Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba ( i/ˈkjuːbə/; Spanish: República de Cuba, pronounced: [reˈpuβlika ðe ˈkuβa] ( )), is an island country in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba comprises the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the capital of Cuba and its largest city. The island of Cuba was inhabited by numerous Mesoamerican tribes prior to the landing of Italian explorer Christopher Columbus in 1492, who claimed it for the Kingdom of Spain. Cuba is the largest island in the Caribbean, and with over 11 million inhabitants, is the second-most populous after Hispaniola, albeit with a much lower population density than most nations in the region. Cuba ranks high in metrics of health and education, with a high Human Development Index of 0.780 as of 2013. Etymology[edit] History[edit] Prehistory[edit] Sketch of a Taíno woman, also known as the Arawak by the Spanish. Spanish colonization and rule (1492-1898)[edit] On September 1, 1548, Dr.
The World Factbook The US has the most technologically powerful economy in the world, with a per capita GDP of $59,500. US firms are at or near the forefront in technological advances, especially in computers, pharmaceuticals, and medical, aerospace, and military equipment; however, their advantage has narrowed since the end of World War II. Based on a comparison of GDP measured at purchasing power parity conversion rates, the US economy in 2014, having stood as the largest in the world for more than a century, slipped into second place behind China, which has more than tripled the US growth rate for each year of the past four decades. In the US, 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. Imported oil accounts for more than 50% of US consumption and oil has a major impact on the overall health of the economy.
Africa Map of Africa Africa's population is the youngest among all the continents; 50% of Africans are 19 years old or younger.[5] Algeria is Africa's largest country by area, and Nigeria is the largest by population. Africa, particularly central Eastern Africa, is widely accepted as the place of origin of humans and the Hominidae clade (great apes), as evidenced by the discovery of the earliest hominids and their ancestors, as well as later ones that have been dated to around seven million years ago, including Sahelanthropus tchadensis, Australopithecus africanus, A. afarensis, Homo erectus, H. habilis and H. ergaster – with the earliest Homo sapiens (modern human) found in Ethiopia being dated to circa 200,000 years ago.[6] Africa straddles the equator and encompasses numerous climate areas; it is the only continent to stretch from the northern temperate to southern temperate zones.[7] Etymology Other etymological hypotheses have been postulated for the ancient name "Africa": History Prehistory
Poland Poland i/ˈpoʊlənd/ (Polish: Polska), officially the Republic of Poland (Polish: Rzeczpospolita Polska), is a country in Central Europe, bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast (a Russian exclave) and Lithuania to the north. The total area of Poland is 312,679 square kilometres (120,726 sq mi),[7] making it the 69th largest country in the world and the 9th largest in Europe. Two decades later, in September 1939, World War II started with the invasions of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union (as part of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact). Etymology The origin of the name Polanie itself is uncertain. History Prehistory Historians have postulated that throughout Late Antiquity, many distinct ethnic groups populated the regions of what is now known as Poland. Piast dynasty Mieszko II Lambert (ca. 990–1034) King of Poland and Duchess Matilda of Swabia. Jagiellon dynasty
Culture of United States of America 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. The United States has an Anglo majority that is politically and economically dominant. U.S. culture has significant regional inflections. The Northeast is densely populated. The Midwest is both rural and industrial. 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. The West, the last national frontier, is associated with national dreams and myths of unlimited opportunity and individualism. California, along with the southwestern states were ceded to the United States by Mexico in 1848 after the Mexican-American War. Location and Geography. Alaska and Hawaii are not joined to the other forty-eight states. United States Demography. U.S.
Far East The Far East is an English term (with equivalents in various other languages of Europe and Asia; Chinese: 遠東; pinyin: yuǎn dōng; literally "far east") mostly describing East Asia (including Northeast Asia), Southeast Asia, and the Russian Far East (part of North Asia, aka Siberia)[1] with South Asia sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons.[2] The term came into use in European geopolitical discourse in the 12th century, denoting the Far East as the "farthest" of the three "easts", beyond the Near East and the Middle East. For the same reason, Chinese people in the 19th and early 20th centuries called Western countries "Tàixī (泰西)"—i.e. anything further west than the Arab world. Popularization[edit] Prior to the colonial era, "Far East" referred to anything further east than the Middle East. Cultural as well as geographic meaning[edit] "The problems of the Pacific are different. Concerning the term, John K. Cities[edit] See also[edit] Notes[edit] References[edit]
Thailand Thailand (/ˈtaɪlænd/ TY-land or /ˈtaɪlənd/ TY-lənd;[11] Thai: ประเทศไทย, RTGS: Prathet Thai), officially the Kingdom of Thailand (Thai: ราชอาณาจักรไทย, RTGS: Ratcha Anachak Thai; IPA: [râːt.tɕʰā ʔāːnāːtɕàk tʰāj] ( )), formerly known as Siam (Thai: สยาม; RTGS: Sayam), is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the west by the Andaman Sea and the southern extremity of Burma. Its maritime boundaries include Vietnam in the Gulf of Thailand to the southeast, and Indonesia and India in the Andaman Sea to the southwest. Thailand experienced rapid economic growth between 1985 and 1996, and is presently a newly industrialized country and a major exporter. There are approximately 2.2 million legal and illegal migrants in Thailand,[18] and the country attracts a significant number of expatriates from developed countries.[19]
Fast Food and American Culture The American way of life is built around speed and efficiency. Every new advance in technology is built around being just a little faster and a little more connected. A mother can drop her kids off at school, pay her bills online, contribute to her retirement account, schedule a meeting at work, respond to e-mails through her Blackberry, call in a coffee order at Starbucks, return her Netflix movies, and squeeze in a yoga workout all before she actually gets to work. Perhaps the first impetus for this change was the invention of the television. Let's return to the woman mentioned in the first paragraph. Simply looking at an example like this one makes it easy to see why the traditional meal has given way to fast food. America's need for speed has changed not only what we eat and how we eat it, but also the way in which we view food.