This is an audio version of the Wikipedia Article: United States 00:04:39 1 Etymology 00:08:02 2 History 00:08:11 2.1 Indigenous peoples and pre-Columbian history 00:10:36 2.2 European settlements 00:15:56 2.2.1 Effects on and interaction with native populations 00:17:45 2.3 Independence and expansion (1776–1865) 00:22:27 2.4 Civil War and Reconstruction era 00:25:50 2.5 Further immigration, expansion, and industrialization 00:28:11 2.6 World War I, Great Depression, and World War II 00:31:01 2.7 Cold War and civil rights era 00:34:34 2.8 Contemporary history 00:39:02 3 Geography, climate, and environment 00:43:37 3.1 Wildlife 00:45:29 4 Demographics 00:45:38 4.1 Population 00:51:40 4.2 Language 00:53:39 4.3 Religion 00:58:01 4.4 Family structure 00:59:41 4.5 Health 01:03:08 4.6 Education 01:05:10 5 Government and politics 01:09:03 5.1 Political divisions 01:10:53 5.2 Parties and elections 01:13:08 5.3 Foreign relations 01:15:45 5.4 Government finance 01:20:00 5.5 Military 01:22:44 6 Law enforcement and crime 01:28:25 7 Economy 01:33:58 7.1 Science and technology 01:37:06 7.2 Income, poverty and wealth 01:41:57 8 Infrastructure 01:42:06 8.1 Transportation 01:44:31 8.2 Energy 01:45:34 8.3 Water supply and sanitation 01:46:12 9 Culture 01:48:32 9.1 Food 01:50:40 9.2 Literature, philosophy, and visual art 01:54:39 9.3 Music 01:56:19 9.4 Cinema 01:59:09 9.5 Sports 02:01:28 9.6 Mass media 02:04:34 10 See also Listening is a more natural way of learning, when compared to reading. Written language only began at around 3200 BC, but spoken language has existed long ago. Learning by listening is a great way to: - increases imagination and understanding - improves your listening skills - improves your own spoken accent - learn while on the move - reduce eye strain Now learn the vast amount of general knowledge available on Wikipedia through audio (audio article). You could even learn subconsciously by playing the audio while you are sleeping! If you are planning to listen a lot, you could try using a bone conduction headphone, or a standard speaker instead of an earphone. You can find other Wikipedia audio articles too at: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuKfABj2eGyjH3ntPxp4YeQ You can upload your own Wikipedia articles through: https://github.com/nodef/wikipedia-tts "The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing." - Socrates SUMMARY ======= The United States of America (USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country composed of 50 states, a federal district, five major self-governing territories, and various possessions. At 3.8 million square miles (9.8 million km2), the United States is the world's third- or fourth-largest country by total area and slightly smaller than the entire continent of Europe's 3.9 million square miles (10.1 million km2). With a population of over 325 million people, the U.S. is the third most populous country. The capital is Washington, D.C., and the largest city by population is New York City. Forty-eight states and the capital's federal district are contiguous in North America between Canada and Mexico. The State of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east and across the Bering Strait from Russia to the west. The State of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U.S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, stretching across nine official time zones. The extremely diverse geography, climate, and wildlife of the United States make it one of the world's 17 megadiverse countries.Paleo-Indians migrated from Siberia to the North American mainland at least 15,000 years ago. European colonization began in the 16th century. The United States emerged from the thirteen British colonies established along the East Coast. Numerous disputes between Great Britain and the colonies following the French and Indian War led to the American Revolution, which began in 1775, and the subsequent Declaration of Independence in 1776. The war ended in 1783 with the United States becoming the first country to gain independence from a European power. The current constitution was adopted in 1788, with the first ten amendments, collectively named the Bill of Rights, being ratified in 1791 to guarantee many fundamental civil liberties. The United States embarked on a vigorous expansion across North America throughout the 19th century, acquiring new territories, displacing Native American tribes, and gradually admitting new states until it spanned the continent by 1848. During the second half of the 19th century, the Civil War led to the abolition of slavery. By the end of the century, the United States had extended into the Pacific Ocean, and its economy, driven in large part by the Industrial Revolution, began to soar. The Spanish–American War and World War I confirmed the country's status as a global military power. The United States emer ...