必修3Book3Module1EuropeGreatEuropeanCitiesParisParisisthecapitalandlargestcityofFrance,situatedontheRiverSeine.Itisoneofthemostbeautifulcitiesintheworldandisvisitedbymorethaneightmilliontouristseveryyear.ThemostpopularplacefortouristsistheEiffelTower,thefamoussymbolofParis.Oneoftheworld’slargestartgalleries,theLouvre,isalsolocatedinParis.Thecityisalsofamousforitsrestaurants,cafesandtheatres.Abouttwo-thirdsofFrance’sartistsandwritersliveinParis.BarcelonaBarcelonaisthesecondlargestcityofSpainandissituatedonthenortheastcoast,aboutfivehundredkilometerseastoftheSpanishcapital,Madrid.OneofBarcelna’smostfamouslandmarksistheChurchoftheSagradaFamilia,whichwasdesignedbyanarchitectcalledAntonioGaudi.Gaudiworkedontheprojectfrom1882untilhisdeathin1926.Thechurchhasn’tbeenfinishedyet!FlorenceFlorenceisanItaliancitywhichbecamefamousbecauseoftheRenaissance,agreatartisticmovementwhichbeganinthe1300sandlastedforthreehundredyears.DuringtheRenaissance,someofthegreatestpaintersofalltimelivedandworkedinFlorence.ManyofFlorence’smostbeautifulpaintingsandsculptureswereproducedbygreatartistssuchasLeonardodaVinciandMichelangelo.Florenceisvisitedeachyearbyaboutamilliontouristswhocometoseetheartgalleries,churchesandmuseums.TheUffizizPalaceisthemostfamousartgalleryinthecity.AthensAthens,thecapitalofGreece,isknownasthebirthplaceofwesterncivilization.Twothousandfourhundredyearsago,itwastheworld’smostpowerfulcity.BuildingssuchastheParthenonontheAcropolisHillwerebuiltduringthisperiod.Greece’sbestwriterslivedinancientAthens.Theirworkhasinfluencedotherwriterseversince.CULTURALCORNERTheEuropeanUnionWhatIstheEuropeanUnion?TheEuropeanUnionisanorganizationofEuropeancountries.Thecountriesareindependentandaregovernedindifferentways.IntheUnitedKingdom,forexample,theheadofstateisakingorqueen.InFrance,ontheotherhand,theheadofstateisapresident.ButeachofthemsendsrepresentativestotheEuropeanParliament,whichhassomecontroloverwhathappensineachofthemembercountries.HowDidItstart?TheideaoftheEuropeanUnionbeganinthe1950s.ThefirstmemberswereFrance,Germany,Belgium,Luxembourg,theNetherlandsandItaly.Littlebylittle,thenumberincreasedduringthesecondhalfofthetwentiethcentury.Bytheyear2000,therewere15membercountries.ThenewcountrieswereAustria,Denmark,Finland,Greece,Ireland,Portugal,Spain,SwedenandtheUnitedKingdom.HowManyCountriesBelongtoItNow?In2004,theEuropeanUnionincreasedto25members.TheCzechRepublic,Estonia,Hungary,Latvia,Lithuania,Poland,theSlovakRepublicandSlovenia,plustheMediterraneanislandsofCyprusandMaltaallbecamemembers.TheexpandedEuropeanUnionhasapopulationofmorethanhalfabillionpeople,twiceasbigasthepopulationoftheUnitedStates.Module2DevelopingandDevelopedCountriesTheHumanDevelopmentReportIntheyear2000,147worldleadersagreedtoworktogethertoreducepovertyby2015orearlier.FromthisagreementcametheHumanDevelopmentReport.OneofthemostimportantsectionsofthisreportistheHumanDevelopmentIndex.Thisexaminestheachievementsof175countries.TheIndexmeasuresacountry‘sachievementsinthreeways:lifeexpectancy(howlongpeopleusuallylive),educationandincome.Theindexhassomesurprises.Norwayisatthetopofthelist,whiletheUSisatnumber7.theothertopfivecountriesare:Iceland(2),Sweden(3),Australia(4),theNetherlands(5).TheUKisinthethirteenthposition,whileChinaisinthemiddleofthelist.ThebottomtencountriesareallAfricancountries,withSierraLeone(inwestAfrica)...
