Whistler (18341903), Winslow Homer (18361910), Thomas Eakins (18441916), Mary Cassatt (18451926), Albert Pinkham Ryder (18471917), John Singer Sargent (b.Italy, 18561925), and Frederic Remington (18611909). More recently, Edward Hopper (18821967), Georgia O'Keeffe (18871986), Thomas Hart Benton (18891975), Charles Burchfield (18931967), Norman Rockwell (18941978), Ben Shahn (18981969), Mark Rothko (b.Russia, 190370), Jackson Pollock (191256), Andrew Wyeth (b.1917), Robert Rauschenberg (b.1925), and Jasper Johns (b.1930) have achieved international recognition.

Sculptors of note include Augustus Saint-Gaudens (18481907), Gaston Lachaise (18821935), Jo Davidson (18831952), Daniel Chester French (18501931), Alexander Calder (18981976), Louise Nevelson (b.Russia, 18991988), and Isamu Noguchi (190488). Henry Hobson Richardson (183886), Louis Henry Sullivan (18561924), Frank Lloyd Wright (18691959), Louis I. Kahn (b.Estonia, 190174), and Eero Saarinen (191061) were outstanding architects. Contemporary architects of note include Richard Buckminster Fuller (18951983), Edward Durrell Stone (190278), Philip Cortelyou Johnson (19062005), Ieoh Ming Pei (b.China, 1917), and Frank Gehry (b.1929). The United States has produced many fine photographers, notably Mathew B. Brady (1823?96), Alfred Stieglitz (18641946), Edward Steichen (18791973), Edward Weston (18861958), Ansel Adams (190284), and Margaret Bourke-White (190471).

Entertainment Figures

Outstanding figures in the motion picture industry are D. W. (David Lewelyn Wark) Griffith (18751948), Sir Charles Spencer "Charlie" Chaplin (b.England, 18891978), Walter Elias "Walt" Disney (190666), and George Orson Welles (191585). John Ford (18951973), Howard Winchester Hawks (18961977), Frank Capra (b.Italy, 18971991), Sir Alfred Hitchcock (b.England, 18991980), and John Huston (190687) were influential motion picture directors; Mel Brooks (Kaminsky, b.1926), George Lucas (b.1944), and Steven Spielberg (b.1947) have achieved remarkable popular success. Woody Allen (Allen Konigsberg, b.1935) has written, directed, and starred in comedies on stage and screen. World-famous American actors and actresses include the Barry-mores, Ethel (18791959) and her brothers Lionel (18781954) and John (18821942); Humphrey Bogart (18991957); James Cagney (18991986); Spencer Tracy (19001967); Helen Hayes Brown (190093); Clark Gable (190160); Joan Crawford (Lucille Fay LeSueur, 190477); Cary Grant (Alexander Archibald Leach, b.England, 190486); Greta Garbo (Greta Louisa Gustafsson, b.Sweden, 190590); Henry Fonda (190582) and his daughter, Jane (b.1937); John Wayne (Marion Michael Morrison, 190779); Bette (Ruth Elizabeth) Davis (190889); Katharine Hepburn (19092003); Judy Garland (Frances Gumm, 192269); Marlon Brando (19242004); Marilyn Monroe (Norma Jean Mortenson, 192662); and Dustin Hoffman (b.1937). Among other great entertainers are W. C. Fields (William Claude Dukenfield, 18801946), Al Jolson (Asa Yoelson, b.Russia, 18861950), Jack Benny (Benjamin Kubelsky, 18941974), Fred Astaire (Fred Austerlitz, 18991987), Bob (Leslie Townes) Hope (b.England, 19032003), Bing (Harry Lillis) Crosby (190478), Frank (Francis Albert) Sinatra (191598), Elvis Aaron Presley (193577), and Barbra (Barbara Joan) Streisand (b.1942). The first great US "showman" was Phineas Taylor Barnum (181091).

Composers and Musicians

The foremost composers are Edward MacDowell (18611908), Charles Ives (18741954), Ernest Bloch (b.Switzerland, 18801959), Virgil Thomson (189689), Roger Sessions (18961985), Roy Harris (18981979), Aaron Copland (190090), Elliott Carter (b.1908), Samuel Barber (191081), John Cage (191292), and Leonard Bernstein (191890). George Rochberg (19182005), George Crumb (b.1929), Steve Reich (b.1936), and Philip Glass (b.1937) have won more recent followings. The songs of Stephen Collins Foster (182664) have achieved folk-song status. Leading composers of popular music are John Philip Sousa (18541932), George Michael Cohan (18781942), Jerome Kern (18851945), Irving Berlin (Israel Baline, b.Russia, 18881989), Cole Porter (18931964), George Gershwin (18981937), Richard Rodgers (190279), Woody Guthrie (191267), Stephen Joshua Sondheim (b.1930), Paul Simon (b.1941), and Bob Dylan (Robert Zimmerman, b.1941). Preeminent in the blues traditions are Leadbelly (Huddie Ledbetter, 18881949), Bessie Smith (1898?1937), and Muddy Waters (McKinley Morganfield, 191583). Leading jazz figures include the composers Scott Joplin (18681917), James Hubert "Eubie" Blake (18831983), Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (18991974), and William "Count" Basie (190484), and performers Louis Armstrong (19001971), Billie Holiday (Eleanora Fagan, 191559), John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie (191793), Charlie "Bird" Parker (192055), John Coltrane (192667), and Miles Davis (192691).

Many foreign-born musicians have enjoyed personal and professional freedom in the United States; principal among them were pianists Artur Schnabel (b.Austria, 18821951), Arthur Rubinstein (b.Poland, 18871982), Rudolf Serkin (b.Bohemia, 190391), Vladimir Horowitz (b.Russia, 190489), and violinists Jascha Heifetz (b.Russia, 190187) and Isaac Stern (b.USSR, 1920). Among distinguished instrumentalists born in the United States are Benny Goodman (190986), a classical as well as jazz clarinetist, and concert pianist Van Cliburn (Harvey Lavan, Jr., b.1934). Singers Paul Robeson (18981976), Marian Anderson (18971993), Maria Callas (Maria Kalogeropoulos, 192377), Leontyne Price (b.1927), and Beverly Sills (Belle Silverman, b.1929) have achieved international acclaim. Isadora Duncan (18781927) was one of the first US dancers to win fame abroad. Martha Graham (189391) pioneered in modern dance. George Balanchine (b.Russia, 190483), Agnes De Mille (190593), Jerome Robbins (191898), Paul Taylor (b.1930), and Twyla Tharp (b.1941) are leading choreographers; Martha Graham (18931991) pioneered in modern dance.

Sports Figures

Among the many noteworthy sports stars are baseball's Tyrus Raymond "Ty" Cobb (18861961) and George Herman "Babe" Ruth (18951948); football's Samuel Adrian "Sammy" Baugh (b.1914), Jim Brown (b.1936), Francis A. "Fran" Tarkenton (b.1940), and Orenthal James Simpson (b.1947); and golf's Robert Tyre "Bobby" Jones (190271) and Mildred "Babe" Didrikson Zaharias (191456). William Tatum "Bill" Tilden (18931953), Billie Jean (Moffitt) King (b.1943), Chris Evert (b.1954), Martina Navratilova (b.Czechoslovakia, 1956), Andre Agassi (b.1970), Peter ("Pete") Sampras (b.1971), and sisters Venus (b.1980) and Serena (b.1981) Williams have starred in tennis; Joe Louis (Joseph Louis Barrow, 191481) and Muhammad Ali (Cassius Marcellus Clay, b.1942) in boxing; William Felton "Bill" Russell (b.1934) Wilton Norman "Wilt" Chamberlain (193699), and Michael Jordan (b.1963) in basketball; Mark Spitz (b.1950) and Michael Phelps (b.1985) in swimming; Eric Heiden (b.1958) in speed skating; and Jesse Owens (191380) in track and field.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

America's Century: Year by Year from 19002000. London: Dorling Kindersley, 2000.

Benjamin, Daniel (ed.). America and the World in the Age of Terror: A New Landscape in International Relations. Washington, D.C.: CSIS Press, 2005.

Chambers, S. Allen. National Landmarks, America's Treasures: the National Park Foundation's Complete Guide to National Historic Landmarks. New York: J. Wiley and Sons, 2000.

Davies, Philip John (ed.). An American Quarter Century: US Politics from Vietnam to Clinton. New York: Manchester University Press, 1995.

Donaldson, Gary. America at War since 1945: Politics and Diplomacy in Korea, Vietnam, and the Gulf War. Westport, Conn.: Praeger, 1996.

Hart, James David (ed.). Oxford Companion to American Literature. 6th ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 1995.

Health in the Americas, 2002 edition. Washington, D.C.: Pan American Health Organization, Pan American Sanitary Bureau, Regional Office of the World Health Organization, 2002.

Hummel, Jeffrey Rogers. Emancipating Slaves, Enslaving Free Men: A History of the Civil War. Chicago: Open Court, 1996.

Jenness, David. Classic American Popular Song: The Second Half-Century, 19502000. New York: Routledge, 2006.

Kaplan, Edward S. American Trade Policy, 19231995. Westport, Conn.: Praeger, 1996.

Kennedy, David M. Freedom from Fear: The American People in Depression and War. New York: Oxford University Press, 2001.

McElrath, Karen (ed.). HIV and AIDS: A Global View. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 2002.

McNickle, D'Arcy. Native American Tribalism: Indian Survivals and Renewals. New York: Oxford University Press, 1993.

Newell, Clayton R. United States Army, a Historical Dictionary. Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow Press, 2002.

Rein, Meiling, Nancy R. Jacobs, Maek S. Siegel (eds.). Immigration and Illegal Aliens: Burden or Blessing? Wylie, Tex.: Information Plus, 1999.

Robinson, Cedric J. Black Movements in America. New York: Routledge, 1997.

Sampanis, Maria. Preserving Power through Coalitions: Comparing the Grand Strategy of Great Britain and the United States. Westport, Conn.: Praeger, 2003.

Sinclair, Andrew. A Concise History of the United States. Rev. ed. Stroud: Sutton, 1999.

Summers, Randal W., and Allan M. Hoffman (ed.). Domestic Violence: A Global View. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 2002.

Tocqueville, Alexis de. Democracy in America. New York: Knopf, 1994.

US Bureau of the Census. Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 1970. Washington, D.C.: US Government Printing Office, 1879-date.

Who's Who in America: A Biographical Dictionary of Notable Living Men and Women. Chicago: Marquis, 1899.

United States

views updated May 17 2018

UNITED STATES

LOCATION, SIZE, AND EXTENT
TOPOGRAPHY
CLIMATE
FLORA AND FAUNA
ENVIRONMENT
POPULATION
MIGRATION
ETHNIC GROUPS
LANGUAGES
RELIGIONS
TRANSPORTATION
HISTORY
GOVERNMENT
POLITICAL PARTIES
LOCAL GOVERNMENT
JUDICIAL SYSTEM
ARMED FORCES
INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION
ECONOMY
INCOME
LABOR
AGRICULTURE
ANIMAL HUSBANDRY
FISHING
FORESTRY
MINING
ENERGY AND POWER
INDUSTRY
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
DOMESTIC TRADE
FOREIGN TRADE
BALANCE OF PAYMENTS
BANKING AND SECURITIES
INSURANCE
PUBLIC FINANCE
TAXATION
CUSTOMS AND DUTIES
FOREIGN INVESTMENT
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT
HEALTH
HOUSING
EDUCATION
LIBRARIES AND MUSEUMS
MEDIA
ORGANIZATIONS
TOURISM, TRAVEL, AND RECREATION
FAMOUS AMERICANS
DEPENDENCIES
BIBLIOGRAPHY

United States of America

CAPITAL: Washington, DC (District of Columbia)

FLAG: The flag consists of 13 alternate stripes, 7 red and 6 white; these represent the 13 original colonies. Fifty 5-pointed white stars, representing the present number of states in the Union, are placed in 9 horizontal rows alternately of 6 and 5 against a blue field in the upper left corner of the flag.

ANTHEM: The Star-Spangled Banner.

MONETARY UNIT: The dollar ($) of 100 cents is a paper currency with a floating rate. There are coins of 1, 5, 10, 25, and 50 cents and 1 dollar, and notes of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, and 100 dollars. Although issuance of higher notes ceased in 1969, a limited number of notes of 500, 1,000, 5,000, and 10,000 dollars remain in circulation.

WEIGHTS AND MEASURES: The imperial system is in common use; however, the use of metrics in industry is increasing, and the metric system is taught in public schools throughout the United States. Common avoirdupois units in use are the avoirdupois pound of 16 ounces or 454 grams; the long ton of 2,240 pounds or 35,840 ounces; and the short ton, more commonly used, of 2,000 pounds or 32,000 ounces. (Unless otherwise indicated, all measures given in tons are in short tons.) Liquid measures: 1 gallon = 231 cubic inches = 4 quarts = 8 pints. Dry measures: 1 bushel = 4 pecks = 32 dry quarts = 64 dry pints. Linear measures: 1 foot = 12 inches; 1 statute mile = 1,760 yards = 5,280 feet. Metric equivalent: 1 meter = 39.37 inches.

HOLIDAYS: New Year's Day, 1 January; Birthday of Martin Luther King Jr., 3rd Monday in January; Presidents' Day, 3rd Monday in February; Memorial or Decoration Day, last Monday in May; Independence Day, 4 July; Labor Day, 1st Monday in September; Columbus Day, 2nd Monday in October; Election Day, 1st Tuesday after the 1st Monday in November; Veterans or Armistice Day, 11 November; Thanksgiving Day, 4th Thursday in November; Christmas, 25 December.

TIME: Eastern, 7 am = noon GMT; Central, 6 am = noon GMT; Mountain, 5 am = noon GMT; Pacific (includes the Alaska panhandle), 4 am = noon GMT; Yukon, 3 am = noon GMT; Alaska and Hawaii, 2 am = noon GMT; western Alaska, 1 am = noon GMT.

LOCATION, SIZE, AND EXTENT

Located in the Western Hemisphere on the continent of North America, the United States is the fourth-largest country in the world. Its total area, including Alaska and Hawaii, is 9,629,091 sq km (3,717,813 sq mi). The conterminous United States extends 4,662 km (2,897 mi) enewsw and 4,583 km (2,848 mi) ssennw. It is bordered on the n by Canada, on the e by the Atlantic Ocean, on the s by the Gulf of Mexico and Mexico, and on the w by the Pacific Ocean, with a total boundary length of 17,563 km (10,913 mi). Alaska, the 49th state, extends 3,639 km (2,261 mi) ew and 2,185 km (1,358 mi) ns. It is bounded on the n by the Arctic Ocean and Beaufort Sea, on the e by Canada, on the s by the Gulf of Alaska, Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea, and on the w by the Bering Sea, Bering Strait, Chukchi Sea, and Arctic Ocean, with a total land boundary of 12,034 km (7,593 mi) and a coastline of 19,924 km (12,380 mi). The 50th state, Hawaii, consists of islands in the Pacific Ocean extending 2,536 km (1,576 mi) ns and 2,293 km (1,425 mi) ew, with a general coastline of 1,207 km (750 mi).

The nation's capital, Washington, DC, is located on the mid-Atlantic coast.

TOPOGRAPHY

Although the northern New England coast is rocky, along the rest of the eastern seaboard the Atlantic Coastal Plain rises gradually from the shoreline. Narrow in the north, the plain widens to about 320 km (200 mi) in the south and in Georgia merges with the Gulf Coastal Plain that borders the Gulf of Mexico and extends through Mexico as far as the Yucatán. West of the Atlantic Coastal Plain is the Piedmont Plateau, bounded by the Appalachian Mountains. The Appalachians, which extend from southwest Maine into central Alabamawith special names in some areasare old mountains, largely eroded away, with rounded contours and forested, as a rule, to the top. Few of their summits rise much above 1,100 m (3,500 ft), although the highest, Mt. Mitchell in North Carolina, reaches 2,037 m (6,684 ft).

Between the Appalachians and the Rocky Mountains, more than 1,600 km (1,000 mi) to the west, lies the vast interior plain of the United States. Running south through the center of this plain and draining almost two-thirds of the area of the continental United States is the Mississippi River. Waters starting from the source of the Missouri, the longest of its tributaries, travel almost 6,450 km (4,000 mi) to the Gulf of Mexico.

The eastern reaches of the great interior plain are bounded on the north by the Great Lakes, which are thought to contain about half the world's total supply of fresh water. Under US jurisdiction are 57,441 sq km (22,178 sq mi) of Lake Michigan, 54,696 sq km (21,118 sq mi) of Lake Superior, 23,245 sq km (8,975 sq mi) of Lake Huron, 12,955 sq km (5,002 sq mi) of Lake Erie, and 7,855 sq km (3,033 sq mi) of Lake Ontario. The five lakes are accessible to oceangoing vessels from the Atlantic via the St. Lawrence Seaway. The basins of the Great Lakes were formed by the glacial ice cap that moved down over large parts of North America some 25,000 years ago. The glaciers also determined the direction of flow of the Missouri River and, it is believed, were responsible for carrying soil from what is now Canada down into the central agricultural basin of the United States.

The great interior plain consists of two major subregions: the fertile Central Plains, extending from the Appalachian highlands to a line drawn approximately 480 km (300 mi) west of the Mississippi, broken by the Ozark Plateau; and the more arid Great Plains, extending from that line to the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. Although they appear flat, the Great Plains rise gradually from about 460 m (1,500 ft) to more than 1,500 m (5,000 ft) at their western extremity.

The Continental Divide, the Atlantic-Pacific watershed, runs along the crest of the Rocky Mountains. The Rockies and the ranges to the west are parts of the great system of young, rugged mountains, shaped like a gigantic spinal column, that runs along western North, Central, and South America from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego, Chile. In the continental United States, the series of western ranges, most of them paralleling the Pacific coast, are the Sierra Nevada, the Coast Ranges, the Cascade Range, and the Tehachapi and San Bernardino mountains. Between the Rockies and the Sierra NevadaCascade mountain barrier to the west lies the Great Basin, a group of vast arid plateaus containing most of the desert areas of the United States, in the south eroded by deep canyons.

The coastal plains along the Pacific are narrow, and in many places the mountains plunge directly into the sea. The most extensive lowland near the west coast is the Great Valley of California, lying between the Sierra Nevada and the Coast Ranges. There are 71 peaks in these western ranges of the continental United States that rise to an altitude of 4,267 m (14,000 ft) or more, Mt. Whitney in California at 4,418 m (14,494 ft) being the highest. The greatest rivers of the Far West are the Colorado in the south, flowing into the Gulf of California, and the Columbia in the northwest, flowing to the Pacific. Each is more than 1,900 km (1,200 mi) long; both have been intensively developed to generate electric power, and both are important sources of irrigation.

Separated from the continental United States by Canadian territory, the state of Alaska occupies the extreme northwest portion of the North American continent. A series of precipitous mountain ranges separates the heavily indented Pacific coast on the south from Alaska's broad central basin, through which the Yukon River flows from Canada in the east to the Bering Sea in the west. The central basin is bounded on the north by the Brooks Range, which slopes down gradually to the Arctic Ocean. The Alaskan Peninsula and the Aleutian Islands, sweeping west far out to sea, consist of a chain of volcanoes, many still active.

The state of Hawaii consists of a group of Pacific islands formed by volcanoes rising sharply from the ocean floor. The highest of these volcanoes, Mauna Loa, at 4,168 m (13,675 ft), is located on the largest of the islands, Hawaii, and is still active.

The lowest point in the United States is Death Valley in California, 86 m (282 ft) below sea level. At 6,194 m (20,320 ft), Mt. McKinley in Alaska is the highest peak in North America. These topographic extremes suggest the geological instability of the Pacific Coast region, which is part of the "Ring of Fire," a seismically active band surrounding the Pacific Ocean. Major earthquakes destroyed San Francisco in 1906 and Anchorage, Alaska, in 1964, and the San Andreas Fault in California still causes frequent earth tremors. In 2004, there were 3,550 earthquakes documented by the US Geological Survey National Earthquake Information Center. Washington State's Mt. St. Helens erupted in 1980, spewing volcanic ash over much of the Northwest.

CLIMATE

The eastern continental region is well watered, with annual rainfall generally in excess of 100 cm (40 in). It includes all of the Atlantic seaboard and southeastern states and extends west to cover Indiana, southern Illinois, most of Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, and easternmost Texas. The eastern seaboard is affected primarily by the masses of air moving from west to east across the continent rather than by air moving in from the Atlantic. Hence its climate is basically continental rather than maritime. The Midwestern and Atlantic seaboard states experience hot summers and cold winters; spring and autumn are clearly defined periods of climatic transition. Only Florida, with the Gulf of Mexico lying to its west, experiences moderate differences between summer and winter temperatures. Mean annual temperatures vary considerably between north and south: Boston, MA, 11°c (51°f); New York City, NY, 13°c (55°f); Charlotte, NC, 16°c (61°f); Miami, FL, 24°c (76°f).

The Gulf and South Atlantic states are often hit by severe tropical storms originating in the Caribbean in late summer and early autumn. In the past few years, the number of hurricanes and their severity have measurably increased. From 197094, there were about three hurricanes per year. From 1995 to 2003, there were a total of 32 major hurricanes with sustained winds of 111 miles per hour or greater.

In 2005 there were a record-breaking 23 named Atlantic hurricanes, three of which caused severe damage to the Gulf Coast region. On 25 August 2005, Hurricane Katrina hit Florida as a category 1 hurricane. By 29 August, the storm developed into a category 4 hurricane that made landfall in southern Louisiana. Several levees protecting the low-lying city of New Orleans broke, flooding the entire region under waters that rose over the rooftops of homes. Over 1,000 were killed by the storm. Over 500,000 people were left homeless and without jobs.

One month later, Hurricane Rita swept first into Florida and continued to make landfall between Sabine Pass, Texas, and Johnson's Bayou, Louisiana, on 24 September 2005 as a category 3 hurricane. Before reaching land, however, the storm had peaked as a category 5 hurricane that was placed on record as the strongest measured hurricane to ever have entered the Gulf of Mexico and the fourth most intense hurricane ever in the Atlantic Basin. Over 100 people were killed.

Hurricane Wilma followed on 24 October when it made landfall north of Everglades City in Florida as a category 3 hurricane. There were about 22 deaths in the United States from Wilma; however, the storm also hit Cuba, Haiti, Jamaica, and Mexico, reaching a death toll of at least 25 people from those countries combined.

The prairie lands lying to the west constitute a subhumid region. Precipitation usually exceeds evaporation by only a small amount; hence the region experiences drought more often than excessive rainfall. Dryness generally increases from east to west. The average midwinter temperature in the extreme northMinnesota and North Dakotais about13°c (9°f) or less, while the average July temperature is 18°c (65°f). In the Texas prairie region to the south, January temperatures average 1013°c (5055°f) and July temperatures 2729°c (8085°f). Rainfall along the western border of the prairie region is as low as 46 cm (18 in) per year in the north and 64 cm (25 in) in the south. Precipitation is greatest in the early summera matter of great importance to agriculture, particularly in the growing of grain crops. In dry years, the prevailing winds may carry the topsoil eastward (particularly from the southern region) for hundreds of miles in clouds that obscure the sun.

The Great Plains constitute a semiarid climatic region. Rainfall in the southern plains averages about 50 cm (20 in) per year and in the northern plains about 25 cm (10 in), but extreme year-to-year variations are common. The tropical air masses that move northward across the plains originate on the fairly high plateaus of Mexico and contain little water vapor. Periods as long as 120 days without rain have been experienced in this region. The rains that do occur are often violent, and a third of the total annual rainfall may be recorded in a single day at certain weather stations. The contrast between summer and winter temperatures is extreme throughout the Great Plains. Maximum summer temperatures of over 43°c (110°f) have been recorded in the northern as well as in the southern plains. From the Texas panhandle north, blizzards are common in the winter, and tornadoes at other seasons. The average minimum temperature for January in Duluth, Minnesota, is -19°c (-3°f).

The higher reaches of the Rockies and the mountains paralleling the Pacific coast to the west are characterized by a typical alpine climate. Precipitation as a rule is heavier on the western slopes of the ranges. The great intermontane arid region of the West shows considerable climatic variation between its northern and southern portions. In New Mexico, Arizona, and southeastern California, the greatest precipitation occurs in July, August, and September, mean annual rainfall ranging from 8 cm (3 in) in Yuma, Ariz., to 76 cm (30 in) in the mountains of northern Arizona and New Mexico. Phoenix has a mean annual temperature of 22°c (71°f), rising to 33°c (92°f) in July and falling to 11°c (52°f) in January. North of the Utah-Arizona line, the summer months usually are very dry; maximum precipitation occurs in the winter and early spring. In the desert valleys west of Great Salt Lake, mean annual precipitation adds up to only 10 cm (4 in). Although the northern plateaus are generally arid, some of the mountainous areas of central Washington and Idaho receive at least 152 cm (60 in) of rain per year. Throughout the intermontane region, the uneven availability of water is the principal factor shaping the habitat.

The Pacific coast, separated by tall mountain barriers from the severe continental climate to the east, is a region of mild winters and moderately warm, dry summers. Its climate is basically maritime, the westerly winds from the Pacific Ocean moderating the extremes of both winter and summer temperatures. Los Angeles in the south has an average temperature of 13°c (56°f) in January and 21°c (69°f) in July; Seattle in the north has an average temperature of 4°c (39°f) in January and 18°c (65°f) in July. Precipitation in general increases along the coast from south to north, extremes ranging from an annual average of 4.52 cm (1.78 in) at Death Valley in California (the lowest in the United States) to more than 356 cm (140 in) in Washington's Olympic Mountains.

Climatic conditions vary considerably in the vastness of Alaska. In the fogbound Aleutians and in the coastal panhandle strip that extends southeastward along the Gulf of Alaska and includes the capital, Juneau, a relatively moderate maritime climate prevails. The interior is characterized by short, hot summers and long, bitterly cold winters, and in the region bordering the Arctic Ocean a polar climate prevails, the soil hundreds of feet below the surface remaining frozen the year round. Although snowy in winter, continental Alaska is relatively dry.

Hawaii has a remarkably mild and stable climate with only slight seasonal variations in temperature, as a result of northeast ocean winds. The mean January temperature in Honolulu is 23°c (73°f); the mean July temperature 27°c (80°f). Rainfall is moderateabout 71 cm (28 in) per yearbut much greater in the mountains; Mt. Waialeale on Kauai has a mean annual rainfall of 1,168 cm (460 in), highest in the world.

The lowest temperature recorded in the United States was -62°c (-79.8°f) at Prospect Creek Camp, Alaska, on 23 January 1971; the highest, 57°c (134°f) at Greenland Ranch, in Death Valley, California, on 10 July 1913. The record annual rainfall is 1,878 cm (739 in) recorded at Kukui, Maui in 1982; the previous record for a one-year period was 1,468 cm (578 in) recorded at Fuu Kukui, Maui, in 1950.

FLORA AND FAUNA

At least 7,000 species and subspecies of indigenous US flora have been categorized. The eastern forests contain a mixture of softwoods and hardwoods that includes pine, oak, maple, spruce, beech, birch, hemlock, walnut, gum, and hickory. The central hardwood forest, which originally stretched unbroken from Cape Cod to Texas and northwest to Minnesotastill an important timber sourcesupports oak, hickory, ash, maple, and walnut. Pine, hickory, tupelo, pecan, gum, birch, and sycamore are found in the southern forest that stretches along the Gulf coast into the eastern half of Texas. The Pacific forest is the most spectacular of all because of its enormous redwoods and Douglas firs. In the southwest are saguaro (giant cactus), yucca, candlewood, and the Joshua tree.

The central grasslands lie in the interior of the continent, where the moisture is not sufficient to support the growth of large forests. The tall grassland or prairie (now almost entirely under cultivation) lies to the east of the 100th meridian. To the west of this line, where rainfall is frequently less than 50 cm (20 in) per year, is the short grassland. Mesquite grass covers parts of west Texas, southern New Mexico, and Arizona. Short grass may be found in the highlands of the latter two states, while tall grass covers large portions of the coastal regions of Texas and Louisiana and occurs in some parts of Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida. The Pacific grassland includes northern Idaho, the higher plateaus of eastern Washington and Oregon, and the mountain valleys of California.

The intermontane region of the Western Cordillera is for the most part covered with desert shrubs. Sagebrush predominates in the northern part of this area, creosote in the southern, with salt-brush near the Great Salt Lake and in Death Valley.

The lower slopes of the mountains running up to the coastline of Alaska are covered with coniferous forests as far north as the Seward Peninsula. The central part of the Yukon Basin is also a region of softwood forests. The rest of Alaska is heath or tundra. Hawaii has extensive forests of bamboo and ferns. Sugarcane and pineapple, although not native to the islands, now cover a large portion of the cultivated land.

Small trees and shrubs common to most of the United States include hackberry, hawthorn, serviceberry, blackberry, wild cherry, dogwood, and snowberry. Wildflowers bloom in all areas, from the seldom-seen blossoms of rare desert cacti to the hardiest alpine species. Wildflowers include forget-me-not, fringed and closed gentians, jack-in-the-pulpit, black-eyed Susan, columbine, and common dandelion, along with numerous varieties of aster, orchid, lady's slipper, and wild rose.

An estimated 428 species of mammals characterize the animal life of the continental United States. Among the larger game animals are the white-tailed deer, moose, pronghorn antelope, bighorn sheep, mountain goat, black bear, and grizzly bear. The Alaskan brown bear often reaches a weight of 1,2001,400 lbs. Some 25 important furbearers are common, including the muskrat, red and gray foxes, mink, raccoon, beaver, opossum, striped skunk, woodchuck, common cottontail, snowshoe hare, and various squirrels. Human encroachment has transformed the mammalian habitat over the last two centuries. The American buffalo (bison), millions of which once roamed the plains, is now found only on select reserves. Other mammals, such as the elk and gray wolf, have been restricted to much smaller ranges.

Year-round and migratory birds abound. Loons, wild ducks, and wild geese are found in lake country; terns, gulls, sandpipers, herons, and other seabirds live along the coasts. Wrens, thrushes, owls, hummingbirds, sparrows, woodpeckers, swallows, chickadees, vireos, warblers, and finches appear in profusion, along with the robin, common crow, cardinal, Baltimore oriole, eastern and western meadowlarks, and various blackbirds. Wild turkey, ruffed grouse, and ring-necked pheasant (introduced from Europe) are popular game birds. There are at least 508 species of birds found throughout the country.

Lakes, rivers, and streams teem with trout, bass, perch, muskellunge, carp, catfish, and pike; sea bass, cod, snapper, and flounder are abundant along the coasts, along with such shellfish as lobster, shrimp, clams, oysters, and mussels. Garter, pine, and milk snakes are found in most regions. Four poisonous snakes survive, of which the rattlesnake is the most common. Alligators appear in southern waterways and the Gila monster makes its home in the Southwest.

Laws and lists designed to protect threatened and endangered flora and fauna have been adopted throughout the United States. Generally, each species listed as protected by the federal government is also protected by the states, but some states may list species not included on federal lists or on the lists of neighboring states. Conversely, a species threatened throughout most of the United States may be abundant in one or two states. As of November 2005, the US Fish and Wildlife Service listed 997 endangered US species (up from 751 listed in 1996), including 68 species of mammals, 77 birds, 74 fish, and 599 plants; and 275 threatened species (209 in 1996), including 11 species of mammals, 13 birds, 42 fish, and 146 plants. The agency listed another 520 endangered and 46 threatened foreign species by international agreement.

Threatened species, likely to become endangered if trends continued, included such plants as Lee pincushion cactus. Among the endangered floral species (in imminent danger of extinction in the wild) are the Virginia round-leaf birch, San Clemente Island broom, Texas wild-rice, Furbish lousewort, Truckee barberry, Sneed pincushion cactus, spineless hedgehog cactus, Knowlton cactus, persistent trillium, dwarf bear-poppy, and small whorled pogonia.

Endangered mammals included the red wolf, black-footed ferret, jaguar, key deer, northern swift fox, San Joaquin kit fox, jaguar, jaguarundi, Florida manatee, ocelot, Florida panther, Utah prairie dog, Sonoran pronghorn, and numerous whale species. Endangered species of rodents included the Delmarva Peninsula fox squirrel, beach mouse, salt-marsh harvest mouse, 7 species of bat (Virginia and Ozark big-eared Sanborn's and Mexican longnosed, Hawaiian hoary, Indiana, and gray), and the Morro Ba, Fresno, Stephens', and Tipton Kangaroo rats and rice rat.

Endangered species of birds included the California condor, bald eagle, three species of falcon (American peregrine, tundra peregrine, and northern aplomado), Eskimo curlew, two species of crane (whooping and Mississippi sandhill), three species of warbler (Kirtland's, Bachman's, and golden-cheeked), dusky seaside sparrow, light-footed clapper rail, least tern, San Clemente loggerhead shrike, bald eagle (endangered in most states, but only threatened in the Northwest and the Great Lakes region), Hawaii creeper, Everglade kite, California clapper rail, and red-cockaded woodpecker. Endangered amphibians included four species of salamander (Santa Cruz long-toed, Shenandoah, desert slender, and Texas blind), Houston and Wyoming toad, and six species of turtle (green sea, hawksbill, Kemp's ridley, Plymouth and Alabama red-bellied, and leatherback). Endangered reptiles included the American crocodile, (blunt nosed leopard and island night), and San Francisco garter snake.

Aquatic species included the shortnose sturgeon, Gila trout, 8 species of chub (humpback, Pahranagat, Yaqui, Mohave tui, Owens tui, bonytail, Virgin River, and Borax lake), Colorado River squawfish, five species of dace (Kendall Warm Springs, and Clover Valley, Independence Valley, Moapa and Ash Meadows speckled), Modoc sucker, cui-ui, Smoky and Scioto madtom, 7 species of pupfish (Leon Springs, Gila Desert, Ash Meadows Amargosa, Warm Springs, Owens, Devil's Hole, and Comanche Springs), Pahrump killifish, 4 species of gambusia (San Marcos, Pecos, Amistad, Big Bend, and Clear Creek), 6 species of darter (fountain, watercress, Okaloosa, boulder, Maryland, and amber), totoaba, and 32 species of mussel and pearly mussel. Also classified as endangered were 2 species of earthworm (Washington giant and Oregon giant), the Socorro isopod, San Francisco forktail damselfly, Ohio emerald dragonfly, 3 species of beetle (Kretschmarr Cave, Tooth Cave, and giant carrion), Belkin's dune tabanid fly, and 10 species of butterfly (Schaus' swallowtail, lotis, mission, El Segundo, and Palos Verde blue, Mitchell's satyr, Uncompahgre fritillary, Lange's metalmark, San Bruno elfin, and Smith's blue).

Endangered plants in the United States included: aster, cactus, pea, mustard, mint, mallow, bellflower and pink family, snapdragon, and buckwheat. Several species on the federal list of endangered and threatened wildlife and plants are found only in Hawaii. Endangered bird species in Hawaii included the Hawaiian dark-rumped petrel, Hawaiian gallinule, Hawaiian crow, three species of thrush (Kauai, Molokai, and puaiohi), Kauai 'o'o, Kauai nukupu'u, Kauai 'alialoa, 'akiapola'au, Maui'akepa, Molokai creeper, Oahu creeper, palila, and 'o'u.

Species formerly listed as threatened or endangered that have been removed from the list included (with delisting year and reason) American alligator (1987, recovered); coastal cutthroat trout (2000, taxonomic revision); Bahama swallowtail butterfly (1984, amendment); gray whale (1994, recovered); brown pelican (1984, recovered); Rydberg milk-vetch (1987, new information); Lloyd's hedgehog cactus (1999, taxonomic revision), and Columbian white-tailed Douglas County Deer (2003, recovered).

There are at least 250 species of plants and animals that have become extinct, including the Wyoming toad, the Central Valley grasshopper, Labrador duck, Carolina parakeet, Hawaiian crow, chestnut moth, and the Franklin tree.

ENVIRONMENT

The Council on Environmental Quality, an advisory body contained within the Executive Office of the President, was established by the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, which mandated an assessment of environmental impact for every federally funded project. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), created in 1970, is an independent body with primary regulatory responsibility in the fields of air and noise pollution, water and waste management, and control of toxic substances. Other federal agencies with environmental responsibilities are the Forest Service and Soil Conservation Service within the Department of Agriculture, the Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Park Service within the Department of the Interior, the Department of Energy, and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. In addition to the 1969 legislation, landmark federal laws protecting the environment include the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1970 and 1990, controlling automobile and electric utility emissions; the Water Pollution Act of 1972, setting clean-water criteria for fishing and swimming; and the Endangered Species Act of 1973, protecting wildlife near extinction.

A measure enacted in December 1980 established a $1.6-billion "Superfund," financed largely by excise taxes on chemical companies, to clean up toxic waste dumps such as the one in the Love Canal district of Niagara Falls, NY. In 2005, there were 1,238 hazardous waste sites on the Superfund's national priority list.

The most influential environmental lobbies include the Sierra Club (founded in 1892; 700,000 members in 2003) and its legal arm, the Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund. Large conservation groups include the National Wildlife Federation (1936; over 4,000,000), the National Audubon Society (1905; 600,000), and the Nature Conservancy (1917; 1,000,000). Greenpeace USA (founded in 1979) has gained international attention by seeking to disrupt hunts for whales and seals.

Among the environmental movement's most notable successes have been the inauguration (and mandating in some states) of recycling programs; the banning in the United States of the insecticide dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT); the successful fight against construction of a supersonic transport (SST); and the protection of more than 40 million hectares (100 million acres) of Alaska lands (after a fruitless fight to halt construction of the trans-Alaska pipeline); and the gradual elimination of chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) production by 2000. In March 2003, the US Senate narrowly voted to reject a Bush administration plan to begin oil exploration in the 19 million acre (7.7 million hectare) Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). In 2003, about 25.9% of the total land area was protected. The United States has 12 natural UNESCO World Heritage Sites and 22 Ramsar wetland sites. Yellowstone National Park, founded in 1872, was the first national park established worldwide.

Outstanding problems include acid rain (precipitation contaminated by fossil fuel wastes); inadequate facilities for solid waste disposal; air pollution from industrial emissions (the United States leads the world in carbon dioxide emissions from the burning of fossil fuels); the contamination of homes by radon, a radioactive gas that is produced by the decay of underground deposits of radium and can cause cancer; runoffs of agricultural pesticides, pollutants deadly to fishing streams and very difficult to regulate; continued dumping of raw or partially treated sewage from major cities into US waterways; falling water tables in many western states; the decrease in arable land because of depletion, erosion, and urbanization; the need for reclamation of strip-mined lands and for regulation of present and future strip mining; and the expansion of the US nuclear industry in the absence of a fully satisfactory technique for the handling and permanent disposal of radioactive wastes.

POPULATION

The population of United States in 2005 was estimated by the United Nations (UN) at 296,483,000, which placed it at number 3 in population among the 193 nations of the world. In 2005, approximately 12% of the population was over 65 years of age, with another 21% of the population under 15 years of age. There were 97 males for every 100 females in the country. According to the UN, the annual population rate of change for 200510 was expected to be 0.6%, a rate the government viewed as satisfactory. The projected population for the year 2025 was 349,419,000. The population density was 31 per sq km (80 per sq mi), with major population concentrations are along the northeast Atlantic coast and the southwest Pacific coast. The population is most dense between New York City and Washington, DC.

At the time of the first federal census, in 1790, the population of the United States was 3,929,214. Between 1800 and 1850, the population almost quadrupled; between 1850 and 1900, it tripled; and between 1900 and 1950, it almost doubled. During the 1960s and 1970s, however, the growth rate slowed steadily, declining from 2.9% annually in 1960 to 2% in 1969 and to less than 1% from the 1980s through 2000. The population has aged: the median age of the population increased from 16.7 years in 1820 to 22.9 years in 1900 and to 36.5 years in 2006.

Suburbs have absorbed most of the shift in population distribution since 1950. The UN estimated that 79% of the population lived in urban areas in 2005, and that urban areas were growing at an annual rate of 1.33%. The capital city, Washington, DC (District of Columbia), had a population of 4,098,000 in that year. Other major metropolitan areas and their estimated populations include: New York, 18,498,000; Los Angeles, 12,146,000; Chicago, 8,711,000; Dallas, 4,612,000; Houston, 4,283,000; Philadelphia, 5,325,000; San Diego, 2,818,000; and Phoenix, 3,393,000. Major cities can be found throughout the United States.

MIGRATION

Between 1840 and 1930, some 37 million immigrants, the overwhelming majority of them Europeans, arrived in the United States. Immigration reached its peak in the first decade of the 20th century, when nearly 9 million came. Following the end of World War I, the tradition of almost unlimited immigration was abandoned, and through the National Origins Act of 1924, a quota system was established as the basis of a carefully restricted policy of immigration. Under the McCarran Act of 1952, one-sixth of 1% of the number of inhabitants from each European nation residing in the continental United States as of 1920 could be admitted annually. In practice, this system favored nations of northern and western Europe, with the United Kingdom, Germany, and Ireland being the chief beneficiaries. The quota system was radically reformed in 1965, under a new law that established an annual ceiling of 170,000 for Eastern Hemisphere immigrants and 120,000 for entrants from the Western Hemisphere; in October 1978, these limits were replaced by a worldwide limit of 290,000, which was lowered to 270,000 by 1981. A major 1990 overhaul set a total annual ceiling of 700,000 (675,000 beginning in fiscal 1995), of which 480,000 would be family sponsored and 140,000 employment based. The 1996 Immigration Reform Law addressed concerns about illegal immigration and border enforcement. The 1996 Welfare Reform Law revised legal and illegal immigrants' access to different forms of public assistance, and raised the standards for US residents who sponsor immigrants. The 2000 H-1B Visa Legislation increased temporary immigration visas for hightech workers. In 2004, President Bush proposed a fair and secure immigration reform with a new temporary worker program.

In 2002, 1,063,732 immigrants entered the United States, of whom 416,860 were subject to the numerical limits. Some 342,099 immigrants in 2002 were from Asia, 404,437 were from North America, 74,506 were from South America, 174,209 from Europe, 60,269 from Africa, and 5,557 from Oceania. A direct result of the immigration law revisions has been a sharp rise in the influx of Asians (primarily Chinese, Filipinos, Indians, Japanese, and Koreans), of whom 2,738,157 entered the country during 198190, as compared with 153,249 during the entire decade of the 1950s. Most immigrants in 2002 came from Mexico (219,380).

Since 1961, the federal government supported and financed the Cuban Refugee Program; in 1995, new accords were agreed to by the two countries. More than 500,000 Cubans were living in southern Florida by 1980, when another 125,000 Cuban refugees arrived; by 1990, 4% of Florida's population was of Cuban descent. Some 169,322 Cubans arrived from 19912000, and 27,520 arrived in 2002. Between 1975 and 1978, following the defeat of the US-backed Saigon (Vietnam) government, several hundred thousand Vietnamese refugees came to the United States. Under the Refugee Act of 1980, a ceiling for the number of admissible refugees is set annually; in fiscal 2002, the ceiling for refugees was 70,000. Since Puerto Ricans are American citizens, no special authorization is required for their admission to the continental United States. The population of refugees, resettled refugees, and asylum seekers with pending claims was estimated at 5,250,954 in June 2003, a 34% increase over June 2002. During the same year, the newly-formed Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services (BCISformerly the Immigration and Naturalization Service or INS) received 66,577 applications for asylum, a decline of 36% from 2002. In 2004, the United States hosted 684,564 persons of concern to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), 420,854 refugees, and 263,710 asylum seekers. For that year, the United States was the fifth-largest asylum country. UNHCR reports the United States as the leading destination of refugees, accounting for 63% of all resettlement worldwide.

Large numbers of aliensmainly from Latin America, especially Mexicohave illegally established residence in the United States after entering the country as tourists, students, or temporary visitors engaged in work or business. In November 1986, Congress passed a bill allowing illegal aliens who had lived and worked in the United States since 1982 the opportunity to become permanent residents. By the end of fiscal year 1992, 2,650,000 of a potential 2,760,000 eligible for permanent residence under this bill had attained that status. In 1996 the number of illegal alien residents was estimated at five million, of which two million were believed to be in California. As of 2002, an estimated 33.1 million immigrants (legal and illegal) lived in the United States. Of this total, the Census Bureau estimated in 2000 that 89 million of them were illegal alien residents. In 2004, there were 36 million foreign-born US residents, almost 30% were unauthorized, or some 10.3 million foreigners. Of these, 57% are unauthorized Mexicans. Foreign-born persons are 11% of the US population, and 14% of US workers.

As of 2006, there were three major immigration-related agencies in the United States: the Department of Homeland Security; the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency, which apprehends foreigners; and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which is responsible for enforcement of immigration laws within the United States, together with identifying and removing unauthorized foreigners, and those ordered removed.

The major migratory trends within the United States have been a general westward movement during the 19th century; a longterm movement from farms and other rural settlements to metropolitan areas, which showed signs of reversing in some states during the 1970s; an exodus of southern blacks to the cities of the North and Midwest, especially after World War I; a shift of whites from central cities to surrounding suburbs since World War II; and, also during the post-World War II period, a massive shift from the North and East to the Sunbelt region of the South and Southwest.

In 2005, the net migration rate was estimated as 3.31 migrants per 1,000 population.

ETHNIC GROUPS

The majority of the population of the United States is of European origin, with the largest groups having primary ancestry traceable to the United Kingdom, Germany, and Ireland; many Americans report multiple ancestries. According to 2004 American Community Survey estimates, about 75.6% of the total population are white, 12.1% are blacks and African Americans, and 4.2% are Asian. Native Americans (including Alaskan Natives) account for about 0.8% of the total population. About 1.8% of the population claim a mixed ancestry of two or more races. About 11.9% of all US citizens are foreign-born, with the largest numbers of people coming from Latin America (17,973,287) and Asia (9,254,705).

Some Native American societies survived the initial warfare with land-hungry white settlers and retained their tribal cultures. Their survival, however, has been on the fringes of North American society, especially as a result of the implementation of a national policy of resettling Native American tribes on reservations. In 2004, estimates place the number of Native Americans (including Alaska Natives) at 2,151,322. The number of those who claim mixed Native American and white racial backgrounds is estimated at 1,370,675; the 2004 estimate for mixed Native American and African American ancestry was 204,832. The largest single tribal grouping is the Cherokee, with about 331,491 people. The Navajo account for about 230,401 people, the Chippewa for 92,041 people, and the Sioux for 67,666 people. Groups of Native Americans are found most numerously in the southwestern states of Oklahoma, Arizona, New Mexico, and California. The 1960s and 1970s saw successful court fights by Native Americans in Alaska, Maine, South Dakota, and other states to regain tribal lands or to receive cash settlements for lands taken from them in violation of treaties during the 1800s.

The black and African American population in 2004 was estimated at 34,772,381, with the majority still residing in the South, the region that absorbed most of the slaves brought from Africa in the 18th and 19th centuries. About 1,141,232 people claimed mixed black and white ethnicity. Two important regional migrations of blacks have taken place: (1) a "Great Migration" to the North, commencing in 1915, and (2) a small but then unprecedented westward movement beginning about 1940. Both migrations were fostered by wartime demands for labor and by postwar job opportunities in northern and western urban centers. More than three out of four black Americans live in metropolitan areas, notably in Washington, DC, Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, New Orleans, Newark, Baltimore, and New York City, which had the largest number of black residents. Large-scale federal programs to ensure equality for African Americans in voting rights, public education, employment, and housing were initiated after the historic 1954 Supreme Court ruling that barred racial segregation in public schools. By 1966, however, in the midst of growing and increasingly violent expressions of dissatisfaction by black residents of northern cities and southern rural areas, the federal Civil Rights Commission reported that integration programs were lagging. Throughout the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, the unemployment rate among nonwhites in the United States was at least double that for whites, and school integration proceeded slowly, especially outside the South.

Also included in the US population are a substantial number of persons whose lineage can be traced to Asian and Pacific nationalities, chiefly Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Indian, Korean, and Vietnamese. The Chinese population is highly urbanized and concentrated particularly in cities of over 100,000 population, mostly on the West Coast and in New York City. According to 2004 estimates, there are over 2.8 million Chinese in the United States. Asian Indians are the next largest group of Asians with over 2.2 million people in 2004. About 2.1 million people are Filipino. The Japanese population has risen steadily from a level of 72,157 in 1910 to about 832,039 in 2004. Hawaii has been the most popular magnet of Japanese emigration. Most Japanese in California were farmers until the outbreak of World War II, when they were interned and deprived of their landholdings; after the war, most entered the professions and other urban occupations.

Hispanics or Latinos make up about 14% of the population according to 2004 estimates. It is important to note, however, that the designation of Hispanic or Latino applies to those who are of Latin American descent; these individuals may also belong to white, Asian, or black racial groups. Although Mexicans in the 21st century were still concentrated in the Southwest, they have settled throughout the United States; there are over 25 million Mexicans in the country. Spanish-speaking Puerto Ricans, who often represent an amalgam of racial strains, have largely settled in the New York metropolitan area, where they partake in considerable measure of the hardships and problems experienced by other immigrant groups in the process of settling in the United States; there are about 3.8 million Puerto Ricans in the country. Since 1959, many Cubans have settled in Florida and other eastern states. As of 2004, there are about 1.4 mullion Cubans in the Untied States.

LANGUAGES

The primary language of the United States is English, enriched by words borrowed from the languages of Indians and immigrants, predominantly European. Very early English borrowed from neighboring French speakers such words as shivaree, butte, levee, and prairie; from German, sauerkraut, smearcase, and cranberry; from Dutch, stoop, spook, and cookie; and from Spanish, tornado, corral, ranch, and canyon. From various West African languages, blacks have given English jazz, voodoo, and okra. According to 2004 estimates of primary languages spoken at home, about 81% of the population speak English only.

When European settlement began, Native Americans living north of Mexico spoke about 300 different languages now held to belong to 58 different language families. Only two such families have contributed noticeably to the American vocabulary: Algonkian in the Northeast and Aztec-Tanoan in the Southwest. From Algonkian languages, directly or sometimes through Canadian French, English has taken such words as moose, skunk, caribou, opossum, woodchuck, and raccoon for New World animals; hickory, squash, and tamarack for New World flora; and succotash, hominy, mackinaw, moccasin, tomahawk, toboggan, and totem for various cultural items. From Nahuatl, the language of the Aztecs, terms such as tomato, mesquite, coyote, chili, tamale, chocolate, and ocelot have entered English, largely by way of Spanish. A bare handful of words come from other Native American language groups, such as tepee from Dakota Siouan, catalpa from Creek, sequoia from Cherokee, hogan from Navaho, and sockeye from Salish, as well as cayuse from Chinook.

Professional dialect research, initiated in Germany in 1878 and in France in 1902, did not begin in the United States until 1931, in connection with the Linguistic Atlas of New England (193943). This kind of research, requiring trained field-workers to interview representative informants in their homes, subsequently was extended to the entire Atlantic Coast, the north-central states, the upper Midwest, the Pacific Coast, the Gulf states, and Oklahoma. The New England atlas, the Linguistic Atlas of the Upper Midwest (197376), and the first two fascicles of the Linguistic Atlas of the Middle and South Atlantic States (1980) have been published, along with three volumes based on Atlantic Coast field materials. Also published are atlases of the north-central states, the Gulf states, and Oklahoma. In other areas, individual dialect researchers have produced more specialized studies. The definitive work on dialect speech, the American Dialect Society's monumental Dictionary of American Regional English, began publication in 1985.

Dialect studies confirm that standard English is not uniform throughout the country. Major regional variations reflect patterns of colonial settlement, dialect features from England having dominated particular areas along the Atlantic Coast and then spread westward along the three main migration routes through the Appalachian system. Dialectologists recognize three main dialectsNorthern, Midland, and Southerneach with subdivisions related to the effect of mountain ranges and rivers and railroads on population movement.

The Northern dialect is that of New England and its derivative settlements in New York; the northern parts of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Iowa; and Michigan, Wisconsin, northeastern South Dakota, and North Dakota. A major subdivision is that of New England east of the Connecticut River, an area noted typically by the loss of/r/after a vowel, and by the pronunciation of can't, dance, half, and bath with a vowel more like that in father than that in fat. Generally, however, Northern speech has a strong/r/after a vowel, the same vowel in can't and cat, a conspicuous contrast between cot and caught, the/s/sound in greasy, creek rhyming with pick, and with ending with the same consonant sound as at the end of breath.

Midland speech extends in a wide band across the United States: there are two main subdivisions, North Midland and South Midland. North Midland speech extends westward from New Jersey, Delaware, and Pennsylvania into Ohio, Illinois, southern Iowa, and northern Missouri. Its speakers generally end with with the consonant sound that begins the word thin, pronounce cot and caught alike, and say cow and down as/caow/and/daown/. South Midland speech was carried by the Scotch-Irish from Pennsylvania down the Shenandoah Valley into the southern Appalachians, where it acquired many Southern speech features before it spread westward into Kentucky, Tennessee, southern Missouri, Arkansas, and northeast Texas. Its speakers are likely to say plum peach rather than clingstone peach and snake doctor rather than dragonfly.

Southern speech typically, though not always, lacks the consonant/r/after a vowel, lengthens the first part of the diphthong in write so that to Northern ears it sounds almost like rat, and diphthongizes the vowels in bed and hit so that they sound like/beuhd/and/hiuht/. Horse and hoarse do not sound alike, and creek rhymes with meek. Corn bread is corn pone, and you-all is standard for the plural.

In the western part of the United States, migration routes so crossed and intermingled that no neat dialect boundaries can be drawn, although there are a few rather clear population pockets.

Spanish is spoken by a sizable minority in the United States; according to 2004 estimates, about 11.4% of the population speak Spanish as the primary language of their household. The majority of Spanish speakers live in the Southwest, Florida, and eastern urban centers. Refugee immigration since the 1950s has greatly increased the number of foreign-language speakers from Latin America and Asia.

Educational problems raised by the presence of large blocs of non-English speakers led to the passage in 1976 of the Bilingual Educational Act, enabling children to study basic courses in their first language while they learn English. A related school problem is that of black English, a Southern dialect variant that is the vernacular of many black students now in northern schools.

RELIGIONS

US religious traditions are predominantly Judeo-Christian and most Americans identify themselves as Protestants (of various denominations), Roman Catholics, or Jews. As of 2000, over 141 million Americans reported affiliation with a religious group. The single largest Christian denomination is the Roman Catholic Church, with membership in 2004 estimated at 66.4 million. Immigration from Ireland, Italy, Eastern Europe, French Canada, and the Caribbean accounts for the predominance of Roman Catholicism in the Northeast, Northwest, and some parts of the Great Lakes region, while Hispanic traditions and more recent immigration from Mexico and other Latin American countries account for the historical importance of Roman Catholicism in California and throughout most of the sunbelt. More than any other US religious body, the Roman Catholic Church maintains an extensive network of parochial schools.

Jewish immigrants settled first in the Northeast, where the largest Jewish population remains; at last estimates, about 6.1 million Jews lived in the United States. According to data from 1995, there were about 3.7 million Muslims in the country. About 1.8 million people were Buddhist and 795,000 were Hindu. Approximately 874,000 people were proclaimed atheists.

Over 94 million persons in the United States report affiliation with a Protestant denomination. Baptists predominate below the Mason-Dixon line and west to Texas. By far the nation' s largest Protestant group is the Southern Baptist Convention, which has about 16.2 million members; the American Baptist Churches in the USA claim some 1.4 million members. A concentration of Methodist groups extends westward in a band from Delaware to eastern Colorado; the largest of these groups, the United Methodist Church has about 8.2 million members. A related group, the African Methodist Episcopal Church, has about 2.5 million members. Lutheran denominations, reflecting in part the patterns of German and Scandinavian settlement, are most highly concentrated in the north-central states, especially Minnesota and the Dakotas. Two Lutheran synods, the Lutheran Church in America and the American Lutheran Church, merged in 1987 to form the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, with more than 5 million adherents in 2004. In June 1983, the two major Presbyterian churches, the northern-based United Presbyterian Church in the USA and the southern-based Presbyterian Church in the United States, formally merged as the Presbyterian Church (USA), ending a division that began with the Civil War. This group claimed 3.4 million adherents in 2004. Other prominent Protestant denominations and their estimated adherents (2004) include the Episcopal Church, 2,334,000, and the United Church of Christ, 1,331,000.

A number of Orthodox Christian denominations are represented in the United States, established by immigrants hoping to maintain their language and culture in a new world. The largest group of Orthodox belongs to the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, which has about 1.5 million members.

A number of religious groups, which now have a worldwide presence, originated in the United States. One such group, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons), was organized in New York in 1830 by Joseph Smith, Jr., who claimed to receive a revelation concerning an ancient American prophet named Mormon. The group migrated westward, in part to escape persecution, and has played a leading role in the political, economic, and religious life of Utah; Salt Lake City is the headquarters for the church. As of 2004, there are about 5.4 million members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. The Jehovah's Witnesses were established by Charles Taze Russell in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1872. They believe that Biblical prophecies are being fulfilled through world events and that the kingdom of God will be established on earth at the end of the great war described in the Bible. In 2004, there were about one million members in the Untied States.

The Church of Christ Scientist was established by Mary Baker Eddy (18211910) through her book Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures. A primary belief of the group is that physical injury and illness might be healed through the power of prayer and the correction of false beliefs. The Mother Church is located in Boston, Massachusetts. Christian Scientists have over 1,000 congregations in the nation. The Seventh-Day Adventists were also established in the Untied States by William Miller, a preacher who believed that the second coming of Christ would occur between 1843 and 1844. Though his prediction did not come true, many of his followers continued to embrace other practices such as worship on Saturday, vegetarianism, and a focus on preparation for the second coming. In 2004, the Seventh-Day Adventist Church had 919,000 members in the United States.

TRANSPORTATION

Railroads have lost not only the largest share of intercity freight traffic, their chief source of revenue, but passenger traffic as well. Despite an attempt to revive passenger transport through the development of a national network (Amtrak) in the 1970s, the rail sector has continued to experience heavy losses and declining revenues. In 1998 there were nine Class I rail companies in the United States, down from 13 in 1994, with a total of 178,222 employees and operating revenues of $32.2 billion. In 2003 there were 227,736 km (141,424 mi) of railway, all standard gauge. In 2000, Amtrak carried 84.1 million passengers.

The most conspicuous form of transportation is the automobile, and the extent and quality of the United States road-transport system are without parallel in the world. Over 226.06 million vehiclesa record numberwere registered in 2003, including more than 130.8 million passenger cars and over 95.3. commercial vehicles. In 2000, there were some 4,346,068 motorcycles registered.

The United States has a vast network of public roads, whose total length as of 2003 was 6,393,603 km (3,976,821 mi), of which, 4,180,053 km (2,599,993 mi) were paved, including 74,406 km (46,281 mi) of expressways. The United States also has 41,009 km (25,483 mi) of navigable inland channels, exclusive of the Great Lakes. Of that total, 19,312 km (12,012 mi) are still in commercial use, as of 2004.

Major ocean ports or port areas are New York, the Delaware River areas (Philadelphia), the Chesapeake Bay area (Baltimore, Norfolk, Newport News), New Orleans, Houston, and the San Francisco Bay area. The inland port of Duluth on Lake Superior handles more freight than all but the top-ranking ocean ports. The importance of this port, along with those of Chicago and Detroit, was enhanced with the opening in 1959 of the St. Lawrence Seaway. Waterborne freight consists primarily of bulk commodities such as petroleum and its products, coal and coke, iron ore and steel, sand, gravel and stone, grains, and lumber. The US merchant marine industry has been decreasing gradually since the 1950s. In 2005, the United States had a merchant shipping fleet of 486 vessels of 1,000 GRT or more, with a combined GRT of 12,436,658.

In 2004, the United States had an estimated 14,857 airports. In 2005 a total of 5,120 had paved runways, and there were also 153 heliports. Principal airports include Hartsfield at Atlanta; Logan International at Boston; O'Hare International at Chicago; Dallas-Fort Worth at Dallas; Detroit Metropolitan; Honolulu International; Houston Intercontinental; Los Angeles International; John F. Kennedy, La Guardia, and Newark International at or near New York; Philadelphia International; Orlando International; Miami International; San Francisco International; L. Munoz Marin at San Juan; Seattle-Tacoma at Seattle; and Dulles International at Virginia. Revenue passengers carried by the airlines in 1940 totaled 2.7 million. By 2003, the figure was estimated at 588.997 million for US domestic and international carriers, along with freight traffic estimated at 34,206 million freight ton-km.

HISTORY

The first Americansdistant ancestors of the Native Americansprobably crossed the Bering Strait from Asia at least 12,000 years ago. By the time Christopher Columbus came to the New World in 1492 there were probably no more than two million Native Americans living in the land that was to become the United States.

Following exploration of the American coasts by English, Portuguese, Spanish, Dutch, and French sea captains from the late 15th century onward, European settlements sprang up in the latter part of the 16th century. The Spanish established the first permanent settlement at St. Augustine in the future state of Florida in 1565, and another in New Mexico in 1599. During the early 17th century, the English founded Jamestown in Virginia Colony (1607) and Plymouth Colony in present-day Massachusetts (1620). The Dutch established settlements at Ft. Orange (now Albany, N.Y.) in 1624, New Amsterdam (now New York City) in 1626, and at Bergen (now part of Jersey City, N.J.) in 1660; they conquered New Swedenthe Swedish colony in Delaware and New Jerseyin 1655. Nine years later, however, the English seized this New Netherland Colony and subsequently monopolized settlement of the East Coast except for Florida, where Spanish rule prevailed until 1821. In the Southwest, California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas also were part of the Spanish empire until the 19th century. Meanwhile, in the Great Lakes area south of present-day Canada, France set up a few trading posts and settlements but never established effective control; New Orleans was one of the few areas of the United States where France pursued an active colonial policy.

From the founding of Jamestown to the outbreak of the American Revolution more than 150 years later, the British government administered its American colonies within the context of mercantilism: the colonies existed primarily for the economic benefit of the empire. Great Britain valued its American colonies especially for their tobacco, lumber, indigo, rice, furs, fish, grain, and naval stores, relying particularly in the southern colonies on black slave labor.

The colonies enjoyed a large measure of internal self-government until the end of the French and Indian War (174563), which resulted in the loss of French Canada to the British. To prevent further troubles with the Native Americans, the British government in 1763 prohibited the American colonists from settling beyond the Appalachian Mountains. Heavy debts forced London to decree that the colonists should assume the costs of their own defense, and the British government enacted a series of revenue measures to provide funds for that purpose. But soon, the colonists began to insist that they could be taxed only with their consent and the struggle grew to become one of local versus imperial authority.

Widening cultural and intellectual differences also served to divide the colonies and the mother country. Life on the edge of the civilized world had brought about changes in the colonists' attitudes and outlook, emphasizing their remoteness from English life. In view of the long tradition of virtual self-government in the colonies, strict enforcement of imperial regulations and British efforts to curtail the power of colonial legislatures presaged inevitable conflict between the colonies and the mother country. When citizens of Massachusetts, protesting the tax on tea, dumped a shipload of tea belonging to the East India Company into Boston harbor in 1773, the British felt compelled to act in defense of their authority as well as in defense of private property. Punitive measuresreferred to as the Intolerable Acts by the colonistsstruck at the foundations of self-government.

In response, the First Continental Congress, composed of delegates from 12 of the 13 coloniesGeorgia was not representedmet in Philadelphia in September 1774, and proposed a general boycott of English goods, together with the organizing of a militia. British troops marched to Concord, Massachusetts, on 19 April 1775 and destroyed the supplies that the colonists had assembled there. American "minutemen" assembled on the nearby Lexington green and fired "the shot heard round the world," although no one knows who actually fired the first shot that morning. The British soldiers withdrew and fought their way back to Boston.

Voices in favor of conciliation were raised in the Second Continental Congress that assembled in Philadelphia on 10 May 1775, this time including Georgia; but with news of the Restraining Act (30 March 1775), which denied the colonies the right to trade with countries outside the British Empire, all hopes for peace vanished. George Washington was appointed commander in chief of the new American army, and on 4 July 1776, the 13 American colonies adopted the Declaration of Independence, justifying the right of revolution by the theory of natural rights.

British and American forces met in their first organized encounter near Boston on 17 June 1775. Numerous battles up and down the coast followed. The British seized and held the principal cities but were unable to inflict a decisive defeat on Washington's troops. The entry of France into the war on the American side eventually tipped the balance. On 19 October 1781, the British commander, Cornwallis, cut off from reinforcements by the French fleet on one side and besieged by French and American forces on the other, surrendered his army at Yorktown, Virginia. American independence was acknowledged by the British in a treaty of peace signed in Paris on 3 September 1783.

The first constitution uniting the 13 original statesthe Articles of Confederationreflected all the suspicions that Americans entertained about a strong central government. Congress was denied power to raise taxes or regulate commerce, and many of the powers it was authorized to exercise required the approval of a minimum of nine states. Dissatisfaction with the Articles of Confederation was aggravated by the hardships of a postwar depression, and in 1787the same year that Congress passed the Northwest Ordinance, providing for the organization of new territories and states on the frontiera convention assembled in Philadelphia to revise the articles. The convention adopted an altogether new constitution, the present Constitution of the United States, which greatly increased the powers of the central government at the expense of the states. This document was ratified by the states with the understanding that it would be amended to include a bill of rights guaranteeing certain fundamental freedoms. These freedomsincluding the rights of free speech, press, and assembly, freedom from unreasonable search and seizure, and the right to a speedy and public trial by an impartial juryare assured by the first 10 amendments to the constitution, adopted on 5 December 1791; the constitution did, however, recognize slavery, and did not provide for universal suffrage. On 30 April 1789, George Washington was inaugurated as the first president of the United States.

During Washington's administration, the credit of the new nation was bolstered by acts providing for a revenue tariff and an excise tax; opposition to the excise on whiskey sparked the Whiskey Rebellion, suppressed on Washington's orders in 1794. Alexander Hamilton's proposals for funding the domestic and foreign debt and permitting the national government to assume the debts of the states were also implemented. Hamilton, the secretary of the treasury, also created the first national bank, and was the founder of the Federalist Party. Opposition to the bank as well as to the rest of the Hamiltonian program, which tended to favor northeastern commercial and business interests, led to the formation of an anti-Federalist party, the Democratic-Republicans, led by Thomas Jefferson.

The Federalist Party, to which Washington belonged, regarded the French Revolution as a threat to security and property; the Democratic-Republicans, while condemning the violence of the revolutionists, hailed the overthrow of the French monarchy as a blow to tyranny. The split of the nation's leadership into rival camps was the first manifestation of the two-party system, which has since been the dominant characteristic of the US political scene (Jefferson's party should not be confused with the modern Republican Party, formed in 1854).

The 1800 election brought the defeat of Federalist president John Adams, Washington's successor, by Jefferson; a key factor in Adam's loss was the unpopularity of the Alien and Sedition Acts (1798), Federalist-sponsored measures that had abridged certain freedoms guaranteed in the Bill of Rights. In 1803, Jefferson achieved the purchase from France of the Louisiana Territory, including all the present territory of the United States west of the Mississippi drained by that river and its tributaries; exploration and mapping of the new territory, notably through the expeditions of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, began almost immediately. Under Chief Justice John Marshall, the US Supreme Court, in the landmark case of Marbury v. Madison, established the principle of federal supremacy in conflicts with the states and enunciated the doctrine of judicial review.

During Jefferson's second term in office, the United States became involved in a protracted struggle between Britain and Napoleonic France. Seizures of US ships and the impressment of US seamen by the British navy led the administration to pass the Embargo Act of 1807, under which no US ships were to put out to sea. After the act was repealed in 1809, ship seizures and impressment of seamen by the British continued, and were the ostensible reasons for the declaration of war on Britain in 1812 during the administration of James Madison. An underlying cause of the War of 1812, however, was land-hungry Westerners' coveting of southern Canada as potential US territory.

The war was largely a standoff. A few surprising US naval victories countered British successes on land. The Treaty of Ghent (24 December 1814), which ended the war, made no mention of impressment and provided for no territorial changes. The occasion for further maritime conflict with Britain, however, disappeared with the defeat of Napoleon in 1815.

Now the nation became occupied primarily with domestic problems and westward expansion. Because the United States had been cut off from its normal sources of manufactured goods in Great Britain during the war, textiles and other industries developed and prospered in New England. To protect these infant industries, Congress adopted a high-tariff policy in 1816.

Three events of the late 1810s and the 1820s were of considerable importance for the future of the country. The federal government in 1817 began a policy of forcibly resettling the Native Americans (Indians), already decimated by war and disease, in what later became known as Indian Territory (now Oklahoma); those Native Americans not forced to move were restricted to reservations. The Missouri Compromise (1820) was an attempt to find a nationally acceptable solution to the volatile dispute over the extension of black slavery to new territories. It provided for admission of Missouri into the Union as a slave state but banned slavery in territories to the west that lay north of 36°30. As a result of the establishment of independent Latin American republics and threats by France and Spain to reestablish colonial rule, President James Monroe in 1823 asserted that the Western Hemisphere was closed to further colonization by European powers. The Monroe Doctrine declared that any effort by such powers to recover territories whose independence the United States had recognized would be regarded as an unfriendly act.

From the 1820s to the outbreak of the Civil War, the growth of manufacturing continued, mainly in the North, and was accelerated by inventions and technological advances. Farming expanded with westward migration. The South discovered that its future lay in the cultivation of cotton. The cotton gin, invented by Eli Whitney in 1793, greatly simplified the problems of production; the growth of the textile industry in New England and Great Britain assured a firm market for cotton. Hence, during the first half of the 19th century, the South remained a fundamentally agrarian society based increasingly on a one-crop economy. Large numbers of field hands were required for cotton cultivation, and black slavery became solidly entrenched in the southern economy.

The construction of roads and canals paralleled the country's growth and economic expansion. The successful completion of the Erie Canal (1825), linking the Great Lakes with the Atlantic, ushered in a canal-building boom. Railroad building began in earnest in the 1830s, and by 1840, about 5,300 km (3,300 mi) of track had been laid. The development of the telegraph a few years later gave the nation the beginnings of a modern telecommunications network. As a result of the establishment of the factory system, a laboring class appeared in the North by the 1830s, bringing with it the earliest unionization efforts.

Western states admitted into the Union following the War of 1812 provided for free white male suffrage without property qualifications and helped spark a democratic revolution. As eastern states began to broaden the franchise, mass appeal became an important requisite for political candidates. The election to the presidency in 1928 of Andrew Jackson, a military hero and Indian fighter from Tennessee, was no doubt a result of this widening of the democratic process. By this time, the United States consisted of 24 states and had a population of nearly 13 million.

The relentless westward thrust of the United States population ultimately involved the United States in foreign conflict. In 1836, US settlers in Texas revolted against Mexican rule and established an independent republic. Texas was admitted to the Union as a state in 1845, and relations between Mexico and the United States steadily worsened. A dispute arose over the southern boundary of Texas, and a Mexican attack on a US patrol in May 1846 gave President James K. Polk a pretext to declare war. After a rapid advance, US forces captured Mexico City, and on 2 February 1848, Mexico formally gave up the unequal fight by signing the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, providing for the cession of California and the territory of New Mexico to the United States. With the Gadsden Purchase of 1853, the United States acquired from Mexico for $10 million large strips of land forming the balance of southern Arizona and New Mexico. A dispute with Britain over the Oregon Territory was settled in 1846 by a treaty that established the 49th parallel as the boundary with Canada. Thenceforth the United States was to be a Pacific as well as an Atlantic power.

Westward expansion exacerbated the issue of slavery in the territories. By 1840, abolition of slavery constituted a fundamental aspect of a movement for moral reform, which also encompassed women's rights, universal education, alleviation of working class hardships, and temperance. In 1849, a year after the discovery of gold had precipitated a rush of new settlers to California, that territory (whose constitution prohibited slavery) demanded admission to the Union. A compromise engineered in Congress by Senator Henry Clay in 1850 provided for California's admission as a free state in return for various concessions to the South. But enmities dividing North and South could not be silenced. The issue of slavery in the territories came to a head with the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, which repealed the Missouri Compromise and left the question of slavery in those territories to be decided by the settlers themselves. The ensuing conflicts in Kansas between northern and southern settlers earned the territory the name "bleeding Kansas."

In 1860, the Democratic Party, split along northern and southern lines, offered two presidential candidates. The new Republican Party, organized in 1854 and opposed to the expansion of slavery, nominated Abraham Lincoln. Owing to the defection in Democratic ranks, Lincoln was able to carry the election in the electoral college, although he did not obtain a majority of the popular vote. To ardent supporters of slavery, Lincoln's election provided a reason for immediate secession. Between December 1860 and February 1861, the seven states of the Deep SouthSouth Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texaswithdrew from the Union and formed a separate government, known as the Confederate States of America, under the presidency of Jefferson Davis. The secessionists soon began to confiscate federal property in the South. On 12 April 1861, the Confederates opened fire on Ft. Sumter in the harbor of Charleston, South Carolina, and thus precipitated the US Civil War. Following the outbreak of hostilities, Arkansas, North Carolina, Virginia, and Tennessee joined the Confederacy.

For the next four years, war raged between the Confederate and Union forces, largely in southern territories. An estimated 360,000 men in the Union forces died of various causes, including 110,000 killed in battle. Confederate dead were estimated at 250,000, including 94,000 killed in battle. The North, with great superiority in manpower and resources, finally prevailed. A Confederate invasion of the North was repulsed at the battle of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, in July 1863; a Union army took Atlanta, Georgia in September 1864; and Confederate forces evacuated Richmond, Virginia the Confederate capital, in early April 1865. With much of the South in Union hands, Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee surrendered to Gen. Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Courthouse in Virginia on 9 April.

The outcome of the war brought great changes in US life. Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 was the initial step in freeing some four million black slaves; their liberation was completed soon after the war's end by amendments to the Constitution. Lincoln's plan for the reconstruction of the rebellious states was compassionate, but only five days after Lee's surrender, Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth as part of a conspiracy in which US Secretary of State William H. Seward was seriously wounded.

During the Reconstruction era (186577), the defeated South was governed by Union Army commanders, and the resultant bitterness of southerners toward northern Republican rule, which enfranchised blacks, persisted for years afterward. Vice President Andrew Johnson, who succeeded Lincoln as president, tried to carry out Lincoln's conciliatory policies but was opposed by radical Republican leaders in Congress who demanded harsher treatment of the South. On the pretext that he had failed to carry out an act of Congress, the House of Representatives voted to impeach Johnson in 1868, but the Senate failed by one vote to convict him and remove him from office. It was during Johnson's presidency that Secretary of State Seward negotiated the purchase of Alaska (which attained statehood in 1959) from Russia for $7.2 million.

The efforts of southern whites to regain political control of their states led to the formation of terrorist organizations like the Ku Klux Klan, which employed violence to prevent blacks from voting. By the end of the Reconstruction era, whites had reestablished their political domination over blacks in the southern states and had begun to enforce patterns of segregation in education and social organization that were to last for nearly a century.

In many southern states, the decades following the Civil War were ones of economic devastation, in which rural whites as well as blacks were reduced to sharecropper status. Outside the South, however, a great period of economic expansion began. Transcontinental railroads were constructed, corporate enterprise spurted ahead, and the remaining western frontier lands were rapidly occupied and settled. The age of big business tycoons dawned. As heavy manufacturing developed, Pittsburgh, Chicago, and New York emerged as the nation's great industrial centers. The Knights of Labor, founded in 1869, engaged in numerous strikes, and violent conflicts between strikers and strikebreakers were common. The American Federation of Labor, founded in 1886, established a nationwide system of craft unionism that remained dominant for many decades. During this period, too, the woman's rights movement organized actively to secure the vote (although woman's suffrage was not enacted nationally until 1920), and groups outraged by the depletion of forests and wildlife in the West pressed for the conservation of natural resources.

During the latter half of the 19th century, the acceleration of westward expansion made room for millions of immigrants from Europe. The country's population grew to more than 76 million by 1900. As homesteaders, prospectors, and other settlers tamed the frontier, the federal government forced Indians west of the Mississippi to cede vast tracts of land to the whites, precipitating a series of wars with various tribes. By 1890, only 250,000 Indians remained in the United States, virtually all of them residing on reservations.

The 1890s marked the closing of the United States frontier for settlement and the beginning of US overseas expansion. By 1892, Hawaiian sugar planters of US origin had become strong enough to bring about the downfall of the native queen and to establish a republic, which in 1898, at its own request, was annexed as a territory by the United States. The sympathies of the United States with the Cuban nationalists who were battling for independence from Spain were aroused by a lurid press and by expansionist elements. A series of events climaxed by the sinking of the USS Maine in Havana harbor finally forced a reluctant President William McKinley to declare war on Spain on 25 April 1898. US forces overwhelmed those of Spain in Cuba, and as a result of the Spanish-American War, the United States added to its territories the Philippines, Guam, and Puerto Rico. A newly independent Cuba was drawn into the United States orbit as a virtual protectorate through the 1950s. Many eminent citizens saw these new departures into imperialism as a betrayal of the time-honored US doctrine of government by the consent of the governed.

With the marked expansion of big business came increasing protests against the oppressive policies of large corporations and their dominant role in the public life of the nation. A demand emerged for strict control of monopolistic business practice through the enforcement of antitrust laws. Two US presidents, Theodore Roosevelt (190109), a Republican and Woodrow Wilson (191321), a Democrat, approved of the general movement for reform, which came to be called progressivism. Roosevelt developed a considerable reputation as a trustbuster, while Wilson's program, known as the New Freedom, called for reform of tariffs, business procedures, and banking. During Roosevelt's first term, the United States leased the Panama Canal Zone and started construction of a 68-km (42-mi) canal, completed in 1914.

US involvement in World War I marked the country's active emergence as one of the great powers of the world. When war broke out in 1914 between Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Turkey on one side and Britain, France, and Russia on the other, sentiment in the United States was strongly opposed to participation in the conflict, although a large segment of the American people sympathized with the British and the French. While both sides violated US maritime rights on the high seas, the Germans, enmeshed in a British blockade, resorted to unrestricted submarine warfare. On 6 April 1917, Congress declared war on Germany. Through a national draft of all able-bodied men between the ages of 18 and 45, some four million US soldiers were trained, of whom more than two million were sent overseas to France. By late 1917, when US troops began to take part in the fighting on the western front, the European armies were approaching exhaustion, and US intervention may well have been decisive in ensuring the eventual victory of the Allies. In a series of great battles in which US soldiers took an increasingly major part, the German forces were rolled back in the west, and in the autumn of 1918 were compelled to sue for peace. Fighting ended with the armistice of 11 November 1918. President Wilson played an active role in drawing up the 1919 Versailles peace treaty, which embodied his dream of establishing a League of Nations to preserve the peace, but the isolationist bloc in the Senate was able to prevent US ratification of the treaty.

In the 1920s, the United States had little enthusiasm left for crusades, either for democracy abroad or for reform at home; a rare instance of idealism in action was the Kellogg-Briand Pact (1928), an antiwar accord negotiated on behalf of the United States by Secretary of State Frank B. Kellogg. In general, however, the philosophy of the Republican administrations from 1921 to 1933 was expressed in the aphorism "the business of America is business," and the 1920s saw a great business boom. The years 192324 also witnessed the unraveling of the Teapot Dome scandal: the revelation that President Warren G. Harding's secretary of the interior, Albert B. Fall, had secretly leased federal oil reserves in California and Wyoming to private oil companies in return for gifts and loans.

The great stock market crash of October 1929 ushered in the most serious and most prolonged economic depression the country had ever known. By 1933, an estimated 12 million men and women were out of work; personal savings were wiped out on a vast scale through a disastrous series of corporate bankruptcies and bank failures. Relief for the unemployed was left to private charities and local governments, which were incapable of handling the enormous task.

The inauguration of the successful Democratic presidential candidate, Franklin D. Roosevelt, in March 1933 ushered in a new era of US history, in which the federal government was to assume a much more prominent role in the nation's economic affairs. Proposing to give the country a "New Deal," Roosevelt accepted national responsibility for alleviating the hardships of unemployment; relief measures were instituted, work projects were established, the deficit spending was accepted in preference to ignoring public distress. The federal Social Security program was inaugurated, as were various measures designed to stimulate and develop the economy through federal intervention. Unions were strengthened through the National Labor Relations Act, which established the right of employees' organizations to bargain collectively with employers. Union membership increased rapidly, and the dominance of the American Federation of Labor was challenged by the newly formed Congress of Industrial Organizations, which organized workers along industrial lines.

The depression of the 1930s was worldwide, and certain nations attempted to counter economic stagnation by building large military establishments and embarking on foreign adventures. Following German, Italian, and Japanese aggression, World War II broke out in Europe during September 1939. In 1940, Roosevelt, disregarding a tradition dating back to Washington that no president should serve more than two terms, ran again for reelection. He easily defeated his Republican opponent, Wendell Willkie, who, along with Roosevelt, advocated increased rearmament and all possible aid to victims of aggression. The United States was brought actively into the war by the Japanese attack on the Pearl Harbor naval base in Hawaii on 7 December 1941. The forces of Germany, Italy, and Japan were now arrayed over a vast theater of war against those of the United States and the British Commonwealth; in Europe, Germany was locked in a bloody struggle with the Soviet Union. US forces waged war across the vast expanses of the Pacific, in Africa, in Asia, and in Europe. Italy surrendered in 1943; Germany was successfully invaded in 1944 and conquered in May 1945; and after the United States dropped the world's first atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Japanese capitulated in August. The Philippines became an independent republic soon after the war, but the United States retained most of its other Pacific possessions, with Hawaii becoming the 50th state in 1959.

Roosevelt, who had been elected to a fourth term in 1944, died in April 1945 and was succeeded by Harry s Truman, his vice president. Under the Truman administration, the United States became an active member of the new world organization, the United Nations. The Truman administration embarked on largescale programs of military aid and economic support to check the expansion of communism. Aid to Greece and Turkey in 1948 and the Marshall Plan, a program designed to accelerate the economic recovery of Western Europe, were outstanding features of US postwar foreign policy. The North Atlantic Treaty (1949) established a defensive alliance among a number of West European nations and the United States. Truman's Point Four program gave technical and scientific aid to developing nations. When, following the North Korean attack on South Korea on 25 June 1950, the UN Security Council resolved that members of the UN should proceed to the aid of South Korea. US naval, air, and ground forces were immediately dispatched by President Truman. An undeclared war ensued, which eventually was brought to a halt by an armistice signed on 27 June 1953.

In 1952, Dwight D. Eisenhower, supreme commander of Allied forces in Europe during World War II, was elected president on the Republican ticket, thereby bringing to an end 20 years of Democratic presidential leadership. In foreign affairs, the Eisenhower administration continued the Truman policy of containing the USSR and threatened "massive retaliation" in the event of Soviet aggression, thus heightening the Cold War between the world's two great nuclear powers. Although Republican domestic policies were more conservative than those of the Democrats, the Eisenhower administration extended certain major social and economic programs of the Roosevelt and Truman administrations, notably Social Security and public housing. The early years of the Eisenhower administration were marked by agitation (arising in 1950) over charges of Communist and other allegedly subversive activities in the United Statesa phenomenon known as McCarthyism, after Republican Senator Joseph R. McCarthy of Wisconsin, who aroused much controversy with unsubstantiated allegations that Communists had penetrated the US government, especially the Army and the Department of State. Even those who personally opposed McCarthy lent their support to the imposition of loyalty oaths and the blacklisting of persons with left-wing backgrounds.

A major event of the Eisenhower years was the US Supreme Court's decision in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954) outlawing segregation of whites and blacks in public schools. In the aftermath of this ruling, desegregation proceeded slowly and painfully. In the early 1960s, sit-ins, "freedom rides," and similar expressions of nonviolent resistance by blacks and their sympathizers led to a lessening of segregation practices in public facilities. Under Chief Justice Earl Warren, the high court in 1962 mandated the reapportionment of state and federal legislative districts according to a "one person, one vote" formula. It also broadly extended the rights of defendants in criminal trials to include the provision of a defense lawyer at public expense for an accused person unable to afford one, and established the duty of police to advise an accused person of his or her legal rights immediately upon arrest.

In the early 1960s, during the administration of Eisenhower's Democratic successor, John F. Kennedy, the Cold War heated up as Cuba, under the regime of Fidel Castro, aligned itself with the Soviet Union. Attempts by anti-Communist Cuban exiles to invade their homeland in the spring of 1961 failed despite US aid. In October 1962, President Kennedy successfully forced a showdown with the Soviet Union over Cuba in demanding the withdrawal of Soviet-supplied "offensive weapons"missilesfrom the nearby island. On 22 November 1963, President Kennedy was assassinated while riding in a motorcade through Dallas, Texas; hours later, Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson was inaugurated president. In the November 1964 elections, Johnson overwhelmingly defeated his Republican opponent, Barry M. Goldwater, and embarked on a vigorous program of social legislation unprecedented since Roosevelt's New Deal. His "Great Society" program sought to ensure black Americans' rights in voting and public housing, to give the underprivileged job training, and to provide persons 65 and over with hospitalization and other medical benefits (Medicare). Measures ensuring equal opportunity for minority groups may have contributed to the growth of the woman's rights movement in the late 1960s. This same period also saw the growth of a powerful environmental protection movement.

US military and economic aid to anti-Communist forces in Vietnam, which had its beginnings during the Truman administration (while Vietnam was still part of French Indochina) and was increased gradually by presidents Eisenhower and Kennedy, escalated in 1965. In that year, President Johnson sent US combat troops to South Vietnam and ordered US bombing raids on North Vietnam, after Congress (in the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution of 1964) had given him practically carte blanche authority to wage war in that region. By the end of 1968, American forces in Vietnam numbered 536,100 men, but US military might was unable to defeat the Vietnamese guerrillas, and the American people were badly split over continuing the undeclared (and, some thought, ill-advised or even immoral) war, with its high price in casualties and materiel. Reacting to widespread dissatisfaction with his Vietnam policies, Johnson withdrew in March 1968 from the upcoming presidential race, and in November, Republican Richard M. Nixon, who had been the vice president under Eisenhower, was elected president. Thus, the Johnson yearswhich had begun with the new hopes of a Great Society but had soured with a rising tide of racial violence in US cities and the assassinations of civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr., and US senator Robert F. Kennedy, among othersdrew to a close.

President Nixon gradually withdrew US ground troops from Vietnam but expanded aerial bombardment throughout Indochina, and the increasingly unpopular and costly war continued for four more years before a cease-firenegotiated by Nixon's national security adviser, Henry Kissingerwas finally signed on 27 January 1973 and the last US soldiers were withdrawn. The most protracted conflict in American history had resulted in 46,163 US combat deaths and 303,654 wounded soldiers, and had cost the US government $112 billion in military allocations. Two years later, the South Vietnamese army collapsed, and the North Vietnamese Communist regime united the country.

In 1972, during the last year of his first administration, Nixon initiated the normalization of relationsruptured in 1949with the People's Republic of China and signed a strategic arms limitation agreement with the Soviet Union as part of a Nixon-Kissinger policy of pursuing détente with both major Communist powers. (Earlier, in July 1969, American technology had achieved a national triumph by landing the first astronaut on the moon.) The Nixon administration sought to muster a "silent majority" in support of its Indochina policies and its conservative social outlook in domestic affairs. The most momentous domestic development, however, was the Watergate scandal, which began on 17 June 1972 with the arrest of five men associated with Nixon's reelection campaign, during a break-in at Democratic Party headquarters in the Watergate office building in Washington, DC. Although Nixon was reelected in 1972, subsequent disclosures by the press and by a Senate investigating committee revealed a complex pattern of political "dirty tricks" and illegal domestic surveillance throughout his first term. The president's apparent attempts to obstruct justice by helping his aides cover up the scandal were confirmed by tape recordings (made by Nixon himself) of his private conversations, which the Supreme Court ordered him to release for use as evidence in criminal proceedings. The House voted to begin impeachment proceedings, and in late July 1974, its Judiciary Committee approved three articles of impeachment. On 9 August, Nixon became the first president to resign the office. The following year, Nixon's top aides and former attorney general, John N. Mitchell, were convicted of obstruction and were subsequently sentenced to prison.

Nixon's successor was Gerald R. Ford, who in October 1973 had been appointed to succeed Vice President Spiro T. Agnew when Agnew resigned following his plea of nolo contendere to charges that he had evaded paying income tax on moneys he had received from contractors while governor of Maryland. Less than a month after taking office, President Ford granted a full pardon to Nixon for any crimes he may have committed as president. In August 1974, Ford nominated Nelson A. Rockefeller as vice president (he was not confirmed until December), thus giving the country the first instance of a nonelected president and an appointed vice president serving simultaneously. Ford's pardon of Nixon, as well as continued inflation and unemployment, probably contributed to his narrow defeat by a Georgia Democrat, Jimmy Carter, in 1976.

President Carter's forthright championing of human rightsthough consistent with the Helsinki accords, the "final act" of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe, signed by the United States and 34 other nations in July 1974contributed to strained relations with the USSR and with some US allies. During 197879, the president concluded and secured Senate passage of treaties ending US sovereignty over the Panama Canal Zone. His major accomplishment in foreign affairs, however, was his role in mediating a peace agreement between Israel and Egypt, signed at the camp David, Md., retreat in September 1978. Domestically, the Carter administration initiated a national energy program to reduce US dependence on foreign oil by cutting gasoline and oil consumption and by encouraging the development of alternative energy resources. But the continuing decline of the economy because of double-digit inflation and high unemployment caused his popularity to wane, and confusing shifts in economic policy (coupled with a lack of clear goals in foreign affairs) characterized his administration during 1979 and 1980; a prolonged quarrel with Iran over more than 50 US hostages seized in Tehrān on 4 November 1979 contributed to public doubts about his presidency. Exactly a year after the hostages were taken, former California Governor Ronald Reagan defeated Carter in an election that saw the Republican Party score major gains throughout the United States. The hostages were released on 20 January 1981, the day of Reagan's inauguration.

Reagan, who survived a chest wound from an assassination attempt in Washington, DC, in 1981, used his popularity to push through significant policy changes. He succeeded in enacting income tax cuts of 25%, reducing the maximum tax rate on unearned income from 70% to 50%, and accelerating depreciation allowances for businesses. At the same time, he more than doubled the military budget, in constant 1985 dollars, between 1980 and 1989. Vowing to reduce domestic spending, Reagan cut benefits for the working poor, reduced allocations for food stamps and Aid to Families With Dependent Children by 13%, and decreased grants for the education of disadvantaged children. He slashed the budget of the Environmental Protection Agency and instituted a flat rate reimbursement system for the treatment of Medicare patients with particular illnesses, replacing a more flexible arrangement in which hospitals had been reimbursed for "reasonable charges."

Reagan's appointment of Sandra Day O'Connor as the first woman justice of the Supreme Court was widely praised and won unanimous confirmation from the Senate. However, some of his other high-level choices were extremely controversialnone more so than that of his secretary of the interior, James G. Watt, who finally resigned on October 1983. To direct foreign affairs, Reagan named Alexander M. Haig, Jr., former NATO supreme commander for Europe, to the post of secretary of state; Haig, who clashed frequently with other administration officials, resigned in June 1982 and was replaced by George P. Shultz. In framing his foreign and defense policy, Reagan insisted on a military buildup as a precondition for arms-control talks with the USSR. His administration sent money and advisers to help the government of El Salvador in its war against leftist rebels, and US advisers were also sent to Honduras, reportedly to aid groups of Nicaraguans trying to overthrow the Sandinista government in their country. Troops were also dispatched to Lebanon in September 1982, as part of a multinational peacekeeping force in Beirut, and to Grenada in October 1983 to oust a leftist government there.

Reelected in 1984, President Reagan embarked on his second term with a legislative agenda that included reduction of federal budget deficits (which had mounted rapidly during his first term in office), further cuts in domestic spending, and reform of the federal tax code. In military affairs, Reagan persuaded Congress to fund on a modest scale his Strategic Defense Initiative, commonly known as Star Wars, a highly complex and extremely costly space-based antimissile system. In 1987, the downing of an aircraft carrying arms to Nicaragua led to the disclosure that a group of National Security Council members had secretly diverted $48 million that the federal government had received in payment from Iran for American arms to rebel forces in Nicaragua. The disclosure prompted the resignation of two of the leaders of the group, Vice Admiral John Poindexter and Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North, as well as investigations by House and Senate committees and a special prosecutor, Lawrence Walsh. The congressional investigations found no conclusive evidence that Reagan had authorized or known of the diversion. Yet they noted that because Reagan had approved of the sale of arms to Iran and had encouraged his staff to assist Nicaraguan rebels despite the prohibition of such assistance by Congress, "the President created or at least tolerated an environment where those who did know of the diversion believed with certainty that they were carrying out the President's policies."

Reagan was succeeded in 1988 by his vice president, George H.W. Bush. Benefiting from a prolonged economic expansion, Bush handily defeated Michael Dukakis, governor of Massachusetts and a liberal Democrat. On domestic issues, Bush sought to maintain policies introduced by the Reagan administration. His few legislative initiatives included the passage of legislation establishing strict regulations of air pollution, providing subsidies for child care, and protecting the rights of the disabled. Abroad, Bush showed more confidence and energy. While he responded cautiously to revolutions in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union, he used his personal relationships with foreign leaders to bring about comprehensive peace talks between Israel and its Arab neighbors, to encourage a peaceful unification of Germany, and to negotiate broad and substantial arms cuts with the Russians. Bush reacted to Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1990 by sending 400,000 soldiers to form the basis of a multinational coalition, which he assembled and which destroyed Iraq's main force within seven months. This conflict became known as the Gulf War.

One of the biggest crises that the Bush administration encountered was the collapse of the savings and loan industry in the late eighties. Thrift institutions were required by law to pay low interest rates for deposits and long-term loans. The creation of money market funds for the small investor in the eighties which paid higher rates of return than savings accounts prompted depositors to withdraw their money from banks and invest it in the higher yielding mutual funds. To finance the withdrawals, banks began selling assets at a loss. The deregulation of the savings and loan industry, combined with the increase in federal deposit insurance from $40,000 to $100,000 per account, encouraged many desperate savings institutions to invest in high-risk real-estate ventures, for which no state supervision or regulation existed. When the majority of such ventures predictably failed, the federal government found itself compelled by law to rescue the thrifts. It is estimated that this will cost to taxpayers $345 billion, in settlements that will continue through 2029.

In his bid for reelection in 1992, Bush faced not only Democratic nominee Bill Clinton, governor of Arkansas, but also third-party candidate Ross Perot, a Dallas billionaire who had made his fortune in the computer industry. In contrast to Bush's first run for the presidency, when the nation had enjoyed an unusually long period of economic expansion, the economy in 1992 was just beginning to recover from a recession. Although data released the following year indicated that a healthy rebound had already begun in 1992, the public perceived the economy during election year as weak. Clinton took advantage of this perception in his campaign, focusing on the financial concerns of what he called "the forgotten middle class." He also took a more centrist position on many issues than more traditional Democrats, promising fiscal responsibility and economic growth. Clinton defeated Bush, winning 43% of the vote to Bush's 38%. Perot garnered 18% of the vote.

At its outset, Clinton's presidency was plagued by numerous setbacks, most notably the failure of his controversial health care reform plan, drawn up under the leadership of first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton. Major accomplishments included the passage, by a narrow margin, of a deficit-reduction bill calling for tax increases and spending cuts and Congressional approval of the North American Free Trade Agreement, which removed or reduced tariffs on most goods moving across the borders of the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Although supporters and critics agreed that the treaty would create or eliminate relatively few jobstwo hundred thousandthe accord prompted heated debate. Labor strenuously opposed the agreement, seeing it as accelerating the flight of factory jobs to countries with low labor costs such as Mexico, the third-largest trading partner of the United States. Business, on the other hand, lobbied heavily for the treaty, arguing that it would create new markets for American goods and insisting that competition from Mexico would benefit the American economy.

By the fall of 1994, many American workers, still confronting stagnating wages, benefits, and living standards, had yet to feel the effects of the nation's recovery from the recession of 199091. The resulting disillusionment with the actions of the Clinton administration and the Democrat-controlled Congress, combined with the widespread climate of social conservatism resulting from a perceived erosion of traditional moral values led to an overwhelming upset by the Republican party in the 1994 midterm elections. The GOP gained control of both houses of Congress for the first time in over 40 years, also winning 11 gubernatorial races, for control of a total of 30 governorships nationwide. The Republican agendaincreased defense spending and cuts in taxes, social programs, and farm subsidieshad been popularized under the label "Contract with America," the title of a manifesto circulated during the campaign.

The ensuing confrontation between the nation's Democratic president and Republican-controlled Congress came to a head at the end of 1995, when Congress responded to presidential vetoes of appropriations and budget bills by refusing to pass stop gap spending measures, resulting in major shutdowns of the federal government in November and December. The following summer, however, the president and Congress joined forces to reform the welfare system through a bill replacing Aid to Families with Dependent Children with block grants through which welfare funding would largely become the province of the states.

The nation's economic recovery gained strength as the decade advanced, with healthy growth, falling unemployment, and moderate interest and inflation levels. Public confidence in the economy was reflected in a bull market on the stock exchange, which gained 60% between 1995 and 1997. Bolstered by a favorable economy at home and peace abroad, Clinton's faltering popularity rebounded and in 1996 he became the first Democratic president elected to a second term since Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1936, defeating the Republican candidate, former Senate majority leader Robert Dole, and Independent Ross Perot, whose electoral support was greatly reduced from its 1992 level. The Republicans retained control of both houses of Congress. In 1997, President Clinton signed into law a bipartisan budget plan designed to balance the federal budget by 2002 for the first time since 1969, through a combination of tax and spending cuts. In 199899, the federal government experienced two straight years of budget surpluses.

In 1998, special prosecutor Kenneth Starr submitted a report to Congress that resulted in the House of Representatives passing four articles of impeachment against President Clinton. In the subsequent trial in the Senate, the articles were defeated.

Regulation of the three large financial industries underwent significant change in late 1999. The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (also known as the Financial Modernization Act) was passed by Congress in November 1999. It cleared the way for banks, insurance companies, and securities companies to sell each other's services and to engage in merger and acquisition activity. Prior to the Act's passage, activities of the banking, insurance and securities industries were strictly limited by the Glass Steagall Act of 1933, which Gramm-Leach-Bliley repealed.

Health care issues received significant attention in 2000. On 23 November 1998, 46 states and the District of Columbia together reached a settlement with the large US tobacco companies over compensation for smoking-related healthcare costs incurred by the states. Payments to the states, totaling $206 billion, were scheduled to be made over 25 years beginning in 1999. Most states passed Patients' Rights legislation, and all 50 states and the District of Columbia passed Children's Health Insurance Programs (CHIP) legislation to provide health care to children in low-income families.

The ongoing strong economy continued through the late 1990s and into 2000. Economic expansion set a record for longevity, andexcept for higher gasoline prices during summer 2000, stemming from higher crude oil pricesinflation continued to be relatively low. By 2000, there was additional evidence that productivity growth had improved substantially since the mid-1990s, boosting living standards while helping to hold down increases in costs and prices despite very tight labor markets.

In 2000, Hispanics replaced African Americans as the largest minority group in the United States. (Hispanics numbered 35.3 million in 2000, or 12.5% of the population, compared with 34.7 million blacks, or 12.3% of the population.)

The 2000 presidential election was one of the closest in US history, pitting Democratic vice president Al Gore against Republican Party candidate George W. Bush, son of former president George H. W. Bush. The vote count in Florida became the determining factor in the 7 November election, as each candidate needed to obtain the state's 25 electoral college votes in order to capture the 270 needed to win the presidency. When in the early hours of 8 November Bush appeared to have won the state's 25 votes, Gore called Bush to concede the election. He soon retracted the concession, however, after the extremely thin margin of victory triggered an automatic recount of the vote in Florida. The Democrats subsequently mounted a series of legal challenges to the vote count in Florida, which favored Bush. Eventually, the US Supreme Court, in Bush v. Gore, was summoned to rule on the election. On 12 December 2000, the Court, divided 54, reversed the Florida state supreme court decision that had ordered new recounts called for by Al Gore. George W. Bush was declared president. Gore had won the popular vote, however, capturing 48.4% of votes cast to Bush's 47.9%.

Once inaugurated, Bush called education his top priority, stating that "no child should be left behind" in America. He affirmed support for Medicare and Social Security, and called for pay and benefit increases for the military. He called upon charities and faith-based community groups to aid the disadvantaged. Bush announced a $1.6 trillion tax cut plan (subsequently reduced to $1.35 trillion) in his first State of the Union Address as an economic stimulus package designed to respond to an economy that had begun to falter. He called for research and development of a missile-defense program, and warned of the threat of international terrorism.

The threat of international terrorism was made all too real on 11 September 2001, when 19 hijackers crashed 4 passenger aircraft into the North and South towers of the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and a field in Stony Creek Township in Pennsylvania. The World Trade Center towers were destroyed. Approximately 3,000 people were confirmed or reported dead as a result of all four 11 September 2001 attacks. The terrorist organization al-Qaeda, led by Saudi-born Osama bin Laden, was believed to be responsible for the attacks, and a manhunt for bin Laden began.

On 7 October 2001, the United States and Britain launched air strikes against known terrorist training camps and military installations within Afghanistan, ruled by the Taliban regime that supported the al-Qaeda organization. The air strikes were supported by leaders of the European Union and Russia, as well as other nations. By December 2001, the Taliban were defeated, and Afghan leader Hamid Karzai was chosen to lead an interim administration for the country. Remnants of al-Qaeda still remained in Afghanistan and the surrounding region, and a year after the 2001 offensive more than 10,000 US soldiers remained in Afghanistan to suppress efforts by either the Taliban or al-Qaeda to regroup. As of 2005, Allied soldiers continued to come under periodic attack in Afghanistan.

As a response to the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks, the US Congress that October approved the USA Patriot Act, proposed by the Bush administration. The act gave the government greater powers to detain suspected terrorists (or also immigrants), to counter money-laundering, and increase surveillance by domestic law enforcement and international intelligence agencies. Critics claimed the law did not provide for the system of checks and balances that safeguard civil liberties in the United States.

Beginning in late 2001, corporate America suffered a crisis of confidence. In December 2001, the energy giant Enron Corporation declared bankruptcy after massive false accounting practices came to light. Eclipsing the Enron scandal, telecommunications giant WorldCom in June 2002 disclosed that it had hid $3.8 billion in expenses over 15 months. The fraud led to WorldCom's bankruptcy, the largest in US history (the company had $107 billion in assets).

In his January 2002 State of the Union Address, President Bush announced that Iran, Iraq, and North Korea constituted an "axis of evil," sponsoring terrorism and threatening the United States and its allies with weapons of mass destruction. Throughout 2002, the United States pressed its case against Iraq, stating that the Iraqi regime had to disarm itself of weapons of mass destruction. In November 2002, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 1441, calling upon Iraq to disarm itself of any chemical, biological, or nuclear weapons it might possess and to allow for the immediate return of weapons inspectors (they had been expelled in 1998). UN and IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) weapons inspectors returned to Iraq, but the United States and the United Kingdom expressed dissatisfaction with their progress, and indicated military force might be necessary to remove the Iraqi regime, led by Saddam Hussein. France and Russia, permanent members of the UN Security Council, and Germany, a nonpermanent member, in particular, opposed the use of military force. The disagreement caused a diplomatic rift in the West that was slow to repair.

After diplomatic efforts at conflict resolution failed by March 2003, the United States, on 19 March, launched air strikes against targets in Baghdād and war began. On 9 April, Baghdād fell to US forces, and work began on restoring basic services to the Iraqi population, including providing safe drinking water, electricity, and sanitation. On 1 May, President Bush declared major combat operations had been completed. Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein was captured by US forces on 13 December 2003 and placed in custody.

In May 2004, the Abu Ghraib scandal erupted. Photographs of US soldiers engaged in acts of abuseincluding physical, sexual, and psychologicalagainst Iraqi prisoners being held at the Abu Ghraib military prison outside Baghdād were made public. The fact that the prison had been a place of torture and execution under Saddam Hussein's rule made the abuse seem even more degrading. Seven US suspects were named for carrying out the abuse; most were given prison sentences on charges ranging from conspiracy to assault, but some thought higher-ranking officials, including Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, should resign as well.

US forces increasingly became the targets of attacks in Iraq as an insurgency against the US military presence began. By late 2005, nearly 1,900 US soldiers had been killed since major combat operations were declared over on 1 May 2003. Some 138,000 US troops remained in Iraq in late 2005, and that number was expected to increase as a referendum on a new Iraqi constitution in October 2005 and national elections in December 2005 were to be held.

The 2004 presidential election was held on 2 November. President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney defeated Democratic challengers John F. Kerry and John R. Edwards. Bush received approximately 3 million more popular votes than Kerry, and won the electoral vote 286 to 251. (One electoral vote went to John Edwards when an elector pledged to Kerry voted for "John Edwards" instead.) The vote in Ohio was the deciding factor, and upon conceding Ohio, Kerry conceded the election. The campaign was run on such issues as terrorism, the War in Iraq, the economy, and to a lesser extent issues of morality and valuesantigay marriage measures were on the ballots in 11 states, and all passed.

In August 2005, Hurricane Katrina landed on the Gulf Coast of the United States, in what was one of the worst natural disasters in US history. The city of New Orleans, Louisiana, was evacuated, but some 150,000 people were unable to leave before the storm hit. A day after the storm appeared to have bypassed the city's center, levees were breached by the storm surge and water submerged the metropolis. Rescuers initially ignored the bodies of the dead in the search to find the living. Those unable to leave the city were sheltered in the Louisiana Superdome and New Orleans Convention Center; air conditioning, electricity, and running water failed, making for unsanitary and uncomfortable conditions. They were later transferred to other shelters, including the Houston Astrodome. Looting, shootings, and carjackings exacerbated already devastating conditions. The costs of the hurricane and flooding were exceedingly high in terms of both loss of life and economic damage: more than 1,000 people died and damages were estimated to reach $200 billion. Katrina had global economic consequences, as imports, exports, and oil suppliesincluding production, importation, and refiningwere disrupted. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) of the Department of Homeland Security, and President Bush were criticized in varying degrees for their lack of adequate response to the disaster. FEMA director Michael D. Brown resigned his position amid the furor. Race and class issues also came to the fore, as the majority of New Orleans residents unable to evacuate the city and affected by the catastrophe were poor and African American.

GOVERNMENT

The Constitution of the United States, signed in 1787, is the nation's governing document. In the first 10 amendments to the Constitution, ratified in 1791 and known as the Bill of Rights, the federal government is denied the power to infringe on rights generally regarded as fundamental to the civil liberties of the people. These amendments prohibit the establishment of a state religion and the abridgment of freedom of speech, press, and the right to assemble. They protect all persons against unreasonable searches and seizures, guarantee trial by jury, and prohibit excessive bail and cruel and unusual punishments. No person may be required to testify against himself, nor may he be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law. The 13th Amendment (1865) banned slavery; the 15th (1870) protected the freed slaves' right to vote; and the 19th (1920) guaranteed the franchise to women. In all, there have been 27 amendments, the last of which, proposed in 1789 but ratified in 1992, denied the variation of the compensation of Senators and Representatives until an election intervened. The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), approved by Congress in 1972, would have mandated equality between the sexes; only 35 of the required 38 states had ratified the ERA by the time the ratification deadline expired on 30 June 1982.

The United States has a federal form of government, with the distribution of powers between the federal government and the states constitutionally defined. The legislative powers of the federal government are vested in Congress, which consists of the House of Representatives and the Senate. There are 435 members of the House of Representatives. Each state is allotted a number of representatives in proportion to its population as determined by the decennial census. Representatives are elected for two-year terms in every even-numbered year. A representative must be at least 25 years old, must be a resident of the state represented, and must have been a citizen of the United States for at least seven years. The Senate consists of two senators from each state, elected for six-year terms. Senators must be at least 30 years old, must be residents of the states from which they are elected, and must have been citizens of the United States for at least nine years. One-third of the Senate is elected in every even-numbered year.

Congress legislates on matters of taxation, borrowing, regulation of international and interstate commerce, formulation of rules of naturalization, bankruptcy, coinage, weights and measures, post offices and post roads, courts inferior to the Supreme Court, provision for the armed forces, among many other matters. A broad interpretation of the "necessary and proper" clause of the Constitution has widened considerably the scope of congressional legislation based on the enumerated powers.

A bill that is passed by both houses of Congress in the same form is submitted to the president, who may sign it or veto it. If the president chooses to veto the bill, it is returned to the house in which it originated with the reasons for the veto. The bill may become law despite the president's veto if it is passed again by a two-thirds vote in both houses. A bill becomes law without the president's signature if retained for 10 days while Congress is in session. After Congress adjourns, if the president does not sign a bill within 10 days, an automatic veto ensues.

The president must be "a natural born citizen" at least 35 years old, and must have been a resident of the United States for 14 years. Under the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution, adopted in 1951, a president may not be elected more than twice. Each state is allotted a number of electors based on its combined total of US senators and representatives, and, technically, it is these electors who, constituted as the electoral college, cast their vote for president, with all of the state's electoral votes customarily going to the candidate who won the largest share of the popular vote of the state (the District of Columbia also has three electors, making a total of 538 votes). Thus, the candidate who wins the greatest share of the popular vote throughout the United States may, in rare cases, fail to win a majority of the electoral vote. If no candidate gains a majority in the electoral college, the choice passes to the House of Representatives.

The vice president, elected at the same time and on the same ballot as the president, serves as ex officio president of the Senate. The vice president assumes the power and duties of the presidency on the president's removal from office or as a result of the president's death, resignation, or inability to perform his duties. In the case of a vacancy in the vice presidency, the president nominates a successor, who must be approved by a majority in both houses of Congress. The Congress has the power to determine the line of presidential succession in case of the death or disability of both the president and vice president.

Under the Constitution, the president is enjoined to "take care that the laws be faithfully executed." In reality, the president has a considerable amount of leeway in determining to what extent a law is or is not enforced. Congress's only recourse is impeachment, to which it has resorted only three times, in proceedings against presidents Andrew Johnson, Richard Nixon, and Bill Clinton. Both the president and the vice president are removable from office after impeachment by the House and conviction at a Senate trial for "treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors." The president has the power to grant reprieves and pardons for offenses against the United States except in cases of impeachment.

The president nominates and "by and with the advice and consent of the Senate" appoints ambassadors, public ministers, consuls, and all federal judges, including the justices of the Supreme Court. As commander in chief, the president is ultimately responsible for the disposition of the land, naval, and air forces, but the power to declare war belongs to Congress. The president conducts foreign relations and makes treaties with the advice and consent of the Senate. No treaty is binding unless it wins the approval of two-thirds of the Senate. The president's independence is also limited by the House of Representatives, where all money bills originate.

The president also appoints as his cabinet, subject to Senate confirmation, the secretaries who head the departments of the executive branch. As of 2005, the executive branch included the following cabinet departments: Agriculture (created in 1862), Commerce (1913), Defense (1947), Education (1980), Energy (1977), Health and Human Services (1980), Housing and Urban Development (1965), Interior (1849), Justice (1870), Labor (1913), State (1789), Transportation (1966), Treasury (1789), Veterans' Affairs (1989), and Homeland Security (2002). The Department of Defenseheadquartered in the Pentagon, the world's largest office buildingalso administers the various branches of the military: Air Force, Army, Navy, defense agencies, and joint-service schools. The Department of Justice administers the Federal Bureau of Investigation, which originated in 1908; the Central Intelligence Agency (1947) is under the aegis of the executive office. Among the several hundred quasi-independent agencies are the Federal Reserve System (1913), serving as the nation's central bank, and the major regulatory bodies, notably the Environmental Protection Agency (1970), Federal Communications Commission (1934), Federal Power Commission (1920), Federal Trade Commission (1914), and Interstate Commerce Commission (1887).

Regulations for voting are determined by the individual states for federal as well as for local offices, and requirements vary from state to state. In the past, various southern states used literacy tests, poll taxes, "grandfather" clauses, and other methods to disfranchise black voters, but Supreme Court decisions and congressional measures, including the Voting Rights Act of 1965, more than doubled the number of black registrants in Deep South states between 1964 and 1992. In 1960, only 29.1% of the black votingage population was registered to vote; by the mid-1990s, that percentage had risen to over 65%.

As of the November 2004 presidential election, there were over 16 million registered African American voters (64.4% of those African Americans eligible to vote). The number of registered Hispanic voters increased from 2.5 million in 1972 to 9 million in 2004 (34.3% of eligible Hispanic voters). Sixty-four percent of eligible voters cast ballots in the 2004 presidential election, up from 60% in 2000. Voter registration was reported to be 72% nationwide. The next presidential election was to be held November 2008.

POLITICAL PARTIES

Two major parties, Democratic and Republican, have dominated national, state, and local politics since 1860. These parties are made up of clusters of small autonomous local groups primarily concerned with local politics and the election of local candidates to office. Within each party, such groups frequently differ drastically in policies and beliefs on many issues, but once every four years, they successfully bury their differences and rally around a candidate for the presidency. Minority parties have been formed at various periods in US political history, but most have generally allied with one of the two major parties, and none has achieved sustained national prominence. The most successful minority party in recent decadesthat of Texas billionaire Ross Perot in 1992was little more than a protest vote. Various extreme groups on the right and left, including a small US Communist Party, have had little political significance on a national scale; in 1980, the Libertarian Party became the first minor party since 1916 to appear on the ballot in all 50 states. The Green Party increased its showing in the 2000 election, with presidential candidate Ralph Nader winning 2.7% of the vote. Independent candidates have won state and local office, but no candidate has won the presidency without major party backing.

Traditionally, the Republican Party is more solicitous of business interests and gets greater support from business than does the Democratic Party. A majority of blue-collar workers, by contrast, have generally supported the Democratic Party, which favors more lenient labor laws, particularly as they affect labor unions; the Republican Party often (though not always) supports legislation that restricts the power of labor unions. Republicans favor the enhancement of the private sector of the economy, while Democrats generally urge the cause of greater government participation and regulatory authority, especially at the federal level.

Within both parties there are sharp differences on a great many issues; for example, northeastern Democrats in the past almost uniformly favored strong federal civil rights legislation, which was anathema to the Deep South; eastern Republicans in foreign policy are internationalist-minded, while Midwesterners of the same party constituted from 1910 through 1940 the hard core of isolationist sentiment in the country. More recently, "conservative" headings have been adopted by members of both parties who emphasize decentralized government power, strengthened private enterprise, and a strong US military posture overseas, while the designation "liberal" has been applied to those favoring an increased federal government role in economic and social affairs, disengagement from foreign military commitments, and safeguards for civil liberties.

President Nixon's resignation and the accompanying scandal surrounding the Republican Party hierarchy had a telling, if predictable, effect on party morale, as indicated by Republican losses in the 1974 and 1976 elections. The latent consequences of the Vietnam and Watergate years appeared to take their toll on both parties, however, in growing apathy toward politics and mistrust of politicians among the electorate. Ronald Reagan's successful 1980 presidential bid cut into traditional Democratic strongholds throughout the United States, as Republicans won control of the US Senate and eroded state and local Democratic majorities. On the strength of an economic recovery, President Reagan won reelection in November 1984, carrying 49 of 50 states (with a combined total of 525 electoral votes) and 58.8% of the popular vote; the Republicans retained control of the Senate, but the Democrats held on to the House. Benefiting from a six-year expansion of the economy, Republican George H.W. Bush won 54% of the vote in 1988. As Reagan had, Bush successfully penetrated traditionally Democratic regions. He carried every state in the South as well as the industrial states of the North.

Bush's approval rating reached a high of 91% in March of 1991 in the wake of the Persian Gulf War. By July of 1992, however, that rating had plummeted to 25%, in part because Bush appeared to be disengaged from domestic issues, particularly the 1991 recession. Bill Clinton, governor of Arkansas and twenty years younger than Bush, presented himself to the electorate as a "New Democrat." He took more moderate positions than traditional New Deal Democrats, including calling for a middle-class tax cut, welfare reform, national service, and such traditionally Republican goals as getting tough on crime. The presidential race took on an unpredictable dimension with the entrance of Independent Ross Perot, a Texas billionaire. Perot, who attacked the budget deficit and called for shared sacrifice, withdrew from the race in July and then re-entered it in October. Clinton won the election with 43% of the vote, Bush received 38%, and Perot captured 18%, more than any third-party presidential candidate since Theodore Roosevelt in 1912. As of 1992, Democrats enjoyed a large advantage over Republicans in voter registration, held both houses of congress, had a majority of state governorships, and controlled most state legislative bodies. In 1996 Bill Clinton became the first Democratic president since Franklin Roosevelt to be elected to a second term, with 49% of the popular vote to 41% for Republican Bob Dole, and 8% for Ross Perot, who ran as a Reform Party candidate. Republicans retained control of the House and Senate.

Aided by a growing climate of conservatism on moral issues and popular discontent with the pace of economic recovery from the recent recession, the Republicans accomplished an historic upset in the 1994 midterm elections, gaining control of both houses of Congress for the first time since 1952. They gained 52 seats in the House, for a majority of 230204, and 8 seats in the Senate, for a majority that came to 5347 once Democrat Richard Shelby of Alabama changed parties shortly after the election. The Republicans also increased their power at the state level, winning 11 governorships, for a national total of 30. The number of state legislatures under Republican control increased from 8 to 19, with 18 controlled by the Democrats and 12 under split control. After the 1998 election, the Republican majority had eroded slightly in the House, with the 106th Congress including 223 Republicans, 210 Democrats, and 2 Independents; the Senate included 55 Republicans and 45 Democrats.

The major candidates in the 2000 presidential election were Republican George W. Bush, son of former president George H.W. Bush; his vice presidential running mate was Dick Cheney. The Democratic candidate was Vice President Al Gore, Jr. (Clinton administration 19922000). Gore chose Joseph Lieberman, senator from Connecticut, as his running mate. Lieberman, an Orthodox Jew, became the first Jew to run for national office. Following the contested presidential election of 2000, George W. Bush emerged as president following a ruling by the US Supreme Court. Gore won the popular vote, with 48.4%, to 47.9% for Bush, but Bush won the electoral college vote, 271266, with one blank vote in the electoral college cast. Sectional and demographic differences were evident in the 2000 election, with the Northeast, parts of the Mid-west, the Pacific states, and most urban areas voting Democratic, and the South, West, and rural communities voting Republican.

Following the November 2002 mid-term elections, Republicans held 229 of 435 seats in the House of Representatives, and there were 205 Democrats and 1 independent in the House. The Republicans held an extremely thin margin in the Senate, of 51 seats, to the Democrats' 48. There was one independent in the Senate, former Republican Jim Jeffords. Following the election, Nancy Pelosi became the Democratic majority leader in the House of Representatives, the first woman to head either party in Congress. As a result of the 2002 election, there were 60 women, 37 African Americans, and 22 Hispanics in the House of Representatives, and 14 women in the Senate. There were no African American or Hispanic senators following the 2002 election.

The 2004 presidential election was won by incumbent George W. Bush and his running mate Dick Cheney. They defeated Democrats John F. Kerry and John Edwards. Bush received 286 electoral votes, Kerry 251, and Edwards 1 when an elector wrote the name "John Edwards" in on the electoral ballot. Bush received a majority of the popular vote50.73%, to Kerry's 48.27%or three million more votes than Kerry. Voter turnout was the highest since 1968, at 64%. The composition of the 109th Congress after the 2004 election was as follows: 55 Republicans, 44 Democrats, and 1 Independent in the Senate, and 232 Republicans, 202 Democrats, and 1 independent in the House of Representatives. The next elections for the Senate and House of Representatives were to be held November 2006.

The 1984 election marked a turning point for women in national politics. Geraldine A. Ferraro, a Democrat, became the first female vice presidential nominee of a major US political party; no woman has ever captured a major-party presidential nomination. In the 109th Congress (200506), 14 women served in the US Senate, and 68 women held seats in the US House of Representatives (including delegates).

The 1984 presidential candidacy of Jesse L. Jackson, election, the first African American ever to win a plurality in a statewide presidential preference primary, likewise marked the emergence of African Americans as a political force, especially within the Democratic Party. In 1992 an African American woman, Democrat Carol Moseley Braun of Illinois, won election to the Senate, becoming the first black senator; Moseley Braun lost her reelection bid in 1998. She was a candidate for president in 2004.

There were 42 African Americans in the House of Representatives and one in the Senate in the 109th Congress. Twenty-six Hispanics were serving in the House and two in the Senate, a record number. Eight members of Congress were of Asian/Hawaiian/or other Pacific Islander ethnicity, six in the House of Representatives and two in the Senate. There was one Native American in the House. (These numbers include delegates.)

LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Governmental units within each state comprise counties, municipalities, and such special districts as those for water, sanitation, highways, and parks and recreation. There are more than 3,000 counties in the United States; more than 19,000 municipalities, including cities, villages, towns, and boroughs; nearly 15,000 school districts; and at least 31,000 special districts. Additional townships, authorities, commissions, and boards make up the rest of the nearly 85,000 local governmental units.

The 50 states are autonomous within their own spheres of government, and their autonomy is defined in broad terms by the 10th Amendment to the US Constitution, which reserves to the states such powers as are not granted to the federal government and not denied to the states. The states may not, among other restrictions, issue paper money, conduct foreign relations, impair the obligations of contracts, or establish a government that is not republican in form. Subsequent amendments to the Constitution and many Supreme Court decisions added to the restrictions placed on the states. The 13th Amendment prohibited the states from legalizing the ownership of one person by another (slavery); the 14th Amendment deprived the states of their power to determine qualifications for citizenship; the 15th Amendment prohibited the states from denying the right to vote because of race, color, or previous condition of servitude; and the 19th, from denying the vote to women.

Since the Civil War, the functions of the state have expanded. Local businessthat is, business not involved in foreign or interstate commerceis regulated by the state. The states create subordinate governmental bodies such as counties, cities, towns, villages, and boroughs, whose charters they either issue or, where home rule is permitted, approve. States regulate employment of children and women in industry, and enact safety laws to prevent industrial accidents. Unemployment insurance is a state function, as are education, public health, highway construction and safety, operation of a state highway patrol, and various kinds of personal relief. The state and local governments still are primarily responsible for providing public assistance, despite the large part the federal government plays in financing welfare.

Each state is headed by an elected governor. State legislatures are bicameral except Nebraska's, which has been unicameral since 1934. Generally, the upper house is called the senate, and the lower house the house of representatives or the assembly. Bills must be passed by both houses, and the governor has a suspensive veto, which usually may be overridden by a two-thirds vote.

The number, population, and geographic extent of the more than 3,000 counties in the United Statesincluding the analogous units called boroughs in Alaska and parishes in Louisianashow no uniformity from state to state. The county is the most conspicuous unit of rural local government and has a variety of powers, including location and repair of highways, county poor relief, determination of voting precincts and of polling places, and organization of school and road districts. City governments, usually headed by a mayor or city manager, have the power to levy taxes; to borrow; to pass, amend, and repeal local ordinances; and to grant franchises for public service corporations. Township government through an annual town meeting is an important New England tradition.

From the 1960s into the 21st century, a number of large cities began to suffer severe fiscal crises brought on by a combination of factors. Loss of tax revenues stemmed from the migration of middle-class residents to the suburbs and the flight of many small and large firms seeking to avoid the usually higher costs of doing business in urban areas. Low-income groups, many of them unskilled blacks and Hispanic migrants, came to constitute large segments of city populations, placing added burdens on locally funded welfare, medical, housing, and other services without providing the commensurate tax base for additional revenues.

JUDICIAL SYSTEM

The Supreme Court, established by the US Constitution, is the nation's highest judicial body, consisting of the chief justice of the United States and eight associate justices. All justices are appointed by the president with the advice and consent of the Senate. Appointments are for life "during good behavior," otherwise terminating only by resignation or impeachment and conviction.

The original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court is relatively narrow; as an appellate court, it is open to appeal from decisions of federal district courts, circuit courts of appeals, and the highest courts in the states, although it may dismiss an appeal if it sees fit to do so. The Supreme Court, by means of a writ of certiorari, may call up a case from a district court for review. Regardless of how cases reach it, the Court enforces a kind of unity on the decisions of the lower courts. It also exercises the power of judicial review, determining the constitutionality of state laws, state constitutions, congressional statutes, and federal regulations, but only when these are specifically challenged.

The Constitution empowers Congress to establish all federal courts inferior to the Supreme Court. On the lowest level and handling the greatest proportion of federal cases are the district courtsincluding one each in Puerto Rico, Guam, the Virgin Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the District of Columbiawhere all offenses against the laws of the United States are tried. Civil actions that involve cases arising under treaties and laws of the United States and under the Constitution, where the amount in dispute is greater than $5,000, also fall within the jurisdiction of the district courts. District courts have no appellate jurisdiction; their decisions may be carried to the courts of appeals, organized into 13 circuits. These courts also hear appeals from decisions made by administrative commissions. For most cases, this is usually the last stage of appeal, except where the court rules that a statute of a state conflicts with the Constitution of the United States, with federal law, or with a treaty. Special federal courts include the Court of Claims, Court of Customs and Patent Appeals, and Tax Court.

State courts operate independently of the federal judiciary. Most states adhere to a court system that begins on the lowest level with a justice of the peace and includes courts of general trial jurisdiction, appellate courts, and, at the apex of the system, a state supreme court. The court of trial jurisdiction, sometimes called the county or superior court, has both original and appellate jurisdiction; all criminal cases (except those of a petty kind) and some civil cases are tried in this court. The state's highest court, like the Supreme Court of the United States, interprets the constitution and the laws of the state.

The grand jury is a body of from 13 to 24 persons that brings indictments against individuals suspected of having violated the law. Initially, evidence is presented to it by either a justice of the peace or a prosecuting county or district attorney. The trial or petit jury of 12 persons is used in trials of common law, both criminal and civil, except where the right to a jury trial is waived by consent of all parties at law. It judges the facts of the case, while the court is concerned exclusively with questions of law. The US accepts the compulsory jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice with reservations.

ARMED FORCES

The armed forces of the United States of America in 2005 numbered 1.473 million on active duty and 1.29 million in the Ready Reserve, a category of participation that allows regular training with pay and extended active duty periods for training. Membership in all US armed forces is voluntary and has been since 1973 when conscription expired as the Vietnam war was winding down. The active duty force includes 196,100 women, who serve in all grades and all occupational specialties except direct ground combat units and some aviation billets.

In the 1990s, the armed forces reduced their personnel numbers and force structure because of the diminished threat of a nuclear war with the former Soviet Union or a major conflict in central Europe. Despite the interlude of the Gulf War, 199091, the force reductions continued throughout the decade, forcing some restructuring of the active duty forces, with emphasis on rapid deployment to deter or fight major regional conflicts much like the Gulf War, in Korea, elsewhere in the Middle East, or Latin America (e.g. Cuba). The conventional force debate centered on whether the United States could or should maintain forces to fight two regional conflicts simultaneously. In the spring of 1999, the United States took part in the NATO air campaign in response to the crisis in Kosovo, and the ensuing US participation in peacekeeping operations in the region brought with it the prospect of another long-term overseas deployment.

For the purposes of administration, personnel management, logistics, and training, the traditional four military services in the Department of Defense remain central to strategic planning. The US Army numbers 502,000 soldiers on active duty, and are deployed into 10 divisions (two armored, four mechanized infantry, two light infantry, one air assault and one airborne), as well as into various armored cavalry, aviation, artillery, signals, psychological operations, ranger, Special Forces, civil affairs and air defense units. Army missions involving special operations are given to Special Forces groups, an airborne ranger regiment, an aviation group, and a psychological warfare group, with civil affairs and communications support units. The Army had 7,620 main battle tanks, 6,719 infantry fighting vehicles, 14,900 armored personnel carriers, 6,530 towed or self-propelled artillery pieces, some 268 fixed wing aircraft, and 4,431 armed and transport helicopters. The Army National Guard (355,900) emphasizes the preparation of combat units up to division size for major regional conflicts, while the Army Reserve (351,350) prepares individuals to fill active units or provide combat support or service support/technical/medical units upon mobilization. In addition, the National Guard retains a residual state role in suppressing civil disturbances and providing disaster relief.

The US Navy had 376,750 active personnel. The service has seen its role shift from nuclear strategic deterrence and control of sea routes to Europe and Asia, to the projection of naval power from the sea. Naval task forces normally combine three combat elements: air, surface, and subsurface. The Navy had up to 80 nuclear-powered submarines, that consisted of 16 strategic ballistic missile (SSBN) and 64 tactical/attack (SSGN and SSN) submarines. The latter ships can launch cruise missiles at land targets.

As of 2005, naval aviation was centered on 12 carriers (nine nuclear-powered) and 11 carrier aircraft wings, which included armed ASW helicopters and armed long-range ASW patrol aircraft, as well as a large fleet of communications and support aircraft. The Navy controlled 983 combat capable fixed wing aircraft and 608 helicopters of all types. Naval aviation reserves provided additional wings for carrier deployment. The surface force included 27 cruisers (22 with advanced antiair suites), 49 destroyers, 30 frigates, 38 amphibious ships, 26 mine warfare ships, and 21 patrol and coastal combatants. More ships are kept in ready reserve or were manned by surface line reserve units. The fleet support force also included specialized ships for global logistics that are not base-dependent.

The Marine Corps, a separate branch of the Navy, was organized into three active divisions and three aircraft wings of the Fleet Marine Force, which also included three Force Service Support groups and special operations and antiterrorism units. The Marine Corps (173,350; 11,311 reservists) emphasized amphibious landings but trained for a wide-range of contingency employments. The Marines had 344 combat capable fixed wing aircraft, 304 helicopters of all types, 403 main battle tanks, 1,311 amphibious armored vehicles, and about 1,511 artillery pieces (926 towed).

As of 2005, the US Air Force had 379,500 active personnel, and was focused on becoming rapidly deployable rather than US-based. Almost all its aircraft are now dedicated to nonstrategic roles in support of forward deployed ground and naval forces. The Air Force stressed the missions of air superiority and interdiction with complementary operations in electronic warfare and reconnaissance, but it also included 29 transport squadrons. Air Force personnel manage the US radar and satellite early-warning and intelligence effort. The Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard (roughly 183,200 active reserves) provided a wide range of flying and support units, and its flying squadrons had demonstrated exceptional readiness and combat skills on contingency missions. Air Force reserves, for example, were the backbone of the air refueling and transport fleets.

The armed forces were deployed among a range of functional unified or specified commands for actual missions. Strategic forces were under the US Strategic Command, which was a combined service command that controlled the United States' strategic nuclear deterrence forces, which as of 2005, was made up of 550 land-based ICBMs, 16 Navy fleet ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs), and 85 operational long-range bombers (B-52s and B-1As). Land-based ICBMs are under the Air Force Space Command, while the long-range bomber force was under the Air Force Air Combat Command. The Strategic Command was also responsible for strategic reconnaissance and intelligence collection, and the strategic early warning and air defense forces. In 2002 the Treaty of Moscow was signed between the United States and Russia to reduce deployed nuclear weapons by two-thirds by the year 2012. As of 2002, the United States had more than 10,000 operational nuclear warheads.

The conventional forces were deployed to a mix of geographic and organizational commands, including the Atlantic, European, Central, Southern, Northern and Pacific commands, as well as to specific organizational commands such as the Transportation Command, Special Operations Command and Air Mobility Command. Major operational units are deployed to Germany, Korea, and Japan as part of collective security alliances, in addition to forces stationed throughout other countries in the Middle East, Africa, Southeast Asia, Western and Eastern Europe, and Latin America. Approximately 19,000 US troops are stationed in Afghanistan with Operation Enduring Freedom.

Patterns of defense spending reflected the movement away from Cold War assumptions and confrontation with the former Soviet Union and the People's Republic of China. During the 1980s when defense spending hovered around $300 billion a year and increased roughly 30% over the decade, defense spending absorbed roughly 6% of the gross domestic spending, 25% of federal spending, and 16% of net public spending. In the early 1990s, when the defense budget slipped back to the $250$260 billion level, the respective percentages were 4.5, 18, and 11, the lowest levels of support for defense since the Korean War (1950). In 1999, the defense budget was $276.7 million or 3.2% of GDP. In 2005, US defense budget outlays totaled $465 billion.

INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION

The United States is a charter member of the United Nations, having joined on 24 October 1945. The United States participates in ECE, ECLAC, ESCAP, and all the nonregional specialized agencies. The United States is a permanent member of the UN Security Council. The United States participates in numerous intergovernmental organizations, including the Asian Development Bank, the African Development Bank, OECD, APEC, the Colombo Plan, the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, G-5, G-7. G-8, the Paris Club (G-10), OSCE, and the WTO. Hemispheric agencies include the Inter-American Development Bank and the OAS. The country is an observer in the Council of Europe and a dialogue partner with ASEAN.

In 1992, the United States, Canada, and Mexico signed the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), creating a free-trade zone among the three countries. It was ratified by all three governments in 1993 and took effect the following year.

NATO is the principal military alliance to which the United States belongs. The ANZUS alliance was a mutual defense pact between Australia, New Zealand, and the United States; in 1986, following New Zealand's decision to ban US nuclear-armed or nuclear-powered ships from its ports, the United States renounced its ANZUS treaty security commitments to New Zealand. The country is a signatory of the 1947 Río Treaty, an inter-American security agreement. The Untied States has supported UN missions and operations in Kosovo (est. 1999), Liberia (est. 2003), Georgia (est. 1993), and Haiti (est. 2004). The Untied States belongs to the Nuclear Suppliers Group (London Group), the Zangger Committee, the Nuclear Energy Agency, and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. It holds observer status in the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN).

In environmental cooperation, the United States is part of the Central AmericanUS Joint Declaration (CONCAUSA), the Antarctic Treaty, Conventions on Air Pollution and Whaling, Ramsar, CITES, the London Convention, International Tropical Timber Agreements, the Montréal Protocol, MARPOL, the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, and the UN Conventions on Climate Change and Desertification.

ECONOMY

The US economy is the world's largest. In variety and quantity, the natural resources of the United States probably exceed those of any other nation, with the possible exception of the former Soviet Union. The United States is among the world's leading exporters of coal, wheat, corn, and soybeans. However, because of its vast economic growth, the United States depends increasingly on foreign sources for a long list of raw materials, including oil.

By the middle of the 20th century, the United States was a leading consumer of nearly every important industrial raw material. The industry of the United States produced about 40% of the world's total output of goods, despite the fact that the country's population comprised about 6% of the world total and its land area about 7% of the earth's surface.

In absolute terms the United States far exceeds every other nation in the size of its gross domestic product (GDP), which more than tripled between 1970 and 1983. In 1998 the nation's GDP in purchasing power parity terms (PPP) reached a record $8.5 trillion in current dollars, with per capita GDP reaching $31,500. Per capita GDP (PPP) stood at $40,100 in 2004, and the nation's GDP (PPP) was $11.75 trillion.

Inflation was not as significant a factor in the US economy in the 1990s and early 2000s as it was in the 1970s and 1980s. The US inflation rate tends to be lower than that of the majority of industrialized nations. For the period 197078, for example, consumer prices increased by an annual average of 6.7%, less than in every other Western country except Austria, Luxembourg, Switzerland, and West Germany, and well below the price increase in Japan. The double-digit inflation of 197981 came as a rude shock to most Americans, with economists and politicians variously blaming international oil price rises, federal monetary policies, and US government spending.

The United States entered the postWorld War II era with the world's largest, and strongest, economy. Public confidence in both business and government was strong, the nation enjoyed the largest peacetime trade surplus in its history, and the gross national product grew to a record $482.7 billion by the end of the 1950s. In the sixties the country enjoyed the most sustained period of economic expansion it had known, accompanied by rising productivity and low unemployment. Real income rose 50% during the decade, and US investment in foreign countries reached $49 billion in 1965, up from $11.8 billion in 1950. Big business and big government were both powerful forces in the economy during this period, when large industrial corporations accounted for vast portions of the national income, and the federal government expanded its role in such areas as social welfare, scientific research, space technology, and development of the nation's highway system.

After two decades of prosperity, Americans experienced an economic downturn in the 1970s, a period known for the unprecedented combination of lagging economic growth and inflation that gave birth to the term stagflation. Foreign competitors in Japan and Europe challenged the global dominance of American manufacturers, and oil crises in 197374 and 1979 shook public confidence in the institutions of both government and business. The forced bailouts of Chrysler and Lockheed were symbolic of the difficult transition to a new economic era, marked by the growing importance of the service sector and the ascendancy of small businesses.

During Ronald Reagan's first presidential term, from 1980 to 1984, the nation endured two years of severe recession followed by two years of robust recovery. The inflation rate was brought down, and millions of new jobs were created. The economic boom of the early and mid-eighties, however, coincided with a number of alarming developments. Federal budget deficits, caused by dramatic increases in the military budget and by rising costs of entitlement programs such as Medicaid and Medicare, averaged more than $150 billion annually. By 1992, the total deficit reached $290 billion, or $1,150 for every American. In addition, corporate debt rose dramatically, and household borrowing grew twice as fast as personal income. The eighties also witnessed a crisis in the banking industry, caused by a combination of factors, including high inflation and interest rates, problem loans to developing countries, and speculative real estate ventures that caused thousands of banks to fail when the real estate boom of the early eighties collapsed.

The disparity between the affluent and the poor widened at the end of the 20th century. The share of the nation's income received by the richest 5% of American families rose from 18.6% in 1977 to 24.5% in 1990, while the share of the poorest 20% fell from 5.7% to 4.3%. Externally, the nation's trade position deteriorated, as a high level of foreign investment combined with an uncompetitive US dollar to create a ballooning trade deficit. In 1990, the American economy plunged into a recession. Factors contributing to the slump included rising oil prices following Iraq's invasion of Kuwait, a sharp increase in interest rates, and declining availability of credit. Output fell 1.6% and 1.7 million jobs were cut. Unemployment rose from 5.2% in 1989 to 7.5% in 1991, but had fallen to 4.5% by 1998.

The recovery that began in March 1991 inaugurated a sustained period of expansion that, as of mid-2000, was the third longest since World War II, characterized by moderation in the key areas of growth, inflation, unemployment, and interest rates. Real GDP growth, which fluctuated between 2% and 3.5% throughout the period, was 3.9% for 1998. After peaking at 7.5%, unemployment declined steadily throughout the early and mid-1990s, falling to 5.6% in 1995, 5.3% at the end of 1996, and in 1998, remaining below 5%. After 1993/94, inflation mostly remained under 3%. One exception to the generally moderate character of the economy was the stock market, which rose 60% between 1995 and 1997, buoyed by the combination of low unemployment and low inflation, as well as strong corporate earnings. Further cause for optimism was the bipartisan balanced-budget legislation enacted and signed into law in 1997. The plan, combining tax and spending cuts over a five-year period, was aimed at balancing the federal budget by 2002 for the first time since 1969. In early 2001, the government projected a budget surplus of $275 billion for the fiscal year ending that September. That surplus would soon be reversed.

At the beginning of the 21st century, significant economic concernsaside from the inevitable worry over how long the boom could last without an eventual downturnincluded the nation's sizable trade deficit, the increasing medical costs of an aging population, and the failure of the strong economy to improve conditions for the poor. Since 1975, gains in household income were experienced almost exclusively by the top 20% of households. However, in the late 1990s and early 2000s, productivity was continuing to grow, inflation was relatively low, and the labor market was tight.

Economic growth came to a standstill in the middle of 2001, largely due to the end of the long investment boom, especially in the information technology sector. The economy was in recession in the second half of 2001, and the service sector was affected as well as manufacturing. The 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States exacerbated the poor economic situation. Average real GDP growth rose by only 0.3% in 2001. The US economy, which had driven global economic growth during the 1990s, became the cause of a worldwide economic downturn, including in the rest of North America, Europe, Japan, and in the developing economies of Latin America and Southeast Asia strongly influenced by trends in the US economy.

The economy began to recover, slowly, in 2002, with GDP growth estimated at 2.45%. Analysts attributed the modest recovery to the ability of business decision-makers to respond to economic imbalances based on real-time information, on deregulation, and on innovation in financial and product markets. Nevertheless, domestic confidence in the economy remained low, and coupled with major corporate failures (including Enron and WorldCom) and additional stock market declines, growth remained sluggish and uneven. Economic growth slowed at the end of 2002 and into 2003, and the unemployment rate rose to 6.3% in July 2003. The CPI inflation rate fell to under 1.5% at the beginning of 2003, which raised concerns over the risk of deflation. As well, there was a substantial rise in military spending as a result of the war in Iraq which began in March 2003.

Following the start of the war in Iraq, consumer spending rebounded, as did stock prices; the housing market remained strong; inflation was low; the dollar depreciated on world markets; additional tax cuts were passed; there was an easing of oil prices; and productivity growth was strong. Nevertheless, in 2003, the federal budget deficit was projected to reach $455 billion, the largest shortfall on record.

The American economy grew at the rate of 4.3% in the third quarter of 2005, despite the ravages of Hurricane Katrina, which destroyed the port city of New Orleans and closed down a large portion of the energy industry. Unemployment hovered around 5% in 2005. Productivity had grown by 4.7%. But the nation's fast-growing economy had shaky underpinnings. Oil prices were at their highest level in real terms since the early 1980s, at $53.27/barrel. The inflation rate, which ran above 4% in late 2005, was at its highest level since 1991 (although core inflation, which excludes volatile energy and food prices, was still relatively modest). Wage growth was sluggish, and the jobs market was lagging the recovery. The current account deficit ballooned to record levels, and consumer spending was increasingly tied to prices in the over inflated housing market. The government ran a deficit of $412 billion in 2004, or 3.6% of GDP, but the deficit was forecast to narrow to $331 billion in 2006. Analysts projected that US deficits would average about 3.5% of GDP until about 2015.

INCOME

The US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) reports that in 2005 the United States's gross domestic product (GDP) was estimated at $12.4 trillion. The CIA defines GDP as the value of all final goods and services produced within a nation in a given year and computed on the basis of purchasing power parity (PPP) rather than value as measured on the basis of the rate of exchange based on current dollars. The per capita GDP was estimated at $41,800. The annual growth rate of GDP was estimated at 3.5%. The average inflation rate in 2005 was 3.2%. It was estimated that agriculture accounted for 1% of GDP, industry 20.7%, and services 78.3%.

According to the World Bank, in 2003 remittances from citizens working abroad totaled $3.031 billion or about $10 per capita.

The World Bank reports that in 2003 household consumption in United States totaled $7.385 trillion or about $25,379 per capita based on a GDP of $10.9 trillion, measured in current dollars rather than PPP. Household consumption includes expenditures of individuals, households, and nongovernmental organizations on goods and services, excluding purchases of dwellings. It was estimated that for the period 1990 to 2003 household consumption grew at an average annual rate of 3.7%. In 2001 it was estimated that approximately 13% of household consumption was spent on food, 9% on fuel, 4% on health care, and 6% on education. It was estimated that in 2004 about 12% of the population had incomes below the poverty line.

LABOR

The US labor force, including those who were unemployed, totaled 149.3 million in 2005. Of that total in that same year, farming, fishing and forestry accounted for 0.7% of the workforce, with manufacturing, extraction, transportation and crafts at 22.9%, managerial, professional and technical at 34.7%, sales and office at 25.4% and other services at 16.3%. Also that year, the unemployment rate was put at 5.1%. Earnings of workers vary considerably with type of work and section of country. In the first quarter of 2003, the national average wage was $15.27 per hour for nonagricultural workers, with an average workweek of 33.8 hours. Workers in manufacturing had a national average wage of $15.64, (including overtime), with the longest average workweek of all categories of workers at 40.4 hours in the first quarter of 2003.

In 2002, 13.2% of wage and salary workers were union members16.1 million US citizens belonged to a union that year. In 1983, union membership was 20.1%. In 2002, there were 34 national labor unions with over 100,000 members, the largest being the National Educational Association with 2.7 million members as of 2003. The most important federation of organized workers in the United States is the American Federation of LaborCongress of Industrial Organizations (AFLCIO), whose affiliated unions had 13 million members as of 2003, down from 14.1 million members in 1992. The major independent industrial and labor unions and their estimated 2002 memberships are the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, 1,398,412, and the United Automobile Workers, some 710,000 (the majority of whom work for General Motors, Ford, and Daimler-Chrylser). Most of the other unaffiliated unions are confined to a single establishment or locality. US labor unions exercise economic and political influence not only through the power of strikes and slowdowns but also through the human and financial resources they allocate to political campaigns (usually on behalf of Democratic candidates) and through the selective investment of multibillion-dollar pension funds.

The National Labor Relations Act of 1935 (the Wagner Act), the basic labor law of the United States, was considerably modified by the Labor-Management Relations Act of 1947 (the Taft-Hartley Act) and the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 (the Landrum-Griffin Act). Closed-shop agreements, which require employers to hire only union members, are banned. The union shop agreement, however, is permitted, if it allows the hiring of nonunion members on the condition that they join the union within a given period of time.

As of 2003, 23 states had right-to-work laws, forbidding the imposition of union membership as a condition of employment. Under the Taft-Hartley Act, the president of the United States may postpone a strike for 90 days in the national interest. The act of 1959 requires all labor organizations to file constitutions, bylaws, and detailed financial reports with the Secretary of Labor, and stipulates methods of union elections. The National Labor Relations Board seeks to remedy or prevent unfair labor practices and supervises union elections, while the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission seeks to prevent discrimination in hiring, firing, and apprenticeship programs.

The number of work stoppages and of workers involved reached a peak in the late 1960s and early 1970s, declining steadily thereafter. In 2002, there were 19 major stoppages involving 46,000 workers resulting in 660,000 workdays idle, compared with 1995, when there were 31 major stoppages involving 191,500 workers resulting in 5,771,000 days idle; a major stoppage was defined as one involving 1,000 workers or more for a minimum of one day or shift.

AGRICULTURE

In 2004, the United States produced a substantial share of the world's agricultural commodities. Agricultural exports reached almost $63.9 billion in 2004. The United States had an agricultural trade surplus of $4 billion in 2004, 14th highest among the nations.

Between 1930 and 2004, the number of farms in the United States declined from 6,546,000 to an estimated 2,110,000. The total amount of farmland increased from 399 million hectares (986 million acres) in 1930 to 479 million hectares (1.18 billion acres) in 1959 but declined to 380 million hectares (938 million acres) in 2002. From 1930 to 2004, the size of the average farm tripled from 61 to 179 hectares (from 151 to 443 acres), a result of the consolidation effected by large-scale mechanized production. The farm population, which comprised 35% of the total US population in 1910, declined to 25% during the Great Depression of the 1930s, and dwindled to less than 2% by 2004.

A remarkable increase in the application of machinery to farms took place during and after World War II (193945). Tractors, trucks, milking machines, grain combines, corn pickers, and pickup bailers became virtual necessities in farming. In 1920 there was less than one tractor in use for every 400 hectares (1,000 acres) of cropland harvested; by 2003 there were five tractors per 400 hectares. Two other elements essential to US farm productivity are chemical fertilizers and irrigation. Fertilizers and lime represent more than 6% of farm operating expenses. Arable land under irrigation amounted to 12% of the total in 2003.

Substantial quantities of corn, the most valuable crop produced in the United States, are grown in almost every state; its yield and price are important factors in the economies of the regions where it is grown. Production of selected US crops in 2004 (in 1,000 metric tons), and their percent of world production were wheat, 58,737 (9.3%); corn, 299,917 (33.2%); rice, 10,469 (1.7%); soybeans, 85,013 (41.6%); cotton, 5,062 (20.5%); and tobacco, 398.8 (6.1%).

ANIMAL HUSBANDRY

The livestock population in 2005 included an estimated 95.8 million head of cattle, 60.6 million hogs, and 6.1 million sheep and lambs. That year, there were 1.9 billion chickens, and 88 million turkeys. Milk production totaled 80.1 million metric tons in that year, with Wisconsin, California, and New York together accounting for much of the total. Wisconsin, Minnesota, and California account for more than half of all US butter production, which totaled 608,900 metric tons in 2005; in that year, the United States was the world's largest producer of cheese, with almost 4.5 million metric tons (24% of the world's total). The United States produced an estimated 15% of the world's meat supply in 2005. In 2005, meat animals accounted for $4.97 billion in exports; dairy and eggs, $1.17 billion.

FISHING

The 2003 commercial catch was 5.48 million tons. Food fish make up 80% of the catch, and nonfood fish, processed for fertilizer and oil, 20%. Aquaculture accounts for about 10% of total production.

Alaska pollock, with landings of 1,524,904 tons, was the most important species in quantity among the commercial fishery landings in the United States in 2003. Other leading species by volume included Gulf menhaden, 522,195 tons; Atlantic menhaden, 203,263 tons; Pacific cod, 257,436 tons; North Pacific hake, 140,327 tons; and American cupped oyster, 183,940 tons. In 2003, exports of fish products totaled $3,398 million (fourth after China, Thailand, and Norway).

Aquacultural production consists mostly of catfish, oysters, trout, and crayfish. In 2004, there were 1,147 catfish and 601 trout farms in the United States, with sales of $425 million and $64 million, respectively.

Pollution is a problem of increasing concern to the US fishing industry; dumping of raw sewage, industrial wastes, spillage from oil tankers, and blowouts of offshore wells are the main threats to the fishing grounds. Overfishing is also a threat to the viability of the industry in some areas, especially Alaska.

FORESTRY

US forestland covers about 226 million hectares (558.4 million acres), or 25% of the land area. Major forest regions include the eastern, central hardwood, southern, Rocky Mountain, and Pacific coast areas. The National Forest Service lands account for approximately 19% of the nation's forestland. Extensive tracts of land (4 million acres or more) are under ownership of private lumber companies in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Maine, Oregon, and Washington. During 19902000, forested area increased by an annual average of 38,000 hectares (93,900 acres) per year.

Domestic production of roundwood during 2004 amounted to 458.3 million cu m (16.2 billion cu ft), or 1.7% of world production, of which softwoods accounted for roughly 60%. Other forest products in 2004 included 54.3 million metric tons of wood pulp, 83.6 million metric tons of paper and paperboard (excluding newsprint), and 44.2 million cu m (1.56 billion cu ft) of wood-based panels. Rising petroleum prices in the late 1970s sparked a revival in the use of wood as home heating fuel, especially in the Northeast. Fuelwood and charcoal production amounted to 43.6 million cu m (1.5 billion cu ft) in 2004.

Throughout the 19th century, the federal government distributed forestlands lavishly as a means of subsidizing railroads and education. By the turn of the century, the realization that the forests were not inexhaustible led to the growth of a vigorous conservation movement, which was given increased impetus during the 1930s and again in the late 1960s. Federal timberlands are no longer open for private acquisition, although the lands can be leased for timber cutting and for grazing. In recent decades, the states also have moved in the direction of retaining forestlands and adding to their holdings when possible.

MINING

Rich in a variety of mineral resources, the United States was a world leader in the production of many important mineral commodities, such as aluminum, cement, copper, pig iron, lead, molybdenum, phosphates, potash, salt, sulfur, uranium, and zinc. The leading mineral-producing states were Arizona (copper, sand and gravel, portland cement, molybdenum); California (portland cement, sand and gravel, gold, boron); Michigan (iron ore, portland cement, sand and gravel, magnesium compounds); Georgia (clays, crushed and broken stone, portland and masonry cement, sand and gravel); Florida (phosphate rock, crushed and broken stone, portland cement, sand and gravel); Utah (copper, gold, magnesium metal, sand and gravel); Texas (portland cement, crushed and broken stone, magnesium metal, sand and gravel); and Minnesota (iron ore, construction and industrial sand and gravel, crushed and broken stone). Oklahoma and New Mexico were important for petroleum and natural gas, and Kentucky, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania, for coal. Iron ore supported the nation's most basic nonagricultural industry, iron and steel manufacture; the major domestic sources were in the Lake Superior area, with Minnesota and Michigan leading all other states in iron ore yields.

ENERGY AND POWER

The United States is the world's leading energy producer and consumer.

According to British Petroleum (BP), as of the end of 2003, the United States had proven oil reserves of 29.4 billion barrels. Oil production that year averaged 7.4 million barrels per day, with domestic demand averaging 20 million barrels per day. As a result, the United States in 2003 was a net oil importer. In 2003, imports of all oil products averaged 12.3 million barrels per day, of which crude oil accounted for an average of 9.7 million barrels per day. Refined oil production in 2003 averaged 17.8 million barrels per day.

At year-end in 2003, the United States had proven reserves of natural gas totaling 5.29 trillion cu m (186.9 trillion cu ft), according to BP. Gross production that year, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), totaled 24,056.00 billion cu ft. Of that amount in 2003, some 98 billion cu ft was vented or flared, and 3,548 billion cu ft was re-injected. Marketed production totaled 19,912 billion cu ft, with dry production at 19,036 billion cu ft. Demand in that same year for dry production totaled 22,375 billion cu ft. As with oil, the United States was a net importer of natural gas. Imports of dry natural gas in 2003 totaled 3,996 billion cu ft, while dry exports totaled 692 billion cu ft, according to the EIA.

The United States had recoverable coal reserves of 246.6 billion metric tons at the end of 2004, according to BP. Of that amount, anthracite and bituminous coal reserves totaled 111.3 billion metric tons, with sub-bituminous and lignite reserves totaling 135.3 billion metric tons, according to BP. In 2003 according to the EIA, coal production by the United States totaled 1.1 billion short tons, of which 988 million short tons consisted of bituminous coal, with anthracite output totaling 1.3 million short tons. Lignite or brown coal output that year totaled 80.6 million short tons, according to the EIA.

In 2003, US electric power generation capacity by public and private generating plants totaled 932.832 million kW, of which 736.728 million kW of capacity belonged to conventional thermal fuel plants, followed by nuclear plant at 98.794 million kW. Hydroelectric capacity that year totaled 79.366 million kW, with geothermal/other capacity at 17.944 million kW. Electric power output in 2003 totaled 3,891.720 billion kWh, of which conventional thermal plants generated 2.76 billion kWh, followed by nuclear plants at 763.733 billion kWh, hydroelectric facilities at 275.806 billion kWh and geothermal/other facilities at 93.531 billion kWh.

During the 1980s, increasing attention was focused on the development of solar power, synthetic fuels, geothermal resources, and other energy technologies. Such energy conservation measures as mandatory automobile fuel-efficiency standards and tax incentives for home insulation were promoted by the federal government, which also decontrolled oil and gas prices in the expectation that a rise in domestic costs to world-market levels would provide a powerful economic incentive for consumers to conserve fuel. In 2001 the United States had 1,694 MW of installed wind power.

INDUSTRY

Although the United States remains one of the world's preeminent industrial powers, manufacturing no longer plays as dominant a role in the economy as it once did.

Between 1979 and 1998, manufacturing employment fell from 20.9 million to 18.7 million, or from 21.8% to 14.8% of national employment. Throughout the 1960s, manufacturing accounted for about 29% of total national income; by 1987, the proportion was down to about 19%. In 2002, manufacturing was experiencing a decline due to the recession that began in March 2001. In 2004, industry accounted for 19.7% of GDP. That year, 22.7% of the labor force was engaged in manufacturing, extraction, transportation, and crafts.

Industrial activity within the United States has been expanding southward and westward for much of the 20th century, most rapidly since World War II. Louisiana, Oklahoma, and especially Texas are centers of industrial expansion based on petroleum refining; aerospace and other high technology industries are the basis of the new wealth of Texas and California, the nation's leading manufacturing state. The industrial heartland of the United States is the eastnorthcentral region, comprising Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin, with steelmaking and automobile manufacturing among the leading industries. The Middle Atlantic states (New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania) and the Northeast are also highly industrialized; but of the major industrial states in these two regions, Massachusetts has taken the lead in reorienting itself toward such high-technology industries as electronics and information processing.

Large corporations are dominant especially in sectors such as steel, automobiles, pharmaceuticals, aircraft, petroleum refining, computers, soaps and detergents, tires, and communications equipment. The growth of multinational activities of US corporations has been rapid in recent decades.

The history of US industry has been marked by the introduction of increasingly sophisticated technology in the manufacturing process. Advances in chemistry and electronics have revolutionized many industries through new products and methods: examples include the impact of plastics on petrochemicals, the use of lasers and electronic sensors as measuring and controlling devices, and the application of microprocessors to computing machines, home entertainment products, and a variety of other industries. Science has vastly expanded the number of metals available for industrial purposes, notably such light metals as aluminum, magnesium, and titanium. Integrated machines now perform a complex number of successive operations that formerly were done on the assembly line at separate stations. Those industries have prospered that have been best able to make use of the new technology, and the economies of some states have been largely based on it.

In the 1980s and 1990s, the United States was the world leader in computer manufacturing. At the beginning of the 21st century, however, the high-tech manufacturing industry registered a decline. Semiconductor manufacturing had been migrating out of the United States to East Asian countries, especially China, Taiwan, and Singapore, and research and development in that sector declined from 19992003. Certain long-established industriesespecially clothing and steelmakinghave suffered from outmoded facilities that (coupled with high US labor costs) have forced the price of their products above the world market level. In 2005, the United States was the world's third-leading steel producer (after China and Japan). Employment in the steel-producing industry fell from 521,000 in 1974 to 187,500 in 2002. Automobile manufacturing was an ailing industry in the 1980s, but rebounded in the 1990s. The "Big Three" US automakersGeneral Motors (GM), Ford, and Daimler-Chryslermanufactured over 60% of the passenger cars sold in the United States in 1995. In 2005, however, General Motors (GM) announced it was cutting 30,000 North American manufacturing jobs, the deepest cuts since 1991, when GM eliminated 74,000 jobs over four years. Passenger car production, which had fallen from 7.1 million units in 1987 to 5.4 million in 1991, rose to 6.3 million by 1995 and to 8.3 million in 1999. In 2003, over 12 million motor vehicles were produced in the United States.

The United States had a total of 148 oil refineries as of January 2005, with a production capacity as of September 2004 of 17.1 million barrels per day. Crude oil and refined petroleum products are crucial imports, however.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

In 2003, an estimated $284.6 billion was spent on research and development (R&D). Since 1980, industry's share of funding for R&D has grown to exceed the share provided by the federal government. In 2003, the proportions were 63.1% from industry and 31.2% from the federal government, followed by 5.7% from higher education. As of 2002, national spending on R&D amounted to 2.67% of GDP. In that same year, high technology exports were valued at $162.345 billion, or 32% of the country's manufactured exports. There were an estimated 4,099 scientists and engineers engaged in research and development per million people for the period 19902001.

In 1998 NASA's budget was $9.9 billion. In 1960 NASA spent only $1.1 billion. Launching of the space shuttle orbiter Columbia began in 1981; a fleet of four reusable shuttles, which would replace all other launch vehicles was planned. However, the January 1986 Challenger disaster, in which seven crew members died, cast doubt on the program. The three remaining shuttles were grounded, and the shuttles were redesigned for increased safety. A new shuttle, Endeavour, was built to take the place of Challenger. President Reagan, following the Challenger disaster, banned the shuttle from commercial use for nine years. The shuttle's return to space began with the launch of the shuttle Atlantis in September 1988. Following the catastrophic breakup of the space shuttle Columbia in February 2003, NASA suspended the launch schedule until the cause of the accident was determined.

The National Science Foundation (founded in 1950) is one of the chief government agencies funding scientific research. The American Association for the Advancement of Science (founded in 1848) promotes public understanding of science and technology. The National Academy of Sciences (founded in 1863) and the National Academy of Engineering (founded in 1964) are both headquartered in Washington, DC. In 1996, more than 95,000 students in the United States earned master's degrees in science and engineering. In 2002, of all bachelor's degrees awarded, 17.1% were in the sciences (natural, mathematics and computers, engineering).

DOMESTIC TRADE

Total retail sales for 2004 were $3.5 trillion. Total e-commerce sales were estimated at $69.2 billion, an increase of 23.5% over 2003. The growth of great chains of retail stores, particularly in the form of the supermarket, was one of the most conspicuous developments in retail trade following the end of World War II. Nearly

CountryExportsImportsBalance
World723,608.61,305,091.6-581,483.0
Canada169,451.6227,600.1-58,148.5
Mexico97,452.4139,700.4-42,248.0
Japan52,061.6121,232.3-69,170.7
United Kingdom33,893.843,741.6-9,847.8
Germany28,845.969,613.2-40,767.3
China28,416.6163,250.1-134,833.5
Korea, Republic of24,097.338,344.9-14,247.6
Netherlands20,694.811,435.39,259.5
Other Asia nes17,487.633,017.7-15,530.1
France-Monaco17,340.129,897.5-12,557.4
() data not available or not significant.

100,000 single-unit grocery stores went out of business between 1948 and 1958; the independent grocer's share of the food market dropped from 50% to 30% of the total in the same period. With the great suburban expansion of the 1960s emerged the planned shopping center, usually designed by a single development organization and intended to provide different kinds of stores in order to meet all the shopping needs of the particular area. Between 1974 and 2000, the square footage occupied by shopping centers in the United States grew at a far greater rate than the nation's population.

Installment credit is a major support for consumer purchases in the United States. Most US families own and use credit cards, and their frequency of use has grown significantly in the 1990s and 2000s with aggressive marketing by credit card companies which have made cards available to households that didn't qualify in the past. The number of credit cards per household in 2004 was 8. The number of credit cards in circulation in 2004 was 641 million. The average household credit card debt in the United States in 2004 was approximately $8,650, and the total credit card debt in the United States in 2004 was some $800 billion. The use of debit cards was expected to exceed the use of credit cards in 2005.

The US advertising industry is the world's most highly developed. Particularly with the expansion of television audiences, spending for advertising has increased almost annually to successive record levels. Advertising expenditures in 2003 reached an estimated $249 billion, up from $66.58 billion in 1982 and $11.96 billion in 1960. Of the 2003 total, $87.8 billion was spent in radio, broadcast television, and cable television; $57.2 billion was spent on print media (newspapers and magazines); and internet advertising amounted to $5.6 billion.

In 2003 merchant wholesalers had combined total sales of $2.88 trillion.

FOREIGN TRADE

The volume of the US exports and imports exceeds that of any country. However, the value of US external sector as a percentage of GDP is comparatively low. The foreign trade position of the United States deteriorated in the 1980s as the United States became a debtor nation with a trade deficit that ballooned from $24 billion to over $100 billion by the end of the 1980s; by 2004, the trade deficit had reached an estimated $618 billion, a 24% increase over 2003. Exports of goods and services totaled $1.14 trillion in 2004, while imports totaled $1.76 trillion. The gap in merchandise trade with China jumped some 31% to nearly $162 billion in 2004, by far the largest gap than with any other trading partner. The Unites States' largest trading partners were Canada, Mexico, Japan, the United Kingdom, China, and Germany.

The Unites States' major exports include transistors, aircraft, motor vehicle parts, automobiles, computers, telecommunications equipment, medicines, chemicals, and soybeans, fruit, and corn. Major imports include computers, motor vehicle parts, automobiles, telecommunications equipment, office machines, electric power machinery, clothing medicines, furniture, toys, crude oil, and agricultural products.

BALANCE OF PAYMENTS

Since 1950, the United States has generally recorded deficits in its overall payments with the rest of the world, despite the fact that

COUNTRYTRADE BALANCERANKEXPORTS F.A.S.RANKIMPORTS CUSTOMSRANK
Total, BOP Basis-782,740.2(X)894,630.8(X)1,677,371.0(X)
Net Adjustments-15,263.3(X)-11,346.8(X)3,916.5(X)
Total, Census Basis-767,476.9(X)905,977.6(X)1,673,454.5(X)
Afghanistan194.8205262.29367.3132
Albania-18.710218.517937.2146
Algeria-9,279.0201,167.46010,446.427
Andorra9.915210.51870.7203
Angola-7,555.324929.0668,484.433
Anguilla28.416832.21603.8180
Antigua and Barbuda186.0204190.41054.4177
Argentina-461.8674,121.9324,583.646
Armenia19.316065.514246.2143
Aruba-2,360.836558.9762,919.754
Australia8,486.022915,828.2147,342.235
Austria-3,509.7302,593.3426,102.939
Azerbaijan87.1193132.511645.4144
Bahamas1,086.82221,786.751699.980
Bahrain-80.892350.888431.689
Bangladesh-2,373.335319.8902,693.056
Barbados363.0212394.98431.9150
Belarus-310.27134.9158345.297
Belgium5,667.722618,690.61213,022.924
Belize119.3199217.610198.3124
Benin71.818772.31380.5205
Bermuda403.2216490.58287.3128
Bhutan2.41353.12080.6204
Bolivia-73.794219.599293.2102
Bosnia-Herzegovina-52.99617.618170.5131
Botswana-110.98867.3141178.2112
Brazil-9,063.82115,371.71524,435.515
British Indian Ocean Territories0.41250.82190.4208
British Virgin Islands91.3194124.911733.6148
Brunei-513.16449.6150562.782
Bulgaria-186.381267.992454.385
Burkina23.016325.11742.1188
Burma (Myanmar)5.41425.52010.1220
Burundi3.71378.11984.4176
Cambodia-1,697.34569.71391,767.064
Cameroon-40.898117.3119158.2117
Canada-78,485.63211,898.71290,384.31
Cape Verde7.21489.91902.6185
Cayman Islands627.2219680.77053.5138
Central African Republic9.115114.81835.7171
Chad-1,444.34953.81491,498.167
Chile-1,441.7505,222.6296,664.337
China-201,544.8141,925.34243,470.12
Christmas Island1.61322.02140.4210
Cocos (Keeling) Island0.61281.02170.5207
Colombia-3,387.0315,462.4288,849.431
Comoros-1.21130.32241.4192
Congo (DROC)-198.67865.0143263.6107
Congo (ROC)-1,518.847104.11231,622.965
Cook Islands-0.41161.42161.7189
Costa Rica183.32033,598.6363,415.350
Côte d'Ivoire-1,073.755124.21181,198.072
Croatia-205.777158.6109364.394
Cuba369.0213369.086(-)226
Cyprus53.618184.213130.5152
Czech Republic-1,139.3541,053.6632,192.959
Denmark-3,225.8321,918.4495,144.243
Djibouti46.517747.61511.1198
Dominica58.218361.51463.3183
Dominican Republic115.01984,718.7304,603.745
East Timor8.61508.71970.1219
Ecuador-3,794.9291,963.8475,758.741
Egypt1,068.02213,159.3382,091.260
El Salvador-134.5861,854.3501,988.862
COUNTRYTRADE BALANCERANKEXPORTS F.A.S.RANKIMPORTS CUSTOMSRANK
Equatorial Guinea-1,279.751281.5911,561.166
Eritrea29.817231.11631.3196
Estonia-366.070145.4113511.484
Ethiopia448.3217510.18161.8134
Falkland Islands-0.21179.01959.3164
Faroe Islands-1.71112.52104.3178
Federal Republic of Germany-50,567.2434,183.7684,750.95
Federated States of Micronesia23.816425.31731.6191
Fiji-141.38528.2169169.5114
Finland-2,087.6402,254.1444,341.747
France-11,431.71622,410.4933,842.110
French Guiana26.916727.01720.1217
French Polynesia51.7179111.812160.1135
French Southern and Antarctic Lands0.21240.32250.1222
Gabon-2,716.53499.11252,815.655
Gambia30.217330.61650.4209
Gaza Strip Administered by Israel-1.21120.22261.4193
Georgia19.5161213.9102194.4111
Ghana179.0202337.489158.4116
Gibraltar158.6201163.31084.6174
Greece308.52111,192.259883.778
Greenland-12.21055.120217.3156
Grenada76.618882.41335.9169
Guadeloupe52.418054.51482.1187
Guatemala-302.0722,835.4403,137.453
Guinea18.915993.612974.7130
Guinea-Bissau2.01332.12130.1218
Guyana56.8182176.7107119.9121
Haiti262.4209709.669447.287
Heard and McDonald Islands0.11220.2227(-)225
Honduras-495.4663,253.8373,749.249
Hong Kong7,459.322816,351.0138,891.730
Hungary-1,537.9461,023.3642,561.257
Iceland243.0208512.080269.0105
India-10,814.8187,989.42218,804.218
Indonesia-8,960.4223,053.93912,014.326
Iran-78.79395.8127174.5113
Iraq-7,679.7231,374.0559,053.729
Ireland-19,397.4119,335.72028,733.113
Israel-7,093.1259,737.31916,830.519
Italy-19,484.91011,524.31631,009.312
Jamaica1,325.22231,700.852375.693
Japan-82,519.2255,484.53138,003.74
Jordan-622.759644.2711,266.869
Kazakhstan-562.962538.3771,101.174
Kenya284.5210632.572348.096
Kiribati1.31302.42111.1197
Korea, North5.81455.8199(-)227
Korea, South-16,016.51227,765.0743,781.47
Kuwait-2,359.9371,974.9464,334.848
Kyrgyzstan26.516631.11624.6175
Laos5.61449.81914.2179
Latvia-184.682177.5106362.295
Lebanon379.3214465.78386.4129
Lesotho-399.6684.0205403.691
Liberia-21.510069.314090.8127
Libya-1,506.54883.81321,590.3(X)
Liechtenstein-276.07419.7178295.7101
Lithuania-243.975390.085633.981
Luxembourg393.6215782.468388.892
Macao-1,147.453101.61241,249.070
Macedonia (Skopje)-16.610431.616148.1142
Madagascar-295.47328.2168323.699
Malawi-87.59028.0170115.5122
Malaysia-23,224.3710,460.81833,685.211
Maldives3.81389.31935.5172
Mali28.817032.41593.6182
Malta-88.989193.7104282.7103
Marshall Islands58.318475.513617.2157
COUNTRYTRADE BALANCERANKEXPORTS F.A.S.RANKIMPORTS CUSTOMSRANK
Martinique12.715735.015722.2155
Mauritania85.319286.11300.8202
Mauritius-191.07930.9164221.9109
Mayotte(-)120(-)230(-)228
Mexico-49,743.85120,364.82170,108.63
Moldova-10.210640.115450.2140
Monaco-20.710116.818237.5145
Mongolia-121.88721.9177143.6118
Montserrat3.91394.82031.0201
Morocco79.2190525.079445.888
Mozambique50.917862.814411.9160
Namibia-17.3103112.2120129.6120
Nauru1.51311.62150.1215
Nepal-86.59124.7175111.2123
Netherlands11,622.623026,484.6814,862.022
Netherlands Antilles215.22061,137.661922.477
New Caledonia11.215438.415527.2153
New Zealand-503.4652,651.8413,155.252
Nicaragua-555.363625.5731,180.873
Niger13.015878.513565.5133
Nigeria-22,618.281,621.25324,239.416
Niue0.51270.62200.1216
Norfolk Island0.21230.42230.2214
Norway-4,834.4281,941.9486,776.336
Oman39.9175594.975555.083
Pakistan-2,001.6411,251.6573,253.251
Palau11.715512.21850.5206
Panama1,835.02242,162.045327.198
Papua New Guinea-3.110755.314758.5136
Paraguay844.2220895.86751.6139
Peru-2,809.7332,309.4435,119.244
Philippines-2,355.0386,895.4259,250.428
Pitcairn Island-0.61140.52211.0200
Poland-680.8581,267.7561,948.663
Portugal-1,196.8521,131.9622,328.758
Qatar538.8218986.665447.986
Republic of Yemen-59.695219.0100278.6104
Reunion-2.01103.82065.8170
Romania-598.760608.9741,207.671
Russia-11,344.3173,962.43315,306.720
Rwanda4.214010.51886.3167
San Marino3.31364.72041.4194
São Tomé and Príncipe9.915310.21890.2213
Saudi Arabia-20,379.896,812.82627,192.614
Senegal154.8200158.51103.7181
Serbia and Montenegro77.9189132.511554.6137
Seychelles12.015617.91805.9168
Sierra Leone28.516937.81569.3163
Singapore5,532.222520,642.21115,110.121
Slovakia-810.957149.8112960.776
Slovenia-179.283233.898413.090
Solomon Islands0.91292.32121.4195
Somalia8.51498.81960.3211
South Africa-1,978.7423,906.9345,885.640
Spain-1,701.0446,913.6248,614.632
Sri Lanka-1,885.343197.61032,082.961
St. Helena-0.51152.72093.3184
St. Kitts and Nevis44.417694.112849.7141
St. Lucia103.0197135.411432.4149
St. Pierre and Miquelon-0.11181.02181.1199
St. Vincent and the Grenadines29.817145.415315.7158
Sudan94.5195108.112213.6159
Suriname80.4191245.795165.3115
Svalbard, Jan Mayen Island5.61435.7200(-)223
Swaziland-187.08011.9186198.9110
Sweden-10,105.6193,715.43513,821.023
Switzerland-2,280.03910,719.81712,999.925
Syria-168.584155.0111323.6100
Taiwan-12,756.61322,069.21034,825.88
COUNTRYTRADE BALANCERANKEXPORTS F.A.S.RANKIMPORTS CUSTOMSRANK
Tajikistan-212.27628.8167241.0108
Tanzania62.718596.412633.7147
Thailand-12,633.1147,256.62319,889.817
Togo21.516227.91716.4166
Tokelau69.018679.813410.8161
Tonga4.31419.71925.4173
Trinidad and Tobago-6,474.1261,416.7547,890.934
Tunisia-2.6108261.294263.8106
Turkey-913.1564,269.0315,182.142
Turkmenistan101.8196237.197135.3119
Turks and Caicos Islands228.3207237.8969.4162
Tuvalu(-)119(-)2280.1221
Uganda36.817462.614525.8154
Ukraine-565.161533.0781,098.075
United Arab Emirates7,014.12278,482.4211,468.368
United Kingdom-12,444.81538,587.8551,032.66
Uruguay-375.669356.787732.379
Uzbekistan-21.89973.813795.6125
Vanuatu6.61479.11942.5186
Vatican City23.916524.21760.3212
Venezuela-27,557.266,420.92733,978.19
Vietnam-5,438.0271,193.2586,631.238
Wallis and Futuna0.41260.4222(-)224
West Bank Administered by Israel2.11343.72071.6190
Western Sahara(-)121(-)229(-)229
Western Samoa6.614614.51847.9165
Zambia-2.610929.116631.7151
Zimbabwe-48.89745.515294.3126
Unidentified216.3(X)216.3(X)(-)(X)
North America-128,229.4(X)332,263.5(X)460,492.9(X)
Western Europe-125,453.7(X)200,260.3(X)325,714.0(X)
Euro Area-91,384.0(X)137,496.7(X)228,880.7(X)
European Union (25)-122,338.2(X)186,437.3(X)308,775.5(X)
European Union (15)-117,160.3(X)181,718.3(X)298,878.5(X)
European Free Trade Association-7,147.4(X)13,193.5(X)20,340.9(X)
Eastern Europe-18,539.6(X)10,994.0(X)29,533.6(X)
Former Soviet Republics-13,566.9(X)6,604.3(X)20,171.2(X)
Organization for Economic Cooperation & Development (OECD) in Europe-125,232.5(X)199,207.8(X)324,440.4(X)
Pacific Rim Countries-328,066.4(X)223,334.0(X)551,400.4(X)
AsiaNear East-30,550.8(X)31,893.6(X)62,444.3(X)
Asia(NICS)-15,781.6(X)86,827.5(X)102,609.1(X)
AsiaSouth-16,966.6(X)10,045.2(X)27,011.8(X)
Assoc. of South East Asia Nations (ASEAN)-49,278.2(X)49,636.7(X)98,914.9(X)
APEC-488,815.3(X)575,440.1(X)1,064,255.4(X)
South/Central America-50,460.1(X)72,413.0(X)122,873.0(X)
Twenty Latin American Republics-96,587.6(X)182,836.4(X)279,424.0(X)
Central American Common Market-1,304.0(X)12,167.5(X)13,471.5(X)
Latin American Free Trade Association-97,865.1(X)162,709.5(X)260,574.6(X)
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Allies-198,120.9(X)406,259.2(X)604,380.0(X)
Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)-92,866.6(X)32,073.8(X)124,940.4(X)
Unidentified216.3(X)216.3(X)(-)(X)
(1) Detailed data are presented on a Census basis. The information needed to convert to a BOP basis is not available.
(2) Countries included in Euro Area are also included in European Union. See Page 27 of the FT-900 release for a list of countries.
(3) Selected countries are included in more than one area grouping. Indonesia is included in both OPEC and Pacific Rim; Venezuela is included in both OPEC and Other South/Central America.
(4) The export totals refl ect shipments of certain grains, oilseeds, and satellites that are not included in the country/area totals.
NOTE: For information on data sources, nonsampling errors and defi nitions, see the information section on page 27 of the FT-900 release, or at www.census.gov/ft900 or www.bea.gov/bea/di/home/trade.htm.
Current Account-530.7
   Balance on goods-544.3
     Imports-1,260.7
     Exports716.4
   Balance on services47.8
   Balance on income33.3
   Current transfers-67.4
Capital Account-3.1
Financial Account544.2
   Direct investment abroad-173.8
   Direct investment in United States39.9
   Portfolio investment assets-72.3
   Portfolio investment liabilities544.5
   Financial derivatives
   Other investment assets-38.8
   Other investment liabilities244.8
Net Errors and Omissions-12.0
Reserves and Related Items1.5
() data not available or not significant.

it had an unbroken record of annual surpluses up to 1970 on current-account goods, services, and remittances transactions. The balance of trade, in the red since 1975, reached a record deficit of $618 billion in 2004. The current account deficit in 2004 was 5.5% of GDP, or an estimated $635 billion.

The nation's stock of gold declined from a value of $22.9 billion at the start of 1958 to $10.5 billion as of 31 July 1971, only two weeks before President Nixon announced that the United States would no longer exchange dollars for gold. From 19902004, the value of the gold stock was stable at $11 billion. The US holds 8,140 metric tons of gold, and in December 2005, gold was trading at nearly $500 an ounce.

BANKING AND SECURITIES

The Federal Reserve Act of 1913 provided the United States with a central banking system. The Federal Reserve System dominates US banking, is a strong influence in the affairs of commercial banks, and exercises virtually unlimited control over the money supply. The Federal Reserve Bank system is an independent government organization, with important posts appointed by the president and approved by the Senate.

Each of the 12 federal reserve districts contains a federal reserve bank. A board of nine directors presides over each reserve bank. Six are elected by the member banks in the district. Of this group, three may be bankers; the other three represent business, industry, or agriculture. The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (usually known as the Federal Reserve Board) appoints the remaining three, who may not be officers, directors, stockholders, or employees of any bank and who are presumed therefore to represent the public.

The Federal Reserve Board regulates the money supply and the amount of credit available to the public by asserting its power to alter the rediscount rate, by buying and selling securities in the open market, by setting margin requirements for securities purchases, by altering reserve requirements of member banks in the system, and by resorting to a specific number of selective controls at its disposal. The Federal Reserve Board's role in regulating the money supply is held by economists of the monetarist school to be the single most important factor in determining the nation's inflation rate.

Member banks increase their reserves or cash holdings by rediscounting commercial notes at the federal reserve bank at a rate of interest ultimately determined by the Board of Governors. A change in the discount rate, therefore, directly affects the capacity of the member banks to accommodate their customers with loans. Similarly, the purchase or sale of securities in the open market, as determined by the Federal Open Market Committee, is the most commonly used device whereby the amount of credit available to the public is expanded or contracted. The same effect is achieved in some measure by the power of the Board of Governors to raise or lower the reserves that member banks must keep against demand deposits. Credit tightening by federal authorities in early 1980 pushed the prime rate-the rate that commercial banks charge their most creditworthy customers-above 20% for the first time since the financial panics of 1837 and 1839, when rates reached 36%. As federal monetary policies eased, the prime rate dropped below 12% in late 1984; as of 2000 it was below 10%. In mid-2003 the federal funds rate was reduced to 1%, a 45-year low.

The financial sector is dominated by commercial banks, insurance companies, and mutual funds. There was little change in the nature of the sector between the 1930s, when it was rescued through the creation of regulatory bodies and deposit insurance, and the 1980s, when the market was deregulated. In the 1980s, the capital markets underwent extensive reforms. The markets became increasingly internationalized, as deregulation allowed foreign-owned banks to extend their operations. There was also extensive restructuring of domestic financial markets-interest-rate ceilings were abolished and competition between different financial institution intensified, facilitated by greater diversification.

Commercial and investment banking activities are separated in the United States by the Glass Steagall Act, which was passed in 1933 during the Great Depression. Fears that investment banking activities put deposits at risk led to a situation where commercial banks were unable to deal in nonbank financial instruments. This put them at severe commercial disadvantage, and the pressure for reform became so strong that the Federal Reserve Board has allowed the affiliates of commercial banks to enter a wide range of securities activities since 1986. Attempts to repeal the act were unsuccessful until November 1999, when the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (also known as the Financial Modernization Act) was passed by Congress. The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act repealed Glass-Steagall and allows banks, insurance companies, and stock brokers and mutual fund companies to sell each other's products and services. These companies are also now free to merge or acquire one another.

The expansion and diversification in financial services was facilitated by information technology. Financial deregulation led to the collapse of many commercial banks and savings and loan associations in the second half of the 1980s. In the 1990s, change has continued in the form of a proliferation of bank mergers; with the passage in 1999 of Gramm-Leach-Bliley, further consolidation of the industry was predicted.

Prior to 1994 the banking system was highly fragmented; national banks were not allowed to establish branches at will, as they were subject to the banking laws of each state. Within states, local banks faced similar restraints on their branching activities. In 1988, only 22 states permitted statewide banking of national banks, while 18 allowed limited banking and ten permitted no branches. Consequently in 1988 over 60% of US commercial banks had assets of less the $150 million, while only 3% had assets valued at $500 million or more.

Such regulation rendered US banks vulnerable to merger and acquisition. Acquisitions have generally taken place through bank holding companies, which then fall under the jurisdiction of the Federal Reserve System. This has allowed banks to extend their business into nonbank activities such as insurance, financial planning, and mortgages, as well as opening up geographical markets. The number of such holding companies is estimated at 6,500. These companies are believed to control over 90% of total bank assets.

The Riegle-Neal Interstate Banking and Branching Efficiency Act of 1994 removed most of the barriers to interstate bank acquisitions and interstate banking. The new act allowed banks to merge with banks in other states although they must operate them as separate banks. In addition, banks are allowed to establish branches in neighboring states. Restrictions on branching activity were lifted as of June 1997. The legislation allowed banks to lessen their exposure to regional economic downturns. It also ensured a continuing stream of bank mergers. Liberalization has encouraged a proliferation of in-store banking at supermarkets. International Banking Technologies, Inc., reported that the number of supermarket bank branches rose to 7,100 in 1998, up from 2,191 in 1994. In the mid-1990s, the number of supermarket branch banks grew at an annual rate of around 30%, but growth from 1997 to 1998 slowed to just over 10%.

Under the provisions of the Banking Act of 1935, all members of the Federal Reserve System (and other banks that wish to do so) participate in a plan of deposit insurance (up to $100,000 for each individual account as of 2003) administered by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).

Savings and loan associations are insured by the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation (FSLIC). Individual accounts were insured up to a limit of $100,000. Savings and loans failed at an alarming rate in the 1980s. In 1989 the government signed legislation that created the Resolution Trust Corporation. The RTC's job is to handle the savings and loans bailout, expected to cost taxpayers $345 billion through 2029. Approximately 30 million members participated in thousands of credit unions chartered by a federal agency; state-chartered credit unions had over 20 million members.

The International Monetary Fund reports that in 2001, currency and demand depositsan aggregate commonly known as M1were equal to $1,595.5 billion. In that same year, M2an aggregate equal to M1 plus savings deposits, small time deposits, and money market mutual fundswas $6,961.2 billion. The money market rate, the rate at which financial institutions lend to one another in the short term, was 3.89%. The discount rate, the interest rate at which the central bank lends to financial institutions in the short term, was 1.25%.

When the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) opened in 1817, its trading volume was 100 shares a day. On 17 December 1999, 1.35 billion shares were traded, a record high for shares traded in a single day. Record-setting trading volume occurred for 1999 as a whole, with 203.9 billion shares traded (a 20% increase over 1998) for a total value of $8.9 trillion, up from $7.3 trillion in 1998. In 1996, 51 million individuals and 10,000 institutional investors owned stocks or shares in mutual funds traded on the NYSE. The two other major stock markets in the United States are the American Stock Exchange (AMEX) and the NASDAQ (National Association of Securities Dealers). The NASD (National Association of Securities Dealers) is regulated by the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission). As of 2004, the New York Stock Exchange, the NASDAQ, and the American Stock Exchange had a combined total of 5,231 companies listed. Total market capitalization that same year came to $16.3 trillion.

INSURANCE

The number of life insurance companies has shrunk in recent years. Between 1985 and 1995 the number fell from 2,261 to 1,840. In 1998, there were 51 life insurance mergers and acquisitions. Competition between financial institutions has been healthy and premium income has risen steadily. The overwhelming majority of US families have some life insurance with a legal reserve company, the Veterans Administration, or fraternal, assessment, burial, or savings bank organization. The passage in 1999 of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act allowed insurance companies, banks, and securities firms to sell each other's products and services; restrictions were also lifted on cross-industry mergers and acquisitions. In 2003, the value of all direct insurance premiums written totaled $1.1 trillion, of which nonlife premiums accounted for $574.6 billion. In that same year, State Farm Mutual Group was the top nonlife insurer, with direct written nonlife premiums of $47.2 billion, while Metropolitan Life & Affiliated was the nation's leading life insurer, with direct written life insurance premiums of $27.6 billion.

Hundreds of varieties of insurance may be purchased. Besides life, the more important coverages include accident, fire, hospital and medical expense, group accident and health, automobile liability, automobile damage, workers' compensation, ocean marine, and inland marine. Americans buy more life and health insurance than any other group except Canadians and Japanese. During the 1970s, many states enacted a "no fault" form of automobile insurance, under which damages may be awarded automatically, without recourse to a lawsuit.

PUBLIC FINANCE

Under the Budget and Accounting Act of 1921, the president is responsible for preparing the federal government budget. In fact, the budget is prepared by the Office of Management and Budget (established in 1970), based on requests from the heads of all federal departments and agencies and advice from the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Council of Economic Advisers, and the Treasury Department. The president submits a budget message to Congress in January. Under the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Congress establishes, by concurrent resolution, targets for overall expenditures and broad functional categories, as well as targets for revenues, the budget deficit, and

Revenue and Grants1,902.4100.0%
   Tax revenue1,086.557.1%
   Social contributions758.339.9%
   Grants
   Other revenue57.63.0%
Expenditures2,311.9100.0%
   General public services281.912.2%
   Defense442.519.1%
   Public order and safety31.91.4%
   Economic affairs161.97.0%
   Environmental protection
   Housing and community amenities45.82.0%
   Health541.923.4%
   Recreational, culture, and religion4.50.2%
   Education612.6%
   Social protection740.532.0%
() data not available or not significant.

the public debt. The Congressional Budget Office monitors the actions of Congress on individual appropriations bills with reference to those targets. The president exercises fiscal control over executive agencies, which issue periodic reports subject to presidential perusal. Congress exercises control through the comptroller general, head of the General Accounting Office, who sees to it that all funds have been spent and accounted for according to legislative intent. The fiscal year runs from 1 October to 30 September. The public debt, subject to a statutory debt limit, has been raised by Congress 70 times since 1950. The debt rose from $43 billion in 1939/40 to more than $3.3 trillion in 1993 to more than $8.2 trillion in early 2006. In 1993, pressured by Congressional Republicans, President Bill Clinton introduced a taxing and spending plan to reduce the rate of growth of the federal deficit. The Clinton administration calculated the package of tax increases and spending cuts would pare down the deficit by $500 billion over a four-year period; in fiscal year 1997/98, the budget experienced an estimated surplus of $69 billion. However, the tax cuts and extensive military spending of President George W. Bush in the first term of the new millennium erased the surplus and pushed the economy to a record $455 billion deficit for the 2003 fiscal year, followed by $412 billion for 2004.

The US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) estimated that in 2005 the central government took in revenues of approximately $2.1 trillion and had expenditures of $2.4 trillion. Revenues minus expenditures totaled approximately -$347 billion. Public debt in 2005 amounted to 64.7% of GDP. Total external debt in 2006 was $8.837 trillion.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) reported that in 2003, the most recent year for which it had data, central government revenues in $1,902.4 billion and expenditures were $2,311.9 billion. The value of revenues was $1.9 billion and expenditures $2.3 billion. Government outlays by function were as follows: general public services, 12.2%; defense, 19.1%; public order and safety, 1.4%; economic affairs, 7.0%; housing and community amenities, 2.0%; health, 23.4%; recreation, culture, and religion, 0.2%; education, 2.6%; and social protection, 32.0%.

TAXATION

Measured as a proportion of the GDP, the total US tax burden is less than that in most industrialized countries. Federal, state, and local taxes are levied in a variety of forms. The greatest source of revenue for the federal government is the personal income tax, which is paid by citizens and resident aliens on their worldwide income. The main state-level taxes are sales and income taxes. The main local taxes are property and local income taxes.

Generally, corporations are expected to prepay, through four installments, 100% of estimated tax liability. US corporate taxes are famous for their complexity, and it is estimated that amount spent trying to comply with, minimize and/or avoid business taxes is equal to half the tax yield. As of 2004, the United States had a top corporate federal tax rate of 35%, although the effective rate is actually 39.5%. Generally, corporations having taxable income in excess of $75,000 but not over $10 million are taxed at a 34% rate, with the first $75,000 taxed at graduated rates of 1525%. However those whose income falls between $335,000 and $10 million are taxed at the full 34% which includes the initial $75,000. Corporations with income of over $15 million but not over $18,333,333 are subject to an additional 3% tax, while those corporations whose taxable income is over $18,333,333 are taxed at the 35% rate. The federal government also imposes an Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT). The purpose of the AMT is to prevent what is considered an overuse of tax deductions. As a result, the AMT is effectively a separate tax system with its own credit limitations and allowable deductions. Under the AMT, a 20% flat rate is applied to alternative minimum taxable income (AMTI), which the corporation must pay if the calculated AMT is greater than the regular tax. Conversely, if the calculated regular tax is more than the calculated AMT, then the regular tax must be paid. State and local governments may also impose their own corporate income taxes. Generally, these taxes use the federal definitions of taxable income as the starting point when applying their income taxes. Capital gains from assets held as investments are taxed at the same rates as ordinary income. Dividends, interest and royalties paid to nonresidents are subject to a withholding tax of 30%.

The United States has a progressive personal income tax structure that as of 2004, had a top rate of 35%. As with corporations, individuals can be subject to an AMT. With rates of 26% and 28%, the AMT, as it applies to individuals, is similar to the AMT charged to corporations in that the individual must pay whichever is highest, the regular tax or the AMT. Individuals may also be subject to inheritance and gift taxes, as well as state and local income taxes, all of which vary from state-to-state and locality-to-locality. Capital gains from assets held for under a year (short term) are taxed at higher rates than gains derived from assets held for more than a year (long term). Long term capital gains for individuals are taxed at a 15% rate, while those individuals who fall into lower-income tax brackets would be subject to a 5% rate. Certain capital gains derived from real estate are subject to a 25% tax rate.

The United States has not adopted a national value-added tax (VAT) system. The main indirect taxes are state sales taxes. There is an importation duty of 0.7% on imported goods. Excise taxes are levied on certain motor vehicles, personal air transportation, some motor fuels (excluding gasohol), alcoholic beverages, tobacco products, tires and tubes, telephone charges, and gifts and estates.

CUSTOMS AND DUTIES

Under the Trade Agreements Extension Act of 1951, the president is required to inform the US International Trade Commission (known until 1974 as the US Tariff Commission) of contemplated concessions in the tariff schedules. The commission then determines what the "peril point" is; that is, it informs the president how far the tariff may be lowered without injuring a domestic producer, or it indicates the amount of increase necessary to enable a domestic producer to avoid injury by foreign competition. Similarly, the act provides an "escape clause,"in effect, a method for rescinding a tariff concession granted on a specific commodity if the effect of the concession, once granted, has caused or threatens to cause "serious injury" to a domestic producer. The Trade Expansion Act of 1962 grants the president the power to negotiate tariff reductions of up to 50% under the terms of GATT.

In 1974, The US Congress authorized the president to reduce tariffs still further, especially on goods from developing countries. As the cost of imported oil rose in the mid-1970s, however, Congress became increasingly concerned with reducing the trade imbalance by discouraging "dumping" of foreign goods on the US market. The International Trade Commission is required to impose a special duty on foreign goods offered for sale at what the commission determines is less than fair market value.

Most products are dutiable under most-favored nation (MFN) rates or general duty rates. The import tariff schedules contain over 10,000 classifications, most of which are subject to interpretation. Besides duties, the United States imposes a 17% "user fee" on all imports. Excise taxes and harsher maintenance fees are also imposed on certain imports. Under the terms of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which was approved by Congress in 1993, tariffs on goods qualifying as North American under the rules of origin will be phased out over a 15-year period.

FOREIGN INVESTMENT

From the end of World War II through 1952, US government transfers of capital abroad averaged about $5,470 million annually, while private investments averaged roughly $730 million. Portfolio investment represented less than $150 million a year, or only 2.5% of the annual aggregate.

After 1952, however, direct private investment began to increase and portfolio investment rose markedly. In the late 1950s, new private direct investment was increasing yearly by $2 billion or more, while private portfolio investment and official US government loans were climbing by a minimum annual amount of $1 billion each. During the 196073 period, the value of US-held assets abroad increased by nearly 12% annually. From the mid-1970s through the early 1980s, it rose most years by at least 15%, and doubled between 1980 and 1990. Direct investments abroad had a book value of $711.6 billion in 1995, over half of which was invested in Europe, with the single greatest concentration ($119.9 billion) in the United Kingdom. Asia and the Pacific Islands had the second-largest regional total ($126 billion), with Japan ($39 billion) the leading country.

Foreign direct investment in the United States has risen rapidly, from $6.9 billion in 1960 to $27.7 billion in 1975 and $183 billion at the end of 1985. As of 1995 foreign direct investment in the United States was valued at $560 billion, of which $363.5 billion originated in Europe ($119.9 billion in the United Kingdom). Asia and the Pacific was the other major source of foreign direct investment, of which close to 90% ($108.6 billion) came from Japan. Total foreign assets in 1994 (current cost) were over $3.16 trillion. Over one-third of the investment volume was in manufacturing. In 1998 foreign direct investment reached $174.4 billion, up from $103.4 billion in 1997, and then increased to $283 billion in 1999. Foreign direct investment inflow into the United States peaked at a world record of $301 billion in 2000. In the global economic slowdown of 2001, foreign direct investment inflows dropped to $124.4 billion. The worldwide decline in foreign investment after the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks was most dramatic in the United States. In 2002, estimated foreign direct investment inflow dropped more than 64% to an estimated $52.6 billion. Foreign direct investment inflow rose to $78.8 billion in 2004, up 26% from 2003. In 2004, the major investors in the United States were Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Switzerland, and Australia.

US outward foreign direct investment in 2004 totaled $83.5 billion, with Canada, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Japan, Ireland, and Mexico the largest recipients of US FDI.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

By the end of the 19th century, regulation rather than subsidy had become the characteristic form of government intervention in US economic life. The abuses of the railroads with respect to rates and services gave rise to the Interstate Commerce Commission in 1887, which was subsequently strengthened by numerous acts that now stringently regulate all aspects of US railroad operations.

The growth of large-scale corporate enterprises, capable of exercising monopolistic or near-monopolistic control of given segments of the economy, resulted in federal legislation designed to control trusts. The Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890, reinforced by the Clayton Act of 1914 and subsequent acts, established the federal government as regulator of large-scale business. This tradition of government intervention in the economy was reinforced during the Great Depression of the 1930s, when the Securities and Exchange Commission and the National Labor Relations Board were established. The expansion of regulatory programs accelerated during the 1960s and early 1970s with the creation of the federal Environmental Protection Agency, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and Consumer Product Safety Commission, among other bodies. Subsidy programs were not entirely abandoned, however. Federal price supports and production subsidies remained a major force in stabilizing US agriculture. Moreover, the federal government stepped in to arrange for guaranteed loans for two large private firmsLockheed in 1971 and Chrysler in 1980where thousands of jobs would have been lost in the event of bankruptcy.

During this period, a general consensus emerged that, at least in some areas, government regulation was contributing to inefficiency and higher prices. The Carter administration moved to deregulate the airline, trucking, and communications industries; subsequently, the Reagan administration relaxed government regulation of bank savings accounts and automobile manufacture as it decontrolled oil and gas prices. The Reagan administration also sought to slow the growth of social-welfare spending and attempted, with only partial success, to transfer control over certain federal social programs to the states and to reduce or eliminate some programs entirely. Ironically, it was a Democrat, Bill Clinton, who, in 1996, signed legislation that replaced Aid to Families with Dependent Children with a system of block grants that would enable the states to design and run their own welfare programs.

Some areas of federal involvement in social welfare, however, seem safely entrenched. Old age and survivors' insurance, unemployment insurance, and other aspects of the Social Security program have been accepted areas of governmental responsibility for decades. With the start of the 21st century, the government faced the challenge of keeping the Medicare program solvent as the postwar baby-boomer generation reached retirement age. Federal responsibility has also been extended to insurance of bank deposits, to mortgage insurance, and to regulation of stock transactions. The government fulfills a supervisory and regulatory role in labor-management relations. Labor and management customarily disagree on what the role should be, but neither side advocates total removal of government from this field.

Since the Reciprocal Trade Agreement Act of 1934, government regulation of foreign trade has tended toward decreased levels of protection, a trend maintained by the 1945 Trade Agreements Extension Act, the 1962 Trade Expansion Act, and the 1974 Trade Act. The goals of free trade have also been furthered since World War II by US participation in the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank, and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). With the formation in 1995 of the World Trade Organization (WTO), most-favored-nation policies were expanded to trade in services and other areas.

In 1993, Congress approved the North American Free Trade Agreement, which extended the Free Trade Agreement between Canada and the United States to include Mexico. NAFTA, by eliminating tariffs and other trade barriers, created a free trade zone with a combined market size of $6.5 trillion and 370 million consumers. The effect on employment was uncertainestimates varied from a loss of 150,000 jobs over the ensuing ten years to a net gain of 200,000. Labor intensive goods-producing industries, such as apparel and textiles, were expected to suffer, while it was predicted that capital goods industries would benefit. It was anticipated that US automakers would benefit in the short run by taking advantage of the low wages in Mexico and that US grain farmers and the US banking, financial, and telecommunications sectors would gain enormous new markets. As of 2005, the pros and cons of NAFTA were still being hotly debated. Spokespersons for organized labor claimed in 2000 that the agreement had resulted in a net loss of 420,000 jobs, while advocates of free trade insisted that 311,000 new jobs had been created to support record US exports to Canada and Mexico, with only 116,000 workers displaceda net gain of 195,000 jobs.

In 2003, President George W. Bush introduced, and Congress passed a tax cut of $350 billion designed to stimulate the economy, which was in a period of slow growth. This came on the heels of a $1.35 trillion tax cut passed in 2001 and a $96 billion stimulus package in 2002. Democrats cited the loss of 2.7 million private sector jobs during the first three years of the Bush administration as evidence that the president did not have control over the economy. In 1998, for the first time since 1969, the federal budget closed the fiscal year with a surplus. In 2000, the government was running a surplus of $236 billion, or a projected $5.6 trillion over 10 years. By mid-2003, the federal budget had fallen into deficit; the deficit stood at $455 billion, which was 4.2% of gross domestic product (GDP). The budget deficit stood at $412 billion in 2004, or 3.6% of GDP, and was forecast to decline to $331 billion in 2006.

US businesses are at or near the forefront of technological advances, but the onrush of technology has created a "two-tier" labor market, in which those at the bottom lack the education and professional and technical skills of those at the top, and, increasingly, fail to receive comparable pay raises, health insurance coverage, and other benefits. Since 1975, practically all the gains in household income have gone to the top 20% of households. Other long-term problems facing the US economy are inadequate investment in economic infrastructure, the rapidly rising medical and pension costs of an aging population, significant trade, current account, and budget deficits, and the stagnation of family income in the lower economic groups. Congress in 2003 passed an overhaul of the Medicare program to provide prescription drug coverage for the elderly and disabled; the provisions went into effect in January 2006.

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

Social welfare programs in the United States depend on both the federal government and the state governments for resources and administration. Old age, survivors', disability, and the Medicare (health) programs are administered by the federal government; unemployment insurance, dependent child care, and a variety of other public assistance programs are state administered, although the federal government contributes to all of them through grants to the states.

The Food and Nutrition Service of the US Department of Agriculture oversees several food assistance programs. Eligible Americans take part in the food stamp program, and eligible pupils participate in the school lunch program. The federal government also expends money for school breakfasts, nutrition programs for the elderly, and in commodity aid for the needy. The present Social Security program differs greatly from that created by the Social Security Act of 1935, which provided that retirement benefits be paid to retired workers aged 65 or older. Since 1939, Congress has attached a series of amendments to the program, including provisions for workers who retire at age 62, for widows, for dependent children under 18 years of age, and for children who are disabled prior to age 18. Disabled workers between 50 and 65 years of age are also entitled to monthly benefits. Other measures increased the number of years a person may work; among these reforms was a 1977 law banning mandatory retirement in private industry before age 70. The actuarial basis for the Social Security system has also changed. In 1935 there were about nine US wage earners for each American aged 65 or more; by the mid-1990s, however, the ratio was closer to three to one.

In 1940, the first year benefits were payable, $35 million was paid out. By 1983, Social Security benefits totaled $268.1 billion, paid to more than 40.6 million beneficiaries. The average monthly benefit for a retired worker with no dependents in 1960 was $74; in 1983, the average benefit was $629.30. Under legislation enacted in the early 1970s, increases in monthly benefits were pegged to the inflation rate, as expressed through the Consumer Price Index. Employers, employees, and the self-employed are legally required to make contributions to the Social Security fund. Currently, 6.2% of employee earnings (12.4% of self-employed earnings) went toward old-age, disability, and survivor benefits. Wage and salary earners pay Social Security taxes under the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA). As the amount of benefits and the number of beneficiaries have increased, so has the maximum FICA payment. As of 2004 the maximum annual earnings for contribution and benefit purposes was $87,000.

Workers compensation laws vary according to states. Most laws were enacted before 1920; the program covering federal employees was instituted in 1908. Insurance is compulsory through public or private carriers. In most states the employer fund the total cost. There is a special federal program for miners with black lung disease (pneumoconiosis). The laws governing unemployment compensation originate in the states as well, and therefore benefits vary from state to state in duration and amount. Generally unemployment benefits amount to 50% of earnings, and federal law provides an additional 13 weeks of payments in states with high unemployment. Federal and state systems provide aid in the form of cash payments, social services, and job training to assist needy families.

Private philanthropy plays a major role in the support of relief and health services. The private sector plays an especially important role in pension management.

HEALTH

The US health care system is among the most advanced in the world. Escalating health care costs resulted in several proposals for a national health care program in the 1970s, early 1980s, and early 1990s. Most reform measures relied either on market-oriented approaches designed to widen insurance coverage through tax subsidies on a federally controlled single-payer plan, or on mandatory employer payments for insurance coverage. The health care industry continues to struggle with continued rising costs, as well as the financial burden of providing care to over 40 million people who were uninsured. The percentage among the nation's poor was much higher.

In response to rising costs, the popularity of managed care grew rapidly in the latter half of the 1990s. By 2000, 59% of the population was insured by either an HMO (health maintenance organization) or PPO (preferred provider organization). In such organizations, medical treatment, laboratory tests, and other health services for each patient are subject to the approval of the insurer before they can be covered. From 1987 to 1996, enrollment in health maintenance organizations (HMOs) doubled. By the end of the decade, however, the quality of treatment under managed care organizations was coming under increased scrutiny.

Life expectancy for someone born in 2005 was 77.71 years. Infant mortality has fallen from 38.3 per 1,000 live births in 1945 to 6.50 per 1,000 live births in 2005. The birth rate in 2002 was 14.1 per 1,000 people. In 1999, 56.5% of US adults were overweight and 21.1% were obese. Although health indicators continued to improve overall 2004, pronounced disparities between different segments of the population remained.

Leading causes of death were: heart disease, cancer, cerebrovascular diseases, chronic lower respiratory diseases, accidents, diabetes mellitus, pneumonia and influenza, Alzheimer's disease, suicide, and homicide.

Cigarette smoking has been linked to heart and lung disease; about 20% of all deaths in the United States were attributed to cigarette smoking. Smoking has decreased overall since the late 1980s. The overall trend in smoking mortality suggests a decrease in smoking among males since the 1960s, but an increase in mortality for female smokers. On 23 November 1998, the Master Settlement Agreement was signed, the result of a lawsuit brought by 46 states and the District of Columbia against tobacco companies for damages related to smoking. Payments from the settlement, totaling $206 billion, began in 1999.

The rate of HIV infection (resulting in acquired immune deficiency syndromeAIDS), has risen since first being identified in 1981. There were a cumulative total of 750,000 AIDS cases in the 1980s and 1990s, with 450,000 deaths from the disease. In the latter 1990s, both incidence and mortality decreased with the introduction of new drug combinations to combat the disease. The number of AIDS cases declined by 30% between 1996 and 1998 and deaths were cut in half. In 2004, the number of people living with HIV/AIDS was estimated at 950,000, with the number of deaths from AIDS that year estimated at 14,000. AIDS continued to affect racial and ethnic minorities disproportionately. HIV prevalence was 0.60 per 100 adults in 1999.

Medical facilities in the United States included 5,810 hospitals in 2000, with 984,000 beds (down from 6,965 hospitals and 1,365,000 beds in 1980). As of 2004, there were an estimated 549 physicians, 773 nurses, 59 dentists, and 69 pharmacists per 100,000 people. Of the total number of active classified physicians, the largest areas of activity were internal medicine, followed by general and family practice and pediatrics.

Per capita health care expenditures rose from $247 in 1967 to about $3,380 in 1993. National health care spending reached $1 trillion in 1996 and was projected to reach $1.9 trillion by 2006. Hospital costs, amounting to over $371 billion in 1997, represented 34% of national health care spending in that year. In the late 1990s, total health care expenditures stabilized at around 13% of GDP, with most expenditures being made by the private sector.

Medicare payments have lagged behind escalating hospital costs; payments in 2000 totaled $215.9 billion. Meanwhile, the elderly population in the United States is projected to increase to 18% of the total population by 2020, thus exacerbating the conundrum of health care finance.

HOUSING

The housing resources of the United States far exceed those of any other country, with 122,671,734 housing units serving about 109,902,090 households, according to 2004 American Community Survey estimates. About 67% of all occupied units were owner-occupied, with about 10% of the total housing stock standing vacant. The average household had 2.6 people. The median home value was estimated at $151,366. The median payment for rent and utilities of rental properties was $694 per month. California had the highest number of housing units at over 12 million (in 2000); the state also had the highest estimated median housing value of owner-occupied units, at $391,102 in 2004. Wyoming had the lowest number of housing stock with an estimated 223,854 in 2000. The lowest estimated median housing value of owner-occupied units was found in Arkansas at $79,006 in 2004.

The vast majority of housing units are single-unit structures; 61% are single-family detached homes. Over 9.5 million dwellings are found in buildings of 20 units or more. Over 8.7 million dwellings are mobile homes. About 14.9% of the total housing stock was built in 1939 or before. The decade of 197079 had the most homes built, with 21,462,868 units, 17.6% of the existing stock. During the period 199099, there were 19,007,934 units built, about 15% of the existing stick. Houses being built in the 1990s were significantly larger than those built in the 1970s. The average area of single-family housing built in 1993 was 180.88 sq m (1,947 sq ft), compared to 139.35 sq m (1,500 sq ft) in 1970. The median number of rooms per dwelling was estimated at 5.4 in 2004.

EDUCATION

Education is the responsibility of state and the local governments. However, federal funds are available to meet special needs at primary, secondary, or higher levels. Each state specifies the age and circumstances for compulsory attendance. The most common program of compulsory education requires attendance for ages 6 to 16; however, most school programs continue through twelve years of study, with students graduating at age 17 or 18. The high school diploma is only granted to students who complete this course of study, no certificates of completion are granted at previous intervals. Those who leave school before completion of grade 12 may choose to take a General Educational Development Test (GED) that is generally considered to be the equivalent to a state-approved diploma.

Regular schools, which educate a person toward a diploma or degree, include both public and private schools. Public schools are controlled and supported by the local authorities, as well as state or federal governmental agencies. Private schools are controlled and supported by religious or private organizations. Elementary schooling generally extends from grade one through grade five or six. Junior high or middle school programs may cover grades six through eight, depending on the structure of the particular school district. High schools generally cover grades 9 through 12. At the secondary level, many schools offer choices of general studies or college preparatory studies. Vocational and technical programs are also available. Some schools offer advanced placement programs through which students (after appropriate exams) may earn college credits while still in high school. The school year begins in September and ends in June.

In 2003, about 58% of children between the ages of three and five were enrolled in some type of preschool program. Primary school enrollment in 2003 was estimated at about 92% of age-eligible students. The student-to-teacher ratio for primary school was at about 14:1 in 2003; the ratio for secondary school was about 15:1. In 2003, private schools accounted for about 10.8% of primary school enrollment and 9.2% of secondary enrollment. As of 2003, about 87% of the population ages 2529 had received a high school diploma or equivalency certificate.

In 2003, about 1.1 million students were home schooled. In a home schooling program, students are taught at home by their parents or tutors using state-approved curriculum resources. Most of these students (about 82%) receive their entire education at home. Others may attend some classes at local schools or choose to attend public high school after completing preliminary grades through home schooling.

Colleges include junior or community colleges, offering two-year associate degrees; regular four-year colleges and universities; and graduate or professional schools. Both public and private institutions are plentiful. Eight of the most prestigious institutions in the country are collective known as the Ivy League. These schools are some of the oldest in the country and are known for high academic standards and an extremely selective admissions process. Though they are all now independent, nonsectarian organizations, most of them were founded or influenced by religious groups. They include: Yale University (1701, Puritans), University of Pennsylvania (1740, Quaker influence), Princeton University (1746, Presbyterian), Harvard University (1638, Puritan), Dartmouth College (1769, Puritan), Cornell University (1865), Columbia University (1754, Anglican), and Brown University (1764, Baptist).

The cost of college education varies considerably depending on the institution. There are county and state universities that receive government funding and offer reduced tuition for residents of the region. Students attending both public and private institutions may be eligible for federal aid in the form of grants or loans. Institutions generally offer their own scholarship and grant programs as well.

There are over 4,000 nondegree institutions of higher learning, including educational centers offering continuing education credits for professionals as well as general skill-based learning programs. Certificate programs are available in a number of professions and trades. Technical and vocational schools are also available for adults. In 2003, it was estimated that about 83% of the tertiary age population were enrolled in tertiary education programs. The adult literacy rate has been estimated at about 97%.

Beyond this, there are numerous public and private community organizations that offer educational programming in the form of workshops, lectures, seminars, and classes for adults interested in expanding their educational horizons.

As of 2003, public expenditure on education was estimated at 5.7% of GDP, or 17.1% of total government expenditures.

LIBRARIES AND MUSEUMS

The American Library Association has reported that, as of 2004, there were an estimated 117,664 libraries in the country, including 9,211 public libraries (with over 16,500 buildings), 3,527 academic libraries, 93,861 school libraries, 9,526 special libraries, 314 armed forces libraries, and 1,225 government libraries.

The largest library in the country and the world is the Library of Congress, with holdings of over 130 million items, including 29 million books and other printed materials, 2.7 million recordings, 12 million photographs, 4.8 million maps, and 58 million manuscripts. The Library of Congress serves as the national library and the site of the US Copyright Office. The government maintains a system of presidential libraries and museums, which serve as archive and research centers that preserve documents and other materials of historical value related to the presidency. Starting with Herbert Hoover, the 31st president of the United States, there has been a library and museum established for each president. State governments maintain their own libraries as well.

The country's vast public library system is administered primarily by municipalities. The largest of these is the New York Public Library system with 89 branch locations and over 42.7 million items, including 14.9 million bound volumes. Other major public library systems include the Cleveland Public Library (over 9.7 million items), Los Angeles County Public Library (over 9.6 million items, 8.7 million books), the Chicago Public Library (6.5 million), the Boston Public Library system (6.1 million books, including 1.2 million rare books and manuscripts), and the Free Library of Philadelphia (6 million items).

Noted special collections are those of the Pierpont Morgan Library in New York; the Huntington Library in San Marino, Calif.; the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, DC; the Hoover Library at Stanford University; and the rare book divisions of Harvard, Yale, Indiana, Texas, and Virginia universities.

Among the leading university libraries are those of Harvard (with about 15 million volumes in 90 libraries), Yale, Illinois (Urbana-Champaign), Michigan (Ann Arbor), California (Berkeley), Columbia, Stanford, Cornell, California (Los Angeles), Chicago, Wisconsin (Madison), and Washington (Seattle).

There are over 5,000 nonprofit museums in the United States. The most numerous type is the historic building, followed in descending order by college and university museums, museums of science, public museums of history, and public museums of art. The Smithsonian Institute in Washington, DC, sponsors 18 national museums and the National Zoo. Sixteen of the Smithsonian national museums are located in the Smithsonian complex of Washington, DC; these include the Natural History Museum, the American History Museum, the Air and Space Museum, American Art Museum, and the American Indian Museum. The American Indian Museum, Heye Center, and the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum are Smithsonian-sponsored museums located in New York.

Other eminent US museums include the American Museum of Natural History, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art, the Guggenheim Museum, the Whitney Collection of American Art, the Frick Collection, and the Brooklyn Museum, all in New York City; the Boston Museum of Fine Arts; the Art Institute of Chicago and the Chicago Museum of Natural History; the Franklin Institute and Philadelphia Museum of Art, both in Philadelphia; and the M. H. de Young Memorial Museum in San Francisco. Also of prominence are the Cleveland Museum of Art, the St. Louis Museum of Art, and the Baltimore Museum of Art.

MEDIA

All major electric communications systems are privately owned but regulated by the Federal Communications Commission. The United States uses wire and radio services for communications more extensively than any other country in the world. In 2003, there were an estimated 621 mainline telephones for every 1,000 people. The same year, there were approximately 543 mobile phones in use for every 1,000 people. The Post Office Department of the United States was replaced on 1 July 1971 by the US Postal Service, a financially autonomous federal agency. In addition to mail delivery, the Postal Service provides registered, certified, insured, express and COD mail service, issues money orders, and operates a postal savings system. Since the 1970s, numerous privately owned overnight mail and package delivery services have been established.

Radio serves a variety of purposes other than broadcasting. It is widely used by ships and aircraft for safety; it has become an important tool in the movement of buses, trucks, and taxicabs. Forest conservators, fire departments, and the police operate with radio as a necessary aid; it is used in logging operations, surveying, construction work, and dispatching of repair crews. In 2004, broadcasting stations on the air comprised over 12,000 radio stations (both AM and FM) and more than 1,500 television stations. Nearly 1,000 stations were affiliated with five major networks: NBC, ABC, CBS, FOX (all commercial), and PBS (Public Broadcasting System). As of 1997 the United States had some 9,000 cable television systems. In 2003, there were an estimated 2,109 radios and 938 television sets for every 1,000 people. About 255 of every 1,000 people were cable subscribers. Also in 2003, there were 658.9 personal computers for every 1,000 people and 551 of every 1,000 people had access to the Internet. There were 198,098 secure Internet servers in the country in 2004.

In 2005 there were over 1,500 daily newspapers in the United States. It has been estimated that about 20 large newspaper chains account for almost 60% of the total daily circulation. The US daily newspapers with the largest circulations as of 2004 were: USA Today (national), 2,220,863; Wall Street Journal (national), 2,106,774; New York Times, 1,121,057; Los Angeles Times (CA), 902,164; New York Daily News, 715,052; Washington Post (DC), 707,690; New York Post, 686,207; Chicago Tribune (IL), 600,988; Houston Chronicle (TX), 554,783; Dallas Morning News (TX), 519,014; San Francisco Chronicle (CA), 505,022; Chicago Sun-Times (IL), 481,980; Long Island/New York Newsday, 481,816; Boston Globe (MA), 451,471; Arizona Republic, 413,268; Star-Ledger (Newark, NJ), 400,042; Journal-Constitution (Atlanta, GA), 386,015; Star Tribune (Minneapolis, MN), 381,094; Philadelphia Inquirer (PA), 368,883; and Cleveland Plain Dealer (OH), 354,309. The Christian Science Monitor is published for daily national circulation by the Christian Science Church based in Massachusetts; circulation in 2004 was about 60,723. Investor's Business Daily, based in Los Angeles, California, also has a national circulation, reaching about 191,846 in 2004.

In 2004, the most popular consumer magazine in the country was AARP the Magazine, published bimonthly by the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) with a circulation of over 22.6 million. The AARP Bulletin came in second with a circulation of about 22.1 million. The two general circulation magazines that appealed to the largest audiences were Reader's Digest (about 10 million) and TV Guide (about 9 million). Time and Newsweek were the leading news magazines, with 2004 weekly circulations of 4,034,272 and 3,135,476 respectively.

The US book-publishing industry consists of the major book companies (mainly in the New York metro area), nonprofit university presses distributed throughout the United States, and numerous small publishing firms. In 1994, 51,863 book titles were published in the United States.

The US Constitution provides for freedom of speech and of the press in its Bill of Rights, and the government supports these rights. Citizens enjoy a wide range of opinions in all media, where debate, editorial opinion, and government opposition viewpoints are represented in some form or another. Nearly all media are privately owned.

ORGANIZATIONS

A number of industrial and commercial organizations exercise considerable influence on economic policy. The National Association of Manufacturers and the US Chamber of Commerce, with numerous local branches, are the two central bodies of business and commerce. Various industries have their own associations, concerned with cooperative research and questions of policy alike.

Practically every profession in the United States is represented by one or more professional organizations. Among the most powerful of these are the American Medical Association, comprising regional, state, and local medical societies; the American Bar Association, also comprising state and local associations; the American Hospital Association; and the National Education Association. The most prestigious scientific and technical institutions are the National Academy of Sciences (founded 1863) and the National Academy of Engineering (1964).

Many private organizations are dedicated to programs of political and social action. Prominent in this realm are the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the Urban League, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Common Cause, and the Anti-Defamation League. The League of Women Voters, which provides the public with nonpartisan information about candidates and election issues, began sponsoring televised debates between the major presidential candidates in 1976. The National Organization for Women and the National Rifle Association have each mounted nationwide lobbying campaigns on issues affecting their members. There are thousands of political action committees (PACs) that disburse funds to candidates for the House and Senate and other elected offices.

The great privately endowed philanthropic foundations and trusts play an important part in encouraging the development of education, art, science, and social progress in the United States. Prominent foundations include the Carnegie Corporation and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the Ford Foundation, the Guggenheim Foundation, the Mayo Association for the Advancement of Medical Research and Education, and the Rockefeller Foundation.

Private philanthropy was responsible for the establishment of many of the nation's most eminent libraries, concert halls, museums, and university and medical facilities; private bequests were also responsible for the establishment of the Pulitzer Prizes. Merit awards offered by industry and professional groups include the "Oscars" of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the "Emmys" of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, and the "Grammys" of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences.

Funds for a variety of community health and welfare services are funneled through United Way campaigns, which raise funds annually. The American Red Cross has over 3,000 chapters, which pay for services and activities ranging from disaster relief to blood donor programs. The Salvation Army is also a prominent national organization supporting programs of social welfare and advancement. There are several national associations dedicated to research and education for specific fields of medicine and particular diseases and conditions, such as the American Cancer Society, the American Heart Association, and the March of Dimes.

There are numerous youth clubs and associations across the country. The Boy Scouts of America, the Girl Scouts of the USA, rural 4-H Clubs, and the Young Men's and the Young Women's Christian Associations are among the organizations devoted to recreation, sports, camping, and education. There are youth organizations for political parties, such as the Young Republicans and Young Democrats, and Junior ROTC (Reserve Officers' Training Corps) for the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines. Most national religious and service associations have youth chapters.

The largest religious organization in the United States is the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA, which embraces 32 Protestant and Orthodox denominations, whose adherents total more than 42 million. Many organizations, such as the American Philosophical Society, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the National Geographic Society, are dedicated to the enlargement of various branches of human knowledge. National, state, and local historical societies abound, and there are numerous educational, sports, and hobbyist groups.

The larger veterans' organizations are the American Legion, the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, the Catholic War Veterans, and the Jewish War Veterans. Fraternal organizations, in addition to such international organizations as the Masons, include indigenous groups such as the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, the Loyal Order of Moose, and the Woodmen of the World. Many, such as the Ancient Order of Hibernians in America, commemorate the national origin of their members. One of the largest fraternal organizations is the Roman Catholic Knights of Columbus.

TOURISM, TRAVEL, AND RECREATION

Among the most striking scenic attractions in the United States are: the Grand Canyon in Arizona; Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico; Yosemite National Park in California; Yellowstone National Park in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming; Niagara Falls, partly in New York; and the Everglades in Florida. The United States has a total of 49 national parks. Popular coastal resorts include those of Florida, California, and Cape Cod in Massachusetts. Historical attractions include the Liberty Bell and Constitution Hall in Philadelphia; the Statue of Liberty in New York City; the White House, the Capitol, and the monuments to Washington, Jefferson, and Lincoln in the District of Columbia; the Williamsburg historical restoration in Virginia; various Revolutionary and Civil War battlefields and monuments in the East and South; the Alamo in San Antonio; and Mt. Rushmore in South Dakota. Among many other popular tourist attractions are the movie and television studios in Los Angeles; the cable cars in San Francisco; casino gambling in Las Vegas and in Atlantic City, New Jersey; thoroughbred horse racing in Kentucky; the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee; and such amusement parks as Disneyland (Anaheim, California) and Walt Disney World (near Orlando, Florida). For abundance and diversity of entertainmenttheater, movies, music, dance, and sportsNew York City has few rivals. In April 1993, Amtrak began the country's first regularly scheduled transcontinental passenger service, from Los Angeles to Miami.

Americans' recreational activities range from the major spectator sportsprofessional baseball, football, basketball, ice hockey, soccer; and horse racing; and collegiate football and basketballto home gardening. Participant sports are a favorite form of recreation, including jogging, aerobics, tennis, and golf. Skiing is a popular recreation in New England and the western mountain ranges, while sailing, power boating, rafting, and canoeing are popular water sports.

Foreign visitors to the United States numbered 41.2 million in 2003, down from 51 million in 2000. Of these visitors, 31% came from Canada and 25% from Mexico. Hotel rooms numbered 4.4 million with an occupancy rate of 61%. With a few exceptions, such as Canadians entering from the Western Hemisphere, all visitors to the United States are required to have passports and visas.

The cost of traveling in the United States varies from city to city. According to 2005 US government estimates, daily expenses were approximately $187 in Chicago, $272 in New York, $230 in Washington, DC, and $174 in Miami. Costs are lower in smaller cities and rural areas.

FAMOUS AMERICANS

Printer, publisher, inventor, scientist, statesman, and diplomat, Benjamin Franklin (170690) was America's outstanding figure of the colonial period. George Washington (173299), leader of the colonial army in the American Revolution, became first president of the United States and is known as the "father of his country." Chief author of the Declaration of Independence, founder of the US political party system, and third president was Thomas Jefferson (17431826). His leading political opponents were John Adams (17351826), second president, and Alexander Hamilton (b.West Indies, 17551804), first secretary of the treasury, who secured the new nation's credit. James Madison (17511836), a leading figure in drawing up the US Constitution, served as fourth president. John Quincy Adams (17671848), sixth president, was an outstanding diplomat and secretary of state.

Andrew Jackson (17671845), seventh president, was an ardent champion of the common people and opponent of vested interests. Outstanding senators during the Jackson era were John Caldwell Calhoun (17821850), spokesman of the southern planter aristocracy and leading exponent of the supremacy of states' rights over federal powers; Henry Clay (17771852), the great compromiser, who sought to reconcile the conflicting views of the North and the South; and Daniel Webster (17821852), statesman and orator, who championed the preservation of the Union against sectional interests and division. Abraham Lincoln (180965) led the United States through its most difficult period, the Civil War, in the course of which he issued the Emancipation Proclamation. Jefferson Davis (180889) served as the only president of the short-lived Confederacy. Stephen Grover Cleveland (18371908), a conservative reformer, was the strongest president in the latter part of the 19th century. Among the foremost presidents of the 20th century have been Nobel Peace Prize winner Theodore Roosevelt (18581919); Woodrow Wilson (18561924), who led the nation during World War I and helped establish the League of Nations; and Franklin Delano Roosevelt (18821945), elected to four terms spanning the Great Depression and World War II. The presidents during the 19612000 period have been John Fitzgerald Kennedy (191763), Lyndon Baines Johnson (190873), Richard Milhous Nixon (191394), Gerald Rudolph Ford (Leslie Lynch King, Jr., b.1913), Jimmy Carter (James Earl Carter, Jr., b.1924), Ronald Wilson Reagan (19112004), George Herbert Walker Bush (b.1924), and Bill Clinton (William Jefferson Blythe III, b.1946). George Walker Bush (b.1946) became the 43rd president and first president of the 21st century.

Of the outstanding US military leaders, four were produced by the Civil War: Union generals Ulysses Simpson Grant (182285), who later served as the eighteenth president, and William Tecumseh Sherman (182091); and Confederate generals Robert Edward Lee (180770) and Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson (182463). George Catlett Marshall (18801959), army chief of staff during World War II, in his later capacity as secretary of state under President Harry s Truman (18841972), formulated the Marshall Plan, which did much to revitalize Western Europe. George Smith Patton, Jr. (18851945) was a leading general who commanded major units in North Africa, Sicily, and Europe in World War II. Douglas MacArthur (18801964) commanded the US forces in Asia during World War II, oversaw the postwar occupation and reorganization of Japan, and directed UN forces in the first year of the Korean conflict. Dwight D. Eisenhower (18901969) served as supreme Allied commander during World War II, later becoming the thirty-fourth president. William Childs Westmoreland (19142005) commanded US military operations in the Vietnam War from 1964 to 1968 and served as US Army Chief of Staff from 1968 to 1972. H. Norman Schwarzkopf (b.1934) commanded the successful allied invasion of Iraq in the Persian Gulf War. General Colin Luther Powell (b.1937), former Secretary of State (20012005) and highest ranking African American government official in the history of the United States (a position assumed by Condoleezza Rice in 2005), was a general in the army who also served as National Security Advisor (19871989) and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (19891993).

John Marshall (17551835), chief justice of the United States from 1801 to 1835, established the power of the Supreme Court through the principle of judicial review. Other important chief justices were Edward Douglass White (18451921), former president William Howard Taft (18571930), and Earl Warren (18911974), whose tenure as chief justice from 1953 to 1969 saw important decisions on desegregation, reapportionment, and civil liberties. The justice who enjoyed the longest tenure on the court was William O. Douglas (18981980), who served from 1939 to 1975; other prominent associate justices were Oliver Wendell Holmes (18411935), Louis Dembitz Brandeis (18561941), and Hugo Lafayette Black (18861971).

Indian chiefs renowned for their resistance to white encroachment were Pontiac (1729?69), Black Hawk (17671838), Tecumseh (17681813), Osceola (1804?38), Cochise (1812?74), Geronimo (1829?1909), Sitting Bull (1831?90), Chief Joseph (1840?1904), and Crazy Horse (1849?77). Other significant Indian chiefs were Hiawatha (fl. 1500), Squanto (d.1622), and Sequoya (1770?1843). Historical figures who have become part of American folklore include pioneer Daniel Boone (17341820); silversmith, engraver, and patriot Paul Revere (17351818); frontiersman David "Davy" Crockett (17861836); scout and Indian agent Christopher "Kit" Carson (180968); James Butler "Wild Bill" Hickok (183776); William Frederick "Buffalo Bill" Cody (18461917); and the outlaws Jesse Woodson James (184782) and Billy the Kid (William H. Bonney, 185981).

Inventors and Scientists

Outstanding inventors were Robert Fulton (17651815), who developed the steamboat; Eli Whitney (17651825), inventor of the cotton gin and mass production techniques; Samuel Finley Breese Morse (17911872), who invented the telegraph; and Elias Howe (181967), who invented the sewing machine. Alexander Graham Bell (b.Scotland, 18471922) gave the world the telephone. Thomas Alva Edison (18471931) was responsible for hundreds of inventions, among them the long-burning incandescent electric lamp, the phonograph, automatic telegraph devices, a motion picture camera and projector, the microphone, and the mimeograph. Lee De Forest (18731961), the "father of the radio," developed the vacuum tube and many other inventions. Vladimir Kosma Zworykin (b.Russia, 18891982) was principally responsible for the invention of television. Two brothers, Wilbur Wright (18671912) and Orville Wright (18711948), designed, built, and flew the first successful motor-powered airplane. Amelia Earhart (18981937) and Charles Lindbergh (190274) were aviation pioneers. Pioneers in the space program include John Glenn (b.1921), the first US astronaut to orbit the earth, and Neil Armstrong (b.1930), the first man to set foot on the moon.

Benjamin Thompson, Count Rumford (17531814), developed devices for measuring light and heat, and the physicist Joseph Henry (17971878) did important work in magnetism and electricity. Outstanding botanists and naturalists were John Bartram (16991777); his son William Bartram (17391832); Louis Agassiz (b.Switzerland, 180773); Asa Gray (181088); Luther Burbank (18491926), developer of a vast number of new and improved varieties of fruits, vegetables, and flowers; and George Washington Carver (18641943), known especially for his work on industrial applications for peanuts. John James Audubon (17851851) won fame as an ornithologist and artist.

Distinguished physical scientists include Samuel Pierpont Langley (18341906), astronomer and aviation pioneer; Josiah Willard Gibbs (18391903), mathematical physicist, whose work laid the basis for physical chemistry; Henry Augustus Rowland (18481901), who did important research in magnetism and optics; and Albert Abraham Michelson (b.Germany, 18521931), who measured the speed of light and became the first of a long line of US Nobel Prize winners. The chemists Gilbert Newton Lewis (18751946) and Irving Langmuir (18811957) developed a theory of atomic structure.

The theory of relativity was conceived by Albert Einstein (b.Germany, 18791955), generally considered the greatest mind in the physical sciences since Newton. Percy Williams Bridgman (18821961) was the father of operationalism and studied the effect of high pressures on materials. Arthur Holly Compton (18921962) made discoveries in the field of X rays and cosmic rays. The physical chemist Harold Clayton Urey (18931981) discovered heavy hydrogen. Isidor Isaac Rabi (b.Austria, 18981988), nuclear physicist, did important work in magnetism, quantum mechanics, and radiation. Enrico Fermi (b.Italy, 190154) created the first nuclear chain reaction, in Chicago in 1942, and contributed to the development of the atomic and hydrogen bombs. Also prominent in the splitting of the atom were Leo Szilard (b.Hungary, 18981964), J. Robert Oppenheimer (190467), and Edward Teller (b.Hungary, 19082003). Ernest Orlando Lawrence (190158) developed the cyclotron. Carl David Anderson (190591) discovered the positron. Mathematician Norbert Wiener (18941964) developed the science of cybernetics.

Outstanding figures in the biological sciences include Theobald Smith (18591934), who developed immunization theory and practical immunization techniques for animals; the geneticist Thomas Hunt Morgan (18661945), who discovered the heredity functions of chromosomes; and neurosurgeon Harvey William Cushing (18691939). Selman Abraham Waksman (b.Russia, 18881973), a microbiologist specializing in antibiotics, was codiscoverer of streptomycin. Edwin Joseph Cohn (18921953) is noted for his work in the protein fractionalization of blood, particularly the isolation of serum albumin. Philip Showalter Hench (18961965) isolated and synthesized cortisone. Wendell Meredith Stanley (190471) was the first to isolate and crystallize a virus. Jonas Edward Salk (191495) developed an effective killed-virus poliomyelitis vaccine, and Albert Bruce Sabin (190693) contributed oral, attenuated live-virus polio vaccines.

Adolf Meyer (b.Switzerland, 18661950) developed the concepts of mental hygiene and dementia praecox and the theory of psychobiology; Harry Stack Sullivan (18921949) created the interpersonal theory of psychiatry. Social psychologist George Herbert Mead (18631931) and behaviorist Burrhus Frederic Skinner (190490) were influential in the 20th century. Psychiatrist Aaron Temkin Beck (b.1921) is regarded as the founder of cognitive therapy, and Albert Ellis (b.1913) developed rational-emotive therapy.

A pioneer in psychology who was also an influential philosopher was William James (18421910). Other leading US philosophers are Charles Sanders Peirce (18391914); Josiah Royce (18551916); John Dewey (18591952), also famous for his theories of education; George Santayana (b.Spain, 18631952); Rudolf Carnap (b.Germany, 18911970); Willard Van Orman Quine (19082000), Richard Rorty (b.1931), Hilary Putnam (b.1926), John Rawls (19212002), Robert Nozick (19382002), and linguist and political philosopher Noam Chomsky (b.1928). Educators of note include Horace Mann (17961859), Henry Barnard (18111900), and Charles William Eliot (18341926). Noah Webster (17581843) was the outstanding US lexicographer, and Melvil Dewey (18511931) was a leader in the development of library science. Thorstein Bunde Veblen (18571929) wrote books that have strongly influenced economic and social thinking. Also important in the social sciences have been sociologists Talcott Parsons (190279) and William Graham Sumner (18401910) and anthropologist Margaret Mead (190178).

Social Reformers

Social reformers of note include Dorothea Lynde Dix (180287), who led movements for the reform of prisons and insane asylums;William Lloyd Garrison (180579) and Frederick Douglass (Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, 181795), prominent abolitionists; Elizabeth Cady Stanton (18151902) and Susan Brownell Anthony (18201906), leaders in the women's suffrage movement; Clara Barton (18211912), founder of the American Red Cross; economist Henry George (183997), advocate of the single-tax theory; Eugene Victor Debs (18551926), labor leader and an outstanding organizer of the Socialist movement in the United States; Jane Addams (18601935), who pioneered in settlement house work; Robert Marion La Follette (18551925), a leader for progressive political reform in Wisconsin and in the US Senate; Margaret Higgins Sanger (18831966), pioneer in birth control; Norman Thomas (18841968), Socialist Party leader; and Martin Luther King, Jr. (192968), a central figure in the black civil rights movement and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. Betty Friedan (19212006), Gloria Steinem (b.1934), and bell hooks (b.Gloria Jean Watkins, 1952) are contemporary feminists.

Religious leaders include Roger Williams (160383), an early advocate of religious tolerance in the United States; Jonathan Edwards (170358), New England preacher and theologian; Elizabeth Ann Seton (17741821), the first American canonized in the Roman Catholic Church; William Ellery Channing (17801842), a founder of American Unitarianism; Joseph Smith (180544), founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon) and his chief associate, Brigham Young (180177); and Mary Baker Eddy (18211910), founder of the Christian Science Church. Paul Tillich (b.Germany, 18861965) and Reinhold Niebuhr (18921971) were outstanding Protestant theologians of international influence. Pat Robertson (b.1930), televangelist and leader of the Christian Coalition organization, and Jerry Falwell (b.1933), a fundamentalist Baptist pastor, televangelist, and founder of the Moral Majority movement and Liberty University, are contemporary leaders of the Christian religious right.

Famous US businessmen include Éleùthere Irénée du Pont de Nemours (b.France, 17711834), John Jacob Astor (Johann Jakob Ashdour, b.Germany, 17631848), Cornelius Vanderbilt (17941877), Andrew Carnegie (b.Scotland, 18351919), John Pierpont Morgan (18371913), John Davison Rockefeller (18391937), Andrew William Mellon (18551937), Henry Ford (18631947), and Thomas John Watson (18741956). William Henry "Bill" Gates III (b.1955), co-founder of the Microsoft Corp., was the richest person in the world as of 2006. Other corporate leaders in the 21st century include: Warren Edward Buffett (b.1930), Louis V. Gerstner, Jr., (b.1942), H. Wayne Huizenga (b.1937), Steve Jobs (b.1955), Sam Walton (19181992), John Francis "Jack" Welch Jr. (b.1935), and Sanford I. Weill (b.1933).

Literary Figures

The first US author to be widely read outside the United States was Washington Irving (17831859). James Fenimore Cooper (17891851) was the first popular US novelist. Three noted historians were William Hickling Prescott (17961859), John Lothrop Motley (181477), and Francis Parkman (182393). The writings of two men of Concord, Mass.Ralph Waldo Emerson (180382) and Henry David Thoreau (181762)influenced philosophers, political leaders, and ordinary men and women in many parts of the world. The novels and short stories of Nathaniel Hawthorne (180464) explore New England's Puritan heritage. Herman Melville (181991) wrote the powerful novel Moby-Dick, a symbolic work about a whale hunt that has become an American classic. Mark Twain (Samuel Langhorne Clemens, 18351910) is the bestknown US humorist. Other leading novelists of the later 19th and early 20th centuries were William Dean Howells (18371920), Henry James (18431916), Edith Wharton (18621937), Stephen Crane (18711900), Theodore Dreiser (18711945), Willa Cather (18731947), and Sinclair Lewis (18851951), first US winner of the Nobel Prize for literature (1930). Later Nobel Prizewinning US novelists include Pearl Sydenstricker Buck (18921973), in 1938; William Faulkner (18971962), in 1949; Ernest Hemingway (18991961), in 1954; John Steinbeck (190268), in 1962; Saul Bellow (b.Canada, 19152005), in 1976; Isaac Bashevis Singer (b.Poland, 190491), in 1978; and Toni Morrison (b.1931), in 1993. Among other noteworthy writers are Zora Neale Hurston (18911960), Henry Miller (18911980), James Thurber (18941961), Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald (18961940), Vladimir Nabokov (b.Russia, 18991977), Thomas Wolfe (19001938), Richard Wright (190860), Eudora Welty (19092001), John Cheever (191282), Bernard Malamud (19141986), Carson McCullers (19171967), Norman Mailer (b.1923), James Baldwin (192487), Jack Kerouac (19221969), John Updike (b.1932), Philip Roth (b.1933), Paul Auster (b.1947), John Barth (b.1930), Donald Barthelme (19311989), T. Coraghessan Boyle (b.1948), Sandra Cisneros (b.1954), Joan Didion (b.1934), Stephen Dixon (b.1936), E.L. Doctorow (b.1931), Louise Erdrich (b.1954), William Gaddis (19221998), Carl Hiaasen (b.1953), Oscar Hijuelos (b.1951), John Irving (b.1942), Jamaica Kincaid (b.Elaine Cynthia Potter Richardson, 1949), Jhumpa Lahiri (b.Nilanjana Sudeshna, 1967), Jonathan Lethem (b.1964), Cormac McCarthy (b.1933), Larry McMurtry (b.1936), Bharati Mukherjee (b.1940), Joyce Carol Oates (b.1938), Marge Piercy (b.1936), E. Annie Proulx (b.1935), Thomas Pynchon (b.1937), J.D. Salinger (b.1919), Wallace Stegner (190993), Gore Vidal (b.1925), Kurt Vonnegut Jr. (b.1922), Alice Walker (b.1944), Tom Wolfe (b.1931), and Tobias Wolff (b.1945).

Noted US poets include Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (180782), Edgar Allan Poe (180949), Walt Whitman (181992), Emily Dickinson (183086), Edwin Arlington Robinson (18691935), Robert Frost (18741963), Wallace Stevens (18791955), William Carlos Williams (18831963), Marianne Moore (18871972), Edward Estlin Cummings (18941962), Hart Crane (18991932), Langston Hughes (190267), and Rita Dove (b.1952). Ezra Pound (18851972) and Nobel laureate Thomas Stearns Eliot (18881965) lived and worked abroad for most of their careers. Wystan Hugh Auden (b.England, 190773), who became an American citizen in 1946, published poetry and criticism. Elizabeth Bishop (191179), Robert Lowell (191777), Allen Ginsberg (192697), and Sylvia Plath (193263) are among the best-known poets since World War II. Robert Penn Warren (190589) won the Pulitzer Prize for both fiction and poetry and became the first US poet laureate. Carl Sandburg (18781967) was a noted poet, historian, novelist, and folklorist. The foremost US dramatists are Eugene (Gladstone) O'Neill (18881953), who won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1936; Tennessee Williams (Th omas Lanier Williams, 191183); Arthur Miller (19152005); and Edward Albee (b.1928). Neil Simon (b.1927) is among the nation's most popular playwrights and screenwriters. August Wilson (19452005) won the Pulitzer Prize twice, for Fences (1985) and The Piano Lesson (1990), both of which depicted the African American experience.

Artists

Two renowned painters of the early period were John Singleton Copley (17381815) and Gilbert Stuart (17551828). Outstanding 19th-century painters were James Abbott McNeill Whistler (18341903), Winslow Homer (18361910), Thomas Eakins (18441916), Mary Cassatt (18451926), Albert Pinkham Ryder (18471917), John Singer Sargent (b.Italy, 18561925), and Frederic Remington (18611909). More recently, Edward Hopper (18821967), Georgia O'Keeffe (18871986), Thomas Hart Benton (18891975), Charles Burchfield (18931967), Norman Rockwell (18941978), Ben Shahn (18981969), Mark Rothko (b.Russia, 190370), Jackson Pollock (191256), Andrew Wyeth (b.1917), Robert Rauschenberg (b.1925), and Jasper Johns (b.1930) have achieved international recognition.

Sculptors of note include Augustus Saint-Gaudens (18481907), Gaston Lachaise (18821935), Jo Davidson (18831952), Daniel Chester French (18501931), Alexander Calder (18981976), Louise Nevelson (b.Russia, 18991988), and Isamu Noguchi (190488). Henry Hobson Richardson (183886), Louis Henry Sullivan (18561924), Frank Lloyd Wright (18691959), Louis I. Kahn (b.Estonia, 190174), and Eero Saarinen (191061) were outstanding architects. Contemporary architects of note include Richard Buckminster Fuller (18951983), Edward Durrell Stone (190278), Philip Cortelyou Johnson (19062005), Ieoh Ming Pei (b.China, 1917), and Frank Gehry (b.1929). The United States has produced many fine photographers, notably Mathew B. Brady (1823?96), Alfred Stieglitz (18641946), Edward Steichen (18791973), Edward Weston (18861958), Ansel Adams (190284), and Margaret Bourke-White (190471).

Entertainment Figures

Outstanding figures in the motion picture industry are D. W. (David Lewelyn Wark) Griffith (18751948), Sir Charles Spencer "Charlie" Chaplin (b.England, 18891978), Walter Elias "Walt" Disney (190666), and George Orson Welles (191585). John Ford (18951973), Howard Winchester Hawks (18961977), Frank Capra (b.Italy, 18971991), Sir Alfred Hitchcock (b.England, 18991980), and John Huston (190687) were influential motion picture directors; Mel Brooks (Kaminsky, b.1926), George Lucas (b.1944), and Steven Spielberg (b.1947) have achieved remarkable popular success. Woody Allen (Allen Konigsberg, b.1935) has written, directed, and starred in comedies on stage and screen. World-famous American actors and actresses include the Barrymores, Ethel (18791959) and her brothers Lionel (18781954) and John (18821942); Humphrey Bogart (18991957); James Cagney (18991986); Spencer Tracy (19001967); Helen Hayes Brown (190093); Clark Gable (190160); Joan Crawford (Lucille Fay LeSueur, 190477); Cary Grant (Alexander Archibald Leach, b.England, 190486); Greta Garbo (Greta Louisa Gustafsson, b.Sweden, 190590); Henry Fonda (190582) and his daughter, Jane (b.1937); John Wayne (Marion Michael Morrison, 190779); Bette (Ruth Elizabeth) Davis (190889); Katharine Hepburn (19092003); Judy Garland (Frances Gumm, 192269); Marlon Brando (19242004); Marilyn Monroe (Norma Jean Mortenson, 192662); and Dustin Hoffman (b.1937). Among other great entertainers are W. C. Fields (William Claude Dukenfield, 18801946), Al Jolson (Asa Yoelson, b.Russia, 18861950), Jack Benny (Benjamin Kubelsky, 18941974), Fred Astaire (Fred Austerlitz, 18991987), Bob (Leslie Townes) Hope (b.England, 19032003), Bing (Harry Lillis) Crosby (190478), Frank (Francis Albert) Sinatra (191598), Elvis Aaron Presley (193577), and Barbra (Barbara Joan) Streisand (b.1942). The first great US "showman" was Phineas Taylor Barnum (181091).

Composers and Musicians

The foremost composers are Edward MacDowell (18611908), Charles Ives (18741954), Ernest Bloch (b.Switzerland, 18801959), Virgil Thomson (189689), Roger Sessions (18961985), Roy Harris (18981979), Aaron Copland (190090), Elliott Carter (b.1908), Samuel Barber (191081), John Cage (191292), and Leonard Bernstein (191890). George Rochberg (19182005), George Crumb (b.1929), Steve Reich (b.1936), and Philip Glass (b.1937) have won more recent followings. The songs of Stephen Collins Foster (182664) have achieved folk-song status. Leading composers of popular music are John Philip Sousa (18541932), George Michael Cohan (18781942), Jerome Kern (18851945), Irving Berlin (Israel Baline, b.Russia, 18881989), Cole Porter (18931964), George Gershwin (18981937), Richard Rodgers (190279), Woody Guthrie (191267), Stephen Joshua Sondheim (b.1930), Paul Simon (b.1941), and Bob Dylan (Robert Zimmerman, b.1941). Preeminent in the blues traditions are Leadbelly (Huddie Ledbetter, 18881949), Bessie Smith (1898?1937), and Muddy Waters (McKinley Morganfield, 191583). Leading jazz figures include the composers Scott Joplin (18681917), James Hubert "Eubie" Blake (18831983), Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (18991974), and William "Count" Basie (190484), and performers Louis Armstrong (19001971), Billie Holiday (Eleanora Fagan, 191559), John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie (191793), Charlie "Bird" Parker (192055), John Coltrane (192667), and Miles Davis (192691).

Many foreign-born musicians have enjoyed personal and professional freedom in the United States; principal among them were pianists Artur Schnabel (b.Austria, 18821951), Arthur Rubinstein (b.Poland, 18871982), Rudolf Serkin (b.Bohemia, 190391), Vladimir Horowitz (b.Russia, 190489), and violinists Jascha Heifetz (b.Russia, 190187) and Isaac Stern (b.USSR, 1920). Among distinguished instrumentalists born in the United States are Benny Goodman (190986), a classical as well as jazz clarinetist, and concert pianist Van Cliburn (Harvey Lavan, Jr., b.1934). Singers Paul Robeson (18981976), Marian Anderson (18971993), Maria Callas (Maria Kalogeropoulos, 192377), Leontyne Price (b.1927), and Beverly Sills (Belle Silverman, b.1929) have achieved international acclaim. Isadora Duncan (18781927) was one of the first US dancers to win fame abroad. Martha Graham (189391) pioneered in modern dance. George Balanchine (b.Russia, 190483), Agnes De Mille (190593), Jerome Robbins (191898), Paul Taylor (b.1930), and Twyla Tharp (b.1941) are leading choreographers; Martha Graham (18931991) pioneered in modern dance.

Sports Figures

Among the many noteworthy sports stars are baseball's Tyrus Raymond "Ty" Cobb (18861961) and George Herman "Babe" Ruth (18951948); football's Samuel Adrian "Sammy" Baugh (b.1914), Jim Brown (b.1936), Francis A. "Fran" Tarkenton (b.1940), and Orenthal James Simpson (b.1947); and golf's Robert Tyre "Bobby" Jones (190271) and Mildred "Babe" Didrikson Zaharias (191456). William Tatum "Bill" Tilden (18931953), Billie Jean (Moffitt) King (b.1943), Chris Evert (b.1954), Martina Navratilova (b.Czechoslovakia, 1956), Andre Agassi (b.1970), Peter ("Pete") Sampras (b.1971), and sisters Venus (b.1980) and Serena (b.1981) Williams have starred in tennis; Joe Louis (Joseph Louis Barrow, 191481) and Muhammad Ali (Cassius Marcellus Clay, b.1942) in boxing; William Felton "Bill" Russell (b.1934) Wilton Norman "Wilt" Chamberlain (193699), and Michael Jordan (b.1963) in basketball; Mark Spitz (b.1950) and Michael Phelps (b.1985) in swimming; Eric Heiden (b.1958) in speed skating; and Jesse Owens (191380) in track and field.

DEPENDENCIES

As of January 1988, US dependencies, in addition to those listed below, included American Samoa, Guam, Midway, Wake Island, and the Northern Mariana Islands; see the Asia volume. Sovereignty over the Panama Canal Zone was transferred to Panama on 1 October 1979; the canal itself reverted to Panamanian control until 31 December 1999.

Navassa

Navassa, a 5-sq-km (2-sq-mi) island between Jamaica and Haiti, was claimed by the United States under the Guano Act of 1856. The island, located at 18°24 n and 75°1 w, is uninhabited except for a lighthouse station under the administration of the coast guard.

Puerto Rico

Puerto Ricototal area 9,104 sq km (3,515 sq mi)is the smallest and most easterly of the Greater Antilles, which screen the Caribbean Sea from the Atlantic proper. It lies between 17°51 and 18°31n and 65°13 and 67°56 w, being separated from the Dominican Republic on the island of Hispaniola to the w by the Mona Passage, 121 km (75 mi) wide, and from the Virgin Islands on the e by Vieques Sound and the Virgin Passage. Roughly rectangular, the main island of Puerto Rico extends 179 km (111 mi) ew and 58 km (36 mi) ns. It is crossed from east to west by mountain ranges, the most prominent being the Cordillera Central, rising to nearly 1,338 m (4,390 ft). The coastal plain is about 24 km (15 mi) wide at its broadest point, and approximately one-third of the island's land is arable. About 50 short rivers flow rapidly to the sea. Islands off the coast include Mona and Desecheo to the w and Vieques and Culebra to the e. The mildly tropical climate is moderated by the surrounding sea, and seasonal variations are slight. The prevailing winds are the northeast trades. In San Juan on the northern coast, mean temperatures range from 24°c (75 °f) for January to 27°c (81 °f) for July. Mean annual rainfall varies from 91 cm (36 in) on the south coast to 152 cm (60 in) in San Juan and may total more than 457 cm (180 in) on the northern mountain slopes in the interior. Tropical fruits and other vegetation abound. As of 1991, endangered species on the island included the Puerto Rican plain pigeon, Puerto Rican parrot, Puerto Rican boa, giant anole, and hawksbill, leatherback, olive ridley, and green sea turtles.

The population was estimated at 3,927,188 in 2006. San Juan, the capital, had an estimated population of 422,000, with a metropolitan area of more than one million. The population has more than doubled since 1930, despite extensive migration to the US mainland. Improved economic conditions on the island and diminishing opportunities in the United States had slowed the trend by 1970; net out-migration was -2.12 migrants per 1000 population in 2001. Thousands of Puerto Ricans commute annually between Puerto Rico and the United States.

Puerto Ricans are of Spanish descent (80%), black (8%), or mixed ancestry (10%). Nearly all of the Amerindian inhabitants (about 0.4% of the population in 2002) were exterminated in the 16th century. Spanish is the official language, but many Puerto Ricans also speak English, which is required as a second language in the schools. The Roman Catholic religion is predominant (85%), but evangelical Protestant sects also have wide followings.

San Juan is the busiest commercial air center in the Caribbean and there is excellent air service to New York, Miami, other points in the Caribbean, and Latin America. More than 40 steamship companies provide overseas freight and passenger service; San Juan, Ponce, and Mayagüez are the principal ports. In 1998 there were 14,400 km (9,020 mi) of paved highway; trucks carry the bulk of overland freight.

Archaeological finds indicate that at least three Amerindian cultures settled on the island now known as Puerto Rico, long before its European discovery by Christopher Columbus on 19 November 1493. The first group, belonging to the Archaic Culture, are believed to have come from Florida. Having no knowledge of agriculture or pottery, they relied on the products of the sea; their remains have been found mostly in caves. The second group, the Igneri, came from northern South America. Descended from South American Arawak stock, the Igneri brought agriculture and pottery to the island; their remains are found mostly in the coastal areas. The third culture, the Taíno, also of Arawak origin, combined fishing with agriculture. A peaceful, sedentary tribe, the Taíno were adept at stonework and lived in many parts of the island; to these Amerindians, the island was known as Borinquén.

Columbus, accompanied by a young nobleman named Juan Ponce de León, landed at the western end of the islandwhich he called San Juan Bautista (St. John the Baptist)and claimed it for Spain. Not until colonization was well under way would the island acquire the name Puerto Rico ("rich port"), with the name San Juan Bautista applied to the capital city. The first settlers arrived on 12 August 1508, under the able leadership of Ponce de León, who sought to transplant and adapt Spanish civilization to Puerto Rico's tropical habitat. The small contingent of Spaniards compelled the Taíno, numbering perhaps 30,000, to mine for gold; the rigors of forced labor and the losses from rebellion reduced the Taíno population to about 4,000 by 1514, by which time the mines were nearly depleted. With the introduction of slaves from Africa, sugarcane growing became the leading economic activity.

Puerto Rico was briefly held by the English in 1598 and San Juan was besieged by the Dutch in 1625; otherwise, Spanish rule continued until the latter part of the 19th century. The island was captured by US forces during the Spanish-American War, and under the Treaty of Paris (December 1898) Puerto Rico was ceded outright to the United States. It remained under direct military rule until 1900, when the US Congress established an administration with a governor and an executive council, appointed by the US president, and a popularly elected House of Delegates. In 1917, Puerto Ricans were granted US citizenship.

In 1947, Congress provided for popular election of the governor, and in 1948, Luis Muñoz Marín was elected to that office. A congressional act of 1950, affirmed by popular vote in the island on 4 June 1951, granted Puerto Rico the right to draft its own constitution. The constitution was ratified by popular referendum on 3 March 1952. Puerto Rico's new status as a free commonwealth voluntarily associated with the United States became effective on 25 July. The commonwealth status was upheld in a plebiscite in 1967, with 60.5% voting for continuation of the commonwealth and 38.9% for Puerto Rican statehood. In 1993 the plebiscite vote drew nearly 1.7 million voters or 73.6% of those eligible. The voters choose to keep the commonwealth status 48.4% to 46.2% for statehood, and 4.4% for independence.

The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico enjoys almost complete internal autonomy. The chief executive is the governor, elected by popular vote to a four-year term. The legislature consists of a 28-member Senate and 51-member House of Representatives elected by popular vote to four-year terms. The Supreme Court and lower courts are tied in with the US federal judiciary, and appeals from Puerto Rican courts may be carried as far as the US Supreme Court.

The Popular Democratic Party (PDP) was the dominant political party until 1968, when Luis A. Ferré, a New Progressive Party (NPP) candidate, who had supported the statehood position in the 1967 plebiscite, won the governorship. The NPP also won control of the House, while the PDP retained the Senate. The PDP returned to power in 1972 but lost to the NPP in 1976 and again, by a very narrow margin, in 1980; in 1984, it took roughly two-to-one majorities in both houses. The pro-commonwealth PDP remained in control of the government in every election from 198492, when Pedro Rosselló, a New Progressive and supporter of statehood, was elected governor; Roselló was reelected in 1996. In the November 2000 election, Sila M. Calderon of the PDP was elected governor. There is a small but vocal independence movement, divided into two wings: the moderates, favoring social democracy, and the radicals, supporting close ties with the Fidel Castro regime in Cuba. Puerto Rico elects a commissioner to serve a four-year term as a nonvoting member of the US House of Representatives. In November 2000, PPD candidate Anibal Acevedo-Vila was elected commissioner from Puerto Rico.

For more than 400 years, the island's economy was based almost exclusively on sugar. Since 1947, agriculture has been diversified, and a thriving manufacturing industry has been established; since 1956 there has been increasing emphasis on hotel building to encourage the expansion of the tourist industry. By 2000, the gross domestic product (GDP) reached $43.9 billion, up from $15.8 billion in 1986. The leading industrial products were pharmaceuticals, electronics, apparel, food products, and tourism. Sugar processing, once the dominant industry, now plays a lesser role. In 1952, there were only 82 labor-intensive plants on the island. By 1990 there were 2,000 plantsmost capital intensivein Puerto Rico.

US taxes do not apply in Puerto Rico, since the commonwealth is not represented in Congress. New or expanding manufacturing and hotel enterprises are granted exemptions of varying lengths and degrees from income taxes and municipal levies. In 1940, when annual income per capita was $118, agricultural workers made as little as 6 cents an hour, and the illiteracy rate was 70%. By 2005, per capita GDP was $18,600, and illiteracy had declined to just 6% (estimated to be slightly higher for females).

In 2001, Puerto Rico's exports totaled $46.9 billion, imports totaled $29.1 billion. Each year, an estimated 5 million tourists visit Puerto Rico.

In 1995/96, 621,370 pupils were enrolled in public schools. Enrollment in the 14 institutions of higher education was 156,439 in 1994/95; the main state-supported university is the University of Puerto Rico, with its main campus at Rico Piedras. Other institutions of higher learning are the Catholic University of Puerto Rico in Ponce, and the Inter-American University with campuses at Hato Rey, San Germán, and elsewhere.

In 2004, there were 1.1 million main telephone lines on the island; that year there were an estimated 2.7 million mobile cellular telephone lines, up from 169,265 in 1996. As of 2004, 127 radio stations (74 AM, 53 FM) were operation. In 2006, there were 32 broadcast television stations. The two largest Spanishlanguage daily newspapers, both from San Juan, are El Vocero de Puerto Rico (259,000 daily circulation in 2002), and El Nuevo Día (227,000). Publishing in English is The San Juan Star (daily circulation 76,873).

Virgin Islands of the United States

The Virgin Islands of the United States lie about 64 km (40 mi) n of Puerto Rico and 1,600 km (1,000 mi) sse of Miami, between 17°40 and 18°25 n and 64°34 and 65°3 n. The island group extends 82 km (51 mi) ns and 80 km (50 mi) ew with a total area of at least 353 sq km (136 sq mi). Only 3 of the more than 50 islands and cays are of significant size: St. Croix, 218 sq km (84 sq mi) in area; St. Thomas, 83 sq km (32 sq mi); and St. John, 52 sq km (20 sq mi). The territorial capital, Charlotte Amalie, on St. Thomas, has one of the finest harbors in the Caribbean.

St. Croix is relatively flat, with a terrain suitable for sugarcane cultivation. St. Thomas is mountainous and little cultivated, but it has many snug harbors. St. John, also mountainous, has fine beaches and lush vegetation; about two-thirds of St. John's area has been declared a national park. The subtropical climate, with temperatures ranging from 2132°c (7090 °f) and an average temperature of 25°c (77°f), is moderated by northeast trade winds. Rainfall, the main source of fresh water, varies widely, and severe droughts are frequent. The average yearly rainfall is 114 cm (45 in), mostly during the summer months.

The population of the US Virgin Islands was estimated at 123,498 in 2002, up from 96,569 at the time of the 1980 census. St. Croix has two principal towns: Christiansted and Frederiksted. Economic development has brought an influx of new residents, mainly from Puerto Rico, other Caribbean islands, and the US mainland. Most of the permanent inhabitants are descendants of slaves who were brought from Africa in the early days of Danish rule, and about 80% of the population is black. English is the official and most widely spoken language.

Some of the oldest religious congregations in the Western Hemisphere are located in the Virgin Islands. A Jewish synagogue there is the second-oldest in the New World, and the Lutheran Congregation of St. Thomas, founded in 1666, is one of the three oldest congregations in the United States. As of 1999, Baptists made up an estimated 42% of the population, Roman Catholics 34%, and Episcopalians 17%.

In 2000 there were 856 km (531.6 mi) of roads in the US Virgin Islands; the US Virgin Islands has the only US roads where driving is done on the left side of the road. Cargo-shipping services operate from Baltimore, Jacksonville, and Miami via Puerto Rico. In addition, weekly shipping service is available from Miami. Both St. Croix and St. Thomas have airports, with St. Croix's facility handling the larger number of jet flights from the continental United States and Europe.

Excavations at St. Croix in the 1970s uncovered evidence of a civilization perhaps as ancient as ad 100. Christopher Columbus, who reached the islands in 1493, named them for the martyred virgin St. Ursula. At this time, St. Croix was inhabited by Carib Indians, who were eventually driven from the island by Spanish soldiers in 1555. During the 17th century, the archipelago was divided into two territorial units, one controlled by the British, the other (now the US Virgin Islands) controlled by Denmark. The separate history of the latter unit began with the settlement of St. Thomas by the Danish West India Company in 1672. St. John was claimed by the company in 1683 and St. Croix was purchased from France in 1733. The holdings of the company were taken over as a Danish crown colony in 1754. Sugarcane, cultivated by slave labor, was the backbone of the islands' prosperity in the 18th and early 19th centuries. After brutally suppressing several slave revolts. Denmark abolished slavery in the colony in 1848. A long period of economic decline followed, until Denmark sold the islands to the United States in 1917 for $25 million. Congress granted US citizenship to the Virgin Islanders in 1927. In 1931, administration of the islands was transferred from the Department of the Navy to the Department of the Interior, and the first civilian governor was appointed. In the late 1970s, the Virgin Islands government began to consider ways to expand self-rule. A UN delegation in 1977 found little interest in independence, however, and a locally drafted constitution was voted down by the electorate in 1979.

The chief executive of the Virgin Islands is the territorial governor, elected by direct popular vote (prior to 1970, territorial governors were appointed by the US president). Constitutionally, the US Congress has plenary authority to legislate for the territory. Enactment of the Revised Organic Act of the Virgin Islands on 22 July 1954 vested local legislative powersubject to veto by the governorin a unicameral legislature. Since 1972, the islands have sent one nonvoting representative to the US House of Representatives. Courts are under the US federal judiciary; the two federal district court judges are appointed by the US president. Territorial court judges, who preside over misdemeanor and traffic cases, are appointed by the governor and confirmed by the legislature. The district court has appellate jurisdiction over the territorial court.

Tourism, which accounts for approximately 70% of both GDP and employment is the islands' principal economic activity. The number of tourists rose dramatically throughout the late 1960s and early 1970s, from 448,165 in 1964 to over 2 million per year in the 1990s, continuing into the early 2000s. Rum remains an important manufacture, with petroleum refining (on St. Croix) a major addition in the late 1960s. Economic development is promoted by the US-government-owned Virgin Islands Corp. In 2002 the gross domestic product per capita was $14,500. The unemployment rate was 6.2% in 2003. Exports for 1992 totaled $1.8 billion while imports totaled $2.2 billion. The island's primary export is refined petroleum products. Raw crude oil constitutes the Virgin Island's principal import. In 1990, median family income was $24,036.

The territorial Department of Health provides hospital and medical services, public health services, and veterinary medicine. Education is compulsory. The College of the Virgin Islands is the territory's first institution of higher learning. There were about 70,900 main line telephones in 2004, and 41,000 mobile cellular phones. The Virgin Islands had 22 radio stations (6 AM, 16 FM) and 5 broadcast television stations in 2004.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

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United States

views updated Jun 11 2018

United States

B asic D ata
Official Country Name:United States of America
Region (Map name):North & Central America
Population:278,058,881
Language(s):English, Spanish
Literacy rate:97.0%
Area:9,629,091 sq km
GDP:9,837,406 (US$ millions)
Number of Daily Newspapers:1,476
Total Circulation:55,945,000
Circulation per 1,000:264
Total Newspaper Ad Receipts:48,700 (US$ millions)
As % of All Ad Expenditures:33.10
Number of Television Stations:1,500
Number of Television Sets:219,000,000
Television Sets per 1,000:787.6
Number of Cable Subscribers:70,991,360
Cable Subscribers per 1,000:252.1
Number of Satellite Subscribers:16,000,000
Satellite Subscribers per 1,000:57.5
Number of Radio Stations:10,322
Number of Radio Receivers:575,000,000
Radio Receivers per 1,000:2,067.9
Number of Individuals with Computers:161,000,000
Computers per 1,000:579.0
Number of Individuals with Internet Access:95,354,000
Internet Access per 1,000:342.9

Background & General Characteristics

The press in the United States evolved through a long history of freedom and openness, and it operated at the beginning of the twenty-first century within one of the richest and most powerful societies in the world. Press freedom was a crucial factor in the formation of the American republic, and strict protections for the press were added to the United States Constitution just two years after it was ratified. European travelers observed the appetite for newspapers among ordinary American citizens and thought it a distinctive characteristic of the early Republic. Notably, Alexis de Tocqueville devoted large sections of his Democracy in America (1857) to his amazement at the amount of information from newspapers available to a common rural farmer.

From its independence from England into the twenty-first century, the U.S. press has operated without fear of prior restraint and with little fear of lawsuits resulting from coverage of governmental issues or public officials. Toward the end of the twentieth century, however, libel suits and libel law for private persons and corporations was less favorable to newspapers. Nonetheless, the press enjoyed broad protection that allowed aggressive reporting, including laws that sometimes mandated cooperation from public officials. The federal government and many state governments have passed freedom of information laws that require public meetings to be open and public documents to be available to citizens, including reporters, simply for the asking. In addition to assisting people in discovering facts, some states have passed laws which shield journalists from being compelled to divulge notes and information about sources, even when ordered to do so by a judge.

Nature of the Audience

The U.S. public is one of the most literate in the world, with a literacy rate reaching 97 percent. The United States also enjoys an extremely high per capita income and consumes massive amounts of media in all formsnewspapers and magazines, radio and television, and film documentaries. In 2000, 62.5 million newspapers circulated in the United States on any given day.

Though the United States has no single official language, most of the population speaks English. There is a large and quickly growing Spanish-speaking minority in the United States, concentrated most visibly in the Southwest, California, and Florida but present in all large cities and in many rural and agricultural areas. Federal and state laws compel most government documents to be published in a variety of languages. There are many non-English-language newspapers in the United States, published in a host of languages, but their quality and distribution vary widely, and their number has declined substantially since their height in the early 1900s.

The population of the United States grew steadily at a rate of about one percent per year from 1990 to 2000. The United States includes people who claim nearly every ethnic origin in the world. Although most Americans can claim some European descent, people of Hispanic origin are the fastest-growing minority group in the United States. Between 1990 and 2000, the number of people claiming Hispanic descent grew from 23 million to 32 million. Many legal and illegal Hispanic immigrants, and many citizens of Hispanic descent, speak only Spanish. The number of African Americans in the United States grew from 29 million to 33 million in that same time period.

New York City is the country's media capital and major financial center, although most of the country's movies and television programming comes from Los Angeles. The Midwest, which includes states in the Mississippi and Ohio River basins, is mainly an agricultural and industrial area. The relatively sparsely populated Great Plains states, most of which share the Missouri River basin, produce most of the country's food. About 80 percent of the country's population lived inside metropolitan areas in 1998, which comprised about 20 percent of the country's land.

Numbers of Newspapers by Circulation

Despite the growing population and affluence of the United States, many newspapers continue to suffer from declining or stagnant circulation. In 2000, daily newspaper circulation reached a low of 0.20 newspapers per capita, down from 0.30 in 1970. Fierce competition from cable channels, network television, radio, and the Internet continues to cut into newspapers' market share and circulation. Although advertising revenues continue to grow, their growth has generally been slow. The boom years of the 1990s reversed this trend to some extent, but the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States accelerated an already-existing economic slowdown and led to major declines in ad lineage and advertising revenues across the country. One positive result of the attacks, and the subsequent military response to the attacks by the United States, has been an increase in circulation, in both long-term subscriptions and daily single-copy sales. However, even this interest-driven increase was slowing as of the summer of 2002.

The general trend of the United States press over most of the twentieth century was toward consolidation, chain or corporate ownership, and newspaper monopolies in most towns and cities. In 2001, only 49 U.S. cities had competing daily newspapers. Of those 49 cities, 16 had two nominally competitive newspapers owned by the same company. Another 12 cities had competing newspapers published under joint operating agreements, an exemption to antitrust laws allowing two struggling newspapers to combine all operations outside their respective newsrooms. Only 21 U.S. cities, therefore, had true competition among daily newspapers. Of those cities, fiveTucson, Los Angeles, Chicago, New York and Seattlehad more than two competing daily newspapers, leaving 16 cities with only two competing newspapers. This number represents a massive decline from newspapers' height in the late nineteenth century, when nearly every rural town and county seat might have had two or three competing daily and weekly papers, and larger cities might have had up to 20 or 30 papers.

The number of newspapers in the United States has continued to shrink, even as the country has experienced substantial growth in population, affluence, and literacy. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, the country's population was slowly aging, as a result of the post-World War II "baby boom," and older Americans have tended to be more frequent newspaper readers than younger persons.

The decline in the number of newspapers and in circulation is thus a dispiriting trend for publishers. In the last 30 years, the total number of newspapers has fallen from 1,748 to approximately 1,480. Those 1,480 newspapers are divided up into specific groups based on their daily circulation. As of Sept. 30, 2000, there were 9 newspapers that circulated more than 500,000 copies daily; 29 between 250,001 and 500,000; 67 between 100,001 and 250,000; 118 between 50,001 and 100,000; 201 between 25,001 and 50,000; 433 between 10,001 and 25,000; 363 between 5,001 and 10,000; and 260 below 5,000.

Tabloid newspapers have never been particularly popular in the United States, and most Americans tend to think of "tabloids" in terms of the supermarket alien-abduction genre of papers. However, some serious tabloids have gained a large following in certain cities; New York commuters in particular seem to enjoy the tabloidsized paper for its convenience in subway trains and on buses. As of September 30, 2000, there were a total of 51 tabloid-format papers being published in the United States. Five of those were daily broadsheet papers that published a tabloid edition only one day each week. The city with the most tabloids was New York, with four; Boston and Topeka, Kansas, had two each.

Morning, Evening, and Sunday Editions

The daily newspaper press is in the midst of a long-term conversion from publishing mostly in the evening to publishing mostly in the morning. In 1970, evening newspapers outnumbered dailies almost 5 to 1, with 1,429 evening newspapers and 334 morning papers being published. In 2000, for the first time, morning newspapers outnumbered evening, 766 to 727. In the same period, Sunday circulation grew from 49.2 million to 59.4 million, while daily circulation fell from 62.1 million to 55.8 million. Although the number of morning and evening newspapers is as of 2002 roughly equal, circulation has shifted dramatically. In 1970, evening circulation outnumbered morning 36.2 million to 25.9 million; in 2000, morning outnumbered evening 46.8 million to 9 million. Publication time roughly follows the size of the city in which a newspaper is published. As of 2002, no evening papers were published in any city larger than 250,000 people, while in towns of 5,000 or fewer, evening newspapers outnumbered morning 209 to 51. The logic of the long-term switch is complex but related essentially to newspapers' competition with broadcast media and newspapers' relationships with advertisers. Put simply, newspapers as a printed medium find it increasingly difficult to compete with television news channels on a daily basis, especially since the advent and recent massive proliferation of 24-hour cable news channels. While the afternoon or evening paper can at best summarize the events of the morning, a morning newspaper can summarize all the events of the previous day, barring sporting events or city council meetings that continue far into the night. Morning papers also are more influential in setting the tone of news discussions for the day; many broadcast reporters still get story ideas from the morning newspaper. The era of the printed newspaper as a viable medium for covering breaking news seems to be ending, although newspapers' Internet sites can be a way for papers to reclaim some of that market. In extreme circumstances press runs can be, and sometimes are, stopped or slowed, but most newspapers publish only one edition in any news cycle. The role of the afternoon paper, in the smaller communities which it generally serves, is similar to the role of the six o'clock newscast in larger citiesto provide a comprehensive summary of the day's events.

In the early 2000s, the one bright trend in circulation figures was the growth of the Sunday newspaper press. The Sunday paper is a relatively recent phenomenon, showing substantial growth in the 1980s and 1990s. As of 2002, a total of 917 Sunday newspapers were being published, up from only 538 in 1970. Most Sunday papers are published in midsize cities with populations between 10,000 and 100,000, though most Sunday circulation comes from big-city papers. Sunday papers tend to be the largest editions of the week, with papers like The New York Times publishing easily 300 pages on a single day. Sunday editions tend to be highly profitable for many papers, since they constitute a venue for a massive volume of display and classified advertising and many preprinted inserts. The Sunday paper has also traditionally contained expanded sections on science, health, books, performing arts, visual arts, TV listings, business, opinion, and the like. Additionally, many organizations use their Sunday editions for publishing expanded sections on the events of the week or for printing significantly longer stories analyzing events or trends in the public eye.

Sunday editions also often provide a place for newspapers to publish magazines, although relatively few newspapers actually produce their own. Many papers buy preprinted magazines, such as the popular Parade magazine, from news services. Many midsize and larger-circulation papers also publish a tabloid-style entertainment magazine on Fridays or weekends.

Newspaper Size

Given the size and variety of the U.S. press, there is no consistent number of pages that U.S. newspapers publish. Most midsize papers, of circulations between 25,000 and 75,000, publish between two and four news sections on any given day, with between 16 and 80 total pages. Added to the news sections can be one or two classified and display advertising sections, with between 4 and 20 total pages. Individual newspapers can even vary widely during the week in terms of their page count; most papers publish larger sections on Wednesdays, a popular day for grocery advertising, and on Fridays, when papers tend to publish special advertising sections and inserts, and possibly an entertainment magazine or tabloid section.

Most morning newspapers are in large cities, and most of the circulation of newspapers comes from the big-city press. The top 50 daily and Sunday papers in the United States all circulate in very large cities. As one would expect, the number of daily newspapers is also largest in states with large populations and large geographic areas. California leads the nation with 92 dailies, and Texas is second with 87. Delaware and the District of Columbia have the fewest dailies, with only two each. Washington, D.C., though, leads the nation in circulation per capita at 1.51 newspapers circulated per person. Of course, many of those papers are bought outside the federal district's area.

Ten Largest Newspapers

The ten largest newspapers in the United States in terms of circulation are all daily papers and are all published in large cities or their suburbs. In order of circulation size as of September 30, 2000, they were: The Wall Street Journal (New York);

USA Today (Arlington, Virginia); The New York Times ; The Los Angeles Times ; The Washington (D.C.) Post ; the Daily News (New York); The Chicago Tribune ; Newsday (Long Island, New York); The Houston Chronicle ; and The Dallas Morning News. The top ten Sunday papers vary slightly from this list, due mainly to the fact that neither The Wall Street Journal nor USA Today publishes on Sunday. They are: The New York Times ; The Los Angeles Times ; The Washington Post The Chicago Tribune ;

The Philadelphia Inquirer ; the Daily News (New York); The Dallas Morning News ; The Detroit News & Free Press ; The Houston Chronicle ; and The Boston Globe.

Small & Special Interest Press

Weekly newspapers, of course, operate on an entirely different news cycle and tend to be concentrated almost exclusively in rural communities. Some weekly newspapers, such as New York's Village Voice, circulate within a larger metropolitan area and offer a serious, though sometimes alternative, look at urban news and issues, competing directly with established newspapers and broadcast stations. Most weekly papers, however, circulate in areas with too small a population to support a daily newspaper and offer their readers coverage of areas generally ignored by larger papers and broadcasters. Weekly and semiweekly papers still make up the bulk of the American newspaper press in terms of sheer numbers, although their circulation is only about half that of daily newspapers. In 2001, a total of 6,579 community weekly papers circulated in the United States. Most of those4,145were paid for by subscribers, and another 1,065 circulated for free. A total of 1,369 combined paid and free editions. In any given week, 20.6 million paid and 27.4 million free weekly papers circulated in the United States in 2000.

An entirely different and more recent phenomenon has been the growth of free "shopper" papers and zoned editions of larger papers. Shoppers are generally papers that are distributed free within a given market, with their production costs paid for entirely through advertising. Zoned editions, on the other hand, are bundled with the regular newspaper and generally comprise special sections that are designed to allow advertising and news departments to produce area-specific content. In other words, a large metropolitan newspaper such as the St. Louis Post-Dispatch might (and does) publish zoned editions for a variety of geographic regions and suburbs that offer coverage of local schools, development, business and other issues that do not make the regular newspaper. In 2001, some 1,399 shopper publications and 3,598 zoned editions were published in the United States.

The ethnic and religious press has been affected by the general decline of the mainstream newspaper press. The rise of the one-newspaper town, combined with the general trend towards corporate ownership and shared corporate profits, has made it more difficult for any special-interest newspaper to successfully compete for advertising dollars and subscription revenues. Special-interest publishers have tended to concentrate in the magazine sector, where narrowly focusing on a specific target market results in an ever-increasing Balkanization of the magazine medium. Not surprisingly, surviving ethnic and foreign-language papers tend to be concentrated in the large cities, where the populations they target live. In some ways, the decline in numbers of ethnic and religious papers reflects a laudable desire on the part of mainstream publishers to include all groups in their communities; however, there has been loss of unique voices in the newspaper market.

In general, the distribution of ethnic newspapers has tracked changes in the general population. The current group attracting most attention from newspaper publishers is the Hispanic market. Many big-city newspapers, and even some small-town papers in areas with large Hispanic populations, have begun publishing Spanish-language sections and tabloids, sometimes partnering with existing publications. Other newspapers targeting Hispanics have sprung up on their own in various cities. In 2000, there were 149 Hispanic newspapers published in the United States.

African Americans have long been active newspaper publishers in the United States, often because personal preference combined with real or apparent segregation made white newspaper editors reluctant to publish serious news about African Americans. Frederick Douglass, the well-known former slave and abolitionist leader, started publishing the first successful African-American newspaper, the North Star, in 1847. In 2000, some 193 newspapers aimed partially or wholly at African Americans were published in the United States.

Religious newspapers have long had a presence in the newspaper world, especially in large cities. In 2000, there were at least 127 Christian papers, mostly Catholic, and at least 75 Jewish newspapers published in the United States. Military newspapers, whether published on land bases or on large ships, make up another significant segment of the special-interest press; at least 127 military papers were published in 2000.

Quality of Journalism

One unique aspect of U.S. newspapers is their detached stance towards news and especially politics. As newspaper numbers and newspaper competition have declined, so too has the tradition of newspapers supporting a particular political party or ideology. Although most newspapers in foreign countries are generally or explicitly supportive of particular political parties, American newspapers pride themselves on their independence from the political fray. Journalists are trained to seek objectivity in their reporting and are warned against taking stances on issues, persons, or events they cover. Most newspapers, at least in theory, observe a strict separation between the news and editorial pages and maintain a strict separation of powers between the newsroom and business office. This separation of powers is meant to express papers' editorial independence and to avoid even the appearance of influences on the paper from advertisers or political parties.

Reporters and editors find a particular ethical responsibility to be as fair and accurate as possible in reporting news. Many journalists struggle to overcome their own personal biases towards the news, whether in terms of political partisanship or in terms of their own religious or ethnic backgrounds. In particular, when covering political or religious stories, journalists have to consciously remind themselves to treat all sides of an issue fairly.

What this means for most journalists is that they are either explicitly prohibited or at least discouraged from holding public office, serving as communications or public relations directors for businesses or nonprofit agencies, and generally placing themselves in the public eye as being in support of political or social issues. The logic behind these prohibitions is that while journalists are citizens and entitled to the rights and responsibilities of any citizen in an open democracy, they should not compromise even the appearance of their media organization's independence and objectivity.

In the early 2000s, however, journalists have become somewhat more visible to the public. Many newspapers consider it acceptable to sponsor public meetings dedicated to discussing an issue of public concern or to sponsor panel discussions or a series of speakers on public issues. A growing minority of journalists argues that a newspaper's civic responsibilities should be balanced against its desire to be independent and objective. Many journalists are beginning to accept the idea that newspapers should not just report on community problems, but they should be a part of a community decision-making process to fix those problems. At the same time, however, a small but vocal minority of American journalists go so far as to espouse the view that journalists should not even vote, in an attempt to strictly separate themselves from public life. Most American journalists attempt to steer a middle line, observing a strict separation between their personal, political, and spiritual lives on the one hand and their responsibilities towards a mass audience on the other.

A particular ethical problem that many newspapers face concerns relations with advertisers. Most American papers earn a large portion of their revenues from display advertising; only a very few specialty newspapers and newsletters are able to sustain themselves mostly or entirely on subscription revenues. Pressure brought against newspapers by advertisers poses particularly tricky ethical decisions at times; the newspaper may desire to be as independent as possible, but if the newspaper is forced to close, its ability to do anything ceases. This problem is particularly acute for newspapers in rural areas and small towns, which cannot rely upon support from national advertisers.

Some media critics, however, argue that most U.S. newspapers suffer from inherent biases in coverage, such as an uncritical acceptance of capitalism, free markets, and the basic two-party system, even while claiming to be objective. Corporate consolidation and the fact that as of 2002 most daily newspapers operate as only one part of giant corporations has also led many journalists to worry about the possibility of undue influence being concentrated in relatively few hands.

Three Most Influential Newspapers

By far the most influential newspaper continues to be The New York Times, which sets a standard for quality journalism unparalleled throughout the country. Although the Times is not the largest-circulation daily in the country, the influence it has on the intellectual and political world is considerable. Over the course of its history, the Times has been the newspaper of record for many Americans.

USA Today must make the top three list if for no other reason than its influence on other papers. USA Today has the distinction of being the country's only truly national newspaper; though some of its editions are zoned by regions of the country, the paper makes an effort to cover news of national importance and includes news from every state in every edition. Founded in 1982, USA Today introduced a style of news writing that emphasized short, easy-to-read stories. The paper also pioneered massive use of color photos and infographics, and it adopted a now-famous and widely copied color weather map. The focus of USA Today has never been New York Times -style investigative journalism or long series on local or national issues. The paper was, however, a success with readers, who enjoyed the use of color and its nature as a "quick read," and many of its design innovations have silently been adopted by competing papers. In fact, the last two major "gray" newspapers in the United States, the Times and The Wall Street Journal, have begun using color within the last 10 years, and many other papers have adopted some or all of the paper's innovations, such as a color weather map or daily infographic.

Rounding out the top three papers is The Wall Street Journal. A financial newspaper with a generally conservative bent, the Journal is not necessarily representative of most American newspapers, but its influence on Wall Street, and thus the world, is immense. The Journal trades the title of largest-circulation newspaper in the United States with USA Today on a regular basis. TheJournal focuses mainly on business news and approaches national news from a business angle. It has, however, won several Pulitzer Prizes for reporting on non-business news. The paper also has the distinction of owning one of the few Internet sites that actually makes money; the site's content is so unique and valuable that it can successfully charge for subscriptions. The Journal is owned by the Dow Jones corporation, the publisher of the Dow Jones stock index that is used every day to track the performance of the American economy throughout the world. The Journal 's published financial data is also used throughout the country for setting a variety of loan rates, foreign currency conversions, and the like. As of 2002, the Journal 's most recent Pulitzer Prize was won for its response to the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The paper's offices, across the street from the World Trade Center, were evacuated that morning and were later essentially destroyed when the twin towers collapsed. The employees of the paper evacuated en masse to the paper's printing offices in New Jersey and were actually able to improvise a paper for the next morning.

History of the Press in the United States

The first newspaper in what would become the United States appeared in Boston on September 25, 1690. Benjamin Harris published Publick Occurrences, Both Foreign and Domestic, which led with a story about Massachusetts Native Americans celebrating a day of thanksgiving for a successful harvest and went on to mention rumors that the king of France had cuckolded his son. Although Harris, the publisher of the widely-used New England Primer, was a licensed printer, his newspaper only survived one issue.

During the next few decades, several papers appeared, most published by local postmasters who had access to European newspapers and the franking privilege. The longest-lived of these early papers was the Boston News-Letter, first printed in 1704 by postmaster John Campbell. Campbell's paper grew out of a handwritten newsletter that he had distributed to postal customers. Like other papers of the time, the News-Letter consisted generally of news about politics, ship movements, proclamations, speeches, and formal letters. Campbell's paper also included news about fires, shipwrecks, piracy, accidents, and other more sensational and interesting events. Campbell's paper survived for 72 years.

By 1735, printed material was once again becoming an annoyance to at least one colonial government. The Crown governor of New York, who had been attacked in various issues of John Peter Zenger's New York Weekly Journal, prosecuted Zenger on charges of seditious libel. Under British law at that time, truth was not a defense to a charge of seditious libel. The judge instructed the jury to find Zenger guilty if they determined he had indeed printed attacks on the governor, which he undoubtedly had. Perhaps swayed by Zenger's lawyer, Alexander Hamilton, the jury ignored the judge's instructions and found Zenger innocent and freed him.

During the years between Zenger's trial and the beginning of political unrest in the colonies, the best-known paper published was undoubtedly Benjamin Franklin's Pennsylvania Gazette. Franklin, a brilliant polymath who consciously presented himself as a rustic farmer, won success with the Gazette and other publications because of his wry style and self-deprecating writing. Unlike his older brother James, Benjamin Franklin was also able to escape being jailed by the colonial authoritiespartly by picking a city friendlier to printers.

Franklin is the best-known printer from Revolutionary days, but a host of other editors helped move the colonies closer to rebellion in the years before 1775. In 1765, Parliament passed a Stamp Act specifically aimed at taxing newspapers, legal documents, and other published materials that printers saw as intended to drive them out of business. The short-lived Stamp Act was only the first in a long series of measures designed to tax colonists for supporting British troops in North America that eventually led to rebellion, but it was a significant moment in radicalizing editors against the British government.

Newspapers were only one weapon in the general colonial protest against Britain, but they were a surprisingly effective one, being able to carry news of demonstrations, mock funerals of "Liberty," news of real and perceived abuses against colonists, and perhaps most importantly news from other colonies. The same printer-editors who published newspapers were also responsible for printing and distributing the variety of pamphlets, broadsides, engravings, woodcuts, and other miscellaneous propaganda distributed by revolutionary "Committees of Correspondence" from many of the colonies. During this same period, of course, loyalist printers also published material in support of the British government, and some very conservative editors avoided news of the conflict altogether or swayed back and forth as local political winds dictated.

The most well-known colonial protest against the British government, the Boston Tea Party, is an example of how newspapers helped radicals spread their message. The men who participated in the famous party may have planned their raid at the home and office of the printer Benjamin Edes of the Boston Gazette. Edes' Gazette and other papers printed full accounts of the attack and, more importantly, the rationale behind it, which were clipped and reprinted by other colonial newspapers, spreading the news farther across the colonies at each printing and in a sense recreating the event for each new reader. Without the intervention of the press, the Boston protest, and countless others in the colonies, would have been no more than an example of local hooliganism.

During the Revolution itself, printers of all political orientations found themselves even more closely tied to the fortunes of war. Editors often were forced to flee before approaching armies, and pressesespecially Tory pressesbecame the focus of mob violence on more than one occasion. In addition, the British naval blockade and general economic disruption caused by the war made it more difficult for editors to find supplies and to publish on anything approaching a regular basis. But newspapers had done their work; when John Adams wrote that "The Revolution was effected before the war commenced this radical change in the principles, opinions, sentiments and affections of the people, was the real American Revolution," he referred to the work done not only by the Sons of Liberty and Committees of Correspondence, but also that done by colonial editors.

American independence resulted in a reshaping of the press. For a short time, freed of the war-driven impulse to produce patriotic material, printers reverted to the pre-Revolutionary model of commercialism and relative political neutrality. The upcoming Constitutional Convention and the ratification debates attendant to it, however, meant that editors would once again shift into a more public, political role. A new generation of editors would radically transform their newspapers, create new political roles for themselves, and eventually lay the foundations for the American party system in the years between 1790 and 1830. To understand that transformation, it is important first to examine the social role of printers in colonial and Revolutionary times.

Franklin's example notwithstanding, being a printer in colonial days was hardly a road to political power, prestige, or riches. Although printers were valued by their towns, and their business brought them into contact with the local elite, they were still artisans, sharply separated from the colonial gentry by class, manners, refinement, and occupation. Printing was a difficult and often disgusting business. The youngest apprentice in a colonial office would often be given the job of preparing sheepskin balls used to ink the type. The balls had to be soaked in urine, stamped on, and wrung out to add softness before being brought to the press. Ink was often made in the office by boiling soot in varnish. More experienced printers might spend up to sixteen hours setting type, reading copy with one hand while the other selected individual letters and placed them, backwards and reversed, into a typecase.

The locked typecaseessentially a solid block of lead type with wood frameswould be carried to the press by hand, the type itself beat with inked sheepskin balls, and the press cranked by hand to bring the plate into contact with a sheet of wetted paper. This process would produce one side of one sheetone "impression." The sheet would then be hung to dry, and the inking, wetting, and cranking process repeated. Two experienced printers could produce about 240 sheets an hour at best. Later, they would repeat the entire process, including setting new type, for the other side of the sheet, and later fold the papers by hand. The total process of producing a rural paper with 500 to 600 copies would take at least a day and most of the night.

During the years immediately following the Revolution, printers' status actually declined throughout the country. As the process of creating a newspaper became more specialized, the job of actually printing a newspaper became increasingly divorced from the process of writing and editing the news. During the 1790s, this trend became more distinct as a new breed of editors turned away from the trade-oriented, mostly commercial, goals of their predecessors. Younger men found themselves increasingly drawn to partisan controversies and found their true calling in editing political newspapers.

From the late 1790s on, partisan newspapers became increasingly more crucial to politics and politicians in America. Partisan newspapers acted as nodal points in the political system, linking ordinary voters to their official representatives and far-flung party constituencies to one another. Political parties existed without formal organization in the early Republic, and partisan newspapers provided a forum in which like-minded politicians could plan events, plot strategy, argue platforms, and rally voters in the long intervals between campaigns and events. Physical political events like speeches, rallies, and banquets with their attendant toasts could only reach a limited number of voters at any given time, but when accounts of them were printed and reprinted in newspapers their geographic reach was vastly extended. In the days before formal party headquarters, local newspaper offices functioned as places in which politicians and editors could meet and plan strategy.

Throughout the nineteenth century, newspapers remained the focal points of political struggles, as parties and factions battled for control of prominent newspapers and regions. Newspapers could also come before formal party organization, as when William Lloyd Garrison's The Liberator made him the leading figure of the abolitionist movement and predated the founding of his New England Anti-Slavery Society by a year. When black abolitionists wanted a voice in the movement, they attempted several times to found a newspaper, finally succeeding in 1847 with Frederick Douglass's North Star.

Later journalism historians searching for the origins of objectivity and professionalism would often find their origins in the penny press, started by James Gordon Bennett's New York Sun in 1833. The penny press, which owed its name to the fact that penny papers sold for one or two cents daily, instead of several dollars per year, was more stylistically than substantively different from the partisan newspapers of its day. Bennett and other editors made much out of the fact that they were "independent" in politics, but by independence they meant essentially that they were not dependent upon one party for support.

What the penny press actually did was to combine and extend many of the innovations with which other newspapers were beginning to experiment. The penny papers popularized daily copy sales rather than subscriptions, relied more upon advertising than subscriptions for support, and broadened the audience for reports on crime, courts, Wall Street, and Broadway. The penny papers also continued a process of specialization that led eventually to the "beat" system for reporters and to changes in the internal organization of newsrooms. But the penny press was a uniquely Eastern and urban phenomenon which was evolutionary rather than revolutionary in press history.

In the 1850s and 1860s, sectional politics dominated newspapers, as radical stances began to be taken by all sides on the question of slavery. After the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860, eleven Southern states decided to leave the Union, making civil war inevitable. During the war years, newspaper editors often found themselves caught between competing sectional and party loyalties, especially in border states like Missouri, Kentucky, and Maryland, while other editors found their papers suppressed by local authorities or by invading armies. Southern editors in particular faced hardship during the war, as the northern blockade dried up the supplies they needed to publish. Other papers, especially in the North, were able to continue their vigorous partisanship; Lincoln wryly noted that even Horace Greeley's Tribune, a Republican and abolitionist paper, only supported him four days a week. Newspaper correspondents vastly expanded their use of the telegraph and photography in reporting on the war; a new genre of "illustrated magazines" made copious use of both picturesque and horrible war scenes.

In the years after the Civil War, the tremendous growth in newspapers that the nineteenth century had seen slowed somewhat. The United States grappled with a deep economic depression throughout the 1870s, and most of the South was still under military occupation. The African-American press was one sector that showed growth in the years after the Civil War, as freed slaves, most of whom had been prevented from learning to read or write, came together to create their own schools, banks, newspapers, and other public institutions. Once again, major new political movements found expression first in partisan newspapers. Editors continued to take strong stands on national political events as well, with the impeachment and trial of Andrew Johnson and the increasingly corrupt administration of Ulysses S. Grant at center stage.

During the 1880s, massive changes were underway in the United States that would change the nature of newspapers and of news in the twentieth century. The U.S. economy had recovered from the depression of the 1870s and was beginning to embark on the great decades of industrial expansion that would make it the world's leading economy by the 1940s. Immigrants once again began to flood into eastern cities, accelerating an existing trend towards urbanization and creating a huge demand for foreign-language newspapers. The 1890 census for the first time counted more Americans living in cities than in rural areas. The 1890s in general would become known as one of the most flamboyant eras of American journalism, marked by incredible competition among the large urban dailies.

The two most famous representatives of the newspaper wars of the 1890s were Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst. Pulitzer, a Hungarian who had immigrated to the United States to fight in the Civil War, bought the failing St. Louis Westliche Post, a German-language Liberal Republican newspaper, at a sheriff's sale in 1878, later combining it with the St. Louis Dispatch. Pulitzer's Post-Dispatch, which changed political orientations when Pulitzer himself became a Democrat, became a model for the kind of crusading urban newspaper that he would later run in New York. Attacking political corruption, wealth, and privilege, Pulitzer sought to create and unify a middle-class reform movement in St. Louis. When he bought the New York World in 1883, his goal was again to rescue a failing newspaper by launching it on a progressive political crusade, partly by supporting issues important to the city's large immigrant population. Hearst, the son of a wealthy California mine owner, actually got his start in journalism working for the World before purchasing the San Francisco Examiner in 1887. When Hearst returned to New York, it was as a direct competitor to Pulitzer. Hearst used his Morning Journal to attack Pulitzer, the city government, and anyone else who caught his eye, and later to encourage the United States to declare war on Spain in 1898. The circulation wars of the 1890s, which led to extremes of sensationalism later called "yellow journalism," pushed both papers' circulations above one million at times.

The period between 1890 and 1920 is also notable as an era in which individual reporters became more well-known than ever before. The era of "muckrakers" is difficult to characterize as a unified set of ideas, but most muckrakers shared a general desire for social reform, a faith in the ability of government and society to overcome problems, and a belief that their exposés would result in action. The topics muckrakers tackled ranged from Ida B. Wells's courageous work to ending lynching in the South to Jacob Riis's portraits of homeless youths in New York. At the other end of the spectrum rest journalists like Lincoln Steffens, whose "Shame of the City" series is representative of a genre that tended to focus on the personal habits and customs of the new immigrants peopling urban areas, and to blame urban corruption, homelessness, poor sanitation, and other urban problems on the ethnic or racial backgrounds of those immigrants.

The years leading up to World War I in many ways marked the high point of the newspaper press in the United States. In 1910, the number of daily newspapers in the United States peaked at 2,600; in 1914, the number of foreign-language dailies in the United States reached a high of 160. When the United States entered World War I in 1917, President Woodrow Wilson set up the Committee on Public Information, headed by George Creel, to rally press support for the war effort. Creel's committee used a newly passed Espionage Act to limit publication of materials that questioned the war effort, mainly by revoking papers' mailing privileges. Particularly hard-hit was the Socialist press, which in 1913 had counted 323 newspapers with more than two million copies circulated daily, but other non-mainstream newspapers were also attacked by the government.

Although the Creel Committee relied more on voluntary compliance than on federal enforcement, the effort put forth by the government to bring media in line with the war effort led many editors to question the veracity of news told in support of a single point of view. This trend, combined with a general postwar disillusionment towards extreme political and social ideas, accelerated an existing trend towards the objective model of newsgathering. Although the "who, what, when, where, why and how" model of reporting had existed since at least the 1890s, the 1920s marked the first widespread acceptance of objectivity as a goal among newspapers. Increasingly fierce economic competition between newspapers and declining readership also contributed to a trend towards objective reporting; the role of corporate advertisers in supporting papers also encouraged nonpartisanship on the front page. The rise of the one-newspaper town coincided with a shift in thinking on the part of editors, who had to begin seeing their readers less as voters and more as news consumers. As always, objectivity became accepted as a news model first among large urban papers, only slowly making its way into the hinterlands.

The 1920s saw a continued decline in the number of daily newspapers but also the advent of new technologies that would eventually vastly change the news. The first commercial radio station in the United States, KDKA in Pittsburgh, made its debut broadcasting results of the Harding-Cox presidential election in 1920. By 1922, the number of stations had increased to 576, and over 100,000 radios were bought that year alone. The new technology did not at first massively change newspapers, but its popularity combined with continued declines in newspaper readership foreshadowed trends that would continue throughout the twentieth century. In 1926, when Philo Farnsworth first experimented with television sets, 5.5 million radios were in use in the United States.

The 1930s brought the Great Depression to the United States, and newspapers suffered along with the rest of the economy. The American Society of Newspaper Editors led many influential papers in opposing Franklin Delano Roosevelt's New Deal programs. The defining Supreme Court decision concerning newspapers, Near v. Minnesota, was heard in 1931. In Near, the court held that First Amendment protection against prior restraint extended to prohibit state and local governments, as well as the federal government, from prohibiting publication of a newspaper on any but the most unusual circumstances.

The Depression resulted in a slowing of growth for radio as a medium, but the 1930s also saw the consolidation of stations into national radio networks and the expansion of those networks across the country. The demand for simple, concise reporting for radio news programs helped to push newspapers in the direction of the inverted-pyramid style of writing and did much to institutionalize the cult of objectivity. In addition, federal courts began to allow radio broadcasts and station licenses to be regulated by the government, holding that the radio broadcast spectrum rightly belonged to the public and could be regulated in the public interest. Roosevelt's "fireside chats" used the new medium as a way to communicate directly to the people, contributing to a general 1930s trend towards increasing the power of the federal government relative to the states.

The end of the 1930s saw the advent of World War II in Europe and a growing strain of isolationism in the United States. Many newspapers initially opposed U.S. involvement in the European war, but that opposition evaporated after the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941.

At the beginning of the war, newspapers agreed to voluntarily censor their content under a Code of Wartime Practices developed by Byron Price, a former Associated Press editor. Many newspapers also printed information distributed by the Office of War Information, headed by Elmer Davis, which was a government body set up to disseminate morale-boosting material. World War II newspapers did not generally suffer from the same constraints as papers did under the Creel Committee in World War I, partly because World War II had significantly more support from the general public and from newspapers, and partly because no World War II counterpart of the Espionage Act was used to attack non-mainstream papers. The general economic dislocation caused by the war did cause, however, many newspapers to suspend publication. By the end of 1944, there were only 1,745 daily newspapers being published in the United States, a loss of 360 from 1937.

An important postwar development in newspaper journalism was the Hutchins Commission's report on "A Free and Responsible Press." The report, which argued that a free press had a duty to responsibly report news without scandalmongering or sensationalism, became an important statement of ethics, putting into words the philosophy that the United States press had been groping toward since the 1920s.

On July 1, 1941, two television stations in New York began broadcasting news and programs to tiny audiences in the city. Though television began as a tiny medium and though the war hampered its ability to grow, the new medium expanded rapidly after the war. By 1949, there were more than 100 television stations in the country. The growth of television hurt newspapers, though not as much as was initially predicted. The real victim of the popularity of TV, though, was radio. In the 1950s, many radio stars, including Edward R. Murrow, abandoned radio for television, and radio began to lose its appeal as a mass medium. Radio pioneered the practice of "narrowcasting" starting in the 1950s, as stations abandoned nationally produced content to focus on a specific demographic or ethnic group within its listening area. This early and successful form of target marketing predated and pres-aged efforts by magazines and some newspapers to do the same.

The 1960s were generally a decade of massive change for newspapers. Typesetting changed dramatically as the use of photocomposition and offset presses became widespread. The advent of offset spelled doom not only for the jobs of Linotype operators but also for many other specialized printing trades. The result was a rash of newspaper strikes that continued into the 1970s. Some of the cities struck were Boston, Cleveland, Detroit, New York, Portland, St. Louis, St. Paul, San Jose, and Seattle. The Detroit News and the Detroit Free Press were shut down for 267 days in 1967 and 1968.

The 1970s saw one of the most dramatic instances of the power of the United States press when the Washington Post 's coverage of the Watergate burglary started a process that led to the resignation of President Nixon. The 1970s were also notable as the decade in which computers first began to invade U.S. newsrooms. Though slow and balky at first, computers would revolutionize typesetting by the 1990s, with later technology making it possible for type to go directly from computer screen to printing plate. The continued decline in multiple-newspaper cities led Congress to pass the Newspaper Preservation Act of 1970, which allowed competing newspapers to merge essentially all of their operations outside the newsroom if one or both were in financial distress.

The 1980s brought more massive changes to the media in the United States. The first all-news TV network, CNN, debuted in 1980, and the first new national newspaper, USA Today, was first published in 1982. Though both were at first derided by the newspaper press, both survived and prospered. CNN offered the world live coverage of the Gulf War in 1991, and viewers experienced watching U.S. bombs drop on Iraqi targets live and in color. The 1990s will be remembered most as the decade in which the Internet exploded as a major cultural force. Newspapers were quick to build Internet sites and invest in the new technology as part of a "convergence" strategy, although as of the year 2002 profits from the Internet continued to elude most companies.

Increasing consolidation of newspaper chains and ever-decreasing competition have been other major trends of the 1980s and 1990s, with newspaper mergers and buyouts continuing unabated. The booming U.S. economy of the 1990s and the over-inflated stock market undoubtedly contributed to this trend. The largest recorded value of deals struck for newspapers in a single year occurred in 2000, with a total of $15 billion changing hands. Between 1990 and 2000, newspaper companies aggressively sought to expand their holdings in both numbers of newspapers and in specific geographic areas, seeking especially to cluster their holdings in and around metropolitan areas. Newspaper companies also aggressively expanded into television, radio, and the Internet, with mixed results. At the end of 2000, the top 25 media corporations controlled 662 U.S. dailies with a combined daily circulation of 40 million.

Economic Framework

Overview of the Economic Climate and its Influence on Media

The information industry in the United States is one of the most dynamic and quickly-growing sectors of an economy that was struggling to recover from recession in the middle of 2002. The prior economic census of the United States, taken in 1997, listed 144,000 businesses devoted to information and communications, with more than $623 billion in gross receipts. Of those businesses, 8,800 were newspaper publishers, with total revenues of $117.3 billion. In 1999, newspaper-publishing companies had about 400,000 employees and carried a total payroll of $26 billion. To say the least, communication industries are not an inconsiderable part of the U.S. economy.

Since 1997, the United States experienced a massive speculative boom in the stock market, fueled mainly if not entirely by companies that promised to use the limitless potential of the Internet to deliver every possible type of service to the home consumer. That speculative bubble burst in the first half of 2001, shortly after the contested George W. Bush versus Al Gore presidential election was finally decided. Uncertainty over the future course of the country, combined with a growing impatience with seemingly empty promises from Internet companies, caused a massive contraction in equities markets throughout 2001 and sent the U.S. economy into a recession.

The business climate was still stagnant in September 2001, when terrorists struck at the heart of the U.S. financial system in attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people, devastated the financial district of New York, shut down the U.S. air travel system and the U.S. stock exchanges for days, and caused a massive wave of panic to ripple throughout the country. The economic news was improving somewhat in the summer of 2002, but the long-term outlook remained uncertain.

The falling stock market affected not only Internet companies but other corporations as well, including publicly-held media companies and many of their major advertisers. Many media companies were already coming to terms with falling advertising revenues before the terrorist attacks. The aftermath of September 11 caused businesses to rethink capital expenditures and shift comparatively more money into security-related spending and less into advertising. Newspapers were hurt by declining advertising but were helped somewhat by a rise in newspaper circulation since the attacks and subsequent U.S. military campaign in Central Asia. However, as of the summer of 2002, those short-term circulation gains seemed to be evaporating.

Newspapers in the Mass Media Milieu: Print Media versus Electronic Media

Newspapers make up only one portion of the mass media in the United States, and they make up a declining percentage of the media market. Although the 1997 economic census listed 8,758 newspaper publishers (including daily and weekly papers) and 6,928 periodical publishers, it also listed 6,894 radio broadcasters; 1,895 television broadcasters; 4,679 cable broadcasters; and 14,895 information and data services processing firms. With the recent growth of Internet businesses, print media are taking up an ever smaller share of the media audience.

Although both print and broadcast revenues continued to grow throughout 1998 and 1999, the rate at which newspapers grew, 6.8 percent, is only .4 point ahead of television growth (6.4 percent) and is only about half the rate of radio growth (12.5 percent). By comparison, information and data processing services grew 28.2 percent, and online information services grew by 69.5 percent. Although newspapers still outstripped online services in 1999 in total revenues, $48.5 billion to $21.1 billion, the phenomenal growth of online services implies that newspapers' dominance is limited. Newspapers also had slightly more revenue than TV and radio broadcasters, which had revenues of $47.6 billion in 1999.

One bright spot in the comparison of newspapers to broadcasting agencies has been that newspapers are generally retaining readers better than broadcasters are retaining viewers. In the summer of 2002, the news organizations of the three major networks all reported precipitous declines in the number of viewers their news programs were able to capture.

Types of Newspaper Ownership

Most newspapers in the United States are part of newspaper chains, owned by corporations that control from two to several hundred papers. Although some newspapers are still held privately or controlled by families or trusts, the trend of corporate ownership proliferated in the 1980s and 1990s. A total of only ten companies own newspapers that account for more than half of the United States' daily circulation, and three of those ten companies are privately held. As of May 2001, the top three newspaper companiesGannett, Knight-Ridder, and the Tribune Co.owned one-seventh of all daily newspapers, representing one-fourth of the circulation of U.S. newspapers.

In the early 2000s, chain ownership was one of the most hotly debated trends in the United States media. Critics of chains worry about consolidating so much circulation, power, and influence in the hands of a relatively few people, charging that corporate newspapers accept a corporate mentality that substitutes concern for profits and stock prices for journalistic integrity and independence. Another concern is corporate standardization. Recently, Knight-Ridder raised eyebrows across the journalistic world when it converted all of its newspapers' Internet sites to a standard corporate model, including that of the San Jose Mercury-News, which pioneered Internet newspapers. The newspapers' "Real Cities" sites, which are at Web addresses such as kansascity.com and charlotte.com, subsume the newspapers' identities entirely within the context of the corporate, "Real Cities" brand, identifying the papers themselves only vaguely and giving those newsroom teams relatively little credit for the product they produce.

One major consequence of corporate buying is that early 2000s sprees inflated the value of newspapers out of proportion to their actual profit margins. With corporate owners increasingly concerned about servicing their debts, cost cutting seems to be the only way to ensure a cash flow great enough to meet obligations to debtors. More often than not, this means staff cuts, since the major cost centers in newspapers are people and newsprint, and newsprint costs are constant and generally rising.

Of particular concern to many observers of the media scene is the increasing proportion of publishers and even general managers who come from a background in business, instead of in journalism. There is a prevailing feeling among many editors that an MBA may qualify a person to run a business but that a publisher with a business background may subvert the interests of the newspaper and its editorial independence. Of particular concern are the effect of corporate decisions on editorial content and the question of whether editorial matters may be subverted in the interest of or at the request of advertisers and other business interests of the corporation.

Some journalists have increasingly insisted on making a "full disclosure" when reporting or commenting on movies, books, or programming produced by another arm of a massive corporation. A good example would be a commentator for Time criticizing a movie produced by Time Warner, Inc., noting in his or her article the corporate ownership of both types of media. This type of disclosure, however, is only helpful in allowing those readers who were not aware of such cross-ownership to find out about it in the act of reading; it does not provide insight into the editorial decisions that produced the article or commentary in the first place, and it leaves the magazine or newspaper open to concerns of undue corporate influence.

On the other hand, corporate ownership may actually benefit many small-to medium-sized newspapers by creating a company-wide pool of resources and talent that the company can draw upon to make individual newspapers better. Corporate ownership can mean corporate discounts on newsprint, ink, printing presses, and other supplies, and can mean skilled help from within the corporation when presses break, lawsuits are threatened, or disasters strike newspapers. Corporate ownership combined with public financing can also mean that companies have an available pool of money from which to draw for special projects, better coverage, and the hiring process.

Effects of Corporate Ownership

The individual effect of corporate ownership undoubtedly varies from company to company and from newspaper to newspaper. Some papers that operated alone at a very high level might find themselves stifled by a corporate mindset that asks publishers to justify any expense to the head office; on the other hand, an infusion of corporate money, talent, and resources is a godsend to any number of struggling papers.

However, the experience of being bought and sold invariably leads to a period of uncertainty for employees of a newspaper, as the new company generally makes changes in the management structure, management philosophies, and management personnel, to say nothing of other hirings and firings that may affect jobs and morale in the newsroom and in the rest of the paper. Small changes are magnified at small newspapers, which generally have smaller staffs than larger-circulation papers and are thus more likely to be affected by cuts that could be thought insignificant at larger organizations. Half of the newspapers in the United States have circulations below 13,000 readers, and of those papers fully 47 percent changed hands in the six years between 1994 and 2000.

One unique exception to corporate ownership, and one way that some multi-newspaper cities have managed to keep operating, is through joint operating agreements (JOAs). Created in 1970 as an exemption to anti-trust laws, JOAs allow two or three competing papers to merge business and production operations while keeping news-rooms separate and continuing to produce multiple newspapers. There have been 29 JOAs in the United States since the law was passed; 12 still survive. Of the others, all except two ended with one newspaper failing, moving to weekly publication, or merging with the other paper.

Press Media and Electronic Media Audiences

The U.S. newspaper audience is more affluent, well-educated, older, and better employed than the general population, according to a 2000 Mediamark, Inc. survey that tracked participation in media in a given week. About 79 percent of American adults had looked at a newspaper within the past week at the time of the survey. Of people who had a college degree, 89.7 percent had looked at a newspaper, compared with only 60 percent who were not high school graduates. About 83.5 percent of people age 45 to 54 had read a paper, compared with 73.3 percent of people age 18 to 24. Interestingly, white and black Americans read newspapers at equal levels: 79.3 percent of whites and 79.2 percent of blacks had looked at a newspaper.

The same survey found that people who were more poorly educated watched slightly more television; 94 percent of people without a high-school degree watched television in the past week, compared with 91.1 percent of people with college degrees. Income had little effect on television viewing, but it did have a dramatic effect on Internet usage. Only 14.6 percent of people who made less than $10,000 a year had used the Internet within the last month, while 67 percent of people who made more than $50,000 a year had logged on. Interestingly, however, usage dropped precipitously among people making $150,000 a year or more, falling to just 7.6 percent of that population. Education levels made an even more dramatic difference; only 11.6 percent of people with no high school degree had used the Internet, compared with 76.5 percent of people with college degrees.

Advertisers' Influence

Advertising revenues remain a major concern for newspaper publishers. In 2001, the last year for which figures were available, newspapers saw a precipitous drop in advertising expenditures on the part of businesses. Retail, national, and classified advertising fell each quarter compared with the same quarter in 2000, which was itself down compared to 1999 spending. Total advertising expenditures fell 4.3 percent in the first quarter, 8.4 percent in the second, 10.3 percent in the third, and 11.9 percent in the fourth, for a total year-to-year decline of 9 percent overall. Classified advertising, which comprises the bulk of most small newspapers' ad revenues, took the greatest hit, declining 15.2 percent from 2000. National advertising fell by 8.5 percent, while retail advertising fell only 3.4 percent. Total ad revenues, in dollar terms, fell from $48.670 billion to $44.318 billion.

The drop in advertising revenues year-to-year has been of great concern to publishers, who rely on advertising for most of their profits. Short-term circulation gains have been evaporating at many newspapers, and many papers continue to face shrinking circulations and the prospect of falling ad revenues as well. Any cuts that come out of papers have to come from within, with employees bearing the brunt of the cuts.

Most newspapers still strive to maintain at least a 1:1 news-advertising ratio. This means in general that news and advertising lineagea somewhat archaic term should be approximately equal throughout the newspaper in order for the day's advertising to pay for the daily press run. Ideally, the ad ratio should be skewed slightly farther in the direction of advertising in order to maximize profits and to cost-justify the number of pages appearing in a paper, but most newspapers will generally provide an "open page" when the city desk asks for more space for a certain package of stories or for a long-standing special report. Needless to say, such a ratio is not achieved every day, nor is it achieved through display advertising alone. Weekly inserts and changes in the number of ads placed in the paper day-by-day have a large effect on papers' ad ratios.

With a large portion of a newspaper's revenues coming from advertising, it is no surprise that advertisers sometimes attempt to influence editorial policy, especially with regard to stories that have the potential to adversely affect their businesses. Pressures from individual advertisers can sometimes sway weaker or smaller newspapers to change editorial coverage or even abandon stories entirely. The effect of such pressure, as one might imagine, depends almost entirely upon the portion of a paper's revenue that an individual advertiser provides; the relative editorial strength and independence of the paper's owners; and the newspaper's standing in the community.

Influence of Special Interest Lobbies

Another collection of groups that may affect newspaper coverage of certain events is the various special-interest lobbies that exist across the country. Lobbying organizations command a disproportionate amount of newspaper coverage compared with their actual power and the amount of the population they represent essentially because of their skill at "working the media" and ensuring that they provide newsworthy events on command. Special-interest lobbies command news attention not so much through pressure or coercion as through the nature of various stunts and "media events" they stage. Stories on hot-button issues, such as abortion and gun control, often are the province of special-interest lobbies because reporters tend to call them for easy quotes and to create "balance" in stories, rather than doing the sometimes more difficult work of talking to people in the community who might have more complex, but possibly more representative, views on the issues.

Employment and Average Wage Scales

Though newspaper audiences tend to be more affluent than the rest of the population, newsroom employees tend not to be particularly well-paid compared to other groups. Exact data for newspaper pay scales can be difficult to come by, given that the Census Bureau does not break down wage data from the communications sector to specific categories or wage levels within individual communications sectors. However, wage data taken from the Economic Census of the United States, taken in 1997, suggest that newspaper workers in general are paid well below the more general communications sector and slightly below the average wage for the rest of the United States.

According to the Economic Census, the average pay per worker in the entire communications sector is $42,229 per year, with newspaper workers receiving $29,228 per year. This puts newspaper workers below the average for all newspaper, periodical, book, and database publishers, which average $33,753 per employee per year. By comparison, periodical publishers' workers average $43,500 per year, with book publishers' employees averaging $40,522 per year. Database workers average $38,400 per year, while software publishers' employees make about $69,000 per year.

To expand this view to other forms of media, we find newspaper workers again near the bottom of the pay scale. Motion picture and sound recording workers average $34,000 per year, while television broadcast workers average $50,900 per year. Only radio broadcasters average less than newspaper workers, making about $28,455 per year. The average hourly pay for newspaper employees in 2000 was $14.05 per hour, compared with $13.74 for the entire private sector. However, the average 1999 salary for a full-time worker in the United States was $36,555, placing newspaper employees well below average salary levels.

Strikes and Labor Unions

Between 1990 and 2002, there were two major newspaper strikes in the United States, in Detroit and in Seattle. There were also minor work stoppages at several newspapers, and as of the summer of 2002, there was a curious "byline strike" ongoing at the Washington Post. The relatively small number of strikes in the 1990s partly reflects the economic boom of the decade and partially reflects the dwindling influence unions have over the press.

The major labor unions in the U.S. press have always been somewhat divided between two groups, corresponding roughly to their members' place in the newsroom. One group of unions represented compositors, typesetters, printers, and other persons who were skilled laborers mainly in charge of actually printing the paper. The other group of unions, of which the Newspaper Guild is the survivor, represented reporters, copy editors, and photographersonce blue-collar, hourly-wage occupations that over the course of the twentieth century gradually became white-collar, professionalized, salaried jobs.

Offset technology utterly erased jobs once held by compositors and typesetters, and it took much of the older type of skilled labor out of printing. The elimination of lead type in favor of offset plates means that copy editors and designers can now typeset a page in one computer mouse-click. In the 1990s, newspapers gained the capability to create negatives and even press plates directly from the newsroom, eliminating the legions of skilled workers once needed to make that transition. The new offset presses also brought with them a dramatic fall in labor costs; although Ben Bradlee was wrong when he observed that one man could push a button and a newspaper would be printed, the offset presses do require much less labor to run. Printers' unions still represent the men and women who run offset presses, but their jobs have become more easily replaceable over time. In addition, the fact that as of 2002 large corporations held most newspapers shifted the balance of power decisively in favor of management; companies in the early 2000s have large pools of employees and deep pockets whose reserves that they can use to break a strike.

The Newspaper Guild also has seen a decline in its relative importance and its membership. The Guild was formed in 1933, and members once identified closely with printers and other hourly-wage workers and against their editors and the newspaper's management. Ironically, though, increasing job mobility and wage scales for reporters, editors, and photographers have increased class distinctions between the newsroom and the pressroom. In addition, the growing importance newspapers place on individual reporters, and the recent phenomenon of reporters becoming stars in their own right and being promoted as a result of their reporting, has meant that the ranks of management are increasingly filled with those who once were reporters and editors, blurring distinctions even further. The Guild's membership peaked at 34,800 in 1987 and has been falling ever since. Overall, the percentage of newspaper workers who are union members has dropped from about 17 to 20 percent in 1975 to about 10 percent in 2000.

The largest newspaper strike of the 1990s illustrates these trends in dramatic fashion. In 1990, the Detroit Free Press and the Detroit News entered into a joint operating agreement. After the JOA, trumpeted by both papers' owners as a cost-saving measure, newsroom workers got an average raise of only $30 per week. Tensions in both papers simmered until July 13, 1995, when 2,500 employees of both papers, represented by six unions, walked off the job.

Gannett and Knight-Ridder, publishers of the News and Free Press, both vowed to continue publication and did. Strikers encouraged union workers in Detroit, a union-heavy and union-friendly city, to boycott the paper, and they did. The result of the strike was disaster for both sides, as circulation, advertising dollars, news-room morale, and salaries all fell. The strike lasted for 19 months, or a total of 583 days. By October 1997 some 40 percent of striking workers were back on the job, but the newspapers continued to struggle. The walkout cost the papers about $300 million, mostly on replacement workers, loss of goodwill, and lost advertising revenues. The papers saw a 280,000-paper drop in circulation, which as of 2002 had not been regained. The unions failed to shut the newspapers down, and the papers have been slow to rehire union members, many of whom took jobs elsewhere or moved out of the newspaper business. The lasting result of the strike has been bitterness and acrimony on both sides.

Following the Detroit strike, the only other major strike as of 2002 was in Seattle, where employees of the Seattle News walked out over a new contract at the end of 2000. The Seattle strike lasted 49 days, and ended at last when the Guild accepted a contract that was essentially identical to the one it had rejected initially.

An interesting development in recent years has been the resurgence of "byline strikes," whereby reporters, columnists, and sometimes photographers refuse to publish bylines with their stories. The impact on a paper's credibility is hard to gauge, though readers have reported frustration in their inability to identify writers and thus their inability to effectively complain about stories that they might not like. The concept of a byline strike was resurrected in New Jersey in April of 2001, where Jersey Journal employees began a byline strike after the paper offered them annual raises of $2 per week. Subsequently, on June 5, 2002, Washington Post employees staged a by line strike to protest the Post 's policy that they write stories both for the newspaper and for the Post 's Web site. The Newspaper Guild called on reporters to delete their bylines both from the paper and from the paper's Web site. The Post was the first newspaper to attempt such a strike, in 1987, and the effect was mixed at best. Many observers have pointed out that most readers tend to ignore bylines in any case, with the obvious exception of syndicated columns. In 2002, the effect of the Post employees' effort remained to be seen.

Circulation Patterns and Prices

Newspapers across the United States are remarkably homogenous in terms of their price. Audit Bureau of Circulations numbers from 2000 show that nearly all U.S. papers charge the same amount for their daily editions, and nearly the same amount for Sunday editions. The median cost of a daily paper has been $.50 since 1996, regardless of the size of the paper or its circulation. Average, or mean, costs tend to vary by circulation groups because a few newspapers charge slightly more or less for daily editions; for all newspapers, the mean cost is $.49. Sunday figures have been stable over the same period, with papers under 25,000 circulation charging a median amount of $1, papers between 25,000 and 50,000 charging $1.25, and papers over 50,000 circulation charging $1.50. The median charge for all Sunday papers is $1.25, and the mean charge is $1.28. Fully 76 percent of the 950 Audit Bureau of Circulations members that release single-copy costs charge 50 cents for their newspapers.

Newsprint Availability and Cost

The availability and price of newsprint remained relatively volatile through the late 1990s and early 2000s, with newspapers' desire to maintain a constant stock of paper colliding with supply constraints in the newsprint milling system. Prices per ton continued to fluctuate, reaching a high of $605 per ton in November of 1998 and falling as low as $470 per ton in September 1999. In 2000, newspapers used 11,983,000 metric tons of newsprint, a 1.1 percent increase over 1999. Stocks on hand remained relatively constant, with newspapers keeping an average of 43 days' supply on hand in 2001 and 2002.

Newsprint is one of the two major cost centers in newspaper publishing, with the other being labor costs. To reduce newsprint costs, many papers have been converting to a smaller "web width" to conserve paper, which is priced per ton. The smaller web width50 inches at most papers, down from 52 or 54 inchesmeans that papers are getting perceptibly narrower, and is partially responsible for driving redesigns at many newspapers. The major effect of the shorter width that most consumers notice is that the page takes on a substantially more vertical feel, with story packages stripped down the sides of pages instead of being in horizontally boxed formats. The return to verticality of design is in some ways a throwback to the days before offset printing, when stories were confined to a single column by the technology of the lead type case.

The offset press has also benefited considerably from the revolution in computer technology that newspapers have taken advantage of through the 1980s and 1990s. The advent of the Macintosh computer and the laser printer in 1984 marked the beginning of the desktop publishing revolution and caused newspapers to realize many of the inherent capabilities of the offset press. Computers in many ways have vastly simplified the problems of copy flow throughout newsrooms, forever destroying the position of the copyboy. Copy can now flow relatively seamlessly from the reporter's laptop through phone lines and directly to the printing plate without any "hard copy" ever being printed. Design programs freed designers from the tyranny of the six-or seven-column front, allowing stories to be stripped across pages, story elements to be horizontal rather than vertical, and graphics technology to be employed to create maps, charts, and other visual elements that draw readers into the page. Offset presses also tend to make it easier for newspapers to print four-color art, including photographs and graphics, and to increase the amount of colored elements on the page. In 2002, The Wall Street Journal, for years the last bastion of strict vertical design in the United States, redesigned to use color in all of its sections and actually broke headlines across two columns on its front page.

Distribution Networks

Distribution networks continue to be a problem for many newspapers, especially those in large cities that have a very time-sensitive population and large traffic problems. Interestingly, the shift to morning publication has meant that many newspapers can be somewhat more flexible with distribution times. Afternoon papers, by their nature absolutely have to arrive by a certain time each day, while most people will not notice the difference between a 4 a.m. and a 5 a.m. throw for morning papers.

In many smaller newspapers, individual carriers, who are independent contractors, are still the preferred method for delivering subscriptions, while the circulation department might own or rent a van or truck to fill up racks across the circulation area. Bigger metropolitan papers, however, usually employ a mixture of carriers, delivery vans, and trucks, and contract with individual commercial companies to distribute newspapers. Recently, many papers have discontinued home delivery for their outlying circulation areas, relying instead on mail services for distribution. At the beginning of 2002, about 44 percent of papers owned their own distribution vehicles; 29 percent contracted; 16.9 percent used employee vehicles; and about 9.7 percent leased vehicles from another company.

Press Laws

Constitutional GuaranteesThe History of First Amendment Case Law

Freedom of the press in the United States rests on a firm constitutional bulwark. The First Amendment to the United States Constitution, ratified in 1791, states: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for redress of grievances." When the First Amendment was written, the federal government was relatively weak but greatly feared by many members of the new United States. The First Amendment, and the other nine amendments that comprise the Bill of Rights, is now generally construed as being intended to provide citizens with specific protections against an aggrandizement of power by the federal government. Most state governments had their own Bills of Rights at the time the Constitution was written, and many had stronger protections than the new federal constitution provided.

The United States legal system mixes statute law, common law, and administrative law in what can seem a confusing mishmash of rules. In general, however, most of what we think of as "First Amendment law" comes from U.S. Supreme Court decisions. The court's decisions have common-law value and are constitutionally unchallengeable. In addition, a long-standing recourse to precedents in the common law in courts of appeals and the Supreme Court means that prior decisions generally hold a great deal of value when deciding present cases.

What this means for contemporary observers is that Supreme Court decisions tend to be construed by other lawmaking bodies in terms of general rules, or tests, to be followed in determining the limits of expression. In fact, many of the court's decisions are written with a view towards providing, amplifying, correcting or challenging prior decisions and general rules. Although the federal Congress is generally loath to pass laws that obviously restrict free expression or challenge established precedents, it can and does pass new laws that fall into the many gray areas created by a common-law system and which have to be adjudicated by the courts. The federal and state governments, of course, are always at liberty to grant more freedoms to their citizens than are specifically provided for in laws and court decisions.

When James Madison was asked to write the First Amendment, he began work in a political climate that was acutely aware of the long history of the suppression of press freedoms by British authorities, dating back to Elizabethan times. Moreover, the amendment was written to satisfy Antifederalist opponents of the Constitution who feared that a strong central government would unavoidably usurp state privileges and encroach upon the rights of the common citizen.

Despite Madison's intentions, the despotic power of the federal government would be given full force during Federalist John Adams' presidency, when Congress passed a series of Alien and Sedition Acts. The acts, which were generally aimed at Antifederalist printers and suspicious foreigners who were supporters of Thomas Jefferson, succeeded in jailing some 40 Antifederalist editors and deporting several hundred supporters of the French Revolution. They had the somewhat unintended effect of creating a widespread disgust for the Federalist Party and helped Jefferson win the election of 1800. The acts were quietly left to die, never challenged in court; however, the principle of judicial review was not part of the U.S. polity before the Marbury v. Madison case in 1803.

Press freedoms would again be suppressed by governments during the nineteenth century, but those acts took place on a much more local scale. For example, Andrew Jackson suppressed presses in New Orleans that were sympathetic to the British during the War of 1812. During the great sectional debates over slavery that led up to the Civil War, the postal service routinely denied abolitionist newspapers delivery in the South, and President Lincoln, Confederate President Jefferson Davis, and a host of generals on both sides attacked and suspended printing presses during the Civil War. However, there were no major Supreme Court decisions concerning the First Amendment during the eighteenth or nineteenth centuries. The country had to wait for the turmoil and agitation surrounding the outbreak of World War I for court decisions to articulate definitive theories of First Amendment freedoms.

Theories Concerning First Amendment Freedoms

The one major question that all observers agree on pertains to the freedom from prior restraint. At its base, the First Amendment was designed to prevent federal governmentand, because of later decisions, state and local governmentsfrom stopping newspapers and other media from publishing. This idea is generally construed to mean that a system of prior restraint or press licensing, like the colonies had under British rule, is proscribed. Furthermore, the amendment is construed to ban any governmental action that would have the effect of creating a system of prior restraint or of subjecting the press to any form of censorship. The major prior restraint case, Near v. Minnesota, indicated that the form of government action was less important than its effect on the press. In the single case of federal prior restraint, the Pentagon Papers case, a unanimous Supreme Court decision (New York Times Co. v. United States ) found restraint to be unconstitutional. The Near decision also noted that even if expression is unlawful, it is better punished after the fact than by restraining its publication altogether.

At a very basic level, then, the major question that arises from this assumption is whether press freedom consists of only freedom from prior restraint, or whether press freedom should be construed to include some protections from after-the-fact litigation related to materials already published. The question was not settled in favor of proscribing government interference through criminal sanctions until Schenck v. United States was handed down in 1919.

The original theory of free speech guarantees owes its origins to the publication of John Milton's Areopagitica. Milton's theory of press freedom rests upon the concept of a "marketplace of ideas" in which rational debate can take place. In such a marketplace, good and bad ideas can be given full expression and can be freely debated. In such a system, constitutional protection is given to good ideas as well as bad ideas with full confidence in truth eventually emerging. Protection of all ideas is guaranteed because only their eventual death or survival in the marketplace will tell how truthful or false they are. The concept of a marketplace of ideas enjoyed a renaissance in the press around the turn of the twentieth century; immediately before then, of course, newspapers supported individual political parties and tended not to view themselves as open forums for discussion. This theory was espoused most famously in cases such as Abrams v. United States (1919), Gitlow v. New York (1925), and Whitney v. California (1927). Gitlow is especially important as being the first time the First Amendment protections of free speech were held to be binding on state governments; for a variety of reasons, the course of court decisions following the passage of the Fourteenth Amendment meant that each individual amendment had to be applied against the state governments.

The next major development in theories of press freedom is the Meiklejohn thesis, named for its author, the philosopher Abraham Meiklejohn. In the early 1960s, Meiklejohn argued that the basis for press freedom rests upon the fact that the United States is a self-governing society. He argued that the First Amendment is designed to protect the specific type of speech by which U.S. citizens govern themselves. In essence, Meiklejohn's argument rests on the idea that the people delegate certain powers to government but reserve to themselves the right of oversight of government. Meiklejohn would also add to the First Amendment coverage for speech in all aspects of artistic, literary, scientific, educational, and philosophical endeavors because the ability of people to govern themselves effectively depends so heavily on cultivating educated rationality.

Cases that have embodied the spirit of Meiklejohn's argument include New York Times Co. v. Sullivan (1964) and, in a decision that expresses the idea in an earlier form, Near v. Minnesota (1931). Sullivan is the defamation case in which the court set forth a strict standard that public officials must follow to prove libel against them. The court's rationale in treating with skepticism libel claims by officials is rooted in the belief that public governance relies on full and vigorous criticism of officials performing their duties and that falsehoods ought only be libelous if they are printed with actual malice and a reckless disregard for the truth. Near is best known for being the first time the court found the First Amendment's freedom of the press clause to be binding on state governments. It also was the case that placed prior restraint of the press beyond the pale of government action.

Other theories of the role of the First Amendment exist, though in less well-reasoned forms. One common interpretation is that the First Amendment functions as a "safety valve" through which extreme elements of society can vent their anger in a safer way than revolution. Another argument, which has gained increasing currency with the growing acceptance of psychological theories of development, is that the ability to freely express oneself is fundamental to individual development and growth. This latter interpretation places the First Amendment within the realm of fundamental human rights, rather than simply constitutional rights guaranteed by government.

Theories in Practice

The Supreme Court has applied these theories to actual cases in a variety of ways. In general, the court has attempted to arrive at decisions which inherently provide observers with a variety of operative tests to use when considering whether some form of speech is permitted or not. Those tests can generally be seen as corresponding to any one of a variety of fundamental tests of the First Amendment.

The most basic definition of the First Amendment is that it provides a central core of protection for any expression in all circumstances. This is known as the absolutist approach to First Amendment law, and it takes its basic approach from the language of the amendment. Absolutists can believe that no law quite literally means no law, but they express this belief in a variety of ways. Most absolutists, despite the name, do understand that there are conditions under which speech can reasonably be restricted; the famous example of crying "Fire" in a theater is the obvious one. The absolutist approach generally defines "law" as including administrative regulations as well as legislative decisions and tends to argue that restrictions on free expression must be contentneutral.

Permissible regulations would focus only on limiting the time, place, and manner of the expression and would be narrowly drawn to restrict the amount of latitude governments would have to restrict speech. The absolutist approach, then, seeks to protect all types of speech, while realizing that communities have a responsibility to protect people's safety and to ensure that speech does not become a nuisance. The time, place, and manner of restrictions could be drawn to take into account the individual needs of communitiesno protests at midnight, on public highways, or on the field during public sporting events, for exampleas long as they did not interfere with the substance of the regulation. In essence, time, place, and manner restrictions would have to be entirely incidental to speech to be permissible.

Another test of the First Amendment which has claimed a broader following than the absolutist approach is called the "clear and present danger" test. Like the absolutist approach, it is rooted in the ideal of a free market in ideas, but it is more restrictive than the absolutist because it argues that the content of some types of speech can be restricted. The first expression of this test was in the decision of Schenck v. United States (1919). The case focused on a leaflet issued by the American Socialist Party which called on young men to resist the draft in World War I. Schenck, a party officer, was arrested and charged with violating the Espionage Act of 1917 by inciting insubordination in the military. Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, a Civil War veteran, argued that Schenck's indictment was allowable because the leaflet presented "a clear and present danger" of bringing about insubordination, a problem which Congress had a legitimate right to prevent or about which Congress had at least the right to legislate. The problem with the clear and present danger test, of course, is that how clear and how present the danger is largely subjective. Moreover, the test's application would vary according to external circumstances; forms of speech permissible in peacetime might be censored in wartime. Speech might also face different restrictions as a result of the speaker's proximity to military bases, government institutions, cheering mobs, and the like. And, quite obviously, the test has the effect of allowing government to punish expression under certain conditional circumstances.

Another, even less well-organized approach to deciding First Amendment cases can be called an ad hoc balancing of interests approach. This approach takes into account the fact that laws challenged on First Amendment grounds do not exist in a vacuum but rather are the product of a balancing of interests between free speech and other governmental interests, some of which can be other constitutionally guaranteed rights. A good example of this is the tension inherent in a defendant's right to a "fair, speedy, and public trial." The guarantee of a public trial was meant to do away with the abuses of the English court system, in which the accused often did not have the right to face his accuser or even to learn the nature of the charges against him.

Unfortunately, the amendment drafted in the 1790s has run up against the mass media of the twenty-first century. In many cases, media coverage of a trial can bias or appear to bias its outcome. Especially for defendants caught after a long search or accused of particularly gruesome crimes, the media outcry can bias potential jurors, turn the community against the accused, and generally subvert the ideal that a defendant is innocent until proven guilty. Closed-courtroom cases are almost always decided on an ad hoc basis by the judge or judges involved.

A host of cases have used the ad hoc approach, and no consistent direction has been given to the court or law-makers as a result. In general, the flaw in the ad hoc approach is that each case must be decided on that basis, weighing the government's interest against the free-speech interest at question. Citizens and journalists can never be sure when their speech may or may not be protected.

The last major approach to the First Amendment focuses on definitional balancing of interests, which essentially argues that classes of speech by definition are outside the pale of First Amendment rights. The classic example of a definable class of speech is obscenity, and anti-obscenity laws show both the strengths and the weaknesses of definitional balancing. On the one hand, defining classes of speech as unprotected is a more consistent approach than the ad hoc balancing approach. Every case of obscene speech is illegal. However, the problem in definitional balancing is defining obscenity, not to mention "fighting words" and a host of other classes of speech that might be illegal. Justice Stewart famously declared that though he could not define obscenity, he knew it when he saw itan approach that reduces obscenity law to an ad hoc approach.

The other problem with definitional balancing is that it fails to take into account the circumstances and context of speech, even when that speech can be defined. Speech deemed obscene in a men's magazine, such as a description of pedophilia, might not be obscene and might even find high literary expression when in a context such as Nabokov's Lolita. Libel, another definitionally unprotected category of speech, was found to be permissible in certain cases after the New York Times Co. v. Sullivan case in 1964.

These four major approaches have not always been consistently applied, nor have they been consistently argued. They are often in conflict. But they do provide some clues as to the likely future approach of the court to communications law. In general, the court of 2002 has embraced an ad hoc balancing approach, with some individual justices leaning more or less in different directions. Often this ad hoc approach has been more restrictive of First Amendment rights than previous courts have been. This court has often found itself using tests to examine specific facts or instances of the case. In general, the court has more often than not asked governments to prove that their restrictions are narrowly tailored when they relate to speech issues.

The current court has used at least three levels of speech when deciding First Amendment cases. The first model of decision-making is based on the actual content of speech; in a definitional-balancing approach, the court has often decided cases on what it perceives as the inherent value of the speech in question.

The second model is based on the mode of transmission of speech, with the court often holding that new media, such as the Internet, live by different rules than older forms of media. In two 1997 cases, Turner v. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and Reno v. ACLU, the court held that "must-carry" channel rules apply to cable companies and that restrictions on indecent material transmitted over the Internet are unconstitutional. The convergence of new and old media forms will likely create major problems for the court if it continues to insist that different media have different First Amendment standards.

The court has further recognized that media organizations have a right to publish news only inasmuch as they have the right to gather news. The "right-to-access" rulings that the court has issued in recent years have extended newsgatherers' unique protections under the umbrella of First Amendment rights. In particular, the court has handed down decisions that have the effect of liberalizing Freedom of Information laws by mandating that organizations must cooperate within a reasonable amount of time with citizen requests.

Registration and Licensing of JournalistsPrint Media

Journalists in the United States are generally free from requirements that they be either registered or licensed to do their jobs, and newspapers, magazines, and Internet sites can publish freely at any time without any sort of license or official recognition. Efforts to license journalists have never gained any serious momentum in the United States as a result of First Amendment rules against prior restraint; opponents of licensing argue that it would inherently operate as a form of prior restraint.

The closest that newspaper journalists come to registration is in special situations, such as when covering campaigns, the White House, or legislatures, sporting events, or in other situations where security or space restrict access to the subject of coverage. In those situations, press members are issued "credentials" from any one of a variety of bodies, which they must present to gain access. In other situations, groups of correspondents might form "pools" to cover events or speeches in which only a few members of the press can have access. In such situations, the reporters or photographers who are picked by pools to cover the event have an informal but strong understanding that the information they gather is to be shared with all members of the pool equally and without regard to "scoops" or other inter-media competition.

Although credentials are often handed out by the public-relations agency responsible for the people or event being coveredsuch as a football game or a White House press conferencethere are informal or formal understandings that govern credentialing. Generally, media outlets are granted roughly equal numbers of credentials for any given event, meaning that no one organization can have a monopoly on a single event.

Although the credentialing parties could refuse credentials to reporters in retaliation for something they or their organizations published, such heavy-handed censorship tends not to be tolerated by the rest of the correspondents covering that organization. When credentials are denied or unexpectedly "pulled" from a legitimate media organization in retaliation for a story, the rest of the "pool" of correspondents, or the rest of those organizations credentialed to cover an event, often refuse to cover the event at all. Given the fact that any organization in a position to credential reporters is generally dependent on press coverage, such walkouts are usually successful. In a relatively recent case, efforts by Minnesota governor and former professional wrestler Jesse Ventura to force media members to wear credentials with the legend "Designated Jackal" resulted in a press outcry which quickly persuaded the governor to drop that idea.

Specific issues with licensing of broadcast stations and broadcast journalists are dealt within the section State Regulation of Broadcast Media. Suffice it to say that broadcast journalists tend to face the same credentialing requirements as print journalists, although the cameras and recording equipment TV and radio journalists use are sometimes a source of dispute, especially over their use in courtrooms. The cameras-in-the-courtroom debate is one that is fought on individual jurisdictional levels and more often than not is mediated between media organizations and individual judges.

Libel and Defamation Laws

Although libel and defamation laws have a long and complex history, the elements common to both are relatively simple. The three elements of libel are the making of a defamatory statement, publication of a defamatory statement, and identification of the person so defamed. Only a living person or an existing corporation or organization can sue for libel because only the party defamed or libeled can sue for damages. Also, the context of a statement can make a significant difference in deciding whether a statement is actionable; calling a convicted murderer inhuman is a vastly different matter from calling a respected surgeon inhuman.

There are at least seven major categories of libelous statements. They are false accusation of a crime; sexual impropriety; mental illness or loathsome disease; business or professional misconduct or incompetence; bankruptcy or fiscal irresponsibility; disgraceful behavior like substance abuse or child molestation; and product disparagement. These categories are not comprehensive. Other statements can be defamatory; indeed, 49 states find a false statement that someone is homosexual or bisexual to be defamatory. Trade libel is a relatively new category of libel, and the case law surrounding it is murky. Many states have passed "veggie libel" laws that seek to protect major agricultural industries from false claims; other states have passed similar statutes with reference to banks or insurance companies.

To successfully bring an action for libel, plaintiffs must prove that a defamatory statement has been made against them; that the statement was published to others; that the plaintiff was identified in the statement; and, in certain cases, that they suffered economic loss as a result of the libel. The requirement to show damages leads individuals into the area of distinguishing between libel per se and libel per quod. Very briefly stated, libel per se is any statement that is libelous upon its face, while libel per quod is any statement that could be libelous given what certain people know about the defamed party. For example, incorrectly stating that John Callahan was just married could be libelous per quod if people who knew Callahan is a priest read that statement. For various complex reasons, libel per se and libel per quod are treated with the same burden of proof in most states, although other states require plaintiffs to show money damages to prove that libel per quod has happened.

Defenses against libel actions vary somewhat given the nature of the case. The most basic defense against libel at common law is truth or "justification." In the United States, truth is for the most part an absolute defense against claims of libel or defamation. However, some states, such as Rhode Island, require that truth bespoken with "justifiable ends" or "good motive." This exception to truth defenses is essentially designed to protect persons from unsavory truths about themselves being used to defame them.

The truth defense is, of course, limited by the ability of a defendant to prove the truth of a statement in a court of law. The scope of the truth defense is also somewhat limited by the fact that the truth or falsity of the charges must be entire; a claim that someone is a compulsive gambler could not be supported by proving one visit to a casino.

The second major category of defenses against defamation rests on a specific privilege that confers immunity against libel suits. Privileges can be qualified or absolute: absolute privilege insulates the person who makes the statement against any charge of defamation, while qualified privileges apply only in specific circumstances and can be questioned in court.

Some persons enjoying absolute privilege include governmental officials working in executive, legislative, judicial, and administrative offices. Statements made in a legislative forum, ranging from the floor of Congress to a city council meeting, enjoy absolute privilege from libel actions. Similarly, judges, lawyers, witnesses, defendants, and plaintiffs all hold absolute privilege for statements made in a judicial setting. The executive and administrative privileges are somewhat more constrained, given the relative scarcity of debate or open meetings in such branches of government. Nevertheless, statements made in an official context by those officials enjoy absolute privilege.

There are also various qualified privileges to make libelous statements, but claims of qualified privilege are always defeated by plaintiffs' establishing malice on the part of defendants. Proving malice requires plaintiffs to prove that the relevant publication was motivated by some consideration other than that which has the privilege in the first place. Qualified privileges tend to be very specific; they include a privilege for a physician to criticize a pharmacist's competence; an employer to criticize an employee to a supervisor; a bank officer to make a charge of forgery; and various other privileges.

The media have qualified privilege based on their function to engage in public oversight of government activity or in order to notify the public of public proceedings. The privilege is based on the idea that if all proceedings were kept secret, potential abuses of power could occur. Journalists must be wary of claiming this privilege, however, because various states can and do construe differently reporters' claims of privilege.

In general, journalists have a qualified privilege to publish accounts of court proceedings or court papers that have been brought before a judge or magistrate but not to publish allegations contained in pretrial papers. Reports of grand jury investigations, district attorneys' investigations, and police proceedings can be dangerous until some action is taken on them, such as an arrest or an indictment. Reporting that someone has been arrested or indicted, however, is always privileged, as long as the form the report takes does not imply the suspect's guilt. Reports of legislative proceedings also hold a privilege, as long as those proceedings were part of an authorized public meeting.

To prove a qualified privilege, defendants must prove that the report is fair and accurate and is motivated by a sense of duty to disclose the information to those receiving it. The report does not have to be completely accurate, as long as inaccuracies do not affect the essential accuracy of the report. Also, if a defamatory result is made for any purpose other than to inform those people who have a "need to know" the information, it can be found to be malicious.

The third major category of defenses against defamation rests on a privilege to fairly comment on news and public events. The fair comment privilege has been rendered somewhat moot concerning public officials by the New York Times Co. v. Sullivan case, since the privilege accorded the media this case is broader than the old "fair comment" privilege. The "fair comment" privilege was construed to allow the media to honestly express a communicator's opinion on matters of public interest, based upon clearly and fairly stated facts in the communication. The privilege was constrained somewhat by a requirement that the comment had to be free of speculation as to the motives of the person whose conduct was criticized. Before Sullivan, the media was generally made free to comment on political, literary, and artistic matters by the "fair comment" defenses, which were construed very broadly by the courts.

In the fourth category of defenses, defamation actions are called "incomplete defenses," because at best they only mitigate damages that can be collected by the plaintiff; they do not bar liability. An example of an incomplete defense is a complete and unequivocal retraction of a libelous statement made in a place that holds the same prominence as the defamatory statement. The retraction can mitigate damages, but the amount of mitigation is generally dependent upon state statutes. Media organizations can also mitigate damages by allowing a defamed person to reply to the defamation by using the organization's facilities, but the use of media facilities is not generally enough to establish "good will" on the part of the organization and can leave the organization open to further punitive damages. A reply can, however, mitigate actual damages, since a defamed party has the opportunity to influence those whose good will had presumably been damaged by the libel. Broadcast organizations can even be compelled to allow defendants to reply; however, any attempt to compel print media to allow a reply has been held to violate the First Amendment.

In recent years, libel actions have become more perilous for media organizations and for others who seek to express themselves under the First Amendment. The actual and punitive damage awards juries have been granting have skyrocketed, to a high of a jury award of $222.7 million in a 1997 libel action by Money Management Research Group, Inc. (MMAR) against Dow Jones and Co. for a Wall Street Journal article stating that MMAR was under investigation. A district court reduced the damages to $22.7 million, and a 1999 holding set aside the ruling entirely when a judge found that MMAR had withheld evidence that would have bolstered Dow Jones' defense. However, the cost of litigating the action alone was staggering, and the initial jury award had an immediately chilling effect on media organizations.

As corporations and agencies have discovered the cost of litigating suits, they have increasingly turned to filing libel suits against public organizations who criticize proposed developments and circulate petitions or call meetings opposing them. Such suits, called "Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation" (SLAPP), are filed with the specific intention of punishing or harassing anyone critical of the corporation and with the intention of driving poorly-funded citizens' action groups out of business. Nine states have found SLAPP suits to have a chilling effect on public debate and participation in decisions and have passed laws making such suits illegal or calling for early dismissal of such suits. The anti-SLAPP laws have also been construed to apply to media organizations.

Privacy Laws

The basic distinction between a public figure and a private person was established by the 1974 Gertz v. Robert Welch, Inc. case and expanded upon in subsequent decisions. Essentially, the court has distinguished between two types of public figures. The first of these types is the all-purpose public figure, such as Michael Jordan, who has such general fame or notoriety that his or her name is a household word. The second type of public figure is a limited-purpose public figure. Limited-purpose public figures are further divided into two categories, based on whether they choose or are thrust into the public eye. Voluntary public figures are those who achieve notoriety by voluntarily thrusting themselves into the "vortex" of a specific public controversy. Ralph Nader would have begun his public life as a voluntary limited-purpose public figure, moving to the status of all-purpose public figure later. Involuntary public figures are those persons who become associated with public events or become placed in the eye of the media by chance, usually related to their involuntary participation in a newsworthy event. Accident survivors often become involuntary limited-purpose public figures.

Privacy invasion as a tort has had a relatively short history in the United States, being recognized for the first time only in 1905. However, privacy laws and invasion-of-privacy cases have been some of the most contentious areas of law in recent times. As of 2002, all 50 states and the District of Columbia recognized invasion of privacy as an offense, but four states recognized a right to privacy only by statute. Liability for privacy cases is complex because there are at least four distinct branches to invasion-of-privacy cases. They include appropriating another's name or likeness; unreasonable intrusion upon another's seclusion; publicity which unreasonably places another in a false light before the public; and unreasonable publicity given to another's personal life. The tort of appropriation seems to be most applicable in the case of celebrities depending on to which application their image or name is put. In essence, modern cases of appropriation have served to create a property right in one's own image, which for many celebrities is of immense value to companies advertising all manner of products through celebrity endorsements. Appropriation of a celebrity's image for one's own use is therefore an offense analogous to a violation of copyright law. The media are relatively seldom sued for such invasions; more often, the victim of a suit is someone who has attempted to appropriate an image for advertising purposes. Media outlets are generally protected by a doctrine of "incidental use," in which depictions of celebrities which are incidental, not central, to an advertising or news product do not constitute violations of privacy. In some states, even dead celebritiesor their heirscan have property rights in their image violated, although those rights vary widely.

The media have run afoul of intrusion laws much more frequently. The tort of intrusion occurs when one's sphere of privacy is violated without one's consent, by either physical or electronic means. When people are in a public zone, they can be recorded or photographed; however, when they are in their own homes or private places, they cannot be. That distinction also applies without regard to the victim of the intrusion. Reporters and newsgathering organizations have been sued under these statutes for a variety of reasons, ranging from invasion of a voicemail system of the Chiquita company to the use of hidden cameras to investigate a plumber posing as a doctor. Journalists have also been successfully sued for trespass and invasion, most famously in a case involving journalists who applied for jobs at a Food Lion supermarket and used their jobs to illicitly record unsafe food-handling practices at the store.

The upshot of a confusing variety of cases involving intrusion laws is complex. Essentially, journalists should know that misrepresenting themselves to gain entry to private or public property is extremely risky; that unauthorized entry constitutes intrusion and trespass; that permission from public officials is sufficient to gather news in public buildings; and that permission by police or fire officials to enter private property will not necessarily insulate a reporter against damages.

False light suits can be another treacherous area for journalists. Essentially, placing someone in a false light consists of creating a false image of that person or placing him or her in a false light through publication, whether or not that false light is defamatory. This can take several forms, from misrepresenting someone's political views to attributing to them a disease or personality trait that they do not possess. Obviously, false light suits present major problems to news organizations, in which it is often impossible to check every single fact about a person or group. In 1984, the North Carolina Supreme Court recognized that the tension between First Amendment and false light claims is significant, and it decided that false light claims should be rejected as redundant of defamation. Essentially, that means any false claim that causes actual damages can be dealt with through existing libel and defamation laws. By 1999, some 11 states, including North Carolina, had refused to recognize false light claims.

The most difficult area for journalists to currently assess is that of public disclosures of private facts. It is unclear what sorts of private facts are protected by these laws and which ones are not. Most media outlets can escape prosecution for public disclosure if the facts they published are newsworthy. In general, courts have deferred to news organizations' judgment about which facts are newsworthy, meaning that organizations have generally been prosecuted only for publishing facts that are obviously chosen solely because they involve a sensational or prurient issue. The courts have also generally found in favor of news organizations if the facts they described were in the public domain previously, even if they had not been published or broadcast.

Freedom to Gather News

Although the First Amendment protects reporters' rights to publish news, it includes no inherent protection for the right to gather news. Because of the obvious difficulties presented by the fact that government could exclude the media from access to meetings, files, records, and other information, and because of a growing suspicion on the part of the media that not all government restrictions on information had to do with legitimate "national security" issues, a movement to liberalize rules about access to information began in the 1950s and had great success throughout the 1970s. The 1980s saw a bit of backsliding on the part of government agencies, but rules were liberalized again beginning in 1993.

In 1966, Congress passed the federal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), which requires federal executive and regulatory agencies to publish indexes of documents in the Federal Register and to provide documents on request to citizens. Documents produced by Congress and the White House are exempt from the act. In general, agencies may refuse to release documents for a variety of reasons, including national security and classification, personnel data, trial data, and trade secrets. Agencies that refuse to release documents have the burden of proof if the media or citizens request an administrative hearing.

The original effect of the act was mixed; in general, agencies were more forthcoming with documents, and journalists had a legal basis to make their requests. On the other hand, courts generally upheld agencies' view of exemptions. The act was amended in 1974 and in 1986 to liberalize disclosure rules, establish reasonable searching and copying fees, and include the Office of the President and various other government corporations and independent agencies that had claimed exemptions in the past. In general, FOIA requests are complied with promptly because agencies have an interest in avoiding expensive litigation that can result from delays or denials. Journalists have taken advantage of FOIA disclosures to expose a variety of official secrets, ranging from data on a nuclear accident in New Mexico to military overspending and the CIA's role in overthrowing governments.

Congress extended FOIA protection to electronic records in 1996, requiring agencies to list documents electronically and provide copies of records over the Internet. The act specifies that electronic records, including e-mail messages, are subject to the same disclosure rules as regular paper documents.

A corollary to the FOIA has been a proliferation of federal and state "sunshine" laws designed to open meetings to public view. In 1974, Congress passed a federal open meetings law requiring federal boards, commissions, and agencies to conduct their meetings in public and to record even informal conversations between officials and subcontractors for public consumption. A variety of state statutes have also been passed, but their expansiveness varies with each state. In general, though, Sunshine laws say that the only reason a meeting may be closed is if a board is discussing personnel issues.

The 1970s were also an era in which government agencies and media organizations began to butt heads over the question of access to information about illegal activities gathered in the course of interviews. The question is somewhat thorny because there is no question that access to information about illegal activities would serve a government interest and similarly no question that disclosing such information would make many journalists' jobs untenable. Beginning in the 1970s, some states have passed "shield laws" that protect journalists from being forced to disclose confidential information gathered during interviews or other proceedings. In some states, those laws include protection from subpoenas for newsrooms and news offices, and some statutes also include terms that allow journalists to refuse to testify at grand jury or other court proceedings.

Some journalists claim special privileges based on their "professional" status as journalists, claiming exemptions from subpoenas in the same way that lawyers and doctors might. The problem with the professionalism argument, though, is that because the government does not license journalists, professional status is informal at best.

One court case, Branzburg v. Hayes, has shed some light on the question of journalists testifying. Although the decision in Branzburg is complex, the majority of justices seemed to recognize no unique right for newsper-sons to refuse to testify before grand jury proceedings. The dissenters in the case, however, presented a three-part test to apply to the question that has subsequently been used in federal and state courts. The test would require the government to (1) show that there is probable cause to believe that the newsperson has information clearly related to a specific probable violation of law; (2) show that the information sought cannot be obtained by alternative means less damaging to First Amendment rights; and (3) demonstrate a compelling and overriding interest in that information.

Court actions regarding journalists' claims of privilege have had mixed results. In general, reporters' success in claiming privilege depends on the context of the court proceeding, and courts will not honor claims made before grand juries and trial courts. Courts will honor claims of privilege when the claim is made during civil pretrial proceedings and when confidential information is being sought by the accused and is not critical to his or her defense. However, in cases where journalists are defendants, courts are more likely to find that information is at the heart of the plaintiff's case and cannot be obtained from alternative sources. If a journalist is a plaintiff and wishes to deny information to the defense through a claim of privilege, the claim will be always be denied.

Censorship & State-Press Relations

Censorship

There is no official means for the government to censor newspapers, magazines, broadcast stations or other media in the United States. There is no federal censorship agency, and no way for the government to effectively enjoin a newspaper or magazine from publishing anything it wants to publish.

Government Efforts to Manage News

In the absence of any official mechanism for censoring the news, the United States substitutes an astonishing variety of informal mechanisms, ranging from official press conferences to whispered tips at cocktail parties, to manage what news journalists print. Recent presidential campaigns, starting with the 1992 Clinton-Gore campaign, have come up with "rapid response" teams to slant the news of the day in a way that is favorable to their candidate, and many public officials boast of their ability and expertise in managing the press. Media consultants are employed by nearly every government agency worth the title, and the amount of time and money spent on "spin" is astonishing. Even official handouts, charts, and graphs at press conferences reek of efforts to manage the news of the day.

At the same time that working journalists vie with politicians and news managers every day, there is massive official denial that any efforts are made to manage the press. Government investigators continually bemoan the existence of "leaks" from unnamed sources, while government "whistle-blowers," hungry to attack other agencies or motivated by a sincere desire for change, eagerly inform the media of instances of official incompetence, poor planning, or malfeasance. Such whistle-blowers have been instrumental in journalistic reports ranging from the Pentagon Papers case through Watergate and Iran-Contra to the investigations into the intelligence failure surrounding the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

A common "unofficial-official" method of gauging public support for a particular plan is to have a high government official unofficially "leak" plans to do something to a trusted journalist or alternatively to have an official make a statement at odds with an administration viewpoint. Stories written on such "trial balloons," and the public and international response to them, provide policy guidance to government officials at very little cost to themselves or their credibility. In the summer of 2002, Secretary of State Colin Powell co-opted the United States press to float the idea of Palestinian statehood in front of world opinion; seeing an overwhelmingly negative response from the West, President Bush quickly denied that he had ever considered Palestinian statehood.

In the face of such attempts to manage the news, journalists have responded in a variety of ways. Journalists are probably most susceptible to management when they are new to a particular beat and desperate for sources; when they are new to the profession altogether; or when they are given little choice about how to gather the news they report, as with late-night briefings while traveling on campaign airplanes. It is fair to say that most journalists quickly develop a reflexive dislike for managed news, even as they depend on it to some extent for stories and leads to stories. In the best journalistic relationships with public officials, there can exist a love-hate dichotomy between official sources and journalists; both realize that the other is necessary for their own survival, and both tend not to like that fact.

Editorial Influence on Government Policies

There is a massive but probably unquantifiable editorial influence on government policies at every level of government in the United States. The high point of editorial influence on government was probably reached during the 1970s, when the government pullback from the Vietnam War and the resignation of Richard Nixon could be directly traced to pressure applied by the press against the government. Similarly, media pressure and public opinion expressed through the media forced or encouraged the federal government to call for hearings on the Iran-Contra hostage scandal; effected a dramatic turnaround of events that saw President George H. W. Bush fall from 80 percent approval ratings to losing the 1992 election; forced the government first into and then out of Somalia; emboldened the Congress to impeach President Clinton; and was partially responsible for beginning and ending the Internet stock market boom of the 1990s. A subtler trend evident since the September 11 attacks is the continuing undercurrent of media coverage on human-rights abuses and on nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons programs in Iraq, apparently preparing the way for a United States effort to expel Saddam Hussein. The exact effect the media has had or will have in each of these cases is probably unmeasurable, but to say that the media had no effect on them is ludicrous.

The media is also felt in a variety of more subtle ways, generally expressed through some branch of local or state government not doing something because the newspapers would find out. The media also holds great influence over private corporations both large and small; a recent example of this influence can be felt in media coverage of the Enron scandal that encouraged many other public companies to voluntarily disclose auditing errors or questionable auditing practices.

It is important here to note, however, that the unique characteristics of the U.S. newspaper system mean that the effects of media pressure make themselves felt in unique ways. Because American newspapers and media organizations are committed to a policy of objectivity and political independence, they inherently lack some of the tools for pressuring government that newspapers linked to political parties possess.

In the press system developed in the early days of the American republic and which lasted until the 1920s, partisan newspapers could and did offer politicized solutions to national problems. Movements for the abolition of slavery, for temperance and Prohibition, for and against immigration reform, land tenure reform, education and government reform, and currency reform, to say nothing of the first calls for American independence, found their first reasoned political expression in American newspapers. The political orientation of the newspapers was apparent, and more often than not the solutions offered followed partisan orientation, but they were at least solutions, and many of them found their way into the daily public lives of Americans.

The modern press, by contrast, often finds itself constrained to suggesting solutions only on the editorial page, if there, and often is reactive to government solutions, rather than proactive in creating its own solutions. Scholars of the American press, notably Robert M. Entman, have characterized the modern press as having "power without control" and exercising "pressure without reform." Jeffrey L. Pasley cogently summarizes the arbitrary nature of the modern media in the following passage:

Typically, political power involves the ability to exercise control, implying some direction or purpose. However, this is not what the modern news media have, committed as they are to a policy of political value and lacking as they do the direct link that a successful political party forges between public attitudes, partisan elections, and government policies. Rather, the modern political news media is powerful more as the weather isan awesome force that moves or destroys without purpose, motive, intention or plan, a power that cannot direct itself toward any particular object. Hence, though surveys have always revealed national-level journalists to be heavily Democratic in their personal beliefs, the news media over the years of the late twentieth century have raised up presidencies and candidates, then smote them down again, seemingly without much regard to substantive issues or ideological affinities. (The Tyranny of Printers 3 )

Pasley's point is well taken when one considers the peculiar nature of political reporting and the effect it has had on national campaigns in the late twentieth century.

Candidates from both parties have indeed been raised up and smote down based upon allegations of sexual or financial impropriety or on the basis of their perceived friendliness, intelligence, or trustworthiness, with depressing regularity, rather than with reporting on the basis of any major differences between candidates on public issues. Such horse-race coverage characterized the 2000 presidential campaign, in which third-party candidate Ralph Nader was able to make the statementand have it credibly reported in serious newspapersthat there were no substantial differences between the major-party candidates. While newspapers and the media certainly influence public life, the constraints of their objective stance mean that they tend not to do so in a consistent or even constructive fashion.

Government Control of the Press

There is no direct or indirect government control over the newspaper press through subsidies, licensing, labor policies, licenses for printing, or any other official means. The broadcast media, of course, operate under an entirely different set of regulations, given their relationship with the FCC. The controls that government places on the press tend to be in the form of tax laws, workers-rights laws, and occupational safety laws administered by federal and state agencies and to which all businesses operating in a given area are subject.

Attitude toward Foreign Media

Foreign media representatives in the United States are generally treated in the same way as domestic media representatives. Foreign journalists are not subject to any special visa restrictions or restricted in sending news back to their home countries in the form of wires, cables, e-mail, satellite communications and the like.

There are no laws specifically prohibiting foreign investment in the U.S. media, except in broadcasting, where the FCC has placed specific ownership rules on broadcast licenses. Foreign companies are still not significant players in the domestic media market, except in certain sectors of the book publishing industry.

The United States remains opposed to the UNESCO Declaration of 1978, which was seen at the time by the United States as a Communist-led effort on the part of third-world countries to overthrow Western dominance of the media marketplace by imposing state-run and transnational news organizations. The United States and other Western nations feared that the Soviet-led declaration would mean an effective end to their efforts to set up media organizations in Third World countries and would put official Soviet news agencies on par with independent agencies such as the Associated Press in transnational news organizations. Subsequent to the declaration, a number of U.S. and foreign newspapers formed the World Press Freedom Committee to serve as a "watchdog" on issues of press freedom in the Third World and to provide technical expertise, scholarships, and equipment to foreign journalists. The United States withdrew altogether from UNESCO in 1984, during the Reagan administration, citing mismanagement in the agency as well as the agency's Communication Program as reasons for leaving. As of 2002, the United States had not rejoined UNESCO.

The fears of Soviet control over proposed international news organizations died with the end of the Cold War, and early 2000s activities of the World Press Freedom Committee have focused more specifically on fighting censorship in the Third World, publishing journalism manuals other training documents for journalists in lesser-developed countries, and in intervening directly with leaders of Third World nations to fight for journalists' rights in those countries.

News Agencies

Newspapers in the United States subscribe to a wide variety of news agencies, depending upon their particular region of the country, group ownership, and general focus. Business newspapers such as The Wall Street Journal, of course, are more likely to subscribe to a variety of business wires, while nearly all U.S. newspapers take the Associated Press (AP). Most large papers have access to a set of wires, including the AP, Reuters, Dow Jones, and Bloomberg financial wires, and some wires associated with their individual newspaper company, such as a New York Times wire or a NYT Regional wire.

The Associated Press, founded by a group of New York newspapers in 1848, is the oldest news agency in the world and the leading news agency in the United States. The AP, a nonprofit cooperative funded by members' subscriptions, operates in 121 countries. About 5,000 broadcast stations and 1,700 newspapers subscribe to the AP in the United States alone. An additional 8,500 news organizations subscribe to the AP overseas. The AP employs about 3,700 people in 242 news bureaus around the world, and transmits more than 20 million words and 1,000 photos to the world every day. It claims to transmit data to up to one billion people every day. "AP style" is the most commonly used form of newspaper writing in the United States, and even those papers with their own stylebooks usually defer to the Associated Press Style-book in confusing or unclear cases.

The AP's major competitor, Reuters, was founded in 1851 in London, and operates in 150 countries, giving it a slightly more global reach than the AP. Reuters is a publicly held corporation which focuses more on financial and business news than the AP does. It also makes much of its profit from providing data on companies and business sectors to individual subscribers, rather than being strictly a news bureau like the AP. Reuters has 230 bureaus and claims 53,500 client locations. However, most of these client locations are not the equivalent of the AP's newspaper and broadcast organizations, but are rather locations in financial markets and businesses that subscribe to its automatic quotations services.

Other newswires that stress business and financial news are Bloomberg and Dow Jones. Like Reuters, Bloomberg is a financial news service with most of its subscribers being corporations interested in worldwide financial news. It moves stories on its financial wires and also produces TV and radio programming for broadcast stations worldwide. Bloomberg News employs about 1,200 reporters in 85 bureaus. Dow Jones is Bloomberg's major U.S. competitor; its worldwide market data and market stories are used mainly by financial newspapers, business editors, and corporate bodies.

There are also a variety of news services set up by major newspapers, including the LA Times /Washington Post service, the Chicago Tribune service, and Copley and Gannett services. Newspaper feature syndicates generally deal with rights to non-breaking news content, such as columns, cartoon strips, and the like.

Broadcast Media

Background & Growth

Broadcasting, on both radio and television, was pioneered in the United States on both a technological and a theoretical level. Many of the experiments that went into wireless technology started as extensions of newspapers; even before spoken news could be transmitted long distances over the air, newspapers would often set up banks of loudspeakers to "broad-cast" election news or sports scores to eager crowds outside their offices.

The first commercial use of radio technology in the United States appears to have been a series of broadcasts made by two Woolworth's department stores to a very limited audience in New York in 1914; the new medium was considered more of a curiosity than a serious alternative to newspapers, and radio receivers were still prohibitively expensive. The U.S. experience in World War I diverted interest from broadcasting and towards more local radio communications for a period of time, and it was not until the 1920s that radio began to gain strength as a medium. In 1920, the Detroit News set up the first newspaper broadcasting station; the Kansas City Star followed the next year. In 1920, KDKA in Pittsburgh set up the first commercial radio station. As radio receivers decreased in both size and price, their commercial availability and attractiveness grew; the new medium reached a "tipping point" in the early 1920s, with the number of receivers in use exploding from a few hundred thousand in 1920 to 5.5 million in 1926. During this period, news broadcasts increased enormously both in variety and in sophistication; the advent of professional "anchormen" and an emphasis on spoken-voice performance began to clarify the difference between newspaper and broadcast styles.

The Depression slowed the growth of radio, but in the long run the economic climate hurt newspaper advertising more. Radio receipts slumped, but the ability of radio to allow people to escape hard times through broadcast dramas made a major difference in the end. Radio started its long transition from being mainly a news medium to mainly an entertainment medium during this period.

The early 1940s moved radio back towards a focus on news as the war in Europe dominated headlines and broadcast stations. The advantage radio had over newspapersits immediacy and ability for dramatic renditions of the spoken wordwas dramatized dramatically in Edward R. Murrow's broadcasts from London, and scores of lesser-known journalists, who broadcast war news from the fronts and news from home to soldiers and sailors far from home.

By the 1950s, most serious observers of the scene would say that radio had peaked; 40 percent of U.S. households had a radio, and listening time had reached a plateau. Some predicted major declines in radio as a new competitor on the broadcast scenetelevisionwas gaining strength. The 1950s were certainly the period in which TV saw its most rapid growth, but by the end of the decade 96 percent of American households owned a radio, and the proliferation of portable and in-car devices meant that the number of listeners was up and likely to stay there. The radio format had changed dramatically, though, as major stars had moved to the new television medium. To some extent, radio had been a victim of its own success; the number of stations grew exponentially faster than spending on advertising; budgets simply would not allow the types of original programming and news shows that the "golden age" of radio had witnessed. Listeners were now treated to a steady diet of single-format music, with occasional "spot" news reports and breezy commentary.

The decisive moment in the ascendancy of television over radio and the event that most clearly showed the transformative nature of television was the 1960 Nixon-Kennedy presidential debate. Radio listeners, and those who read the transcript in newspapers, agreed Nixon had won the substantive part of the debate; on television, however, the sweaty, unshaven Californian was overpowered by Kennedy's charm. Early television anchors became some of the most respected journalists in the United States, and certainly the best-known; Walter Cronkite's famous and principled stand against the war in Vietnam cost Nixon, as he said, middle America.

Cronkite's stand, though, like Edward Murrow's principled and fair attacks on Joseph McCarthy, were very much the exception in television and radio. Broadcasting accelerated the transformation of American journalism toward a nonpartisan, objective method of reporting. Radio and TV stations relied exclusively on commercial advertising to cover their costs; subscriptions were not an alternative, and advertisers demanded stability. A Socialist or Communist radio station could exist, but tenuously, and only insofar as its owners and its programming could meet FCC standards.

Throughout the 1960s and the 1970s, television slowly expanded its hold on the broadcast media. Radio stations, with the exception of public radio, and a few exceptionally principled stations in large metropolitan areas, or very small stations serving rural areas, simply gave up on being serious news organizations and converted almost entirely to a music format, with prepackaged news bought from UPI or another syndicated service. Television stations, on the other hand, continued to take national news seriously and expanded their broadcasts from 10 to 15 to 30 minutes throughout the period. Serious reporting, combined with spot-news availability, brought such disparate events as the Apollo landings, Jack Ruby killing Lee Harvey Oswald, and the dogs of Birmingham to audiences as they happened.

In the late 1970s and early 1980s, though, the three major networks were suffering under the economic crisis that gripped the rest of the United States. As was usual in a recession, advertising revenues were falling, and news programs were coming under increasing fire because they tend to lag behind dramas for revenue-producing value. The time was not ripeor so it seemedto launch an all-news, all-the-time cable channel. Nonetheless, 1980 saw the advent of CNN. The initial response to the network was incredulity tempered with wonder: how on earth would anyone find enough news to fill 24 hours of time daily? The new network, however, increasingly caught the attention of busy Americans who did not have the time or patience to wait for a 6 p.m. or 10 p.m. news broadcast. With its repetitive format, simple story content, and a well-earned reputation for fair coverage, CNN caught on quickly. It came before USA Today, but in many ways the two fed on each other's success; the newspaper arguably learned lessons from CNN about story content, coverage, formats, and topics.

The advent of 24-hour cable news, coupled with the increasing availability of cable television to mass audiences, was in many ways a troubling development for the major networks. ESPN followed CNN's lead to launch an all-sports network, with substantial success; in recent years, cable channels have proliferated seemingly beyond reason, with entire channels focused on nothing but fishing, history, various types of shopping, home improvement, and stock-car racing. On the one hand, the multiplication of channels has certainly drained advertising revenue from the major networks; on the other hand, CNN and its subsidiaries have been responsible for recruiting and training a new crop of broadcasters of very high quality. The influence of CNN, with its oft-repeated emphasis on prizing solid journalistic skills above persona appearance or charm, has in the long run been good for cable and broadcast news. The growth in channels, though, combined with the increasing prominence of "star" anchors commanding increasingly inflated salaries, has been less positive for the industry. And the expansion of news stations has resulted in a somewhat diluted talent pool for broadcasters. Many local newscasts still value a demographically broad "news team" over a strongly-skilled one, and many still promote style over substance in reporting.

Broadcasting Licenses and Regulations

Broadcast stations, both TV and radio, operate under somewhat different rules than print organizations. Although broadcast journalists generally operate under the same rules as print journalists when reporting on stories, the stations they work for operate under licenses from the Federal Communications Commission. The FCC, established by the Communications Act of 1934, has jurisdiction over approximately one-half of the broadcast spectrum, which is considered public, collective property. (The other half is reserved for federal government uses; military and civilian agencies take up this portion.) The FCC has specific and limited powers to regulate its portion of the spectrum. The FCC is prohibited from considering questions of competition, market share, mergers, antitrust issues, truth or falsity of advertising materials, and civil cases between broadcasters. These issues are handled by the relevant agency that would handle them outside broadcasting. For example, advertising issues are handled by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC); the FCC would only step in if a station continued to broadcast an advertisement deemed to be false and misleading by the FTC. The system is set up in this manner because of a long-standing conflict between state regulation of the spectrum and a desire to let the free market decide most of these issues on its own.

Possibly the best-known of the powers the FCC has is the power to issue licenses for broadcast stations and to renew them, or refuse to renew them, every eight years. This power grows out of the physical limitations of the broadcast spectrum; a certain number of available frequencies set by the laws of physics means that the government has to intervene to ensure that interference does not prevent stations from being heard. At the same time, the government considers itself to have a responsibility to ensure that broadcasters operating on a public spectrum operate in the "public interest." It is important to note that the government's grant of a license does not imply that the grantee holds any property rights in the frequency granted; moreover, no license can be transferred to another holder without FCC approval. The government can revoke a license before the eight-year period, but only after a notice to the licensee and an administrative hearing, during which the burden of proof rests on the FCC.

The FCC's primary role, and the statutory role from which all its other powers flow, is in granting and administering licenses to broadcast stations. The Communications Act makes it illegal for any person to own or operate a station unless it is licensed by the FCC, and the act also mandates that the FCC grant such a license only if it is in the public interest to do so. The commission also has the power to classify stations, determine the band and frequency they will transmit upon, and to approve the power (wattage) of each station.

All applicants for a license must meet certain basic qualifications before the FCC will grant a license, some of which are defined by the FCC and others of which are defined by the Communications Act. The most basic test is citizenship; broadcast licenses cannot be held by non-citizens, foreign corporations, foreign governments, or any company in which non-citizens hold one-fifth of the stock. These requirements are inflexible and can be changed only by Congress, although there are no similar restrictions on foreign ownership of cable systems.

There are also "character" qualifications built into licensing which are not precisely spelled out by the Communications Act or by the FCC. In general, applicants and licensees are screened to ensure that they are honest, would perform well as a licensee, and would follow FCC regulations. There are numerous gray areas within the character qualification. Lying to the FCC about some aspect of the licensing procedure results in automatic disqualification, regardless of the nature of the lie or its significance. These types of denials constitute the majority of FCC denials. Violations of criminal law also pose problems for potential licensees, although even felonies do not result in automatic disqualification. In general, the FCC believes that criminal cases not involving fraud are not relevant unless they affect the licensee's ability or likelihood of being truthful and/or compliant with FCC rules. Even antitrust violations do not always constitute a reason to revoke licenses; in cases involving General Electric and Westinghouse, owners respectively of the NBC and CBS networks, courts found that convictions for violating antitrust law concerned mainly branches of those companies that had little to do with their broadcast networks.

Applicants once had to demonstrate financial qualifications for constructing and operating facilities. The FCC has generally considered that licensees must be able to properly administer a scarce public resource, such as a broadcast frequency. The auction process of bidding on licenses has changed this requirement to mean that the licensee must be able to pay the transaction and to meet expenses for three months. Applicants must also demonstrate that they meet technical minimum qualifications before their applications will even be considered for qualification. An application not meeting minimum capacities will not be processed.

Applicants for renewal of TV licenses also must undergo certain scrutiny related to the Children's Television Act (CTA) of 1990. The FCC has never established any minimum rules on programming, despite widespread belief to the contrary, except in the CTA. The CTA requires applicants for renewal to demonstrate that they have "served the educational and informational needs of children" through programming. The FCC did at one time adopt a set of "guidelines," or unofficial minimum requirements for programming, though it dropped those in 1981 for radio and in 1984 for TV stations.

One major change in broadcast rules has had to do with participation of citizens' committees in the licensing process. Before a 1966 court decision, the public was barred from the licensing process by the FCC, under regulations that limited participation to "parties in interest" of the hearing. Citizens' groups usually participate in the process by filing petitions to deny the applications.

The largest problem often facing the FCC is the need to choose between two competing applicants for a single broadcast frequency. For many years, this process was particularly difficult because the set of criteria the FCC used gave rise to a cumbersome, lengthy process, which did not seem to significantly affect the quality or type of broadcasting in the country. More recently, Congress replaced the entire proceedings with an auction process, in which any applicant meeting the above qualifications can compete. Similarly, questions of renewal of licenses were once considered competitively with new applications, but Congress replaced that proceeding with an automatic-renewal process if the applicant has not violated any of the FCC's rules and regulations. If the renewal is denied, competition for the license will then begin in the auction proceeding.

Cable and Satellite Television

Common law in the United States treats cable television, satellite communications, and Internet law in different and sometimes contradictory ways from how it treats broadcast law in general. Cable television was the first new technology to pose major problems for the FCC and for the courts in determining whether the FCC had jurisdiction over cable systems.

The first cable TV systems were essentially stopgap technologies designed to plug holes in broadcast coverage for persons living in remote, mountainous, or rural areas where broadcast reception was spotty or incomplete. In such regions, communities might pay for a large antenna or receiver at a high point in an area and then transmit the received signals to subscribers via lines strung from the receiver to individual homes. Such systems could also bring in communications from distant cities and thus could eventually offer subscribers access to more stations than the FCC had originally intended to be available for an area when dividing up regions for licensing purposes. The jurisdiction of the FCC over cable systems, however, was not clear, given that the systems were essentially receiving, not transmitting or "broadcasting," units. The question of jurisdiction became even more murky when state and local agencies began to license local cable operators as businesses.

Congress eventually weighed in on the issue with the Cable Communications Policy Act of 1984, which clarified the split between local and national regulation and gave the FCC and local regulators specific jobs or authority in regulating cable communications. This act was amended in 1992 to add regulations improving the competitive position of broadcast television stations and directed the FCC to develop customer service standards for cable TV companies. The act was again amended in 1996 to further open cable systems to competition, allowing telephone companies to obtain franchises and relaxing rate restrictions.

The major portions of cable television law that deal directly with the First Amendment are those concerned with content regulation. The Supreme Court has held that indecent expression over cable networks can be suppressed, but the court decisions on the matter have so far been case-specific and provide no clear body of guidance to cable operators.

The ability of television to be delivered via communications satellites changed the cable and broadcast marketplace dramatically in the late 1990s. Most court decisions regulating satellite television have dealt with problems of access for local broadcast stations, which was initially unavailable or massively expensive for subscribers to early satellite systems. This was essentially a competitive disadvantage for satellite operators compared to cable systems. As satellite technology has improved, Congress and the courts have allowed satellite operators to deliver local broadcast channels and have allowed operators to broadcast network programming even when local stations' programming is unavailable. Case law concerning ownership of individual satellite dishes is virtually nonexistent, with most of the questions about what a home dish owner can legally receive being decided by administrative regulations.

Electronic News Media

Internet Law

Internet communications have already been tested in court and are likely to be one of the major areas for case law and decisions well into the twenty-first century. Some of the most difficult questions of communications law concern or are related to Internet communications, including questions of copyright, defamation, and privacy law, as well as new areas of the law that are unique to computers and the Internet. The question of jurisdiction over Internet content is also complex and frustrating. The decentralized nature of Internet communication and the means of transmission of Internet content over a variety of networks means that any law attempting to prohibit a certain type of communication in a specific area can be problematic if sites containing that type of communication located in different jurisdictions are accessible to residents of that area. Thus far, states have generally been prohibited from attempting to regulate Internet content under the Interstate Commerce Clause.

Cases concerning indecency, obscenity, and pornography on the Internet have received more media attention than any other area. Most case law in force revolves around the Communications Decency Act (CDA) of 1996, which was designed to prohibit children under the age of 18 from receiving indecent materials. The act criminalized the posting of "patently offensive" materials in a manner that made it accessible to children under 18, as well as criminalizing the knowing transmission of such content to children under 18. The CDA was immediately challenged and was overturned by the Supreme Court for overbreadth and vagueness, as well as for the fact that it was impossible to enforce for sites located outside the United States.

Cases concerning "blocking software" have also received First Amendment attention, especially when librarians or other public officials have used blocking software to prohibit access to indecent sites to patrons. Problems with filtering software have been especially egregious, since various programs have been cited as blocking access to many legitimate sites, such as breast cancer forums and free-speech societies, because of limitations in the software's logic. In one Virginia case, patrons of a county library claimed their First Amendment rights had been violated by the installation of blocking software on library computers. In that case, the court found that there were less invasive ways to serve the government interest in prohibiting access to indecent material. Conversely, a library in California was sued for not providing blocking software after a patron's 12-year-old son accessed pornography on the library's computers. The case was thrown out of court, but a revised complaint was, as of mid-2002, still pending.

An area of the Internet that has received considerable government attention since the Oklahoma City bombing is the wide availability of information on bomb-making and on terrorist attacks online. Although the same information is widely available in books and magazines, its availability online caused great concerns to members of Congress.

Defamation law has also been a contentious area of Internet law. Early cases on defamation seemed to revolve around whether an online service provider exercised editorial control over the information posted on the service; Cubby, Inc. v. CompuServe and Stratton Oakmont Inc. v. Prodigy Services Co. were cases decided on these merits. The Communications Decency Act clarified the situation somewhat by stating that no provider of content or user of interactive service would be treated as a "publisher" of content provided by another user or content provider. The CDA in this case provided broad protections for individual users.

Copyright law on the Internet has been another contentious area, especially in cases dealing with questions of redistributing copyrighted material such as music or movies. Various forms of software have made redistribution of digital video and music easy and generally available, while those who download songs and videos tend to avoid paying royalties to production companies. Congress in 1998 passed the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), which made provisions of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Copyright Treaty and the WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty applicable to the United States. Suits against companies that provide free access to copyrighted materials, as well as companies that provide software to give people free access to copyrighted materials, filed under the DMCA have generally been successful in enjoining those companies and individuals against providing such services.

In the future, the type of law that is being hesitantly applied to Internet communications may be more generally applied to the media. The phenomenon of convergence means that media types are becoming less well defined, and the basic distinctions between media based on a medium's form of publication are becoming less important. To cite just one example question: should a newspaper that defames someone through streaming audio or video on its Internet site be tried as a television or radio broadcaster, a newspaper, or an Internet service provider? The future of media law will increasingly turn on questions of the jurisdiction, regulation, and definition of media types.

Internet Sites, News Flow & Revenue Models

The United States leads the world both in the number and in the diversity of Internet news sites operated in any country. Online information services saw an estimated 65 percent growth between 1998 and 1999, according to estimates conducted after the 1997 Economic Census of the United States. In 2000, of course, the speculative stock-market frenzy, which was fed by the Internet, burst, and many online sites simply went out of business. The core revenue model of many online sites was called into question in the burst, and many independent news sites went out of business as a result. For more mainstream Internet news sites, the loss of revenue attendant to a concurrent economic slump has often been a major factor in slowing or delaying major changes.

Online innovation has sometimes also been slowed by the relatively wide variety of ways that people use to access the Internet. Many newspapers, to say nothing of television and radio stations, operate Internet sites that have the capability of providing streaming video and audio to consumers, but many of those consumers still have Internet access only through a modem, which has a relatively slow connection speed. The growth of broadband connections to the Internet, either through digital subscriber lines or through cable connections, has been slowed by the recession and needs to pick up speed before technical innovations can be used to their full advantage by media organizations.

In the early days of the Internet, many newspapers experimented with a revenue model that asked readers to subscribe to a site to get access privileges. For the most part, newspapers quickly dropped that idea when they realized that the same information many people were interested in was available for free on other sites. Particularly with regard to national or breaking news, the existence of even one site offering an Associated Press story for free was enough to draw consumers away from a subscription site, and most newspapers simply cannot offer enough unique local content to justify the price of a subscription.

The one major online exception to this trend has been The Wall Street Journal 's Internet site, www.wsj.com. The Interactive Journal has been able to continue charging a subscription fee because of its unique content and the value that it holds for people interested in business and the stock market. The site was also one of the first, and likely still one of the only, online newspaper sites to turn a profit for the company that operates it. It is also worth noting that the site, unlike many so-called "online newspapers," has its own editorial staff, including reporters, columnists, and editors, who produce unique content for the Internet that sometimes spills over into the printed Journal unlike most newspaper sites, in which part of the daily paper's content may get "shoveled" over to the Internet site, but without any extra work or efforts to make the content more suited to the Web.

The downfall of the subscription model left newspaper companies somewhat at a loss for ways to create revenue online. Many publishers initially balked at providing stories free online that people had to pay for in the print edition. However, the growth of advertising on the Internet mitigated that concern to an extent. Many publishers came to believe that the model for an online site would end up looking more like a "shopper" newspaper, which is thrown for free and makes its revenue solely from advertising, rather than that of a standard subscription paper.

The frustrating complication that papers have confronted is a massive lack of success in coming up with a revenue model for online advertising that takes into account both cost and the number of "views" an advertisement gets. Ordinary papers, of course, charge for ads on a relatively well organized basis, based on the number of subscriptions they can legally claim. The theory is that each paper sold translates into a certain number of people viewing an ad. Online advertisers, by contrast, are unwilling to accept "page views" as evidence that an ad has been viewed and have pushed for a "click-through" model for pricing, for ads that direct a consumer to a company's Web site. The ultimate end of this debate remains to be seen.

In addition, the growth of online classified ads has not been as quick or lucrative as some newspapers could have hoped. Online classifieds were immediately trumpeted as the most lucrative source of revenue newspapers could hope to get, and publishers had visions of offering classified ad buyers access to the world, instead of just a single city, with their buy. The problems with online classifieds are partly technical, having to do with searchability issues, and partially culturalsomeone who wants to buy a car in the Twin Cities would likely look in the Twin Cities first, rather than online in Boston or anywhere else. However, online classifieds have begun to show some modest growth and have become especially useful for people moving from one city to another.

Other online sites, especially sports sites and some magazine sites, have had some success in using a twotiered subscription model. These sites generally give users a certain amount of content for freebasic stories, photo galleries, and breaking news, for example. "Premuim" content, including streaming video and audio, special columns or reports, and archives of columns, is then available by subscription only. Some newspaper sites have applied this model to their online archives, charging consumers a fee for searching and downloading past content.

The real problems that Internet newspapers have to overcome in the future are partially technological, as with issues related to making Internet publication an easy and quick process for even small newspapers, and partly cultural. Only about 45 percent of adults had accessed the Internet in the last month in the spring of 2000, compared with 79.3 percent who had read a newspaper within the last week. Internet newspapers, however, could be a way for papers to make inroads into a much younger audience; only 73 percent of adults between 18 and 24 had read a newspaper, while 59 percent of that group had accessed the Internet in that same survey.

Education & Training

History of Education

The oldest, and most traditional, method of training journalists in the United States reflects the roots of printing in the urban guild system. In colonial times, aspiring editors would enter the profession as apprentices, bound to a master printer with a standard contract that might have replicated those used for apprentice silversmiths or cordwainers. After a few years of sweeping floors, cleaning presses, collecting loose type, and other menial tasks, the apprentice would gradually learn the skills that were necessary for becoming an independent printer. Skills for newspaper editors would differ only marginally from those of a commercial printer; indeed, most bookbinders and almanac-printers engaged in those occupations only as a sideline to their role as editors. The young apprentice would eventually, skills permitting, become a journeyman printer, possessing most of the skills necessary to run an office on his own and, most importantly, being no longer legally bound to the master. Journeymen, as the name suggests, were free to move about looking for work, although many stayed with a master printer for some time. When a journeyman opened up his own office, he finally gained the status of a master printer and would employ his own journeymen and apprentices.

The method of learning journalism by doing it, rather than through formal training, reflected the relative lack of status of early editors. Printer-editors were anomalous in terms of status in the early Republic. Still, the basic requirements of the job meant that editors had to learn reading and writing, as well as the basics of grammar, style, and composition. (Although exact statistics are murky, anecdotal evidence suggests that most Americans did know how to read, though ability to write was apparently much less common.) The editor might also acquire what education was possible through reading books and other newspapers, and early editors sometimes show a surprising knowledge of history and politics. Yet editors were not required or even encouraged to go to colleges, and the mere fact that editors worked with their hands meant that they could never really aspire to the status of gentlemen. The men who contributed columns to early newspapers are another matter; especially after newspapers became partisan battlegrounds, the caliber of those writing political tracts increased exponentially.

Formal training of journalists began at the height of the partisan press era but was short-lived. Duff Green's Washington Institute holds the distinction of being the first and possibly shortest-lived journalism education program in U.S. history. Green's institute, designed to teach aspiring partisan journalists the basics of running a press, setting type, writing stories, and the like, was shut down after just one year after a Washington printer's union complained that Green was using the school to unfairly compete against union labor.

The next attempt at providing aspiring editors formal education was undertaken not long after the Civil War, by former Confederate general Robert E. Lee. In 1869, Lee, then president of Washington College, suggested granting 50 scholarships to bright, aspiring journalists and hiring a full-time faculty member to teach them the basic principles and practice of journalism. Although his suggestion was approved by the college's governing board, Lee died the next year, and his plan was never put into action.

Throughout the 1880s and 1890s, as the urban press began actively and aggressively fight corruption and graft, newsgathering organizations grew in size and scale. Editors began to argue that the older system of learning-by-doing produced printers with great technical skill but relatively little real knowledge of the world around them or of major events affecting them. As editors began to envision greater roles for themselvesup to and including the presidencycalls for better education increased. As state press associations grew in size and power, the influence they exerted over state legislatures grew as well. The University of Missouri led other state universities in hiring a working editor to give classes in reporting, writing, and editing during the 1870s. Joseph Pulitzer, the flamboyant St. Louis Post-Dispatch and New York World editor, granted Columbia University a multimillion-dollar endowment to found a school of journalism in 1904. Unfortunately, the university's governing board sat on the endowment and did not get around to founding the school until 1913.

The University of Missouri founded the world's first permanent school of journalism in 1908, after nearly thirty years of agitation from the Missouri Press Association. Students in the journalism sequence produced the weekly University Missourian, which survives today as the daily Columbia Missourian, in between taking classes on reporting, editing, and design, as well as the regular university sequence. The Missourian, which is owned by the Missouri Press Foundation, is operated wholly by the school's students, with faculty members serving as editors and managers. Over time, the university and Missouri Press Foundation added a radio station and later a television station to their holdings. As of 2002, KBIAFM and KOMU are NPR and NBC affiliates and operate on the same basis as the Missourian, with students producing and editing content and faculty managing operations. The "Missouri method," which combines hands-on education with a rigorous schedule of classes, has been widely copied.

Education in the 2000s

Most aspiring journalists enter some sort of collegiate journalism education program. While the most distinguished journalism schools, like Missouri, Columbia, Northwestern University, and the University of Texas, operate separate journalism schools, many future journalists major in schools of communications or in media studies. Most large schools grant degrees in specific sequences, allowing students to specialize in newspapers, magazines, television, radio, photojournalism, or advertising. However, most communications and journalism schools separate public relations (PR) and marketing programs from journalism, placing them instead in business schools. The rationale for such separation is that advertising workers represent a specific newspaper, magazine, or broadcast station, while PR and marketing representatives work for individual businesses.

A relatively recent development is the growth of "new media" programs that combine aspects of various sequences, allowing aspiring Internet journalists to learn programming skills as well as combining skills from print and broadcast media. Many schools also offer even more specialized degrees in fields such as agricultural journalism, science journalism, community journalism and visual communications.

Statistics on the Status of Journalism Education

Data from two major organizations, the Association of Schools of Journalism and Mass Communication (ASJMC) and the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications (ACEJMC), provide some overall statistics about the status of journalism education. In all, 109 programs are accredited by ACEJMC, and another 87 are members of ASJMC but not accredited. Another 260 schools are members of neither program but still grant degrees in journalism and mass communications. In 1999, a total of 157,800 students were enrolled in undergraduate and graduate journalism programs. Of those students, 147,887 were undergraduates and 9,913 were graduate students. In 1998-1999, schools granted 31,778 undergraduate degrees, 2,776 master's degrees, and 177 doctoral degrees.

The number of students studying journalism in 1999 was thought to be a new high for the field and reflected five years of steady growth in programs after declines in the early 1990s. Undergraduate enrollments for the year increased only slightly, by just 0.7 percent, after increasing by 5.8 percent in 1998. Graduate enrollments dropped by 10 percent, continuing a four-year trend. Overall, 94 percent of enrolled students were studying for undergraduate degrees, and 90 percent of graduate students were seeking a master's degree. In part, this pattern reflects a general decline in graduate programs that was characteristic of the late 1990s, as the promise of easy money in the stock market and Internet boom lured students out of college earlier. In part, it also reflected the fact that in a country without formal licensing or qualification procedures for journalists, most students see relatively little value in graduate programs unless they wish to be journalism educators.

Figures for 1999 also reflected a general trend that more women study journalism than do men. About 60 percent of journalism students in 1999 were women, and only in the number of doctoral degrees earned did men outnumber women. Although statistics about race and ethnicity are difficult to come by, it seems that about 26 percent of students studying journalism are members of minority groups, compared with the 23 percent of the general population classified as being minorities.

For the most part, student journalists get practical experience by working at a college newspaper or a campus-wide broadcasting station. Many internship opportunities exist for students who want them; most newspapers, advertising, and broadcast stations run programs for summer interns. More formal internship programs exist for students in nearly every possible specialization, run by colleges, professional organizations, and newspaper chains. American colleges increasingly are requiring all of their students to complete some sort of internship or professional experience program as a degree requirement, and many students are eventually hired by the newspaper or organization they worked for as undergraduates.

Working journalists can belong to any of hundreds of professional organizations, many of which are organized by specialty. Some of the more distinguished organizations are the American Society of Newspaper Editors, the American Newspaper Publishers Association, the Inland Press Organization, and the Society of Professional Journalists. Smaller specialty organizations exist for reporters, assigning editors, copy editors, publishers, photographers, business writers and editors, investigative reporters, science journalists, African-American journalists, and many other groups. Also prominent are state press associations, which represent the rural, community, and suburban press as well as large metro dailies. State press associations are generally active in lobbying local and state governments, providing legal advice and help to smaller papers, holding press competitions, granting awards and other activities.

The most distinguished awards in American journalism are the Pulitzer Prizes, given by a committee located at Columbia University. As of 2002, the Pulitzer Prize Board awards 21 prizes per year, covering excellence in journalism, letters, and music. Journalism awards cover areas such as investigative reporting, local breaking news reporting, explanatory reporting, national affairs reporting, international affairs reporting, beat reporting, feature writing, commentary, criticism, editorial writing, editorial cartooning, spot news photography, and feature photography. Of particular note is the public service award, given each year to a newspapernever an individual which performed a significant public service to its community or the nation. Since the awards' inception, more Pulitzer Prizes have been awarded to the New York Times than any other newspaper.

Summary

As the United States press enters the twenty-first century, it faces an uncertain future. Newspapers represent a shrinking portion of the U.S. media dollar, with broadcasting gaining ground daily and the Internet representing a tremendous, unknown factor in the race for the media dollar in the next century. Convergence, the buzzword of media seminars in recent years, offers newspapers both new opportunity and a radically different way of thinking about and covering the news.

As the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, proved, the United States media will not stay comfortably isolated from the problems of the rest of the world. The demand for international news is as high in 2002 as it ever has been, and news organizations are facing a new realization that they have an obligation to report compelling stories about the rest of the worldnot just to boost readership, but because readers have a need to understand the world around them. The proportion of international news found in newspapers continues to climb, and journalists continue to search for new ways to tell their stories.

As the U.S. economy continues to strengthen, advertising dollars will begin to flow back to newspapers, allowing them to spend money on covering national and international events better. A small pause in mergers will likely end, with newspapers and newspaper companies newly flush with cash looking to buy more properties. The economic recession meant that many students who had planned to graduate in 2002 stayed in graduate school for a period of time, meaning that the recent decline in graduate enrollments in journalism may turn around in the near future.

Newspapers remain in many ways the same medium they always have been, concerned with providing their readers a mix of local, national, and international news, tempered with light relief in the form of columns, features, and comics. But more and more newspapers are finding it necessary and useful to fulfill their obligations to their communities by becoming more vocal in their editorial columns, calling on their readers for ideas and participation in seminars and other media-run events, and spending more time analyzing and explaining the news, instead of just reporting it. As the world becomes more complex, newspapers face a greater challenge to explain that world and to guide readers through it in an intelligible fashion. Newspapers in the next century will become much more than clearinghouses of information. They will become guides to their communities and once again become strong voices in the leadership of their communities and their nation.

Significant Dates

  • 1997: The Supreme Court strikes down the federal Communications Decency Act, claiming that it goes too far in attempting to ban pornography and obscene expression online; the Federal Telecommunications Act of 1996 continues to create waves in the broadcasting industry, as telecommunications giants moved into new fields and continued buying led to massive new media empires.
  • 1998: Congress passes the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, which applies provisions of the World Intellectual Property Organization Treaty and the WIPO Performances and Phonograms treaty to the United States.
  • 1999: Two journalists working for the Atlanta Constitution were jailed for contempt of court after refusing to reveal their sources.
  • 2000: A contractual dispute between Time Warner Cable and Walt Disney, owner of the ABC and ESPN networks, led to a 39-hour blackout of ABC stations in some 3.5 million homes; during a raid on the home of relatives of Elian Gonzales, an NBC news crew assigned to cover the event by a pool of reporters was assaulted by Immigration and Naturalization Service representatives; in a contempt-of-court case, the editor of the Sacramento Valley Mirror was jailed for five days after he refused to reveal a source; media companies spent more than $15 billion on buying properties, a new record.
  • 2001: On September 11, terrorists fly three planes loaded with fuel and people into the World Trade Center towers and the Pentagon. Another plane crashes in Pennsylvania. More than 3,000 people die as a result of the attacks; the Bush administration calls on broadcast stations to stop airing videotapes of Osama bin Laden and his al-Qaeda terrorist group, claiming that they "aid and abet" terrorism. Some stations comply; the U.S. attack on Afghanistan brings to the forefront new iterations of old debates between the press and government concerning military affairs; a stagnant economy means fewer mergers and buyouts for media organizations.
  • 2002: Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl is killed in Pakistan, while covering the al-Qaeda organization.

Selected Bibliography

Abramsky, Sasha. "No Degrees of Separation on Sept. 11." Editor & Publisher (15 April 2002): 10.

Ahrens, Frank. "Don't Write for Web, Post Reporters Urged." Washington Post (15 June 2002): sec. E, 3.

Backer, Lee B., Gerald M. Kosicki, Wilson Lowrey, Joel-le Prine, and Aswin Punathambekar. "New Data on Faculty Appointments: Undergrad Enrollments Level Off, Graduate Education Declines." Journalism and Mass Communications Educator (Autumn 2000): 68-80.

Bailyn, Bernard. The Ideological Origins of the American Revolution. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1967.

Carter, T. Barton, Juliet Lusborough Dee, and Harvey L. Zuckman. Mass Communication Law in a Nutshell. 5th ed. St. Paul, MN, 2000.

Editor & Publisher International Year Book: The Encyclopedia of the Newspaper Industry. Parts 1-3. New York, 2001.

Emery, Michael, and Edwin Emery. The Press and America: An Interpretive History of the Mass Media. Engle-wood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1984.

Entman, Robert M. Democracy without Citizens: Media and the Decay of American Politics. New York: Oxford University Press, 1989.

Formisano, Ronald P. The Birth of Mass Political Parties: Michigan, 1827-1861. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1971.

. "Deferential-Participant Politics: The Early Republic's Political Culture, 1789-1840." American Political Science Review 68 (1974): 473-87.

Franklin, Steve. "Detroit: Which side are you on?" Columbia Journalism Review (November/December 1995): 13.

Harwood, Richard. "Lost Muscle of the Newspaper Guild." Washington Post (15 December 1995), sec. A, 25.

"January 2002 Year-to-Year Newsprint Consumption." Presstime (April 2002): 45.

John, Richard R. Spreading the News: The American Postal System from Franklin to Morse. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1998.

Jurkowitz, Mark. "Giles Named Curator of Nieman Foundation." Boston Globe (26 Jun 2000) sec. D, 4.

. "Labor Opposes Nieman Contender." Boston Globe (29 June 2000), sec. E, 3.

Kunke, Thomas, and Gene Roberts. "The Age of Corporate Newspapering: Leaving Readers Behind." American Journalism Review (May 2001): 32.

Kurian, George T., ed. World Press Encyclopedia. 2 vols. New York: Facts on File, 1982.

Lallande, Ann. "The Art of the Deal." Presstime (January 2001): 38.

Maguire, Miles. "Profit Fever Revisited." American Journalism Review (March 2002): 54.

Mason, Kim. "Price vs. Sales." Presstime (November 2000): 37.

Menand, Louis. "Ink: Says Who?" New Yorker (17 & 24 June 2002): 52.

Mindich, David T. Z. Just the Facts: How "Objectivity" Came to Define American Journalism. New York: New York University Press, 1998.

Moore, Roy L. Mass Communication Law and Ethics. 2nd ed. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1999.

Morton, John. "The Return of the Deal." American Journalism Review (April 2002): 68.

Moses, Lucia. "Alarming numbers: New ABC report will show some circulation gainsbut fewer than predicted after the post-9/11 surge." Editor & Publisher (22 April 2002): 18.

Mott, Frank Luther. American Journalism. 3rd ed. New York: MacMillan, 1960.

Nerone, John C. "The Mythology of the Penny Press." Critical Studies in Mass Communication 4 (1987): 376-422.

. Violence Against the Press: Policing the Public Sphere in U.S. History. New York: Oxford University Press, 1994.

"News Use." Presstime (April 2002): 28.

Pasley, Jeffrey L. "The Tyranny of Printers": Newspaper Politics in the Early American Republic. Charlottesville, VA: 2001.

"Q & A." Columbia Journalism Review (May/June 2002): 50.

Schudson, Michael. Discovering the News: A Social History of American Newspapers. New York: Basic Books, 1978.

. "Toward a Troubleshooting Manual for Journalism History." Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly 74 (1997): 463-76.

Simon, Jim, and Barbara A. Serrano. "Times Strike Ends," Seattle Times (9 January 2001) sec. A, 1.

Simurda, Stephen J. "Sticking With the Union?" Columbia Journalism Review (March/April 1993): 25.

"Sources of Distribution." Presstime (January 2002): 16.

Stephens, Mitchell. A History of News. Fort Worth, TX, 1997.

Strunsky, Steve. "As Talks Drag On, Newspaper Bylines Vanish." New York Times (1 April 2001).

Strupp, Joe. "As Honolulu Paper Bids ABC Aloha, Execs Account For Losses." Editor & Publisher (13 May 2002): 8.

"2001 News Advertising Expenditures." Presstime (April 2002): 4.

Waldstreicher, David. In the Midst of Perpetual Fetes: The Making of American Nationalism, 1776-1820. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina, 1997.

Wenner, Kathryn S. "Whither the Guild?" American Journalism Review (April 2001): 46.

"What's Next for Newsprint and Ink." Presstime (September 2000): 48.

Robert Weir

United States

views updated May 14 2018

United States

1 Location and Size

2 Topography

3 Climate

4 Plants and Animals

5 Environmental Protection

6 Population

7 Ethnic Groups

8 Languages

9 Religions

10 Transportation

11 History

12 Federal Government

13 Political Parties

14 Local Government

15 Judicial System

16 Migration

17 Economy

18 Income

19 Industry

20 Labor

21 Agriculture

22 Domesticated Animals

23 Fishing

24 Forestry

25 Mining

26 Energy and Power

27 Commerce

28 Public Finance

29 Taxation

30 Health

31 Housing

32 Education

33 Arts

34 Libraries and Museums

35 Communications

36 Press

37 Tourism, Travel & Recreation

38 Sports

39 Famous Americans

40 Bibliography

The United States of America

CAPITAL: Washington, DC (District of Columbia).

COAT OF ARMS: The American bald eagle is depicted with a shield containing 13 vertical white and red stripes beneath a blue band. The eagle’s right talon clutches an olive branch, representing peace; his left talon holds 13 arrows, symbolizing military strength. The eagle’s beak holds a banner with the motto “E pluribus unum” (Out of many, one). Above the eagle’s head, a golden glory is breaking through a cloud and surrounds a constellation of 13 five-pointed stars on an azure field.

FLAG: The flag consists of 13 alternate stripes, 7 red and 6 white; these represent the 13 original colonies. Fifty 5-pointed white stars, representing the present number of states in the Union, are placed in 9 horizontal rows alternately of 6 and 5 against a blue field in the upper left corner of the flag.

MOTTO: In God We Trust.

SONG: The Star-Spangled Banner.

FLOWER: Rose.

TREE: Oak.

BIRD: Bald eagle.

LEGAL HOLIDAYS: New Year’s Day, 1 January; Birthday of Martin Luther King Jr., 3rd Monday in January; Lincoln’s Birthday, 12 February (only in the northern and western states); Washington’s Birthday, 3rd Monday in February; Memorial or Decoration Day, last Monday in May; Independence Day, 4 July; Labor Day, 1st Monday in September; Columbus Day, 2nd Monday in October; Election Day, 1st Tuesday after the 1st Monday in November; Veterans or Armistice Day, 11 November; Thanksgiving Day, 4th Thursday in November; Christmas, 25 December.

TIME: Eastern, 7 am = noon GMT; Central, 6 am = noon GMT; Mountain, 5 am = noon GMT; Pacific (includes the Alaska panhandle), 4 am = noon GMT; Yukon, 3 am = noon GMT; Alaska and Hawaii, 2 am = noon GMT; western Alaska, 1 am = noon GMT.

1 Location and Size

Located in the Western Hemisphere on the southern portion of the continent of North America, the United States is the third-largest country in the world. Its total area, including Alaska and Hawaii, is 9,631,420 square kilometers (3,718,691 square miles). The country shares borders with Canada and Mexico, with a total land boundary length of 12,034 kilometers (7,593 miles) and a total coastline of 19,924 kilometers (12,380 miles).

Alaska, the 49th state, is separated from the contiguous 48 states by Canada. It forms a peninsula surrounded by the Arctic Ocean and the Pacific and is separated from Russia by the Bering Strait. The island state of Hawaii, the 50th state, is located in the Pacific Ocean. The nation’s capital, Washington, DC, is located near the mid-Atlantic coast.

2 Topography

Although the northern New England coast is rocky, along the rest of the eastern seaboard the Atlantic Coastal Plain rises gradually from the shoreline. Narrow in the north, the plain widens to about 320 kilometers (200 miles) in the south and in Georgia merges with the Gulf Coastal Plain that borders the Gulf of Mexico and extends through Mexico as far as the Yucatán. West of the Atlantic Coastal Plain is the Piedmont Plateau, bounded by the Appalachian Mountains. The Appalachians, which extend from southwest Maine into central Alabama, are old mountains, largely eroded away, with rounded contours and generally forested terrain. The highest Appalachian Peak, Mount Mitchell in North Carolina, reaches 2,037 meters (6,684 feet).

Between the Appalachians and the Rocky Mountains to the west lies the vast interior plain of the United States. Running south through the center of this plain is the Mississippi River. Its major tributary, the Missouri, is the longest river in the country and the second longest in North America, with a total distance of 3,968 kilometers (2,466 miles). Its source is found in the Northern Rockies. The eastern reaches of the

United States Population Profile

Total population estimate in 2006:301,340,000
Population change, 2000–06:6.4%
Hispanic or Latino†:14.5 %
Population by race
One race:98 %
White:74%
Black or African American:12%
American Indian /Alaska Native:1%
Asian:4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander:0.1%
Some other race:6%
Two or more races:2%

Population by Age Group

Major Cities by Population
CityPopulation% change 2000–05
Notes: †A person of Hispanic or Latino origin may be of any race. NA indicates that data are not available.
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey and Population Estimates. www.census.gov/ (accessed March 2007).
New York City, NY8,143,1971.7
Los Angeles, CA3,844,8294.1
Chicago, IL2,842,518-1.8
Houston, TX2,016,5823.2
Philadelphia, PA1,463,281-3.6
Phoenix, ZA1,461,57510.6
San Antonio, TX1,256,5099.8
San Diego, CA1,255,5402.6
Dallas, TX1,213,8252.1
San Jose, CA912,3321.9

great interior plain are bounded on the north by the Great Lakes, which are thought to contain about half the world’s total supply of fresh water. They include Lake Michigan, Lake Superior, Lake Huron, Lake Erie, and Lake Ontario. Lake Superior, which covers an area of 82,732 square kilometers (31,820 square miles), is the largest lake in the country and the second-largest lake in the world (after the Caspian Sea). The five lakes are accessible to oceangoing vessels from the Atlantic via the Saint Lawrence Seaway. The basins of the Great Lakes were formed by the glacial ice cap that moved down over large parts of North America some 25,000 years ago.

The great interior plain consists of two major subregions: the fertile Central Plains and the more arid Great Plains. Although they appear flat, the Great Plains rise gradually from about 460 meters (1,500 feet) to more than 1,500 meters (5,000 feet) at their western extremity.

The Continental Divide runs along the crest of the Rocky Mountains. The Rockies and the ranges to the west are part of the great system of young, rugged mountains that runs along western North, Central, and South America from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego, Chile. In the continental United States, the series of western ranges, most of them paralleling the Pacific coast, are the Sierra Nevada, the Coast Ranges, the Cascade Range, and the Tehachapi and San Bernardino Mountains. Between the Rockies and the Sierra Nevada-Cascade mountain barrier to the west lies the Great Basin, a group of vast arid plateaus containing most of the desert areas of the United States, in the south eroded by deep canyons.

The coastal plains along the Pacific are narrow. The most extensive lowland near the west coast is the Great Valley of California, lying between the Sierra Nevada and the Coast Ranges. There are 71 peaks in these western ranges of the continental United States that rise to an altitude of 4,267 meters (14,000 feet) or more. The greatest rivers of the Far West are the Colorado in the south and the Columbia in the northwest.

Separated from the continental United States by Canadian territory, the state of Alaska occupies the extreme northwest portion of the North American continent. The Alaskan Peninsula and the Aleutian Islands, sweeping west far out to sea, consist of a chain of volcanoes, many of which are still active. The state of Hawaii consists of a group of Pacific islands formed by volcanoes rising sharply from the ocean floor. The highest of these volcanoes, Mauna Loa, at 4,168 meters (13,675 feet), is located on the largest of the islands, Hawaii, and is still active.

The lowest point in the United States is Death Valley in California, 86 meters (282 feet) below sea level. At 6,194 meters (20,320 feet), Mount McKinley in Alaska is the highest peak in North America. These topographic extremes suggest the geological instability of the Pacific Coast region. The San Andreas Fault in California still causes frequent earth tremors.

3 Climate

The East Coast is affected mostly by masses of air moving from west to east across the continent. Its climate is basically continental, with clear contrasts between seasons. Because Florida has the Gulf of Mexico lying to its west, however, it experiences only moderate differences between summer and winter temperatures. Mean annual temperatures vary considerably between north and south, ranging from 11°c (51°f) in Boston to 24°c (76°f) in Miami. Annual rainfall is generally more than 100 centimeters (40 inches). The Gulf and South Atlantic states are often hit by severe tropical storms in late summer and early autumn.

The number of hurricanes and their severity have measurably increased in the past few years. From 1995 to 2003, there were a total of 32 major hurricanes with sustained winds of 111 miles per hour or greater. In 2005 there were a record-breaking 23 named Atlantic hurricanes,

United States Population by Race

Census 2000 was the first national census in which the instructions to respondents said, “Mark one or more races.” This table shows the number of people who are of one, two, or three or more races. For those claiming two races, the number of people belonging to the various categories is listed. The U.S. government conducts a census of the population every ten years.

 NumberPercent
Source: U.S. Census Bureau. Census 2000: Redistricting Data. Press release issued by the Redistricting Data Office. Washington, D.C., March, 2001. A dash (—) indicates that the percent is less than 0.1.
Total population281,241,906100.0
One race274,595,67897.6
Two races6,368,0752.3
White and Black or African American784,7640.3
White and American Indian/Alaska Native1,082,6830.4
White and Asian868,3950.3
White and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander112,964
White and some other race2,206,2510.8
Black or African American and American Indian/Alaska Native182,4940.1
Black or African American and Asian106,782
Black or African American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander29,876
Black or African American and some other race417,2490.1
American Indian/Alaska Native and Asian52,429
American Indian/Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander .7,328
American Indian/Alaska Native and some other race93,842
Asian and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander138,802
Asian and some other race249,1080.1
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander and some other race35,108
Three or more races458,1530.2

three of which caused severe damage to the Gulf Coast region. Hurricane Katrina, which hit Florida on 25 August 2005, eventually developed into a category 4 hurricane that made landfall in southern Louisiana. Several levees protecting the low-lying city of New Orleans broke, flooding the entire region under waters that rose over the rooftops of homes. Over 1,000 were killed by the storm. Over 500,000 people were left homeless and without jobs. One month later, Hurricane Rita peaked as a category 5 hurricane before making landfall as a category 3 hurricane on 24 September 2005 between Sabine Pass, Texas, and Johnson’s Bayou, Louisiana. Hurricane Wilma followed on 24 October, making landfall north of Everglades City in Florida as a category 3 hurricane.

The prairie lands in the middle of the country have more drought than heavy rainfall. The average midwinter temperature in the extreme north—Minnesota and North Dakota—is about -13°c (9°f) or less, while the average July temperature is 18°c (65°f). In the Texas prairie region to the south, January temperatures average 10 to 13°c (50 to 55°f) and July temperatures average 27 to 29°c (80 to 85°f). Annual rainfall in this region can be as low as 46 centimeters (18 inches).

The Great Plains are semiarid. Annual rainfall in the southern plains averages about 50 centimeters (20 inches) and in the northern plains about 25 centimeters (10 inches). The contrast between summer and winter temperatures is extreme throughout the Great Plains. Maximum summer temperatures of more than 43°c (110°f) have been recorded, while the average minimum temperature for January is -19°c (-3°f).

The higher reaches of the Rockies and the other western ranges have an alpine climate. The climate of the Western desert region varies considerably from north to south. In New Mexico, Arizona, and southeastern California, mean annual rainfall ranges from 8 centimeters (3 inches) to 76 centimeters (30 inches), while some of the mountainous areas of central Washington and Idaho receive at least 152 centimeters (60 inches) of rain per year. Phoenix, Arizona, has a mean annual temperature of 22°c (71°f).

The Pacific Coast has a maritime climate, with mild winters and moderately warm, dry summers. Los Angeles in the south has an average temperature of 13°c (56°f) in January and 21°c (69°f) in July; Seattle in the north has an average temperature of 4°c (39°f) in January and 18°c (65°f) in July. Precipitation ranges from an annual average of 4.52 centimeters (1.78 inches) at Death Valley in California (the lowest in the United States) to more than 356 centimeters (140 inches) in Washington’s mountain regions.

Alaska has varied climatic conditions. The Aleutian Islands and the coastal panhandle strip have a moderate maritime climate. The interior is characterized by short, hot summers and long, bitterly cold winters. In the region bordering the Arctic Ocean, a polar climate prevails; the soil hundreds of feet below the surface remains frozen year round.

Northeast ocean winds give Hawaii a mild, stable climate. The mean temperature in Honolulu is 23°c (73°f) in January and 27°c (80°f) in July. Rainfall is moderate—about 71 centimeters (28 inches) per year—but it is much greater in the mountains.

The lowest temperature recorded in the United States was -62°c (-79.8°f) in Alaska at Prospect Creek Camp on 23 January 1971; the highest, 57°c (134°f) in California at Greenland Ranch in Death Valley on 10 July 1913. The record annual rainfall is 1,468 centimeters (578 inches) on Maui in Hawaii in 1950.

4 Plants and Animals

At least 7,000 species and subspecies of indigenous plants have been categorized. The eastern forests contain a mixture of softwoods and hardwoods that includes pine, oak, maple, spruce, beech, birch, hemlock, walnut, gum, and hickory. The central hardwood forest contains oak, hickory, ash, maple, and walnut. Pine, hickory, tupelo, pecan, gum, birch, and sycamore are found in the southern forest, which stretches along the Gulf coast into the eastern half of Texas. The Pacific forest is the most spectacular of all because of its enormous redwoods and Douglas firs. In the southwest are saguaro (giant cactus), yucca, candlewood, and the Joshua tree.

The central grasslands lie in the interior of the continent, where the moisture is not sufficient to support the growth of large forests. The tall grassland or prairie (now almost entirely under cultivation) lies to the east of the one-hundredth meridian. To the west of this longitude, where rainfall is frequently less than 50 centimeters (20 inches) per year, is the short grassland. Mesquite grass covers parts of west Texas, southern New Mexico, and Arizona. Short grass may be found in the highlands of the latter two states, while tall grass covers large portions of the coastal regions of Texas and Louisiana and occurs in some parts of Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida. The Pacific grassland includes northern Idaho, the higher plateaus of eastern Washington and Oregon, and the mountain valleys of California.

The region of the Western Cordillera is for the most part covered with desert shrubs. Sagebrush predominates in the northern part of this area, and creosote in the southern region, with saltbrush near the Great Salt Lake and in Death Valley.

The lower slopes of the mountains running up to the coastline of Alaska are covered with coniferous forests as far north as the Seward Peninsula. The central part of the Yukon Basin is also a region of softwood forests. The rest of Alaska is heath or tundra. Hawaii has extensive forests of bamboo and ferns. Sugarcane and pineapple, although not native to the islands, now cover a large portion of the cultivated land.

Small trees and shrubs common to most of the United States include hackberry, hawthorn, serviceberry, blackberry, wild cherry, dogwood, and snowberry. Wildflowers bloom in all areas, from the seldom-seen blossoms of rare desert cacti to the hardiest alpine species. Wildflowers include forget-me-not, fringed and closed gentians, jack-in-the-pulpit, black-eyed Susan, columbine, and common dandelion, along with numerous varieties of aster, orchid, lady’s slipper, and wild rose.

An estimated 428 species of mammals characterize the animal life of the continental United States. Among the larger game animals are the white-tailed deer, moose, pronghorn antelope, bighorn sheep, mountain goat, black bear, and grizzly bear. Some 25 important furry species are common, including the muskrat, red and gray foxes, mink, raccoon, beaver, opossum, striped skunk, woodchuck, common cottontail, snowshoe hare, and various squirrels. The American buffalo (bison), millions of which once roamed the plains, is now found only on select reserves. Other mammals, such as the elk and the gray wolf, have been restricted to much smaller ranges.

Year-round and migratory birds abound. Loons, wild ducks, and wild geese are found in lake country; terns, gulls, sandpipers, herons, and other seabirds live along the coasts. Wrens, thrushes, owls, hummingbirds, sparrows, woodpeckers, swallows, chickadees, vireos, warblers, and finches appear in profusion, along with the robin, common crow, cardinal, Baltimore oriole, eastern and western meadowlarks, and various blackbirds. Wild turkey, ruffed grouse, and ring-necked pheasant (introduced from Europe) are popular game birds.

Lakes, rivers, and streams teem with trout, bass, perch, muskellunge, carp, catfish, and pike; sea bass, cod, snapper, and flounder are abundant along the coasts, along with such shellfish as lobster, shrimp, clams, oysters, and mussels. Garter, pine, and milk snakes are found in most regions. Four poisonous snakes survive, of which the rattlesnake is the most common. Alligators appear in southern waterways, and the Gila monster makes its home in the Southwest.

5 Environmental Protection

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), created in 1970, is an independent body with primary regulatory responsibility in the fields of air and noise pollution, water and waste management, and control of toxic substances. Other federal agencies with environmental responsibilities are the Forest Service and Soil Conservation Service within the Department of Agriculture, the Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Park Service within the Department of the Interior, the Department of Energy, and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

The most influential environmental lobbies include the Sierra Club and its legal arm, the Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund. Large conservation groups include the National Wildlife Federation, the National Audubon Society, and the Nature Conservancy. Greenpeace USA has gained international attention by seeking to disrupt hunts for whales and seals.

Among the environmental movement’s most notable successes have been the inauguration (and mandating in some states) of recycling programs, the banning in the United States of the insecticide dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), the successful fight against construction of a supersonic transport (SST), and the gradual elimination of chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) production by 2000.

Outstanding problems include acid rain; inadequate facilities for solid-waste disposal; air pollution from industrial emissions; the contamination of homes by radon, a radioactive gas that is produced by the decay of underground deposits of radium and can cause cancer; runoffs of agricultural pesticides; continued dumping of raw or partially treated sewage from major cities into US waterways; and the decrease in arable land because of depletion, erosion, and urbanization.

As of November 2005, the US Fish and Wildlife Service listed 997 endangered species, including 68 mammals, 77 birds, 74 fish, and 599 plants, and 275 threatened species, including 146 plants.

6 Population

The population of the United States in 2006 was estimated at 301,400,000. The median age of the population increased from 16.7 years in 1820 to 22.9 years in 1900, and to 35.3 years in 2000. The projected population for the year 2025 is at 349,419,000. Population density varies greatly from region to region; the average is 32 persons per square kilometer (80 per square mile).

Suburbs have absorbed most of the shift in population distribution since 1950. Approximately 79% of the population lived in urban areas in 2005.

7 Ethnic Groups

The majority of the US population is of European origin, with the largest groups having primary ancestry traceable to the United Kingdom, Germany, and Ireland. Many Americans report multiple ancestries. Major racial and national minority groups include blacks (either of US, African, or Caribbean parentage), Chinese, Filipinos, Japanese, Mexicans, and other Spanish-speaking peoples of the Americas. According to 2006 estimates, about 74% of the US population are white; 12% black and/or African Americans; 4% Asian; and 1% Native Americans (including Alaskan Natives). About 2% of the population claim a mixed ancestry of two or more races. About 11.9% of all US citizens are foreign-born, with the largest numbers of people coming from Latin America (17,973,287) and Asia (9,254,705).

Groups of Native Americans are most numerous in the southwestern states of Oklahoma, Arizona, New Mexico, and California. A majority of the black population still resides in the South, the region that absorbed most of the slaves brought from Africa in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Many black Americans live in metropolitan areas, notably in Washington, DC; Atlanta; Chicago; Detroit; New Orleans; Newark; Baltimore; and New York City, which has a larger number of black residents than any other city. The Chinese population is highly urbanized, and concentrated particularly in cities of more than 100,000 population, mostly on the west coast and in New York City. Hawaii has been the most popular magnet for Japanese emigration.

Hispanics in 2004 made up the largest minority group in the United States, accounting for about 14% of the population. Although Mexicans in the 21st century were still concentrated in the Southwest, they have settled throughout the United States; there are over 25 million Mexicans in the country. Spanish-speaking Puerto Ricans have largely settled in the New York metropolitan area. Since 1959, many Cubans have settled in Florida and other eastern states.

8 Languages

The primary language of the United States is English, enriched by words borrowed from the languages of Indians and immigrants, predominantly European. Spanish is also spoken by a sizable minority.

When European settlement began, Indians living north of Mexico spoke about three hundred different languages now grouped into 58 different language families. Only two such families have contributed noticeably to the American vocabulary: Algonquian in the Northeast and Aztec-Tanoan in the Southwest.

Dialect studies confirm that standard English is not uniform throughout the country. Major regional variations reflect patterns of colonial settlement. Dialectologists recognize three main dialects: Northern, Midland, and Southern.

The Northern dialect is that of New England and its derivative settlements in New York; the northern parts of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Iowa; and Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, northeastern South Dakota, and North Dakota. Midland speech extends in a wide band across the United States with two main subdivisions, North Midland and South Midland. North Midland speech extends westward from New Jersey, Delaware, and Pennsylvania into Ohio, Illinois, southern Iowa, and northern Missouri. South Midland speech was carried by the Scotch-Irish from Pennsylvania down the Shenandoah Valley into the southern Appalachians, where it acquired many Southern speech features before it spread westward into Kentucky, Tennessee, southern Missouri, Arkansas, and northeast Texas. Southern dialect is spoken in the coastal savanna and Piedmont areas from Maryland south, in some areas of Florida, and in the lowlands and coastal areas of Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and eastern Texas.

In the western part of the United States, migration routes crossed and intermingled so much that no neat dialect boundaries can be drawn, although there are a few rather clear population pockets.

The majority of Spanish speakers live in the Southwest, Florida, and eastern urban centers. Refugee immigration since the 1950s has greatly increased the number of foreign-language speakers from Latin America and Asia.

9 Religions

Religious traditions in the United States are predominantly Judeo-Christian. Most Americans identify themselves as Protestants (of various denominations), Roman Catholics, or Jews. As of 2000, over 141 million Americans reported affiliation with a religious group. The largest single Christian denomination is the Roman Catholic Church, with an estimated membership of 66.4 million in 2004. Immigration from Ireland, Italy, Eastern Europe, French Canada, and the Caribbean accounts for the predominance of Roman Catholicism in the Northeast, Northwest, and some parts of the Great Lakes region, while Hispanic traditions and more recent immigration from Mexico and other Latin American countries account for the historical importance of Roman Catholicism in California and throughout most of the sunbelt. More than any other US religious body, the Roman Catholic Church maintains an extensive network of parochial schools.

Jewish immigrants settled first in the Northeast, where the largest Jewish population remains. At last estimates, there were approximately 6.1 million Jews living in the United States.

According to reported statistics, over 94 million people in the United States report affiliation with a Protestant denomination. Baptists predominate below the Mason-Dixon line and west to Texas. By far the nation’s largest Protestant group, the Southern Baptist Convention, which has about 16.2 million members. The American Baptist Churches claim some 1.4 million members. A concentration of Methodist groups extends westward in a band from Delaware to eastern Colorado. The largest of these groups, the United Methodist Church, has about 8.2 million adherents. Lutheran denominations, reflecting in part the patterns of German and Scandinavian settlement, are most highly concentrated in the north-central states, especially Minnesota and the Dakotas.

Two Lutheran synods, the Lutheran Church in America and the American Lutheran Church, merged in 1987 to form the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, with more than 5 million adherents in 2004. In June 1983, the two major Presbyterian churches, the northern-based United Presbyterian Church in the USA. and the southern-based Presbyterian Church in the United States, formally merged as the Presbyterian Church (USA), ending a division that began with the Civil War. This group claimed 3.4 million adherents in 2004.

Other Protestant denominations and their estimated adherents (2004) include the Episcopal Church, 2,334,000, and the United Church of Christ, 1,331,000. One Christian group, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon), with 5.4 million members (2004), was organized in New York in 1830 and since migrating westward has played a leading role in Utah’s political, economic, and religious life. Notable during the 1970s and early 1980s was a rise in the fundamentalist, evangelical, and Pentecostal movements. In the first half of the 1990s, Pentecostal churches reported 10.2 million adherents, representing more than 6% of the population reporting religious affiliation.

Several million Muslims, followers of various Asian religions, a multiplicity of small Protestant groups, and a sizable number of cults also participate in US religious life.

10 Transportation

The United States has well-developed systems of railroads, highways, inland waterways, oil pipelines, and domestic airways. Despite an attempt to encourage more people to travel by train through the development of a national network (Amtrak) in the 1970s, rail transport has continued to experience heavy financial losses. In 2003, there were 227,736 kilometers (141,424 miles) of mainline routes, all standard gauge. In 2000, Amtrak carried 84.1 million passengers.

The most widely used form of transportation is the automobile, and the extent and quality of the United States road-transport system are the best in the world. More than 226 million vehicles—a record number—were registered in 2003, including more than 130.8 million passenger cars. In 2000 there were 4,346,068 motorcycles registered as well. The United States has a vast network of public roads, with a total length of approximately 6,393,603 kilometers (3,976,821 miles) in 2003.

Major ocean ports or port areas are New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Norfolk, New Orleans, Houston, and the San Francisco Bay area. The inland port of Duluth, Minnesota on Lake Superior handles more freight than all but the top-ranking ocean ports. In 2005, the United States had a merchant shipping fleet of 486 vessels, each of more than 1,000 gross registered tons (GRT), with a combined GRT of 12,436,658.

In 2004, the United States had an estimated 14,857 airports. In 2005, a total of 5,120 had paved runways. As of 2000 the busiest airport was Hartsfield in Atlanta, Georgia, which surpassed O’Hare in Chicago, Illinois. Revenue passengers carried by the airlines in 1940 totaled 2.7 million; by 2003, the figure was estimated at 588.997 million for US domestic and international carriers.

11 History

Origins The first Americans, distant ancestors of the American Indians, probably crossed the Bering Strait from Asia at least 12,000 years ago. By the time Christopher Columbus came to the New World (as America was known) in 1492, there were probably about two million Native Americans living in the land that was to become the United States.

The Spanish established the first permanent settlement at Saint Augustine in the future state of Florida in 1565, and another in New Mexico in 1599. During the early 17th century, the English founded Jamestown in present-day Virginia (1607) and Plymouth Colony in present-day Massachusetts (1620). The Dutch and Swedish also established settlements in the seventeenth century, but the English eventually took over settlement of the East Coast except for Florida, where the Spanish ruled until 1821. The Southwest, California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas also were part of the Spanish empire until the 17th century.

The American Revolution The colonies enjoyed a large measure of self-government until the end of the French and Indian War (1745–63), which resulted in the loss of French Canada to the British. To prevent further troubles with the Indians, the British government in 1763 prohibited the American colonists from settling beyond the Appalachian Mountains. The British also enacted a series of tax measures, which the colonists protested, setting off a struggle between colonial and British authority.

A series of conflicts led to the colonists’ decision to separate from British rule and set up their own independent government. George Washington was appointed commander in chief of the new American army, and on 4 July 1776, the 13 American colonies adopted the Declaration of Independence. The American Revolution was officially begun.

British and American forces met in their first organized encounter near Boston on 17 June 1775. Numerous battles up and down the East Coast followed. The entry of France into the war on the American side eventually tipped the balance. On 19 October 1781, the British commander, Charles Cornwallis, surrendered his army at Yorktown, Virginia. American independence was acknowledged by the British in a treaty of peace signed in Paris on 3 September 1783.

The Beginnings of American Government The first constitution uniting the 13 original states—the Articles of Confederation—denied Congress power to raise taxes or regulate commerce, and many of its authorized powers required the approval of a minimum of nine states. In 1787 Congress passed the Northwest Ordinance, providing for the establishment of new territories on the frontier. In that same year, a convention assembled in Philadelphia to revise the articles. The convention adopted an altogether new document, the present Constitution of the United States, which greatly increased the powers of the central government at the expense of the states.

This document was ratified by the states with the understanding that it would be amended to include a bill of rights guaranteeing certain fundamental freedoms. These freedoms—including the rights of free speech, a free press, and freedom of assembly, freedom from unreasonable search and seizure, and the right to a speedy and public trial by an impartial jury—are assured by the first ten amendments to the constitution, known as the Bill of Rights, adopted on 5 December 1791. The constitution did recognize slavery, and did not provide for universal suffrage. On 30 April 1789, George Washington was inaugurated as the first president of the United States.

The Federalist Party, to which Washington belonged, was opposed to the French Revolution (1789), while the Democratic-Republicans (an anti-Federalist party led by Thomas Jefferson) supported it. This division of the nation’s leadership was the beginning of the two-party system, which has been the dominant characteristic of the United States political scene ever since.

Westward Expansion In 1803, President Thomas Jefferson purchased the Louisiana Territory from France, including all the present territory of the United States west of the Mississippi drained by that river and its tributaries. Exploration and mapping of the new territory, particularly through the expeditions of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, began almost immediately.

To make room for the westward expansion of European American settlement, the federal government in 1817 began a policy of forcibly resettling the Indians. They were moved to what later became known as Indian Territory (now Oklahoma); those Indians not forced to move were restricted to reservations. This “removal” of Native Americans to make way for European American settlement was a form of genocide (the deliberate destruction of a whole race, culture, or group of people).

The Missouri Compromise (1820) provided for admission of Missouri into the Union as a slave state but banned slavery in territories to the west that lay north of 36°30′. In 1823, President James Monroe declared the Western Hemisphere closed to further colonization by European powers in a proclamation known as the Monroe Doctrine.

Development of Farming and Industry Farming expanded with westward migration. The cotton gin, invented by Eli Whitney in 1793, greatly simplified cotton production, and the growing textile industry in New England and Great Britain needed a lot of cotton. The South remained an agricultural society based mostly on a one-crop economy. Large numbers of field hands were required for cotton farming, and black slavery became a significant part of the southern economy.

The successful completion of the Erie Canal (1825), linking the Great Lakes with the Atlantic, began a canal-building boom. Railroad building began in earnest in the 1830s, and by 1840 about 5,300 kilometers (3,300 miles) of track had been laid.

New States and the Slavery Question In 1836, United States settlers in Texas revolted against Mexican rule and established an independent republic. Texas was admitted to the Union as a state in 1845. War with Mexico over a boundary dispute led in 1848 to the addition of California and New Mexico to the growing nation. A dispute with Britain over the Oregon Territory was settled in 1846 by a treaty that established the 49th parallel as the boundary with Canada.

Westward expansion increased the conflict over slavery in the new territories. The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 repealed the Missouri Compromise and left the question of slavery in the territories to be decided by the settlers themselves. Finally, the election of Abraham Lincoln to the presidency in 1860 led strong supporters of slavery to decide to secede from the United States altogether.

The Civil War Between December 1860 and February 1861, the seven states of the Deep South—South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas—withdrew from the Union and formed a separate government. They were known as the Confederate States of America, under the presidency of Jefferson Davis. On 12 April 1861, the Confederates opened fire on Fort Sumter in the harbor of Charleston, South Carolina, beginning the United States Civil War. Arkansas, North Carolina, Virginia, and Tennessee quickly joined the Confederacy.

For the next four years, war raged between the Confederate and Union forces, largely in southern territories. An estimated 360,000 men in the Union forces lost their lives, including 110,000 killed in battle. Confederate dead were estimated at 250,000, including 94,000 killed in battle. The North, with more fighters and resources, finally won. With much of the South in Union hands, Confederate general Robert E. Lee surrendered to Union general Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Courthouse in Virginia on 9 April 1865.

The Post-Civil War Era President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 was the first step in freeing some four million black slaves. Their liberation was completed soon after the war’s end by amendments to the Constitution. Five days after General Lee’s surrender, Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth. During the Reconstruction era (1865–77), the defeated South was governed by Union Army commanders. The resulting bitterness of southerners toward northern Republican rule, which gave blacks the rights of citizens, including the right to vote, lasted for years afterward. By the end of the Reconstruction era, whites had reestablished their political domination over blacks in the southern states and had begun to enforce rules of segregation that lasted for nearly a century.

Outside the South, the age of big business dawned. Pittsburgh, Chicago, and New York emerged as the nation’s great industrial centers. The American Federation of Labor, founded in 1886, established a nationwide system of organized labor that remained dominant for many decades. During this period, too, the woman’s rights movement began to organize to fight for the right to vote. It took women until 1920 to win their constitutional right of suffrage.

The 1890s marked the closing of the United States frontier for settlement and the beginning of United States overseas expansion. (Alaska had already been acquired from Russia for $7.2 million in 1867.) In 1898, at its own request, Hawaii was annexed as a territory by the United States. In the same year, as a result of the Spanish-American War, the United States added the Philippines, Guam, and Puerto Rico to its territories. A newly independent Cuba became virtually a protectorate of the United States until the 1950s. In 1903, the United States leased the Panama Canal Zone and started construction of a 68-kilometer (42-mile) canal, completed in 1914.

World War I to World War II United States involvement in World War I marked the country’s emergence as one of the great powers of the world. By late 1917, when United States troops joined the Allied forces in the fighting on the western front, the European armies were approaching exhaustion. American intervention may well have been a key element in the eventual victory of the Allies. Fighting ended with the armistice (truce) of 11 November 1918. President Woodrow Wilson played an active role in drawing up the 1919 Versailles peace treaty.

The 1920s saw a major business boom, followed by the great stock market crash of October 1929, which ushered in the longest and most serious economic depression the country had ever known. The election of Franklin D. Roosevelt, in March 1933, began a new era in United States history, in which the federal government took a much greater role in the nation’s economic affairs. Relief measures were instituted, work projects established, and the federal Social Security program was set up. The National Labor Relations Act established the right of employees’ organizations to bargain collectively with employers.

Following German, Italian, and Japanese aggression, World War II broke out in Europe during September 1939. In 1940, Roosevelt, ignoring a tradition dating back to Washington that no president should serve more than two terms, ran again for reelection. He easily defeated his Republican opponent, Wendell Willkie.

The United States was brought actively into the war by the Japanese attack on the Pearl Harbor naval base in Hawaii on 7 December 1941. United States forces waged war across the Pacific, in Africa, in Asia, and in Europe. Germany was successfully invaded in 1944 and conquered in May 1945. After the United States dropped the world’s first atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan, the Japanese surrendered in August.

Korean War and the Civil Rights Movement The United States became an active member of the new world organization, the United Nations, during President Harry S. Truman’s administration. In 1949 the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) established a defensive alliance among a number of Western European nations and the United States. Following the North Korean attack on South Korea on 25 June 1950, the United Nations Security Council decided that members of the United Nations should go to the aid of South Korea. United States naval, air, and ground forces were immediately sent by President Truman. An undeclared war followed, which eventually was ended by a truce signed on 27 June 1953.

During President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s administration, the United States Supreme Court’s decision in 1954 outlawed segregation of whites and blacks in public schools. In the early 1960s, sit-ins, freedom rides, and similar expressions of nonviolent resistance by blacks and their sympathizers—known collectively as the Civil Rights Movement—led to the end of some segregation practices.

In the early 1960s, during the administration of President Eisenhower’s successor, John F. Kennedy, the Cold War heated up as Cuba, under the regime of Fidel Castro, aligned itself with the Soviet Union. In October 1962, President Kennedy successfully forced a showdown with the Soviet Union over Cuba in demanding the withdrawal of Soviet-supplied missiles from the nearby island. On 22 November 1963, President Kennedy was assassinated while riding in a motorcade through Dallas, Texas. Hours later, Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson was inaugurated president. President Johnson’s ambitious “Great Society” program sought to ensure black Americans’ rights in voting and public housing, to give the underprivileged job training, and to provide persons 65 and over with hospitalization and other medical benefits.

The Vietnam War and Watergate In 1965, President Johnson sent American combat troops into South Vietnam to support anti-communist forces, and he ordered United States bombing raids on communist North Vietnam. However, American military might was unable to defeat the Vietnamese guerrillas, and the American people were badly divided over continuing the undeclared war.

Under President Richard M. Nixon (elected in 1968), the increasingly unpopular and costly war continued for four more years before a cease-fire was finally signed on 27 January 1973 and the last American soldiers were withdrawn. Two years later, the South Vietnamese army collapsed, and the North Vietnamese communist regime united the country. In 1972, President Nixon opened up relations with the People’s Republic of China, which had been closed to Westerners since 1949. He also signed a strategic arms limitation agreement with the Soviet Union. (Earlier, in July 1969, American technology had achieved a national triumph by landing the first astronaut on the Moon.)

The Watergate scandal began on 17 June 1972 with the arrest of five men associated with Nixon’s reelection campaign. They had been caught during a break-in at Democratic Party headquarters in the Watergate office building in Washington, DC. Although Nixon was reelected in November 1972, further investigations by the press and by a Senate investigating committee revealed a pattern of political “dirty tricks,” including illegal wire-tapping and other methods of spying on his opponents throughout his first term. The House voted to begin impeachment proceedings. On 9 August 1974, Nixon became the first president to resign the office. The American people’s trust in their government leaders was seriously damaged.

The Reagan Era Gerald R. Ford was appointed vice president in October 1973 to succeed ousted Vice President Spiro T. Agnew. Ford became president in August 1974 when Nixon resigned. Less than a month after taking office, President Ford granted a full pardon to Nixon for any crimes he may have committed as president. Ford’s pardon of Nixon probably contributed to his narrow defeat by a Georgia Democrat, Jimmy Carter, in 1976. During 1978–79, President Carter convinced the Senate to pass treaties ending United States sovereignty over the Panama Canal Zone. He also mediated a peace agreement between Israel and Egypt, which was signed at the Camp David, Maryland, retreat in September 1978. But an economic recession and a prolonged quarrel with Iran over more than fifty US citizens taken hostage in Tehran on 4 November 1979 caused the American public to doubt his leadership. Exactly a year after the hostages were taken, former California governor Ronald Reagan defeated Carter in the 1980 presidential election. The hostages were released on 20 January 1981, the day of Reagan’s inauguration.

President Reagan used his popularity to push through significant policy changes. He made cuts in income taxes and more than doubled the military budget between 1980 and 1989, which also resulted in a doubling of the national debt. In an effort to balance the federal budget, Reagan cut welfare and Medicare benefits, reduced allocations for food stamps, and slashed the budget of the Environmental Protection Agency.

Reagan’s appointment of Sandra Day O’Connor as the first woman justice of the Supreme Court was widely praised and won unanimous confirmation from the Senate. Protests were raised, however, about his decisions to help the government of El Salvador in its war against leftist rebels, to aid groups in Nicaragua trying to overthrow the leftist Sandinista government in their country, and to send American troops to Grenada in October 1983 to overthrow a leftist government there.

Presidents Bush and Clinton Reagan was succeeded in 1988 by his vice president, George H. W. Bush. President Bush used his personal relationships with foreign leaders to bring about peace talks between Israel and its Arab neighbors, to encourage a peaceful unification of Germany, and to negotiate significant arms reductions with the Russians. Bush sent 400,000 American soldiers to lead the way in forming a multinational coalition to oppose Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait in 1990. The multinational forces destroyed Iraq’s main force within seven months.

One of the biggest crises that the Bush administration encountered was the collapse of the savings and loan industry in the late 1980s. The federal government was forced by law to rescue the savings and loan banks, under the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation (FSLIC), costing taxpayers more than $100 billion.

In the 1992 presidential election, Democrat Bill Clinton (b.1946), governor of Arkansas, defeated Bush, winning 43% of the vote to Bush’s 38% and third-party candidate Ross Perot’s 18%. Clinton’s major achievements as president included the passage of a budget designed to raise revenue and thereby lower the deficit, which had ballooned during the Reagan and Bush years. Clinton also persuaded Congress to approve the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which removed or reduced tariffs on most goods moving across the borders of the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

In the 1994 midterm elections, the Republican Party gained control of both houses of Congress for the first time in more than 40 years. The elections indicated popular disappointment with the Clinton administration and the Democrat-controlled Congress.

The nation’s economic recovery from the 1990–91 recession gained strength as the decade advanced, with healthy growth, falling unemployment, and moderate interest rate and inflation levels. Between 1995 and 1997, the value of the stock market increased 60%. Clinton’s faltering popularity rebounded in 1996 when he was reelected, becoming the first Democratic president elected to a second term since Franklin D. Roosevelt. The Republicans retained control of both houses of Congress, however.

In 1994, Attorney General Janet Reno appointed Kenneth Starr to the position of special prosecutor. His job was to investigate allegations of financial wrongdoing by President Clinton and his wife, Hillary Rodham Clinton. In 1998, the investigation expanded to include testimony related to a previous sexual harassment lawsuit brought against Clinton for actions allegedly taken while he was governor of Arkansas. In the same year, Starr submitted a report to Congress that resulted in the House of Representatives passing four articles of impeachment against President Clinton. In the subsequent trial in the Senate, however, the articles were defeated.

In one of the closest and most controversial presidential elections in US history, Republican George W. Bush, son of a former president, was elected after defeating Democrat Vice President Al Gore in the electoral college (Gore won the popular vote). Bush took office on 20 January 2001.

On 11 September 2001, nineteen hijackers crashed four passenger aircraft into the North and South towers of the World Trade Center; the Pentagon in Washington, DC; and a field in Stony Creek Township in Pennsylvania. The World Trade Center towers were destroyed. Approximately 3,000 people were confirmed or reported dead as a result of all four 11 September 2001 attacks. The terrorist organization al-Qaeda, led by Saudi Arabian-born Osama bin Laden, was believed to be responsible for the attacks.

On 7 October 2001, the United States and Britain launched air strikes against Afghanistan, a country ruled by the Taliban regime that had supported the al-Qaeda organization. By December 2001, the Taliban were defeated. Remnants of al-Qaeda still remained in Afghanistan and the surrounding region, however. As of 2006, US soldiers remained in Afghanistan to suppress efforts by either the Taliban or al-Qaeda to regroup.

In December 2001, the energy giant Enron Corporation declared bankruptcy after massive false accounting practices came to light. In June 2002, telecommunications giant WorldCom disclosed that it had hid $3.8 billion in expenses. The fraud led to WorldCom’s bankruptcy, the largest in US history.

Throughout 2002, the United States stated that Saddam Hussein’s regime in Iraq must disarm itself of weapons of mass destruction. In November 2002, United Nations (UN) weapons inspectors returned to Iraq (they had been expelled in 1998), but the United States and the United Kingdom expressed dissatisfaction with inspectors’ progress, and stated that military force might be necessary to remove the Iraqi regime. France, Russia, and Germany, in particular, opposed the use of military force. This disagreement caused a rift between Western democracies.

After diplomatic efforts at conflict resolution failed, war began on 19 March 2003. On 9 April, Baghdad fell to US forces, and work began on restoring basic services to the Iraqi population, including providing safe drinking water, electricity, and sanitation. On 1 May, President Bush declared that major combat operations had been completed. On 13 December 2003 Saddam Hussein was found hiding in a hole near his hometown of Tikrit and captured by US forces without resisting; he was tried by an Iraqi court, found guilty, and executed in 2006.

US forces increasingly became the targets of attacks in Iraq as an insurgency against the US military presence began. By 2006, more than 2,000 US soldiers had been killed in fighting. A referendum on a new Iraqi constitution was held in October 2005 and national elections were held in December 2005, after which a new Iraqi government was formed.

In the 2004 US presidential election, President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney defeated Democratic challengers John Kerry and John Edwards. Bush received approximately 3 million more popular votes than Kerry, and won the electoral vote 286 to 251. The campaign was run on such issues as terrorism, the war in Iraq, the economy, and to a lesser extent issues of morality and values.

In August 2005, Hurricane Katrina landed on the Gulf Coast of the United States in what was one of the worst natural disasters in US history. New Orleans felt the heaviest effects of the storm. Levees were breached by the storm surge and water submerged the city. More than 1,000 people died. Over 500,000 people were left homeless and without jobs.

12 Federal Government

The Constitution of the United States, signed in 1787, is the nation’s governing document. In the first ten amendments to the Constitution, ratified in 1791 and known as the Bill of Rights, certain individual rights are guaranteed to United States citizens. In all, there have been 27 amendments to the Bill of Rights, including the 13th Amendment (1865), which banned slavery, and the 19th (1920), which gave women the right to vote. Suffrage is universal beginning at the age of 18, as set by the 26th Amendment (1971).

The United States has a federal form of government, with the distribution of powers between federal and state governments constitutionally defined. The legislative powers of the federal government rest in Congress, which consists of the House of Representatives and the Senate. There are 435 members of the House of Representatives. Each state is given a number of representatives in proportion to its population. Representatives are elected to serve two-year terms in every even-numbered year. The Senate consists of two senators from each state, elected to six-year terms. One-third of the Senate is elected in every even-numbered year.

A bill that is passed by both houses of Congress in the same form is then given to the president, who may sign it or veto (reject) it. The president must have been born in the United States, at least 35 years old, and a resident of the United States for 14 years. Under the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution, adopted in 1951, a president may not be elected more than twice.

The vice president, elected at the same time and on the same ballot as the president, serves as president pro tem of the Senate. The vice president assumes the power and duties of the presidency on the president’s removal from office or as a result of the president’s death, resignation, or inability to perform his duties. Both the president and the vice president can be removed from office after impeachment by the House and conviction at a Senate trial for “treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.”

The president nominates and, with the approval of the Senate, appoints ambassadors, consuls, and all federal judges, including the justices of the Supreme Court. As commander in chief, the president is ultimately responsible for the management of the land, naval, and air forces, but the power to declare war belongs to Congress. The president conducts foreign relations and makes treaties with the advice and consent of the Senate. No treaty is binding unless it wins the approval of two-thirds of the Senate, however. The president’s independence also is limited by the House of Representatives, where all funding (appropriations) bills originate.

The president also appoints his cabinet, subject to Senate confirmation. The cabinet consists of the secretaries who head the departments of the executive branch. As of 2006, the executive branch included the following cabinet departments: Agriculture (created in 1862), Commerce (1913), Defense (1947), Education (1980), Energy (1977), Health and Human Services (1980), Housing and Urban Development (1965), Interior (1849), Justice (1870), Labor (1913), State (1789), Transportation (1966), Treasury (1789), Veterans’ Affairs (1989), and Homeland Security (2002).

Each state is divided into counties, municipalities, and special districts such as those for water, education, sanitation, highways, parks, and recreation. There are more than 3,000 counties in the United States and more than 19,000 municipalities, including cities, villages, towns, and boroughs.

13 Political Parties

Two major parties, Democratic and Republican, have dominated national, state, and local politics since 1860. Minority parties have been formed at various periods in American political history, but none has had any lasting national impact. The most successful minority party in recent decades was that of Texas billionaire Ross Perot in 1992. Independent candidates have been elected to state and local office, but no candidate has won the presidency without major party backing.

Traditionally, the Republican Party is more sympathetic to business interests and gets greater support from business than does the Democratic Party. A majority of blue-collar workers, by contrast, have generally supported the Democratic Party, which favors more lenient labor laws, particularly as they affect labor unions. Republicans promote private business and an increased role for state government, while Democrats generally support greater federal government participation and regulatory authority.

In 1984, Geraldine A. Ferraro, a Democrat, became the first female vice-presidential nominee of a major United States political party. Also in 1984, presidential candidate Jesse L. Jackson was the first black ever to win a plurality in a state primary election.

The 2004 presidential election was won by incumbent George W. Bush and his running mate Dick Cheney. They defeated Democrats John Kerry and John Edwards. Bush received 286 electoral votes, Kerry 251, and Edwards 1 when an elector wrote the name “John Edwards” in on the electoral ballot. Bush received a majority of the popular vote—50.73% to Kerry’s 48.27%—or 3 million more votes than Kerry. Voter turn-out was the highest since 1968, at 64%.

The composition of the 109th Congress after the 2004 election was as follows: 55 Republicans, 44 Democrats, and 1 Independent in the Senate; and 232 Republicans, 202 Democrats, and 1 Independent in the House of Representatives. Following the 2002 mid-term election, Nancy Pelosi became the Democratic Majority Leader in the House of Representatives, the first woman to head either party in Congress. In the 109th Congress (2005–06), there were 68 women, 42 African Americans, 26 Hispanics, 6 Asians or Hawaiians or other Pacific Islanders ethnicity, and 1 Native American in the House of Representatives. There were 14 women, 1 African American, 2 Hispanics, and 2 Asians or Hawaiians or other Pacific Islanders ethnicity in the Senate.

14 Local Government

Governmental units within each state comprise counties, municipalities, and such special districts as those for water, sanitation, highways, and parks. and recreation. There are more than 3,000 counties in the United States; more than 19,000 municipalities, including cities, villages, towns, and boroughs; nearly 15,000 school districts; and at least 31,000 special districts. Additional townships, authorities, commissions, and boards make up the rest of the nearly 85,000 local governmental units.

The 50 states are autonomous within their own spheres of government, and their autonomy is defined in broad terms by the 10th Amendment to the US Constitution. That amendment reserves to the states such powers as are not granted to the federal government and not denied to the states. The states may not, among other restrictions, issue paper money, conduct foreign relations, impair the obligations of contracts, or establish a government that is not republican in form. Subsequent amendments to the Constitution and many Supreme Court decisions added to the restrictions placed on the states. The 13th Amendment prohibited the states from legalizing the ownership of one person by another (slavery); the 14th

State Areas, Entry Dates, and Populations

STATECAPITALORDER OF ENTRYDATE OF ENTRYPOPULATION AT ENTRYCENSUS 1990CENSUS 2000
†Census closest to entry date.
††Date fixed in 1953 by congressional resolution.
*One of original 13 colonies.
AlabamaMontgomery2214 December 1819127,9014,040,5874,447,100
AlaskaJuneau493 January 1959226,167550,043626,932
ArizonaPhoenix4814 February 1912204,3543,665,2285,130,632
ArkansasLittle Rock2515 June 183657,5742,350,7252,673,400
CaliforniaSacramento319 September 185092,59729,760,02133,871,648
ColoradoDenver381 August 187639,8643,294,3944,301,261
Connecticut*Hartford59 January 1788237,9463,287,1163,405,565
Delaware*Dover17 December 178759,096666,168783,600
FloridaTallahassee273 March 184587,44512,937,92615,982,378
Georgia*Atlanta42 January 178882,5486,478,3168,186,453
HawaiiHonolulu5021 August 1959632,7721,108,2291,211,537
IdahoBoise433 July 189088,5481,006,7491,293,953
IllinoisSpringfield213 December 181855,21111,430,60212,419,293
IndianaIndianapolis1911 December 1816147,1785,544,1596,080,485
IowaDes Moines2928 December 1846192,2142,776,7552,926,324
KansasTopeka3429 January 1861107,2062,477,5742,688,418
KentuckyFrankfort151 June 179273,6773,685,2964,041,769
LouisianaBaton Rouge1830 April 181276,5564,219,9734,468,976
MaineAugusta2315 March 1820298,3351,227,9281,274,923
Maryland*Annapolis728 April 1788319,7284,781,4685,296,486
Massachusetts*Boston66 February 1788378,7876,016,4256,349,097
MichiganLansing2626 January 1837212,2679,295,2979,938,444
MinnesotaSt. Paul3211 May 1858172,0234,375,0994,919,479
MississippiJackson2010 December 181775,4482,573,2162,844,658,
MissouriJefferson City2410 August 182166,5865,117,0735,595,211
MontanaHelena418 November 1889142,924799,065902,195
NebraskaLincoln371 March 1867122,9931,578,3851,711,263
NevadaCarson City3631 October 186442,4911,201,8331,998,257
New Hampshire*Concord921 June 1788141,8851,109,2521,235,786
New Jersey*Trenton318 December 1787184,1397,730,1888,414,350
New MexicoSanta Fe476 January 1912327,3011,515,0691,819,046
New York*Albany1126 July 1788340,12017,990,45518,976,457
North Carolina*Raleigh1221 November 1789393,7516,628,6378,049,313
North DakotaBismarck392 November 1889190,983638,800642,200
OhioColumbus171 March 1803††43,36510,847,11511,353,140
OklahomaOklahoma City4616 November 1907657,1553,145,5853,450,654
OregonSalem3314 February 185952,4652,842,3213,421,399
Pennsylvania*Harrisburg212 December 1787434,37311,003,46412,281,054
Rhode Island*Providence1329 May 179068,8251,003,4641,048,319
South Carolina*Columbia823 May 1788393,7513,486,7034,012,012
South DakotaPierre402 November 1889348,600696,004754,844
TennesseeNashville161 June 179635,6914,877,1855,689,283
TexasAustin2829 December 1845212,59216,986,51020,851,820
UtahSalt Lake City454 January 1896276,7491,722,8502,233,169
VermontMontpelier144 March 179185,425562,758608,827
Virginia*Richmond1025 June 1788747,6106,187,3587,078,515
WashingtonOlympia4211 November 1889357,2324,866,6925,894,121
West VirginiaCharleston3520 June 1863442,0141,793,4771,808,344
WisconsinMadison3029 May 1848305,3914,891,7695,363,675
WyomingCheyenne4410 July 189062,555453,588493,782

Amendment deprived the states of their power to determine qualifications for citizenship; the 15th Amendment prohibited the states from denying the right to vote because of race, color, or previous condition of servitude; and the 19th, from denying the vote to women.

15 Judicial System

The Supreme Court, established by the United States Constitution, is the nation’s highest judicial body, consisting of the chief justice of the United States and eight associate justices. All justices are appointed for life by the president with the approval of the Senate.

The Supreme Court acts as an appeals court for federal district courts, circuit courts of appeal, and the highest courts in the states. The Supreme Court also exercises the power of judicial review, determining the constitutionality of any state laws, state constitutions, congressional statutes, and federal regulations that are specifically challenged.

The United States Congress establishes all federal courts lower than the Supreme Court. On the lowest level and handling the most federal cases are the district courts-including one each in Puerto Rico, Guam, the Virgin Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the District of Columbia. District courts have no appeals jurisdiction; their decisions may be carried to the courts of appeal, which are organized into thirteen circuits. For most cases, this is usually the last stage of appeal, except where the court rules that a statute of a state conflicts with the Constitution of the United States, with federal law, or with a treaty. Special federal courts include the Court of Claims, Court of Customs and Patent Appeals, and Tax Court.

State courts operate independently of the federal judiciary. Most states have a court system that begins on the lowest level with a justice of the peace, and includes courts of general trial jurisdiction and appeals courts. At the highest level of the system is a state supreme court. The court of trial jurisdiction (sometimes called the county or superior court) has both original and appeals jurisdiction; all criminal cases and some civil cases are tried in this court. The state supreme court interprets the constitution and the laws of the state.

16 Migration

In 2002, a total of 1,063,732 immigrants entered the United States. About 342,099 were from Asia, 404,437 were from North America, 74,506 were from South America, 174,209 from Europe, 60,269 from Africa, and 5,557 from Oceania. The highest number of immigrants from a single country in 2002 came from Mexico (219,380).

Since 1961, the federal government has supported and financed the Cuban Refugee Program. More than 500,000 Cubans were living in southern Florida by 1980. By 1990, 4% of Florida’s population was of Cuban descent. About 169,322 Cubans arrived between 1991 and 2000, and 27,520 arrived in 2002. Between 1975 and 1978, following the defeat of the US-backed Saigon (Vietnam) government, several hundred thousand Vietnamese refugees came to the United States. Under the Refugee Act of 1980, a ceiling for the number of admissible refugees is set annually. In 2002, the ceiling for refugees was 70,000. The population of refugees, asylees (persons granted political asylum), resettled refugees, and asylum-seekers with pending claims was estimated at 5,250,954 in June 2003. During the same year, the newly formed Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services (BCIS—formerly the Immigration and Naturalization Service, or INS) received 66,577 applications for asylum. The United Nations reports that the United States is the leading destination of refugees, accounting for 63% of all resettlement worldwide.

Large numbers of aliens—mainly from Latin America, especially Mexico—have illegally established residence in the United States after entering the country as tourists, students, or temporary visitors engaged in work or business. In November 1986, Congress passed a bill allowing illegal aliens who had lived and worked in the United States since 1982 the opportunity to become permanent residents. By the end of fiscal year 1992, 2,650,000 of a potential 2,760,000 eligible for permanent residence under this bill had attained that status. As of 2002, an estimated 33.1 million immigrants (legal and illegal) lived in the United States. Of this total, the Census Bureau estimated in 2000 that 8 to 9 million of them were illegal alien residents.

Since Puerto Ricans are American citizens, no special authorization is required for their admission to the continental United States. The estimated net migration rate in 2005 was 3.31 migrants per 1,000 population.

17 Economy

The United States probably has a greater variety and quantity of natural resources than any other nation, with the possible exception of Russia. Because of its vast economic growth, however, the United States has come to depend increasingly on foreign sources for a long list of raw materials. American dependence on oil imports was dramatically demonstrated during the 1973 Arab oil embargo, when serious fuel shortages developed in many sections of the country.

Industrial activity within the United States expanded southward and westward for much of the 20th century, with the most rapid expansion occurring since World War II. Louisiana, Oklahoma, and especially Texas are centers of industries based on petroleum refining; aerospace and other high-technology industries are the basis of the new wealth of Texas and California, the nation’s leading manufacturing state. The industrial heartland of the United States consists of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin, with steelmaking and automobile manufacturing among the leading industries. The Middle Atlantic states (New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania) and the Northeast also are highly industrialized.

In 2005 unemployment stood at 5.1%. It had fallen steadily through the 1990s, but then crept up.

Inflation is an ever-present factor in the United States economy, although the United States’ inflation rate, estimated at 4% in 2005, tends to be lower than that of the majority of industrialized countries. National income per person stood at $41,800 in 2005, and the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP) was $12.4 trillion.

By 2000, stock market growth, which had soared in the 1990s, had slowed somewhat. Balanced-budget legislation was passed in 1997. The lawmakers wanted to balance the federal budget by 2002, for the first time since 1969. In early 2001, the government projected a budget surplus of $275 billion for that year. That projection would soon be reversed, however.

At the beginning of the 21st century, significant economic concerns included the nation’s sizable trade deficit, the increasing medical costs of an aging population, and the failure of the strong economy to improve conditions for the poor. Since 1975, gains in household income have been experienced almost solely by the top 20% of households.

Economic growth came to a standstill in the middle of 2001, largely due to the end of the long investment boom, especially in the information technology sector. The economy was in recession in the second half of 2001, affecting both the manufacturing and service sectors. The 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States worsened the poor economic situation. The US economy, which had driven global growth during the 1990s, became the cause of a worldwide recession, dragging down the rest of North America, Europe, Japan, and the developing economies of Latin America and Southeast Asia, which are strongly influenced by trends in the US economy.

The economy began to recover slowly in 2002, however, with GDP growth estimated at 2.45%. Nevertheless, domestic confidence in the economy remained low; coupled with major corporate failures (including Enron and WorldCom) and additional stock market declines, the recovery remained sluggish and uneven. Growth slowed at the end of 2002 and into 2003, and the unemployment rate rose to 6.3% in July 2003.

Following the 2003 war in Iraq, consumer spending rebounded, as did stock prices; the housing market remained strong; inflation was low; additional tax cuts were passed; there was an easing of oil prices; and productivity growth was strong. As a result of these factors, many analysts predicted the coming of a more favorable economic climate. Nevertheless, in 2003, the federal budget deficit was projected to reach $455 billion, the largest deficit on record.

The American economy grew at a rate of 4.3% in the fall of 2005, despite the ravages of Hurricane Katrina, which destroyed much of the port city of New Orleans and closed down a large portion of the energy industry. But the relatively fast-growing economy had a shaky foundation. Oil prices were at their highest level since the early 1980s; the inflation rate was at its highest level since 1991; wage growth was sluggish; and the jobs market was lagging the recovery. Consumer spending was increasingly tied to prices in the over-inflated housing market. The government ran a deficit of $412 billion in 2004, or 3.6% of GDP.

18 Income

In 2005 the United States’ gross domestic product (GDP) was estimated at $12.4 trillion, or $41,800 per person. The annual growth rate of GDP was estimated at 3.2%. The average inflation rate in late 2005 was above 4%.

19 Industry

Although the United States remains one of the world’s top industrial powers, manufacturing no longer plays as dominant a role in the economy as it once did. Between 1979 and 1998, manufacturing employment fell from 20.9 million to 18.7 million, or from 21.8% to 14.8% of national employment. Throughout the 1960s, manufacturing accounted for about 29% of total national income; by 1993, the proportion was down to about 18%. In 2004, industry accounted for 20% of national income. That year, 22.7% of the labor force was engaged in manufacturing, extraction, transportation, and crafts. The Midwest leads all other regions in heavy industry, including the manufacturing of automobiles, trucks, and other vehicles.

Leading manufacturing industries of durable goods include nonelectrical machinery, electric and electronic equipment, motor vehicles and equipment, and other transportation equipment. The principal manufacturing industries of nondurable goods are chemicals and allied products, food, printing and publishing, and petroleum and coal products. Large corporations are dominant, especially in areas such as steel, automobiles, pharmaceuticals, aircraft, petroleum refining, computers, soaps and detergents, tires, and communications equipment.

Advances in chemistry and electronics have revolutionized many industries through new products and methods. Industries that have been best able to make use of new technology have done well, and the economies of some states, particularly California and Massachusetts, are largely based on it.

In the 1980s and 1990s, the United States was the world leader in computer manufacturing. At the beginning of the 21st century, however, the high-tech manufacturing industry registered a decline. Employment in high-technology manufacturing fell by 415,000 jobs from January 2001 to December 2002. Semiconductor manufacturing had been migrating out of the United States to East Asian countries, especially China, Taiwan, and Singapore.

Also, certain industries—such as clothing and steelmaking—have suffered from outmoded manufacturing facilities that force the price of their products above the world market level.

Automobile manufacturing was an ailing industry in the 1980s, but rebounded slightly in the 1990s. Passenger car production, which had fallen from 7.1 million in 1987 to 5.4 million in 1991, rose to more than 12 million by 2003.

20 Labor

The country’s civilian labor force, including those who were unemployed, totaled 149.3 million in 2005. The unemployment rate was 5.1% that year. Of the total work force in 2005, farming, fishing, and forestry accounted for 0.7% of the labor force, with manufacturing, extraction, transportation, and crafts at 22.9%, managerial, professional, and technical workers at 34.7%, sales and office workers at 25.4%, and other services at 16.3%. Earnings of workers vary considerably with the type of work and the section of country. In 2003, the national average wage was $15.27 per hour for nonagricultural workers. Workers in manufacturing had a national average wage of $15.64.

In 2002, 13.2% of wage and salary workers were union members—16.1 million US citizens belonged to a union that year. In 2002, there were 34 national labor unions that each claimed more than 100,000 members, the largest being the National Education Association, with 2.7 million members. The most important federation of organized workers in the United States is the American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), whose affiliated unions had 13 million members as of 2003. As of 2003, however, 23 states had passed right-to-work laws, forbidding forced union membership as a condition of employment.

21 Agriculture

In 2004, agricultural exports reached $63.9 billion. Less than 2% of the population lives on farms. Arable land amounted to approximately 18% of the total.

Substantial quantities of corn, the most valuable crop produced in the United States, are grown in almost every state. Annual production of selected US crops in 2004 included approximately 58.7 million tons of wheat, 299.9 million tons of corn, 10.5 million tons of rice, 85 million tons of soybeans, 5.1 million tons of cotton, and 398,800 tons of tobacco. The United States produces about 40% of the world supply of corn and 46% of the world supply of soybeans.

22 Domesticated Animals

The livestock population in 2005 included an estimated 95.8 million head of cattle, 60.6 million hogs, and 6.1 million sheep and lambs. That year, there were 1.9 billion chickens and 88 million turkeys. Milk production totaled 80.1 million metric tons in 2005, with Wisconsin, California, and New York together accounting for much of the total. Wisconsin, Minnesota, and California account for more than half of all US butter production, which totaled 608,900 metric tons in 2001. In that year, the United States was the world’s largest producer of cheese, with almost 4.5 million metric tons (24% of the world’s total). The United States produced an estimated 15% of the world meat supply in 2005. Also in 2005, meat animals accounted for $4.97 billion in exports and dairy and egg exports were valued at $1.17 billion.

23 Fishing

The 2003 commercial catch was 5.48 million tons. Food fish made up 80% of the catch, and nonfood fish, processed for fertilizer and oil, made up the remaining 20%. Alaska pollock, with landings of 1,524,904 tons, was the most important species in quantity among the commercial fishery landings. Other leading species included Gulf menhaden, Atlantic menhaden, Pacific cod, North Pacific hake, and American cupped oyster. In 2003, exports of fish products totaled $3.398 billion (fourth after China, Thailand, and Norway).

Aquacultural production consists mostly of catfish, oysters, trout, and crayfish. In 2004, there were 1,147 catfish and 601 trout farms in the United States, with sales of $425 million and $64 million, respectively.

Pollution is a problem of increasing concern to the US fishing industry. Dumping of raw sewage, industrial wastes, spillage from oil tankers, and blowouts of offshore wells are the main threats to the fishing grounds. Overfishing is also a threat to the viability of the industry in some areas, especially Alaska.

24 Forestry

US forestland covers about 226 million hectares (558.4 million acres), or 25% of the land area. Major forest regions include the eastern, central hardwood, southern, Rocky Mountain, and Pacific coast areas. National Forest Service lands account for approximately 19% of the nation’s forestland. Extensive tracts of land are under ownership of private lumber companies in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Maine, Oregon, and Washington. From 1990 to 2000, forested area increased by an average of 38,000 hectares (93,900 acres) per year.

Domestic production of roundwood during 2004 amounted to 458.3 million cubic meters (16.2 billion cubic feet), of which softwoods accounted for roughly 60%. Other forest products in 2004 included 54.3 million metric tons of wood pulp, 83.6 million metric tons of paper and paperboard (excluding newsprint), and 44.2 million cubic meters (1.56 billion cubic feet) of wood-based panels.

Federal timberlands are no longer open for private acquisition, although the lands can be leased for timber cutting and for grazing. In recent decades, the state governments also have moved in the direction of retaining forestlands and adding to their holdings when possible.

25 Mining

Rich in a variety of mineral resources, the United States is a world leader in the production of many important mineral commodities, such as aluminum, cement, copper, pig iron, lead, molybdenum, phosphates, potash, salt, sulfur, uranium, and zinc. The leading mineral-producing states are Arizona (copper, sand and gravel, portland cement, molybdenum); California (portland cement, sand and gravel, gold, boron); Michigan (iron ore, portland cement, sand and gravel, magnesium compounds); Georgia (clays, crushed and broken stone, portland and masonry cement, sand and gravel); Florida (phosphate rock, crushed and broken stone, portland cement, sand and gravel); Utah (copper, gold, magnesium metal, sand and gravel); Texas (portland cement, crushed and broken stone, magnesium metal, sand and gravel); and Minnesota (iron ore, construction and industrial sand and gravel, crushed and broken stone).

Oklahoma and New Mexico are important for petroleum and natural gas, and Kentucky, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania are major coal producers. Iron ore supports the nation’s most basic nonagricultural industry: iron and steel manufacturing. The major domestic sources of iron ore have been in the Lake Superior area, with Minnesota and Michigan leading all other states in iron ore yields.

26 Energy and Power

The United States, with about 5% of the world’s population, consumes about 25% of the world’s energy.

Conventional thermal sources from fossil fuels provided the greatest share of energy consumed in 2001: coal supplied 23%, natural gas 23%, and petroleum 39%. The rest was supplied by nuclear power, hydroelectric power, and renewable energy sources including geothermal, wind, photovoltaic, and wood and waste. In 2003, US coal production was an estimated 1.1 billion short tons. Natural gas production was 68.244 billion cubic meters (24.1 trillion cubic feet), and oil production was 7.4 million barrels per day. Proven reserves of crude oil totaled an estimated 29.4 billion barrels in 2003. Reserves of natural gas were about 5.29 trillion cubic meters (186.9 trillion cubic feet) that year, equal to more than 3% of the world’s proven reserves. Recoverable coal reserves amounted to around 246.6 billion tons at the end of 2004, more than 20% of the world’s total. Petroleum imports stood at 12.3 million barrels per day in 2003.

By the mid-1990s, the nuclear portion of electricity generation represented about 20% of the nation’s total electric power output. The number of nuclear power plants in operation peaked at 112 units in 1990, but had declined to 104 by 2002. In 2003, output by nuclear power generating plants had dropped to 98.794 million kilowatt hours.

In the 1980s, the federal government began to promote such energy conservation measures as mandatory automobile fuel-efficiency standards and tax incentives for home insulation. The government also lifted controls on oil and gas prices, in the hope that a rise in domestic costs to world-market levels would provide a powerful economic incentive for consumers to conserve fuel. Also during the 1980s, increasing attention was paid to the development of solar power, synthetic fuels, geothermal resources, and other renewable energy technologies. In 2001 the United States had 1,694 megawatts of installed wind power.

27 Commerce

Total retail sales for 2004 were $3.5 trillion. Total e-commerce sales were estimated at $69.2 billion, an increase of 23.5% over 2003. The growth of great chains of retail stores, particularly in the form of the supermarket, was an important development in retail trade following the end of World War II. Nearly 100,000 single-unit grocery stores went out of business between 1948 and 1958; the independent grocer’s share of the food market dropped from 50% to 30% of the total in the same period. With the great suburban expansion of the 1960s emerged the planned shopping center. Between 1974 and 2000, the square footage occupied by shopping centers in the United States grew at a far greater rate than the nation’s population.

28 Public Finance

Under the Budget and Accounting Act of 1921, the president is responsible for preparing the federal government budget. In fact, the budget is prepared by the Office of Management and Budget (established in 1970). The president submits a budget message to Congress in January. Under the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Congress establishes targets for overall expenditures and broad functional categories, as well as targets for revenues, the budget deficit, and the public debt. The fiscal year runs from 1 October to 30 September. The public debt, subject to a statutory debt limit, has been raised by Congress 70 times since 1950.

The US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) estimated that in 2005 the United States’ central government took in revenues of approximately $2.1 trillion and had expenditures of $2.4 trillion. Revenues minus expenditures totaled approximately $-347 billion. Public debt in 2005 amounted to 64.7% of GDP. Total external debt was $8.837 trillion.

29 Taxation

Measured as a proportion of the GDP, the total US tax burden is less than that in most industrialized countries. The greatest source of revenue for the federal government is the personal income tax, which is paid by citizens and resident aliens on their worldwide income. The main state-level taxes are sales and income taxes. The main local taxes are property and local income taxes.

The United States has a progressive personal income tax structure that as of 2004, had a top rate of 35%. Individuals may also be subject to inheritance and gift taxes, as well as state and local income taxes, all of which vary from state-to-state and locality-to-locality. Capital gains from assets held for under a year (short term) are taxed at higher rates than gains derived from assets held for more than a year (long term). Long term capital gains for individuals are taxed at a 15% rate, while those individuals who fall into lower-income tax brackets would be subject to a 5% rate.

The US health care system is among the most advanced in the world, but escalating health care costs and lack of insurance leave many with inadequate care. As of 2006, some 46 million people, or 16% of the population, were without health insurance coverage. The percentage among the nation’s poor was much higher (roughly one-third).

In response to rising costs, the popularity of managed care grew rapidly in the 1990s. By 2000, 59% of the population was insured by either an HMO (health maintenance organization) or PPO (preferred provider organization). In such organizations, medical treatment, laboratory tests, and other health services for each patient are subject to the approval of the insurer before they can be covered. From 1987 to 1996, enrollment in HMOs doubled. By the end of the decade, however, the quality of treatment under managed care organizations was coming under increased scrutiny.

Life expectancy for someone born in 2005 was 77.71 years. In 2005, infant mortality was 6.5 per 1,000 live births. The birth rate in 2002 was 14.1 per 1,000 people.

Leading causes of death in 2006 were heart disease, cancer, cerebrovascular diseases such as stroke, chronic lower respiratory diseases, accidents, diabetes mellitus, pneumonia and influenza, Alzheimer’s disease, suicide, and homicide.

Cigarette smoking, which has been linked to heart and lung disease, has decreased overall since the late 1980s. There were a cumulative total of 750,000 acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) cases in the 1980s and 1990s, with 450,000 deaths from the disease. In the latter 1990s, both incidence and mortality decreased with the introduction of new drug combinations to combat the disease. In 2004, the number of people living with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/AIDS was estimated at 950,000, with the number of deaths from AIDS that year estimated at 14,000.

As of 2000, 64% of Americans were reported to be either overweight or obese, with around 20% categorized as obese.

Medical facilities in the United States included 5,810 hospitals in 2000. As of 2004, there were an estimated 230 physicians, 773 nurses, 59 dentists, and 69 pharmacists per 100,000 people. National health care spending reached $1 trillion in 1996 and was projected to reach $1.9 trillion in 2006.

31 Housing

The housing resources of the United States far exceed those of any other country, with 122,671,734 housing units serving about 109,902,090 households, according to 2004 American Community Survey estimates. About 67% of all units were owner-occupied, with about 10% of the total housing stock standing vacant. The average household had 2.6 people. The median home value was $151,366. The median payment for rent and utilities of rental properties was $694 per month. About 3.5 million people experience temporary or prolonged periods of homelessness each year.

Following World War II, new housing was constructed at a record-breaking pace; 1986 was the 38th successive year during which construction of more than one million housing units was begun. Most dwellings are one-family houses. Perhaps the most significant change in the housing scene has been the shift to the suburbs that was made possible by the widespread ownership of automobiles. Houses being built in the 1990s and 2000s were significantly larger than those built in the 1970s.

32 Education

Education is compulsory in all states, and it is considered to be a responsibility of each state and the local government. Generally, formal schooling begins at the age of 6 and continues up to age 17 or 18. Each state specifies the age and circumstances for compulsory attendance. Public schools are controlled and supported by the local authorities, as well as state or federal governmental agencies. Private schools are controlled and supported by religious or private organizations. Primary schooling is from grades one through eight. High schools (secondary) cover grades 9 through 12.

The enrollment rate of three- to five-year-olds in preprimary schools was 58% in 2003. Approximately 92% of primary-school-aged children enroll in school, while 87% of those eligible attend secondary school. Pupil-teacher ratios average 15 to 1.

Colleges include junior or community colleges, which offer two-year associate degrees; regular four-year colleges and universities; and graduate or professional schools. There are approximately 3,600 higher-education institutions. In 2003, it was estimated that about 83% of the tertiary (post-secondary school) age population were enrolled in tertiary education programs.

The adult illiteracy rate has been estimated at about 1% for both men and women.

33 Arts

The nation’s arts centers are emblems of the importance of the perform ing arts in US life. New York City’s Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, whose first concert hall opened in 1962, is now the site of the Metropolitan Opera House, three halls for concerts and other musical perfor mances, two theaters, the New York Public Library’s Library and Museum of the Per forming Arts, and The Juilliard School. The John F. Kennedy Center for the Per forming Arts in Washington, DC, opened in 1971; it comprises two main theaters, two smaller theaters, an opera house and a concert hall.

The New York Philharmonic, founded in 1842, and conducted by Lorin Maazel as of in 2002, is the nation’s oldest pro fessional musical ensemble. Other leading orchestras include those of Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Washington, DC’s National Sym phony. Particu larly renowned for artistic excellence are the Lyric Opera of Chicago, San Francisco Opera, Opera Company of Boston, Santa Fe Opera, New York City Opera, and Met ropolitan Opera.

The recording industry is an inte gral part of the music world. The US accounts for fully one-third of the global total of $40 billion in sales. Popular music (mostly rock), performed in halls and arenas in every major city and on college cam puses throughout the US, dominates record sales. In 2000, the Internet website Napster challenged the recording industry’s copy right privileges by offering free downloads of popular music.

Though still financially insecure, dance still has a wide following. The American Ballet Theater, founded in 1940, is the nation’s oldest dance company still active today; the New York City Ballet is equally acclaimed. Other important com panies include those of Martha Graham, Merce Cunningham, Alvin Ailey, Paul Taylor, and Twyla Tharp, as well as the Feld Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, and Pilobolus.

Drama remains a principal per forming art, not only in New York City’s renowned theater district but also in regional, university, summer, and dinner theaters throughout the US. Television and the motion picture industry have made film the dominant modern medium. The motion picture industry had receipts of $7.5 billion in 1999.

34 Libraries and Museums

The American Library Association has reported that, as of 2004, there were an estimated 117,664 libraries in the country, including 9,211 public libraries (with over 16,500 buildings), 3,527 academic libraries, 93,861 school libraries, 9,526 special libraries, 314 armed forces libraries, and 1,225 government libraries.

The largest library in the country and the world is the Library of Congress, with holdings of over 130 million items, including 29 million books and other printed materials, 2.7 million recordings, 12 million photographs, 4.8 million maps, and 58 million manuscripts. The Library of Congress serves as the national library and the site of the US Copyright Office.

The country’s vast public library system is administered primarily by municipalities. The largest of these is the New York Public Library system with 89 branch locations and over 42.7 million items, including 14.9 million bound volumes. Other major public library systems include the Cleveland Public Library (over 9.7 million items), Los Angeles County Public Library (over 9.6 million items, 8.7 million books), the Chicago Public Library (6.5 million), the Boston Public Library system (6.1 million books, including 1.2 million rare books and manuscripts), and the Free Library of Philadelphia (6 million items).

There are over 5,000 nonprofit museums in the United States. The Smithsonian Institute in Washington, DC, sponsors 18 national museums and the National Zoo. Sixteen of the Smithsonian national museums are located in the Smithsonian complex of Washington, DC.

Other eminent US museums include the American Museum of Natural History, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art, the Guggenheim Museum, the Whitney Collection of American Art, the Frick Collection, and the Brooklyn Museum, all in New York City; the Boston Museum of Fine Arts; the Art Institute of Chicago and the Chicago Museum of Natural History; the Franklin Institute and Philadelphia Museum of Art, both in Philadelphia; and the M. H. de Young Memorial Museum in San Francisco. Also of prominence are the Cleveland Museum of Art, the St. Louis Museum of Art, and the Baltimore Museum of Art.

35 Communications

The Post Office Department of the United States was replaced on 1 July 1971 by the US Postal Service, a financially autonomous federal agency. Numerous privately owned overnight mail and package delivery services also have been established.

All major electronic communications systems are privately owned but regulated by the Federal Communications Commission. The United States uses wire and radio services for communications more extensively than any other country in the world. Radio serves a variety of purposes other than broadcasting. It is widely used by ships and aircraft for safety, and it has become an important tool in the movement of buses, trucks, and taxicabs. Forest conservators, fire departments, and the police all use radio as a necessary aid to operations.

In 1999 broadcasting stations on the air comprised more than 10,000 radio stations (both AM and FM) and more than 1,500 television stations. Nearly 1,000 stations were affiliated with the 5 major networks. As of 1997, the United States had some 9,000 cable television systems. In 2003, there were an estimated 2,109 radios and 938 television sets for every 1,000 people. About 255 of every 1,000 people were cable subscribers. Also in 2003, there were 658.9 personal computers for every 1,000 people and 630 of every 1,000 people had access to the Internet. There were 198,098 secure Internet servers in the country in 2004.

36 Press

In 2005, there were more than 1,500 daily newspapers in the United States. Twenty large newspaper chains account for almost 60% of the total daily circulation. The US daily newspapers with the largest circulations as of 2004 were as follows: USA Today, (national) 2,220,863; Wall Street Journal, (national) 2,106,774; New York Times, (New York) 1,121,057; Los Angeles Times, (CA) 902,164; New York Daily News, (NY) 715,052; Washington Post, (Washington, DC) 707,690; New York Post, (NY) 686,207; Chicago Tribune, (Illinois) 600,988; Houston Chronicle, (TX), 554,783; Dallas Morning News (TX), 519,014; San Francisco Chronicle (CA), 505,022; Chicago Sun-Times (IL), 481,980; Long Island/New York Newsday, (New York) 481,816; Boston Globe (MA), 451,471; Arizona Republic, 413,268; Star-Ledger (Newark, NJ), 400,042; Journal-Constitution (Atlanta, GA), 386,015; Star Tribune (Minneapolis, MN), 381,094; Philadelphia Inquirer (PA), 368,883; and Cleveland Plain Dealer, (OH), 354,309.

The most popular consumer magazine in the country in 2004 was AARP the Magazine, published bimonthly by the AARP (American Association of Retired Persons) with a circulation of over 22.6 million. The two general circulation magazines that appealed to the largest audiences were Reader’s Digest (about 10 million) and TV Guide (about 9 million). Time and Newsweek were the leading newsmagazines, with weekly circulations of 4,034,272 and 3,135,476, respectively.

The US book-publishing industry consists of the major book companies (mainly located in the New York metro area), nonprofit university presses distributed throughout the United States, and numerous small publishing firms. There were 135,000 book titles published in the United States in 2001, up from 51,863 titles in 1994.

The US Constitution provides for freedom of speech and of the press in its Bill of Rights, and the government supports these rights. Citizens enjoy a wide range of opinions in all media, where debate, editorial opinion, and government opposition viewpoints are represented in some form or another. Nearly all media are privately owned.

37 Tourism, Travel & Recreation

Foreign visitors to the United States numbered 41.2 million in 2003, down from 51 million in 2000. Of these visitors, 31% came from Canada and 25% from Mexico. With a few exceptions, such as Canadians entering from the Western Hemisphere, all visitors to the United States are required to have passports and visas.

The United States has a total of 49 national parks. Among the most striking scenic attractions in the United States are the Grand Canyon in Arizona; Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico; Yosemite National Park in California; Yellowstone National Park in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming; Niagara Falls, partly in New York and partly in Canada; and the Everglades in Florida.

Historical attractions include the Liberty Bell and Constitution Hall in Philadelphia; the Statue of Liberty in New York City; the White House, the Capitol, and the monuments to Washington, Jefferson, and Lincoln in Washington, DC; the Williamsburg historical restoration in Virginia; the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas; and Mount Rushmore in South Dakota.

Among many other popular tourist attractions are the movie and television studios in Los Angeles; the cable cars in San Francisco; casino gambling in Las Vegas, Nevada, and in Atlantic City, New Jersey; the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee; and such amusement parks as Disneyland (Anaheim, California) and Walt Disney World (near Orlando, Florida). For amount and variety of entertainment—theater, movies, music, dance, and sports—New York City has few rivals.

Americans’ recreational activities range from home gardening to the major spectator sports, such as professional baseball, football, basketball, ice hockey, soccer, and horse racing, and college football and basketball. Participant sports are a favorite form of recreation, including jogging, aerobics, tennis, and golf. Skiing is a popular recreation in New England and the western mountain ranges. Sailing, power boating, and rafting are popular water sports. In 1994, the United States hosted the World Cup Soccer Championship. The United States hosted the Summer Olympics in 1904, 1932, 1984, and 1996. The Winter Olympics were held in the United States in 1960, 1980, and 2002.

38 Sports

Baseball, long honored as the national pastime, is the nation’s leading professional team sport, with two major leagues having 30 teams (one in Canada). In the 1998 season, two teams were added to Major League Baseball—the Arizona Diamondbacks, playing in the National League West, and the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, playing in the American League East. In 2005, the Montreal Expos became the Washington DC Nationals, following the team’s move to Washington DC from Montreal. During the 2005 regular season, almost 75 million fans attended Major League Baseball games. In 1992, the Toronto Blue Jays became the first non-US team to win the World Series. In addition, there is an extensive network of minor league baseball teams, each of them related to a major league franchise.

The National Basketball Association, created in 1946, included 30 teams in 2005. A labor dispute resulted in a lockout of the players for nearly half the 1999–2000 NBA season. The Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA), founded in 1997, included 14 teams as of 2005. During the WNBA’s third season (1999), 1,959,733 fans attended regular season games, establishing an attendance record for women’s professional sports. In 2005, WNBA attendance totaled 1,805,937.

In 2005, the National Football League included 32 teams; Houston, Texas, was awarded a franchise in 2002 to establish the 32nd team. The National Hockey League (NHL) expanded to 30 teams in 2000, when teams in St. Paul, Minnesota (Minnesota Wild), and Columbus, Ohio (Columbus Blue Jackets), played their inaugural seasons. In the 2003/2004 season, 20.3 million fans attended regular NHL season games. However, the entire NHL schedule for the 2004/2005 season was cancelled because of a labor dispute between the players and the team owners. As of 2005, Major League Soccer fielded 12 teams in two divisions.

Several other professional sports are popular nationwide. Thoroughbred racing is among the nation’s most popular spectator sports, with an estimated 12 million fans visiting horse-racing tracks annually. Annual highlights of thoroughbred racing are the three jewels of the Triple Crown—the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness, and the Belmont Stakes—most recently won by Seattle Slew in 1977 and by Affirmed in 1978. In 2000, jockey Julie Krone became the first woman jockey to be inducted into the Horse Racing Hall of Fame. Harness racing is also popular; attracting millions of spectators annually and involving over $1.5 billion in wagering. In 1997, over 14.3 million fans watched greyhound racing. The prize money that Henry Ford won on a 1901 auto race helped him start his now-famous car company two years later; since then, automobile manufacturers have backed sports car, stock car, and motorcycle racing at tracks throughout the US. From John L. Sullivan to Muhammad Ali, the personality and power of the great boxing champions have drawn millions of spectators ringside. Glamour and top prizes also draw national followings for tennis and golf, two professional sports in which women are nationally prominent. Other professional sports include bowling and rodeo.

Football has been part of US college life since the game was born on 6 November 1869 with a New Jersey match between Rutgers and Princeton. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) coordinate collegiate football and basketball. Colleges recruit top athletes with sports scholarships in order to win media attention, and to keep the loyalty of the alumni, thereby boosting fund-raising. Baseball, hockey, swimming, gymnastics, crew, lacrosse, track and field, and a variety of other sports also fill the intercollegiate competitive program

The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), a national nonprofit organization founded in 1888, conducts the AAU/USA Junior Olympics, offering competition in 22 sports in order to help identify candidates for international Olympic competition. St. Louis hosted the 1904 summer Olympics; Los Angeles was home to the games in 1932 and 1984. The winter Olympic games were held in Squaw Valley, Calif., in 1960, and at Lake Placid, New York, in 1932 and 1980. Atlanta hosted the summer Olympic games in 1996. Salt Lake City, Utah, was the site of the 2002 winter Olympic games.

39 Famous Americans

Political and Military Figures Printer, inventor, scientist, and statesman Benjamin Franklin (1706–1790) was America’s outstanding figure of the colonial period. George Washington (1732–1799), military leader in the American Revolution and first president of the United States, is known as the father of his country. The chief author of the Declaration of Independence and the country’s third president was Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826). His leading political opponents were John Adams (1735–1826), the nation’s second president, and Alexander Hamilton (b.West Indies, 1755–1804), the first secretary of the treasury. James Madison (1751–1836), a leading figure in drawing up the United States Constitution, served as the fourth president.

Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865) led the United States through its most difficult period, the Civil War, during the course of which he issued the Emancipation Proclamation. Jefferson Davis (1808–1889) served as the only president of the short-lived Confederacy. Among the foremost presidents of the 20th century were Nobel Peace Prize winner Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919); Woodrow Wilson (1856–1924), who led the nation during World War I; and Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882–1945), who was elected to four terms spanning the Great Depression and World War II. The presidents during the 1961–2000 period have been John Fitzgerald Kennedy (1917–1963), Lyndon Baines Johnson (1908–1973), Richard Milhous Nixon (1913–1994), Gerald Rudolph Ford (Leslie Lynch King Jr., 1913–2006), Jimmy Carter (James Earl Carter Jr., b.1924), Ronald Wilson Reagan (1911–2004), George Herbert Walker Bush (b.1924), and Bill Clinton (William Jefferson Blythe III, b.1946). George Walker Bush (b.1946) became the 43rd president and first president of the 21st century.

Outstanding military leaders of the Civil War were Union general Ulysses Simpson Grant (1822–1885), who later served as the 18th president; and Confederate General Robert Edward Lee (1807–1870). Douglas MacArthur (1880–1964) commanded the United States forces in Asia during World War II, oversaw the postwar occupation and reorganization of Japan, and directed United Nations forces in the first year of the Korean conflict. Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890–1969) served as supreme Allied commander during World War II, later becoming the 34th president. General Colin Luther Powell (b.1937), former Secretary of State (2001–05) and highest ranking African American government official in the history of the United States (a position assumed by Condoleezza Rice in 2005), was a general in the army who also served as National Security Advisor (1987–89) and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (1989–93).

John Marshall (1755–1835), chief justice of the United States from 1801 to 1835, established the power of the Supreme Court through

Presidents of the US, 1789–2005
 NAME (BIRTH–DEATH)OTHER MAJOR OFFICES HELDRESIDENCE AT ELECTIONPARTY
1George Washington 22 February 1732–14 December 1799Commander in Chief, Continental Army (1775–83)Mt. Vernon, Va.Federalist
2John Adams 30 October 1735–4 July 1826Representative, Continental Congress (1774–77); US vice president (1797–97)Quincy, Mass.Federalist
3Thomas Jefferson 13 April 1743–4 July 1826Representative, Continental Congress (1775–76); governor of Virginia (1779–81); secretary of state (1790–93); US vice president (1797–1801)Monticello, Va.Dem.–Rep.
4James Madison 16 March 1751–28 June 1836Representative, Continental Congress (1780–83; 1786–88); US representative (1789–97); secretary of state (1801–9)Montpelier, Va.Dem.–Rep.
5James Monroe 28 April 1758–4 July 1831US senator (1790–94); governor of Virginia (1799–1802); secretary of state (1811–17); secretary of war (1814–15)Leesburg, Va.Dem.–Rep.
6John Quincy Adams 11 July 1767–23 February 1848US senator (1803–8); secretary of state (1817–25); US representative (1831–48)Quincy, Mass.National Republican
7Andrew Jackson 15 March 1767–8 June 1845US representative (1796–97); US senator (1797–98)The Hermitage, Tenn.Democrat
8Martin Van Buren 5 December 1782–24 July 1862US senator (1821–28); governor of New York (1829); secretary of state (1829–31); US vice president (1833–37)New YorkDemocrat
9William Henry Harrison 9 February 1773–4 April 1841Governor of Indiana Territory (1801–13); US representative (1816–19); US senator (1825–28)North Bend, OhioWhig
10John Tyler 29 March 1790–18 January 1862US representative (1816–21); governor of Virginia (1825–27); US senator (1827–36); US vice president (1841)Richmond, Va.Whig
11James K. Polk 2 November 1795–15 June 1849US representative (1825–39); governor of Tennessee (1839–41)Nashville, Tenn.Democrat
12Zachary Taylor 24 November 1784–9 July 1850LouisianaWhig
13Millard Fillmore 7 January 1800–8 March 1874US representative (1833–35; 1837–43); US vice president (1849–50)Buffalo, N.Y.Whig
14Franklin Pierce 23 November 1804–8 October 1869US representative, (1833–37); US senator (1837–43)Concord, N.H.Democrat
15James Buchanan 23 April 1791–1 June 1868US representative (1821–31); US senator (1834–45); secretary of state (1845–49)Lancaster, Pa.Democrat
16Abraham Lincoln 12 February 1809–15 April 1865US representative (1847–49)Springfield, Ill.Republican
TERMS IN OFFICE1VICE PRESIDENTSNOTABLE EVENTS 
30 April 1789–4 March 1793John AdamsFederal government organized; Bill of Rights enacted (1791); Whiskey Rebellion suppressed (1794); North Carolina, Rhode Island, Vermont, Kentucky, Tennessee enter Union.1
4 March 1797–4 March 1801Thomas JeffersonAlien and Sedition Acts passed (1798); Washington, D.C., becomes US capital (1800)2
4 March 1801–4 March 1805Aaron Burr George ClintonLouisiana Purchase (1803); Lewis and Clark Expedition (1803–6); Ohio enters Union.3
4 March 1809–4 March 1813
4 March 1813–4 March 1817
George Clinton
Elbridge Gerry
War of 1812 (1812–14); protective tariffs passed (1816); Louisiana, Indiana enter Union.4
4 March 1817–4 March 1821
4 March 1821–4 March 1825
Daniel D. Tompkins
Daniel D. Tompkins
Florida purchased from Spain (1819–21); Missouri Compromise (1820); Monroe Doctrine (1823); Mississippi, Illinois, Alabama, Maine, Missouri enter Union.5
4 March 1825–4 March 1829John C. CalhounPeriod of political antagonisms, producing little legislation; road and canal construction supported; Erie Canal opens (1825).6
4 March 1829–4 March 1833John C. Calhoun Martin Van BurenIntroduction of spoils system; Texas Republic established (1836); Arkansas, Michigan enter Union.7
4 March 1837–4 March 1841Richard M. JohnsonFinancial panic (1837) and subsequent depression.8
4 March 1841–4 April 1841John TylerDied of pneumonia one month after taking office.9
4 April 1841–4 March 1845Monroe Doctrine extended to Hawaiian Islands (1842); Second Seminole War in Florida ends (1842).10
4 March 1845–4 March 1849George M. DallasBoundary between US and Canada set at 49th parallel (1846); Mexican War (1846–48), ending with Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848); California gold rush begins (1848); Florida, Texas, Iowa, Wisconsin enter Union.11
4 March 1849–9 July 1850Millard FillmoreDied after 16 months in office.12
9 July 1850–4 March 1853Fugitive Slave Law (1850); California enters Union.13
4 March 1853–4 March 1857William R. KingGadsden Purchase (1853); Kansas–Nebraska Act (1854); trade opened with Japan (1854).14
4 March 1857–4 March 1861John C. BreckinridgeJohn Brown’s raid at Harpers Ferry, Va. (now W. Va.; 1859); South Carolina secedes (1860); Minnesota, Oregon, Kansas enter Union.15
4 March 1861–4 March 1865
4 March 1865–15 April 1865
Hannibal Hamlin Andrew JohnsonConfederacy established, Civil War begins (1851); Emancipation Proclamation (1863); Confederacy defeated (1865); Lincoln assassinated (1865); West Virginia, Nevada attain statehood.16
Presidents of the US, 1789–2005
 NAME (BIRTH–DEATH)OTHER MAJOR OFFICES HELDRESIDENCE AT ELECTIONPARTY
17Andrew Johnson 29 December 1808–31 July 1875US representative (1843–53); governor of Tennessee (1853–57; 1862–65); US senator (1857–62); US vice president (1865)Greeneville, Tenn.Republican
18Ulysses S. Grant 27 April 1822–23 July 1885Commander, Union Army (1864–65); secretary of war (1867–68)Galena, Ill.Republican
19Rutherford B. Hayes 4 October 1822–17 January 1893US representative (1865–67); governor of Ohio (1868–72; 1876–77)Fremont, OhioRepublican
20James A. Garfield 19 November 1831–19 September 1881US representative (1863–80)Mentor, OhioRepublican
21Chester A. Arthur 5 October 1829–18 November 1886US vice president (1881)New York, N.Y.Republican
22Grover Cleveland 18 March 1837–24 June 1908Governor of New York (1882–84)Albany, N.Y.Democrat
23Benjamin Harrison 20 August 1833–13 March 1901US senator (1881–87)Indianapolis, Ind.Republican
24Grover Cleveland 18 March 1837–24 June 1908Governor of New York (1882–84)New York, N.Y.Democrat
25William McKinley 29 January 1843–14 September 1901US representative (1877–83; 1885–91); governor of Ohio (1892–96)Canton, OhioRepublican
26Theodore Roosevelt 27 October 1858–6 January 1919Governor of New York (1899–1900); US vice president (1901)Oyster Bay, N.Y.Republican
27William H. Taft 15 September 1857–8 March 1930Governor of Philippines (1901–4); secretary of war (1904–8); chief justice of the US (1921–30)Washington, D.C.Republican
28Woodrow Wilson 28 December 1856–3 February 1924Governor of New Jersey (1911–13)Trenton, N.J.Democrat
29Warren G. Harding 2 November 1865–2 August 1923US senator (1915–21)Marion, OhioRepublican
30Calvin Coolidge 4 July 1872–5 January 1933Governor of Massachusetts (1919–20); US vice president (1921–23)Boston, Mass.Republican
31Herbert Hoover 10 August 1874–20 October 1964Secretary of commerce (1921–29)Stanford, Calif.Republican
32Franklin D. Roosevelt 30 January 1882–12 April 1945Governor of New York (1929–1933)Hyde Park, N.Y.Democrat
TERMS IN OFFICE1VICE PRESIDENTSNOTABLE EVENTS 
15 April 1865–4 March 1869Reconstruction Acts (1867); Alaska purchased from Russia (1867); Johnson impeached but acquitted (1868); Nebraska enters Union.17
4 March 1869–4 March 1873
4 March 1873–4 March 1877
Schuyler Colfax
Henry Wilson
Numerous government scandals; financial panic (1873); Colorado enters Union.18
4 March 1877–4 March 1881William A. WheelerFederal troops withdrawn from South (1877); civil service reform begun.19
4 March 1881–19 Sept. 1881Chester A. ArthurShot after 4 months in office, dead 2½ months later.20
19 Sept. 1881–4 March 1885Chinese immigration banned despite presidential veto (1882); Civil Service Commission established by Pendleton Act (1883).21
4 March 1885–4 March 1889Thomas A. HendricksInterstate Commerce Act (1887)22
4 March 1889–4 March 1893Levi P. MortonSherman Silver Purchase Act (1890); North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Washington, Idaho, Wyoming enter Union.23
4 March 1893–4 March 1897Adlai E. StevensonFinancial panic (1893); Sherman Silver Purchase Act repealed (1893); Utah enters Union.24
4 March 1897–4 March 1901Garret A. Hobart Theodore RooseveltSpanish–American War (1898); Puerto Rico, Guam, Philippines ceded by Spain; independent Republic of Hawaii annexed; US troops sent to China to suppress Boxer Rebellion (1900); McKinley assassinated.25
14 Sept. 1901–4 March 1905
4 March 1905–4 March 1909
Charles W. FairbanksAntitrust and conservation policies emphasized; Roosevelt awarded Nobel Peace Prize (1906) for mediating settlement of Russo–Japanese War; Panama Canal construction begun (1907); Oklahoma enters Union.26
4 March 1909–4 March 1913James S. ShermanFederal income tax ratified (1913); New Mexico, Arizona enter Union.27
4 March 1913–4 March 1917
4 March 1917–4 March 1921
Thomas R. Marshall
Thomas R. Marshall
Clayton Antitrust Act (1914); US Virgin Islands purchased from Denmark (1917); US enters World War I (1917); Treaty of Versailles signed (1919) but not ratified by US; constitutional amendments enforce prohibition (1919), enfranchise women (1920).28
4 March 1921–2 Aug. 1923Calvin CoolidgeTeapot Dome scandal (1923–24).29
3 Aug. 1923–4 March 1925
4 March 1925–4 March 1929
Charles G. DawesKellogg–Briand Pact (1928).30
4 March 1929–4 March 1933Charles CurtisStock market crash (1929) inaugurates Great Depression.31
4 March 1933–20 Jan. 1937
20 Jan. 1937–20 Jan. 1941
20 Jan. 1941–20 Jan. 1945 20 Jan.
1945–12 April 1945
John N. Garner
John N. Garner
Henry A. Wallace
Harry S Truman
New Deal social reforms; prohibition repealed (1933); US enters World War II (1941)32
Presidents of the US, 1789–2005
 NAME (BIRTH–DEATH)OTHER MAJOR OFFICES HELDRESIDENCE AT ELECTIONPARTY
1In the event of a president’s death or removal from office, his duties are assumed to devolve immediately upon his successor, even if he does not immediately take the oath of office.
33Harry S Truman 8 May 1884–26 December 1972US senator (1935–45); US vice president (1945)Independence, Mo.Democrat
34Dwight D. Eisenhower 14 October 1890–28 March 1969Supreme allied commander in Europe (1943–44); Army chief of staff (1945–48)New YorkRepublican
35John F. Kennedy 29 May 1917–22 November 1963US representative (1947–52); US senator (1953–60)MassachusettsDemocrat
36Lyndon B. Johnson 27 August 1908–22 January 1973US representative (1937–48); US senator (1949–60); US vice president (1961–63)Johnson City, Tex.Democrat
37Richard M. Nixon 9 January 1913–22 April 1994US representative (1947–51); US senator (1951–53); US vice president (1953–61)New York, N.Y.Republican
38Gerald Rudolph Ford 14 July 1913–26 December 2006US representative (1949–73); US vice president (1973–74)Grand Rapids, Mich.Republican
39James Earl Carter, Jr. 1 October 1924Governor of Georgia (1951–75)Plains, Ga.Democrat
40Ronald Wilson Reagan 6 February 1911–5 June 2004Governor of California (1967–76)Los Angeles, Calif.Republican
41George Herbert Walker Bush 12 June 1924US representative (1967–71) Vice president (1981–88)Houston, TexasRepublican
42William Jefferson Clinton 19 August 1946Attorney general of Arkansas (1977–79) Governor of Arkansas (1979–81; 1983–92)Little Rock, ArkansasDemocrat
43George Walker Bush 6 July 1946Governor of Texas (1994–2000)Midland, TexasRepublican

the principle of judicial review. Other important chief justices included Earl Warren (1891–1974), whose period as chief justice from 1953 to 1969 saw important decisions on desegregation, reapportionment, and civil liberties. The justice who enjoyed the longest tenure on the court was William O. Douglas (1898–1980), who served from 1939 to 1975.

Native American chiefs renowned for their resistance to white invasion were Tecumseh (1768–1813), Geronimo (1829?–1909), Sitting Bull (1831?–1890), and Crazy Horse (1849?–1877). Historical figures who have become part of American folklore include pioneer Daniel Boone (1734–1820); silversmith, engraver, and patriot Paul Revere (1735–1818); frontiersman

TERMS IN OFFICE1VICE PRESIDENTSNOTABLE EVENTS 
12 April 1945–20 Jan. 1949
20 Jan. 1949–20 Jan. 1953
Alben W. BarkleyUnited Nations founded (1945); US nuclear bombs dropped on Japan (1945); World War II ends (1945); Philippines granted independence (1946); Marshall Plan (1945); Korean conflict begins (1950); era of McCarthyism.33
20 Jan. 1953–20 Jan. 1957
20 Jan. 1957–20 Jan. 1961
Richard M. Nixon
Richard M. Nixon
Korean conflict ended (1953); Supreme Court orders school desegregation (1954); Alaska, Hawaii enter Union.34
20 Jan. 1961–22 Nov. 1963Lyndon B. JohnsonConflicts with Cuba (1961–62); aboveground nuclear test ban treaty (1963); Kennedy assassinated.35
22 Nov. 1963–20 Jan. 1965
20 Jan. 1965–20 Jan. 1969
Hubert H. HumphreyGreat Society programs; Voting Rights Act (1965); escalation of US military role in Indochina; race riots, political assassinations.36
20 Jan. 1969–20 Jan. 1973
20 Jan. 1973–9 Aug. 1974
Spiro T. Agnew
Spiro T.
Agnew Gerald R. Ford
First lunar landing (1969); arms limitation treaty with Soviet Union (1972); US withdraws from Viet–Nam (1973); Agnew resigns in tax scandal (1973); Nixon resigns at height of Watergate scandal (1974).37
9 Aug. 1974–20 Jan. 1977Nelson A. RockefellerFirst combination of unelected president and vice president; Nixon pardoned (1974).38
20 Jan. 1977–20 Jan. 1981Walter F. MondaleCarter mediates Israel-Egypt peace accord (1978); Panama Canal treaties ratified (1979); tensions with Iran (1979–81).39
20 Jan. 1981–20 Jan. 1985
20 Jan. 1985–20 Jan. 1989
George H. Bush
George H. Bush
Defense buildup; social spending cuts; rising trade and budget deficits; tensions with Nicaragua.40
20 Jan. 1989–20 Jan. 1993J. Danforth QuayleMulti-national force repelled Iraqi invaders from Kuwait; savings and loan crisis; 1991 recession.41
20 Jan. 1993–20 Jan. 1997
20 Jan. 1997–20 Jan. 2001
Albert Gore, Jr.
Albert Gore, Jr.
North American Free Trade Agreement (1993); sent troops to Haiti to restore elected president deposed by a military coup (1994); Dayton Accords (1995); Whitewater and FBI files scandals (1995– 96); rapid stock market growth (1995–97); balanced federal budget plan (1997); Clinton impeached (1998).42
20 Jan. 2001–20 Jan. 2005
20 Jan. 2005–
Richard Bruce Cheney
Richard Bruce Cheney
$1.35 trillion tax cut through 2010; 9/11 terrorist attack and resulting war on terror and invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq; creation of the Department of Homeland Security.43

David “Davy” Crockett (1786–1836); scout and Indian agent Christopher “Kit” Carson (1809–1868); William Frederick “Buffalo Bill” Cody (1846–1917); and the outlaws Jesse Woodson James (1847–1882) and Billy the Kid (William H. Bonney, 1859–1881).

Inventors and Scientists Outstanding inventors were Robert Fulton (1765–1815), who developed the steamboat; Samuel Finley Breese Morse (1791–1872), who invented the telegraph; and Elias Howe (1819–1867), who invented the sewing machine. Alexander Graham Bell (b. Scotland, 1847–1922) invented the telephone. Thomas Alva Edison (1847–1931) was responsible for hundreds of inventions, among them the incandescent electric lamp, the phonograph, and a motion picture camera and projector. Two brothers, Wilbur Wright (1867–1912) and Orville Wright (1871–1948), designed, built, and flew the first successful motor-powered airplane. Amelia Earhart (1898–1937) and Charles Lindbergh (1902–1974) were aviation pioneers. Pioneers in the space program include John Glenn (b.1921), the first American astronaut to orbit Earth, and Neil Armstrong (b.1930), the first man to set foot on the Moon.

Outstanding botanists and naturalists include George Washington Carver (1864–1943), known especially for his work on industrial applications for peanuts, and John James Audubon (1785–1851) who won fame as an ornithologist and artist.

Albert Abraham Michelson (b. Germany, 1852–1931) measured the speed of light and became the first of a long line of United States Nobel Prize winners. The theory of relativity was conceived by Albert Einstein (b. Germany, 1879–1955), generally considered one of the greatest minds in the physical sciences. Enrico Fermi (b. Italy, 1901–1954) created the first nuclear chain reaction and contributed to the development of the atomic and hydrogen bombs. Also prominent in the splitting of the atom were J. Robert Oppenheimer (1904–1967) and Edward Teller (b. Hungary, 1908–2003). Jonas Edward Salk (1914–1995) developed an effective vaccine for polio, and Albert Bruce Sabin (1906–1993) contributed oral, attenuated live-virus polio vaccines.

Social Reformers Social reformers of note include Frederick Douglass (Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, 1817–1895), a prominent abolitionist; Elizabeth Cady Stanton (1815–1902) and Susan Brownell Anthony (1820–1906), leaders in the women’s suffrage movement; Clara Barton (1821–1912), founder of the American Red Cross; Eugene Victor Debs (1855–1926), labor leader and an organizer of the Socialist movement in the United States; and Martin Luther King Jr. (1929–1968), a central figure in the Civil Rights Movement and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964.

Religious leaders include Roger Williams (1603–1683), an early advocate of religious tolerance in the United States; Jonathan Edwards (1703–1758), New England preacher and theologian; Joseph Smith (1805–1844), founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons), and his chief associate, Brigham Young (1801–1877); and Mary Baker Eddy (1821–1910), founder of the Church of Christ, Scientist (Christian Science). Pat Robertson (b.1930), televangelist and leader of the Christian Coalition organization, and Jerry Falwell (b.1933), a fundamentalist Baptist pastor, televangelist, and founder of the Moral Majority movement and Liberty University, are contemporary leaders of the Christian religious right.

Literary Figures The first American author to be widely read outside the United States was Washington Irving (1783–1859). James Fenimore Cooper (1789–1851) was the first popular American novelist. The writings of two men of Concord, Massachusetts—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882) and Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)—influenced philosophers, political leaders, and ordinary men and women in many parts of the world. The novels and short stories of Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804–1864) explore New England’s Puritan heritage. Herman Melville (1819–1891) wrote the novel Moby-Dick, a symbolic work about a whale hunt that has become an American classic. Mark Twain (Samuel Langhorne Clemens, 1835–1910) is the best-known American humorist.

Other leading novelists of the later 19th and early 20th centuries were Henry James (1843–1916), Edith Wharton (1862–1937), Stephen Crane (1871–1900), Willa Cather (1873–1947), and Sinclair Lewis (1885–1951), first American winner of the Nobel Prize for literature (1930). Later Nobel Prize-winning United States novelists include William Faulkner (1897–1962) in 1949; Ernest Hemingway (1899–1961) in 1954; John Steinbeck (1902–1968) in 1962; Saul Bellow (b. Canada, 1915–2005), in 1976; Isaac Bashevis Singer (b. Poland, 1904–1991) in 1978, and Toni Morrison (b.1931) in 1993. Among other noteworthy writers are James Thurber (1894–1961), Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald (1896–1940), Elwyn Brooks (E. B.) White (1899–1985), Richard Wright (1908–1960), Eudora Welty (1909–2001), James Baldwin (1924–1987), John Updike (b.1932), John Cheever (1912–1982), Norman Mailer (b.1923), and J. D. Salinger (b.1919).

Notable 19th-century American poets include Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–1882), Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849), Walt Whitman (1819–1892), and Emily Dickinson (1830–1886). Poets who came to prominence in the 20th century include Robert Frost (1874–1963), Ezra Pound (1885–1972), Marianne Moore (1887–1972), and Wallace Stevens (1879–1955). Carl Sandburg (1878–1967) was a noted poet, historian, novelist, and folklorist. Robert Lowell (1917–1977), John Ashbery (b.1927), James Merrill (1926–1995), Allen Ginsberg (1926–1997), Maya Angelou (b.1928), Adrienne Rich (b.1929), and Sylvia Plath (1932–1963) are among the best-known poets since World War II. The foremost US playwrights include Eugene (Gladstone) O’Neill (1888–1953), who won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1936; Tennessee Williams (Thomas Lanier Williams, 1911–1983); and Arthur Miller (1915–2005). Neil Simon (b.1927) is one of the nation’s most popular playwrights and screenwriters.

Artists Two renowned painters of the early American period were John Singleton Copley (1738–1815) and Gilbert Stuart (1755–1828). Outstanding 19th-century painters were James Abbott McNeill Whistler (1834–1903) and John Singer Sargent (b. Italy, 1856–1925). In the twentieth century, Edward Hopper (1882–1967), Georgia O’Keeffe (1887–1986), Norman Rockwell (1894–1978), and Andrew Wyeth (b.1917) achieved wide recognition, as did their more recent colleagues, abstract expressionists Jackson Pollack (1912–1956) and Mark Rothko (1903–1970) and “pop” artists Andy Warhol (1928–1987) and Jasper Johns (b.1930).

Entertainment Figures The first great American “showman” was Phineas Taylor “P. T.” Barnum (1810–1891). Outstanding figures in the motion picture industry include producers Samuel Goldwyn (1882–1974), Irving Thalberg (1899–1936), and Louis B. Mayer (1885–957); animation pioneer and entertainment entrepreneur Walter Elias “Walt” Disney (1906–1966); and legendary directors John Ford (1895–1973), Frank Capra (1897–1991), Sir Charles Spencer “Charlie” Chaplin (b. England, 1889–1978), Sir Alfred Hitchcock (b. England, 1899–1980), and George Orson Welles (1915–1985). More recent American directors who have achieved renown include Steven Spielberg (b.1947), Martin Scorsese (b.1942), Woody Allen (Allen Konigsberg, b.1935), and Spike Lee (b.1957).

World-famous American actors and actresses include Humphrey Bogart (1899–1957); Clark Gable (1901–1960); Cary Grant (Alexander Archibald Leach, b. England, 1904–1986); John Wayne (Marion Michael Morrison, 1907–79); Judy Garland (Frances Gumm, 1922–1969); Marlon Brando (1924–2004); Marilyn Monroe (Norma Jean Mortenson, 1926–1962); Dustin Hoffman (b.1937); Jack Nicholson (b.1937); Meryl Streep (b.1949); and Tom Hanks (b.1956). Among other great American entertainers are W. C. Fields (William Claude Dukenfield, 1880–1946); Jack Benny (Benjamin Kubelsky, 1894–1974); Fred Astaire (Fred Austerlitz, 1899–1987); Bob (Leslie Townes) Hope (b. England, 1903–2003); Frank (Francis Albert) Sinatra (1915–1998); Elvis Aaron Presley (1935–1977); and Barbra (Barbara Joan) Streisand (b.1942).

Composers and Musicians The songs of Stephen Collins Foster (1826–1864) have achieved folksong status. Among the foremost composers are Edward MacDowell (1861–1908), Aaron Copland (1900–1990), and Leonard Bernstein (1918–1990). Leading composers of popular music are John Philip Sousa (1854–1932), George Gershwin (1898–1937), and Woody Guthrie (1912–1967). Prominent in the blues tradition are Leadbelly (Huddie Ledbetter, 1888–1949), Bessie Smith (1898?–1937), and Muddy Waters (McKinley Morganfield, 1915–1983). Leading jazz figures include the composers Scott Joplin (1868–1917), Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington (1899–1974), and William “Count” Basie (1904–1984), and performers Louis Armstrong (1900–1971), Ella Fitzgerald (1917–1996), Billie Holiday (Eleanora Fagan, 1915–1959), John Birks “Dizzy” Gillespie (1917–1993), Charlie “Bird” Parker (1920–1955), John Coltrane (1926–1967), and Miles Davis (1926–1991).

Sports Figures Among the many noteworthy sports stars are baseball’s Tyrus Raymond “Ty” Cobb (1886–1961) and George Herman “Babe” Ruth (1895–1948); football’s Jim Brown (b.1936); and golf’s Mildred “Babe” Didrikson Zaharias (1914–1956). Billie Jean (Moffitt) King (b.1943) and sisters Venus (b.1980) and Serena (b.1981) Williams have starred in tennis; Joe Louis (Joseph Louis Barrow, 1914–1981) and Muhammad Ali (Cassius Marcellus Clay, b.1942) in boxing; Wilton Norman “Wilt” Chamberlain (1936–1999) and Michael Jordan (b.1963) in basketball; Mark Spitz (b.1950) in swimming; Eric Heiden (b.1958) in speed skating; and Jesse Owens (1913–1980) in track and field.

40 Bibliography

BOOKS

DeGezelle, Terri. The Great Seal of the United States. Mankato MN: Capstone Press, 2004.

Frank, Nicole. Welcome to the USA. Milwaukee, WI: Gareth Stevens, 2000.

Hicks, Roger. The Big Book of America. Philadelphia: Courage Books, 1994.

Kallen, Stuart A. Life in American during the 1960s. San Diego: Lucent Books, 2001.

Kallen, Stuart A. The 1950s. San Diego: Lucent Books, 2000.

Kallen, Stuart A. The 1980s. San Diego: Lucent Books, 1999.

Kallen, Stuart A. The 1990s. San Diego: Lucent Books, 1999.

Kallen, Stuart A. Striving into 2000. Edina, MN: Abdo & Daughters, 2001.

Kronenwetter, Michael. America in the 1960s. San Diego: Lucent Books, 1998.

Sabuda, Robert. America the Beautiful. New York: Little Simon, 2004.

Sandak, Cass R. The United States. Austin, TX: Raintree Steck-Vaughn, 1997.

Stewart, Gail. The 1970s. San Diego: Lucent Books, 1999.

Webb, Marcus. The United States of America. San Diego: Lucent Books, 2000.

WEB SITES

Country Analysis Briefs. www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/cabs/Usa/Background.html (accessed March 1, 2007).

Government Home Page. www.usa.gov (accessed March 1, 2007).

Travel Industry of America. See America.org. www.seeamerica.org (accessed March 1, 2007).

US Government’s Official Web Portal. www.usa.gov (accessed March 1, 2007).

United States

views updated May 21 2018

United States

Basic Data
Official Country Name:United States of America
Region:North & Central America
Population:275,562,673
Language(s):English, Spanish
Literacy Rate:97%
Academic Year:September-June
Compulsory Schooling:10 years
Public Expenditure on Education:5.4%
Foreign Students in National Universities:453,785
Educational Enrollment:Primary: 24,045,967
 Secondary: 21,473,692
 Higher: 14,261,778
Educational Enrollment Rate:Primary: 102%
 Secondary: 97%
 Higher: 81%
Teachers:Primary: 1,499,697
 Secondary: 1,394,080
 Higher: 915,321
Student-Teacher Ratio:Primary: 17:1
Female Enrollment Rate:Primary: 101%
 Secondary: 97%
 Higher: 92%

History & Background


Historical Evolution:


Puritan New England: The American system of education has undergone dramatic transformations at various times since its origins in the 1600s, reflecting changes in the social life and culture of the nation. The educational system predates even the word "American," which was introduced in 1684 by Cotton Mather, a Puritan minister in New England whose sermons reflected his concerns over formal ways to rear young people. For that matter, the term "education" itself was coined around 1531, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, referring to a process for the rearing of youth in society. It was not synonymous with institutional learning until the early 1600s, coinciding with the founding of colonies in the New World.

In a sense, the religious turmoil of Europe in the 1500s is the starting point for understanding the history of education in colonial America. Had European exploration of America occurred with far more vigor in the early sixteenth century, the teachings of the Catholic Church would have been the greatest influence on early education. Because Europe's colonization of America came a full century after the Protestant Reformation, however, the most obvious influence on education in the colonies was the presence of numerous religious sects. These sects, or religious denominations, included the Puritans, Huguenots, Anabaptists, and Quakers.

Schools were among the first institutions built by the colonists. They were outranked in importance only by homes and houses of worship, a reflection of their value among a citizenry preoccupied with otherworldly salvation. All religious leaders regarded education of their young people as essential as a means to ensure the replication of their individual sects. "Especially it becomes parents to have their children well taught in the mysteries of a profitable calling," preached Cotton Mather. "We should be studious to have them know something by which they too may live." Mather also praised teachers: "Worthy of honor are the teachers that convey wisdom unto our children; worthy of double honor the happy instruments that convey saving wisdom to them."

In part because of religious doctrine and in part because those were dangerous times, sects such as the Puritans, or "Pilgrims," who began Plymouth Colony in 1620, promoted educational teachings with little sugarcoating for the children. All educational teaching was a type of religious instruction, and the intent clearly was to preserve the Puritan culture and to keep all followers homogenous and disciplined. Early religious leaders strove to influence their followers' supposedly corruptible souls with sacred teachings directed at their minds. The Bible was believed to be the direct word of God, and instruction was given to children and adults alike in thundering sermons from the pulpit.

Likewise, all teachers felt that absolute adherence to fundamental teachings was the best way to pass on values held in common. Any children resisting the teachings of a schoolmaster or displaying a disobedient nature could quickly be yanked from their benches for the liberal application of the master's lash or some other form of corporal punishment thought to drive the devil from the child's body. If children did something particularly egregious that interfered with their salvation, or the schoolmaster was unusually stern, they could sit for a time, in yokes similar to those worn by oxen, as they reflected on their transgressions.

By 1634, Massachusetts Bay had evolved from a wilderness setting into growing political and religious communities of 10,000 settlers. In Massachusetts, children began their educations at around eight years old and continued for six years. Although the English practice was generally to educate only the children of the upper classes, the colony also educated children of less wealthy settlers, as well as the offspring of ministers and merchants. Villages in the colony that became New York varied in their enforcement of education by locale. Only New York City had Latin schools comparable to those in Massachusetts. Eventually, a pro-education group with Church of England roots, called the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, started some 20 schools in New York.

In 1638, the abundant educational opportunities available in Massachusetts next became available in New Haven, Connecticut, which opened a school immediately after the town's founding. In addition to the children of villagers, schooling was available for one year to indentured servants. A schoolmaster from Boston was brought to New Haven to assume his teaching duties. A few years later, Hartford, Connecticut, had its first school and paid teacher, as did Newport, Rhode Island, by 1640.


Education in the English Colonies: The Massachusetts Bay colony continued to open schools in every town. One by one, villages established schools, supporting them with a building, land, offerings of money, and, occasionally, taxes. The colony began in 1647 to require by law secondary schools in the larger cities, as part of an effort to insure the basic literacy and religious inculcation of all citizens. Even so, education in seventeenth-century Massachusetts was hardly ideal. Some schools were placed under the care of tutors nearly as uneducated as their students. Books were limited to whatever volumes were generously lent by ministers or a town's wealthier citizens. But as the colony drew more educated settlers from England or graduated teachers from Harvard (founded in 1636), the quality of education in New England increasingly improved. Nonetheless, as the Puritans became more prosperous, their zeal for education dampened, and enrollments declined during the 1660s and 1670s.

This trend was reversed by an outburst of evangelistic passion often referred to as "The Great Awakening." Fire-and-brimstone preachers such as Jonathan Edwards, who wrote treatises and delivered orations such as "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God," spurred a public dialog on educational and spiritual issues. More ministers were needed, and schools were founded to train them, reinvigorating a thirst for learning in the New England colonies.

This certainly was one of the more important educational innovations in early America, for the concept of free schools was largely unknown in civilized Europe in that age. The subjects taught were designed to assist students in practical matters of daily life: arithmetic for business; languages to communicate, debate, and preach; and reading to provide access to the Bible and to understand contracts, government documents, and laws. A few schools under more learned schoolmasters even offered language classes in Hebrew. To prepare students for the rigors of classroom life at Harvard, Latin schools were formed in Massachusetts and Connecticut. Illiterate villagers would come to depend on those with reading knowledge to keep them abreast of news, laws, and miscellaneous information.

Settlers in the other colonies founded schools that reflected both their established religions and ties to the lands from which they had emigrated, and, in most places, a single nationality or religion predominated. In a few places, however, such as New York City, many different peoples came to be assimilated after the Dutch lost control of what had been New Amsterdam.

While under control of the Dutch West India Company, the colony of New Netherlands started several schools, maintaining control as if they were business operations. Much of New York was farmland then, and access to schools was often a hardship, particularly in severe winters. Schoolmasters often were affiliated with the Dutch Reformed Church and had general caretaker tasks assigned to them. New Amsterdam, the town that became New York, had its first school started in 1638 by the Dutch Reformed Church. Following the British takeover, an attempt was made, however, to give control of the former parochial school to the Anglican Church, but the diversity of New York made this impossible. It would have been difficult for any one of the 18 represented religious denominations to push its educational philosophy successfully to a city that had swelled from a population of 4,300 people in 1690 to 21,863 in 1771.

In Pennsylvania, Philadelphia and surrounding towns made similar gains in population. Except for some well-run Quaker schools, however, education in colonial Pennsylvania had been neglected as merchants concentrated on building personal fortunes. Finally, in 1749, leading Philadelphia statesman Benjamin Franklin fought for the opening of an academy similar to the Latin grammar schools in Maryland, New York, and Massachusetts; he succeeded in 1751. Franklin further perceived that higher educational opportunities in other colonies were flourishing, particularly at the College of New Jersey (later Princeton), Harvard College in Massachusetts, and Yale in Connecticut.

Franklin openlyand somewhat unfairlyblamed the colony's failure to keep up with German influences in Philadelphia and surrounding areas. Notably, however, in some other parts of Pennsylvania where the German influence was particularly strong, education for younger children was heavily emphasized. (At this time, there was little thought given to a system of secondary education between the one-room schoolhouses and the colleges.) German communities were not at all pleased when criticized for supposed deficiencies in the education of Pennsylvania's children. From the German point of view, English speakers such as Benjamin Franklin were interlopers bent on destroying their culture and way of life.

The Lehigh Valley of Pennsylvania became a particularly desirable location for Germans because of the access to the cities of Reading and Philadelphia. In the area that became the city of Allentown, German settlers showed allegiance to the Zion Reformed Church, and the German Reformed influence dominated the single-room schoolhouses, although the Lutheran and Moravian Churches also created some schools. These schools kept their ties to German culture until nearly the mid-nineteenth century. Eventually, rifts developed between the conservative German-speaking congregation and pastors and their younger opponents advocating the adoption of English in church services and in school teachings.

In time, the German community saw the need for higher education, but the Allentown Seminary it built did not survive. Much of the blame for its failure was the insistence of the Seminary's backers on preserving the school's German culture at a time when many newcomers were English speaking.

The school also failed to see education as of much importance for women. A major exception to this backwardness of colonial leaders in providing education for females was the Moravian seminary for girls, which opened in 1745. Quaker schools in Pennsylvania also strove mightily to provide an education for females; later they helped both male and female children of former Negro slaves.

Virginia settlers, largely members of the Anglican faith and therefore in favor in England, possessed little of the evangelical fervor of the Puritans who had survived years of oppression and opposition from the Crown. Although the Virginia colony founded William and Mary College in 1693 (degrees were not awarded until 1700), it and other Southern colonies did not operate anywhere near as many free grammar or public schools as did Massachusetts and Connecticut.

Drawing inspiration from the operation of English schools, schools in the Southern colonies formed on plantations. In what would become Virginia, Maryland, North and South Carolina, and Georgia, such learning centers tended to be run by tutors or ministers for the education of wealthy children of plantation owners. Many of the owners then sent their children to secondary schools and colleges in England, particularly young men who were groomed to return to the colonies as Anglican ministers. At home, the privileged had access to libraries on the manor that occasionally held thousands of books.

Some children, unable to attend formal schools, nonetheless received an education with heavy emphasis on the Greek and Roman classics from male tutors, Anglican ministers, and learned women who oversaw dame schools. Status-conscious agrarians who became wealthy planters or "country gentlemen" paid the passage for tutor-scholars from England. Some students, aside from the schools, received their education in the form of apprenticeships to skilled tradesmen; this commonly was the case with orphans, for care and education of the poor was a mandate for Church of England (Anglican) congregations. Eventually, laws were enacted that enjoined masters to make certain these apprentices could read, write, and perform elementary arithmetic; enforcement of those laws was sporadic, however. Those who owned hardscrabble farms or made a subsistence living through hunting lacked the same value for the classics that the wealthy land owners possessed, but they too often saw to it that their children received some training in the socalled "three R's." Through the 1670s, Governor William Berkeley of Virginia opposed the establishment of free schools.

As immigrants from Germany, Scotland, and Ireland fled to America in search of economic opportunity in the early 1700s, however, free schools like those in the North were eventually founded. Other schools served the needs of the poor or orphans. Church of England clergy were active in the management of these free schools. Outside Virginia, the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts was very active in founding schools. The Society also demonstrated a passion for the education and well-being of Negro slaves and Indians. Less prosperous and later-settled colonies, most notably Georgia, were unable to start or support anything more than the most rudimentary education system. Those children who managed to receive an education equal to that in the other colonies were usually taught by a clergyman or educated wife of a settler.


Revolution & Westward Expansion: Right before the outbreak of hostilities between the American colonies and England, the population of America was about 2.5 million people. Allegiance to either side was both fierce and inflexible on the part of loyalists and patriots. During the struggle for independence, a significant number of boys and girls received no education or a deficient one at best. Access to books on the frontier was problematic. Printing presses had been present in the colonies ever since the seventeenth century, but replacement of broken parts sent by ship from England was expensive. In addition, British authorities destroyed the presses of those printers said to be publishing materials subversive to the Crown or colonial governors. Libraries existed in the colonies at the time of the Revolution, but these were not the lending libraries of the modern era.

Undereducated, overworked, short-tempered male schoolmasters often presided over the schools. Corporal punishment was a euphemism for outright brutality against children. Perhaps because books were in short supply, the custom of the day was to ask students to memorize long chapters or even whole books, making learning laborious and irksome. Not until the teacher rang a hand bell were students free to express their individual natures. Discipline and utter quiet were valued, not discussion and examination of ideas.

The educators of the time saw that the colonies had become overly dependent upon English manufactured goods, including pamphlets, textbooks, and Bibles, as well as financial support from the crown and teachers and scholars trained in the great universities of England. A great national fervor following the breaking away from England led to nothing short of jingoism, or patriotism, for a time in the nation's schools as they were gradually rebuilt or established anew. Even grammar books contained passages containing patriotic themes. History classes emphasized the cultural heroes of the revolution, and in every schoolhouse in America the walls contained a portrait of General George Washington.

The Constitution and Bill of Rights put great emphasis on preserving freedom of the press and speech, reflected in American curricula in subjects such as composition and rhetoric. Pro-American sentiment led to some historical inaccuracies and biased interpretations that were to become part of everyday learning the classroom, and it would be many years before the role of women and ethnic minorities received anywhere near the attention they receive in the twenty-first century.

Gradually, after the revolution, the priorities of the fledgling country also encompassed education. As the British departed, they ceded by treaty a grand wilderness known as the Northwest Territory that extended to the west banks of the Mississippi River, eventually becoming the states of Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin. Congress wrote forward-thinking legislation, setting aside ample lands in every township for schools. Yet as the 1803 Louisiana Purchase expanded the territory of the United States, and commerce grew in economic importance, national interest in the classical lives of the Romans and Greeks declined. Grammar schools became less dominant, and languages such as French and German were more widely taught outside ethnic communities. Astronomy, logic, and rhetoric were also staples in the curriculum.

Secondary schools were touted in Massachusetts following the final defeat of the British in the War of 1812. Since lawmakers viewed organized common schools for older children to be a splendid democratic way to provide an equal opportunity education, legislators passed a statute in 1827 requiring these "high schools" to be installed in larger townships across the state. One of the chief backers of such legislation was James G. Carter. Carter supported democratic high schools and vigorously opposed the nation's private schools, which he viewed as elitist institutions catering to the wealthy and class conscious. In spite of his passion, full compliance with the law did not occur; opposition from private academies and taxpayers asked to foot the bill for high school construction was vociferous. Practically, these could be maintained only in towns large enough to enroll students in sufficient numbers to justify paying teacher salaries and building schools. Carter's idea of a democratic school system would not fully begin to be realized for another 150 years, as reformers following the civil rights movement pressed for equal-opportunity schools.

James Madison championed a movement to found a great national university, but though money and considerable energies were expended on behalf of such an institution, it failed to overcome opposition from those who thought the founding of schools was a matter for individual states to oversee rather than the federal government. There was more support for national military academies, and the first institution of its kind was established in 1802 at West Point. The U.S. Naval Academy followed in 1845, and the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in 1876. More successful than Madison as an educational visionary was Thomas Jefferson, an advocate for free schools under local supervision. Jefferson was the prime mover behind the founding of a great state college in his own state, the University of Virginia. Its Jefferson-planned library and well-designed classroom buildings served as models for subsequent state schools of higher learning.

Civil War & Progressive Era: The late nineteenth century began to show signs of the progressive school systems that were to evolve in the twentieth century. However, education as a whole was seriously set back during the Civil War. Money that had gone to school districts was diverted to the war effort. Young male teachers were plucked from high schools and sent to war as soldiers. As the war dragged on, many schools in the South shut down entirely, and school districts in rural farming communities and mountain areas with small populations would take many decades to reach educational parity with similar communities in the North. Similarly, the South long would feel the effects of operating with a large population of poorly educated workers.

The so-called Reconstruction of the South was more accurately a dismantling of the South by Northern Republicans in retaliation for the Civil War. As a result, struggling industries and cities and towns barely able to exist could ill afford to spend money on improving school systems or paying teacher salaries. Following the Civil War, numerous schools for the education of freed slaves were established, but these were poorly financed. Impoverished students could not stay in school very long without financial support and ended up dropping out. Finding teachers to meet the demand was another battle. Only about 24 college degrees were awarded to African-Americans prior to the outbreak of the "War Between the States." The most famous teacher-preparation college for blacks, the Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute in Alabama, failed to prosper until the coming of energetic visionary Booker T. Washington in 1875.

As America's population grew, and modes of transportation grew sophisticated, one-room common schools began closing in favor of the establishment of larger elementary schools for grades one through eight. Secondary schools provided four years of increasingly more sophisticated instruction, although for the most part the curriculum of individual schools remained restrictive, with few, if any, course choices allowed by the school boards to make allowances for individual interests of students. In addition, by the late nineteenth century, a number of regions opted to adopt more uniform curriculums among schools under their geographical boundaries. There were, however, some vocationally oriented schools that offered practical subjects in shop subjects for students who, for financial or other reasons, were not planning to attend college. An industrial education association began in 1884, dedicated to professional standards, the hiring of trained teachers, and standardized instruction. With the Industrial Revolution had come a high demand existed for industrial workers that were literate and possessed practical training.


Women's Education: Increasingly, although female education in the United States was slow to gain hold as an idea, mothers were expected in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries to initiate their children in the basics of reading, writing, and arithmetic. Well into the twentieth century, advocates for women's rights fought hard to abolish the notion that women were professionally fit only for nursing or teaching professions, thereby facing exclusion or harassment when attempting to gain entrance into professional schools.

Nonetheless, in earlier years many Americans had paid serious attention to the writings of English author Isaac Watts (1674-1748), who bemoaned the fact that women, untrained and uneducated, often were reduced to the sorriest financial circumstances if unmarried or left alone after the death of a father or spouse. Massachusetts by 1789 was more liberal and allowed females to attend schools; Connecticut and other New England states followed. In the late 1790s, Pennsylvanian Benjamin Rush, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, advocated the formal instruction of girls since they were the guardians of society's morality. Industrialization was rapidly changing familiar social roles. Women replaced schoolmasters in larger cities in the nineteenth century, and primary schools taught by females were instituted in Boston by 1818.

Nationwide, however, attempts to educate females were sporadic, and many religious denominations, such as the German Reformed Church, opposed school learning for their daughters. Even some who supposedly advocated education for girls in the nineteenth century were referring merely to "finishing schools" where social graces could be picked up, so that as married women the girls would have some preparation to teach their male offspring. Many seminaries were opened for wealthier girls in the nineteenth century as an alternative to male academies, but these primarily were intended to produce educated mothers and few other professional women other than teachers. In spite of these limitations, a small number of women did achieve upward mobility as physicians, taking advantage of their overwhelming talents, intellects, and instincts for seizing opportunities. One of the more significant seminary founders was Emma Willard, who founded her oft-emulated institution in 1821 in Troy, New York. Together with Catherine Beecher and Mary Lyon, Willard became an advocate for quality secondary educational opportunities for girls.


American Educational Leaders: Although early American settlers had been chiefly influenced by European philosophy, by the time of the Revolution, schools were working to break with the past. Nonetheless, American colonists did respect fine English minds. One of the most influential thinkers upon American educational philosophy was the British thinker John Locke, who wrote that all minds at birth were a blank tablet and the mind was imprinted with what it learned through experience. American leaders liked his emphasis on common sense and empirical knowledge, leading to a strong emphasis on the value of practical experience and the worthiness of scientific experimentation that could be replicated by others.

Among the first truly American educational philosophers was the nineteenth-century visionary Horace Mann (1796-1859), an orator and champion for the cause of preserving American democracy by the continuous development of an educated citizenry. Mann was a Massachusetts legislator who used his influence to get the state to set up a Massachusetts board of education. That accomplished, Mann quit his position and assumed the post of Massachusetts Board of Education secretary, 1837-1848. Mann used his public forum to preach with vigor the benefits of state-run schools, and he was just as passionately opposed to Calvinist schools, which he viewed as provincial and lacking in foresight.

A former Calvinist turned Unitarian, Mann was not against religious training per se, advocating scripture readings in the schools and moral lessons. In his role as administrator, he came to argue that common schools were essential for molding of character of the nation's youth and providing the training that would make them self-sufficient throughout life. Mann regarded classrooms as sanctuaries to keep children away from the world's vices. He saw teachers as guides entrusted with leading their charges down the golden paths of virtuous living. Since the U.S. government continued to distance itself from religion in affairs of state, he considered schools essential for the development of godly leaders.

When the ambitious Mann became editor of The Common School Journal and espoused his ideas there, his views on education soon were debated nationally and adopted in some form by many states. Gleefully he said in a 1839 speech that "the universal diffusion and ultimate triumph of all-glorious Christianity itself must await the time when knowledge shall be diffused among men through the instrumentality of good schools." In Mann's era, immigration then was mainly of Europeans with Christian convictions, and he did not anticipate the day when diverse numbers of people of all religions would send their children to public schools. His philosophy is also dated by his promotion of the pseudo-science of phrenology, believing that the most intelligent students could be determined by the shape and bone structure of their skulls.

On the other hand, Mann's desire to use the schools for character building would fall on equally receptive ears in the twenty-first century, and he was a tireless fighter for higher taxes to pay teachers a fair living wage and for curriculum reform. He also was an advocate for better teaching institutions to train teachers; specialized colleges for teachers and elementary and high school administrators, then, fell well below standards for graduation of accredited universities and colleges.

Mann's contemporary, educator Henry Barnard (1811-1900), was another nineteenth-century giant in education. As a member of the Connecticut legislature, he lobbied for the creation of a state school board. During his long career, Barnard was Connecticut Board of Education secretary, Rhode Island superintendent of schools, a college president (St. John's, Annapolis), a University of Wisconsin chancellor, and ultimately, in 1867, the first U.S. Commissioner of Education. In part due to his advocacy work, nearly 30 cities employed school superintendents during his tenure as U.S. Commissioner of Education.

His achievements were varied. He persuaded Rhode Island officials to begin a state system of public schools. He championed his ideas for educational reform at all levels as the publisher and editor of the American Journal of Education (1855-1881) and other trade periodicals, paving the way for educational administration to be recognized as a field in its own right. Perhaps Barnard's greatest contribution was his ability to raise public interest in the schools for the betterment of state school systems nationwide, but he also fought for better textbooks, the creation of cooperative parent-teacher associations, and systematic procedures for inspection of schools. In his lifetime, peers honored him as the foremost authority in school administration.

One of the most important educational philosophers of the early twentieth century was John Dewey (1859-1952), a pragmatist who as a young man tried to reconcile his passion for science with his New England Christian upbringing. He preached the theory of "instrumentalism," that mankind must accept statements presented by scientists that can be verified by repeated observation, instead of looking the other way or rationalizing problems away. Dewey thus introduced a system of ethics to education. His important books, How We Think and Democracy and Education, appeared respectively in 1910 and 1916 and cemented his reputation as one of the century's great thinkers and educators.

His pragmatic approach held that education was meant to help students know the world as it actually is, not in some mythic sense. His theory maintained that there is always hidden information that mankind cannot know and that the acquisition of new knowledge brings with it ever changing ways of looking at the universe. For human beings to remain unchanged in the face of rational explanations, citing unyielding belief in a higher authority was to stifle inquiry, problem-solving, and free expression. Dewey championed democracy as a way of life but left open the possibility that as new knowledge was acquired, human beings might follow a more perfect form of government in the distant future. The Progressive Education Association touted other ideas of Dewey in the 1930s particularly, attacking inflexible curriculums that stifled the personal growth of individual students and their talents and interests.


Constitutional & Legal Foundations


Colonial Precedents: Massachusetts passed a statute requiring the education of all children in 1647. Towns of 100 or more families were required by law to establish formal secondary or "grammar" schools that taughtin addition to religious values, reading, and writingthe subjects of arithmetic, Latin, and Greek. The colony's governing body required all parents living in a community of at least 50 families to employ the services of a schoolmaster who imparted, not just community and church values, but skills related to reading and writing. There was to be no charge for the children of Native Americans who wanted an education. Compensation to the schoolmaster was 50 pounds a year.

Parents were required to school their children under penalty of having those offspring placed in the custody of another master who would see to it they were educated until males reached 21 and females became 18. Towns could be heavily fined for noncompliance with the education statute.

Three years later, the growing colony of Connecticut did the same, its code drawn from the one passed in Massachusetts. Not only parents, but also masters responsible for children who were indentured servants, were required to send their charges to school. Fines were levied for noncompliance. Laws stayed in effect in both Connecticut and Massachusetts until independent state constitutions for both former colonies were written after the American Revolution. Parents in the colony of Virginia were also required to send their children to school, as education was compulsory. Failing to send one's children was to run afoul of Virginia courts.


Constitution & Federal Law: The United States Constitution makes clear that the founders wanted to place responsibility for the education of its citizens under the control of states and other jurisdictions, such as the District of Columbia. States derive their power and responsibility to their schools from the Tenth Amendment, since the federal Constitution itself makes no provision for federal control of education.

Each state writes its own statutes concerning education and amends or rewrites them as changing circumstances demand. Essentially, every state and jurisdiction must provide, maintain, support, and guide a system of public schools for the well-being and education of the citizens in that state. Each also must license and pay heed to the institutions providing private education. Because the governance of numerous school districts is enormous in scope and complexity, states in turn place primary responsibility for the overall operations into the care of administrators and boards overseeing a large number of administrative districts.

The federal government, however, has not absolutely absolved itself of the responsibility to provide material resources to U.S. schools or to step in should violations occur that appear to violate protections for citizens guaranteed by the constitution. In addition, the government throughout early American history set aside public lands to set benefit schools.

Following the precedent set in 1787, when Congress set aside land in the Northwest Territory, lawmakers passed the Morrill Act of 1862, setting aside federal lands for the purpose of building colleges and emphasizing agriculture and mechanical arts (engineering). The act was amended in 1890, taking into account the changing needs of state universities founded on public lands. Vermont congress member Justin Morrill was the prime instigator of the bill. Others in Congress expressed opposition to it; in fact, five years before its passage, the Morrill Act went down in defeat, vetoed by then-President James Buchanan. Although the pro-agriculture nature of the schools earned it the strong support of Southern lawmakers, it was after the South seceded that the Morrill Act was passed during the administration of President Abraham Lincoln. The law also had strong support from Midwest farming states.

Following the Civil War, many universities were finally constructed on the public lands set aside for that purpose, including several that offered educational opportunities in higher education to blacks. Many sons and daughters of farmers and working class Americans received the benefits of an education thanks to Morrill's bill. In addition, advances in scientific farming, wise agricultural practices, and healthier food standards also can be attributed to the establishment of those colleges. Several major U.S. universities trace their success back to land-grant beginnings, including the University of Florida, the University of Kentucky, Purdue University (Indiana), Clemson University (South Carolina), Pennsylvania State University, Ohio State University, West Virginia University, Oregon State University, and the University of Maryland.

Closely connected to the Morrill Act was the Hatch Act of 1887, allowing federal aid to enable operation of agricultural research operations at state colleges for the benefit of all citizens, since the country was dependent upon agricultural products. The federal government passed the Smith-Lever Act in 1914, establishing Cooperative Extension in partnership with the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the land-grant universities for educational and informational purposes.

In addition to aid for various educational institutions connected with agriculture, the government has mandated funding for vocational programs at the secondary level. This distribution of federal aid occurred during the Depression Era year of 1937 and was approved under legislation known as the George-Deen Act. The federal government under acts of 1962 approved additional aid for vocational training programs.

The National Science Foundation Act of 1950 established the National Science Foundation (NSF) as an independent agency. NSF funds science and engineering research projects and educational programs, and it actively promotes the dissemination of information in the fields of science and engineering. Congress also attempted to jumpstart research activities in the field of education when it passed the Cooperative Research Act of 1954. The purpose of the bill was to permit the Office of Education to encourage cooperative research by colleges, universities, and state departments of education. One of the primary areas of funding initially was research into mental retardation.

Concerned that the United States was losing power and prestige in the race to conquer space with the Soviets following the launch of Sputnik in 1957, Congress provided further funds for education research in 1958 under terms of the National Defense Education Act (NDEA). Among other functions, NDEA authorized student loans and other financial aid to higher education, particularly in science, mathematics, and modern languages. Another area of concern and funding was educational television and other media.

One of the more comprehensive programs of the 1960s was the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. Among various titles or sections, it offered aid to schools with a high percentage of low-income families to fund programs in special education, to enable school libraries to purchase materials, and to fund educational research, as well as additional purposes. The federal government through the Library Services and Construction Act of 1964 and the Medical Library Assistance Act of 1965 provided additional money for library projects and facilities.

The best known section of this 1965 legislation is Title I, by which Congress extended federal aid to the children of the poor in an attempt to provide them equal educational opportunities. President Lyndon Johnson personally endorsed Title 1 as the most compelling entry in his "Great Society" platform.

In 1981, Congress passed the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act during the Republican administration of President Ronald Reagan. This bill provided block grants to states, taking away some of the direct federal involvement in Title 1 that had been criticized by some politicians. Among other major changes at that time, Congress mandated that students applying for low-interest loans demonstrate financial need for funds. Other money for students proving need was available after passage of legislation approving Pell grants.


Issues of Church & State: In early America the connection between church and state was taken for granted, but the increasing diversity of the nation forced legislators and courts to consider the issue more carefully, particularly in response to immigration. Although the Quakers, Dutch Reformed, and other denominations operated schools during the colonial period, one of the largest explosions of parochial schools occurred between 1880 and 1910 with the influx of Catholic immigrants from Poland, Spain, Italy, Ireland, and other European countries.

The milestone political action by Catholic Church interests in America was a national convention of clerics and theologians convening in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1884. This resulted in the founding of Catholic University in Washington, DC, as well as detailed plans to establish a nationwide network of diocese-based schools as well as seminaries and convents for training priests and nuns. In time, churches came to build both elementary schools and high schools. Anti-Catholic sentiment was widespread, and anti-Catholic advocates claimed victory when in the 1920s Oregon legislators mandated attendance in public schools up to age 16, effectively stopping the spread of parochial schools.

In 1925, however, the right of religious denominations to operate schools was affirmed by a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court. In Pierce v. Society of Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary, the court opined that the state could regulate schools but not decide for parents what school they wanted for their children's education. A ruling in New York State later in the century allowed parents of public school children to send their offspring to religious instruction off public school premises.

One of the more significant issues in early twentieth-century education was creationism. States passed laws in support of a citizen's "right" to take Genesis literally with regard to Creation, thereby renouncing Charles Darwin's theories on the natural evolution of man from less significant species. In 1925 the Scopes Monkey trial brought the issue to a head, in a case against John Scopes, who taught evolutionary theory in violation of Tennessee's anti-evolution act. Although former presidential candidate and fiery attorney William Jennings Bryan won the trial, there was great public and press sympathy for defense attorney Clarence Darrow and for Scopes. Coverage of the Scopes trial by satirist H. L. Mencken caused many Americans to look skeptically at religion in general, and to begin talking heatedly about the need to keep churches out of state affairs.

Nonetheless, as late as 1999, the Kansas Board of Education passed a measure agreeing to prohibit questions on evolution from appearing on state high school standardized exams. The National Association of Biology Teachers supports classroom presentations of evolution, saying that it long has been a theory consistent with science, and it further recommends classroom discussion and study. Leading the religious vanguard against evolution is pro-Creation activist Jonathan Wells, who preaches that there is no scientific basis for evolution.

Other areas of frequent contention include character education, stopping short of religious instruction; attempts to convert children to a particular faith; and remarks that might offend some in the classroom that belong to minority faiths, practice Wicca, or have no faith at all. Some critics attack not only school prayer or celebration of religious holidays but also the mandatory recital of the Pledge of Allegiance due to the phrase "one nation under God." Court cases in Maryland, Pennsylvania, and other states have prohibited state legislatures from mandating the saying of daily Bible verses or a prayer identified as sectarian, which would effectively favor Christianity over other religions.

On the other hand, in the 1990s some parents and children were concerned that the zeal to separate church and state was depriving elementary and secondary students of some practices that interfered with neither the beliefs nor the privacy of others. For example, they perceived that students could wear clothing with slogans of a non-religious nature, but they were not permitted to wear clothing with Biblical slogans. By the late 1990s, the Department of Education published guidelines allowing children of Christian and other faiths to make references to their religious beliefs while addressing normal school subject matter and to bow their heads before meals to say grace. The NEA also became involved, attempting to create a climate where respect for a person's personal beliefs was the norm. In addition to Christianity, many schools have made a point of safeguarding the beliefs of minority religions in a school, such as Islam or Buddhism. By the late 1990s, schools also were asked to protect the rights of individuals who openly professed no faith or alternate faiths such as Wicca.


Civil Rights & Education: As part of the culture of slavery, nineteenth-century legislators passed laws against the education of blacks. Laws that deprived people of a chance to better themselves were a most egregious but effective method to keep a whole people in bondage. While some landowners provided for the rudimentary teaching of writing, reading, and arithmetic for household slaves as a matter of self-interest, others prohibited such learning entirely, and a whipping or other physical punishment could be administered for violations. The only southern states permitting landowners to educate slaves before the Civil War were Kentucky, Maryland, and Tennessee. Because southern blacks outnumbered landowners in many southern states, there was near mass hysteria behind the legislation to keep blacks uneducated and to prevent rebellion.

Rebellions nonetheless ensued. A rebellion in South Carolina in 1739 resulted in murder of 75 slaves, and a later rebellion at Charleston in 1822 was also put down with a loss of life. Both the abolitionist movement in the South and activist efforts to educate southern begroes were dealt a serious setback in 1831 when a bloody rebellion known as the Southampton Insurrection convinced landowners that the education of slaves had to be controlled or outlawed. Nat Turner, a slave in Southampton County, Virginia, organized a revolt with dozens of runaway slaves bent on gaining freedom at all costs. In the end, the rebellion was quashed, and Turner was executed.

Not even the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation, and the passage of the Thirteenth Amendment (1865) abolishing slavery and the Fifteenth Amendment (1869) guaranteeing civil rights stopped serious educational inequities from being practiced in many parts of the South. So-called "black codes" and later "Jim Crow" legislation enforcing school and public-place segregation were enforced from about 1865 until long into the twentieth century. White families humiliated Caucasian teachers who came from the North to educate Negro children, and a few teachers were murdered or falsely accused of the "crime" of miscegenation (the marriage or cohabitation between white and nonwhite persons).

Not that the education of blacks in the North was any more progressive in many areas. In New England, abolitionists gradually agitated for desegregation, but both white and black townspeople, and even educators, blocked what was legally permissible, many arguing for the social benefits of separate schools. In Philadelphia, a public school administrator who opened a school for blacks in 1822 actually offered white citizens an apology for doing what in other parts of the world would become known in full arrogance as "picking up the white man's burden." As an exception, Quaker schools in Pennsylvania and New England offered equal educational opportunities to all students.

In Indiana in 1850, many lawmakers not only wanted to ban any new settlers with a "drop" of black blood from settling in the state, but many wanted to pass a colonization attempt to banish existing blacks to Africa. Even legislators opposing such legislation as unconstitutional sometimes commented on what they perceived to be the "inferiority" of blacks. Laws of Indiana and Illinois allowed the establishment of non-integrated schools for Caucasian students.

Not until 1855 did a stateMassachusettsaggressively mandate integration of the races in public schools, and that state succeeded because of a relatively low population of blacks and a strong presence of influential abolitionists. New York, with its record of putting to death blacks suspected of arson in the nineteenth century and a very large black population, failed to pass statutes to end segregation until 1900.

Many black parents supported segregation, realizing that their children could be injured, or even killed, by forcing the issue and integrating public schools. Booker T. Washington, a revered black educator, advised blacks to be passive and to turn the other cheek. The Supreme Court's Plessy v. Ferguson decision in 1896 interpreted the Fourteenth Amendment as permitting segregation, if facilities were "separate but equal." What blacks received in reality were worthless, dated textbooks; substandard and antiquated school buildings; and teachers whose credentials usually failed to match those of teachers in schools populated mainly by white children. Historian John D. Pulliam reports that the costs of educating white and black children at the time were $102 and $67 respectively, effectively showing that separate facilities were, in fact, unequal.

Because schooling of blacks in many colonies and later in states was either repressed or outright forbidden, it took some time for a black educator to emerge as a national champion for the education of African Americans. During the late nineteenth century, a competent teacher with ambition and rhetorical genius named W.E.B. Du-Bois became this leader. Both boys and girls found equal welcome in his classroom, although facilities in black schools were risky by safety standards and furniture often was borrowed and rickety. DuBois became a nationally known writer, educator, and social critic, fiercely opposed to social and educational inequities because of race.

Years later, when President Dwight D. Eisenhower appointed Earl Warren as Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, the issue of "separate but equal" was revisited. In 1954, the Supreme Court utterly reversed the 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson ruling, stressing that separate facilities for education cannot be defined as equal. Immediately after the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education ruling, a number of southern states tried to bypass the law but were thwarted when they tried to pass legislation that was blatantly racist. One county in Virginia tried to declare its public school system at an end, financing instead private schools that were segregated, until the U.S. Supreme Court intervened. Other states continued segregation as usual, flaunting their disregard for the Supreme Court ruling and erecting billboards all over the South that called, unsuccessfully, for Chief Justice Warren's impeachment.

Some 2,300 school districts defied the Supreme Court ruling, and agitated Caucasians in Little Rock, Arkansas, picketed a school undergoing integration and defied federal troops. These actions inspired the black and white supporters of the Reverend Martin Luther King to express powerful opposition through boycotts, marches, and sit-ins at drugstore counters and department store cafeterias. As part of their political action, marchers demanded integration and better educational opportunities for blacks, including full admission to colleges and professional schools in institutions where this had been prohibited. No longer voiceless or uneducated, the civil rights movement was manned by many African-American professional people. There were twice as many blacks in the various professions in 1957 as there had been in 1940, according to historian Samuel Eliot Morison.


Educational SystemOverview


Free & Compulsory Education: After the American Revolution, pro-education spokespersons presented strong views on the best way to form and preserve the character of its citizenry through education. Already there was awareness that a quality education had a price, just as did any other quality services. Pennsylvania's state constitution made provisions for teachers in public schools to be paid by the state, a practice emulated by other states as it became apparent that children who could not afford to pay for schooling clearly needed the state to provide free schools. Eventually states passed provisions to compel children to attend schools. But just as in colonial days, when children were apprenticed to tradesman at young ages, during the nineteenth century textile manufacturers, packing plants, and mining outfits hired children to perform menial jobs. It would be the twentieth century before enforcement standards were sufficient to ensure full compliance.

However, during the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, opponents of compulsory education grew more numerous and more vocal, inspired in part by successes of parents that have home-schooled their children through elementary school and secondary school. School bullying, school shootings, arrests of teachers on various charges, and poor marks received by U.S. youngsters on standardized tests have led critics to say that compulsory education should not be defended without serious thought and conscience searching. By 2001, although compulsory attendance continued in all states, legislators in Washington and other states were seriously pondering legislation that if passed would nullify or amend the law in those states.


Age Limits: All states have a minimum age for allowing a child to begin formal education, but there is no single national standard as to what the birth-month cutoff should be. The majority of states and the District of Columbia have statewide birth dates for entering five-yearolds that all districts must conform to as a kindergarten entrance policy requirement. In 2001 the state law in North Dakota set seven as the entrance age, but that law may be lowered by state legislation. Other exceptions are Colorado, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania; individual school districts set the policy in those five states. All states have set a minimum dropout age somewhere between 14 and 18, with the most common age requirement being 16 (in 36 states).


Academic Year: Plans by several school districts to lengthen the academic year by four or five days have met with angry protests by students. The combination of increasingly more complex subject matter, state testing requirements, and public perceptions regarding school quality has led critics and supporters of education alike to advocate more school days in the annual calendar. Most commonly, school boards propose the increases in an attempt to raise student performance marks on standardized tests. One such protest in March 2001 occurred at Kellam High School in Virginia Beach, Virginia, after the school board extended the calendar from 180 to 185 days.

Every now and then a school board comes into the news when it considers the notion of extending the school year through the summer. During the twenty-first century, the debate over whether the school year for elementary and secondary students should be extended to 11 or 12 months will be waged even more vigorously. Few schools have actually adopted such a schedule: parents argue that the change would disrupt their family lives, teachers argue that their workload is already burdensome, and students complain that their opportunity to earn money for college would be jeopardized without the chance to work summer jobs. Employers that depend on students also object to the proposal.


Enrollment: Record enrollments most definitely will be recorded during the twenty-first century. During the 1990s, the U.S. population grew by nearly 25 million people, surpassing every decade but one and guaranteeing maximum use of schools for years to come.

During the 1950s, 28 million babies were born, the largest number of births in a single 10-year period recorded up to the year 2000. Beginning in 1951, school children began enrolling in kindergartens and first grade in numbers that were unprecedented. The dramatic rise would, in 1960, begin to have an effect on secondary schools, followed by an explosion in college enrollments starting in 1964. The number of students coming into these schools at every level was due to the popularly named Baby Boom, which refers to the skyrocketing increase in births after World War II from 1946 to 1964. Enrollment in elementary and secondary schools peaked in 1971, according to the Digest of Education Statistics. As increasing numbers of U.S. parents divorced, enrollments of elementary and high school students also declined from 1971 to 1984.

The second half of 1985 once again saw a return to the trend of increasing enrollments. This coincided with an overall increase in the population. Enrollment in elementary and secondary schools reached high levels in the mid-1990s, and that trend continued to the end of the decade. U.S. public elementary school enrollment increased from 29.2 million in 1989 to 33.7 million in 1999, the last date for which estimates were available. Likewise, public high schools reported 11.4 million enrollees in 1989 and an estimated 13.5 million in 1999. These stunning increases in public K-12 schools are not reflective of the trends in private elementary and secondary schools, however. Over the same 10-year period, the private schools actually reported a 1 percent decrease. Altogether in 1999, about 6 million students enrolled in private K-12 schools.

The combined enrollment of public and private school students in U.S. elementary and secondary schools at the start of the fall 2000 semester was an estimated 53 million people, according to the federal government. The 1990 enrollment of 46.5 million students in these schools translates to a jump in enrollment of 14 percent in a single decade. Government analysts project further growth through 2005, although at a less dramatic percentage of increase than was observed during the 1990s.

By 2005, the Department of Education anticipates a leveling off of enrollment in the total number of elementary and secondary students, with decreases seen between 2005 and 2010, although projections for enrollment through 2006 suggest that numbers of secondary school students will reach an all-time high before dropping. Enrollments in elementary school are expected to stay high but somewhat more constant until 2009. The decrease in growth reflects a lower annual birth rate between 1991 and 1997.

Educator Diane Ravitch noted in 1984 that while total enrollment ballooned in the United States from 23 million to 40 million students between l945 and l980, schools declined from l85,000 institutions to fewer than 86,000 during the same time period, a reflection of the increasing popularity of consolidated elementary and secondary schools. What is difficult to predict in 2001 is whether the trend to build a few larger, consolidated schools or numerous, smaller, community-based schools will emerge victorious. Supporters and critics of each system are numerous and vocal. The consolidated schools tend to have larger classes, fewer teachers and administrators, and strong emphasis on extracurricular sports competition with rival schools.


Private School Tuition: According to the latest figures posted by the federal government, private schools charged an average tuition of $3,116 in 1993-1994. Parochial school tuition was significantly lower than that of nonsectarian schools. Catholic schools charged $2,178 on average; schools with other religious affiliations charged $2,915 on average. Nonsectarian private schools charged an average tuition of $6,631.


Immigration & Bilingual Education: U.S. residents aged five years and older who either speak no English or have a small grasp of the language are increasing in number, presenting additional challenges to teachers in the classroom. Many immigrants came to the United States from countries where English was not the official language, and they have moved into communities where proximity to family or friends has offered a compelling reason for learning a new language.

Preliminary reports from Census 2000 indicate that figures will even be higher for the number of language minorities than is available in the 1990 data, the latest information posted by the government on a state-by-state basis. Since the 1970 Census, numbers of Asian and Hispanic immigrants have increased. Large cities show significant additions of Hispanic populations, particularly Texas cities such as San Antonio, where Hispanic residents have been the dominant culture numerically since 1990. The Lewis Mumford Center for Comparative and Urban and Regional Research reports that Hispanic residents doubled in Austin, Dallas, and Forth Worth, while Houston reported an 80 percent increase since 1990. On the East Coast, Asians grew in similar large populations by 70 percent in Newark and Jersey City, New Jersey. Asians and Hispanics reported increases of at least 50 percent in large cities such as Indianapolis, Milwaukee, New Orleans, Norfolk-Virginia Beach-Newport News, Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh.

Based on 1990 Census information, when the population was 230,445,777 people, the number of speakers who spoke a primary language other than English was 31,844,979. Of that total, 4,826,958 people spoke very little English, and 1,845,243 said they spoke it not at all. In particular, of people who reported Spanish as their primary language, some 3,804,792 reported that they spoke English poorly, while 3,040,828 reported that they did not speak English at all. Even more significant numbers for education show that 761,778 people between the ages of 5 and 17 spoke English only a little and 145,785 spoke it not at all, a significant increase since 1980. In terms of state representation, California reports 681,504 households where English is spoken not at all and 1,621,098 households where English and another primary language are spoken. Overall population in the United States in March 2001 was 283,859,806 people, according to government figures.

The Bilingual Education Act of 1967 was an attempt by the federal government to assist, in particular, school districts that found themselves with a growing influx of youngsters who were primarily speakers of Spanish or another language such as Chinese. The Office of Bilingual Education and Minority Language Affairs intends to develop linguistically and culturally diverse students under the auspices of the federal Department of Education. Bilingual education most commonly has both native Spanish and native English speakers taking part in an education program wherein part of a day's school instruction is given in English and part in Spanish or another language.

English as a Second Language (ESL) instruction enables the student whose primary language is Spanish to receive concentrated assistance to learn English grammar and composition. Other classes may be taught in any combination of English and the additional language. Instruction in the native language and English, rather than English alone, has been determined to be of great assistance to students needing to master material in other classes, such as math and science. One of the drawbacks to the federal bilingual education program is a pronounced dearth of bilingual education and ESL teachers. Consequently, since 1980, federal funding has been directed to numerous teacher-training institutions to produce more than 80,000 teachers with bilingual skills.


Technology in Education: While computers are found in an increasing number of schools, and students themselves report increasing familiarity with the Internet, the majority of teachers in a 2001 survey report low levels of Internet usage. Nearly 87 percent of teachers surveyed said they were acquainted with the Internet, but only 40 percent used the Internet 30 minutes or more daily for educational purposes, according to NetDay, a nonprofit education group that assists teachers with technology.

Although elementary and secondary educators continue to put the main classroom emphasis on textbooks for student reading, technology experts see an upsurge in school Internet use since 1993. Many schools maintain a Web site; according to Web66, an international registry of schools at the University of Minnesota, nearly 9,000 elementary and secondary schools had Web sites in April 2001.

Outside the schools, thanks to home and library computers, 45 percent of America's 30 million children have access to the Internet, according to a Pew Internet & American Life Project study released in February 2001. Almost three-quarters of teens aged 12 to 17 can access the Internet, while fewer than 1 in 3 beneath the age of 12 can do so.


Mathematics & Science Teaching: The National Science Foundation takes a visible role in stressing reforms and accomplishments in U.S. schools from kindergarten through graduate education. NSF's Division of Elementary, Secondary, and Informal Education provides one of the best sources for K-12 grant opportunities and general information on science education for teachers.

Science and math education have been priorities of numerous presidential administrations, but while there has been slow progress over time, in the late twentieth century the issue acquired more urgency. In spite of administration concerns, U.S. student performances overall continued at disappointing levels on national tests, according to the National Center for Education Statistics, although the NCES stresses that some U.S. youngsters do post scores equal to those of any other nation.

The NSF released scores comparing eighth graders from 38 nations and comparing their scores to similar testing conducted when they were in the fourth grade. American eighth graders had dropped measurably in scores in that four-year period, a tendency that a NSF spokesperson said might be attributed to more middle school math and science classes being staffed by teachers who were non-majors in those subjects. Overall, U.S. youngsters scored only about average on the tests, which is significantly behind the scores in Japan and Korea. They also did not keep up with gains in test scores over a four-year period exhibited by students from Canada.

In 2000, the Science and Math Teaching for the Twenty-First Century Report, also called the Sen. John Glenn Commission Report, offered strategies for improving educational performance of math and science students. In addition, as had his predecessor Bill Clinton, President George W. Bush announced in 2001 that accomplishing gains in science and math testing would be a priority of his administration. His administration recommended annual testing in state-approved math and science exams every year for students in the fourth through eighth grades.


Students with Disabilities: In 1968, the Handicapped Children's Early Education Program started as a pilot program to provide quality special education and other services to disabled children from birth through the third grade. Congress saw a need for providing families with these early intervention programs to assist children with disabilities and to provide their caregivers with information specific to their educational needs. The program began with 24 demonstration projects in 1968. Over the years, the program was greatly expanded to include model outreach projects, early intervention research disbursement, experimental projects, and in-service training projects, among other innovations. In 1990 the organization changed its name to the Early Education Program for Children with Disabilities (EEPCD).

Since 1997 and the passage of a number of federal amendments, including the Amendments to Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in 1997, EEPCD has not been a freestanding program. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Amendments of 1997 meant a significant expansion in educational opportunities and services for disabled children. With its strong emphasis on learning, the program expressed the expectation that disabled children could receive an education with results that would become apparent in a meaningful way after schooling ended.

Since 1980, the number of students enrolled in programs for disabled children has slowly grown. About 10 percent of the school population fell under the category of disabled during the 1980-1981 school year, according to government figures. That number increased to 13 percent during the 1997-1998 school year. The fastest growing area is that segment of the population termed learning disabled. The population of learning disabled children was only four percent in 1980-1981, but it had risen two points to six percent in 1997-1998.


Curriculum & Educational Reform: The incorporation in 1906 of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching (founded in 1905 by magnate and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie) is the starting point for curriculum development in the twentieth century. This foundation became integral in the formation of standards and a standardized curriculum for all U.S. schools, as well as eventually providing a structured, unbiased means to assess the quality of educational institutions. The foundation set the standard of a single credit for courses taken in secondary schools, a recommendation met with opposition by critics who believed that certain science, mathematics, and humanities courses have more educational value than some courses perceived to be easier to pass. The NEA further fine-tuned reform when it defined core subjects required for graduation, as well as the minimum number of credits required by a student seeking a diploma (including requirements in mathematics and English).

Among numerous other changes in education over the last 110 years, the curriculum has altered considerably. Subjects generally recommended by leading educators included classical and modern languages; mathematics courses such as algebra, geometry, and trigonometry; miscellaneous science courses; and humanities courses in history, geography, and English. Even though relatively few students advanced from high school to college in the late nineteenth to early twentieth century, the U.S. curriculum has been traditionally based on college-entrance.

In 1995, however, the U.S. Department of Education advocated that the secondary school curriculum be strengthened and enriched to include a focus on life beyond the classroom, issuing an online report entitled "Raising the Educational Achievement of Secondary School Students." While early American education stressed rote learning and discipline, schools in the twenty-first century must stress challenging, rigorous studies that show students a correlation between classroom studies and the occupations and endeavors they may undertake after graduation. Teachers ideally should involve students in an active way to produce knowledge, rather than merely to sit passively and receive lectures. While schools are responsible for material mandated by the state or other governing boards, they should also find innovative ways to teach that fully engage students in community, service, and work situations, enabling students to perceive the value of what they learn.

College preparedness is not to be wholly dismissed, however. The trend of placing students in vocational or general education tracks, with subjects taught that are well beneath the breadth and depth of college-preparatory tracks, faced criticism at the close of the twentieth century. Students in the lower tracks receive repetitive training in specific skills and received little opportunity to exercise problem solving and critical thinking. In addition, students coming from certain socioeconomic classes and those facing language barriers find themselves, in effect, segregated because of tracking and a concern for how students in a particular school may perform overall on standardized tests.

After studying secondary schools considered among the best in the United States, researchers Fred Newmann, director of The Center on Organization and Restructuring of Schools, and G. G. Wehlage identified five characteristics connected to optimal instruction:

  • Schools emphasize higher-order thinking to combine facts and ideas and then to come up with conclusions and interpretations of the material.
  • Students are encouraged to be problem solvers with a broad depth of knowledge and to understand the core ideas of various disciplines, as well as to see the ways various disciplines connect.
  • Students apply their knowledge in ways that would prove useful in business, the military, personal investments, or recreation choices outside the classroom's walls.
  • Students are encouraged to develop rhetorical skills, demonstrating that they can communicate knowledge of a subject and engage listeners in a meaningful way. In effect, they learn from their peers and vice versa.
  • The classroom should provide a supportive, respectful environment where students can take intellectual risks and learn in an environment highly conducive to meeting the educational needs of all. Rather than deposit slower learners in remedial programs, the educators suggest that students may achieve better if placed in challenging environments.

The researchers also found that the main exceptions to including students of varying abilities in one classroom may be made in subjects such as mathematics or reading, where students may be grouped with others capable of roughly similar performance levels.

Another recent development in educational reform has been the interest in mandatory testing. The impetus for statewide testing as a mechanism to work for schools of higher quality was a 1983 study called "A Nation at Risk: The Imperative for Educational Reform," produced following a mandate from Reagan-era Secretary of Education Terrel H. Bell. Some of that report's recommendations were to improve character, maintain better discipline, and reduce risks and addictive behaviors. Other recommendations were designed to bring about more effective teaching, more input from parents and local governments, and improved performance in all basics such as mathematics, science, and English.

"A Nation at Risk" coincided with poor performances by American youth on test scores in mathematics, science, and other skill areas when compared to youths in some other countries, as well as complaints from the military and business over the academic ineptitude of recruits and new workers. Presidents from Reagan through George W. Bush have made education reform the focus of campaign rhetoric, and have, during their respective administrations, pushed hard for high achievement rankings equal to or superior to results produced in the classrooms of other nations. The fact that schools blessed with resources for their relatively privileged students tend to achieve far better test results than do schools whose resources are marginal or deficient promises to contribute to a long and sometimes acrimonious debate over standards and testing.


Textbooks: Not until nearly 1690 did any sort of a uniform schoolbook appear that targeted knowledge specifically for maturing minds. The illustrated New England Primer appeared around or before 1690, offering religious instruction and the way to virtue in rhyming verse with couplets and epigrams, along the lines of "Time cuts down all, Both great and small."

The New England Primer 's sale of some 2 million copies during the colonial period cannot be overlooked as an important unifying influence in the education of children of various sects. Schools of the Northeast were similar in their piety and sober atmosphere, mattering little if the congregations were Calvinist, Congregational, Puritan, or Unitarian. Students went on from the Primer to learn psalms and passages from the Bible.

During the twenty-first century, by contrast, educators are faced with organized protests to textbook selections. Protests since 1990 have been directed against textbooks said to contain materials that are perceived to be any of the following: anti-Christian, anti-American, or representative of so-called "New Age" secular humanism. From Virginia to California, parents occasionally inform schools that they want teachers to send home parental permission slips if an assigned novel or collection of stories has one or more scenes containing sexual situations. Other textbook conflicts have arisen over matters of science, particularly how scientific theories of evolution are presented, and miscellaneous stories or plays included in literature anthologies. In one extreme case, a Florida principal authorized cutting out a play about AIDS from a textbook.

The Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) advises that students in elementary and secondary school will read some 32,000 pages in textbooks before graduation. ERIC recommends that state authorities involved in the selection process of adopting textbooks should be aware that textbooks in the past have excluded the achievements of women and minorities, as well as sometimes satisfying various political agendas. Women, for example, were depicted in these textbooks in dependent, domestic roles. The representation of women and minorities too often was limited to the first in particular fields such as aviation or law, rather than putting emphasis on contributions made cooperatively by women and men of all races in every aspect of American life, such as the settling of the frontier.

Teachers have begun to resist the limited choices in textbooks offered by the committees appointed by the state department of education. For example, the National Council of Teachers of English in May 1990 considered member objections to state-adopted texts that tended to control the curriculum and to limit professional choices of the teachers entrusted with the responsibility of teaching the material in the classroom. The teachers wanted the freedom not to adopt textbooks recommended by the committees or to use those textbooks in the curriculum in ways they felt most professionally comfortable. Other hard-fought discussions concern the degree of perceived difficulty of textbooks, as teachers attempt to help students pass challenging state tests required for graduation. Such was the case in California in 2001, as teachers, superintendents, and publisher representatives disagreed over the inclusion of a challenging mathematics textbook on a state-approved list.

Each year the state and local authorities selecting textbooks are making choices worth millions of dollars; the cost in California alone was estimated to be $415 million in 2001, according to the Los Angeles Times. Given that amount of money and the possibility of conflict over subject matter in textbooks representing a variety of disciplines, it is instructive to note how relatively smoothly the selection of textbooks goes each year in nearly all states. When a conflict does occur, however, the incident is likely to draw wide press coverage, suggesting that such conflicts are more common than they really are.

Less controversial is the selection process for textbooks purchased by students for college classes. In many cases, academic freedom allows instructors to choose the texts they believe will best prepare their students to understand course objectives. In a few cases, particularly where frequently offered courses are taught by adjunct or part-time instructors, a department head or appointed committee may choose the books.


Foreign Influences on Educational System: From primary to tertiary education, the strongest foreign influence on the American educational system has come from Germany. The concept of a kindergarten is a German educational innovation that has been even more successful in the United States than in its country of origin. Kindergartens were popularized in America by educators Elizabeth Peabody; William T. Harris, a St. Louis educator who became U.S. Commissioner of Education (1889-1906); and Margarethe Schurz, wife of Carl Schurz, a German èmigrè who was U.S. Secretary of the Interior and a Civil War general. Eventually, all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia adopted kindergarten programs. Mrs. Schurz learned about the operation of kindergartens and their theory directly from Friedrich Froebel, the German educator credited with the establishments of kindergarten programs in Germany. However, kindergartens met with opposition both here and in Germany, and it was not until after 1920 that the United States saw a great leap in nationwide acceptance of kindergartens as ordinary additions to school districts.

In higher education, two German innovations adopted here were the conferring of Ph.D. degrees and the German concept of scholarly research. Until the late nineteenth century, American scholars wishing to obtain additional knowledge, conduct research, and acquire the status of a doctoral degree traveled to German institutions of higher learning to do the necessary work needed to attain the highest level of scholarly attainment. In time, rightly or wrongly, American institutions began to equate the number of doctorates earned by its faculty with academic excellence. Various systems of rating universities invariably publish a ranking of faculty with the percentage of those with Ph.Ds.

American institutions in time tended to replicate German models for conducting research by raising research money from private industry and soliciting large gifts from benefactorscreating endowments to regulate these fundsand obtaining government funding. Individual professors and graduate departments soon found how expensive it was to conduct research without well-planned sources of financing from government or private sources. In time sophisticated guidelines were written to develop ethical policies dealing with extremely complex issues that arose from accepting large sums of money from sources outside the universities.

Preprimary & Primary Education


Preprimary Schools: The growing number of households headed by one spouse, and the fact that intact families nonetheless often have both spouses working, has driven a boom in the enrollment of young children in various preprimary schools. Department of Education figures report that the enrollment of three-, four-, and five-year-olds in daycare institutes and other preprimary facilities was 30 percent higher in 1998 than it had been in 1988.

In addition, young children are spending more time away from their parents in such schools. Government data shows that while about one-third (34 percent) of all children in daycare facilities spent a full day away from home in 1988, by 1998 more than half (51 percent) of three- to five-year-olds enrolled in daycare were left the full day.


Primary Schools: Massachusetts is responsible for the introduction of primary schools for children four years and older. These were a modification of the British infant schoolsan idea that soon found its way into most of the progressive, larger American cities such as New York and Providence as a means of teaching and overseeing the children of working-class men and women. Eventually these primary schools were assimilated into elementary schools. During the latter half of the nineteenth century, American schools also began the formation of kindergartens.

In the United States, educators have attached great importance to the position of kindergarten teacher, the person that determines whether a youngster's first impression of schooling will be favorable or unfavorable. These learning experiences lead to increased self-esteem or contribute to the gradual unmaking of the child. Academically, kindergartens are as highly structured as any other classroom. While games are important, the teacher is conscious of the need to present work on the alphabet, phonics, arithmetic numbers, elementary grammar, and history that is free of stereotypes.

One of the major changes in the twentieth century was the national movement toward the consolidation of elementary schools following World War I, when the costs of owning an automobile had dropped low enough that teachers could drive to work from their homes. In addition, lacking in total education budgets and staffed with teachers often teaching subjects in which they had little or no preparation, rural and small schools faced the public perception after World War I that they were inferior to larger schools. As of 1930, some 7 out of 10 elementary schoolssome 149,282 schools according to the Digest of Educational Statistics were conducted in multigrade, one-room schoolhouses. In 2001 the one-room schools were almost completely part of a nostalgic past, except for a few remaining holdovers in the most rural parts of America.


Elementary School Projections: Between 2000 and 2010, federal projections anticipate a continuation of high enrollments of elementary school children. This then continues the trend of exploding elementary school population experienced in the United States from 1990 to 1999. The number of children in kindergarten through eighth grade in 1990 totaled 34 million. The increase to approximately 38.1 million K-8 students in 2000 was equal to an increase of 12 percent.

The increase will reverse itself by 2001 but only by a small reduction. By 2008, total elementary school enrollment is projected to be 37.3 million students. After that, enrollment will begin to climb once more, and total K-8 figures for 2010 are projected to be 37.5 million students.


Teachers: Elementary teachers in the twenty-first century are expected to be generalists capable of teaching several subjects, with the exception of specialized teachers in subjects such as music, art, or physical education, who work with larger numbers of students than just a single class. Increasingly, team-management skills are expected, as teachers work in tandem with one or more additional teachers to cover subject materials. Coaching of students is expected, since students in any one classroom may and do present varying levels of accomplishment, maturity, and skill levels.


Secondary Education


Origins: The concept of a "high school" can be traced back to Massachusetts in the 1820s. In Boston, the English Classical School took on the name of the English High School in 1824 and embarked on a mission to educate the majority of males that likely would not attend college. A female high school opened in Boston in 1826. In the three decades following passage of a bill in Massachusetts to make these mandatory, high schools were very slow to catch on outside that state. By means of comparison, while by 1860 Massachusetts boasted about 100 high schools, only 200 existed in the rest of the Union, whose population then was 30 million. One state similar to Massachusetts was Ohio; in 1830 after Calvin E. Stowe, a professor and husband of author Harriet Beecher Stowe, wrote a report on education in Ohio after having also looked into European school systems, a number of townships in the state formed elementary and high schools.

Between 1900 and 1915, Americans searching for upward mobility became concerned that there should be high schools operating to provide an equal opportunity for all. It would take several more decades, however, for families in need of income from all sources to allow their children to take advantage of such opportunities. Also in the beginning of the twentieth century, the eight- and four-year elementary/high school programs began giving way to junior high schools and middle schools. One of the major reasons for the change was to isolate youngsters just before and after the start of adolescence.


Secondary School Projections: U.S. secondary schools will see increasing enrollments in secondary schools through 2007. However, based on U.S. birth rate figures, the population of adolescents aged 14 through 17 will experience a reduction in numbers from 2007 through 2010. Nonetheless, the higher enrollments through 2007 will produce a higher total number of secondary students during the first decade of the twenty-first century than was counted during the 1990s.

To be more specific, enrollment in grades 9 through 12 rose from 12.5 million in 1990 to about 14.9 million in 2000a leap of about 19 percent. Expectations are that enrollment in secondary school (grades 9 through 12) will show an increase in 2006 as the number of enrollees reaches 16 million.

According to government records, the highest total for secondary school enrollment to date was 15.7 million in the fall of 1976. If estimates hold, the number of students attending grades 9 through 12 will eclipse that number, with a total registration of 15.9 million in 2005 and 16.0 million in 2006. The following year through 2010, the number of students should decline, leveling out to 15.5 million in 2010.


Teachers: Increases in student enrollments have emphasized the need for qualified secondary education teachers. Critics of education complained in 2001 about the number of secondary teachers responsible for courses outside their major, and that criticism likely will increase unless the teaching shortage can be addressed.

As subject matter in the twenty-first century becomes even more complex, secondary teachers are being expected not just to demonstrate a general knowledge of their subject matter, but actually to display mastery. Unlike elementary school teachers, who tend to teach a number of subjects, secondary teachers are assigned one or more subjects, such as history, English, physics, and or a foreign language, that require their students in turn to display wide knowledge on state-mandated tests. One of the problems frequently cited by accreditation teams is that too often secondary school teachers get asked to teach subjects outside their specialty areas due to teacher and budget shortages. In addition to the specialty, teachers likely will teach electives to students with even more specialized interests. A secondary school English teacher, for example, may teach a class in journalism or drama, as well as participate in after-class activities, such as advising student publications or directing a school musical.


Dropouts: According to the National Institute on the Education of At-Risk Students, there are many disagreements among educators, critics of education, politicians, and parents as to what constitutes a dropout and what the actual percentage of dropouts is nationally and state by state. Many students who for marriage, a job, or other reasons voluntarily leave school (or are expelled by the system) end up obtaining a high school diploma nonetheless, such as a General Educational Development (GED) certificate or state-issued certificate of completion with requirements generally less rigorous than traditional diploma requirements. Adding to the confusion, there is no single Department of Education definition of a dropout that all school districts follow, leading to media exposés that tend to show more students leaving school than statistics imply.

Nonetheless, the U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) does offer some specifics regarding dropout rates. These include rates in a single year and rates for the national population in a particular age range. Perhaps a truer picture of the dropout rate can be seen from the second category, where NCES reported that the 1993 national dropout rate for people aged 16 to 24 was 11 percent (roughly 3.4 million people). In spite of low student scores on state tests and continued concern over dropouts among minority populations, that figure marks an improvement compared to the 1970s, when the dropout rate for that age category was 14.6 percent.

Critics of education point out that the loss of more than 1 out of every 10 students in American schools remains a troubling figure. In 1993, some 381,000 students dropped out of school from grades 10, 11, and 12. Rates for males and females are about the same. Rates for Hispanics and African-Americans continue to exceed rates for Caucasian students, in part because the number of minority teachers continues to be lower than optimum. In 1993, only 7.9 percent of dropouts were Caucasian, compared to 13.6 percent for African-American students and 27.5 percent for Hispanic students, according to NCES. In addition, rates for Native Americans were high. Breaking the trend, students from Asian-American families tended to have low dropout rates, according to NCES figures of 1993.

Socioeconomic statistics regarding dropouts show convincing evidence that most dropouts, overwhelmingly, are poor. NCES recorded about a 3 percent dropout rate for students whose families had an above-poverty line income level, compared to about a 24 percent dropout rate for students from poor households.


Higher Education


General Survey: In 1636, in the Massachusetts Bay town of Cambridge (then known as Newtowne), the first college in the New World opened. The college acquired the name of Harvard two years later, after minister John Harvard bequeathed some of his modest wealth to the college. Many Harvard College students planned to enter the ministry following graduation, but in time the wealthy sons of planters and merchants also opted for educations. Those who were admitted first had to demonstrate proficiency in Latin, Greek, and scripture. The school attempted to gain a reputation for excellence similar to the great English schools of Cambridge and Oxford.

Early educators at Harvard revered the ancient civilizations, and it was the ancient languages of Latin and Greek and the ancient intellectual subjects of logic, geometry, rhetoric, and so on that were the focus of minister training at early Harvard. For the ministers-to-be, Aristotle's teachings and Christian teachings both belonged in their classrooms. In other words, what had been revered in the classrooms of the medieval schools of Europe was quite similar to what was taught in the first colonial college at Harvard.

Unfortunately, the worst feudal practices of Europe also crossed the ocean into Massachusetts, likely brought there by the first scholars or by students that had studies in England first. Older students demanded acts of servitude similar to what was termed "fagging" in English universities. In time, even worse student practices such as paddling, corporal beatings, verbal abuse, humiliation, and degrading acts were part of college life in America, and these became known under the general name of "hazing." Such practices were readily accepted in a wilderness college where pranks and other rough jokes at the expense of greenhorns were an accepted part of life on the frontiers.

Authorities failed to share the student enthusiasm for hazing, imposing fines for hazing newcomers in 1657 and expelling a student for the practice in 1684. In the nineteenth century, the practice grew so out of hand that colleges such as Amherst, Yale, and Cornell suffered the ignominy of student-initiation deaths, and a speaker at Harvard denounced hazing as "a weed in the garden of academe." The "weed" continues to be a problem in the twenty-first century, as hazing deaths continue to occur among newcomers to college, many of them seeking membership into college fraternities.

On the other hand, many administrators, professors, and student scholars viewed learning as a sacred responsibility at Harvard College, and they regarded the acquisition of learning with the same serious outlook that the Puritans possessed toward religion. In time, Harvard became the model for much of what educators were trying to accomplish in the American colonies in terms of scholarship and the graduation of young men with character. At the time, no girl was admitted to Harvard. As was the case in the common schools, most learning was accomplished in the form of recitations, and students with a mind for reading and retaining long blocks of Latin text were assured success as scholars. Learning took patience, endurance, and rhetorical skills. The curriculum was fixed, and changing any part of that curriculum was sure to involve faculty members in debate for months or years.

In part because of the status of early scholars at Harvard with Oxford connections, and in part because the other colonies were so slow to establish a competing college, New England established a dominance in the field of higher education that has persisted into the twenty-first century. It took many years for other Eastern cities to establish their own centers of learning. As Benjamin Franklin's aforementioned Academy grew, the institution became known as the College of Pennsylvania, receiving its formal charter in 1755. The College of Pennsylvania, after the American Revolution, changed its name by charter in 1779 to the University of the State of Pennsylvania (shortening it to the University of Pennsylvania in 1791). The first college in New York, King's College (later Columbia University), had British ties and was started only a few years prior to the Revolutionary War.

One measure of the relatively small degree of emphasis on a college education at this time is the fact that combined enrollment at the nine American colleges in the early 1770s was a mere 750 students. That number would not grow greatly in the next three decades. While a few early leaders of the United States, most notably Thomas Jefferson, possessed strong ideals and beliefs regarding education, much of the country's energies were focused on the formation of political alliances, industry building, and preparations for defense pending another inevitable war with England.

In the first decade of the nineteenth century, exploration gave way to the founding of settlements and commerce was spreading. The need for educated citizens and ministers created a great need for colleges, not only in an ever-growing number of American cities, but even in then-western, wilderness communities such as Miami, Ohio, where plans for a college were made mere days after statehood was granted in 1803.

After a brief period of stagnation, the years after the Civil War saw efforts to increase not only the number of colleges but also the number of students afforded the opportunity of higher education. Such expansion was not surprising in a country possessing equal regard for commerce, democratic ideals, the celebration of community creation, and the unreachable quest for perfection in the nature of mankind.

Overall, collegiate enrollment continued to increase steadily by 1918 to about a half million students, as the U.S. population numbered more than 100 million people. Many colleges, particularly small schools with small endowments, entered into a crisis period during the Great Depression as enrollments in college fell drastically. Colleges began to recover in the late 1930s, but World War II once again interfered with the growth of schools, although some institutions were spared disaster when the government selected many campuses for miscellaneous course preparation of enlisted persons.

Following the war, liberal arts colleges often found themselves broadening their curriculum to reflect the national interest in majors related to mathematics and science, or they continued their curriculums and found new ways to compete for enrollment with schools that emphasized the math and science courses that industry and business demanded of new hires. Veterans returning to the classroom after hostilities ended in the mid-1940s tended to gravitate toward college programs that guaranteed them more security in the job market.

As universities themselves acquired more prestige, it became impossible for capable men and women to become dentists, lawyers, and so on without university degrees, as had been the case during much of the nineteenth century. Students seeking status themselves began to compete for entry into the schools perceived to be the best in the land. Where for many years essentially anyone with a diploma from a recognized high school could enter most institutions of higher learning, during the twentieth century increasingly tightened admission standards developed as the best and brightest students competed for a place in Ivy League and prestigious state universities.

As universities themselves set out to hire the best available faculty and to build state-of-the-art facilities, the costs of operating a university spiraled upward, as did the cost of tuition to partially pay for the skyrocketing expenses. In time, where colleges once searched for presidents with the best academic credentials and publication records, many schools began to look for candidates with slightly less stunning vitas who showed they possessed fundraising and management skills comparable to the best chief operating officers in private corporations.


Racial Minorities & Women: Segregation was a painful reality in many Southern institutions during the nineteenth century, in some cases even into the second half of the twentieth century. Not until 1826 did a college award a degree to a black in the United States. One of the few colleges to pursue opportunities for black students was Unitarian-sponsored Antioch College in Ohio, where Horace Mann served as president from 1853 until his death in 1859. The first college to establish a permanent institution for the higher education of black Americans was Hampton Institute in 1870, and it also encouraged Native Americans to attend.

Individuals such as W.E.B. DuBois and organizations such as the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) took up the battle against the hypocrisy of separate but equal facilities. In time, there were quiet victories, including the 1950 admission of an African-American into the University of Texas law school following the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Sweatt v. Painter. At Indiana University's School of Dentistry, African-Americans worked quietly behind the scenes to persuade faculty members and the dean to allow them to treat Caucasian patients in dental clinics, eliminating an unwritten policy that saw African-American dental students working only on the teeth of dental students. Overall, however, ignorance and resistance on the part of many universities blocked the path of African-Americans who desired professional and advanced degrees.

In 1973, a minuscule 2,500 Ph.D. and Ed.D degrees were awarded to African-Americans in every discipline combined. By 1998, according to the federally directed Survey of Earned Doctorates Report released by the University of Chicago, the number of doctorates earned by U.S. citizens of racial or ethnic minority groups was 14.7 percent of the total doctorates awarded, the highest percentage overall in history. Among the 97 percent of U.S. respondents who identified race/ethnicity, African-Americans earned 1,467 doctorates; Hispanics, 1,190; Asians (including Pacific Islanders), 1,168; and American Indians (including Alaskan Natives), 189. In disciplines, African-Americans received the highest number of doctorates in education, according to the report.

Other than the training school in Carlisle, Pennsylvania (a target of frequent criticism by Indian leaders), between 1879 and 1918 the U.S. government, states, and religious organizations alike failed to provide an collegiate for the higher education of Native Americans. According to Morison, the United States failed to take any significant steps toward the preservation of Native American culture and the higher educational needs of Indian youth until the administration of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, when Congress passed the Indian Reorganization Act in 1934.

As of 2001, a number of higher education facilities existed to serve the needs of Native American students. These include Bay Mills Community College in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, Cankdeska Cikana Community College (Little Hoop Community College) in North Dakota, Little Priest Tribal College in Nebraska, and 32 other schools of higher learning on Indian lands. In addition to the curriculum that is found at non-Indian colleges, these schools for Native Americans focus on languages that might otherwise be lost, tribal customs, and Native American history. The federal government's Executive Order No. 13021 on Tribal Colleges and Universities ensures educational opportunities through the federal government and contributes to the status as accredited higher education institutions. In 2001, the tribal colleges were asking the federal government to renew and strengthen its programs for tribal colleges and universities.

Women's higher education in America began with the founding of Mount Holyoke Seminary in South Hadley, Massachusetts, in 1837. The school's founder and visionary, Mary Lyon, immeasurably advanced the cause of equal opportunities for women with the college's founding, and opened the doors for other women's colleges to follow. Chief among these schools were Vassar, Wellesley, Smith, Radcliffe, Sarah Lawrence, and Bennington.

Without question, the national movement for women's rights, particularly beginning in the 1960s, brought a tremendous number of women into graduate schools as students. The Digest of Educational Statistics reports that the enrollment of female students led to greatly increased total enrollments between 1985 and 1995. During that decade, while male enrollment only increased 9 percent, but female enrollment exploded by 23 percent.


Enrollment: Total college enrollment dropped from 14.5 million students in 1992 to 14.3 million in 1995. Increases are expected in college enrollment through 2005, however, reflecting increases in the number of high school students enrolled during the last half of the 1990s, as well as a slight increase in the percentage of 18- to 24-year-olds that attends college. For example, in the 20- to 24-year-old group, a remarkable one-third enrolled in college in 1998, up from 26 percent in 1988.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics in 1999 found that 1.8 million students, or 63 percent of almost 2.9 million high school graduates, went directly to college. Of that total, 1.2 million enrolled in four-year schools, while slightly more than 600,000 chose two-year technical colleges and community colleges. Nearly the same number of male and female high school graduates went to college directly from high school, with women slightly in the majority (917,000 compared to 905,000).

The BLS reported a decline from 1997, in which 67 percent of that year's graduates enrolled in colleges. However, as was true of private K-12 schools, enrollment in private colleges remained constant from 1989 to 1999, at 22 percent of all students that attended college. In 1999, that meant 3.3 million students were enrolled in private colleges. The high numbers of young Americans in college reflect society's emphasis on the importance of higher education and a high school diploma alike. With regard to graduate education, the numbers enrolled also increased steadily during the twentieth century. Among students attending graduate school part-time, enrollment rose from 1985 to 1995 by 19 percent, and full-time student enrollment increased 15 percent over the same time period, according to The Digest of Educational Statistics. The same journal noted that in 1980, approximately 69 percent of the population aged 25 and older had completed high school; that number soared to 83 percent by 1998. Similarly, while 17 percent of the population aged 25 and older had completed 4 years of college in 1980, that figure rose to 24 percent by 1998.

In 1998, about 5 percent of the total U.S. population that was at least 25-years-old held a master's degree as their highest degree. Approximately one percent held a professional degree (e.g., medicine or law). In addition, another one percent had earned a doctoral degree, such as a Doctor of Arts, a Doctor of Philosophy, or a Doctor of Education.


Advanced Degrees: During the first half of the nineteenth century, scholars discussed the need for Ph.D. programs, but the universities themselves dragged their heels. What advanced study that did occur at Harvard and elsewhere was often limited to theology. Although master's degrees had been awarded at Harvard ever since the seventeenth century, the first doctoral degrees were not conferred until Yale College's Sheffield Scientific School did so in 1861, awarding the terminal degrees to candidates in philosophy and classical languages. Prior to 1861, scholars wishing to obtain a graduate degree similar to those conferred upon scholars in Germany had to endure the expense and inconvenience of studying in Europe. Those who simply wanted to exercise their minds found such communities of the mind as Benjamin Franklin's American Philosophical Society to be their intellectual oases outside of academe.

Because the conferring of Ph.D. degrees raised the prestige of a college, a national trend developed late in the nineteenth century to upgrade the status of many colleges to universities. More than simply a name change, institutions that took the more prestigious "university" label had certain minimum criteria to meet, as defined by the National Association of State Universities: undergraduates who had obtained high school diplomas, four years of college work divided evenly between general and specialized coursework, at least five departments qualified to confer Ph.D.s, and one or more "schools" (a term similarly upgraded from "department") conferring professional degrees and conducting significant research in such areas as agriculture, medicine, and law. Many institutions after 1890 either met these minimum standards for university status or set out to meet the criteria in decades to come.

At first a few prestigious institutions, such as Princeton, declared that they preferred to stay small and do what they already did well, but schools that developed large research programs and instituted professional schools tended to benefit significantly in terms of school size, prestige, and ability to attract topnotch faculty, causing the institutions that resisted eventually to opt for expansion like other well-known schools had done. As universities expanded the number of Ph.D. offerings, senior faculty commonly were known as an institution's "graduate faculty," and over the years many faculty committee hours would be spent debating how much time graduate faculty should spend teaching undergraduates, aside from graduate teaching and research.


Teaching Colleges: Scholars in universitiesout of misogyny or paternalismexhibited a snobbish attitude toward the training of teachers, since most were women. Not until 1879 did the University of Michigan establish a chair in education, a a precursor to modern schools and departments of education at many prestigious institutions of higher learning. Two other prominent exceptions that established formal higher education programs for teachers in the late nineteenth century were Washington College in Pennsylvania and New York University, the latter the first to offer a graduate degree for teachers in 1887.

Some universities that attempted to put teacher education into the curriculum were unable to do so until the last decade of the nineteenth century because of hostile trustees at prestigious institutions. In 1892, after a decade spent trying to gain trustee support, educator Nicholas Murray Butler succeeded in founding the New York College for the Training of Teachers in affiliation with Columbia University. Eventually, the Teachers College, Columbia University, became known for being in the vanguard of changes in the teaching profession, including the establishment of a sort-of laboratory school called the Lincoln School by 1916.

Earlier, New York had seen the state normal school at Oswego attempt to improve instruction for teachers. Oswego incorporated teaching innovations in the 1860s that had been advocated by Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi (1746-1827). Pestalozzi was a Swiss reformer who pioneered the use of objects in the elementary classroom to provide tactile benefits for children, which he said enhanced learning far more than did mere rote recitation.


Junior Colleges: Another important American addition to education was the concept of the junior college. These were created early in the twentieth century, the innovation of several university presidents who thought these two-year schools would free university scholars for teaching more sophisticated juniors and seniors. The idea was slow to catch on. By 1922, only 207 such schools existed. But in time, their influence spread, with 1,036 listed by the Department of Education in 1995.


International Students: The country with the largest number of international students is the United States. The 1999-2000 academic year found 514,723 foreign students enrolled in studies at colleges and universities in the United States, a 5 percent increase from 1998-1999. International students made up about 3.8 percent of total enrollment in U.S. colleges and universities. These students accounted for the expenditure of $12.3 billion.

Foreign students come to the United States in the greatest numbers from China and Japan; Asia, therefore, is the continent that sends the most foreign students to U.S. colleges and universities, representing 54 percent of the total. California, New York, and Texas attracted the most students from other countries, with 66,305; 55,085; and 35,860 international students, respectively.

International students in the United States prefer to study business and management (20 percent of the total), engineering (15 percent), and mathematics and computer sciences (19 percent). Computer study is likely to surpass business and management in popularity in future surveys of international students.

The number of international students studying in the United States is higher than the total of U.S. students studying abroad, according to 1999-2000 figures. However, the 129,770 U.S. students that studied at colleges and universities outside the U.S. represent an increase of 13.9 percent from 1998-1999. The most popular study destination for U.S. students was the United Kingdom.


Tuition: By the year 2000, tuition at both public and private colleges continued to increase faster than the rate of inflation, although not at the rate of the sharp increases that began in the 1980s and continued into the early 1990s, according to a College Board survey of more than 3,000 schools. Tuition and fees for U.S. private institutions of higher education rose 5.2 percent in 2000, as compared to a 4.4 percent hike posted by public colleges. Average fall tuition and fees at four-year public schools were posted at $3,510 in 2000, while private schools charged $16,332 for tuition and fees, according to the survey.


Administration & Finance


Department of Education: Twenty years before the Hatch Act of 1887, the United States established an agency for keeping track of statistics, administration, and educational concerns to the nation at large. Originally known as the Department of Education, it was abolished in 1868, and its successor became part of the Department of the Interior under the name of the Office of Education, from 1868 to 1869. In 1869, its name changed to the Bureau of Education, remaining under the Department of the Interior. After restructuring again in 1939, education fell under the Federal Security Agency, moving again in 1953 following the establishment of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW). HEW was reorganized in 1972 under the Education Division. In 1980 a new Department of Education was created.

One of the characteristics of American education is that all levels of government actively participate in decision making, budgetary concerns, and research funding. Education is thus highly accountable to taxpayers, but the many layers of federal Department of Education bureaucracy make reform slow and costly to implement. Essentially, the mandate of the Department of Education is to supplement the educational functions headed by the individual states. The department tracks educational statistics and trends, plus takes responsibility for overseeing research and the delivery of some non-state educational services, such as school lunch programs.

Primary responsibility for education is that of states and some localities. Exceptions include the District of Columbia, Pacific islands, and Indian reservations in the United States, where the U.S. Department of the Interior or Department of Education oversees operations. For example, in Guam the Department of Education oversees K-12, vocational, and community college schooling for civilian and military dependents. In 2001, an estimated 32,000 students were enrolled in Guam's K-12 single school district system.


Funding & Expenditures: Early funding of public education was uneven from state to state and even from school district to school district, particularly during the late nineteenth century. Perhaps the most important test case benefiting school funding was the 1874 Michigan Supreme Court decision on behalf of a Kalamazoo high school board, affirming its right to assess taxes as a basis of support. Subsequently, other schools in many states that had been operating under precarious circumstances seized the opportunity to gain financial backing.

While federal contributions are considerable, the primary responsibility for funding public schools rests with states, districts, and public and private organizations. According to federal figures in 2001, only about 9 percent of the $600 billion spent annually for education is supplied by the U.S. government. About three percent of all federal money goes to various school and Head Start lunch programs.

Moneys have been earmarked since 1981 to aid financially disadvantaged elementary and secondary school youth through Chapter I of the Education Consolidation and Improvement Act. Title I, as it most commonly is called, has since appropriated billions of dollars to thousands of school districts whose populations contained a significant number of persons falling below the poverty line. Figures from the most recent census are used to apportion future federal aid to states and school districts to provide additional learning resources for poverty-level students. Essentially, the higher a district's number of persons living in poverty, the higher that district's federal aid.

Nonformal Education


Adult Education: The concept of adult education was considered new and revolutionary soon after it was introduced in 1918 by Syracuse University in New York State, with 18 courses and an enrollment of 300 students. A handful of other schools of higher education began similar programs about the same time.

As of 2001, whether for a teacher taking a refresher course, an adult employee attempting to acquire computer skills, or a non-native English speaker hoping to improve writing skills, continuing education courses provided hundreds of thousands of people an enjoyable way to keep their minds sharp, skills polished, and enthusiasm for learning alive.

A 1999 U.S. Department of Education report suggests that many adults consider such classes to be essential for their enjoyment and professional development. Based on a phone poll of 6,977 adults, the report concluded that adult and continuing education offers viable education options to boys and girls aged 16 and older and, especially, to adults of all ages. Classes that have a high demand are English for non-native speakers seeking fluency; General Educational Development (GED) preparation for students seeking high school equivalency; courses offering university credit toward an eventual associate, bachelor's, or graduate degree; vocational and computer skills classes; and personal development classes that serve one's avocation. According to the report, one out of every three adults surveyed said they had recently taken at least one adult or continuing education course.


Distance Education: As the price of education climbs, pushing it out of reach for students who cannot afford a year or more away from a job to finish an undergraduate degree or earn a graduate degree, distance education has become a viable alternative for obtaining additional skills, knowledge, and certification or credentials needed for career advancement. In addition, educators at the secondary school level have started to study distance education as an alternate possibility to educate students who for one reason or another fail to prosper when attending regular classes.

Throughout much of the second half of the twentieth century, distance education was regarded as a sort of useful adjunct to regular education. Classes mainly were conducted via correspondence or educational television and radio. Television, in particular, has been an attractive way to present information, since students have a strong sense of an instructor's personality as information is delivered. Many classes are videotaped by a professor and technical crew, then delivered by mail, delivery service, or electronic mail (as an attachment) to students.

But the development of Web-based courses on the Internet has been the breakthrough that proponents of distance education long had been seeking. Like television, video delivery over the Internet allows students to feel a human connection with the instructor. Unlike television, however, the Internet also allows students to interact with the instructor and other students in the distance-taught class. Industry estimates indicate that more than two million students were actively engaged in distance-learning classes in 2001.

Main drawbacks include limited possibilities for direct, face-to-face tutoring from the instructor, as well as the problem of access to a quality library, a deficiency that is being addressed through the development of online library facilities. Certain disciplines, such as the performing arts, have nearly insurmountable difficulties in terms of student-faculty interaction, although classes that might ordinarily be taught in large lecture halls actually may be more enjoyable via distance learning. Students who lack the motivation, discipline, or technical skills needed to maintain interest and to persist over time may also find such instruction methods less helpful.

It is likely that millions more adults will meet their educational goals in coming years with the aid of distance education. Most proponents agree that distance education appears to work best with adult learners who have already developed attention and discipline skills, and those who have the motivation to work hard in spite of distractions and work responsibilities. It also works with traditional students on campuses who choose to satisfy some of their educational requirements online, while still attending classes with other professors.

Distance learning may also be developed to a greater degree to serve prison inmates who wish to earn a degree while serving their sentences, giving them more job opportunities following release, and increasing their chances of attaining successful rehabilitation. Persons who live in rural areas far from educational institutions of higher learning also are afforded the opportunity to obtain knowledge and degrees they otherwise could not have accomplished without leaving home.


Teaching Profession

Digest of Education estimates show that approximately 3.1 million people were employed as elementary and secondary school teachers in the fall of 1999, an increase of about 13 percent since 1989. Of that 1999 total of 3.1 million teachers, about 2.7 million worked in public schools and 0.4 million were in private schools. About 1.9 million taught in private and public elementary schools, while about 1.2 million people taught in secondary schools.

The U.S. Department of Labor projects a healthy job picture for teachers into 2010. In particular, enrollment projections are rosy for secondary school teachers. Nonetheless, even though state budgets generally were better padded through the national economic good times of the late 1990s, teachers for the most part saw little reduction in teacher-student ratios, except in those school districts that made the lowered ratio a priority. College reformers long have said that states must create more favorable student-teacher ratios if college entrance scores are to pick up.

Despite this, a slowdown in the effort to create a more favorable student-teacher ratio has occurred. Teachers originally felt optimistic in the mid-1980s: the public school ratio in 1985 was 17.9:1, as opposed to 22.3:1 in 1970. The level stayed about the same in 1990 as in 1985, with a ratio of 17.2:1. In 1998, at a time of national prosperity, the student-teacher ratio was 16.8:1, but by 2001 there were signs that classes were slowly swelling again. In actuality, many elementary teachers have classes of 24 or more pupils; because teachers of disabled students tend to have far fewer pupils in the classroom, the overall ratio is skewed.


Salary: Earnings for K-12 teachers in 1998 ranged from as low as $19,710 yearly to as high as $70,030 yearly. Median earnings were between $33,500 and $38,000 for all K-12 teachers, although for public school teachers alone the average was higher, at around $39,300. Entry-level teachers with a four-year degree averaged $25,700 yearly. Teachers may also earn additional pay coaching sports or leading other extracurricular activities, or by taking on another job during the summer.

Average salaries for professors in 2000 tended to be lower than comparable positions for Ph.D. holders in private industry. The average salary for professors at public institutions was $56,308, while at private institutions the average salary was $58,313.

Law professors earned the highest salaries, a whopping $17,000 a year more than their closest competitors in academe, business, and engineering, according to data reported by the Chronicle of Higher Education in 2000. Among the poorest paid college professors were English teachers of composition, at around $40,000 per year.


Age & Gender: In America's colonies all teachers were males, with the exception of southern women who taught and tutored in dame schools. But at the end of the nineteenth century and through much of the twentieth, a common perception was that teaching was a job for women. Educators did much to change that perception during the latter part of the nineteenth century, but a gender disparity remains.

According to the last available Department of Education figures for the 1993-1994 school year, female teachers outnumbered males 73 to 27 percent in public schools. The data was similar for private schools. About 75 percent were women and 25 percent were male, according to the Department of Education. However, male school principals outnumbered women 65 percent to 35 percent.

Regarding age, teachers in private schools tended to be younger. While private school teachers older than 40 made up 58 percent of all faculty members, in public schools 67 percent of teachers were over 40.


Training & Qualifications: Standards for teachers in U.S. private and public schools were demonstrably low from the colonial period up into the twentieth century. The actual job of teaching has changed more dramatically between 1950 and 2000 than it did in the preceding three centuries. Where once keeping order and requiring student recitations were the bulk of a teacher's labor, modern educators are expected to demonstrate subject competence, rhetorical and writing skills, coaching and problem-solving skills, and, above all, critical-thinking skills. They are expected to be imaginative, substituting games and computer exercises for tedious drills.

Because students learn at different rates, classes tend to be less rigorously run, with several groups of students working at different paces. To present the material, the teacher no longer requires just a blackboard and piece of chalk. Teachers increasingly are expected to come to the job with the skill to run media equipment, create and display a Microsoft Power Point demonstration from a computer, and come up with increasingly more creative ways to engage students and to ensure their mastery of material. At the same time, while teaching methods may become sophisticated, teachers themselves must enable all students to demonstrate their knowledge of the so-called "basics" of math, literacy, and science.

During the twentieth century, professional requirements for teacher certification generally stiffened in terms of coursework taken and overall classroom preparation, and graduation requirements from teacher-training institutions became rigorous. As of 2001, those requirements were being re-examined in response to teacher shortages. Administrators have started to consider hiring older people in fields such as science, for example, who decide in their 40s, 50s, and 60s that they would like to impart what they' ve learned to young people in the classroom but lack a teaching degree.

Suggested reforms in teacher training have included increasing the length of student teaching and providing additional teacher training at the graduate level or in-service level. Web sites devoted to learning and the exchange of ideas among professional elementary and secondary school educators have become increasingly popular as teachers become computer literate. Since 1955, one of the frequently waged debates has been over the level of subject mastery teachers should achieve before beginning their careers. A severe critic of traditional teacher education, Admiral Hyman Rickover charged that teachers needed additional coursework in their teaching subject or subjects.

According to the latest available figures from the Department of Education, about 47 percent of all public school teachers had earned at least a master's degree, while just 34 percent of private school teachers boasted a graduate degree. About 99 percent of all principals possessed at least a master's degree. All in all, teachers tend to make up a highly educated workforce.

Depending upon the state and school district, college students expecting to graduate from a teacher-education program are first generally required to post satisfactory scores on the College Basic Academic Subjects Examination. Many states require an overall college grade point average of 2.5 (a middle C average) from an applicant for a teaching certificate to be issued. In addition, since teachers are expected to maintain knowledge in their field, they often must have a grade point average of 3.0 (B-) in order to be accepted unconditionally into a graduate school; many graduate schools require an even higher grade point average in the applicant's major.

With the possible exception of emergency teaching certificates, applicants for a full-time teaching position must present evidence of successful completion of a bachelor's degree in education for state certification. The majority of states and school districts also demand that applicants for teaching posts turn in a score reflecting their competence in their area competence on the National Teacher Examinations (NTE) or on Praxis I or Praxis II written tests. As of 2003, the state of Ohio will also require applicants to pass another Educational Testing Service (ETS) exam called Praxis III, and other states are expected to tighten testing standards before granting licenses to applicants.

Requirements for teaching licenses vary state to state and are determined by state licensing authorities. Many states, such as Alaska, have required teachers to show recent evidence of classroom work, an obstacle for former teachers who wish to return to the profession, or for professionals in diverse fields to consider a career shift to teaching. All states demand that teachers adhere to standards of conduct generally above and beyond those expected of nonteaching citizens. States generally strip teachers of license who admit to, or are found guilty of, felonies, many misdemeanors, or behavior judged immoral by a state board or board of a local district.

Following the successful completion of an application process, a superintendent approves the applicant and then forwards a recommendation to hire to the local school board. Once signed, a teacher has a legally binding contract to work unless guilty of a crime, failing to show teaching competency, or demonstrating egregious professional conduct. Teachers, in turn, are expected to complete teaching during the term of their contract, with exceptions for pregnancy, medical leaves, and unforeseen emergencies.


Unions & Associations: During the nineteenth century, professional groups were formed that advocated high standards of teaching and administration. Several teacher groups, including the National Teachers' Association (founded in 1857), joined forces to form the National Education Association (NEA), a group that advocated reforms for students mainly involved in college-entrance curriculums, in 1870. Critics argued that the NEA catered to the very small fraction of secondary students that went on to attend college.

In time the NEA would become the largest union in the world in terms of member registrations, but growth was slow until Congress officially chartered the union in 1907. The NEA then officially renamed itself the National Education Association of the United States. One of the advantages of having a national organization was that school systems nationwide closely resembled one another in structure by 1920, dividing a student's early education into eight years of elementary school and four years of high school.

By the mid-to-late 1990s, teachers who specialized in a specific subject area also found it useful to support professional organizations that have Web sites devoted to member information and a special support section for new teachers, such as the National Council of Teachers of English.

In 2001, membership in the NEA was about 1.7 million teachers. Its closest competitor is the American Federation of Teachers with about 550,000 teachermembers. At present, only 39 states allow collective bargaining.


Summary


General Assessment: As the values of the American people change, attitudes toward formal education change. During the twenty-first century, those changes occurred on a near-volatile scale in the face of exploding technology, rampant political activism, and specialization in all intellectual fields.

America's educational system has always done a better job training individuals for their future lives than it has finding ways to improve itself for the betterment of future generations. Prideful about being on the leading edge of ideas and technology, American educators often have had to backtrack after installing innovations such as consolidated schools, and they sometimes have fallen short of other goals such as making all students Internet savvy, due to the interference of citizen groups and legislators.

American educators always have known that the future ahead of their students is uncertain, but only since the late twentieth century have educators needed to instruct students who see social changes and the need to accumulate new knowledge occurring at warp speed even before they graduate. And never before have mere secondary school students grasped technology better than some of their own teachers.

Ethical issues such as those associated with genetic engineering cannot wait until college to be discussed. Yet often such discussions never are held. Teachers find themselves symbolically transported to 1925, enmeshed in textbook battles with religious groups over the dogeared issue of evolution versus creationism.

One critic of education, E.D. Hirsch, Jr., blames the proliferation of thousands upon thousands of school districts for giving students a very narrow, locally biased body of information, resulting in what he calls a shrinking of national literacy. Author John I. Goodlad observes that too few teachers individualize instruction, promote inductive reasoning, and encourage frequent discussion. Other critics blame schools that put equal emphasis on all subjects or popular studies rather than emphasize areas that build critical thinking and a solid foundation for an ongoing, lifetime acquisition of knowledge.


Student PopulationsTrends: Schools, too, are overburdened with the problems of slow learners, the disadvantaged, and non-English speakersand even with gun-toting deviants who have shattered the image of schools as safe havens in an unsafe society. Yet, the alternativeto abandon these and educate America's best and brightest onlyseems not only Un-American, but foolish, since all must somehow forge a life together for the good of the common American community.

In the twenty-first century, the face of the American community can be expected to change dramatically. As discussed earlier, Census reports demonstrate significant increases in Asian and Hispanic populations, which are predicted to continue. By 2040, Caucasian students will make up less than half the population of U.S. schools. By contrast, in 1950, white students made up 85 percent of the population of U.S. schools.

Populations of people who indicate their heritage as African-American, Asian, and Hispanic continue a trend of finding homes in the suburbs, according to the Lewis Mumford Center for Comparative and Urban and Regional Research. Data released by the government for 145 metropolitan areas in March 2001 shows that many of the traditional large cities of the East Coast and the Midwest, such as New York and Chicago, continue trends of segregation in living areas, maintaining whole blocks as white or black in makeup. Such conditions result in schools that are predominantly made up of minority members, thereby making them segregated for all intents and purposes. That trend does not hold consistently across the country, as Las Vegas, for example, shows a tendency for neighborhoods to be more diverse.

Clearly, the attempt to make schools more effective must address this diversity. To that end, schools have instituted a wide array of cultural opportunities, including bilingual education, Head Start programs, Upward Bound programs, court-ordered busing, and so forth. Considerable federal support has earmarked programs to improve education, and dozens of reports and books have recommended upgrades in the quality of elementary and secondary schools. During the twenty-first century, many more recommendations can be expected to address the difficulties associated with the growing number of children who have social barriers to overcome, in addition to the learning challenges faced by students who live in homes where English is not the primary language.

In spite of well-meaning federal programs to help the poor lose their disadvantaged status, poverty-level children continue to score poorly in mathematics and science achievement tests. Critics of the Pell grants and aid to disadvantaged students say that the spiraling costs of tuition and living expenses associated with college have made it harder, not easier, for disadvantaged children to gain an education. In 2001, much discussion has occurred by members of the Congress to find ways for disadvantaged students to remain in college and to obtain their degrees, not merely to enter college and leave after one or more semesters.


Technology in Education: Many critics point to a failure of principals, school superintendents, and school boards to keep fully abreast of sweeping advances in technology instruction and the use of computers in schools. Thus while those in authority have little trouble seeing that science teachers, for example, must stay current in their fields, many have difficulty perceiving that competency in the use of technology requires similar perseverance and dedication. This requires not only the purchase of computers, but also constant updating of software, instruction, and support for teachers, and the availability of trained support staff. The ongoing process of instructional technology can frustrate principals, some senior faculty, and even younger faculty less skilled with computers. There may even be a tendency for such persons to downplay the need for technology or to denigrate those who grasp such skills seemingly effortlessly as "computer nerds." In turn, those in the vanguard of computer advances may deride those less willing to change as "technophobes."

As the gap between those comfortable with technology and those ill at ease widens, animosity between such parties may result. Those skilled in technology may lament that their school is "falling behind," while traditionalists may complain, "the basics are being ignored." Those skilled in technology may despair if computers are three or more years old, insufficient in network bandwidth, or even lacking the power to run the latest software upgrades. Unskilled administrators may consider their schools "wired" simply by having computers of any age and make on every desk in technology labs.

The fact that there is some truth to both positions may make resolution difficult, but team-building experts say it can be done if both camps can agree upon a shared vision for technology in education. The Milken Family Foundation contends that a basic change in educational philosophy and teacher-administrator mindset must occur in classrooms along with the addition of technology.

While schools have benefited from the donation of computers from benefactors and parent-teacher associations, institutions need to partake fully in teacher training available free or at low cost from such industry sources as Intel, the Bill Gates Foundation, Microsoft, Apple, and other foundations. Educational institutions at all levels can find generous funding from the Department of Education and other federal sources, some discretionary funding at the state government level, and foundations such as the Carnegie Corporation of New York, Paul G. Allen Virtual Education Foundation, and the AT&T Foundation Educational Programs, among others. In addition, a small number of schools have found creative ways to approach corporations in the community to suggest the donation of computers for educational purposes.


Political Trends: Public education is frequently part of a politician's platform, whether it is a lower-echelon candidate on the local level or a presidential candidate. The administration of George W. Bush announced in 2001 that educational reform was a major administration priority. The major premise behind Bush's push for reform is his position that too many children fall through the cracks and fail to obtain a high school diploma, with at least some of the blame attributable to school systems that he sees failing to measure up to first-rate standards. The Bush Administration's slogan for school reform is "No child left behind." The administration promotes a policy agenda that would hold accountable state and school officials who fail to fix sub-par institutions, with the possibility that such institutions could be taken over by the state.

The three areas most in need of improvement, as targeted by President Bush, are mathematics, reading, and science, the three areas where elementary and secondary students test below average when compared to their peers in other developed nations. In spite of a nationwide focus on educational improvements, gains in test scores have been negligible, according to Bush. Most dramatically, 68 percent of fourth-graders in poverty-area schools failed to pass the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) reading exam, leading the Bush Administration to recommend a back-to-basics emphasis on phonics in the primary grades. In math, science, and physics, American high school seniors performed near the bottom of a comparison chart ranking 21 countries, including last in physics. Literacy, math, and reading achievement scores of minority Hispanic and African-American students in high schools lagged significantly behind Caucasian student counterparts.

High up on the list of Bush priorities for the future were frequent testing and so-called "vouchers," a Republican-backed proposal that would allow parents to take their children out of schools where children test poorly, allowing them a set amount toward tuition at another public or private school. The National Education Association has strongly voiced opposition to vouchers as a solution. The NEA has also criticized a suggestion by some Republican leaders that teachers of mathematics and science be compensated with higher salaries than those of their peers in other disciplines.


Conclusion: Ahead of America and its educational system are change; discord; international networking; and the establishment, merger, and failure of schools ranging from elementary to university. Distance education may one day appeal to enough students so that traditional dormitories and student life may cease to exist. Without question, the Internet and Web-based programs someday will be integrated into every classroom, but whether that will actually improve the quality of instruction is any critic's guess. In an age when the new and technologically "spiffy" is revered, will there still be students who will embrace the classics and classical liberal arts learning?

In the future, Americans will be even more a blending of many cultures and races. And the entire world must worry, not only about education, but also about whether it can solve the energy crises and imminent global warming disasters. Addressing these issues will take an educated citizenry, capable of problem solving, creativity, and the display of strong character. Increasingly, learning and applying that knowledge in creative, revolutionary ways will become our best option for survival.


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Hank Nuwer

United States

views updated May 18 2018

United States

1 Location and Size

2 Topography

3 Climate

4 Plants and Animals

5 Environment

6 Population

7 Migration

8 Ethnic Groups

9 Languages

10 Religions

11 Transportation

12 History

13 Government

14 Political Parties

15 Judicial System

16 Armed Forces

17 Economy

18 Income

19 Industry

20 Labor

21 Agriculture

22 Domesticated Animals

23 Fishing

24 Forestry

25 Mining

26 Foreign Trade

27 Energy and Power

28 Social Development

29 Health

30 Housing

31 Education

32 Media

33 Tourism and Recreation

34 Famous Americans

35 Bibliography

United States of America

CAPITAL: Washington, D.C. (District of Columbia)

FLAG: The flag consists of 13 alternate stripes, 7 red and 6 white; these represent the 13 original colonies. Fifty 5-pointed white stars, representing the present number of states in the Union, are placed in 9 horizontal rows alternately of 6 and 5 against a blue field in the upper left corner of the flag.

ANTHEM: The Star-Spangled Banner.

MONETARY UNIT: The dollar ($) of 100 cents is a paper currency with a floating rate. There are coins of 1, 5, 10, 25, and 50 cents and 1 dollar, and notes of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, and 100 dollars. Although issuance of higher notes ceased in 1969, a limited number of notes of 500, 1,000, 5,000, and 10,000 dollars remain in circulation.

WEIGHTS AND MEASURES: The imperial system is in common use; however, the use of metrics in industry is increasing, and the metric system is taught in public schools throughout the United States. Common avoirdupois units in use are the avoirdupois pound of 16 ounces or 454 grams; the long ton of 2,240 pounds or 35,840 ounces; and the short ton, more commonly used, of 2,000 pounds or 32,000 ounces. (Unless otherwise indicated, all measures given in tons are in short tons.) Liquid measures: 1 gallon = 231 cubic inches = 4 quarts = 8 pints. Dry measures: 1 bushel = 4 pecks = 32 dry quarts = 64 dry pints. Linear measures: 1 foot = 12 inches; 1 statute mile = 1,760 yards = 5,280 feet. Metric equivalent: 1 meter = 39.37 inches.

HOLIDAYS: New Year’s Day, 1 January; Birthday of Martin Luther King Jr., 3rd Monday in January; Presidents’ Day, 3rd Monday in February; Memorial or Decoration Day, last Monday in May; Independence Day, 4 July; Labor Day, 1st Monday in September; Columbus Day, 2nd Monday in October; Election Day, 1st Tuesday after the 1st Monday in November; Veterans or Armistice Day, 11 November; Thanksgiving Day, 4th Thursday in November; Christmas, 25 December.

TIME: Eastern, 7 am = noon GMT; Central, 6 am = noon GMT; Mountain, 5 am = noon GMT; Pacific (includes the Alaska panhandle), 4 am = noon GMT; Yukon, 3 am = noon GMT; Alaska and Hawaii, 2 am = noon GMT; western Alaska, 1 am = noon GMT.

1 Location and Size

Located in the Western Hemisphere on the southern portion of the continent of North America, the United States is the third-largest country in the world. Its total area, including

GEOGRAPHICAL PROFILE

Geographic Features

Area: 9,631,420 sq km (3,718,691 sq mi)

Size ranking: 3 of 194

Highest elevation: 6,194 meters (20,320 feet) at Mount McKinley

Lowest elevation: -86 meters (-282 feet) at Death Valley

Land Use*

Arable land: 18%

Permanent crops: 0%

Other: 82%

Weather**

Average annual precipitation: 112.3 centimeters (44.2 inches)

Average temperature in January: 0.9°c (33.6°f)

Average temperature in July: 24.9°c (76.8°f)

* Arable Land: Land used for temporary crops, like meadows for mowing or pasture, gardens, and greenhouses.

Permanent crops: Land cultivated with crops that occupy its use for long periods, such as cocoa, coffee, rubber, fruit and nut orchards, and vineyards.

Other: Any land not specified, including built-on areas, roads, and barren land.

** The measurements for precipitation and average temperatures were taken at weather stations closest to the country’s largest city.

Precipitation and average temperature can vary significantly within a country, due to factors such as latitude, altitude, coastal proximity, and wind patterns.

Alaska and Hawaii, is 9,631,420 square kilometers (3,718,691 square miles). The country shares borders with Canada and Mexico, with a total land boundary length of 12,034 kilometers (7,593 miles) and a total coastline of 19,924 kilometers (12,380 miles).

Alaska, the 49th state, is separated from the contiguous 48 states by Canada. It forms a peninsula surrounded by the Arctic Ocean and the Pacific and is separated from Russia by the Bering Strait. The island state of Hawaii, the 50th state, is located in the Pacific Ocean. The nation’s capital, Washington, D.C., is located near the mid-Atlantic coast.

2 Topography

Although the northern New England coast is rocky, along the rest of the eastern seaboard the Atlantic Coastal Plain rises gradually from the shoreline. Narrow in the north, the plain widens to about 320 kilometers (200 miles) in the south and in Georgia merges with the Gulf Coastal Plain that borders the Gulf of Mexico and extends through Mexico as far as the Yucatán. West of the Atlantic Coastal Plain is the Piedmont Plateau, bounded by the Appalachian Mountains. The Appalachians, which extend from southwest Maine into central Alabama, are old mountains, largely eroded away, with rounded contours and generally forested terrain. The highest Appalachian Peak, Mount Mitchell in North Carolina, reaches 2,037 meters (6,684 feet).

Between the Appalachians and the Rocky Mountains to the west lies the vast interior plain of the United States. Running south through the center of this plain is the Mississippi River. Its major tributary, the Missouri, is the longest river in the country and the second longest in North America, with a total distance of 3,968 kilometers (2,466 miles). Its source is found in the Northern Rockies. The eastern reaches of the great interior plain are bounded on the north by the Great Lakes, which are thought to contain

about half the world’s total supply of fresh water. They include Lake Michigan, Lake Superior, Lake Huron, Lake Erie, and Lake Ontario. Lake Superior, which covers an area of 82,732 square kilometers (31,820 square miles), is the largest lake in the country and the second-largest lake in the world (after the Caspian Sea). The five lakes are accessible to oceangoing vessels from the Atlantic via the Saint Lawrence Seaway. The basins of the Great Lakes were formed by the glacial ice cap that moved down over large parts of North America some 25,000 years ago.

The great interior plain consists of two major subregions: the fertile Central Plains and the more arid Great Plains. Although they appear flat, the Great Plains rise gradually from about 460 meters (1,500 feet) to more than 1,500 meters (5,000 feet) at their western extremity.

The Continental Divide runs along the crest of the Rocky Mountains. The Rockies and the ranges to the west are part of the great system of young, rugged mountains that runs along western North, Central, and South America from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego, Chile. In the continental United States, the series of western ranges, most of them paralleling the Pacific coast, are the Sierra Nevada, the Coast Ranges, the Cascade Range, and the Tehachapi and San Bernardino Mountains. Between the Rockies and the Sierra Nevada-Cascade mountain barrier to the west lies the Great Basin, a group of vast arid plateaus containing most of the desert areas of the United States, in the south eroded by deep canyons.

The coastal plains along the Pacific are narrow. The most extensive lowland near the west coast is the Great Valley of California, lying between the Sierra Nevada and the Coast Ranges. There are 71 peaks in these western ranges of the continental United States that rise to an altitude of 4,267 meters (14,000 feet) or more. The greatest rivers of the Far West are the Colorado in the south and the Columbia in the northwest.

Separated from the continental United States by Canadian territory, the state of Alaska occupies the extreme northwest portion of the North American continent. The Alaskan Peninsula and the Aleutian Islands, sweeping west far out to sea, consist of a chain of volcanoes, many of which are still active. The state of Hawaii consists of a group of Pacific islands formed by volcanoes rising sharply from the ocean floor. The highest of these volcanoes, Mauna Loa, at 4,168 meters (13,675 feet), is located on the largest of the islands, Hawaii, and is still active.

The lowest point in the United States is Death Valley in California, 86 meters (282 feet) below sea level. At 6,194 meters (20,320 feet), Mount McKinley in Alaska is the highest peak in North America. These topographic extremes suggest the geological instability of the Pacific Coast region. The San Andreas Fault in California still causes frequent earth tremors.

3 Climate

The East Coast is affected mostly by masses of air moving from west to east across the continent. Its climate is basically continental, with clear contrasts between seasons. Because Florida has the Gulf of Mexico lying to its west, however, it experiences only moderate differences between summer and winter temperatures. Mean annual temperatures vary considerably between north and south, ranging from 11°c (51°f) in Boston to 24°c (76°f) in Miami. Annual rainfall is generally more than 100 centimeters (40 inches). The Gulf and South Atlantic states are often hit by severe tropical storms in late summer and early autumn.

The number of hurricanes and their severity have measurably increased in the past few years. From 1995 to 2003, there were a total of 32 major hurricanes with sustained winds of 111 miles per hour or greater. In 2005 there were a record-breaking 23 named Atlantic hurricanes, three of which caused severe damage to the Gulf Coast region. Hurricane Katrina, which hit Florida on 25 August 2005, eventually developed into a category 4 hurricane that made landfall in southern Louisiana. Several levees protecting the low-lying city of New Orleans broke, flooding the entire region under waters that rose over the rooftops of homes. Over 1,000 were killed by the storm. Over 500,000 people were left homeless and without jobs. One month later, Hurricane Rita peaked as a category 5 hurricane before making landfall as a category 3 hurricane on 24 September 2005 between Sabine Pass, Texas, and Johnson’s Bayou, Louisiana. Hurricane Wilma followed on 24 October, making landfall north of Everglades City in Florida as a category 3 hurricane.

The prairie lands in the middle of the country have more drought than heavy rainfall. The average midwinter temperature in the extreme north—Minnesota and North Dakota—is about -13°c (9°f) or less, while the average July temperature is 18°c (65°f). In the Texas prairie region to the south, January temperatures average 10 to 13°c (50 to 55°f) and July temperatures average 27 to 29°c (80 to 85°f). Annual rainfall in this region can be as low as 46 centimeters (18 inches).

The Great Plains are semiarid. Annual rainfall in the southern plains averages about 50 centimeters (20 inches) and in the northern plains about 25 centimeters (10 inches). The contrast between summer and winter temperatures is extreme throughout the Great Plains. Maximum summer temperatures of more than 43°c (110°f) have been recorded, while the average minimum temperature for January is -19°c (-3°f).

The higher reaches of the Rockies and the other western ranges have an alpine climate. The climate of the Western desert region varies considerably from north to south. In New Mexico, Arizona, and southeastern California, mean annual rainfall ranges from 8 centimeters (3 inches) to 76 centimeters (30 inches), while some of the mountainous areas of central Washington and Idaho receive at least 152 centimeters (60 inches) of rain per year. Phoenix, Arizona, has a mean annual temperature of 22°c (71°f).

The Pacific Coast has a maritime climate, with mild winters and moderately warm, dry summers. Los Angeles in the south has an average temperature of 13°c (56°f) in January and 21°c (69°f) in July; Seattle in the north has an average temperature of 4°c (39°f) in January and 18°c (65°f) in July. Precipitation ranges from an annual average of 4.52 centimeters (1.78 inches) at Death Valley in California (the lowest in the United States) to more than 356 centimeters (140 inches) in Washington’s mountain regions.

Alaska has varied climatic conditions. The Aleutian Islands and the coastal panhandle strip have a moderate maritime climate. The interior is characterized by short, hot summers and long, bitterly cold winters. In the region bordering the Arctic Ocean, a polar climate prevails; the soil hundreds of feet below the surface remains frozen year round.

Northeast ocean winds give Hawaii a mild, stable climate. The mean temperature in Honolulu is 23°c (73°f) in January and 27°c(80°f) in July. Rainfall is moderate—about 71 centimeters (28 inches) per year—but it is much greater in the mountains.

The lowest temperature recorded in the United States was -62°c (-79.8°f) in Alaska at Prospect Creek Camp on 23 January 1971; the highest, 57°c (134°f) in California at Greenland Ranch in Death Valley on 10 July 1913. The record annual rainfall is 1,468 centimeters (578 inches) on Maui in Hawaii in 1950.

4 Plants and Animals

At least 7,000 species and subspecies of indigenous plants have been categorized. The eastern forests contain a mixture of softwoods and hardwoods that includes pine, oak, maple, spruce, beech, birch, hemlock, walnut, gum, and hickory. The central hardwood forest contains oak, hickory, ash, maple, and walnut. Pine, hickory, tupelo, pecan, gum, birch, and sycamore are found in the southern forest, which stretches along the Gulf coast into the eastern half of Texas. The Pacific forest is the most spectacular of all because of its enormous redwoods and Douglas firs. In the southwest are saguaro (giant cactus), yucca, candlewood, and the Joshua tree.

The central grasslands lie in the interior of the continent, where the moisture is not sufficient to support the growth of large forests. The tall grassland or prairie (now almost entirely under cultivation) lies to the east of the one-hundredth meridian. To the west of this longitude, where rainfall is frequently less than 50 centimeters (20 inches) per year, is the short grassland. Mesquite grass covers parts of west Texas, southern New Mexico, and Arizona. Short grass may be found in the highlands of the latter two states, while tall grass covers large portions of the coastal regions of Texas and Louisiana and occurs in some parts of Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida. The Pacific grassland includes northern Idaho, the higher plateaus of eastern Washington and Oregon, and the mountain valleys of California.

The region of the Western Cordillera is for the most part covered with desert shrubs. Sagebrush predominates in the northern part of this area, and creosote in the southern region, with saltbrush near the Great Salt Lake and in Death Valley.

The lower slopes of the mountains running up to the coastline of Alaska are covered with coniferous forests as far north as the Seward Peninsula. The central part of the Yukon Basin is also a region of softwood forests. The rest of Alaska is heath or tundra. Hawaii has extensive forests of bamboo and ferns. Sugarcane and pineapple, although not native to the islands, now cover a large portion of the cultivated land.

Small trees and shrubs common to most of the United States include hackberry, hawthorn, serviceberry, blackberry, wild cherry, dogwood, and snowberry. Wildflowers bloom in all areas, from the seldom-seen blossoms of rare desert cacti to the hardiest alpine species. Wildflowers include forget-me-not, fringed and closed gentians, jack-in-the-pulpit, black-eyed Susan, columbine, and common dandelion, along with numerous varieties of aster, orchid, lady’s slipper, and wild rose.

An estimated 428 species of mammals characterize the animal life of the continental United States. Among the larger game animals are the white-tailed deer, moose, pronghorn antelope, bighorn sheep, mountain goat, black bear, and grizzly bear. Some 25 important furry species are common, including the muskrat, red and gray foxes, mink, raccoon, beaver, opossum, striped skunk, woodchuck, common cottontail, snowshoe hare, and various squirrels. The American buffalo (bison), millions of which once roamed the plains, is now found only on select reserves. Other mammals, such as the elk and the gray wolf, have been restricted to much smaller ranges.

Year-round and migratory birds abound. Loons, wild ducks, and wild geese are found in lake country; terns, gulls, sandpipers, herons, and other seabirds live along the coasts. Wrens, thrushes, owls, hummingbirds, sparrows, woodpeckers, swallows, chickadees, vireos, warblers, and finches appear in profusion, along with the robin, common crow, cardinal, Baltimore oriole, eastern and western meadowlarks, and various blackbirds. Wild turkey, ruffed grouse, and ring-necked pheasant (introduced from Europe) are popular game birds.

Lakes, rivers, and streams teem with trout, bass, perch, muskellunge, carp, catfish, and pike; sea bass, cod, snapper, and flounder are abundant along the coasts, along with such shellfish as lobster, shrimp, clams, oysters, and mussels. Garter, pine, and milk snakes are found in most regions. Four poisonous snakes survive, of which the rattlesnake is the most common. Alligators appear in southern waterways, and the Gila monster makes its home in the Southwest.

5 Environment

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), created in 1970, is an independent body with primary regulatory responsibility in the fields of air and noise pollution, water and waste management, and control of toxic substances. Other federal agencies with environmental responsibilities are the Forest Service and Soil Conservation Service within the Department of Agriculture, the Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Park Service within the Department of the Interior, the Department of Energy, and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

The most influential environmental lobbies include the Sierra Club and its legal arm, the Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund. Large conservation groups include the National Wildlife Federation, the National Audubon Society, and the Nature Conservancy. Greenpeace USA has gained international attention by seeking to disrupt hunts for whales and seals.

Among the environmental movement’s most notable successes have been the inauguration (and mandating in some states) of recycling programs, the banning in the United States of the insecticide dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), the successful fight against construction of a supersonic transport (SST), and the gradual elimination of chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) production by 2000.

Outstanding problems include acid rain; inadequate facilities for solid-waste disposal; air pollution from industrial emissions; the contamination of homes by radon, a radioactive gas that is produced by the decay of underground deposits of radium and can cause cancer; runoffs of agricultural pesticides; continued dumping of raw or partially treated sewage from major cities into U.S. waterways; and the decrease in arable land because of depletion, erosion, and urbanization.

As of November 2005, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service listed 997 endangered species, including 68 mammals, 77 birds, 74 fish, and 599 plants, and 275 threatened species, including 146 plants.

6 Population

The population of the United States in 2005 was estimated at 296,483,000. The median age of the population increased from 16.7 years in 1820 to 22.9 years in 1900, and to 35.3 years in 2000. The projected population for the year 2025 is at 349,419,000. Population density varies greatly from region to region; the average is 32 persons per square kilometer (80 per square mile).

Suburbs have absorbed most of the shift in population distribution since 1950. Approximately 79% of the population lived in urban areas in 2005.

7 Migration

In 2002, a total of 1,063,732 immigrants entered the United States. About 342,099 were from Asia, 404,437 were from North America, 74,506 were from South America, 174,209 from Europe, 60,269 from Africa, and 5,557 from Oceania. The highest number of immigrants from a single country in 2002 came from Mexico (219,380).

Since 1961, the federal government has supported and financed the Cuban Refugee Program. More than 500,000 Cubans were living in southern Florida by 1980. By 1990, 4% of Florida’s population was of Cuban descent. About 169,322 Cubans arrived between 1991 and 2000, and 27,520 arrived in 2002. Between 1975 and 1978, following the defeat of the U.S.-backed Saigon (Vietnam) government, several hundred thousand Vietnamese refugees came to the United States. Under the Refugee Act of 1980, a ceiling for the number of admissible refugees is set annually. In 2002, the ceiling for refugees was 70,000. The population of refugees, asylees (persons granted political asylum), resettled refugees, and asylum-seekers with pending claims was estimated at 5,250,954 in June 2003. During the same year, the newly formed Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services (BCIS—formerly the Immigration and Naturalization Service, or INS) received 66,577 applications for asylum. The United Nations reports that the United States is the leading destination of refugees, accounting for 63% of all resettlement worldwide.

Large numbers of aliens—mainly from Latin America, especially Mexico—have illegally established residence in the United States after entering the country as tourists, students, or temporary visitors engaged in work or business. In November 1986, Congress passed a bill allowing illegal aliens who had lived and worked in the United States since 1982 the opportunity to become permanent residents. By the end of fiscal year 1992, 2,650,000 of a potential 2,760,000 eligible for permanent residence under this bill had attained that status. As of 2002, an estimated 33.1 million immigrants (legal and illegal) lived in the United States. Of this total, the Census Bureau estimated in 2000 that 8 to 9 million of them were illegal alien residents.

Since Puerto Ricans are American citizens, no special authorization is required for their admission to the continental United States. The estimated net migration rate in 2005 was 3.31 migrants per 1,000 population.

8 Ethnic Groups

The majority of the U.S. population is of European origin, with the largest groups having primary ancestry traceable to the United Kingdom, Germany, and Ireland. Many Americans report multiple ancestries. Major racial and national minority groups include blacks (either of U.S., African, or Caribbean parentage), Chinese, Filipinos, Japanese, Mexicans, and other Spanish-speaking peoples of the Americas. According to 2004 American Community Service estimates, about 75.6% of the U.S. population are white; 12.1%; blacks and/or African Americans; 4.2% Asian; and 0.8% Native Americans (including Alaskan Natives). About 1.8% of the population claim a mixed ancestry of two or more races. About 11.9% of all U.S. citizens are foreign-born, with the largest numbers of people coming from Latin America (17,973,287) and Asia (9,254,705).

Groups of Native Americans are most numerous in the southwestern states of Oklahoma, Arizona, New Mexico, and California. A majority of the black population still resides in the South, the region that absorbed most of the slaves brought from Africa in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Many black Americans live in metropolitan areas, notably in Washington, D.C.; Atlanta; Chicago; Detroit; New Orleans; Newark; Baltimore; and New York City, which has a larger number of black residents than any other city. The Chinese population is highly urbanized, and concentrated particularly in cities of more than 100,000 population, mostly on the west coast and in New York City. Hawaii has been the most popular magnet for Japanese emigration.

Hispanics in 2004 made up the largest minority group in the United States, accounting for about 14% of the population. Although Mexicans in the 21st century were still concentrated in the Southwest, they have settled throughout the United States; there are over 25 million Mexicans in the country. Spanish-speaking Puerto Ricans have largely settled in the New York metropolitan area. Since 1959, many Cubans have settled in Florida and other eastern states.

9 Languages

The primary language of the United States is English, enriched by words borrowed from the languages of Indians and immigrants, predominantly European. Spanish is also spoken by a sizable minority.

When European settlement began, Indians living north of Mexico spoke about three hundred different languages now grouped into 58 different language families. Only two such families have contributed noticeably to the American vocabulary: Algonquian in the Northeast and Aztec-Tanoan in the Southwest.

Dialect studies confirm that standard English is not uniform throughout the country. Major regional variations reflect patterns of colonial settlement. Dialectologists recognize three main dialects: Northern, Midland, and Southern.

The Northern dialect is that of New England and its derivative settlements in New York; the northern parts of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Iowa; and Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, northeastern South Dakota, and North Dakota. Midland speech extends in a wide band across the United States with two main subdivisions, North Midland and South Midland. North Midland speech extends westward from New Jersey, Delaware, and Pennsylvania into Ohio, Illinois, southern Iowa, and northern Missouri. South Midland speech was carried by the Scotch-Irish from Pennsylvania down the Shenandoah Valley into the southern Appalachians, where it acquired many Southern speech features before it spread westward into Kentucky, Tennessee, southern Missouri, Arkansas, and northeast Texas. Southern dialect is spoken in the coastal savanna and Piedmont areas from Maryland south, in some areas of Florida, and in the lowlands and coastal areas of Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and eastern Texas.

In the western part of the United States, migration routes crossed and intermingled so much that no neat dialect boundaries can be drawn, although there are a few rather clear population pockets.

The majority of Spanish speakers live in the Southwest, Florida, and eastern urban centers. Refugee immigration since the 1950s has greatly increased the number of foreign-language speakers from Latin America and Asia.

10 Religions

Religious traditions in the United States are predominantly Judeo-Christian. Most Americans identify themselves as Protestants (of various denominations), Roman Catholics, or Jews. As of 2000, over 141 million Americans reported affiliation with a religious group. The largest single Christian denomination is the Roman Catholic Church, with an estimated membership of 66.4 million in 2004. Immigration from Ireland, Italy, Eastern Europe, French Canada, and the Caribbean accounts for the predominance of Roman Catholicism in the Northeast, Northwest, and some parts of the Great Lakes region, while Hispanic traditions and more recent immigration from Mexico and other Latin American countries account for the historical importance of Roman Catholicism in California and throughout most of the sunbelt. More than any other U.S. religious body, the Roman Catholic Church maintains an extensive network of parochial schools.

Jewish immigrants settled first in the Northeast, where the largest Jewish population remains. At last estimates, there were approximately 6.1 million Jews living in the United States.

According to reported statistics, over 94 million people in the United States report affiliation with a Protestant denomination. Baptists predominate below the Mason-Dixon line and west to Texas. By far the nation’s largest Protestant group, the Southern Baptist Convention, which has about 16.2 million members. The American Baptist Churches claim some 1.4 million members. A concentration of Methodist groups extends westward in a band from Delaware to eastern Colorado. The largest of these groups, the United Methodist Church, has about 8.2 million adherents. Lutheran denominations, reflecting in part the patterns of German and Scandinavian settlement, are most highly concentrated in the north-central states, especially Minnesota and the Dakotas.

Two Lutheran synods, the Lutheran Church in America and the American Lutheran Church, merged in 1987 to form the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, with more than 5 million adherents in 2004. In June 1983, the two major Presbyterian churches, the northern-based United Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. and the southern-based Presbyterian Church in the United States, formally merged as the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), ending a division that began with the Civil War. This group claimed 3.4 million adherents in 2004.

Other Protestant denominations and their estimated adherents (2004) include the

Episcopal Church, 2,334,000, and the United Church of Christ, 1,331,000. One Christian group, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon), with 5.4 million members (2004), was organized in New York in 1830 and since migrating westward has played a leading role in Utah’s political, economic, and religious life. Notable during the 1970s and early 1980s was a rise in the fundamentalist, evangelical, and Pentecostal movements. In the first half of the 1990s, Pentecostal churches reported 10.2 million adherents, representing more than 6% of the population reporting religious affiliation.

Several million Muslims, followers of various Asian religions, a multiplicity of small Protestant groups, and a sizable number of cults also participate in U.S. religious life.

11 Transportation

The United States has well-developed systems of railroads, highways, inland waterways, oil pipelines, and domestic airways. Despite an attempt to encourage more people to travel by train through the development of a national network (Amtrak) in the 1970s, rail transport has continued to experience heavy financial losses. In 2003, there were 227,736 kilometers (141,424 miles) of mainline routes, all standard gauge. In 2000, Amtrak carried 84.1 million passengers.

The most widely used form of transportation is the automobile, and the extent and quality of the United States road-transport system are the best in the world. More than 226 million vehicles—a record number—were registered in 2003, including more than 130.8 million passenger cars. In 2000 there were 4,346,068 motorcycles registered as well. The United States has a vast network of public roads, with a total length of approximately 6,393,603 kilometers (3,976,821 miles) in 2003.

Major ocean ports or port areas are New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Norfolk, New Orleans, Houston, and the San Francisco Bay area. The inland port of Duluth, Minnesota on Lake Superior handles more freight than all but the top-ranking ocean ports. In 2005, the United States had a merchant shipping fleet of 486 vessels, each of more than 1,000 gross registered tons (GRT), with a combined GRT of 12,436,658.

In 2004, the United States had an estimated 14,857 airports. In 2005, a total of 5,120 had paved runways. As of 2000 the busiest airport was Hartsfield in Atlanta, Georgia, which surpassed O’Hare in Chicago, Illinois. Revenue passengers carried by the airlines in 1940 totaled 2.7 million; by 2003, the figure was estimated at 588.997 million for U.S. domestic and international carriers.

12 History

Origins The first Americans, distant ancestors of the American Indians, probably crossed the Bering Strait from Asia at least 12,000 years ago. By the time Christopher Columbus came to the New World (as America was known) in 1492, there were probably about two million Native Americans living in the land that was to become the United States.

The Spanish established the first permanent settlement at Saint Augustine in the future state of Florida in 1565, and another in New Mexico in 1599. During the early 17th century, the English founded Jamestown in present-day Virginia (1607) and Plymouth Colony in present-day Massachusetts (1620). The Dutch and Swedish also established settlements in the seventeenth century, but the English eventually took over settlement of the East Coast except for Florida, where the Spanish ruled until 1821. The Southwest, California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas also were part of the Spanish empire until the 17th century.

The American Revolution The colonies enjoyed a large measure of self-government until the end of the French and Indian War (1745–63), which resulted in the loss of French Canada to the British. To prevent further troubles with the Indians, the British government in 1763 prohibited the American colonists from settling beyond the Appalachian Mountains. The British also enacted a series of tax measures, which the colonists protested, setting off a struggle between colonial and British authority.

A series of conflicts led to the colonists’ decision to separate from British rule and set up their own independent government. George Washington was appointed commander in chief of the new American army, and on 4 July 1776, the 13 American colonies adopted the Declaration of Independence. The American Revolution was officially begun.

British and American forces met in their first organized encounter near Boston on 17 June 1775. Numerous battles up and down the East Coast followed. The entry of France into the war on the American side eventually tipped the balance. On 19 October 1781, the British commander, Charles Cornwallis, surrendered his army at Yorktown, Virginia. American independence was acknowledged by the British in a treaty of peace signed in Paris on 3 September 1783.

The Beginnings of American Government The first constitution uniting the 13 original states— the Articles of Confederation—denied Congress power to raise taxes or regulate commerce, and many of its authorized powers required the approval of a minimum of nine states. In 1787 Congress passed the Northwest Ordinance, providing for the establishment of new territories on the frontier. In that same year, a convention assembled in Philadelphia to revise the articles. The convention adopted an altogether new document, the present Constitution of the United States, which greatly increased the powers of the central government at the expense of the states.

This document was ratified by the states with the understanding that it would be amended to include a bill of rights guaranteeing certain fundamental freedoms. These freedoms—including the rights of free speech, a free press, and freedom of assembly, freedom from unreasonable search and seizure, and the right to a speedy and public trial by an impartial jury—are assured by the first ten amendments to the constitution, known as the Bill of Rights, adopted on 5 December 1791. The constitution did recognize slavery, and did not provide for universal suffrage. On 30 April 1789, George Washington was inaugurated as the first president of the United States.

The Federalist Party, to which Washington belonged, was opposed to the French Revolution (1789), while the Democratic-Republicans (an anti-Federalist party led by Thomas Jefferson) supported it. This division of the nation’s leadership was the beginning of the two-party system, which has been the dominant characteristic of the United States political scene ever since.

Westward Expansion In 1803, President Thomas Jefferson purchased the Louisiana Territory from France, including all the present territory of the United States west of the Mississippi drained by that river and its tributaries. Exploration and mapping of the new territory, particularly through the expeditions of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, began almost immediately.

To make room for the westward expansion of European American settlement, the federal government in 1817 began a policy of forcibly resettling the Indians. They were moved to what later became known as Indian Territory (now Oklahoma); those Indians not forced to move were restricted to reservations. This “removal” of Native Americans to make way for European American settlement was a form of genocide (the deliberate destruction of a whole race, culture, or group of people).

The Missouri Compromise (1820) provided for admission of Missouri into the Union as a slave state but banned slavery in territories to the west that lay north of 36°30′. In 1823, President James Monroe declared the Western Hemisphere closed to further colonization by European powers in a proclamation known as the Monroe Doctrine.

Development of Farming and Industry Farming expanded with westward migration. The cotton gin, invented by Eli Whitney in 1793, greatly simplified cotton production, and the growing textile industry in New England and Great Britain needed a lot of cotton. The South remained an agricultural society based mostly on a one-crop economy. Large numbers of field hands were required for cotton farming, and black slavery became a significant part of the southern economy.

The successful completion of the Erie Canal (1825), linking the Great Lakes with the Atlantic, began a canal-building boom. Railroad building began in earnest in the 1830s, and by 1840 about 5,300 kilometers (3,300 miles) of track had been laid.

New States and the Slavery Question In 1836, United States settlers in Texas revolted against Mexican rule and established an independent republic. Texas was admitted to the Union as a state in 1845. War with Mexico over a boundary dispute led in 1848 to the addition of California and New Mexico to the growing nation. A dispute with Britain over the Oregon Territory was settled in 1846 by a treaty that established the 49th parallel as the boundary with Canada.

Westward expansion increased the conflict over slavery in the new territories. The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 repealed the Missouri Compromise and left the question of slavery in the territories to be decided by the settlers themselves. Finally, the election of Abraham Lincoln to the presidency in 1860 led strong supporters of slavery to decide to secede from the United States altogether.

The Civil War Between December 1860 and February 1861, the seven states of the Deep South—South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas— withdrew from the Union and formed a separate government. They were known as the Confederate States of America, under the presidency of Jefferson Davis. On 12 April 1861, the Confederates opened fire on Fort Sumter in the harbor of Charleston, South Carolina, beginning the United States Civil War. Arkansas, North Carolina, Virginia, and Tennessee quickly joined the Confederacy.

For the next four years, war raged between the Confederate and Union forces, largely in southern territories. An estimated 360,000 men in the Union forces lost their lives, including 110,000 killed in battle. Confederate dead were estimated at 250,000, including 94,000 killed in battle. The North, with more fighters and resources, finally won. With much of the South in Union hands, Confederate general Robert E. Lee surrendered to Union general Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Courthouse in Virginia on 9 April 1865.

The Post-Civil War Era President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 was the first step in freeing some four million black slaves. Their liberation was completed soon after the war’s end by amendments to the Constitution. Five days after General Lee’s surrender, Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth. During the Reconstruction era (1865–77), the defeated South was governed by Union Army commanders. The resulting bitterness of southerners toward northern Republican rule, which gave blacks the rights of citizens, including the right to vote, lasted for years afterward. By the end of the Reconstruction era, whites had reestablished their political domination over blacks in the southern states and had begun to enforce rules of segregation that lasted for nearly a century.

Outside the South, the age of big business dawned. Pittsburgh, Chicago, and New York emerged as the nation’s great industrial centers. The American Federation of Labor, founded in 1886, established a nationwide system of organized labor that remained dominant for many decades. During this period, too, the woman’s rights movement began to organize to fight for the right to vote. It took women until 1920 to win their constitutional right of suffrage.

The 1890s marked the closing of the United States frontier for settlement and the beginning of United States overseas expansion. (Alaska had already been acquired from Russia for $7.2 million in 1867.) In 1898, at its own request, Hawaii was annexed as a territory by the United States. In the same year, as a result of the Spanish-American War, the United States added the Philippines, Guam, and Puerto Rico to its territories. A newly independent Cuba became virtually a protectorate of the United States until the 1950s. In 1903, the United States leased the Panama Canal Zone and started construction of a 68-kilometer (42-mile) canal, completed in 1914.

World War I to World War II United States involvement in World War I marked the country’s emergence as one of the great powers of the world. By late 1917, when United States troops joined the Allied forces in the fighting on the western front, the European armies were approaching exhaustion. American intervention may well have been a key element in the eventual victory of the Allies. Fighting ended with the armistice (truce) of 11 November 1918. President Woodrow Wilson played an active role in drawing up the 1919 Versailles peace treaty.

The 1920s saw a major business boom, followed by the great stock market crash of October 1929, which ushered in the longest and most serious economic depression the country had ever known. The election of Franklin D. Roosevelt, in March 1933, began a new era in United States history, in which the federal government took a much greater role in the nation’s economic affairs. Relief measures were instituted, work projects established, and the federal Social Security program was set up. The National Labor Relations Act established the right of employees’ organizations to bargain collectively with employers.

Following German, Italian, and Japanese aggression, World War II broke out in Europe during September 1939. In 1940, Roosevelt, ignoring a tradition dating back to Washington that no president should serve more than two terms, ran again for reelection. He easily defeated his Republican opponent, Wendell Willkie.

The United States was brought actively into the war by the Japanese attack on the Pearl Harbor naval base in Hawaii on 7 December 1941. United States forces waged war across the Pacific, in Africa, in Asia, and in Europe. Germany was successfully invaded in 1944 and conquered in May 1945. After the United States dropped the world’s first atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan, the Japanese surrendered in August.

Korean War and the Civil Rights Movement The United States became an active member of the new world organization, the United Nations, during President Harry S. Truman’s administration. In 1949 the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) established a defensive alliance among a number of Western European nations and the United States. Following the North Korean attack on South Korea on 25 June 1950, the United Nations Security Council decided that members of the United Nations should go to the aid of South Korea. United States naval, air, and ground forces were immediately sent by President Truman. An undeclared war followed, which eventually was ended by a truce signed on 27 June 1953.

During President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s administration, the United States Supreme Court’s decision in 1954 outlawed segregation of whites and blacks in public schools. In the early 1960s, sit-ins, freedom rides, and similar expressions of nonviolent resistance by blacks and their sympathizers—known collectively as the Civil Rights Movement—led to the end of some segregation practices.

In the early 1960s, during the administration of President Eisenhower’s successor, John F. Kennedy, the Cold War heated up as Cuba, under the regime of Fidel Castro, aligned itself with the Soviet Union. In October 1962, President Kennedy successfully forced a showdown with the Soviet Union over Cuba in demanding the withdrawal of Soviet-supplied missiles from the nearby island. On 22 November 1963, President Kennedy was assassinated while riding in a motorcade through Dallas, Texas. Hours later, Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson was inaugurated president. President Johnson’s ambitious “Great Society” program sought to ensure black Americans’ rights in voting and public housing, to give the underprivileged job training, and to provide persons 65 and over with hospitalization and other medical benefits.

The Vietnam War and Watergate In 1965, President Johnson sent American combat troops into South Vietnam to support anti-communist forces, and he ordered United States bombing raids on communist North Vietnam. However, American military might was unable to defeat the Vietnamese guerrillas, and the American people were badly divided over continuing the undeclared war.

Under President Richard M. Nixon (elected in 1968), the increasingly unpopular and costly war continued for four more years before a cease-fire was finally signed on 27 January 1973 and the last American soldiers were withdrawn. Two years later, the South Vietnamese army collapsed, and the North Vietnamese communist regime united the country. In 1972, President Nixon opened up relations with the People’s Republic of China, which had been closed to Westerners since 1949. He also signed a strategic arms limitation agreement with the Soviet Union. (Earlier, in July 1969, American technology had achieved a national triumph by landing the first astronaut on the Moon.)

The Watergate scandal began on 17 June 1972 with the arrest of five men associated with Nixon’s reelection campaign. They had been caught during a break-in at Democratic Party headquarters in the Watergate office building in Washington, D.C. Although Nixon was reelected in November 1972, further investigations by the press and by a Senate investigating committee revealed a pattern of political “dirty tricks,” including illegal wire-tapping and other methods of spying on his opponents throughout his first term. The House voted to begin impeachment proceedings. On 9 August 1974, Nixon became the first president to resign the office. The American people’s trust in their government leaders was seriously damaged.

The Reagan Era Gerald R. Ford was appointed vice president in October 1973 to succeed ousted Vice President Spiro T. Agnew. Ford became president in August 1974 when Nixon resigned. Less than a month after taking office, President Ford granted a full pardon to Nixon for any crimes he may have committed as president. Ford’s pardon of Nixon probably contributed to his narrow defeat by a Georgia Democrat, Jimmy Carter, in 1976. During 1978–79, President Carter convinced the Senate to pass treaties ending United States sovereignty over the Panama Canal Zone. He also mediated a peace agreement between Israel and Egypt, which was signed at the Camp David, Maryland, retreat in September 1978. But an economic recession and a prolonged quarrel with Iran over more than fifty U.S. citizens taken hostage in Tehran on 4 November 1979 caused the American public to doubt his leadership. Exactly a year after the hostages were taken, former California governor Ronald Reagan defeated Carter in the 1980 presidential election. The hostages were released on 20 January 1981, the day of Reagan’s inauguration.

President Reagan used his popularity to push through significant policy changes. He made cuts in income taxes and more than doubled the military budget between 1980 and 1989, which also resulted in a doubling of the national debt. In an effort to balance the federal budget, Reagan cut welfare and Medicare benefits, reduced allocations for food stamps, and slashed the budget of the Environmental Protection Agency.

Reagan’s appointment of Sandra Day O’Connor as the first woman justice of the Supreme Court was widely praised and won unanimous confirmation from the Senate. Protests were raised, however, about his decisions to help the government of El Salvador in its war against leftist rebels, to aid groups in Nicaragua trying to overthrow the leftist Sandinista government in their country, and to send American troops to Grenada in October 1983 to overthrow a leftist government there.

Presidents Bush and Clinton Reagan was succeeded in 1988 by his vice president, George H. W. Bush. President Bush used his personal relationships with foreign leaders to bring about peace talks between Israel and its Arab neighbors, to encourage a peaceful unification of Germany, and to negotiate significant arms reductions with the Russians. Bush sent 400,000 American soldiers to lead the way in forming a multinational coalition to oppose Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait in 1990. The multinational forces destroyed Iraq’s main force within seven months.

One of the biggest crises that the Bush administration encountered was the collapse of the savings and loan industry in the late 1980s. The federal government was forced by law to rescue the savings and loan banks, under the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation (FSLIC), costing taxpayers more than $100 billion.

In the 1992 presidential election, Democrat Bill Clinton (1946–), governor of Arkansas, defeated Bush, winning 43% of the vote to Bush’s 38% and third-party candidate Ross Perot’s 18%. Clinton’s major achievements as president included the passage of a budget designed to raise revenue and thereby lower the deficit, which had ballooned during the Reagan and Bush years. Clinton also persuaded Congress to approve the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which removed or reduced tariffs on most goods moving across the borders of the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

In the 1994 midterm elections, the Republican Party gained control of both houses of Congress for the first time in more than forty years. The elections indicated popular disappointment with the Clinton administration and the Democrat-controlled Congress.

The nation’s economic recovery from the 1990–91 recession gained strength as the decade advanced, with healthy growth, falling unemployment, and moderate interest rate and inflation levels. Between 1995 and 1997, the value of the stock market increased 60%. Clinton’s faltering popularity rebounded in 1996 when he was reelected, becoming the first Democratic president elected to a second term since Franklin D. Roosevelt. The Republicans retained control of both houses of Congress, however.

In 1994, Attorney General Janet Reno appointed Kenneth Starr to the position of special prosecutor. His job was to investigate allegations of financial wrongdoing by President Clinton and his wife, Hillary Rodham Clinton. In 1998, the investigation expanded to include testimony related to a previous sexual harassment lawsuit brought against Clinton for actions allegedly taken while he was governor of Arkansas. In the same year, Starr submitted a report to Congress that resulted in the House of Representatives passing four articles of impeachment against President Clinton. In the subsequent trial in the Senate, however, the articles were defeated.

In one of the closest and most controversial presidential elections in U.S. history, Republican George W. Bush, son of a former president, was elected after defeating Democrat Vice President Al Gore in the electoral college (Gore won the popular vote). Bush took office on 20 January 2001.

On 11 September 2001, nineteen hijackers crashed four passenger aircraft into the North and South towers of the World Trade Center; the Pentagon in Washington, D.C.; and a field in Stony Creek Township in Pennsylvania. The World Trade Center towers were destroyed. Approximately 3,000 people were confirmed or reported dead as a result of all four 11 September 2001 attacks. The terrorist organization al-Qaeda, led by Saudi Arabian-born Osama bin Laden, was believed to be responsible for the attacks.

On 7 October 2001, the United States and Britain launched air strikes against Afghanistan, a country ruled by the Taliban regime that had supported the al-Qaeda organization. By December 2001, the Taliban were defeated. Remnants of al-Qaeda still remained in Afghanistan and the surrounding region, however. As of 2006, U.S. soldiers remained in Afghanistan to suppress efforts by either the Taliban or al-Qaeda to regroup.

In December 2001, the energy giant Enron Corporation declared bankruptcy after massive false accounting practices came to light. In June 2002, telecommunications giant WorldCom disclosed that it had hid $3.8 billion in expenses. The fraud led to WorldCom’s bankruptcy, the largest in U.S. history.

Throughout 2002, the United States stated that Saddam Hussein’s regime in Iraq must disarm itself of weapons of mass destruction. In November 2002, United Nations (UN) weapons inspectors returned to Iraq (they had been expelled in 1998), but the United States and the United Kingdom expressed dissatisfaction with inspectors’ progress, and stated that military force might be necessary to remove the Iraqi regime. France, Russia, and Germany, in particular, opposed the use of military force. This disagreement caused a rift between Western democracies.

After diplomatic efforts at conflict resolution failed, war began on 19 March 2003. On 9 April, Baghdad fell to U.S. forces, and work began on restoring basic services to the Iraqi population, including providing safe drinking water, electricity, and sanitation. On 1 May, President Bush declared that major combat operations had been completed. On 13 December 2003 Saddam Hussein was found hiding in a hole near his hometown of Tikrit and captured by U.S. forces without resisting. By 2006, no weapons of mass destruction had been found in Iraq.

In May 2004, the Abu Ghraib scandal began. Photographs of U.S. soldiers engaged in acts of abuse against Iraqi prisoners being held at the Abu Ghraib military prison outside Baghdad were made public. Seven U.S. suspects were

BIOGRAPHICAL PROFILE

Name: George W. Bush

Position: President of a federal republic

Took Office: 20 January 2001; reelected in 2004

Birthplace: Midland, Texas

Birthdate: 6 July 1946

Religion: Methodist

Education: Yale University; Harvard Business School, master’s of business administration (MBA)

Spouse: Laura Welch Bush

Children: Twin daughters, Barbara and Jenna

Of interest: Bush served as an F-102 pilot for the Texas Air National Guard before beginning his career in the oil and gas business in 1975. He was co-owner of the Texas Rangers baseball franchise. He also owns two dogs, Spot and Barney, and a cat, India.

named for carrying out the abuse. Most were given prison sentences.

U.S. forces increasingly became the targets of attacks in Iraq as an insurgency against the U.S. military presence began. By 2006, more than 2,000 U.S. soldiers had been killed in fighting. A referendum on a new Iraqi constitution was held in October 2005 and national elections were held in December 2005, after which a new Iraqi government was formed.

In the 2004 U.S. presidential election, President Bush and Vice-President Dick Cheney defeated Democratic challengers John Kerry and John Edwards. Bush received approximately 3 million more popular votes than Kerry, and won the electoral vote 286 to 251. The campaign was run on such issues as terrorism, the war in Iraq, the economy, and to a lesser extent issues of morality and values—anti-gay marriage measures were on the ballots in 11 states, and all passed.

In August 2005, Hurricane Katrina landed on the Gulf Coast of the United States in what was one of the worst natural disasters in U.S. history. New Orleans felt the heaviest effects of the storm. Levees were breached by the storm surge and water submerged the city. More than 1,000 people died. Over 500,000 people were left homeless and without jobs.

13 Government

The Constitution of the United States, signed in 1787, is the nation’s governing document. In the first ten amendments to the Constitution, ratified in 1791 and known as the Bill of Rights, certain individual rights are guaranteed to United States citizens. In all, there have been 27 amendments to the Bill of Rights, including the 13th Amendment (1865), which banned slavery, and the 19th (1920), which gave women the right to vote. Suffrage is universal beginning at the age of 18, as set by the 26th Amendment (1971).

The United States has a federal form of government, with the distribution of powers between federal and state governments constitutionally defined. The legislative powers of the federal government rest in Congress, which consists of the House of Representatives and the Senate. There are 435 members of the House of Representatives. Each state is given a number of representatives in proportion to its population. Representatives are elected to serve two-year terms in every even-numbered year. The Senate consists of two senators from each state, elected to six-year terms. One-third of the Senate is elected in every even-numbered year.

A bill that is passed by both houses of Congress in the same form is then given to the president, who may sign it or veto (reject) it. The president must have been born in the United States, at least 35 years old, and a resident of the United States for 14 years. Under the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution, adopted in 1951, a president may not be elected more than twice.

The vice president, elected at the same time and on the same ballot as the president, serves as president pro tem of the Senate. The vice president assumes the power and duties of the presidency on the president’s removal from office or as a result of the president’s death, resignation, or inability to perform his duties. Both the president and the vice president can be removed from office after impeachment by the House and conviction at a Senate trial for “treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.”

The president nominates and, with the approval of the Senate, appoints ambassadors, consuls, and all federal judges, including the justices of the Supreme Court. As commander in chief, the president is ultimately responsible for the management of the land, naval, and air forces, but the power to declare war belongs to Congress. The president conducts foreign relations and makes treaties with the advice and consent of the Senate. No treaty is binding unless it wins the approval of two-thirds of the Senate, however. The president’s independence also is limited by the House of Representatives, where all funding (appropriations) bills originate.

The president also appoints his cabinet, subject to Senate confirmation. The cabinet consists of the secretaries who head the departments of the executive branch. As of 2006, the executive branch included the following cabinet departments: Agriculture (created in 1862), Commerce (1913), Defense (1947), Education (1980), Energy (1977), Health and Human Services (1980), Housing and Urban Development (1965), Interior (1849), Justice (1870), Labor (1913), State (1789), Transportation (1966), Treasury (1789), Veterans’ Affairs (1989), and Homeland Security (2002).

Each state is divided into counties, municipalities, and special districts such as those for water, education, sanitation, highways, parks, and recreation. There are more than 3,000 counties in the United States and more than 19,000 municipalities, including cities, villages, towns, and boroughs.

14 Political Parties

Two major parties, Democratic and Republican, have dominated national, state, and local politics since 1860. Minority parties have been formed at various periods in American political history, but none has had any lasting national impact. The most successful minority party in recent decades was that of Texas billionaire Ross Perot in 1992. Independent candidates have been elected to state and local office, but no candidate has won the presidency without major party backing.

Traditionally, the Republican Party is more sympathetic to business interests and gets greater support from business than does the Democratic Party. A majority of blue-collar workers, by contrast, have generally supported the Democratic Party, which favors more lenient labor laws, particularly as they affect labor unions. Republicans promote private business and an increased role for state government, while Democrats generally support greater federal government participation and regulatory authority.

In 1984, Geraldine A. Ferraro, a Democrat, became the first female vice-presidential nominee of a major United States political party. Also in 1984, presidential candidate Jesse L. Jackson was the first black ever to win a plurality in a state primary election.

The 2004 presidential election was won by incumbent George W. Bush and his running mate Dick Cheney. They defeated Democrats John Kerry and John Edwards. Bush received 286 electoral votes, Kerry 251, and Edwards 1 when an elector wrote the name “John Edwards” in on the electoral ballot. Bush received a majority of the popular vote—50.73% to Kerry’s 48.27%— or 3 million more votes than Kerry. Voter turnout was the highest since 1968, at 64%.

The composition of the 109th Congress after the 2004 election was as follows: 55 Republicans, 44 Democrats, and 1 Independent in the Senate; and 232 Republicans, 202 Democrats, and 1 Independent in the House of Representatives. Following the 2002 mid-term election, Nancy Pelosi became the Democratic Majority Leader in the House of Representatives, the first woman to head either party in Congress. In the 109th Congress (2005–06), there were 68 women, 42 African Americans, 26 Hispanics, 6 Asians or Hawaiians or other Pacific Islanders ethnicity, and 1 Native American in the House of Representatives. There were 14 women, 1 African American, 2 Hispanics, and 2 Asians or Hawaiians or other Pacific Islanders ethnicity in the Senate.

15 Judicial System

The Supreme Court, established by the United States Constitution, is the nation’s highest judicial body, consisting of the chief justice of the United States and eight associate justices. All justices are appointed for life by the president with the approval of the Senate.

The Supreme Court acts as an appeals court for federal district courts, circuit courts of appeal, and the highest courts in the states. The Supreme Court also exercises the power of judicial review, determining the constitutionality of any state laws, state constitutions, congressional statutes, and federal regulations that are specifically challenged.

The United States Congress establishes all federal courts lower than the Supreme Court. On the lowest level and handling the most federal cases are the district courts-including one each in Puerto Rico, Guam, the Virgin Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the District of Columbia. District courts have no appeals jurisdiction; their decisions may be carried to the courts of appeal, which are organized into thirteen circuits. For most cases, this is usually the last stage of appeal, except where the court rules that a statute of a state conflicts with the Constitution of the United States, with federal law, or with a treaty. Special federal courts include the Court of Claims, Court of Customs and Patent Appeals, and Tax Court.

State courts operate independently of the federal judiciary. Most states have a court system that begins on the lowest level with a justice of the peace, and includes courts of general trial jurisdiction and appeals courts. At the highest level of the system is a state supreme court. The court of trial jurisdiction (sometimes called the county or superior court) has both original and appeals jurisdiction; all criminal cases and some civil cases are tried in this court. The state supreme court interprets the constitution and the laws of the state.

16 Armed Forces

The armed forces of the United States of America in 2005 numbered 1.473 million on active duty and 1.29 million in the Ready Reserve. Membership in all of these forces is voluntary and has been since 1973 when the draft expired at the end of the Vietnam War. All male citizens must still register for the draft at the age of eigh-

Yearly Growth Rate

This economic indicator tells by what percent the economy has increased or decreased when compared with the previous year.

teen, however. The active duty force includes 196,100 women.

The United States Army numbers 502,000 soldiers on active duty, divided into 10 divisions (two armored, four mechanized infantry, two light infantry, one air assault, and one airborne), as well as into various armored cavalry, aviation, artillery, signals, psychological operations, ranger, Special Forces, civil affairs, and air defense units. The Army National Guard numbers 355,900 and the Army Reserve 351,350.

The United States Navy (376,750) combines three combat elements: air, surface, and subsurface. The navy has up to 80 nuclear-powered attack submarines. The United States Marine Corps (173,350) trains for a wide range of maneuvers.

The United States Air Force (379,500) operates more than 3,500 aircraft. Air force personnel manage the United States radar and satellite early-warning and intelligence effort. The Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard (roughly 183,200 active reserves) provide a wide range of flying and support units.

The United States Coast Guard is a separate branch of the armed forces under the Department of Homeland Security. It is the principal law enforcement agency on coastal waters.

About one-third of active-duty personnel are assigned to overseas stations (for tours of one to three years) or serve in air, naval, and ground units that serve short tours on a rotating basis. In 2005, U.S. defense budget outlays totaled $465 billion.

17 Economy

The United States probably has a greater variety and quantity of natural resources than any other nation, with the possible exception of Russia. Because of its vast economic growth, however, the United States has come to depend increasingly on foreign sources for a long list of raw materials. American dependence on oil imports was dramatically demonstrated during the 1973 Arab oil embargo, when serious fuel shortages developed in many sections of the country.

Industrial activity within the United States expanded southward and westward for much of the 20th century, with the most rapid expansion occurring since World War II. Louisiana, Oklahoma, and especially Texas are centers of industries based on petroleum refining; aerospace and other high-technology industries are the basis of the new wealth of Texas and California, the nation’s leading manufacturing state. The industrial heartland of the United States consists of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin, with steelmaking and automobile manufacturing among the leading industries. The Middle Atlantic states (New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania) and the Northeast also are highly industrialized.

In 2005 unemployment stood at 5.1%. It had fallen steadily through the 1990s, but then crept up.

Inflation is an ever-present factor in the United States economy, although the United States’ inflation rate, estimated at 4% in 2005, tends to be lower than that of the majority of industrialized countries. National income per person stood at $41,800 in 2005, and the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP) was $12.4 trillion.

By 2000, stock market growth, which had soared in the 1990s, had slowed somewhat. Balanced-budget legislation was passed in 1997. The lawmakers wanted to balance the federal budget by 2002, for the first time since 1969. In early 2001, the government projected a budget surplus of $275 billion for that year. That projection would soon be reversed, however.

At the beginning of the 21st century, significant economic concerns included the nation’s sizable trade deficit, the increasing medical costs of an aging population, and the failure of the strong economy to improve conditions for the poor. Since 1975, gains in household income have been experienced almost solely by the top 20% of households.

Economic growth came to a standstill in the middle of 2001, largely due to the end of the long investment boom, especially in the information technology sector. The economy was in recession in the second half of 2001, affecting both the manufacturing and service sectors. The 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States worsened the poor economic situation. The U.S. economy, which had driven global growth during the 1990s, became the cause of a worldwide recession, dragging down the rest of North America, Europe, Japan, and the developing economies of Latin America and Southeast Asia, which are strongly influenced by trends in the U.S. economy.

The economy began to recover slowly in 2002, however, with GDP growth estimated at 2.45%. Nevertheless, domestic confidence in the economy remained low; coupled with major corporate failures (including Enron and WorldCom) and additional stock market declines, the recovery remained sluggish and uneven. Growth slowed at the end of 2002 and into 2003, and the unemployment rate rose to 6.3% in July 2003.

Following the 2003 war in Iraq, consumer spending rebounded, as did stock prices; the housing market remained strong; inflation was low; additional tax cuts were passed; there was an easing of oil prices; and productivity growth was strong. As a result of these factors, many analysts predicted the coming of a more favorable economic climate. Nevertheless, in 2003, the federal budget deficit was projected to reach $455 billion, the largest deficit on record.

The American economy grew at a rate of 4.3% in the fall of 2005, despite the ravages of Hurricane Katrina, which destroyed much of the port city of New Orleans and closed down a large portion of the energy industry. But the relatively fast-growing economy had a shaky foundation. Oil prices were at their highest level since the early 1980s; the inflation rate was at its highest level since 1991; wage growth was sluggish; and the jobs market was lagging the recovery. Consumer spending was increasingly tied to

Components of the Economy

This pie chart shows how much of the country’s economy is devoted to agriculture (including forestry, hunting, and fishing), industry, or services.

prices in the over-inflated housing market. The government ran a deficit of $412 billion in 2004, or 3.6% of GDP.

18 Income

In 2005 the United States’ gross domestic product (GDP) was estimated at $12.4 trillion, or $41,800 per person. The annual growth rate of GDP was estimated at 3.2%. The average inflation rate in late 2005 was above 4%.

19 Industry

Although the United States remains one of the world’s top industrial powers, manufacturing no longer plays as dominant a role in the economy as it once did. Between 1979 and 1998, manufacturing employment fell from 20.9 million to 18.7 million, or from 21.8% to 14.8% of national employment. Throughout the 1960s, manufacturing accounted for about 29% of total national income; by 1993, the proportion was down to about 18%. In 2004, industry accounted for 20% of national income. That year, 22.7% of the labor force was engaged in manufacturing, extraction, transportation, and crafts. The Midwest leads all other regions in heavy industry, including the manufacturing of automobiles, trucks, and other vehicles.

Leading manufacturing industries of durable goods include nonelectrical machinery, electric and electronic equipment, motor vehicles and equipment, and other transportation equipment. The principal manufacturing industries of nondurable goods are chemicals and allied products, food, printing and publishing, and petroleum and coal products. Large corporations are dominant, especially in areas such as steel, automobiles, pharmaceuticals, aircraft, petroleum refining, computers, soaps and detergents, tires, and communications equipment.

Advances in chemistry and electronics have revolutionized many industries through new products and methods. Industries that have been best able to make use of new technology have done well, and the economies of some states, particularly California and Massachusetts, are largely based on it.

In the 1980s and 1990s, the United States was the world leader in computer manufacturing. At the beginning of the 21st century, however, the high-tech manufacturing industry registered a decline. Employment in high-technology manufacturing fell by 415,000 jobs from January 2001 to December 2002. Semiconductor manufacturing had been migrating out of the United States to East Asian countries, especially China, Taiwan, and Singapore.

Also, certain industries—such as clothing and steelmaking—have suffered from outmoded manufacturing facilities that force the price of their products above the world market level.

Automobile manufacturing was an ailing industry in the 1980s, but rebounded slightly in the 1990s. Passenger car production, which had fallen from 7.1 million in 1987 to 5.4 million in 1991, rose to more than 12 million by 2003.

20 Labor

The country’s civilian labor force, including those who were unemployed, totaled 149.3 million in 2005. The unemployment rate was 5.1% that year. Of the total work force in 2005, farming, fishing, and forestry accounted for 0.7% of the labor force, with manufacturing, extraction, transportation, and crafts at 22.9%, managerial, professional, and technical workers at 34.7%, sales and office workers at 25.4%, and other services at 16.3%. Earnings of workers vary considerably with the type of work and the section of country. In 2003, the national average wage was $15.27 per hour for nonagricultural workers. Workers in manufacturing had a national average wage of $15.64.

In 2002, 13.2% of wage and salary workers were union members—16.1 million U.S. citizens belonged to a union that year. In 2002, there were 34 national labor unions that each claimed more than 100,000 members, the largest being the National Education Association, with 2.7 million members. The most important federation of organized workers in the United States is the American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), whose affiliated unions had 13 million members as of 2003. As of 2003, however, 23 states had passed right-to-work laws, forbidding forced union membership as a condition of employment.

21 Agriculture

In 2004, agricultural exports reached $63.9 billion. Less than 2% of the population lives on farms. Arable land amounted to approximately 18% of the total.

Substantial quantities of corn, the most valuable crop produced in the United States, are grown in almost every state. Annual production of selected U.S. crops in 2004 included approximately 58.7 million tons of wheat, 299.9 million tons of corn, 10.5 million tons of rice, 85 million tons of soybeans, 5.1 million tons of cotton, and 398,800 tons of tobacco. The United States produces about 40% of the world supply of corn and 46% of the world supply of soybeans.

22 Domesticated Animals

The livestock population in 2005 included an estimated 95.8 million head of cattle, 60.6 million hogs, and 6.1 million sheep and lambs. That year, there were 1.9 billion chickens and 88 million turkeys. Milk production totaled 80.1 million metric tons in 2005, with Wisconsin, California, and New York together accounting for much of the total. Wisconsin, Minnesota, and California account for more than half of all U.S. butter production, which totaled 608,900 metric tons in 2001. In that year, the United States was the world’s largest producer of cheese, with almost 4.5 million metric tons (24% of the world’s total). The United States produced an estimated 15% of the world meat supply in 2005. Also in 2005, meat animals accounted for $4.97 billion in exports and dairy and egg exports were valued at $1.17 billion.

23 Fishing

The 2003 commercial catch was 5.48 million tons. Food fish made up 80% of the catch, and nonfood fish, processed for fertilizer and oil, made up the remaining 20%. Alaska pollock, with landings of 1,524,904 tons, was the most important species in quantity among the commercial fishery landings. Other leading species included Gulf menhaden, Atlantic menhaden, Pacific cod, North Pacific hake, and American cupped oyster. In 2003, exports of fish products totaled $3.398 billion (fourth after China, Thailand, and Norway).

Aquacultural production consists mostly of catfish, oysters, trout, and crayfish. In 2004, there were 1,147 catfish and 601 trout farms in the United States, with sales of $425 million and $64 million, respectively.

Pollution is a problem of increasing concern to the U.S. fishing industry. Dumping of raw sewage, industrial wastes, spillage from oil tankers, and blowouts of offshore wells are the main threats to the fishing grounds. Overfishing is also a threat to the viability of the industry in some areas, especially Alaska.

24 Forestry

U.S. forestland covers about 226 million hectares (558.4 million acres), or 25% of the land area. Major forest regions include the eastern, central hardwood, southern, Rocky Mountain, and Pacific coast areas. National Forest Service lands account for approximately 19% of the nation’s forestland. Extensive tracts of land are under ownership of private lumber companies in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Maine, Oregon, and Washington. From 1990 to 2000, forested area increased by an average of 38,000 hectares (93,900 acres) per year.

Domestic production of roundwood during 2004 amounted to 458.3 million cubic meters (16.2 billion cubic feet), of which softwoods accounted for roughly 60%. Other forest products in 2004 included 54.3 million metric tons of wood pulp, 83.6 million metric tons of paper and paperboard (excluding newsprint), and 44.2 million cubic meters (1.56 billion cubic feet) of wood-based panels.

Federal timberlands are no longer open for private acquisition, although the lands can be leased for timber cutting and for grazing. In recent decades, the state governments also have moved in the direction of retaining forestlands and adding to their holdings when possible.

25 Mining

Rich in a variety of mineral resources, the United States is a world leader in the production of many important mineral commodities, such as aluminum, cement, copper, pig iron, lead, molybdenum, phosphates, potash, salt, sulfur, uranium, and zinc. The leading mineral-producing states are Arizona (copper, sand and gravel, portland cement, molybdenum); California (portland cement, sand and gravel, gold, boron); Michigan (iron ore, portland cement, sand and gravel, magnesium compounds); Georgia (clays, crushed and broken stone, portland and masonry cement, sand and gravel); Florida (phosphate rock, crushed and broken stone, portland cement, sand and gravel); Utah (copper, gold, magnesium metal, sand and gravel); Texas (portland cement, crushed and broken stone, magnesium metal, sand and gravel); and Minnesota (iron ore, construction and industrial sand and gravel, crushed and broken stone).

Oklahoma and New Mexico are important for petroleum and natural gas, and Kentucky, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania are major coal producers. Iron ore supports the nation’s most basic nonagricultural industry: iron and steel manufacturing. The major domestic sources of iron ore have been in the Lake Superior area, with Minnesota and Michigan leading all other states in iron ore yields.

26 Foreign Trade

The United States led the world in value of exports and imports in 2006. Exports of domestic merchandise, raw materials, agricultural and industrial products, and military goods amounted to $1.14 trillion in 2004. General imports were valued at more than $1.76 trillion. The United States runs a trade deficit in manufactured goods and mineral fuels, and it has a relatively even balance of trade in agricultural commodities. By 2004, the trade deficit reached an estimated $618 billion, a 24% increase over 2003.

The United States’ largest trading partners are Canada, Mexico, Japan, the United Kingdom, China, and Germany.

Yearly Balance of Trade

The balance of trade is the difference between what a country sells to other countries (its exports) and what it buys (its imports). If a country imports more than it exports, it has a negative balance of trade (a trade deficit). If exports exceed imports there is a positive balance of trade (a trade surplus).

27 Energy and Power

The United States, with about 5% of the world’s population, consumes about 25% of the world’s energy.

Conventional thermal sources from fossil fuels provided the greatest share of energy consumed in 2001: coal supplied 23%, natural gas 23%, and petroleum 39%. The rest was supplied by nuclear power, hydroelectric power, and renewable energy sources including geothermal, wind, photovoltaic, and wood and waste. In 2003, U.S. coal production was an estimated 1.1 billion short tons. Natural gas production was 68.244 billion cubic meters (24.1 trillion cubic feet), and oil production was 7.4 million barrels per day. Proven reserves of crude oil totaled an estimated 29.4 billion barrels in 2003. Reserves

Selected Social Indicators

The statistics below are the most recent estimates available as of 2006. For comparison purposes, data for the United States and averages for low-income countries and high-income countries are also given. About 15% of the world’s 6.5 billion people live in high-income countries, while 37% live in low-income countries.

IndicatorUnited StatesLow-income countriesHigh-income countriesUnited States
sources: World Bank. World Development Indicators. Washington, D.C.: The World Bank, 2006; Central Intelligence Agency. The World Factbook. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 2006; World Resources Institute, Washington, D.C.
Per capita gross national income (GNI)*$39,820$2,258$31,009$39,820
Population growth rate1.2%2%0.8%1.2%
People per square kilometer of land32803032
Life expectancy in years: male75587675
female80608280
Number of physicians per 1,000 people2.30.43.72.3
Number of pupils per teacher (primary school)15431615
Literacy rate (15 years and older)99%65%>95%99%
Television sets per 1,000 people93884735938
Internet users per 1,000 people63028538630
Energy consumed per capita (kg of oil equivalent)7,8435015,4107,843
CO2 emissions per capita (metric tons)19.920.8512.9719.92
* The GNI is the total of all goods and services produced by the residents of a country in a year. The per capita GNI is calculated by dividing a country’s GNI by its population and adjusting for relative purchasing power.
n.a.: data not available >: greater than <: less than

of natural gas were about 5.29 trillion cubic meters (186.9 trillion cubic feet) that year, equal to more than 3% of the world’s proven reserves. Recoverable coal reserves amounted to around 246.6 billion tons at the end of 2004, more than 20% of the world’s total. Petroleum imports stood at 12.3 million barrels per day in 2003.

By the mid-1990s, the nuclear portion of electricity generation represented about 20% of the nation’s total electric power output. The number of nuclear power plants in operation peaked at 112 units in 1990, but had declined to 104 by 2002. In 2003, output by nuclear power generating plants had dropped to 98.794 million kilowatt hours.

In the 1980s, the federal government began to promote such energy conservation measures as mandatory automobile fuel-efficiency standards and tax incentives for home insulation. The government also lifted controls on oil and gas prices, in the hope that a rise in domestic costs to world-market levels would provide a powerful economic incentive for consumers to conserve fuel. Also during the 1980s, increasing attention was paid to the development of solar power, synthetic fuels, geothermal resources, and other renewable energy technologies. In 2001 the United States had 1,694 megawatts of installed wind power.

28 Social Development

Social welfare programs in the United States depend on both the federal government and the state governments for resources and administration. The old-age, survivors’, disability, and Medicare (health) programs are administered by the federal government. Unemployment insurance, dependent child care, and a variety of other public assistance programs are state-administered, although the federal government contributes to all of them through grants to the states.

The Food and Nutrition Service of the United States Department of Agriculture oversees several food assistance programs, including the food stamp program, school lunch and breakfast programs, and nutrition programs for the elderly. In 1996, the United States government replaced the open-ended Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) entitlement program with Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), a limited system of assistance funded through grants given to communities. The new system has been successful in reducing the number of recipients and in encouraging them to make the transition from “welfare to work.”

The present Social Security program differs greatly from that created by the Social Security Act of 1935. Since 1939, Congress has attached a series of amendments to the program, including provisions for workers who retire early at age 62 (the standard retirement age is 65), widows, dependent children under 18 years of age, and children who are disabled prior to age 18. Disabled workers between 50 and 65 years of age also are entitled to monthly benefits.

In January 1974, the Social Security Administration took on responsibility for helping the aged, blind, and disabled under the Supplemental Security Income program. Medicare, another program administered under the Social Security Act, provides hospital insurance and voluntary medical insurance for persons 65 and over, with reduced benefits available at age 62. Medicaid is a program that helps the needy meet the costs of medical, hospital, and nursing-home care.

The laws governing unemployment compensation originate in the states. Therefore, the benefits provided vary from state to state in duration (generally from 26 to 39 weeks) and amount (about 50% of earnings). Private philanthropy plays a major role in the support of relief and health services.

29 Health

The U.S. health care system is among the most advanced in the world, but escalating health care costs and lack of insurance leave many with inadequate care. As of 2006, some 46 million people, or 16% of the population, were without health insurance coverage. The percentage among the nation’s poor was much higher (roughly one-third).

In response to rising costs, the popularity of managed care grew rapidly in the 1990s. By 2000, 59% of the population was insured by either an HMO (health maintenance organization) or PPO (preferred provider organization). In such organizations, medical treatment, laboratory tests, and other health services for each patient are subject to the approval of the insurer before they can be covered. From 1987 to 1996, enrollment in HMOs doubled. By the end of the decade, however, the quality of treatment under managed care organizations was coming under increased scrutiny.

Life expectancy for someone born in 2005 was 77.71 years. In 2005, infant mortality was 6.5 per 1,000 live births. The birth rate in 2002 was 14.1 per 1,000 people.

Leading causes of death in 2006 were heart disease, cancer, cerebrovascular diseases such as stroke, chronic lower respiratory diseases, accidents, diabetes mellitus, pneumonia and influenza, Alzheimer’s disease, suicide, and homicide.

Cigarette smoking, which has been linked to heart and lung disease, has decreased overall since the late 1980s. There were a cumulative total of 750,000 acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) cases in the 1980s and 1990s, with 450,000 deaths from the disease. In the latter 1990s, both incidence and mortality decreased with the introduction of new drug combinations to combat the disease. In 2004, the number of people living with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/AIDS was estimated at 950,000, with the number of deaths from AIDS that year estimated at 14,000.

As of 2000, 64% of Americans were reported to be either overweight or obese, with around 20% categorized as obese.

Medical facilities in the United States included 5,810 hospitals in 2000. As of 2004, there were an estimated 230 physicians, 773 nurses, 59 dentists, and 69 pharmacists per 100,000 people. National health care spending reached $1 trillion in 1996 and was projected to reach $1.9 trillion in 2006.

The housing resources of the United States far exceed those of any other country, with 122,671,734 housing units serving about 109,902,090 households, according to 2004 American Community Survey estimates. About 67% of all units were owner-occupied, with about 10% of the total housing stock standing vacant. The average household had 2.6 people. The median home value was $151,366. The median payment for rent and utilities of rental properties was $694 per month. About 3.5 million people experience temporary or prolonged periods of homelessness each year.

Following World War II, new housing was constructed at a record-breaking pace; 1986 was the 38th successive year during which construction of more than one million housing units was begun. Most dwellings are one-family houses. Perhaps the most significant change in the housing scene has been the shift to the suburbs that was made possible by the widespread ownership of automobiles. Houses being built in the 1990s and 2000s were significantly larger than those built in the 1970s.

31 Education

Education is compulsory in all states, and it is considered to be a responsibility of each state and the local government. Generally, formal schooling begins at the age of 6 and continues up to age 17 or 18. Each state specifies the age and circumstances for compulsory attendance. Public schools are controlled and supported by the local authorities, as well as state or federal governmental agencies. Private schools are controlled and supported by religious or private organizations. Primary schooling is from grades one through eight. High schools (secondary) cover grades 9 through 12.

The enrollment rate of three- to five-year-olds in preprimary schools was 58% in 2003. Approximately 92% of primary-school-aged children enroll in school, while 87% of those eligible attend secondary school. Pupil-teacher ratios average 15 to 1.

Colleges include junior or community colleges, which offer two-year associate degrees; regular four-year colleges and universities; and graduate or professional schools. There are approximately 3,600 higher-education institutions. In 2003, it was estimated that about 83% of the tertiary (post-secondary school) age population were enrolled in tertiary education programs.

The adult illiteracy rate has been estimated at about 1% for both men and women.

32 Media

The Post Office Department of the United States was replaced on 1 July 1971 by the U.S. Postal Service, a financially autonomous federal agency. Numerous privately owned overnight mail and package delivery services also have been established.

All major electronic communications systems are privately owned but regulated by the Federal Communications Commission. The United States uses wire and radio services for communications more extensively than any other country in the world. Radio serves a variety of purposes other than broadcasting. It is widely used by ships and aircraft for safety, and it has become an important tool in the movement of buses, trucks, and taxicabs. Forest conservators, fire departments, and the police all use radio as a necessary aid to operations.

In 1999 broadcasting stations on the air comprised more than 10,000 radio stations (both AM and FM) and more than 1,500 television stations. Nearly 1,000 stations were affiliated with the 5 major networks. As of 1997, the United States had some 9,000 cable television systems. In 2003, there were an estimated 2,109 radios and 938 television sets for every 1,000 people. About 255 of every 1,000 people were cable subscribers. Also in 2003, there were 658.9 personal computers for every 1,000 people and 630 of every 1,000 people had access to the Internet. There were 198,098 secure Internet servers in the country in 2004.

In 2005, there were more than 1,500 daily newspapers in the United States. Twenty large newspaper chains account for almost 60% of the total daily circulation. The U.S. daily newspapers with the largest circulations as of 2004 were as follows: USA Today, (national) 2,220,863; Wall Street Journal, (national) 2,106,774; New York Times, (New York) 1,121,057; Los Angeles Times, (CA) 902,164; New York Daily News, (NY) 715,052; Washington Post, (Washington, D.C.) 707,690; New York Post, (NY) 686,207; Chicago Tribune, (Illinois) 600,988; Houston Chronicle, (TX), 554,783; Dallas Morning News (TX), 519,014; San Francisco Chronicle (CA), 505,022; Chicago Sun-Times (IL), 481,980; Long Island/New York Newsday, (New York) 481,816; Boston Globe (MA), 451,471; Arizona Republic, 413,268; Star-Ledger (Newark, NJ), 400,042; Journal-Constitution (Atlanta, GA), 386,015; Star Tribune (Minneapolis, MN), 381,094; Philadelphia Inquirer (PA), 368,883; and Cleveland Plain Dealer, (OH), 354,309.

The most popular consumer magazine in the country in 2004 was AARP the Magazine, published bimonthly by the AARP (American Association of Retired Persons) with a circulation of over 22.6 million. The two general circulation magazines that appealed to the largest audiences were Reader’s Digest (about 10 million) and TV Guide (about 9 million). Time and Newsweek were the leading newsmagazines, with weekly circulations of 4,034,272 and 3,135,476, respectively.

The U.S. book-publishing industry consists of the major book companies (mainly located in the New York metro area), nonprofit university presses distributed throughout the United States, and numerous small publishing firms. There were 135,000 book titles published in the United States in 2001, up from 51,863 titles in 1994.

The U.S. Constitution provides for freedom of speech and of the press in its Bill of Rights, and the government supports these rights. Citizens enjoy a wide range of opinions in all media, where debate, editorial opinion, and government opposition viewpoints are represented in some form or another. Nearly all media are privately owned.

33 Tourism and Recreation

Foreign visitors to the United States numbered 41.2 million in 2003, down from 51 million in 2000. Of these visitors, 31% came from Canada and 25% from Mexico. With a few exceptions, such as Canadians entering from the Western Hemisphere, all visitors to the United States are required to have passports and visas.

The United States has a total of 49 national parks. Among the most striking scenic attractions in the United States are the Grand Canyon in Arizona; Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico; Yosemite National Park in California; Yellowstone National Park in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming; Niagara Falls, partly in New York and partly in Canada; and the Everglades in Florida.

Historical attractions include the Liberty Bell and Constitution Hall in Philadelphia; the Statue of Liberty in New York City; the White House, the Capitol, and the monuments to Washington, Jefferson, and Lincoln in Washington, D.C.; the Williamsburg historical restoration in Virginia; the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas; and Mount Rushmore in South Dakota.

Among many other popular tourist attractions are the movie and television studios in Los Angeles; the cable cars in San Francisco; casino gambling in Las Vegas, Nevada, and in Atlantic City, New Jersey; the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee; and such amusement parks as Disneyland (Anaheim, California) and Walt Disney World (near Orlando, Florida). For amount and variety of entertainment—theater, movies, music, dance, and sports—New York City has few rivals.

Americans’ recreational activities range from home gardening to the major spectator sports, such as professional baseball, football, basketball, ice hockey, soccer, and horse racing, and college football and basketball. Participant sports are a favorite form of recreation, including jogging, aerobics, tennis, and golf. Skiing is a popular recreation in New England and the western mountain ranges. Sailing, power boating, and rafting are popular water sports. In 1994, the United States hosted the World Cup Soccer Championship. The United States hosted the Summer Olympics in 1904, 1932, 1984, and 1996. The Winter Olympics were held in the United States in 1960, 1980, and 2002.

34 Famous Americans

Political and Military Figures Printer, inventor, scientist, and statesman Benjamin Franklin (1706–1790) was America’s outstanding figure of the colonial period. George Washington (1732–1799), military leader in the American

Revolution and first president of the United States, is known as the father of his country. The chief author of the Declaration of Independence and the country’s third president was Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826). His leading political opponents were John Adams (1735–1826), the nation’s second president, and Alexander Hamilton (b. West Indies, 1755–1804), the first secretary of the treasury. James Madison (1751–1836), a leading figure in drawing up the United States Constitution, served as the fourth president.

Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865) led the United States through its most difficult period, the Civil War, during the course of which he issued the Emancipation Proclamation. Jefferson Davis (1808–1889) served as the only president of the short-lived Confederacy. Among the foremost presidents of the 20th century were Nobel Peace Prize winner Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919); Woodrow Wilson (1856–1924), who led the nation during World War I; and Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882–1945), who was elected to four terms spanning the Great Depression and World War II. The presidents during the 1961–2000 period have been John Fitzgerald Kennedy (1917–1963), Lyndon Baines Johnson (1908–1973), Richard Milhous Nixon (1913–1994), Gerald Rudolph Ford (Leslie Lynch King Jr., 1913–2006), Jimmy Carter (James Earl Carter Jr., 1924–), Ronald Wilson Reagan (1911–2004), George Herbert Walker Bush (1924–), and Bill Clinton (William Jefferson Blythe III, 1946–). George Walker Bush (1946–) became the 43rd president and first president of the 21st century.

Outstanding military leaders of the Civil War were Union general Ulysses Simpson Grant (1822–1885), who later served as the 18th president; and Confederate General Robert Edward Lee (1807–1870). Douglas MacArthur (1880–1964) commanded the United States forces in Asia during World War II, oversaw the postwar occupation and reorganization of Japan, and directed United Nations forces in the first year of the Korean conflict. Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890–1969) served as supreme Allied commander during World War II, later becoming the 34th president. General Colin Luther Powell (b.1937), former Secretary of State (2001–05) and highest ranking African American government official in the history of the United States (a position assumed by Condoleezza Rice in 2005), was a general in the army who also served as National Security Advisor (1987–89) and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (1989–93).

John Marshall (1755–1835), chief justice of the United States from 1801 to 1835, established the power of the Supreme Court through the principle of judicial review. Other important chief justices included Earl Warren (1891–1974), whose period as chief justice from 1953 to 1969 saw important decisions on desegregation, reapportionment, and civil liberties. The justice who enjoyed the longest tenure on the court was William O. Douglas (1898–1980), who served from 1939 to 1975.

Native American chiefs renowned for their resistance to white invasion were Tecumseh (1768–1813), Geronimo (1829?–1909), Sitting Bull (1831?–1890), and Crazy Horse (1849?–1877). Historical figures who have become part of American folklore include pioneer Daniel Boone (1734–1820); silversmith, engraver, and patriot Paul Revere (1735–1818); frontiersman David “Davy” Crockett (1786–1836); scout and Indian agent Christopher “Kit” Carson (1809–1868); William Frederick “Buffalo Bill” Cody (1846–1917); and the outlaws Jesse Woodson James (1847–1882) and Billy the Kid (William H. Bonney, 1859–1881).

Inventors and Scientists Outstanding inventors were Robert Fulton (1765–1815), who developed the steamboat; Samuel Finley Breese Morse (1791–1872), who invented the telegraph; and Elias Howe (1819–1867), who invented the sewing machine. Alexander Graham Bell (b. Scotland, 1847–1922) invented the telephone. Thomas Alva Edison (1847–1931) was responsible for hundreds of inventions, among them the incandescent electric lamp, the phonograph, and a motion picture camera and projector. Two brothers, Wilbur Wright (1867–1912) and Orville Wright (1871–1948), designed, built, and flew the first successful motor-powered airplane. Amelia Earhart (1898–1937) and Charles Lindbergh (1902–1974) were aviation pioneers. Pioneers in the space program include John Glenn (1921–), the first American astronaut to orbit Earth, and Neil Armstrong (1930–), the first man to set foot on the Moon.

Outstanding botanists and naturalists include George Washington Carver (1864–1943), known especially for his work on industrial applications for peanuts, and John James Audubon (1785–1851) who won fame as an ornithologist and artist.

Albert Abraham Michelson (b. Germany, 1852–1931) measured the speed of light and became the first of a long line of United States Nobel Prize winners. The theory of relativity was conceived by Albert Einstein (b. Germany, 1879–1955), generally considered one of the greatest minds in the physical sciences. Enrico Fermi (b. Italy, 1901–1954) created the first nuclear chain reaction and contributed to the development of the atomic and hydrogen bombs. Also prominent in the splitting of the atom were J. Robert Oppenheimer (1904–1967) and Edward Teller (b. Hungary, 1908–2003). Jonas Edward Salk (1914–1995) developed an effective vaccine for polio, and Albert Bruce Sabin (1906–1993) contributed oral, attenuated live-virus polio vaccines.

Social Reformers Social reformers of note include Frederick Douglass (Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, 1817–1895), a prominent abolitionist; Elizabeth Cady Stanton (1815–1902) and Susan Brownell Anthony (1820–1906), leaders in the women’s suffrage movement; Clara Barton (1821–1912), founder of the American Red Cross; Eugene Victor Debs (1855–1926), labor leader and an organizer of the Socialist movement in the United States; and Martin Luther King Jr. (1929–1968), a central figure in the Civil Rights Movement and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964.

Religious leaders include Roger Williams (1603–1683), an early advocate of religious tolerance in the United States; Jonathan Edwards (1703–1758), New England preacher and theologian; Joseph Smith (1805–1844), founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons), and his chief associate, Brigham Young (1801–1877); and Mary Baker Eddy (1821–1910), founder of the Church of Christ, Scientist (Christian Science). Pat Robertson (1930–), televangelist and leader of the Christian Coalition organization, and Jerry Falwell (1933–), a fundamentalist Baptist pastor, televangelist, and founder of the Moral Majority movement and Liberty University, are contemporary leaders of the Christian religious right.

Literary Figures The first American author to be widely read outside the United States was Washington Irving (1783–1859). James Fenimore Cooper (1789–1851) was the first popular American novelist. The writings of two men of Concord, Massachusetts—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882) and Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)—influenced philosophers, political leaders, and ordinary men and women in many parts of the world. The novels and short stories of Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804–1864) explore New England’s Puritan heritage. Herman Melville (1819–1891) wrote the novel Moby-Dick, a symbolic work about a whale hunt that has become an American classic. Mark Twain (Samuel Langhorne Clemens, 1835–1910) is the best-known American humorist.

Other leading novelists of the later 19th and early 20th centuries were Henry James (1843–1916), Edith Wharton (1862–1937), Stephen Crane (1871–1900), Willa Cather (1873–1947), and Sinclair Lewis (1885–1951), first American winner of the Nobel Prize for literature (1930). Later Nobel Prize-winning United States novelists include William Faulkner (1897–1962) in 1949; Ernest Hemingway (1899–1961) in 1954; John Steinbeck (1902–1968) in 1962; Saul Bellow (b. Canada, 1915–2005), in 1976; Isaac Bashevis Singer (b. Poland, 1904–1991) in 1978, and Toni Morrison (1931–) in 1993. Among other noteworthy writers are James Thurber (1894–1961), Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald (1896–1940), Elwyn Brooks (E. B.) White (1899–1985), Richard Wright (1908–1960), Eudora Welty (1909–2001), James Baldwin (1924–1987), John Updike (1932–), John Cheever (1912–1982), Norman Mailer (1923–), and J. D. Salinger (1919–).

Notable 19th-century American poets include Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–1882), Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849), Walt Whitman (1819–1892), and Emily Dickinson (1830–1886). Poets who came to prominence in the 20th century include Robert Frost (1874–1963), Ezra Pound (1885–1972), Marianne Moore (1887–1972), and Wallace Stevens (1879–1955). Carl Sandburg (1878–1967) was a noted poet, historian, novelist, and folklorist. Robert Lowell (1917–1977), John Ashbery (1927–), James Merrill (1926–1995), Allen Ginsberg (1926–1997), Maya Angelou (1928–), Adrienne Rich (1929–), and Sylvia Plath (1932–1963) are among the best-known poets since World War II. The foremost U.S. playwrights include Eugene (Gladstone) O’Neill (1888–1953), who won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1936; Tennessee Williams (Thomas Lanier Williams, 1911–1983); and Arthur Miller (1915–2005). Neil Simon (1927–) is one of the nation’s most popular playwrights and screenwriters.

Artists Two renowned painters of the early American period were John Singleton Copley (1738–1815) and Gilbert Stuart (1755–1828). Outstanding 19th-century painters were James Abbott McNeill Whistler (1834–1903) and John Singer Sargent (b. Italy, 1856–1925). In the twentieth century, Edward Hopper (1882–1967), Georgia O’Keeffe (1887–1986), Norman Rockwell (1894–1978), and Andrew Wyeth (1917–) achieved wide recognition, as did their more recent colleagues, abstract expressionists Jackson Pollack (1912–1956) and Mark Rothko (1903–1970) and “pop” artists Andy Warhol (1928–1987) and Jasper Johns (1930–).

Entertainment Figures The first great American “showman” was Phineas Taylor “P. T.” Barnum (1810–1891). Outstanding figures in the motion picture industry include producers Samuel Goldwyn (1882–1974), Irving Thalberg (1899–1936), and Louis B. Mayer (1885–957); animation pioneer and entertainment entrepreneur Walter Elias “Walt” Disney (1906–1966); and legendary directors John Ford (1895–1973), Frank Capra (1897–1991), Sir Charles Spencer “Charlie” Chaplin (b. England, 1889–1978), Sir Alfred Hitchcock (b. England, 1899–1980), and George Orson Welles (1915–1985). More recent American directors who have achieved renown include Steven Spielberg (1947–), Martin Scorsese (1942–), Woody Allen (Allen Konigsberg, 1935–), and Spike Lee (1957–).

World-famous American actors and actresses include Humphrey Bogart (1899–1957); Clark Gable (1901–1960); Cary Grant (Alexander Archibald Leach, b. England, 1904–1986); John Wayne (Marion Michael Morrison, 1907–79); Judy Garland (Frances Gumm, 1922–1969); Marlon Brando (1924–2004); Marilyn Monroe (Norma Jean Mortenson, 1926–1962); Dustin Hoffman (1937–); Jack Nicholson (1937–); Meryl Streep (1949–); and Tom Hanks (1956–). Among other great American entertainers are W. C. Fields (William Claude Dukenfield, 1880–1946); Jack Benny (Benjamin Kubelsky, 1894–1974); Fred Astaire (Fred Austerlitz, 1899–1987); Bob (Leslie Townes) Hope (b. England, 1903–2003); Frank (Francis Albert) Sinatra (1915–1998); Elvis Aaron Presley (1935–1977); and Barbra (Barbara Joan) Streisand (1942–).

Composers and Musicians The songs of Stephen Collins Foster (1826–1864) have achieved folksong status. Among the foremost composers are Edward MacDowell (1861–1908), Aaron Copland (1900–1990), and Leonard Bernstein (1918–1990). Leading composers of popular music are John Philip Sousa (1854–1932), George Gershwin (1898–1937), and Woody Guthrie (1912–1967). Prominent in the blues tradition are Leadbelly (Huddie Ledbetter, 1888–1949), Bessie Smith (1898?–1937), and Muddy Waters (McKinley Morganfield, 1915–1983). Leading jazz figures include the composers Scott Joplin (1868–1917), Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington (1899–1974), and William “Count” Basie (1904–1984), and performers Louis Armstrong (1900–1971), Ella Fitzgerald (1917–1996), Billie Holiday (Eleanora Fagan, 1915–1959), John Birks “Dizzy” Gillespie (1917–1993), Charlie “Bird” Parker (1920–1955), John Coltrane (1926–1967), and Miles Davis (1926–1991).

Sports Figures Among the many noteworthy sports stars are baseball’s Tyrus Raymond “Ty” Cobb (1886–1961) and George Herman “Babe” Ruth (1895–1948); football’s Jim Brown (1936–); and golf’s Mildred “Babe” Didrikson Zaharias (1914–1956). Billie Jean (Moffitt) King (1943–) and sisters Venus (1980–) and Serena (1981–) Williams have starred in tennis; Joe Louis (Joseph Louis Barrow, 1914–1981) and Muhammad Ali (Cassius Marcellus Clay, 1942–) in boxing; Wilton Norman “Wilt” Chamberlain (1936–1999) and Michael Jordan (1963–) in basketball; Mark Spitz (1950–) in swimming; Eric Heiden (1958–) in speed skating; and Jesse Owens (1913–1980) in track and field.

35 Bibliography

BOOKS

Altman, Linda Jacobs. The Decade That Roared: America During Prohibition. New York: Twenty-First Century Books, 1997.

Bennett, Lerone. Before the Mayflower: A History of Black America. 6th ed. New York: Penguin, 1993.

Brown, Gene. The Nation in Turmoil: Civil Rights and the Vietnam War (1960–1973). New York: Twenty-First Century Books, 1993.

Frank, Nicole. Welcome to the USA. Milwaukee, WI: Gareth Stevens, 2000.

Hicks, Roger. The Big Book of America. Philadelphia: Courage Books, 1994.

Kallen, Stuart A. The 1950s. San Diego: Lucent Books, 1999.

Kallen, Stuart A. The 1980s. San Diego: Lucent Books, 1999.

Kallen, Stuart A. The 1990s. San Diego: Lucent Books, 1999.

Kronenwetter, Michael. America in the 1960s. San Diego: Lucent Books, 1998.

Lindop, Edmund. James K. Polk, Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt. New York: Twenty-First Century Books, 1995.

Lindop, Edmund. Woodrow Wilson, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry S Truman. New York: Twenty-First Century Books, 1995.

Littlefield, Daniel C. Revolutionary Citizens: African Americans, 1776–1804. New York: Oxford University Press, 1997.

Sabuda, Robert. America the Beautiful. New York: Little Simon, 2004.

Sandak, Cass R. The United States. Austin, TX: Raintree Steck-Vaughn, 1997.

Smith-Baranzini, Marlene. USKids History: Book of the New American Nation. Boston: Little, Brown, 1995.

Stewart, Gail. The 1970s. San Diego: Lucent Books, 1999.

Webb, Marcus. The United States of America. San Diego: Lucent Books, 2000.

Woog, Adam. The 1900s. San Diego: Lucent Books, 1999.

WEB SITES

Country Analysis Briefs. www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/cabs/Usa/Background.html. (accessed on January 15, 2007).

Government Home Page. www.usa.gov/. (accessed on January 15, 2007).

World Heritage List. whc.unesco.org/en/statesparties/us. (accessed on January 15, 2007).

United States of America

views updated May 23 2018

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

COUNTRY OVERVIEW

LOCATION AND SIZE.

The 48 states that make up the continental United States are located in North America between Mexico and Canada. The state of Hawaii is located in the Pacific Ocean, midway between North America and Asia, and the state of Alaska is located on the extreme northwest corner of North America. The United States also controls a number of small islands in the Caribbean and the Pacific. The nation is the third-largest country in the world in area behind Russia and Canada. It has a total area of 9,629,091 square kilometers (3,717,792 square miles). This total includes the 50 states and the District of Columbia, but not the nation's territories and dependencies. Of this territory, 9,158,960 square kilometers (3,536,274 square miles) are land, while there are 470,131 square kilometers (181,517 square miles) of water. The United States is about one-half the size of Russia, and slightly larger than either Brazil or China. It shares long borders with both Canada (8,893 kilometers or 5,526 miles) and Mexico (3,326 kilometers or 2,066 miles). The nation's total borders are 12,248 kilometers (7,610 miles) long. The Eastern United States borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, while the West Coast borders the Pacific Ocean. Areas of Alaska border the Arctic Ocean. In all, the country has 19,924 kilometers (12,380 miles) of coastline. The nation's capital is Washington, D.C., which is located on the East Coast, almost midway between Maine and Florida. The capital has a population of 519,000, but America's largest cities are New York, with a population of 7,428,162, followed by Los Angeles with 3,633,591 people, and Chicago with 2,799,050.

POPULATION.

The population of the United States was estimated to be 275,562,673 in July 2000. Females slightly outnumbered males and there were 0.96 males for every female in the population. This phenomenon is most pronounced among the elderly and is partially the result of longer life spans for women. In the United States, the life expectancy for males is 74.24 years, but 79.9 for females. The elderly are the fastest growing segment of the population and thus have contributed to the "greying" (aging) of the American population. In 2000, those aged 65 and older accounted for 12.64 percent of the population. Meanwhile, those Americans age 14 and younger accounted for 21.25 percent of the population. The most significant factor causing the greying of the population is the aging of the baby-boomers (those people born in the aftermath of World War II when there was rapid population growth or a "boom" period of births). Over the next decade, many of the baby-boomers will reach retirement age, creating new pressures on the health-care and retirement systems. By 2030, the elderly population in the United States will have doubled.

After periods of dramatic population growth early in the 20th century, the American population is now growing at a slow rate of 0.91 percent per year. By 2010, the population is expected to be 297,976,000. The birth rate is 14.2 births per 1,000 people, and the mortality rate is 8.7 deaths per 1,000. The fertility rate is 2.06 children born per woman. Fertility rates have thus stabilized at replacement levels (a point at which there are just enough births to replace the children's parents). Much of the increase in the population is not the result of the birth rate, but rather because of immigration . There are about 3.5 new immigrants to the United States for every 1,000 people in the country. In 1998, there were 660,477 legal immigrants admitted to the United States. In addition, there were an estimated 500,000 to 1 million illegal immigrants.

The American population is one of the most diverse in the world and is constantly changing because of immigration and differences in birth rates. In 1970, non-white minority groups accounted for 16 percent of the population, but by 1998 these groups accounted for 27 percent of the population and estimates are that by 2050, minorities will account for more than 50 percent of the population. Currently, whites make up 72.2 percent of the population. African Americans are the largest minority group at 12.6 percent of the population, followed by Hispanics at 10.6 percent, Asians at 3.7 percent, and Native Americans at 0.8 percent. However, between 2005 and 2010, Hispanics are expected to overtake African Americans to become the largest minority group. The largest ethnic group in the United States is the Germans (42.9 percent), followed by the Irish (28.6 percent), Africans (12.6 percent), and the Italians (10.8 percent).

For most of its history the United States was a rural nation, but through the 20th century there was increasing urbanization. In 2000, 76 percent of the American population lived in urban areas and 53 percent lived in or near the nation's 20 largest cities. There are now 9 cities in the United States that have populations of more than 1 million people. In order of size, they are New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, Philadelphia, San Diego, Phoenix, San Antonio, and Dallas. In addition, there are a number of cities, including Detroit and San Jose, with populations near 1 million.

Despite the nation's size, the population density of the United States is relatively low. There are 28.4 people per square kilometer (73.5 people per square mile) in the United States. However, this density is uneven. For instance, the population density of New York City is 8,880 per square kilometer (23,000 per square mile). The state with the highest population density is New Jersey (386 people per square kilometer, or 1,000 per square mile). Alaska has the lowest density with less than 1 person per square kilometer (at about 1 person per square mile). The United States also has one of the most mobile populations in the world. Although 84 percent of the population lives in the same residence as they have for the past 5 years, the average American will move 6 times during his or her lifetime.

OVERVIEW OF ECONOMY

The United States has the largest, most technologically-advanced, and most diverse economy in the world. While the United States accounts for only about 4 percent of the world's population, its GDP is 26 percent of the world's total economic output. The American economy is a free-market, private enterprise system that has only limited government intervention in areas such as health care, transportation, and retirement. American companies are among the most productive and competitive in the world. In 1998, 9 of the 10 most profitable companies in the world were American (even the non-U.S. exception, Germany's Daimler-Chrysler, has a substantial part of its operations in the United States). Unlike their Japanese or Western European counterparts, American corporations have considerable freedom of operation and little government control over issues of product development, plant openings or closures, and employment. The United States also has a clear edge over the rest of the world in many high-tech industries, including computers, medical care, aerospace, and military equipment.

In the 1990s, the American economy experienced the second-longest period of growth in the nation's history. The economy grew at an average rate of 3-4 percent per year and unemployment fell below 5 percent. In addition, there were dramatic gains in the stock market and many of the nation's largest companies had record profits. Finally, a record number of Americans owned their own homes. This long period of growth ended in 2001, when the economy slowed dramatically following a crash in the high-technology sector.

The United States has considerable natural resources. These resources include coal, copper, lead, phosphates, uranium, bauxite, gold, iron, mercury, nickel, silver, tungsten, zinc, petroleum, natural gas, and timber. It also has highly productive agricultural resources and is the world's largest food producer. The economy is bolstered by an excellent, though aging, infrastructure which makes the transport of goods relatively easy.

Despite its impressive advantages, the American economy faces a number of problems. Most of the products and services of the nation are consumed internally, but the economy cannot produce enough goods to keep up with consumer demand. As a result, for several decades the United States has imported far more products than it exports. This trade deficit exists entirely in manufactured goods. The United States actually has trade surpluses in agriculture and services. When adjusted for the surpluses, the U.S. trade deficit in 2000 amounted to a record $447 billion. The United States has been able to sustain trade deficits year after year because foreign individuals and companies remain willing to invest in the United States. In 2000, there was $270 billion in new foreign investment in American companies and businesses.

Another major problem for the American economy is growth of a 2-tier economy, with some Americans enjoying very high income levels while others remain in poverty. As the workplace becomes more technologically sophisticated, unskilled workers find themselves trapped in minimum wage or menial jobs. In 1999, despite the strong economic growth of the 1990s, 12.7 percent of Americans lived below the poverty line. There are other wage problems in the United States. Although the economy has grown substantially, most of the gains in income have gone to the top 20 percent of households. The top 10 percent of households earned 28.5 percent of the nation's wealth, while the bottom 10 percent accounted for only 1.5 percent. There is also a growing number of Americans who are not covered by medical insurance.

Although there is great diversity in the American economy, services dominate economic activity. Together, services account for approximately 80 percent of the country's GDP. Manufacturing accounts for only 18 percent, while agriculture accounts for 2 percent. Financial services, health care, and information technology are among the fastest growing areas of the service sector. Although industry has declined steeply from its height in the 1950s, the American manufacturing sector remains strong. Two of the largest American corporations, General Electric and General Motors, have manufacturing and production as their base, although they have both diversified into the service sector as well. Meanwhile, despite continuing declines, agriculture remains strong in the United States. One of the main trends in the agricultural sector has been the erosion of the family farm and its replacement by the large corporate farm. This has made the sector more productive, although there has also been a decrease in the number of farmers and farm workers.

Since the middle of the 20th century, the United States has aggressively pursued free and open trade. It helped found a number of international organizations whose purpose is to promote free trade, including the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), now known as the World Trade Organization (WTO). It has also engaged in free trade agreements with particular nations. The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) between the United States, Canada, and Mexico is an example of this. One continuing problem for American companies engaged in foreign trade is that the United States is much more open to trade than many other nations. As a result, it is easy for foreign companies to sell their goods and services in the United States, but American firms often find it difficult to export their products to other countries.

The nation is a net provider of economic aid. It provides $6.9 billion in direct aid to nations. In addition, the United States funds many international organizations. It provides 25 percent of the operating budget of the United Nations and almost 50 percent of the budget for day-today NATO operations. (The North Atlantic Treaty Organization is a military alliance of 19 countries in Europe and North America.) Nonetheless, this aid has only a small impact on the U.S. budget. All spending on international affairs, including the costs of maintaining embassies overseas, foreign aid, and support for international organizations, amounted to $19.5 billion in 1999. That was only 0.01 percent of the federal budget. In comparison, in 1999 the United States spent $26.7 billion to fund the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).

POLITICS, GOVERNMENT, AND TAXATION

The United States is a democratic, federal republic. It is one of the oldest functioning democracies in the world. Government in the United States is divided into 3 levels: federal, state, and local. In addition to the national government, there are 50 state governments, and over 80,000 local governments, including counties, towns, and cities.

The chief executive and head of state is a president who is elected for a 4-year term, and who may not be elected more than twice. The nation's legislature is known as the Congress and is bicameral (it has 2 chambers). The upper chamber is the Senate. There are 2 senators from each state, and they are elected for 6-year terms. The lower house is the House of Representatives, which has 435 members who serve 2-year terms. The number of representatives a state has depends on its population. For example California has 52 representatives, while states such as North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming only have 1 representative because of their small populations.

Both federal and state governments have only limited impact on the economy. There are laws that establish worker safety conditions and the minimum wage as well as restrictions on hazardous products and the manner in which companies do business. Most economic policies and laws are designed to protect consumers and workers and to promote economic development. The main impact of the government, besides taxation, is the operation of such agencies as the Post Office and regulatory agencies that oversee various aspects of the economy, including the Federal Trade Commission, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

In the United States, Congress and the president control fiscal policy while a semi-independent body, the Federal Reserve Board, controls monetary policy . The members of the Federal Reserve Board are appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate, but once in office they have almost complete freedom of action to set interest rates and take action to control the amount of money in circulation.

There are 2 main political parties in the United States. The Democratic Party is liberal and generally supports government action to address economic or social problems. The Republican Party is conservative and advocates limited government and a strong national defense. Both parties support the free market system , but Republicans tend to be more supportive of free trade at the international level. Meanwhile the Democrats tend to emphasize workers' rights and increased social spending. Republicans controlled the presidency and the House of Representatives after the 2000 elections (in which George W. Bush was elected president) while the Democrats had a slim majority in the Senate.

The United States has an independent judiciary and a dual court system in which there are both federal and state courts. The highest court is the federal Supreme Court, whose 9 judges are appointed for life by the president. Each state also has a supreme court for state matters. The American court system is often the final arbiter for economic disputes. Consumers use the court system to get compensation for faulty products or service and to stop unfair business practices. Businesses and governments use the courts to settle disputes and enforce laws. For instance, the courts have been used to break up monopolies .

The nation's tax rate is low when compared with other industrialized nations. However, there are wide variations in taxation since the individual states also tax citizens. For instance, Arkansas, Florida, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Washington, and Wyoming do not have state income taxes , while other states, such as Ohio or California, have income taxes as high as 10 percent of earnings.

In 2000, the federal government's revenues were about $1.9 trillion and it spent about $1.75 trillion. The result was a $115 billion budget surplus . In the same year, state governments collected $500 billion in revenues and spent $800 billion (most of the $300 billion in excess spending was provided by the federal government). On the federal level, 47.8 percent of revenues came from individual income taxes. The tax rates ranged from 15 percent to 39.6 percent of income. Other sources of revenue were corporate taxes at 10.1 percent, social security taxes at 33.8 percent, and excise taxes (in the United States, these are taxes on goods such as gasoline and cigarettes) at 3.7 percent. There were also small amounts from gift and estate taxes and customs duties . The main government expenditures were social security ($408.6 billion), welfare programs ($274.6 billion), national defense ($274.1 billion), Medicare ($216.6 billion), and interest on the national debt ($215.2 billion). In 2000, the national debt was $5.7 trillion, or 67 percent of GDP. This is higher than the average for industrialized nations and payments on the large debt take an enormous amount of money out of the economy.

The American military influences the economy in an indirect way. The size of the nation's military and its needs for equipment and supplies have created a military-industrial complex (a series of deep relationships between the military and companies that provide services and equipment for national defense). This military-industrial complex has resulted in a number of multi-billion dollar companies that develop and sell expensive equipment to the military including naval ships and submarines, fighter aircraft, missiles, tanks, and other equipment. In 1999 alone, the federal government spent $48.9 billion to acquire new weapons.

INFRASTRUCTURE, POWER, AND COMMUNICATIONS

In general, the United States has an excellent infrastructure. Some areas of the country have aging or over-burdened roadways and utility systems, but the nationwide infrastructure is capable of supporting the needs of the economy. Roadways connect all 50 states and 90 percent of all major cities and towns are serviced by expressways. The sheer size of the United States necessitates a vast highway network so that goods can be transported throughout the country. The nation has 6,348,277 kilometers (3,944,819 miles) of roadways, including 3,732,757 kilometers (2,319,535 miles) of paved roads. Of this total, 1 percent or 74,071 kilometers (46,036 miles) are interstate highways and a total of 180,959 kilometers (112,467 miles) are part of the national highway system. These roads are needed to accommodate the country's 208 million vehicles, including 199 million private cars and trucks, 7 million commercial trucks, and 697,000 buses.

The country's railway system is privately owned and includes 240,000 kilometers (149,136 miles) of mainline rail. There are 116,000 people in the United States who are employed by railways. Amtrak, the national passenger carrier, is government-owned, but there is ongoing discussion in Congress over whether the system should be privatized . Amtrak has 38,616 kilometers (24,000 miles) of track and services 500 stations across the country. The importance of transportation to the American economy is exemplified by the fact that in 1996, $847 billion, or 11 percent of the nation's GDP, was spent on transportation.

Communications
CountryNewspapersRadiosTV Sets aCable subscribers aMobile Phones aFax Machines aPersonal Computers aInternet Hosts bInternet Users b
199619971998199819981998199819991999
United States2152,146847244.325678.4458.61,508.7774,100
Canada1591,077715263.817633.3330.0422.9711,000
Japan578955707114.8374126.8237.2163.7527,060
Germany311948580214.517073.1304.7173.9614,400
aData are from International Telecommunication Union, World Telecommunication Development Report 1999 and are per 1,000 people.
bData are from the Internet Software Consortium (http://www.isc.org) and are per 10,000 people.
SOURCE: World Bank. World Development Indicators 2000.

Not counting the massive Great Lakes, there are 41,009 kilometers (25,483 miles) of navigable waterways in the United States. During the 19th century, a massive system of canals was constructed around the nation and many remain in use. The Mississippi River is one of the busiest waterways in the world and the main north-south shipping route. The United States is serviced by a number of ports. Among the busiest ports are Baltimore, Boston, Charleston, Chicago, Hampton Roads, Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Savannah, Seattle, and Tampa. The nation's merchant marine has 386 ships with gross tonnages of more than 1,000 tons each. The total weight of the fleet is 11,634,608 gross tons. This does not include thousands of barges, tugboats, and smaller craft. In order to supply the nation's energy needs there is an extensive network of pipelines.

The United States also has an excellent telecommunications system. Telephone service is widespread and easily available. Many cities and states have large and state-of-the-art fiber-optic cable systems. There are also microwave radio relay stations and extensive coaxial cable networks. The nation has a well-developed and expanding cellular system which includes thousands of relay towers. There are an estimated 70 million mobile phones in use in the country. For international communications, there are 24 ocean cable systems to carry transoceanic communications. The telecommunications system is enhanced by a broad network of satellites. The United States has 70 satellite earth stations to relay transmissions. In 1999, there were 7,600 Internet service providers in the United States.

There are 14,572 airports in the United States, although only 5,174 have paved runways. There are also 118 heliports. Some 241,000 people were employed by the air transport companies as of early 2001, although after the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in September of that year, the airlines began massive layoffs of employees. All American airlines are privately owned. The largest airlines in the country are American Airlines, United, Continental, Northwest, and Delta. The nation's busiest airports are Hartford International in Atlanta and O'Hare International in Chicago. The United States also has the world's largest space program. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) budget in 2000 was $13.7 billion. Of this total, $9.8 billion was spent on contractors. The largest payments were to Boeing, United Space Alliance, and Lockheed Martin. The space program is an example of government cooperation with private industry since NASA conducts many space launches for private companies (mainly satellite launches).

In 1998, the nation consumed 3.36 trillion kilowatt hours (kWh) of power. It imported 39.51 billion kWh (mainly from Canada) and exported 12.77 billion kWh. Domestic electricity production was 3.62 trillion kWh. The majority of electricity was produced by fossil fuels (70.34 percent). Atomic power supplied the second-largest share of electricity (18.61), followed by hydroelectric power (8.96 percent), and a variety of renewable energy sources including wind and solar power (2.09 percent).

ECONOMIC SECTORS

The United States has a highly diversified economy with a mix of large and small companies and a variety of industries and services. Although relatively small when compared with the other sectors of the economy, American agriculture is highly diverse and well developed. The differences in climate, soil, and rainfall across the country allow for a great assortment of crops to be cultivated. Citrus products grow well in Florida and areas of California, while the Midwest is suited to raising wheat and corn, and areas of the Southeast produce the majority of the nation's tobacco and cotton. In overall terms, the main crops are wheat and other grains, corn, fruits, vegetables, and cotton. The main livestock products are beef, pork, poultry, dairy products, turkey, and fish. There is also a significant industry based on forest products such as timber. Most crops and livestock grown in the United States are used for domestic consumption, but the country also exports a considerable amount of products. Agriculture accounts for about 2.4 percent of total employment.

The United States remains the world's dominant industrial power. Like other economic sectors, industry in the United States is technologically sophisticated and includes a wide variety of different manufacturers and products. While industry has declined in relation to other sectors, it has experienced steady growth. In 1999, industry grew by 2.4 percent. The leading industries are petroleum, steel, motor vehicles, aerospace, telecommunications, chemicals, electronics, food processing, consumer goods , lumber, and mining. Industry employs 24.5 percent of the American workforce. One ongoing trend in industry is the increasing consolidation and diversification of companies. Larger corporations have absorbed other companies both in an effort to reduce competition and also to branch into new markets. In 1997, there were a total of 11,128 business mergers or acquisitions in the United States, with a total value of $906 billion. American firms were involved in 9 out of the world's 10 largest mergers from 1989 to 1999. Mergers were particularly common in industries such as oil and natural gas processing, consumer goods, and medical equipment. American industry has also branched out into new areas. For instance, companies such as General Electric or General Motors no longer concentrate solely on manufacturing, but engage in a variety of economic endeavors including media broadcasting, financial services and telecommunications. Among the world's largest industrial companies are the American firms General Electric, Exxon, IBM, Ford Motor Company, General Motors, and Philip Morris.

The service sector is the largest component of the American economy. The United States has established itself as a world leader in telecommunications, financial services, and information technology or IT (computer-based information systems and communications). The growth of IT has propelled the "new economy" of the United States, based less on manufacturing and more on information products and services. By 1999, one-third of all new investments in the United States were in IT-based companies. The nation's retail sector is also strong. Consumer spending on products and services has helped drive the economic growth of the past decade. Major American retailers such as Wal-Mart, K-Mart, and Target have developed new methods of marketing and sales that have revolutionized the retail market. Services employ 77 percent of American workers.

AGRICULTURE

American agriculture is marked by several trends. The first is the continuing decline of small family farms. Since 1979, 300,000 small farms have disappeared in the United States, and since 1946 the number of people employed in agriculture has been cut in half. Increasingly, large companies such as Archer-Daniels Midland (ADM) have come to dominate American agriculture. In 2000, ADM had worldwide sales of $12.9 billion. In the beef industry, 4 firms control 80 percent of the U.S. market. Almost 91 percent of U.S. farms are considered to be small (less than 1,000 acres). Large farms (more than 1,000 acres) made up just 9 percent of farms but received 51 percent of total agricultural revenues in 2000. The second trend is the increasing productivity of the sector. Agricultural production in the United States has increased by an average of 5 percent each year since 1990. In addition, the output of each agricultural worker has grown by an average of 0.84 percent each year. On average, one American farmer produces enough food for 96 people. This improvement is partially as a result of the consolidation of farms and partially a result of new technologies and farming methods. The third trend is the growth in both exports and imports. In 1998 total agricultural exports were $60.5 billion. That same year, total imports were $48.9 billion. The fourth and final trend is the loss of agricultural subsidies . Some of these subsidies are in the form of outright payments in exchange for farmers not growing certain crops and are provided to keep the price of crops high. Since the early 1990s, Congress has gradually reduced these subsidies. However, support and aid for certain types of farmers, including tobacco farmers, continues. After declining to a low point of $9 billion in 1997, government spending on agriculture increased to $23 billion in 1999 and $38.4 billion in 2000. The increases mainly came from emergency aid to farmers because of natural disasters during these 2 years.

About 40 percent of the land in the United States is used for agriculture of some form, including livestock grazing. This includes 431.1 million acres of cropland, 396.9 million acres of pasture, and 71.5 million acres of forests. In 1998, the total crop output of the United States was 489,976,030 metric tons with a value of $102.14 billion. The largest single crop was corn, which accounted for more than half of the nation's crop output with 247,882,000 metric tons. The second largest crop was soybeans with 74,598,000 metric tons. Wheat is third with 69,327,000 metric tons. Other major crops include sugar cane, sugar beets, potatoes, bananas, and coffee. Tobacco also provides substantial cash returns, although yields are small when compared with many other crops. Total animal output in 1998 was $94.19 billion while forestry products, including timber, totaled $24.68 billion. Of the total American livestock, there were 101.2 million head of cattle, 56.2 million pigs, 8.3 million sheep, 6.15 million horses and 1.5 billion chicken. The remaining livestock includes a variety of species such as bison, turkeys, and geese.

Commercial fishing has declined significantly in the United States over the past 30 years. The majority of U.S. fish cultivation is used domestically, and about half is for human consumption. There is a wide variety of species caught, including cod, haddock, pollock, tuna, and salmon. Various shellfish such as lobster, shrimp, or crab account for about 20 percent of the annual harvest, but provide about one-half of the total revenues. Commercial fish farms are increasingly common and used for species such as salmon, catfish, and shrimp. Total fish harvests amounted to $3.7 billion in 1998, of which shellfish totals were $1.6 billion.

There have been dramatic improvements in agricultural technology in the United States. Improvements include increased use of computers, scientific soil and crop analysis, and more sophisticated machinery. Genetic engineering of seeds has also increased crop yields but created controversy over the safety of genetically altered products. There has subsequently been a decrease in soil erosion caused by over-farming and an overall decline in the use of pesticides and fertilizers. However, the pesticides used are much more powerful and lethal than earlier chemicals. About two-thirds of the states have had deep reductions in agriculture. Agriculture has declined most significantly in the New England states and New Jersey. In the West and southern plains, some states have had minor declines, while others have had small increases. The only regions of the nation that have seen major expansion of agriculture have been the middle-Atlantic area and the Pacific Northwest. The states with the largest increases in output were Arkansas, Washington, Delaware, Florida, and Georgia.

Progress in technology and crop yields has made the United States among the most productive agricultural producers in the world. The United States produces about half of the world's corn and 10 percent of its wheat. It also accounts for 20 percent of the globe's beef, pork, and lamb. With such progress in increasing output and the efficiency of agriculture, food prices for American consumers have had little increase over the past 20 years. Americans spend less on food, as a proportion of their income, than any other nation in the world. U.S. consumers spent 10.9 percent of their income on food. In comparison, the average British consumer spent 11.2 percent, the French 14.8 percent, the Japanese 17.6 percent, and Indians spent 51.3 percent.

The United States is the world's largest producer of timber. About 70 percent of the nation's forests are privately owned, but there is also limited logging allowed in federally-owned or managed forests. Almost 80 percent of timber harvested is soft woods such as pine or Douglas Fir. Hardwoods such as oak account for the remaining 20 percent.

INDUSTRY

Although American industry has declined as a percentage of the nation's GDP, it remains an integral part of the economy and has experienced some growth in certain areas. Since the 1960s, manufacturing has been in an overall decline, but specific American-made products have increased their sales and become more productive by using new technology and manufacturing methods. For instance, the automotive industry has increased production and produced 1.2 percent of the GDP although there have been cutbacks and shifts in employment. Many automotive workers now work for smaller independent manufacturers instead of the large companies such as Ford and General Motors. One of the main trends in U.S. industry is the increasing consolidation of small and medium companies into larger firms.

In 1999, there were 390,000 manufacturing companies in the United States with 18.5 million employees. There were also 27,000 mining companies with 627,000 workers, and 634,000 construction companies with 5 million employees (this includes individual contractors involved in construction such as plumbers and electricians). The largest industrial companies in the United States in 2000 were General Motors with 392,000 employees, Ford Motor Company with 364,600 employees, General Electric with 316,500, and Boeing with 211,000 employees. Many companies that once concentrated in manufacturing now are engaged in a variety of economic activities. For instance, General Electric is one of the largest industrial companies, but only about half of its employees work in manufacturing. The rest are employed in such activities as media operations (General Electric owns the television network NBC), sales, and marketing.

MANUFACTURING AND CONSTRUCTION.

The strong economy of the 1990s produced record profits for many American manufacturing firms. Sales of manufactured goods totaled $354.9 billion in 1999. One result of this has been increased investment in new factories and equipment and in research and development of new products. Profits in industry have also been aided by the increased productivity of workers. New investment by industry increased by 9 percent since 1995.

In the manufacturing sector, durable goods (products that are designed to last 5 years or more) accounted for 9.5 percent of the nation's GDP while non-durable goods, such as food or clothing, accounted for 6.9 percent of GDP. In 2000, the main durable goods were electronic products, motor vehicles, industrial machinery, fabricated metal products, lumber and wood products, and other transportation goods (including airplanes and aerospace equipment). In 1999, there were 11.1 million people employed in the manufacture of durable goods. The main non-durable goods sectors were food and foodstuffs, printing and publishing, chemicals and pharmaceuticals, rubber and plastics, textiles and clothing, and tobacco. In 1999, there were 7.44 million Americans working in the non-durable goods production sector of the economy.

Because of increased production, many American workers in the manufacturing sector worked more than 40 hours a week in order to keep up with demand. In 1999, the average manufacturing employee worked 4.6 hours of overtime per week. Average earnings in the manufacturing sector were $13.24 per hour. This marked a 3.3 percent increase in earnings from the previous year. American manufacturing companies were operating at about 82 percent of total capacity in 1999. In comparison, throughout the 1980s and early 1990s these companies were operating at an average of only 76 percent of capacity. The greatest gains in productivity in the manufacturing sector were in electronics, industrial machinery, and automobile production.

In 1999, 6.4 million Americans worked in the construction industry. The total value of new construction that same year was $764 billion. This included $172.1 billion worth of construction by local, state, and national governments. There were 1.66 million new houses built and 299,700 business structures completed.

ENERGY AND MINING.

The United States produces 74 percent of its energy needs. The nation has significant reserves of coal, natural gas, and hydroelectric power. The United States has the sixth-largest reserves of natural gas and is one of the world's largest producers of gas. The United States is also the third-largest exporter of coal. The nation has the twelfth-largest reserves of oil, but it is one of the world's largest importers of oil. About 57 percent of the oil consumed in the United States is imported. The majority of the nation's oil production is concentrated in Alaska, Texas, Louisiana, and California. Although profits for U.S. energy companies have doubled since 1990, many companies have shifted their efforts to develop new oil fields overseas. The 15 largest U.S. energy companies now have operations in such diverse places as Asia, Africa, and South America. There has been increased consolidation in the energy field. In 1999, Exxon and Mobil merged to form the largest private energy company in the world, worth $81 billion. This was followed in 2000 by a merger announcement between Chevron and Texaco. Rising oil prices in the United States contributed to the economic slowdown that began in 2000.

Non-fuel mineral production in the United States in 1997 amounted to $39.6 billion. The major minerals included zinc, lead, gold, iron ore, phosphates, and platinum. Eleven states accounted for 56 percent of total production. There were also $26.7 billion worth of mineral commodities produced. The main commodities were crushed stone, cement, copper, sand, lime and clays. Many of these products were used in the construction industry. In 1999, mining employed about 535,000 people.

SERVICES

While there has been a trade deficit in manufactured items between the United States and the rest of the world, the nation has built a trade surplus in services. In 1998, services accounted for 28 percent of total U.S. exports, but only 16.5 percent of imports. Since 1995, services have grown by an average of 6 percent per year. Leading segments of the service sector include telecommunications, financial services, and IT. The main export markets for American services are the European Union, which spent $85 billion on American services in 1999, Japan at $30 billion, and Canada at $21 billion. Among developing nations, Mexico was the number-one source for the export of U.S. services, and in 1999, it spent $13 billion.

FINANCIAL SERVICES.

The financial sector is composed of banking, insurance, and real estate operations. Financial firms provide a range of services. Commercial banks provide loans to consumers and businesses, including revolving loans in the form of credit cards. They also offer a variety of safe investment opportunities, such as savings accounts. Most savings and checking accounts in U.S. banks are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation for up to $100,000. Other financial firms concentrate on investment opportunities such as stocks and bonds, and manage long-term retirement plans. Still others provide a range of insurance needs including life, car, and home insurance. Financial service firms account for about 8.5 percent of all companies and just 5.8 percent of U.S. workers. Because of the high level of education and training required for employment in this sector, workers in financial services are among the highest-paid in the United States. In 1999, their average hourly wage was $14.61 compared with the national hourly average of $13.24. They also have a lower unemployment rate. Unemployment among financial service workers was just 2.3 percent in 1999, while the national unemployment rate was 4.3 percent. The largest financial service firms are Citigroup with 173,500 workers, Bank of America with 163,400, Wells Fargo with 90,400, and Chase Manhattan with 73,800.

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY.

One of the fastest growing areas of the U.S. economy is IT. This includes the development of computer software and computer applications for business and government, as well as new methods of communication. The IT sector also covers systems that integrate new technologies. For instance, IT includes systems that link Internet access and mobile phones. Although IT accounts for only a small part of the U.S. GDP (8.3 percent in 2000), it is responsible for one-third of new output. In addition, spending on IT software and services accounted for 11 percent of the 14 percent increase in business spending on procurement in 2000. IT was also responsible for a 30 percent growth in personal income. Most of the technology involved in this sector of the economy was invented before 1990, including the personal computer, fax machine, cellular phone and Internet. It has only been since 1995 that systems have been developed that integrate these new technologies.

RETAIL.

Retail and wholesale trade has posted substantial growth since 1993. By 2000, retail and wholesale trade employed 25 percent of all workers in the private sector and accounted for 19.3 percent of all businesses. Strong sales in these sectors have been bolstered by increases in productivity. Average worker productivity has increased by about 5 percent per year since 1995. Wages in the retail sector are far lower than the national average. In 1999, the average wage for retail workers was $9.08 per hour, while the national average wage was $13.24 per hour. In addition, retail workers usually work less than 40 hours per week (on average just 29 hours) and often do not have benefits such as health insurance and retirement.

Increases in sales and productivity have meant dramatic profits for many retailers. However, many companies have not been able to compete with the mega-retail firms such as Wal-Mart, K-Mart, and Target. By 2001, many of the country's oldest and most respected firmsincluding Montgomery Ward and Bradlees were bankrupt. Wal-Mart is the nation's number-one retail store, and in 2000, it came in second place only to General Electric in overall sales among all American companies (including such firms as Ford, Microsoft, and Exxon Mobil). The number-two retail firm was Home Depot. Along with this trend has been the slow demise of the mom-and-pop stores (small, independent, often family-owned businesses that are usually involved in retail ventures such as service stations and neighborhood grocery stores). One of the fastest growing segments of the retail sector is e-commerce (business that is conducted through the Internet). The United States currently leads the world in e-commerce. In 2000, e-commerce was worth $35 billion in the United States as 11 million consumers purchased products via the Internet. However, initial estimates of wild growth in the sector have not come true and many online companies have struggled to become profitable. Official government estimates were that e-commerce would be worth $800 billion by 2005, but new estimates place that figure at only $230 billion.

TOURISM.

The United States is the world leader in tourism. This is true of both tourists coming to the United States and Americans visiting overseas. In 2000, foreign visitors spent $75 billion in the United States, while American tourists spent $50 billion abroad. In 1998, some 45 million people visited the United States. The majority of these tourists were from Canada (14 million), followed by Mexico (9.8 million) and Europe (9 million). About 50 million Americans traveled abroad, mainly to Mexico and Canada.

INTERNATIONAL TRADE

Because of the massive size of the American economy, the country has a significant impact on global trade. When the American economy is expanding, it can prompt growth in other nations. However, when the U.S. economy contracts, it usually initiates parallel declines in other countries. Imports of foreign goods have helped keep prices low and meet consumer demand in the United States. The volume of these imports has resulted in a record $447 billion trade deficit, but foreign investment in the country has underwritten this deficit and provided new capital for the economy to expand. Exports in 2000 stood at $776 billion, while imports stood at $1.223 trillion.

In 2000, the country's main export partners were Canada at 23 percent of trade, Mexico at 14 percent, Japan at 8 percent, the United Kingdom at 5 percent, Germany at 4 percent and both France and the Netherlands at 3 percent each. The nation's main import partners are Canada at 19 percent, Japan at 11 percent, Mexico at 11 percent, China at 8 percent, Germany at 5 percent, and both the United Kingdom and Taiwan at 4 percent each. During the 1990s, trade with Canada and Mexico expanded as a result of trade agreements. Meanwhile, consumer demand for electronic products and automobiles led to increases in Japanese imports. At the same time, trade with Europe grew more slowly and even declined in certain markets.

The country's closest trade relationship is with Canada. On average, $1 billion worth of goods and services cross the border between the United States and Canada each day. Trade with Canada exceeds the volume of trade between the United States and all of South America or the European Union (EU). The volume of trade that moves between Michigan and the Canadian

Trade (expressed in billions of US$): United States
ExportsImports
1975108.856105.880
1980225.566256.984
1985218.815352.463
1990393.592516.987
1995584.743770.852
1998682.497944.353
SOURCE: International Monetary Fund. International Financial Statistics Yearbook 1999.

province of Ontario is itself equal to the country's trade with Japan. While close trade relations have existed for 2 centuries, this interdependence began to be formalized in 1965 with the Auto Pact between the 2 nations, which removed restrictions on the automobile trade. In 1964, the 2-way trade in automobiles was $715 million, but with the Auto Pact it increased to $104.1 billion in 1999. This accord was followed in 1989 by the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) which removed trade restrictions on most goods and services. As a result, trade increased by 50 percent between the 2 countries. These open trade patterns between Canada and the United States were expanded to include Mexico in 1994, through the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). NAFTA established the largest free-trade area in the world with more than 380 million consumers.

American exports of services have doubled since 1989, rising from $118 billion that year to $255 billion in 1999. The United States is one of the world's leading suppliers of financial services. In 1997, U.S. firms had foreign insurance sales of $47.2 billion. Meanwhile, U.S. banking and financial service companies had $13.9 billion in direct sales and American-owned firms based in foreign nations had sales of $13 billion. The success of American service products in foreign markets has helped stimulate the export of other U.S. products to support these companies. For instance, U.S. firms that set up offices overseas usually select American telecommunications equipment and computers. This helps get these products into overseas markets.

The United States has signed a number of foreign trade agreements. In 1934, the nation signed its first reciprocal trade accord, which lowered tariffs on goods and services. Since then, the country has consistently promoted free and open trade. This includes efforts to establish trade relationships with individual countries and attempts to develop international trade organizations. In the 1990s, the United States signed more than 300 trade agreements with both specific countries and international groups. Individual trade agreements between the United States and individual countries in the Caribbean and South America are coordinated through the Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act (CEBRA) and the Andean Trade Preferences Act (ATPA).

On a global level, the United States has been responsible for much of the growth in free trade. In 1944, the United States sponsored the foundation of the Bretton Woods economic system. This global system created 3 institutions. The first was the World Bank, to provide loans to countries to rebuild or establish their economies and industry. The second was the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which helped regulate currency and aid countries with financial crises. The third was the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which promotes free trade by establishing rules for its member states. The United States still provides about 25 percent of the funding for the World Bank and the IMF. In 1994, the World Trade Organization (WTO) replaced the GATT. The United States has used the WTO to its advantage to open trade with nations and to settle trade disputes. The United States is the most frequent user of the WTO Dispute Settlement system and used this to resolve 48 economic disputes between 1996 and 1998.

The WTO forms the main international trade agreement of the United States. The nation is also pursuing the establishment of regional trade agreements such as NAFTA. It is currently a member of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum (APEC) and has proposed the creation of a Free Trade of the Americas Agreement (FTAA), which would include all of North and South America, not just the NAFTA nations. The United States has also proposed the establishment of a Transatlantic Economic Partnership (TEP) which would open trade between the United States and the EU.

MONEY

The American dollar is the main currency used for trade throughout the world. A number of countries around the world have tied their currency to the dollar on a onefor-one basis, including Argentina and the Bahamas. Although the value of the dollar fluctuates freely on world markets, it has remained relatively stable. In late 2001, 0.67 British pounds equaled 1 U.S. dollar; 1.56 Canadian dollars equaled 1 U.S. dollar; 1.09 EU euros equaled 1 U.S. dollar; and 120.63 Japanese yen equaled 1 U.S. dollar.

The banking system of the United States is overseen by the Federal Reserve System, which is made up of 12 regional Reserve banks. These banks control the nation's money and credit supply. The Federal Reserve (commonly referred to as "the Fed") can raise or lower the discount rate that it charges banks to borrow money, thereby raising or lowering national interest rates. It can also control the amount of money in circulation by altering the

Exchange rates: United States
British poundsCanadian dollars (Can$)yen
per US$1per US$1per US$1
Jan 20010.67641.5032117.10
20000.65961.4851107.77
19990.61801.4857113.91
19980.60371.4835130.91
19970.61061.3846120.99
19960.64031.3635108.78
SOURCE: CIA World Factbook 2001 [Online].

banks' reserve ratios . The Fed also buys and sells government bonds.

Traditionally, the nation had a number of laws that made it difficult to establish branches of banks in other states. Although many of these laws have been rescinded, their impact has led to the establishment of thousands of individual commercial banks. Only recently have large mega-banks begun to establish multiple branches across the country. The nation is also served by thousands of small non-profit credit unions and savings and loan organizations. About 40 percent of all commercial banks in the United States belong to the Federal Reserve System. These banks account for almost 75 percent of total deposits. All banks that are incorporated under national charters must belong to the system, which imposes various requirements on its members, including the maintenance of specific reserve funds.

The 2 largest stock exchanges in the country are both based in New York City. They are the New York Stock Exchange and the American Stock Exchange. Other major stock exchanges include the Boston Exchange, Cincinnati Exchange, Pacific Exchange, and the Philadelphia Exchange. The main commodity exchange is the Chicago Board of Trade and the main currency market is the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. There are also a number of smaller stock markets across the country. The NASDAQ, which is part of the American Stock Exchange, was created in 1971 as the world's first electronic stock trading index (a listing of a predetermined group of stocks within an exchange). The NASDAQ contains many of the nation's high-tech companies and is the fastest growing of the indexes. Other major indexes include the Dow Jones Industrial Average (which lists the 30 largest industrial companies in the United States) and the Standard and Poor 500 (which lists 500 medium-sized companies).

From 1995 to 1998, the nation's stocks experienced one of their most dramatic periods of growth in U.S. history. However, beginning in 1998 the major stock markets underwent a series of corrections that lowered their overall value and contributed to an eventual economic slowdown. The total value of U.S. stock markets declined from $6.88 trillion in 1997 to $5.58 trillion in 1998. At the end of 1998, the value of the major U.S. stock markets were: New York, $4.695 trillion; American Exchange, $207.6 billion; Boston, $79.9 billion; Cincinnati, $58.6 billion; Pacific, $113.4 billion; and Philadelphia, $63.9 billion. In addition, the value of the Chicago Board of Trade was $131.2 billion, while the value of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange was $212.9 billion. Reevaluations of the value of technology stocks and an economic slowdown that began in 2000 have led to dramatic declines in the U.S. stock market. By March of 2001 the NASDAQ had fallen to its lowest level since November of 1998, while the Dow Jones declined by 8 percent to its lowest level since 1999. With declines of more than 20 percent in the major American stock exchanges, by early 2001 the United States was precariously close to slipping into a bear market as well as a recession .

POVERTY AND WEALTH

Income distribution in the United States has remained relatively constant since World War II, but by the 1990s the wealthiest groups had gained a larger share of the nation's wealth. In 1950, the richest 20 percent of Americans controlled 42.8 percent of wealth, the middle 20 percent controlled 17.4 percent, and the poorest controlled just 4.5 percent. By 1980, the wealthiest group controlled 41.6 percent, the middle group 17.5 percent, and the poorest 5.1 percent. However, by 1998, the poor and middle groups had lost some ground to the wealthy. The richest group controlled 49.2 percent of wealth, the middle group just 15 percent, and the poor just 3.6 percent. That same year the richest 5 percent of the population controlled 21.4 percent of wealth. The trend toward the greater concentration of wealth by the rich has accelerated throughout the 1990s. While the relative income of the poorest families in the United States declined by 11.6 percent since 1980, the income of the richest group increased by 17.7 percent.

The United States has a high standard of living and ranks number 3 in the world in human development according

GDP per Capita (US$)
Country19751980198519901998
United States19,36421,52923,20025,36329,683
Canada14,53516,42317,85019,16020,458
Japan23,29627,67231,58838,71342,081
GermanyN/AN/AN/AN/A31,141
SOURCE: United Nations. Human Development Report 2000; Trends in human development and per capita income.
Distribution of Income or Consumption by Percentage
Share: United States
Lowest 10%1.8
Lowest 20%5.2
Second 20%10.5
Third 20%15.6
Fourth 20%22.4
Highest 20%46.4
Highest 10%30.5
Survey year: 1997
Note: This information refers to income shares by percentiles of the population and is ranked by per capita income.
SOURCE: 2000 World Development Indicators [CD-ROM].

to the Human Development Report 2000 published by the United Nations (Canada ranks number 1, while Norway ranks 2). The average American workweek is 39.2 hours and the per capita income is $29,683. The average household in the United States had 2.6 people in it, but 25 percent of all homes had only 1 person. Only 10.4 percent of households had 5 or more people.

Almost 100 percent of households in the country have access to electricity and 99.4 percent have access to safe drinking water. In addition, 93.9 percent of homes had telephones while 98.3 percent had televisions and 99 percent had radios. The nation's sewage system is highly developed and 77 percent of dwellings are serviced by public sewage systems, and most of the remainder by septic tanks (22.8 percent). The mobility of the population is reflected in the high level of car ownership (84.9 percent of the people own an automobile). The average American spends 22.4 minutes commuting to and from work each day. Almost 80 percent of people who drive to work commute alone, while 14.7 percent car pool and 5.3 percent use public transportation.

In spite of the high overall standard of living, many groups in the United States are excluded from the prosperity of the mainstream. For instance, the unemployment rate for African Americans and Hispanics is almost twice as high as that of Asians and whites. Among workers, average wages for white males was $600 per week, $450 per week for African American males, and $390 per week for Hispanic males. Wages for women mirror the trends among male workers, with the major exception that females on average earn about 70 percent of what males earn.

In 1997, the poverty level in the United States was $16,036 for a family of 4. As with income differences, the poverty rate varies greatly among ethnic groups. In 1997, the poverty rate for whites was 11 percent. For Asians it was 15 percent, while for African Americans it was 28 percent, and 29 percent for Hispanics. Differences in poverty and income have a major impact on health. African Americans and Hispanics are twice as likely as whites not to have health insurance. One result of this disparity in health care is that whites have longer life expectancies. In 1997, the average life expectancy for white women was 80 years, but for African American women it was 74 years. Meanwhile the life expectancy for white males was 75 years, but for African American males it was 66 years.

WORKING CONDITIONS

The American workforce numbers 139.4 million. This includes those working or actively seeking employment in the United States. In 2001 unemployment in the United States reached a 30-year low of 4.2 percent. In 1970, it was 3.9 percent, by 1980 it had risen to 7.5 percent, and it was 5.7 percent in 1990. Unemployment is higher among youths (age 18-24) than among the general population. In 2000, the youth unemployment rate was 8 percent. Unemployment is also higher among females with an average rate of 6 percent.

One long-term problem for the American workforce is the greying of the population. As more workers age and then retire, the financial burdens for the remaining workers will increase. In 1950, there were 12 workers for

Household Consumption in PPP Terms
CountryAll foodClothing and footwearFuel and power aHealth care bEducation bTransport & CommunicationsOther
United States139946851
Canada14510421938
Japan12772221337
Germany1467210753
Data represent percentage of consumption in PPP terms.
a Excludes energy used for transport.
b Includes government and private expenditures.
SOURCE: World Bank. World Development Indicators 2000.

every 1 retiree, but currently there are only 3 and this ratio will continue to shrink. This means workers will have to pay higher taxes to support programs such as social security and Medicare (the government-funded health-care program for the elderly). At current projections, social security is predicted to go bankrupt in 2038 while Medicare will run out of money in 2035.

American workers have various legal protections that allow them to organize and join unions. However, the United States has one of the lowest rates of unionization among the major industrialized nations. Of those Americans who belong to unions, almost 75 percent are affiliated in some form with the American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO). The major trend in organized labor in the United States has been the continuing decline in union membership. During the 1950s, about 40 percent of American workers belonged to unions, but by 1981, that proportion had fallen to 20.1 percent. In 2000, only 13.5 percent of American workers (16.3 million people) belonged to a union. However, there are widespread regional differences. Union membership is greatest in the Northeast and the industrial states of the Midwest. New York, New Jersey, and Michigan had union membership rates of more than 20 percent. On the other hand, all Southern states had union membership below 15 percent and 2 states, North Carolina and South Carolina, had rates below 5 percent. Among the different sectors of the economy, government employees at the local, state, and national level had the highest union rates (on average 37 percent). Unionization was lowest in the sales sector (3.5 percent).

Working conditions are governed by both state and federal law. There are national provisions against child labor, but states are free to enact supplemental legislation. For instance, many states set the minimum age for employment at 16, while others allow children as young as 14 to be employed with parental consent and impose other restrictions on the amount of hours worked. There are also both national and state laws that govern the number of breaks employees are entitled to and issues of worker safety. Enforcement of labor laws is the province of a variety of state and federal agencies. On the federal level, the Department of Labor, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission of the Justice Department, and the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) are the primary agencies which enforce labor and safety laws. Most state governments have similar agencies that mirror the federal organizations.

In 2001, the national minimum wage was $5.15 per hour, but many states have minimum wages that exceed that amount. The standard workweek is 40 hours, although many salaried positions (held by workers who are paid weekly or monthly, not by the hour) entail standard work-weeks in excess of 40 hours. For hourly employees who work more than 40 hours, overtime pay equal to one and one-half times regular salary is standard. In addition to a number of national holidays, most American workers receive 2 weeks vacation per year and 2 weeks sick leave.

As with many other aspects of the economy, there are wide gaps in income depending on race, gender, and geography. Income levels for whites tend to be higher than minority groups, and average salaries for women are only about 75 percent of the pay of their male counterparts. Discrimination also continues to exist in hiring and promotion practices, so that many women and minorities have difficulty in obtaining jobs and promotions. There are also great regional differences in pay and cost of living, with the Northeast having the highest income levels and cost of living, while areas of the South have the lowest rates.

When compared with Europe's industrialized nations, American workers tend to be paid less and have to work longer hours. They also have less vacation time. Despite this, American workers are among the most productive in the world and produce more goods or services per hour than most of their European counterparts. On the other hand, Americans have significantly lower taxes and the cost of living in many regions of the nation is far lower than in other industrialized nations. As a result, the level of disposable income of the average American worker is among the highest in the world. One result of these factors has been continued immigration to the United States as people seek economic opportunity.

COUNTRY HISTORY AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

1492. Spanish explorer Christopher Columbus lands in the Caribbean and initiates the era of European colonization.

1565. The first permanent European settlement was established at St. Augustine, Florida, by the Spanish.

1607. The British establish their first permanent settlement at Jamestown in present-day Virginia.

1611. First tobacco harvests in Virginia.

1619. First Thanksgiving is celebrated. The first slaves arrive in Jamestown.

1775-1783. Revolutionary War. The United States becomes independent from Great Britain.

1787. The Constitution is adopted and the present system of government put in place.

1789. George Washington becomes the first president of the United States.

1790. Samuel Slater establishes the first textile factory in Pawtucket, Rhode Island.

1794. The Post Office is established. Eli Whitney invents the cotton gin which spurs the expansion of the cotton industry.

1797. Eli Whitney develops interchangeable parts. This dramatically speeds up production and makes it easier to replace parts.

1803. The United States purchases the Louisiana Territory for $15 million, tripling the size of the nation.

1817. Work on the Erie Canal is begun. When it is completed the canal stretches 363 miles and joins the Hudson River to Lake Eire.

1846-1848. The United States fights the Mexican-American War and gains the territory that will become Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and parts of Colorado and Wyoming.

1849. Gold is discovered at Sutter's Mill in California, initiating a gold rush and mass migration to the West.

1859. The oil well is used for the first time and an oil boom is initiated in Pennsylvania.

1861-1865. American Civil War. In 1862, President Abraham Lincoln issues the Emancipation Proclamation which frees the slaves in the Confederate states.

1867. Barbed wire is invented. This makes it easier for Americans to settle the West. The United States purchases Alaska from Russia for $7.2 million.

1869. The transcontinental railroad is completed.

1898. The Spanish-American War ends with a U.S. victory and the nation acquires the Philippines, Guam, and Puerto Rico.

1901. The Open Door Policy is established to guarantee American companies the right to trade in China.

1913. The Sixteenth Amendment establishes the income tax.

1917-1918. The United States becomes involved in World War I.

1919. In separate constitutional amendments, women are given the right to vote and prohibition is established, making alcohol illegal in the United States.

1929. The New York Stock Exchange crashes and falls to its lowest level. The Great Depression begins.

1941-1945. The United States fights in World War II. The war ends when the United States drops the first atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan. The United States helps establish the United Nations. The Cold War begins between the United States and its allies and the Soviet Union and its allies.

1951. The first commercial computer, UNIVAC, is sold to the U.S. Census Bureau.

1963-1973. American forces fight in Vietnam.

1965. The United States and Canada sign the Auto Pact.

1970s. The United States undergoes its worst economic recession since the Great Depression, partially as the result of oil crises in 1972 and 1979.

1989. US-Canada Free Trade Agreement goes into effect.

1992. The Cold War is officially declared to be over. The nation begins the second-longest period of economic expansion in its history.

1994. The United States, Canada, and Mexico establish the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

2001. Terrorist attacks on New York's World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11 draw the United States into a military conflict with Taliban forces in Afghanistan.

FUTURE TRENDS

The fundamental structure of the American economy is very strong. All of the major sectors of the economy experienced growth through the 1990s. After declining for many years, agriculture and manufacturing have stabilized and undergone significant transformations that have made them more successful. Throughout the economy, company consolidation as a result of mergers and acquisitions continues. Large firms are increasingly common, but small companies still make up the majority of American businesses. These big American firms have also sought to acquire companies in foreign countries in order to broaden their business and to enter new markets. In 1996, some 364 foreign companies were acquired by U.S. firms, either through mergers or outright sales. The value of these acquisitions was $59 billion. As a result, American firms have become increasingly global, and this trend will continue. By expanding into other markets and countries, American companies have reduced their economic risks by diversifying and spreading their assets.

The main strengths of the U.S. economy are its adaptability and the workforce productivity. During the 1970s, the country underwent a traumatic transformation away from industry toward a service-oriented economy. By the mid-1980s, the main elements for the dramatic growth of the 1990s were in place. Increases in productivity and the development of new technologies, goods, and services combined with increased consumer demand to spur the growth of the 1990s. The United States leads the world in the development of IT and other high-tech goods and services. This area of the economy has been one of the main sources of new growth and it will continue. These factors will remain in place for the near future so that the economy should remain strong for the next decade.

The nation has a low tax burden, which attracts foreign investment and provides workers with more income for purchasing products. Recent government surpluses have fueled the incentives for tax reduction. A number of states have already reduced taxes, and in 2001, the Congress passed the president's massive tax rebate. Increased free trade arrangements have resulted in lower-cost imports and reduced both the cost of production for U.S. companies and the cost of many goods and services for U.S. consumers. Lower taxes and production costs for U.S. companies will continue to spur the economy.

There are several main weaknesses of the U.S. economy that will affect future growth. The nation's dependency on energy imports makes it vulnerable to increases in oil prices. Since the majority of oil imports come from the Middle East, an area of political instability, actions that affect the region also have an impact on the United States. Another major problem in the American economy is the growing gap between rich and poor. The resultant 2-tier economy may mean that a segment of the American population will untouched by future economic growth.

The aging of the American population is another of the most significant potential problems. This problem exists on 2 levels. First, as more Americans retire over the next 20 years, there will be fewer employees in the workforce to provide goods and services. Second, fewer workers mean that there will be less money going into the national retirement system, Social Security. Social Security is expected to begin having financial problems in 2035 as it has to pay more money out to retirees while it receives less money in revenues.

DEPENDENCIES

GUAM.

As part of the Treaty of Paris, which ended the Spanish-America War in 1898, Guam became part of the United States. The island is currently a dependency of the nation, but many on Guam seek commonwealth status, like Puerto Rico, which would give the territory increased autonomy and control over its government and economy. The territory has an elected governor and assembly and sends 1 non-voting representative to the U.S. House of Representatives.

Guam is located in the Pacific Ocean and has an area of 541 square kilometers (211 square miles). Its population is 150,000. The territory's GDP is $4.6 billion and its GDP per capita is $24,000. Guam uses the American dollar as its currency. There is a substantial U.S. military presence in Guam, with 23,000 troops and their dependents. The main products and industries of Guam's economy include petroleum products, tourism, retail sales, construction materials, and fish. Its main trading partners are the United States and Japan.

In 1997, Guam had a total of 2,707 businesses, which ranged from construction companies to retail stores and included hotels and a variety of service companies. Total employment on Guam in 1997 was 42,477 (this does not include the military and those engaged in subsistence farming and fishing). Tourism plays a strong part in the territory's economy and hotels and motels had $460 million in revenues in 1997, while tourist shops and souvenir businesses had $415.9 million in sales. Total sales for the retail sector were $1.8 billion. Total employees numbered 15,334. Two factors have helped maintain the growth of the retail industry. The first is sales to military families. The second is sales to foreign tourists. Guam allows tourists to buy goods without paying a sales tax. Since U.S. products are cheaper on Guam than in Japan, this tax-break further lowers the cost and has made the island a popular stop for Japanese tourists to shop. The island is also home to the world's largest K-Mart store.

Behind retail and tourism, all other service industries including, legal, medical, maintenance and transportation services had combined total revenues of $1.18 billion and employed 15,336 people. Manufacturing and construction made up only a small part of the economy. In 1997, manufacturing employed 1,320 people and had revenues of $164 million. Construction employed 7,094 people and had revenues of $505 million.

During the 1990s, the economy of Guam expanded significantly. Although construction was down by 29 percent during the decade, most other segments of the economy have posted impressive gains. Retail sales were up by 65 percent while wholesale revenues have increased by 120 percent. Service revenues have increased by 81 percent and manufacturing by 49 percent. This growth has led to a higher inflation rate than the American average, 4 percent compared with 1.7 percent. The economy will likely continue to grow in the near future. The island's dependency on food imports and tourism makes it vulnerable to price increases and economic slowdowns by its major trade partners.

THE VIRGIN ISLANDS.

The territory of the U.S. Virgin Islands consists of 3 islands and small cays (low island or reef) in the Caribbean. The 3 main islands are St. Croix, St. Thomas, and St. John. Combined, these islands have a total area of 350 square kilometers (135 square miles). The total population of the territory is 125,000. The majority of the population lives on St. Croix and St. Thomas (only about 4,500 people live on St. John).

In 1997, the GDP of the Virgin Islands was $2.3 billion and its per capita GDP was $17,000. The economy of the Virgin Islands employs about 41,800 people. There are a further number of seasonal jobs that are dependent on tourism, and a percentage of the population works outside of regular businesses in subsistence farming and fishing. The dominant industry is tourism. There is also a significant retail sector in the islands and some minor oil refining. The territory's main trade partners are the United States and Puerto Rico. The majority of the citizens of the islands are of African descent (75 percent), but there is also a significant community of whites who moved to the islands from the United States (13 percent) as well as Puerto Ricans (5 percent).

Because of their strategic importance as naval ports, the United States purchased what is now the U.S. Virgin Islands from Denmark at the outbreak of World War I in 1914 for $25 million. The islands were granted home rule in 1970 and remain unincorporated American territories.

Tourism dominates the economy of the Virgin Islands. Not only does it provide income for people who directly work in tourist-related activities, but it also drives the retail and service sectors of the economy. The islands are serviced by most major American airlines and many of the world's major cruise lines. About 2 million tourists visit the islands each year. Services, including tourism and retail sales, produced $1.8 billion in revenues in 1997. This represented a 20 percent increase since 1990. Retailers and wholesalers employed about 9,000 people, while other servicesincluding lodging, transportation and personal servicesemployed 10,600 people.

Industry, mainly oil production and construction, employed 3,500 workers and had a total output of $200 million. A small number of financial institutions have established themselves on the islands. Financial services, including banking, insurance and real estate, employ about 1,900 people.

The economy of the Virgin Islands was stable throughout the 1990s, but the tourist industry experienced a period of slowand in some years, negativegrowth. Crime and high costs prompted many tourists to go elsewhere in the Caribbean. As a result, several major airlines cut service to the territory. A reform program that cut the number of government workers from 12,000 to 10,200 employees caused a slight increase in unemployment. These factors will continue to constrain the economy and limit the potential for future growth.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Carson, Thomas, editor. Gale Encyclopedia of U.S. Economic History. Detroit: Gale Group, 1999.

Collins, Robert M. More: The Politics of Economic Growth in Postwar America. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press, 2000.

Dahms, Harry F., editor. Transformations of Capitalism: Economy, Society, and the State in Modern Times. New York: New York University Press, 2000.

Economist Intelligence Unit. Country Profile: United States of America. London: Economist Intelligence Unit, 2001.

"Fiscal Year 2002 Budget." Office of Managment and Budget, Executive Office of the President of the United States. <http://w3.access.gpo.gov/usbudget/index.html>. Accessed October 2001.

Stein, Herbert, and Murray Foss, with Matthew Clement. The Illustrated Guide to the American Economy. Washington, D.C.: AEI Press, 1999.

U.S. Central Intelligence Agency. World Factbook 2001. <http://www.odci.gov/cia/publications/factbook/index.html>. Accessed September 2001.

U.S. Council of Economic Advisers. Changing America: Indicators of Social and Economic Well-Being by Race and Hispanic Origin. <http://w3.access.gpo.gov/eop/ca/index.html>. Accessed February 2001.

The U.S. Economy. Lexington, MA: Standard & Poor's DRI, 1999.

Weis, Linda and John M. Hobson. States and Economic Development: A Comparative Historical Analysis. Cambridge, USA: Polity Press, 1995.

World Trade Organization. Trade Policy Review: United States, July 1999. <http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/tpr_e/tp108_e.htm#Government%20report>. Accessed October 2001.

Wurman, Richard Saul. Understanding. Newport, RI: TED Conferences, 2000.

Zupnick, Elliot. Visions and Revisions: The United States in the Global Economy. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1999.

Tom Lansford

CAPITAL:

Washington, D.C. (District of Columbia).

MONETARY UNIT:

United States dollar ($). One U.S. dollar equals 100 cents. There are coins of 1, 5, 10, 25, 50 cents and 1 dollar. There are notes of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 1,000, and 10,000 dollars.

CHIEF EXPORTS:

Capital goods, automobiles, industrial supplies and raw materials, consumer goods, and agricultural products.

CHIEF IMPORTS:

Crude oil and refined petroleum products, machinery, automobiles, consumer goods, industrial raw materials, and food and beverages.

GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT:

$9.963 trillion (2000 est.).

BALANCE OF TRADE:

Exports: $776 billion (2000 est.). Imports: $1.223 trillion (2000 est.).

United States of America

views updated May 21 2018

United States of America

Culture Name

American

Orientation

Identification. The name "America" is often used to refer to the United States, but until the political formation of the United States after the Revolutionary War, this designation referred to South America only. Contemporary use of the term to refer to the United States underlines that country's political and economic dominance in the western hemisphere. Such use of this designation is impolitic from the perspective of Canadians and Latin Americans.

The United States has an Anglo majority that is politically and economically dominant. One of the defining characteristics of the country as a nation is its legacy of slavery and the persistence of economic and social inequalities based on race.

U.S. culture has significant regional inflections. Most Americans are aware of these differences despite the fact that these regions have experienced economic transformations and that Americans are a mobile people who often leave their regions of origin.

The Northeast is densely populated. Its extensive corridors of urbanization have been called the national "megalopolis." Once a leader in technology and industry, the Northeast has been overtaken in those areas by California's Silicon Valley.

The Midwest is both rural and industrial. It is the home of the family farm and is the "corn belt" and "breadbasket" of the nation. In the Great Lakes area of the upper Midwest, the automobile and steel industries were central to community and economy. As those industries declined, the upper Midwest became known as the rust belt.

The South was shaped by its secession from the Union before the Civil War and is associated with slavery and with subsequent battles over civil rights for African-Americans. In contemporary terms, these are the sunshine states, retirement havens, and new economic frontiers.

The West, the last national frontier, is associated with national dreams and myths of unlimited opportunity and individualism. It has the nation's most open landscapes.

California, along with the southwestern states were ceded to the United States by Mexico in 1848 after the Mexican-American War. The Southwest is distinctive because of its historical ties to colonial Spain, its Native American populations, and its regional cuisine, which has been influenced by Native American and Spanish cultures.

Location and Geography. The United States is the world's fourth largest country, with an area of 3,679,192 square miles (9,529,107 square kilometers). It includes fifty states and one federal district, where the capital, Washington, D.C., is located. Its forty-eight contiguous states are situated in the middle of North America. The mainland United States borders Canada to the north and Mexico, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Straits of Florida to the south. The western border meets the Pacific Ocean, and to the east lies the Atlantic Ocean.

Alaska and Hawaii are not joined to the other forty-eight states. Alaska is at the extreme north of North America, between the Pacific and Arctic oceans, and is bordered by Canada to the east. The island chain of Hawaii is situated in the east-central Pacific Ocean, about two thousand miles southwest of San Francisco.

Although Americans generally do not consider themselves an imperial or colonial power, the country has a number of commonwealths and territories, most of which were acquired through military conquest. These territories include Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands in the Caribbean basin, and Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa, and Wake island in the Pacific.

The physical environment is extremely diverse and often spectacular. Alaska's glaciers coexist with flowering tundras that bloom in the arctic summer. The forests of the Pacific Northwest and northern California are known for giant ancient trees such as Sitka spruce and sequoia (redwoods). Niagara Falls, Yellowstone National Park, and the Grand Canyon are a few of the better-known landscapes.

The physical regions of the country overlap both national boundaries and cultural regions. For example, the Atlantic coastal plain extends from New England to Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula. It is characterized by flooded river valleys that form major estuaries, such as the Chesapeake Bay.

The Appalachian Mountains span two cultural regions. Located to the west of the Atlantic coastal plain, they extend from the Middle Atlantic state of New York to the southeastern state of Georgia. The Appalachians are an old, eroded mountain range that is now heavily forested. It is possible to traverse the entire range by walking the two-thousand-mile Appalachian Trail.

The interior lowlands area also crosses regions and national borders. It includes the Midwestern corn belt and the Great Plains wheat-growing region. The Great Plains section of the interior lowlands stretches into Canada.

The Western Cordillera is part of a mountain chain that stretches from Chile in South America to Alaska. The highest peak in the country, Mount McKinley (Denali), is in the Western Cordillera in Alaska. The Western Intermontane Plateau, or Great Basin, crosses from the mountain states into the west.

Major navigable inland waterways include the Mississippi River, which cuts north to south through the east-central part of the country; the Great lakes in the upper Midwest, the largest freshwater lake group in the world; and the Saint Lawrence River.

The physical environment has had significant effects on regional cultures. The rich topsoil of the Midwest made it an important agricultural area; its rivers and lakes made it central to industrial development. However, settlers significantly transformed their environments, recreating the landscapes they had left behind in Europe. The vast prairies of the Great Plains, which were characterized by numerous species of tall grasses, have been transformed by irrigation and modern agricultural methods into continuous fields of soybeans and wheat. In the West, a series of pipelines and dams transformed Los Angeles and its desert surroundings into a giant oasis.

American settlers were not the first to transform these landscapes; native American groups also altered the lands on which they depended. Fire was used in hunting, and this expanded the prairie; irrigation was used in settled communities that practiced agriculture; and maize, a crop that cannot grow without human manipulation, was a staple crop.

The idea that the environment shapes culture or character does have cultural currency. Over a century ago, the historian Frederick Jackson Turner theorized that the American frontier experience had been instrumental in forming the rugged, independent, and democratic national character. Wilderness, independence, and democracy are common aspects of American symbolism.

Demography. The United States has a population of over 280 million (2000 census), but it is relatively sparsely populated. The most populous state, California, with 33,871,648 inhabitants, contrasts with Wyoming, which has only 493,782 residents.

These population figures reflect the fact that the United states is an urban nation. Over 75 percent of the inhabitants live in cities, among whom more than 50 percent are estimated to be suburban. Population growth is at below-replacement levels unless immigration is taken into account.

One of the most significant facts about the population is that its average age is on the rise. The baby boomers born in the period from the end of World War II until the early 1960s are beginning to get old.

Life expectancy is seventy-three years for white men and seventy-nine years for white women. African-American men have a life expectancy of sixty-seven years; in inner-city areas, the average life expectancy of African-American males is much lower. Infant mortality rates are higher among African-Americans than among whites.

U.S. Census categories identify populations according to whether they are of European descent (white). Whites constitute a large majority at about 70 percent of the population. According to current census figures, in the year 2000 the largest minority was blacks, who number about 35 million, or 13 percent of the population.

The Hispanic (Latino) population, which includes primarily people of Mexican, Puerto Rican, and Cuban (who may be any color) descent, is estimated to number 31 million, or 12 percent of the population. Latinos are expected to become the largest minority group early in the twenty-first century.

The Asian population (including Pacific Islanders) is defined as people of Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Indian, Korean, and Vietnamese origin. It is estimated that there are eleven million Asians, making up about 4 percent of the population.

The Native American population, which includes natives of Alaska such as the Inuit and Aleuts, is estimated to consist of over two million people, slightly over 1 percent of the population. Roughly a third of Native Americans live on reservations, trust lands, territories, and mother lands under Native American jurisdiction.

Linguistic Affiliation. There is no official national language. If English is its unofficial first language, Spanish is its unofficial second language. The United States ranks fifth in the world in the number of Spanish speakers.

Standard English is the language Americans are expected to speak. Within the social hierarchy of American English dialects, Standard English can be described as the exemplar of acceptable for correct usage based on the model of cultural, economic, and political leaders. There is no clear-cut definition of what Standard English is, and it is often defined by what it is not. For example, it often is contrasted with the type of English spoken by black Americans (African-American Vernacular English).

Standard English grammar and pronunciation are taught by English teachers in public schools. Like "whiteness," this implies a neutral, normative and nonethnic position. However, most Americans do not speak Standard English; instead, they speak a range of class, ethnic, and regional variants.

Spoken English includes many dialects that have been influenced by Native Americans, immigrants, and slaves. These languages include not only Dutch, German, and Scandinavian, Asian, and African languages, but less widely spoken languages such as Basque, Yiddish, and Greek. Thus, spoken English reflects the nation's immigration and history.

As linguistic diversity has increased, and particularly as Spanish has become more widely spoken, language has become an important aspect of the debate over the meaning or nature of American culture. Linguistic and cultural diversity is accepted in states such as New York and Illinois, where Spanish bilingual education is mandated in the public schools. In California, however, where tensions between Anglos and Mexican immigrants run high, bilingual education has been abolished in the public school systems. State laws prohibit even bilingual personnel from using Spanish with Spanish-speaking patients in hospitals or with students in schools.

Bilingual education is not new. In the nineteenth century, Germans outnumbered all other immigrant groups except for all the people from the British Isles combined. With the exception of Spanish speakers in the Southwest, at no other time has foreign language been so widely spoken. German-only newspapers and German and bilingual public schools were found throughout the Midwest and Oregon and Colorado and elsewhere from the mid-nineteenth century until World War I, when anti-German sentiment resulted in the elimination of German instruction in public schools.

Other languages used in the press and in public schools included Yiddish, Swedish, and Norwegian. Thus, proponents of English only, who claim that bilingual education should not be provided to Spanish-speaking immigrants because earlier immigrants did not have this advantage, overlook the fact that those immigrants often were schooled in their native languages.

Education was important in spreading English as a standard language. Public schools played a major role; by 1870, every state in the country had committed itself to compulsory education. The percentage of foreign-born persons who were unable to speak English peaked 31 percent in 1910, by 1920 had decreased to 15 percent, and by 1930 had fallen less than 9 percent. Among Native Americans, English was enforced by the establishment by the Bureau of Indian Affairs of compulsory boarding schools for school-age children. Contemporary Native American speech patterns can be traced to that experience.

Symbolism. The flag is perhaps the most potent and contested national symbol. Made up of stripes symbolizing the original thirteen colonies and fifty stars representing the fifty states, it is displayed on national holidays such as Veterans Day, Memorial Day, Labor Day, and Independence Day. Public places and businesses raise the flag as a matter of course. Individuals who display the flag in their homes or yards make an explicit statement about their patriotic connection to the nation.

The flag is also employed frequently as a symbol of protest. In the nineteenth century, northern abolitionists hoisted the flag upside down to protest the return of an escaped slave to his southern owner, and upside-down flags continue to be used as a sign of protest. The use of the stars and stripes design of the flag in clothing, whether for fashion, humor, or protest, is controversial and is considered by some people to be akin to treason and by others to be an individual right in a state that upholds individual rights.

Nationalism and community solidarity frequently are expressed through sports. In the Olympic games, patriotic symbols abound, and victors are heralded for their American qualities of determination, individualism, and competitiveness. In the same way, football games connect fans to one another and to their communities through a home team. The game expresses the important value of competition: unlike soccer, American football games can never end in a tie. Football also reflects cultural ideals about sex and gender; the attire of players and cheerleaders exaggerates male and female sex characteristics.

History and Ethnic Relations

Emergence of the Nation. The first European settlements date from the early sixteenth century and included Spanish towns in Florida and California, French outposts in Louisiana, and British settlements in New England. The United States of America was declared in 1776 by colonists from England who wanted independence from that country and its elite representatives in the colonies.

The class, racial, ethnic, and gender relationships of the contemporary nation have their roots in the colonial period. Unsuccessful efforts by British settlers to enslave Native Americans were followed by the importation of African slaves to work on cotton plantations in the South and of white indentured servants to work in the emerging industries in the North.

British taxation fell disproportionately on poor white laborers and indentured servants. This sector was instrumental in organizing the protests and boycotts of British goods that culminated in the American Revolution. Women participated in the Revolution by running farms and businesses during the war.

The egalitarian rhetoric of the Revolution did not extend to slaves, and after independence, full citizenship rights did not extend to all whites. Men and women who did not own property had no voting rights. (Women did not gain the right to vote until the early twentieth century.) The area west of the Appalachians was settled by poor whites seeking land and autonomy from wage labor.

After 1820, when poor white men gained the vote in most states, women began to see their own lack of political rights in a new way. Women's ability to connect their powerlessness to that of men in relationship to plantation owners made them active in the abolitionist movement. However, after the Civil War when freed male slaves, but not freed women or white women, were given the right to vote, the women's suffrage movement broke with the civil rights movement in the South.

State laws enacted in the South after the Civil War enforced racial separation by keeping freed men out of skilled and industrial jobs, limited their political rights through restrictive voting registration practices, and enforced segregation at all levels, including in housing and education.

Women were an essential part of the industrial labor force in the early years of the nation. Their work in textile manufacturing helped provide commodities for an expanding population and freed men to work in the agricultural sector. Women were active in labor union organizing in the nineteenth century.

The emerging nation also was shaped by its territorial expansion. After the Revolution, the United States included only thirteen former British colonies in the Northeast and the Southeast. Territories to the west and south of the original colonies were acquired through later purchases and concessions. The most important of these acquisitions was the Louisiana Purchase of 1803, by which the country doubled its territory. This purchase signaled the beginning of western expansion beyond the Appalachians. It became the country's "manifest destiny" to expand from the eastern to the western shore.

During this time, the Indian wars that eventually subdued the major Native American groups and drove them west to reservation lands were waged. In 1838, President Andrew Jackson rounded up thousands of Cherokees from North Carolina and marched them to "Indian territory," then a large area that included Oklahoma. One of every four Cherokees died of cold, hunger, or disease, and the Cherokees named this march the Trail of Tears.

Another major expansion occurred after the Mexican-American War. In 1848, Mexico was compelled to sell its northern territories to the United States. The Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo conceded California and what is now the Southwest, considerably expanding the continental United States and broadening its ethnic and linguistic profile.

In 1890, at the Battle of Wounded Knee, many of the Sioux were massacred, and the survivors were forced onto Pine Ridge Reservation. This battle marked the disappearance of the traditional Native American way of life. In the same year, the Census Bureau observed that the continental United States had been settled by whites in virtually every corner. The American frontier was considered closed.

National Identity. Often referred to as a melting pot, the United States is popularly regarded as a nation that assimilates or absorbs immigrant populations to produce a standard American. This is a powerful cultural idea. The word "American" conjures up an image of a person of white, middle-class status. All other residents, including the area's indigenous inhabitants, are "hyphenated" or characterized by an identifying adjective: African-American, Native American, Asian-American, Mexican-American. The national Census does not hyphenate Americans of European descent.

Huge waves of non-European immigration since the 1960s have made the United States the nation with the highest immigrant population in the world. This fact, combined with the many identity and civil rights movements that emerged in the 1960s and 1970s, has created a new kind of cultural politics that challenges the country's Anglo identity and power base.

Ethnic Relations. From colonial times, indentured servants and other poor whites constituted a buffer between landowners and slaves, who made up the bottom rung of the social ladder. Poor whites self-identified as white to associate themselves with the powerful landowning class rather than see their common interests with slaves. This process accentuated the dominance of white racial identity over class identity.

The "whiteness" of buffer groups has been ambiguous, changing along with their position in the labor market. Although now considered white, the Irish immigrants who arrived in great numbers in the early nineteenth century occupied the lowest rungs of the labor force next to slaves and often were referred to as "white niggers."

Between 1848, when lands from Mexico were annexed, and the 1930s, Americans of Mexican descent were classified as white. As Mexicans became important as laborers in the expanding agribusiness sector, those people were reclassified as Mexican-American. The large waves of immigrants who poured into the country from Southern and Eastern Europe between 1880 and World War I made up a new buffer group. This group included large numbers of Jews who did not come to be considered white for several generations.

Relationships among racial and ethnic groups have been mediated by this association between status, whiteness, and position in the labor market. Between 1916 and 1929, African-American laborers migrated to the North to work in industrial jobs. Paid less than whites for comparable jobs, they were regarded by white workers as union busters and scabs. African-Americans also received less than their share of the social benefits extended to whites after World War II. Federal programs for returning veterans included housing and educational subsidies. Most of these white groups considered their own ascension into the middle class as being the result of sweat and determination.

Urbanism, Architecture, and the Use of Space

The United States is an urban and suburban nation whose numerous cities each tell a story about its historical and economic development. New York, founded by the Dutch as a trading colony, was once the hunting and fishing grounds of Native Americans. It became an important industrial center in the nineteenth century, but by the mid-twentieth century its industries had declined and much of its middle class population had relocated to the suburbs. As the twenty-first century begins, New York is a "global" city resurrected from decline by its role as a center of finance in the world economy. Like New York, Chicago and Los Angeles have emerged as important cities in connected world.

Many cities are notable for their particular regional roles. Saint Louis, situated on the Missouri and Mississippi rivers, was an important transportation hub in the nineteenth century before railroads replaced riverboats as the most efficient form of travel. Once known as the "Gateway to the West," it was the last outpost of civilization as the country expanded to the west. Today, it is possible to see the Arch, a monument to the expansionist past, from nearby Cahokia, which houses the ruins of one of the largest cities in the world of its time. Between 900 and 1300 c.e., this city built by the indigenous Mississippian culture was larger than most contemporary European cities.

In colonial times, cities were divided along racial and class lines. The row house, a series of attached dwellings, was a common form of housing. It symbolized the defensive posture of early settlers, whose enclaves protected them from the untamed wilderness and its Indian inhabitants. The elites lived in the central city, often with slave quarters behind their homes. The working classes and urban slaves who eventually were allowed to live apart from their masters resided in peripheral areas and the early suburbs. In early American cities, there was no separation between the workplace and the home. Most goods were produced by artisans who lived and worked in the same building. As the country industrialized, home and workplace became distinct.

During the nineteenth century, the suburb was transformed from a space for social outcasts and the lower classes to a space for the elite. A number of factors led to the suburbanization that is central to modern American life. A romantic engagement with the countryside arose as the frontier expanded to the west and the wilderness receded from view in the East. The noise and pollution of the industrialized cities of the nineteenth century, as well as the presence of the working classes, made them less attractive to the elites. These factors combined with a transportation revolution made possible by cable cars and railroads.

Cities were stopovers for new immigrants, who soon began to move to the suburbs, and the permanent domains of the working poor and, until recently, black Americans of all classes, who were kept out of suburbs through discriminatory real estate and zoning practices. Suburbs were organized along class and ethnic lines, and cities became the repositories of the most disadvantaged.

The early suburbs of the elite classes were characterized by large and architecturally unique homes. Beginning in the early twentieth century, federal subsidies such as deductible mortgage interest and loan programs made suburban living a possibility for working-class and middle-class immigrants. Standard designs and quick building methods resulted in uninspired architecture but relatively inexpensive housing.

The use of the automobile and the growth of highways made possible a nationwide suburban sprawl of which shopping malls and motels are ubiquitous reminders. Americans have a complex relationship to the suburb. On the one hand, it represents success, family life, and safety from the chaos and danger of the city, fulfilling the peculiarly American promise that every family should be able to own its own home. On the other hand, the monotony of this landscape is a metaphor for cultural conformity, social isolation, and racism.

For women, suburban life is particularly ambiguous. The suburb promises a large home and yard and a safe and healthy place in which to raise children, but the single-family home isolates women from the extended family networks and friends that make child rearing less onerous.

Suburbs are often referred to as bedroom communities, suggesting that suburbanites depend on a nearby city for employment, services, and cultural activities. However, the growth of suburban industries and services that allow suburbanites to work in their own communities points to the declining dependency of suburbs on city centers.

By the 1970s, white flight from the cities created an urban-suburban landscape aptly described as Chocolate City/Vanilla Suburb, referring to the racial separation of blacks and whites. Cities were mythologized in the popular imagination as wild and dangerous places riddled with crime, gang violence, and drugs. Young black males and welfare mothers were the symbols of social problems.

Beginning in the 1980s, young urban professionals began to "reclaim" the cities, rehabilitating the aging and often decrepit housing stock. This process of gentrification turns cities into the new American frontier, where professionals drawn to major financial centers such as New York and Los Angeles are the "pioneers" and black and Hispanic residents are the "Indians."

Food and Economy

Food in Daily Life. Americans eat large amounts of processed, convenience, and fast foods. The average diet is high in salt, fat, and refined carbohydrates. It is estimated that 60 percent of Americans are obese. The preference for packaged and processed foods is culturally rooted. Americans as a whole enjoy the taste of hamburgers, hot dogs, and junk foods. Processed foods generally are perceived to be cleaner or more safe than unprocessed foods.

Industrial food producers use advertising to associate processed foods with the desirable modern and industrial qualities of speed, cleanliness, and efficiency. Speed of preparation was essential in a nation of nuclear family households where wives and mothers did not have relatives to help them and usually were solely responsible for food preparation.

However, gourmet, regional, and alternative styles of eating are highly influential. Gourmet foods, including high quality fresh and local produce, imported cheeses, fine coffees, and European kinds of bread, are available in every city and in many towns.

Regional cuisines, from cheese steaks in Philadelphia to the green chili stews of New Mexico and the grits of the South, are culinary reminders that the country encapsulates many different traditions.

An alternative tradition is the health food movement, which includes a preference for unprocessed foods and fruits and vegetables that have not been chemically treated or genetically altered. Some health food proponents are concerned primarily with avoiding the heavily processed foods that make up the bulk of the traditional diet. Others also see the consumption of organic products, which generally are produced by small, labor-intensive farms, as a way to fight the ecological damage caused by agricultural chemicals and challenge the corporate nature of food production.

Food Customs at Ceremonial Occasions. Americans have few occasions that they term ceremonial. In the case of weddings, funerals, and other rites, few fixed food rules apply. Most weddings, whether religious or secular, include a large tiered cake. After the wedding, the newlyweds feed each other a piece of the cake. At Jewish funerals, fish, usually smoked or pickled, and eggs may be served as symbols of life's continuation. Some Americans, particularly in the South, eat hopping john, a dish made with black-eyed peas, to bring good luck in the New Year.

Americans have many fixed food rituals to accompany events and occasions not generally considered ceremonial. Waking up is accompanied by coffee. Social occasions usually include alcohol. Hot dogs and beer are ubiquitous at sporting events, and popcorn and candy are consumed at movie theaters.

Basic Economy. The United States has an advanced industrial economy that is highly mechanized. The gross national product is the largest in the world. The country more than meets its own economic needs and is the world's leading exporter of food. Moreover, it is a dominant force in world finance.

The major challenges facing the economy are to maintain profits by keeping production costs low and to increase consumer markets. Besides mechanizing production to reduce labor costs, firms sub-contract production to less developed countries where those costs are much lower. At the same time, advertising firms that help market these goods to consumers at home and in other countries now constitute one of the biggest industries in the country.

The basic unit of currency is the dollar, with one hundred cents making one dollar.

Land Tenure and Property. Land tenure is based largely on private ownership, but the government owns an enormous amount of land. Private property is culturally valued, and this is best expressed in the high rate of home ownership. Historically, the United States was an agricultural nation, and it culturally has a romantic image of the small, independent farm family battling the elements on the prairie.

The ways in which federal lands were apportioned to settlers and developers constitutes a mixed legacy. Land grants made to pioneer families and the public universities in every state point to a democratic apportionment of land. However, many private companies gained access to large tracts of public lands. For example, federal land grants made to railroads in the nineteenth century resulted in the consolidation of wealth by railroad company directors who sold parcels of that land and by timber companies that bought large tracts of forested land from the railroads at low prices. Contemporary patterns of landholding in the Pacific Northwest reflect this legacy of land accumulation by a few large timber firms.

Commercial Activities. The vast majority of businesses are clustered within the service industry, including finance, advertising, tourism, and various professions.

Major Industries. Important manufacturing industries include petroleum, steel, motor vehicles, aerospace, telecommunications, chemicals, electronics, food processing, lumber, and mining.

The family farm is clearly on the decline. Most people who claim farming as their occupation work for an agricultural firm and do not own their own land. Since 1940, the United States has been the world's largest producer of wheat, corn, and soybeans, it produces over 40 percent of the world's corn and 45 percent of its soybeans. However, between 1940 and 1990, the number of farms fell from over six million to just over two million. Although occasional attention is paid to the "plight of the family farm," the growth of agribusiness has not resulted in major overt conflicts because most Americans see corporate growth as the fair outcome of free enterprise and competition.

Tension arises in cases where property is publicly owned. During the nineteenth century, the federal government reserved large tracts of western land for federal and common uses. Logging or grazing on these lands is regulated and requires permits. During the sagebrush rebellion of the 1980s, private developers and ranchers who wanted free access to these lands claimed that federal restrictions on private property ownership were anti-American. The language of this rebellion resonated with westerners in poor rural areas who believed that the federal government was usurping valuable land at their expense.

Many environmental conflicts become battles between private developers and companies and the federal government. For example, endangered species are protected under federal rules. In the Pacific Northwest, this legislation mandated the protection of the spotted owl habitat, prohibiting logging in areas with owl nests. Loggers regarded owl protection as an assault on their livelihood and their constitutional right to private property.

Division of Labor. The labor force has always been divided on the basis of race, ethnicity, and gender. Skilled jobs in manufacturing and management jobs typically have been more accessible to white men than to black men or women of any race. Within the service industries, there is a technological divide. Blacks and other minorities fill low-skill jobs such as food service and are found less often in managerial positions or the growing hi-tech industries.

Social Stratification

Classes and Castes. Most Americans do not believe that theirs is a "class" society. There is a strong cultural belief in the reality of equal opportunity and economic mobility. Rags to riches stories abound, and gambling and lotteries are popular. However, there is evidence that mobility in most cases is limited: working-class people tend to stay in the working classes. Moreover, the top 1 percent of the population has made significant gains in wealth in the last few years. Similar gains have not been made by the poorest sectors. In general, it appears that the gap between rich and poor is growing.

Symbols of Social Stratification. Stratification is visible in many facets of daily life. The social segregation of blacks and whites in cities mirrors their separation in the labor force. The crumbling housing stock of blacks in the inner cities contrasts with giant homes in gated suburbs all across the country. Speech, manners, and dress also signal class position. With some exceptions, strong regional or Spanish accents are associated with working-class status.

Political Life

Government. The United States is a federal republic composed of a national government and fifty state governments. The political system is dominated by two parties: the Republicans and the Democrats. One of the features of American democracy is low voter turnout. On the average, less than half the eligible voters participate in federal elections.

Also referred to as conservatives and liberals, respectively, Republicans and Democrats differ on certain key social issues. Republicans are generally conservative on social spending and moral issues. They support cuts in federally-sponsored social programs such as welfare. They believe in strengthening institutions such as marriage and the traditional family and usually are opposed to abortion and gay rights. Democrats tend to support federal funding for social programs that favor minorities, the environment, and women's rights. However, critics argue that these two parties set a very narrow range for political debate. Third parties that have emerged on both the left and the right include the Green, Socialist, Farm-Labor, Reform, and Libertarian parties.

The powers and responsibilities of the Federal government are set out in the Constitution, which was adopted in 1789. The national government consists of three branches that are intended to provide "checks and balances" against abuses of power. These branches are the executive, the legislative, and the judicial. The executive branch includes the President and federal agencies that regulate everything from agriculture to the military. The legislative branch includes members elected to the upper and lower houses of Congress: the Senate and the House of Representatives. The judicial branch consists of the Supreme Court and the U.S. Court of Appeals. At the state level, government is designed along the same lines, with elected governors, senators, and assemblymen and state courts. The smallest unit of government is the county, which has an elected board, but not all states have a system of county governments.

With the exception of the President, officials are elected directly, on the basis of popular vote. The President is elected by the electoral college. Each state has as many electors as it has senators and representatives, the latter of which are awarded according to population. Electors vote as a bloc within each state. This means that all electoral votes in a state go to the candidate with the plurality of the popular vote within that state. A candidate must win 270 electoral votes to win the election. This system is controversial because it is possible for a President to win a national election without winning a national majority of the popular vote, as happened in the presidential election of 2000.

Leadership and Public Officials. With the exception of local-level offices, politics is highly professionalized: most people who run for political offices are lifelong politicians. Running for a high-level political office is extremely expensive; many politicians in the House and the Senate are wealthy. The expense of winning campaigns requires not only personal wealth, but corporate sponsorship in the form of donations.

Social Problems and Control. Although crime rates have decreased, the United States remains the most violent industrialized nation in the world. The capital city, Washington, D.C., has the highest per capita crime rate in the country. In the nation as a whole, African-Americans, the poor, and teenagers are the most common victims of violent and nonviolent crime.

The country has more people in prison and more people per capita in prison than any other industrialized nation. The prison population is well over one million. These numbers have increased since 1980 as a result of mandatory sentences for drug-related crimes. Although African-Americans make up only about 12 percent of the population, they outnumber white inmates in prison. Both African-American and Hispanic men are far more likely to be imprisoned than are white men. Although rates of imprisonment are on the rise for women, women are far less likely to be imprisoned than men of any race or ethnicity. The United States is also the only Western industrialized nation that allows capital punishment, and rates of execution for African-American men are higher than those of any other group.

Cities are perceived to be very dangerous, but crime rate is not consistently higher in urban areas than in rural areas. The elderly tend to be the most fearful of crime but are not its most common victims. Tough penalties for violent crime are often perceived to be a solution, and it is on this basis that the death penalty is defended. Interestingly, Florida and Arizona, which have the death penalty, have the highest rates of violent crime in the country.

The vast majority of crimes in all categories are committed by white males, but in popular culture and the popular imagination, violent criminal tendencies are often associated with African-American and Hispanic males. This perception legitimates a controversial practice called racial profiling, in which African-American and Hispanic men are randomly stopped, questioned, or searched by police.

Historically, immigrant groups that constituted the urban "rabble" of their day were the subject of intense policing efforts and were believed to have propensities for vice and crime.

Military Activity. The country has officially been at peace since World War II but has unofficially been in almost continuous military conflict. These conflicts have included frequent interventions in Central and South America, the Middle East, and Africa. During the period between the end of World War II and the breakup of the Soviet Union (1989), military interventions frequently involved Cold War motivations. Since that time, the country has used its military forces against Iraq and has supported efforts by other governments to fight the drug war in Central America.

Social Welfare and Change Programs

The Great Depression, which lasted from 1929 until World War II, posed a real threat to the legitimacy of the American economic model in the eyes of citizens. During that period, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt established a series of social programs collectively known as the New Deal. Many of those programs, including government-backed pension programs, banking insurance, and unemployment benefits, are still in place. These programs, which were intended to provide a buffer against the inevitable downturns of economic cycles, were also a response to serious social unrest, including strikes and socialist organizing.

Americans generally are not opposed to social benefits such as social security pensions and the insurance of bank deposits. However, general relief programs for the poor, known popularly as welfare, have been very controversial. In a country that believes that all its citizens have an equal chance, where opportunity is unlimited, and where only the lazy are poor, programs for mothers and children and the indigent have been vulnerable to cutbacks. Recently, the federal government made sweeping reforms to the welfare laws that require mothers on welfare to work in order to receive benefits.

Nongovernmental Organizations and Other Associations

Nongovernmental organizations (NGOS) are not as influential as they are in less wealthy nations. Among the NGOs that operate within the country, the most notable is Amnesty International, which has made both political prisoners and torture within American prisons major issues in recent years.

More influential than NGOs are the many nonprofit institutions. These groups are not associated with government agencies or corporate interests. They include a wide spectrum of advocacy and public interest groups that deal with consumer, environmental, and social justice issues. Nonprofits are a main locus for alternative views and left-wing politics. Examples include the American Civil Liberties Union, the various Public Interest Research Groups, Fairness and Accuracy in the Media, Planned Parenthood, and the National Organization of Women.

Gender Roles and Statuses

Division of Labor by Gender. Although most women work outside the home, household and child-rearing responsibilities are still overwhelmingly the responsibility of women. The "double day" of women consists of working and then returning home to do domestic chores. This situation persists in spite of the cultural belief that men and women are equal. Studies carried out in middle-class homes, in which couples claim to share household duties, show that women still do the vast majority of domestic work. Although young women as a whole spend much less time on domestic chores than their mothers did, this is attributable not to the fact that men do a significant share of domestic work, but to the fact that women spend less time cooking, cleaning, and caring for children than they did in the past.

Women are paid seventy cents to every male dollar for comparable jobs. Occupations continue to be defined along gender lines. Secretarial or low-level administrative jobs are so overwhelmingly female that they have been termed pink-collar jobs. In the white-collar world, women often occupy middle-management positions. With a few exceptions, the "glass ceiling" keeps women out of high management positions. This situation is justified on the grounds that women take time from their working lives to raise children and therefore do not spend the same amount of time developing their working careers that men do. Occupations requiring nurturing skills, such as teaching and nursing, are still predominantly female.

Within the blue-collar sector, women are underrepresented in jobs considered to require physical strength, such as the construction industries and firefighting. Women often fill low-paid positions in industry, such as assembly-line work, sewing, and electronics assembly. This is justified on the basis that women are by nature more dextrous and that their small hands suit them to assembly-line work. It is more likely that the low wages offered by these factories explains the recruitment of female laborers, whose other options may include even less desirable seasonal and temporary work.

The Relative Status of Women and Men. In legal terms, women have the same formal rights as men. They can vote, own property, choose to marry or divorce, and demand equal wages for equal work. They also have access to birth control and abortion. The status of women in relation to men is very high compared to the situation in many other countries.

However, women as a whole do not receive the same social and economic benefits as men. Women are greatly underrepresented in elected political offices and are more likely to live in poverty. Female occupations both in the home and in the workplace are valued less than men's. Women are more likely than men to suffer from a sense of disempowerment and to have a distorted or low self-image.

Marriage, Family, and Kinship

Marriage. Marriage is formally a civil institution but is commonly performed in a church. Statistically, marriage appears to be on the decline. Half of all adults are unmarried, including those who have never married and those who are divorced. Rates of marriage are higher among whites than among blacks.

With the exception of Vermont, civil unions are legal only between heterosexual adults. However, gay marriages are increasingly common whether or not they are formally recognized by the state. Some religious denominations and churches recognize and perform gay marriages. The high rate of divorce and remarriage has also increased the importance of stepfamilies.

Domestic Unit. The typical model of the family is the nuclear family consisting of two parents and their children. Upon marriage, adult couples are expected to form their own household separate from either of their biological families. The nuclear family is the cultural ideal but is not always the reality. Immigrant groups have been reported to rely on extended family networks for support. Similarly, among African-American families, where adult males are often absent, extended kin ties are crucial for women raising children.

Inheritance. Americans trace their ancestry and inherit through both the maternal and paternal lines. Surnames are most commonly adopted through the paternal line, with children taking the father's name. Women usually adopt the husband's surname upon marriage, but it is increasingly common for women to keep their own surnames and for the children to use both the father's and the mother's last names.

Kin Groups. Family can refer to a nuclear family group or an extended kin group. The "ideal" family consists of a mother, a father, and two or three children. Americans often distinguish between blood relatives and relatives through marriage; blood relatives are considered more important. Ties among nuclear families generally are closer than ties among extended family members. Adoption is common, but reproductive technologies that allow infertile couples and gay couples to reproduce are highly valued. This reflects the importance of the concept of biological kinship in the culture.

Alternative models of family life are important in American life. A great deal of scholarship has addressed the historical and economic conditions that have led to a high proportion of female-headed households and the incorporation of nonrelated members into family units among African-Americans. However, these trends are on the rise in the population as a whole. A significant number of Americans of all ethnic backgrounds live in nontraditional families. These families may consist of unmarried couples or single parents, gay couples and their children, or gay families without children.

Socialization

Infant Care. Infant care varies by class. In New York City, it is common to see women of Dominican and West Indian descent caring for white children. Wealthy people often employ nannies to care for infants. Nannies, who often have children of their own, may have to rely on family members or their older children to watch over their infants. Wealthy or poor, the majority of mothers work outside the home. This, coupled with the fact that many people cannot rely on their extended families to help care for their newborns, makes infant care a challenge. Some employers offer short maternity leaves for mothers and increasingly, paternity leaves for fathers who are primary caregivers.

Child Rearing and Education. Child rearing practices are diverse, but some common challenges apply to all families. It is common to put children in day care programs at an early age. For wealthy families, this entails finding the most elite day care centers; for less wealthy families, it may involve finding scarce places in federally-funded programs. For all working families, day care can be a cause of anxiety and guilt. Negative media stories about child abuse at these centers spoke more to these anxieties than to the actual quality of care. The country makes few provisions for the care of young children considering the fact that most mothers work outside the home.

From age five to age eighteen, public schooling is provided by the state and is universally available. School is mandatory for children until the age of sixteen. Public school education in suburban areas and small cities and towns is usually adequate or excellent.

Inner-city schools are underfunded and have a high proportion of minority students. This reflects a history of white flight to the suburbs and a system in which schools are funded through local property taxes. Thus, in cities abandoned by wealthier whites, both tax bases and school funding have declined. The reputation of inner-city schools is so poor that families that live in cities send their children to private schools if they can afford it. Private schools are mostly white enclaves.

Access to equal education has long been an issue for African-Americans. Until the Supreme Court struck down the doctrine of "separate but equal" in 1954, all educational institutions in the South were segregated on the basis of race. However, the legally permitted segregation of the past has been replaced by the de facto segregation of the present.

Higher Education. The level of educational achievement is high. Most Americans complete high school, and almost half receive at least some college education. Almost one-quarter of the population has completed four or more years of college. Rates of graduation from high school and college attendance are significantly lower for African-Americans and Hispanics than for whites.

The quality and availability of colleges and universities are excellent, but a university education is not funded by the state as it is in many Western industrialized nations. The cost of higher education has soared and ranges from a few thousand dollars annually at public institutions to more than ten thousand dollars a year at private institutions. In elite private colleges, the cost of tuition exceeds $20,000 a year.

Among the middle classes, paying for college is a source of anxiety for parents from the moment their children are born. Students from middle-income and low-income families often pay for college with student loans, and the size of these debts is on the increase.

Etiquette

Personal comportment often appears crass, loud, and effusive to people from other cultures, but Americans value emotional and bodily restraint. The permanent smile and unrelenting enthusiasm of the stereotypical American may mask strong emotions whose expression is not acceptable. Bodily restraint is expressed through the relatively large physical distance people maintain with each other, especially men. Breast-feeding, yawning, and passing gas in public are considered rude. Americans consider it impolite to talk about money and age.

Religion

Religious Beliefs. The overwhelming majority of the people are Christian. Catholicism is the largest single denomination, but Protestants of all denominations (Baptist, Methodist, Lutheran, Presbyterian, and others) outnumber Catholics. Judaism is the largest non-Christian faith, followed by Islam, which has a significant African-American following. Baptism, the largest Protestant sect, originated in Europe but grew exponentially in the United States, especially in the South, among both whites and blacks. Aside from the many Christian movements from England and Europe that reestablished themselves early in the nation's history, a few religious sects arose independently in the United States, including Mormons and Shakers.

Although religion and the state are formally separated, religious expression is an important aspect of public and political life. Nearly every President has professed some variety of Christian faith. One of the most significant religious trends in recent years has been the rise of evangelical and fundamentalist sects of Christianity. As an organized political-religious force, fundamentalist Christians significantly influence political agendas.

Another trend is the growth in New Age religions, which blend elements of Eastern religions and practices, such as Buddhism, with meditation, yoga, astrology, and Native American spirituality.

Religious Practitioners. In addition to the practitioners of world religions such as priests, ministers, and rabbis, the United States has a tradition of nonordained and nontraditional religious practitioners. These people include evangelical lay preachers, religious leaders associated with New Age religions, and leaders of religious movements designated as cults. Women are increasingly entering traditionally male religious positions. There are now women ministers in many Protestant denominations and women rabbis.

Rituals and Holy Places. The country does not have religious rituals or designated holy places that have meaning to the population as a whole. However, Salt Lake City is a holy city for Mormons, and the Black Hills of South Dakota and other places are sacred native American sites.

There are many shared secular rituals and places that have an almost religious importance. Secular rituals include baseball and football games. Championship games in these sports, the World Series and the Super Bowl, respectively, constitute major annual events and celebrations. Important places include Disneyland, Hollywood, and Grace-land (Elvis Presley's estate).

Death and the Afterlife. Americans have an uncomfortable relationship with their own mortality. Although most residents are Christian, the value placed on youth, vigor, and worldly goods is so great that death is one of the most difficult subjects to talk about.

Death is considered a sad and solemn occasion. At funerals, it is customary to wear black and to speak in hushed tones. Graveyards are solemn and quiet places. Some people believe in an afterlife or in reincarnation or other form of continuity of energy or spirit.

Medicine and Health Care

The dominant approach to medicine is biomedical, or Western. Although many people are interested in alternative approaches such as acupuncture, homeopathic medicine, and other therapies, the United States continues to be less medically diverse than most other countries. Biomedicine is characterized by the frequent use of invasive surgeries such as cesarean sections and high doses of psychotropic drugs. With the exception of limited government care for the elderly and the disabled, health care is private and profit-based. This makes the United States distinct from other wealthy, industrial nations, nearly all of which provide universal health-care coverage.

Secular Celebrations

A number of secular national holidays are celebrated but are regarded less as celebrations of patriotism than as family holidays. The fireworks displays of the Fourth of July mark the Declaration of Independence from Britain in 1776, but this is also a time for summer outings such as picnics and camping trips with friends and family members.

Thanksgiving is part of the national history that is understood by every schoolchild. This annual feast celebrates the hardships of the early colonists, who were starving in their new environment. According to the legend, American Indians came to their aid, sharing indigenous foods such as maize and turkey. Thanksgiving is important not primarily because of its symbolism but because it is the most significant family holiday of the year, one of the few large and elaborate meals that families prepare.

The Arts and Humanities

Support for the Arts. The level of public support for the arts is much lower than it is in other wealthy nations. Patronage for unknown individual artists, writers, and performers is scarce. The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) has a very small operating budget with which it funds everything from public broadcasting to individual artists. In recent years, the NEA has been under attack from Congress, whose conservative members question the value and often the morality of the art produced with NEA grants.

Support also comes from private donations. These donations are tax-deductible and are a popular hedge among the wealthy against income and estate taxes. Generous gifts to prestigious museums, galleries, symphonies, and operas that often name halls and galleries after their donors are essential means of subsidizing the arts.

Literature. Much of American literature revolves around questions of the nature or defining characteristics of the nation and attempts to discern or describe the national identity. American literature found its own voice in the nineteenth century. In the early decades of that century, the essayists Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson set out the enduring themes of personal simplicity, the continuity between man and nature, individualism, and self-reliance. Walt Whitman celebrated democracy in his free verse poems.

Other nineteenth-century writers, such as Herman Melville, Emily Dickinson, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Mark Twain, articulated moral and ethical questions about the new country and were particularly influential for their critique of American puritanism.

Turn-of-the-century writers such as Edith Wharton, Henry James, and Theodore Dreiser picked up on those themes but were particularly concerned with social class and class mobility. They explored the nature of American culture and the tensions between ideals of freedom and the realities of social conditions.

In the early decades of the twentieth century, writers such as F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway began to question the values earlier writers had represented. Fitzgerald questioned the reality of the American dream by highlighting the corrupting influence of wealth and casting doubt on the value of mobility and success. Hemingway, like other modernists, addressed the issue of how one ought to live once one has lost faith in religious values and other social guidelines. Other early twentieth-century writers, such as Zora Neil Hurston, Nella Larsen, and William Faulkner, introduced race and racism as central themes in American literature.

In the 1930s, the Great Depression inspired authors such as John Steinbeck and Willa Cather to write about rural America. Their novels romanticized the hard work of poor rural whites. Implicit in these novels is a critique of the wealth and excess of the urban metropolis and the industrial system that supported it. Although these novels are permeated with multiethnic characters and themes, Anglos are generally the focal point.

Issues of identity and race were explored by earlier American black writers. A generation of black authors after World War II made these permanent themes in American literature, illustrating the poverty, inequality and racism experienced by American blacks. Many black writers explored the meaning of living inside a black skin in a white nation with a legacy of slavery. These writers included James Baldwin, Ralph Ellison, and Richard Wright. Perhaps the most influential contemporary writer who deals with these themes is Toni Morrison.

An important literary school known as Southern Gothic discussed the nature of rural southern life from the perspective of poor and middle-class whites. Writers such as Truman Capote, Tennessee Williams, Carson McCullers, and Shirley Jackson explored the contradictions between privileged whiteness and a culturally deficient southernness. These novels feature lonely, grotesque, and underprivileged white characters who are the superiors of their black playmates, servants, and neighbors but cultural inferiors in America as a whole.

Beginning in the late 1950s and 1960s, a generation known as the Beats challenged the dominant norms of white American masculinity. They rejected conventions of family and sexuality, corporate success, and money. Among the Beats were William Burroughs, Lawrence Ferlingetti, Allan Ginsberg, and Jack Kerouac.

Starting in the 1960s, women writers began to challenge the notion that women's place was in the home. Early feminist writers who critiqued the paternalism of marriage include the nonfiction writer Betty Friedan, the novelist Marge Piercy, and the poets Anne Sexton and Sylvia Plath.

Feminist themes, along with issues of ethnicity and otherness, continue to be important in American literature. Gloria Anzuldúa and Ana Castillo show how female and Latina identities intersect. Novels by Louise Erdrich and Leslie Marmon Silko illustrate how Native American families attempt to survive and reclaim their traditions amid poverty and discrimination.

Other contemporary novels try to deconstruct the experience of the "norm" in American culture. Ann Tyler's characters are often empty and unhappy but cannot locate the sources of those feelings. Don Delillo writes about the amoral corporate world, the American obsession with consumer goods, and the chaos and anxiety that underlie the quietness of suburban life. Joyce Carol Oates is attracted to the sinister aspects of social conformity.

These novels are not the most widely read looks in the United States. Much more popular are genres such as crime and adventure, romance, horror, and science fiction. These genres tend to repeat valued cultural narratives. For example, the novels of Tom Clancy feature the United States as the moral victor in cold war and postCold War terrorist scenarios. Harlequin romances idealize traditional male and female gender roles and always have a happy ending. In horror novels, violence allows for catharsis among readers. Much science fiction revolves around technical-scientific solutions to human problems.

Graphic Arts. The most influential visual artists are from the modern period. Much early art was imitative of European styles. Important artists include Jackson Pollack and Andy Warhol. Warhol's art documented icons of American life such as Cambell's soup cans and Marilyn Monroe. His work was deliberately amusing and commercial. Most graphic art is produced for the advertising industry.

Performance Arts. Performance arts include many original genres of modern dancing that have influenced by classical forms as well as American traditions, such as jazz. Important innovators in dance include Isadora Duncan, Martha Graham, and Alvin Ailey. Theaters in every town that once hosted plays, vaudeville, and musicals now show movies or have closed. In general, performance arts are available only in metropolitan areas.

The United States has produced several popular music genres that are known for blending regional, European, and African influences. The best known of these genres are the African-American inventions blues and jazz. Among the most important jazz composers and musicians are Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, and Thelonius Monk. Although now considered classics, blues and jazz standards were the popular music of their day.

Music fits into "black" and "white" categories. Popular swing jazz tunes were standardized by band leaders such as Glenn Miller, whose white band made swing music hugely popular with young white people.

Rock 'n' roll, now a major cultural export, has its roots in these earlier popular forms. Major influences in rock and roll include Elvis Presley, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, and Bruce Springstein. Although rock 'n' roll is primarily white, soul and Motown, with singers such as Aretha Franklin, the Supremes, and the Temptations, produced a popular black music.

Country music, another popular genre, has its roots in the early American folk music of the Southeast now termed country or bluegrass. This genre reworked traditional gospel songs and hymns to produce songs about the everyday life of poor whites in the rural Southeast.

Popular music in the United States has always embodied a division between its commercial and entertainment value and its intellectual or political values. Country and folk, blues, rock 'n' roll, rap, and hip-hop have all carried powerful social and political messages. As old forms become standard and commercialized, their political edge tends to give way to more generic content, such as love songs.

The State of the Physical and Social Sciences

The United States is a leading producer and exporter of scientific knowledge and technology. Major areas of scientific research include medicine, energy, chemicals, weapons, aerospace technology, and communications. Funding for research comes from government agencies and universities as well as the private corporate sector.

The role of private corporations in research is controversial. Pharmaceutical companies often fund research that leads to cures and treatments for diseases. One consequence is a dearth of research on diseases particular to poor countries. Another consequence is that medicines are marketed at costs that are prohibitive to the poor both inside and outside of the country.

In the face of technology and science as being culturally valued, an increasing cause of social concern is the fact that American schoolchildren do not do well on standardized tests in the sciences.

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Web Sites

Salon.com, http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2000/02/15/census

U.S. Department of the Census. http://www.census.gov

Molly Doane

United States

views updated May 21 2018

United States

March 2007

Official Name:
United States of America

Editor’s Note: This entry on The United States is an abstract of key facts regarding the United States. This information was provided by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency which indicates data was developed from public sources. The U.S. Department of State is the source for Background Notes on most other nations in this Yearbook.

PROFILE

GEOGRAPHY

PEOPLE

GOVERNMENT

ECONOMY

COMMUNICATIONS

TRANSPORTATION

MILITARY

TRANSNATIONAL ISSUES

PROFILE

Britain’s American colonies broke with the mother country in 1776 and were recognized as the new 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 in the nation’s 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 world’s most powerful nation state. The economy is marked by steady growth, low unemployment and inflation, and rapid advances in technology.

GEOGRAPHY

Location: North America, bordering both the North Atlantic Ocean and the North Pacific Ocean, between Canada and Mexico

Geographic coordinates: 38 00 N, 97 00 W

Map references: North America

Area: total: 9,826,630 sq km; land: 9,161,923 sq km; water: 664,707 sq km; note: includes only the 50 states and District of Columbia

Area—comparative: about half the size of Russia; about three-tenths the size of Africa; about half the size of South America (or slightly larger than Brazil); slightly larger than China; almost two and a half times the size of the European Union

Land boundaries: total: 12,034 km; 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 28 km

Coastline: 19,924 km

Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm; contiguous zone: 24 nm; exclusive economic zone: 200 nm; continental shelf: not specified

Climate: mostly temperate, but tropical in Hawaii and Florida, arctic in Alaska, semiarid in the great plains west of the Mississippi River, and arid in the Great Basin of the southwest; low winter temperatures in the northwest are ameliorated occasionally in January and February by warm chinook winds from the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains

Terrain: vast central plain, mountains in west, hills and low mountains in east; rugged mountains and broad river valleys in Alaska; rugged, volcanic topography in Hawaii

Elevation extremes: lowest point: Death Valley -86 m; highest point: Mount McKinley 6,194 m

Natural resources: coal, copper, lead, molybdenum, phosphates, uranium, bauxite, gold, iron, mercury, nickel, potash, silver, tungsten, zinc, petroleum, natural gas, timber

Land use: arable land: 18.01%; permanent crops: 0.21%; other: 81.78% (2005); Irrigated land: 223,850 sq km (2003)

Natural hazards: tsunamis, volcanoes, and earthquake activity around Pacific Basin; hurricanes along the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coasts; tornadoes in the midwest and southeast; mud slides in California; forest fires in the west; flooding; permafrost in northern Alaska, a major impediment to development

Environment—current issues: air pollution resulting in acid rain in both the US and Canada; the US is the largest single emitter of carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels; water pollution from runoff of pesticides and fertilizers; limited natural fresh water resources in much of the western part of the country require careful management; desertification

Environment—international agreements: party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling; signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Biodiversity, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Hazardous Wastes

Geography—note: world’s third-largest country by size (after Russia and Canada) and by population (after China and India); Mt. McKinley is highest point in North America and Death Valley the lowest point on the continent

PEOPLE

Population: 298,444,215 (July 2006 est.)

Age structure: 0-14 years: 20.4% (male 31,095,847/female 29,715,872); 15-64 years: 67.2% (male 100,022,845/female 100,413,484); 65 years and over: 12.5% (male 15,542,288/female 21,653,879) (2006 est.)

Median age: total: 36.5 years; male: 35.1 years; female: 37.8 years (2006 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.91% (2006 est.)

Birth rate: 14.14 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate: 8.26 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Net migration rate: 3.18 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female; under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female; 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female; 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female; total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

Infant mortality rate: total: 6.43 deaths/1,000 live births; male: 7.09 deaths/1,000 live births; female: 5.74 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth: total population: 77.85 years; male: 75.02 years; female: 80.82 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.09 children born/woman (2006 est.)

HIV/AIDS—adult prevalence rate: 0.6% (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS—people living with HIV/AIDS: 950,000 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS—deaths: 14,000 (2003 est.)

Nationality: noun: American(s); adjective: American

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% (2002 est.)

Languages: English 82.1%, Spanish 10.7%, other Indo-European 3.8%, Asian and Pacific island 2.7%, other 0.7% (2000 census) note: Hawaiian is an official language in the state of Hawaii

Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write; total population: 99%; male: 99%; female: 99% (2003 est.)

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: name: Washington, DC (capital); geographic coordinates: 38 53 N, 77 02 W; time difference: UTC-5 (during Standard Time); daylight saving time: +1hr, begins second Sunday in March; ends first Sunday in November; note: the United States is divided into six time zones

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

Dependent areas: American Samoa, Baker Island, Guam, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Midway Islands, Navassa Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Palmyra Atoll, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, Wake Island

note: from 18 July 1947 until 1 October 1994, the US administered the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands; it entered into a political relationship with all four political units: the Northern Mariana Islands is a commonwealth in political union with the US (effective 3 November 1986); the Republic of the Marshall Islands signed a Compact of Free Association with the US (effective 21 October 1986); the Federated States of Micronesia signed a Compact of Free Association with the US (effective 3 November 1986); Palau concluded a Compact of Free Association with the US (effective 1 October 1994)

Independence: 4 July 1776 (from Great Britain)

National holiday: Independence Day, 4 July (1776)

Constitution: 17 September 1787, effective 4 March 1789

Legal system: 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

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch: chief of state: President George W. BUSH (since 20 January 2001); Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (since 20 January 2001); note—the president is both the chief of state and head of government; head of government: President George W. BUSH (since 20 January 2001); Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (since 20 January 2001); 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 (eligible for a second term); election last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held on 4 November 2008); election results: George W. BUSH reelected president; percent of popular vote—George W. BUSH 50.9%, John KERRY 48.1%, other 1.0%

Legislative branch: bicameral Congress consists of the Senate (100 seats, one-third are renewed every two years; 2 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); elections: Senate—last held 7 November 2006 (next to be held on November 2008); House of Representatives—last held 7 November 2006 (next to be held on November 2008); election results: Senate—percent of vote by party—NA; seats by party—Democratic Party 49, Republican Party 49, independent 2; House of Representatives—percent of vote by party—NA; seats by party—Democratic Party 233, Republican Party 202

Judicial branch: Supreme Court (nine justices; nominated by the president and confirmed with the advice and consent of the Senate; appointed to serve for life); United States Courts of Appeal; United States District Courts; State and County Courts

Political parties and leaders:

Democratic Party [Howard DEAN]; Green Party; Libertarian Party [William (Bill) Redpath]; Republican Party [Ken MEHLMAN]

Political pressure groups and leaders: NA

International organization participation: AfDB, ANZUS, APEC, Arctic Council, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CBSS (observer), CE (observer), CERN (observer), CP, EAPC, EBRD, FAO, G-5, G-7, G- 8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINUSTAH, NAFTA, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS, OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, PIF (partner), SAARC (observer), SECI (observer), SPC, UN, UN Security Council, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMOVIC, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

Flag description: 13 equal horizontal 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, 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 Rico

Principal Government Officials

Last Updated: March 21, 2007

President: Bush, George W.

Vice President: Cheney, Richard B.

Presidential Cabinet

Secretary of Agriculture: Johanns, Mike

Secretary of Commerce: Gutierrez, Carlos

Secretary of Defense: Gates, Robert

Secretary of Educations: Spellings, Margaret

Secretary of Energy: Bodman, Samuel W.

Secretary of Health and Human Services: Leavitt, Michael O.

Secretary of Homeland Security: Chertoff, Michael

Secretary of Housing and Urban Development: Jackson, Alphonso

Secretary of the Interior: Kempthorne, Dirk

Attorney General: Gonzales, Alberto

Secretary of Labor: Chao, Elaine

Secretary of State: Rice, Condoleezza

Secretary of Transportation: Peters, Mary

Secretary of the Treasury: Paulson, Henry Jr.

Secretary of Veterans Affairs: Nicholson, Jim

Cabinet Rank Members

Chief of Staff: Bolten, Joshua B.

Environmental Protection Agency: Johnson, Stephen L.

United States Trade Representative: Schwab, Susan (Ambassador)

Office of Management and Budget: Portman, Rob

Office of National Drug Control Policy: Walters, John

Other Executive Advisors National Economic Council: Hubbard, Allan

National Security Council: Hadley, Stephen

Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives: Hein, Jay

Office of Science and Technology Policy: Marburger, John H., III

President’s Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board: Friedman, Stephen

White House Counsel: Fielding, Fred

White House Military Office: Spicer, Raymond, Rear Adm.

Other Offices

Speaker of the House: Pelosi, Nancy

House Majority Leader: Hoyer, Steny

House Republican Leader: Boehner, John

President of the Senate: Cheney, Richard B.

Senate Majority Leader: Reid,

Harry Senate Minority Leader: McConnell, Mitch

Federal Reserve Board Chairman: Bernanke, Ben S.

Central Intelligence Agency Director: Hayden, Michael, General

Federal Bureau of Investigation Director: Mueller, Robert

Chief Justice of the Supreme Court: Roberts, John G., Jr.

ECONOMY

Overview

The US has the largest and most technologically powerful economy in the world, with a per capita GDP of $43,500. In this market-oriented economy, private individuals and business firms make most of the decisions, and the federal and state governments buy needed goods and services predominantly in the private marketplace. US business firms enjoy greater flexibility than their counterparts in Western Europe and Japan in decisions to expand capital plant, to lay off surplus workers, and to develop new products. At the same time, they face higher barriers to enter their rivals’ home markets than foreign firms face entering US markets. US firms are at or near the forefront in technological advances, especially in computers and in medical, aerospace, and military equipment; their advantage has narrowed since the end of World War II. The onrush of technology largely explains the gradual development of a “two-tier labor market” in which those at the bottom lack the education and the professional/technical skills of those at the top and, more and more, fail to get comparable pay raises, health insurance coverage, and other benefits. Since 1975, practically all the gains in household income have gone to the top 20% of households. The response to the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001 showed the remarkable resilience of the economy. The war in March-April 2003 between a US-led coalition and Iraq, and the subsequent occupation of Iraq, required major shifts in national resources to the military. The rise in GDP in 2004-06 was undergirded by substantial gains in labor productivity. Hurricane Katrina caused extensive damage in the Gulf Coast region in August 2005, but had a small impact on overall GDP growth for the year. Soaring oil prices in 2005 and 2006 threatened inflation and unemployment, yet the economy continued to grow through year-end 2006. Imported oil accounts for about two-thirds of US consumption. Long-term problems include inadequate investment in economic infrastructure, rapidly rising medical and pension costs of an aging population, sizable trade and budget deficits, and stagnation of family income in the lower economic groups. The merchandise trade deficit reached a record $750 billion in 2006.

GDP (purchasing power parity): $12.98 trillion (2006 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate): $13.22 trillion (2006 est.)

GDP—real growth rate: 3.4% (2006 est.)

GDP—per capita (PPP): $43,500 (2006 est.)

GDP—composition by sector: agriculture: 0.9%; industry: 20.4%; services: 78.6% (2006 est.)

Labor force: 151.4 million (includes unemployed) (2006 est.)

Labor force—by occupation: farming, forestry, and fishing 0.7%; manufacturing, extraction, transportation, and crafts 22.9%; managerial, professional, and technical 34.9%; sales and office 25%; other services 16.5%; note: figures exclude the unemployed (2006)

Unemployment rate: 4.8% (2006 est.)

Population below poverty line: 12% (2004 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 1.8%; highest 10%: 30.5% (1997)

Distribution of family income—Gini index: 45 (2004)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.5% (2006 est.)

Investment (gross fixed): 16.6% of GDP (2006 est.)

Budget: revenues: $2.409 trillion; expenditures: $2.66 trillion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2006 est.)

Public debt: 64.7% of GDP (2005 est.)

Agriculture—products: wheat, corn, other grains, fruits, vegetables, cotton; beef, pork, poultry, dairy products; fish; forest products

Industries: leading industrial power in the world, highly diversified and technologically advanced; petroleum, steel, motor vehicles, aerospace, telecommunications, chemicals, electronics, food processing, consumer goods, lumber, mining

Industrial production growth rate: 4.2% (2006 est.)

Electricity—production: 3.979 trillion kWh (2004)

Electricity—consumption: 3.717 trillion kWh (2004)

Electricity—exports: 22.9 billion kWh (2004)

Electricity—imports: 34.21 billion kWh (2004)

Oil—production: 7.61 million bbl/day (2005 est.)

Oil—consumption: 20.73 million bbl/day (2004 est.)

Oil—exports: 1.048 million bbl/day (2004)

Oil—imports: 13.15 million bbl/day (2004)

Oil—proved reserves: 22.45 billion bbl (1 January 2002)

Natural gas—production: 531.1 billion cu m (2004 est.)

Natural gas—consumption: 635.1 billion cu m (2004 est.)

Natural gas—exports: 24.18 billion cu m (2004 est.)

Natural gas—imports: 120.6 billion cu m (2004 est.)

Natural gas—proved reserves: 5.451 trillion cu m (1 January 2005 est.)

Current account balance: $-862.3 billion (2006 est.)

Exports: $1.024 trillion f.o.b. (2006 est.)

Exports—commodities: agricultural products (soybeans, fruit, corn) 9.2%, industrial supplies (organic chemicals) 26.8%, capital goods (transistors, aircraft, motor vehicle parts, computers, telecommunications equipment) 49.0%, consumer goods (automobiles, medicines) 15.0% (2003)

Exports—partners: Canada 23.4%, Mexico 13.3%, Japan 6.1%, China 4.6%, UK 4.3% (2005)

Imports: $1.869 trillion f.o.b. (2006 est.)

Imports—commodities: agricultural products 4.9%, industrial supplies 32.9% (crude oil 8.2%), capital goods 30.4% (computers, telecommunications equipment, motor vehicle parts, office machines, electric power machinery), consumer goods 31.8% (automobiles, clothing, medicines, furniture, toys) (2003)

Imports—partners: Canada 16.9%, China 15%, Mexico 10%, Japan 8.2%, Germany 5% (2005)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $69.19 billion (August 2006 est.)

Debt—external: $10.04 trillion (30 June 2006 est.)

Economic aid—donor: ODA, $6.9 billion (1997)

Currency (code): US dollar (USD)

Exchange rates: British pounds per US dollar—0.5418 (2006), 0.5500 (2005), 0.5462 (2004), 0.6125 (2003), 0.6672 (2002); Canadian dollars per US dollar—1.1334 (2006), 1.2118 (2005), 1.3010 (2004), 1.4011 (2003), 1.5693 (2002); Japanese yen per US dollar—116.18 (2006) 110.22 (2005), 108.19 (2004), 115.93 (2003), 125.39 (2002); euros per US dollar—.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.8860 (2003), 1.0626 (2002); Chinese yuan per US dollar—7.97 (2006), 8.1943 (2005), 8.2768 (2004), 8.2770 (2003), 8.2770 (2002)

Fiscal year: 1 October—30 September

COMMUNICATIONS

Telephones—main lines in use: 268 million (2003)

Telephones—mobile cellular: 219.4 million (2005)

Telephone system: general assessment: a large, technologically advanced, multipurpose communications system; domestic: a large system of fiber-optic cable, microwave radio relay, coaxial cable, and domestic satellites carries every form of telephone traffic; a rapidly growing cellular system carries mobile telephone traffic throughout the country; international: country code—1; 24 ocean cable systems in use; satellite earth stations—61 Intelsat (45 Atlantic Ocean and 16 Pacific Ocean), 5 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region), and 4 Inmarsat (Pacific and Atlantic Ocean regions) (2000)

Radio broadcast stations: AM 4,789, FM 8,961, shortwave 19 (2006)

Television broadcast stations: 2,218 (2006)

Internet country code: .us

Internet hosts: 195.139 million (2005)

Internet users: 205.327 million (2005)

TRANSPORTATION

Airports: 14,858 (2006)

Airports—with paved runways: total: 5,119; over 3,047 m: 189; 2,438 to 3,047 m: 221; 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1,426; 914 to 1,523 m: 2,337; under 914 m: 946 (2006)

Airports—with unpaved run-ways: total: 9,739; over 3,047 m: 1; 2,438 to 3,047 m: 6; 1,524 to 2,437 m: 157; 914 to 1,523 m: 1,728; under 914 m: 7,847 (2006)

Heliports: 149 (2006)

Pipelines: petroleum products 244,620 km; natural gas 548,665 km (2003)

Railways: total: 226,605 km; standard gauge: 226,605 km 1.435-m gauge (2004)

Roadways: total: 6,430,366 km; paved: 4,165,110 km (including 75,009 km of expressways); unpaved: 2,265,256 km (2005)

Waterways: 41,009 km (19,312 km used for commerce); note: Saint Lawrence Seaway of 3,769 km, including the Saint Lawrence River of 3,058 km, shared with Canada (2004)

Merchant marine: total: 465 ships (1000 GRT or over) 10,590,325 GRT/13,273,133 DWT; by type: barge carrier 7, bulk carrier 67, cargo 91, chemical tanker 20, container 76, passenger 19, passenger/cargo 58, petroleum tanker 76, refrigerated cargo 3, roll on/roll off 27, specialized tanker 1, vehicle carrier 20; foreign-owned: 51 (Australia 2, Canada 4, Denmark 24, Germany 2, Greece 1, Malaysia 4, Netherlands 4, Norway 2, Singapore 2, Sweden 5, Taiwan 1); registered in other countries: 700 (Antigua and Barbuda 7, Australia 3, Bahamas 121, Belize 5, Bermuda 27, Cambodia 8, Canada 2, Cayman Islands 41, Comoros 2, Cyprus 7, Greece 1, Honduras 1, Hong Kong 21, Ireland 2, Isle of Man 3, Italy 15, North Korea 3, South Korea 7, Liberia 93, Luxembourg 3, Malta 3, Marshall Islands 143, Netherlands 13, Netherlands Antilles 1, Norway 13, Panama 94, Peru 1, Philippines 8, Portugal 1, Puerto Rico 3, Qatar 1, Russia 1, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 21, Sierra Leone 1, Singapore 7, Spain 7, Sweden 1, Trinidad and Tobago 1, UK 6, Vanuatu 1, Wallis and Futuna 1) (2006)

Ports and terminals: Corpus Christi, Duluth, Hampton Roads, Houston, Long Beach, Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, Tampa, Texas City; note: 13 ports north of New Orleans (South Louisiana Ports) on the Mississippi River handle 290,000,000 tons of cargo annually

MILITARY

Military branches: Army, Navy and Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard; note—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; 17 years of age with written parental consent (2006)

Manpower available for military service: males age 18-49: 67,742,879; females age 18-49: 67,070,144 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service: males age 18-49: 54,609,050; females age 18-49: 54,696,706 (2005 est.)

Manpower reaching military service age annually: males age 18-49: 2,143,873; females age 18-49: 2,036,201 (2005 est.)

Military expenditures—percent of GDP: 4.06% (2005 est.)

TRANSNATIONAL ISSUES

Disputes—international: the U.S. has intensified domestic security measures and is collaborating closely with its neighbors, Canada and Mexico, to monitor and control legal and illegal personnel, transport, and commodities across the international borders; abundant rainfall in recent years along much of the Mexico-US border region has ameliorated periodically strained water-sharing arrangements; 1990 Maritime Boundary Agreement in the Bering Sea still awaits Russian Duma ratification; managed maritime boundary disputes with Canada at Dixon Entrance, Beaufort Sea, Strait of Juan de Fuca, and around the disputed Machias Seal Island and North Rock; The Bahamas and US have not been able to agree on a maritime boundary; US Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay is leased from Cuba and only mutual agreement or US abandonment of the area can terminate the lease; Haiti claims US-administered Navassa Island; US has made no territorial claim in Antarctica (but has reserved the right to do so) and does not recognize the claims of any other states; Marshall Islands claims Wake Island; Tokelau included American Samoa’s Swains Island among the islands listed in its 2006 draft constitution

Refugees and internally displaced persons: Refugees (country of origin): the US admitted 62,643 refugees during FY04/05 including, 10,586 (Somalia), 8,549 (Laos), 6,666 (Russia), 6,479 (Cuba), 3,100 (Haiti), 2,136 (Iran) (2006)

Illicit drugs: world’s largest consumer of cocaine, shipped from Colombia through Mexico and the Caribbean; consumer of ecstasy and of Mexican heroin, marijuana and methamphetamine; minor consumer of high-quality Southeast Asian heroin; illicit producer of cannabis, marijuana, depressants, stimulants, hallucinogens, and methamphetamine; money-laundering center

Principal U.S. Embassy Officials

USUN (NEW YORK) (USINT)

Address: 140 East 45th St., New York, NY 10017; Phone: 212-415-4000; Fax: 212-415-4443; Workweek: M-F 8:30-5:30; Website: www.un.int/usa/.

AMB OMS:Amb. Richard Miller
CM:Mark Goombridge
POL:William Brencick
CON:Russell Graham
MGT:Raymond A. Boneski
US REP:Amb. Alejandro D. Wolff
ALT US REP:Amb. Jackie Sanders
US REP OMS:Amb. Mark Wallace
ECO:Miriam Hughes
FMO:John E. Singler
GSO:Thomas Gallo
IMO:Peter Jensen
IPO:Fred Murriel
ISO:Warren A. Forrest
ISSO:Warren A. Forrest
LEGATT:Carolyn Willson
MLO:Col Jeffrey Hewlett
PAO:Richard A. Grenell
RSO:Tanya Larson

Last Updated: 1/25/2007

United States

views updated Jun 08 2018

United States

PROFILE
GEOGRAPHY
PEOPLE
GOVERNMENT
ECONOMY
COMMUNICATIONS
TRANSPORTATION
MILITARY
TRANSNATIONAL ISSUES

March 2007

Official Name:

United States of America

Editor's Note: This entry is an abstract of key facts regarding the United States. This information was provided by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency which indicates data was developed from public sources. The U.S. Department of State is the source for Background Notes on most other nations in this Yearbook.

PROFILE

Britain's American colonies broke with the mother country in 1776 and were recognized as the new 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 in the nation's 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 world's most powerful nation state. The economy is marked by steady growth, low unemployment and inflation, and rapid advances in technology.

GEOGRAPHY

Location: North America, bordering both the North Atlantic Ocean and the North Pacific Ocean, between Canada and Mexico

Geographic coordinates: 38 00 N, 97 00 W

Area: total: 9,826,630 sq km; land: 9,161,923 sq km; water: 664,707 sq km; Note: includes only the 50 states and District of Columbia

Area—comparative: about half the size of Russia; about three-tenths the size of Africa; about half the size of South America (or slightly larger than Brazil); slightly larger than China; more than twice the size of the European Union

Land boundaries: total: 12,034 km; 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 28 km

Coastline: 19,924 km

Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm; contiguous zone: 24 nm; exclusive economic zone: 200 nm; continental shelf: not specified

Climate: mostly temperate, but tropical in Hawaii and Florida, arctic in Alaska, semiarid in the great plains west of the Mississippi River, and arid in the Great Basin of the southwest; low winter temperatures in the northwest are ameliorated occasionally in January and February by warm chinook winds from the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains

Terrain: vast central plain, mountains in west, hills and low mountains in east; rugged mountains and broad river valleys in Alaska; rugged, volcanic topography in Hawaii

Elevation extremes: lowest point: Death Valley -86 m; highest point: Mount McKinley 6,194 m

Natural resources: coal, copper, lead, molybdenum, phosphates, uranium, bauxite, gold, iron, mercury, nickel, potash, silver, tungsten, zinc, petroleum, natural gas, timber

Land use : arable land: 18.01%; permanent crops: 0.21%; other: 81.78% (2005); Irrigated land: 223,850 sq km (2003)

Total renewable water resources: 3,069 cu km (1985)

Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural): Total: 477 cu km/yr (13%/46%/41%); Per capita: 1,600 cu m/yr (2000)

Natural hazards: tsunamis, volcanoes, and earthquake activity around Pacific Basin; hurricanes along the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coasts; tornadoes in the midwest and south-east; mud slides in California; forest fires in the west; flooding; permafrost in northern Alaska, a major impediment to development

Environment—current issues: air pollution resulting in acid rain in both the US and Canada; the US is the largest single emitter of carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels; water pollution from runoff of pesticides and fertilizers; limited natural fresh water resources in much of the western part of the country require careful management; desertification

Environment—international agreements: party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling, signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Biodiversity, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Hazardous Wastes Geography—Note: world's third-largest country by size (after Russia and Canada) and by population (after China and India); Mt. McKinley is highest point in North America and Death Valley the lowest point on the continent

PEOPLE

Population: 301,139,947 (July 2007 est.)

Age structure : 0-14 years: 20.2% (male 31,152,050/female 29,777,438); 15-64 years: 67.2% (male 100,995,752/female 101,365,035); 65 years and over: 12.6% (male 15,858,477/female 21,991,195) (2007 est.)

Median age: total: 36.6 years; male: 35.3 years; female: 37.9 years (2007 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.894% (2007 est.)

Birth rate: 14.16 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)

Death rate: 8.26 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)

Net migration rate: 3.05 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)

Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/ female; under 15 years: 1.046 male(s)/female; 15-64 years: 0.996 male(s)/female; 65 years and over: 0.721 male(s)/female; total population: 0.967 male(s)/female (2007 est.)

Infant mortality rate: total: 6.37 deaths/1,000 live births; male: 7.02 deaths/1,000 live births; female: 5.68 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)

Life expectancy at birth: total population: 78 years; male: 75.15 years; female: 80.97 years (2007 est.)

Total fertility rate: 2.09 children born/woman (2007 est.)

HIV/AIDS—adult prevalence rate: 0.6% (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS—people living with

HIV/AIDS: 950,000 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS—deaths: 17,011 (2005 est.)

Nationality: noun: American(s); adjective: American

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% (2002 est.)

Languages: English 82.1%, Spanish 10.7%, other Indo-European 3.8%, Asian and Pacific island 2.7%, other 0.7% (2000 census); Note: Hawaiian is an official language in the state of Hawaii

Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write; total population: 99%; male: 99%; female: 99% (2003 est.)

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

Cities: Capital name: Washington, DC; geographic coordinates: 38 53 N, 77 02 W; time difference: UTC-5 (during Standard Time); daylight saving time: +1hr, begins second Sunday in March; ends first Sunday in November; Note: the US is divided into six time zones

Political subdivisions: 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
Dependent areas: American Samoa, Baker Island, Guam, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Midway Islands, Navassa Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Palmyra Atoll, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, Wake Island. Note: from 18 July 1947 until 1 October 1994, the US administered the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands; it entered into a political relationship with all four political units: the Northern Mariana Islands is a commonwealth in political union with the US (effective 3 November 1986); the Republic of the Marshall Islands signed a Compact of Free Association with the US (effective 21 October 1986); the Federated States of Micronesia signed a Compact of Free Association with the US (effective 3 November 1986); Palau concluded a Compact of Free Association with the US (effective 1 October 1994)

Independence: 4 July 1776 (from Great Britain)

National holiday: Independence Day, 4 July (1776)

Constitution: 17 September 1787, effective 4 March 1789

Legal system: federal court system based on English common law; each state has its own unique legal system, of which all but one (Louisiana, which is still influenced by the Napoleonic Code) is based on English common law; judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch: chief of state: President George W. BUSH (since 20

January 2001); Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (since 20 January 2001); note—the president is both the chief of state and head of government; head of government: President George W. BUSH (since 20 January 2001); Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (since 20 January 2001); 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 (eligible for a second term); election last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held on 4 November 2008); election results: George W. BUSH reelected president; percent of popular vote—George W. BUSH 50.9%, John KERRY 48.1%, other 1.0%

Legislative branch: bicameral Congress consists of the Senate (100 seats, 2 members are elected from each state by popular vote to serve six-year terms; one-third are elected every two years) and the House of Representatives (435 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote to serve two-year terms); elections: Senate—last held 7 November 2006 (next to be held November 2008); House of Representatives—last held 7 November 2006 (next to be held November 2008); election results: Senate—percent of vote by party—NA; seats by party—Democratic Party 49, Republican Party 49, independent 2; House of Representatives—percent of vote by party—NA; seats by party—Democratic Party 233, Republican Party 202 Judicial branch: Supreme Court (nine justices; nominated by the president and confirmed with the advice and consent of the Senate; appointed to serve for life); United States Courts of Appeal; United States District Courts; State and County Courts

Political parties and leaders: Democratic Party [Howard DEAN]; Green Party; Libertarian Party [William (Bill) REDPATH]; Republican Party [Robert M. (Mike) DUNCAN]

Political pressure groups and leaders: NA

International organization participation: ADB (nonregional members), AfDB, ANZUS, APEC, Arctic Council, ARF, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CBSS (observer), CE (observer), CERN (observer), CP, EAPC, EBRD, FAO, G-5, G-7, G-8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINUSTAH, NAFTA, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS, OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, PIF (partner), SAARC (observer), SECI (observer), SPC, UN, UN Security Council, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNI-TAR, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC Flag description: 13 equal horizontal 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, 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 Rico

Principal Government Officials

Last Updated: February 2008

President: Bush, George W.

Vice President: Cheney, Richard B.

Presidential Cabinet

Secretary of Agriculture: Schafer, Ed

Secretary of Commerce: Gutierrez, Carlos

Secretary of Defense: Gates, Robert

Secretary of Educations: Spellings, Margaret

Secretary of Energy: Bodman, Samuel W.

Secretary of Health and Human Services: Leavitt, Michael O.

Secretary of Homeland Security: Chertoff, Michael

Secretary of Housing and Urban Development: Jackson, Alphonso

Secretary of the Interior: Kempthorne, Dirk

Attorney General: Mukasey, Michael

Secretary of Labor: Chao, Elaine

Secretary of State: Rice, Condoleezza

Secretary of Transportation: Peters, Mary

Secretary of the Treasury: Paulson, Henry Jr.

Secretary of Veterans Affairs: Peake, James, Dr.

Cabinet Rank Members

Chief of Staff: Bolten, Joshua B.

Environmental Protection Agency: Johnson, Stephen L.

United States Trade Representative: Schwab, Susan (Ambassador)

Office of Management and Budget: Nussle, Jim

Office of National Drug Control Policy: Walters, John

Other Executive Advisors

National Economic Council: Hennessey, Keith

National Security Council: Hadley, Stephen

Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives: Hein, Jay

Office of Science and Technology Policy: Marburger, John H., III

President's Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board: Friedman, Stephen

White House Counsel: Fielding, Fred

White House Military Office: Spicer, Raymond, Rear Adm.

Other Offices

Speaker of the House: Pelosi, Nancy

House Majority Leader: Hoyer, Steny

House Republican Leader: Boehner, John

President of the Senate: Cheney, Richard B.

Senate Majority Leader: Reid, Harry

Senate Minority Leader: McConnell, Mitch

Federal Reserve Board Chairman: Bernanke, Ben S.

Central Intelligence Agency Director: Hayden, Michael, General

Federal Bureau of Investigation Director: Mueller, Robert

Chief Justice of the Supreme Court: Roberts, John G., Jr.

ECONOMY

Overview

The US has the largest and most technologically powerful economy in the world, with a per capita GDP of $46,000. In this market-oriented economy, private individuals and business firms make most of the decisions, and the federal and state governments buy needed goods and services predominantly in the private marketplace.

US business firms enjoy greater flexibility than their counterparts in Western Europe and Japan in decisions to expand capital plant, to lay off surplus workers, and to develop new products. At the same time, they face higher barriers to enter their rivals’ home markets than foreign firms face entering US markets.

US firms are at or near the forefront in technological advances, especially in computers and in medical, aerospace, and military equipment; their advantage has narrowed since the end of World War II. The onrush of technology largely explains the gradual development of a “two-tier labor market” in which those at the bottom lack the education and the professional/technical skills of those at the top and, more and more, fail to get comparable pay raises, health insurance coverage, and other benefits. Since 1975, practically all the gains in household income have gone to the top 20% of households.

The response to the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001 showed the remarkable resilience of the economy. The war in March-April 2003 between a US-led coalition and Iraq, and the subsequent occupation of Iraq, required major shifts in national resources to the military. The rise in GDP in 2004-07 was undergirded by substantial gains in labor productivity.

Hurricane Katrina caused extensive damage in the Gulf Coast region in August 2005, but had a small impact on overall GDP growth for the year. Soaring oil prices in 2005-2007 threatened inflation and unemployment, yet the economy continued to grow through year-end 2007. Imported oil accounts for about two-thirds of US consumption. Long-term problems include inadequate investment in economic infrastructure, rapidly rising medical and pension costs of an aging population, sizable trade and budget deficits, and stagnation of family income in the lower economic groups. The merchandise trade deficit reached a record $847 billion in 2007. Together, these problems caused a marked reduction in the value and status of the dollar world-wide in 2007.

GDP (purchasing power parity): $13.86 trillion (2007 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate): $13.75 trillion (2007 est.)

GDP—real growth rate: 2.2% (2007 est.)

GDP—per capita (PPP): $46,000 (2007 est.)

GDP—composition by sector: agriculture: 0.9%; industry: 20.6%; services: 78.5% (2007 est.)

Labor force: 153.1 million (includes unemployed) (2007 est.)

Labor force—by occupation: farming, forestry, and fishing 0.6%, manufacturing, extraction, transportation, and crafts 22.6%, managerial, professional, and technical 35.5%, sales and office 24.8%, other services 16.5%/ Note: figures exclude the unemployed (2007)

Unemployment rate: 4.6% (2007 est.)

Population below poverty line: 12% (2004 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 2%; highest 10%: 30% (2007 est.)

Distribution of family income—Gini index: 45 (2007)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.7% (2007 est.)

Investment (gross fixed): 15.6% of GDP (2007 est.)

Budget: revenues: $2.568 trillion; expenditures: $2.731 trillion (2007 est.)

Public debt: 36.8% of GDP (2007 est.)

Agriculture—products: wheat, corn, other grains, fruits, vegetables, cotton; beef, pork, poultry, dairy products; fish; forest products

Industries: leading industrial power in the world, highly diversified and technologically advanced; petroleum, steel, motor vehicles, aerospace, telecommunications, chemicals, electronics, food processing, consumer goods, lumber, mining

Industrial production growth rate: 0.5% (2007 est.)

Electricity—production: 4.062 trillion kWh (2005)

Electricity—consumption: 3.816 trillion kWh (2005)

Electricity—exports: 19.8 billion kWh (2005)

Electricity—imports: 44.53 billion kWh (2005)

Oil—production: 8.322 million bbl/ day (2005 est.)

Oil—consumption: 20.8 million bbl/day (2005 est.)

Oil—exports: 1.048 million bbl/day (2004)

Oil—imports: 13.15 million bbl/day (2004)

Oil—proved reserves: 21.76 billion bbl (1 January 2006 est.)

Natural gas -production: 490.8 billion cu m (2005 est.)

Natural gas—consumption: 604 billion cu m (2005 est.)

Natural gas—exports: 19.8 billion cu m (2005 est.)

Natural gas—imports: 117.9 billion cu m (2005)

Natural gas—proved reserves: 5.551 trillion cu m (1 January 2006 est.)

Current account balance: $-747.1 billion (2007 est.)

Exports: $1.14 trillion f.o.b. (2007 est.)

Exports—commodities: agricultural products (soybeans, fruit, corn) 9.2%, industrial supplies (organic chemicals) 26.8%, capital goods (transistors, aircraft, motor vehicle parts, computers, telecommunications equipment) 49.0%, consumer goods (automobiles, medicines) 15.0% (2003)

Exports—partners: Canada 22.2%, Mexico 12.9%, Japan 5.8%, China 5.3%, UK 4.4% (2006)

Imports: $1.987 trillion f.o.b. (2007 est.)

Imports—commodities: agricultural products 4.9%, industrial supplies 32.9% (crude oil 8.2%), capital goods 30.4% (computers, telecommunications equipment, motor vehicle parts, office machines, electric power machinery), consumer goods 31.8% (automobiles, clothing, medicines, furniture, toys) (2003)

Imports—partners: Canada 16%, China 15.9%, Mexico 10.4%, Japan 7.9%, Germany 4.8% (2006)

Economic aid—donor: ODA, $6.9 billion (1997)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $65.89 billion (2006 est.)

Debt—external: $12.25 trillion (30 June 2007)

Stock of direct foreign investment—at home: $1.818 trillion (2006 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment—abroad: $2.306 trillion (2006 est.)

Market value of publicly traded shares: $17 trillion (2005)

Currency (code): US dollar (USD)

Exchange rates: British pounds per US dollar: 0.4993 (2007), 0.5418 (2006), 0.5500 (2005), 0.5462 (2004), 0.6125 (2003); Canadian dollars per US dollar: 1.0724 (2007), 1.1334 (2006), 1.2118 (2005), 1.3010 (2004), 1.4011 (2003); Japanese yen per US dollar: 117.99 (2007), 116.18 (2006) 110.22 (2005), 108.19 (2004), 115.93 (2003); euros per US dollar: 0.7345 (2007), 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.8860 (2003); Chinese yuan per US dollar: 7.61 (2007), 7.97 (2006), 8.1943 (2005), 8.2768 (2004), 8.2770 (2003)

Fiscal year: 1 October—30 September

COMMUNICATIONS

Telephones—main lines in use: 172 million (2006)

Telephones—mobile cellular: 233 million (2006)

Telephone system: general assessment: a large, technologically advanced, multipurpose communications system; domestic: a large system of fiber-optic cable, microwave radio relay, coaxial cable, and domestic satellites carries every form of telephone traffic; a rapidly growing cellular system carries mobile telephone traffic throughout the country; international: country code—1; multiple ocean cable systems provide international connectivity; satellite earth stations—61 Intelsat (45 Atlantic Ocean and 16 Pacific Ocean), 5 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region), and 4 Inmarsat (Pacific and Atlantic Ocean regions) (2000)

Radio broadcast stations: AM 4,789, FM 8,961, shortwave 19 (2006)

Television broadcast stations: 2,218 (2006)

Internet country code: .us

Internet hosts: 3.95 million (2007)

Internet users: 208 million (2006)

TRANSPORTATION

Airports: 14,947 (2007)

Airports—with paved runways: total: 5,143; over 3,047m: 191; 2,438 to 3,047m: 224; 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1,452; 914 to 1,523 m: 2,323; under 914 m: 953 (2007)

Airports—with unpaved runways: total: 9,804; 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7; 1,524 to 2,437 m: 153; 914 to 1,523 m: 1,732; under 914 m: 7,912 (2007)

Heliports: 146 (2007)

Pipelines: petroleum products 244,620 km; natural gas 548,665 km (2006)

Railways: total: 226,612 km; standard gauge: 226,612 km 1.435-m gauge (2005)

Roadways: total: 6,430,366 km; paved: 4,165,110 km (includes 75,009 km of expressways); unpaved: 2,265,256 km (2005)

Waterways: 41,009 km (19,312 km used for commerce). Note: Saint Lawrence Seaway of 3,769 km, including the Saint Lawrence River of 3,058 km, shared with Canada (2007)

Merchant marine: total: 446 ships (1000 GRT or over) 10,308,428 GRT/ 12,616,742 DWT; by type: barge carrier 6, bulk carrier 64, cargo 82, carrier 2, chemical tanker 20, container 82, passenger 20, passenger/cargo 60, petroleum tanker 59, refrigerated cargo 4, roll on/roll off 26, specialized tanker 1, vehicle carrier 20; foreign-owned: 67 (Australia 2, Canada 4, Denmark 29, Germany 6, Malaysia 4, Netherlands 1, Norway 4, Singapore 11, Sweden 5, UK 1); registered in other countries: 785 (Antigua and Barbuda 8, Australia 5, Bahamas 162, Belize 3, Bermuda 23, Cambodia 6, Canada 3, Cayman Islands 41, Comoros 2, Cyprus 8, Ecuador 1, Greece 10, Honduras 1, Hong Kong 22, Ireland 2, Isle of Man 4, Italy 16, Liberia 103, South Korea 7, Luxem-bourg 3, Malta 11, Marshall Islands 129, Netherlands 13, Netherlands Antilles 1, Norway 18, Panama 115, Peru 1, Portugal 1, Puerto Rico 3, Russia 1, Singapore 17, Spain 9, St Vincent and The Grenadines 21, Sweden 1, Trinidad and Tobago 1, Tuvalu 1, UK 11, Vanuatu 1, unknown 4) (2007)

Ports and terminals: Corpus Christi, Duluth, Hampton Roads, Houston, Long Beach, Los Angeles, New York, Philadelphia, Tampa, Texas City

MILITARY

Military branches: Army, Navy and Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard; note—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; 17 years of age with written parental consent (2006)

Manpower available for military service: males age 18-49: 67,742,879; females age 18-49: 67,070,144 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service: males age 18-49: 54,609,050; females age 18-49: 54,696,706 (2005 est.)

Manpower reaching military service age annually: males age 18-49: 2,143,873; females age 18-49: 2,036,201 (2005 est.)

Military expenditures—percent of GDP: 4.06% (2005 est.)

TRANSNATIONAL ISSUES

Disputes—international: the U.S. has intensified domestic security measures and is collaborating closely with its neighbors, Canada and Mexico, to monitor and control legal and illegal personnel, transport, and commodities across the international borders; abundant rainfall in recent years along much of the Mexico-US border region has ameliorated periodically strained water-sharing arrangements; 1990 Maritime Boundary Agreement in the Bering Sea still awaits Russian Duma ratification; managed maritime boundary disputes with Canada at Dixon Entrance, Beaufort Sea, Strait of Juan de Fuca, and around the disputed Machias Seal Island and North Rock; The Bahamas and US have not been able to agree on a maritime boundary; US Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay is leased from Cuba and only mutual agreement or US abandonment of the area can terminate the lease; Haiti claims US-administered Navassa Island; US has made no territorial claim in Antarctica (but has reserved the right to do so) and does not recognize the claims of any other states; Marshall Islands claims Wake Island; Tokelau included American Samoa's Swains Island among the islands listed in its 2006 draft constitution

Refugees and internally displaced persons: refugees (country of origin): the US admitted 62,643 refugees during FY04/05 including, 10,586 (Somalia), 8,549 (Laos), 6,666 (Russia), 6,479 (Cuba), 3,100 (Haiti), 2,136 (Iran) (2006)

Illicit drugs: world's largest consumer of cocaine, shipped from Colombia through Mexico and the Caribbean; consumer of ecstasy and of Mexican heroin, marijuana and methamphetamine; minor consumer of high-quality Southeast Asian heroin; illicit producer of cannabis, marijuana, depressants, stimulants, hallucinogens, and methamphetamine; money-laundering center

Principal U.S. Embassy Officials

Last Updated: 2/19/2008

USUN (NEW YORK) (USINT) 140 East 45th St., New York, NY 10017, 212-415-4000, Fax 212-415-4443, Workweek: M-F 8:30-5:30, Website: http://www.un.int/usa.

AMB OMS:Amb. Alejandro D. Wolff
CM OMS:Clarke R. Cooper
MGT:Raymond A. Boneski
US REP OMS:Amb. Mark Wallace
AMB:Amb. Zalmay Khalilzad
CON:Russell Graham
PAO:Richard A. Grenell
GSO:Thomas Gallo
RSO:Tanya Larson
FMO:John E. Singler
IMO:Barbara Sullivan
IPO:Fred Murriel
ISO:Warren A. Forrest
ISSO:Warren A. Forrest
LEGATT:Carolyn Willson
MLO COL:Mark C. Easton
POL:Jeffrey Delaurentis

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