46. Standard American English (SAE) -What is it?

Standard American English is the communal language of educated professionals. It is easily understood by persons from all geographical regions, different educational backgrounds, and different ethnic and racial associations.

Persons who deal with the public and who want to present themselves as educated professionals need to understand the importance of having professional quality communication skills.

Many regions of the country are noted for nonstandard speech and/or language usages that are acceptable in their own area. And, persons with different racial and ethnic associations may have communication differences as a matter of course in communicating with their group. While acceptable within context, these differences mark individuals as a member of a specific group. Listeners will associate them with that specific group, and form impressions based on the members of that group as a whole, as opposed to a larger, more heterogeneous population.

Persons who need to present themselves as educated professionals should adopt the communication mode of educated professionals, i.e. Standard American English.
Standard American Language is communication using the formal rules of language, i.e. language that would be used in a formal business communication. Standard American English can be considered a “register,” or a communication mode we use when in a formal professional or business setting. Persons who use Standard American Language will be perceived as educated professions.

Most individuals use language that is common to the population with whom they interact. And often the language contains usages that do not follow the formal rules of grammar. Common areas of variance are:
pronoun case-Ex. “that was me” for “that was I”
verbs agreement-Ex..“he don’t work here” for “he doesn’t work here”
verb conjugation-Ex.”he had wrote his friend” for “he had written his friend”
double negatives-Ex. “he didn’t know nobody at school” for “he didn’t know anyone at school”
nonstandard words:-Ex. “ain’t,” “got (as in “I ain’t got to leave”), “done” (as in “he’s done gone”)

Nonstandard language reflects most strongly on the perceived education background of the individual. Using SAE language insures credibility of education
Non-standard, for, example, African American Vernacular English (AAVE)—also called African American English; less precisely Black English, Black Vernacular, Black English Vernacular (BEV), or Black Vernacular English (BVE)—is an African American variety (dialect, ethnolect and sociolect) of American English. Non-linguists sometimes call it Ebonics (a term that also has other meanings or strong connotations). Its pronunciation is, in some respects, common to Southern American English, which is spoken by many African Americans and many non-African Americans in the United States. There is little regional variation among speakers of AAVE.[1] Several creolists, including William Stewart, John Dillard, and John Rickford, argue that AAVE shares so many characteristics with creole dialects spoken by black people in much of the world that AAVE itself is a creole, while others maintain that there are no significant parallels.[2][3][4][5][6][7] As with all linguistic forms, its usage is influenced by age, status, topic and setting. There are many literary uses of this variety of English, particularly in African-American literature. Many features of AAVE are shared with English dialects spoken in the American South. While these are mostly regionalisms (i.e. originating from the dialect commonly spoken in the area, regardless of color), a number of them—such as the deletion of is—are used much more frequently by black speakers, suggesting that they have their origins in black speech.[9] The traits of AAVE that separate it from Standard American English (SAE) include:
• changes in pronunciation along definable patterns, many of which are found in creoles and dialects of other populations of West African descent (but which also emerge in English dialects that may be uninfluenced by West African languages, such as Newfoundland English);
• distinctive vocabulary; and
• the distinctive use of verb tenses.
47. The economic history of the United States has its roots in European settlements in the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries. The American colonies progressed from marginally successful colonial economies to a small, independent farming economy, which in 1776 became the United States of America. In 230 years the United States grew to a huge, integrated, industrialized economy that makes up over a quarter of the world economy. The main causes were a large unified market, a supportive political-legal system, vast areas of highly productive farmlands, vast natural resources (especially timber, coal and oil), and an entrepreneurial spirit and commitment to investing in material and human capital. In addition, the U.S. was able to exploit these resources due to a unique set of institutions designed to encourage exploration and extraction. As a result, the U.S.'s GDP per capita converged on that of the U.K., as well as other nations that it previously trailed economically. The economy has maintained high wages, attracting immigrants by the millions from all over the world.
After the Great Depression
For many years following the Great Depression of the 1930s, when the danger of recession appeared most serious, government sought to strengthen the economy by spending heavily itself or cutting taxes so that consumers would spend more, and by fostering rapid growth in the money supply, which also encouraged more spending. In the 1970s, economic woes brought on by the costs of the Vietnam conflict, major price increases, particularly for energy, created a strong fear of inflation. As a result, government leaders came to concentrate more on controlling inflation than on combating recession by limiting spending.
Ideas about the best tools for stabilizing the economy changed substantially between the 1960s and the 1990s. In the 1960s, government had great faith in fiscal policy—manipulation of government revenues to influence the economy. Since spending and taxes are controlled by the president and the U.S. Congress, these elected officials played a leading role in directing the economy. A period of high inflation, high unemployment, and huge government deficits weakened confidence in fiscal policy as a tool for regulating the overall pace of economic activity. Instead, monetary policy assumed growing prominence.
Even though a number of recent reports show U.S. workers place a high priority on quality-of-life issues, they are still the hardest-working labor force in the world. This fact tends to be in conflict with the stated desire of many workers who say their most important desire is for more time with their family.
In a report last year by the International Labor Organization it was shown that U.S. workers averaged nearly 2,000 hours of work every year. (40 hours per week x 52 weeks = 2,080 hours.) This compares to other workforces in other countries working fewer hours than we do. For example, on average U.S. workers spend 70 hours more per year on the job than their Japanese counterparts, and nearly 350 hours per year more than Europeans. This equates to nearly 10 more weeks of work per year.
A side affect of these hours put in on the job is the price we pay in our private lives. There is evidence that as a person's work hours increased, the likelihood that he or she would report problems at home grows dramatically. (This, according to a study by the Institute for Workplace Studies at Cornell University.) The study shows that approximately 10 percent of workers who were on the job at least 50 hours each week reported conflicts at home, while more than 30 percent of those working 60 or more hours reported conflicts or problems.
48. reinventing - ну типа мир любовь и благо после войны в ираке - и вообще войн! а еще все уповают на обаму что он подавит рассизм и пр американские проблемы

America faces serious challenges to maintain its storied status quo. Hurdles include a sinking economy, wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the rising cost of education, global warming, a crumbling infrastructure and American workers with uncertain futures.

Trendwatchers are more acutely aware of these issues than most, but they’re also more hopeful. They recognize that these challenges can be overcome through creativity, innovation and deft planning. To accomplish this, the groundwork has to be laid in 2009, it can be postponed no longer.

Yesterday, Barack Obama became America’s 44th President. He was swept into power on a “change you can believe in” platform. For the U.S. and the rest of the world, change could not have arrived quickly enough.

We have reluctantly remained sidelined as events transpired but we believe the time to act is now. To that end, we submit for consideration the following platform for change, one that could define a visionary administration.

What follows are thought-starters, tangible beginnings designed to spark serious dialog and meaningful action.
49. The first American schools opened during the colonial era. As the colonies began to develop, many in New England began to institute mandatory education schemes. In 1642 the Massachusetts Bay Colony made "proper" education compulsory.[1] Similar statutes were adopted in other colonies in the 1640s and 1650s. Virtually all of the schools opened as a result were private. The nation's first institution of higher learning, Harvard University, was founded in 1636 and opened in 1638.
Religious denominations established most early universities in order to train ministers. In New England there was an emphasis on literacy so that people could read the Bible. Most of the universities which opened between 1640 and 1750 form the contemporary Ivy League, including Harvard, Yale, Columbia, Princeton, Brown, the University of Pennsylvania, and several others.[2] After the American Revolution, the new national government passed the Land Ordinance of 1785, which set aside a portion of every township in the unincorporated territories of the United States for use in education. The provisions of the law remained unchanged until the Homestead Act of 1862. After the Revolution, an emphasis was put on education, especially in the northern states, which made the US have one of the highest literacy rates at the time.
The school system remained largely private and unorganized until the 1840s. In fact, the first national census conducted in 1840 indicated that near-universal (about 97%) literacy among the white population had been achieved.[3] The same data tables demonstrate that of the 1.8 million girls between five and fifteen (and 1.88 million boys of the same age) about 55% attended the primary schools and academies.[4] The data tables do not note the actual attendance rates, but only reflect the static numbers at the time of the U.S. census.
The Ivy League is an athletic conference comprising eight private institutions of higher education in the Northeastern United States. The term is most commonly used to refer to those eight schools considered as a group.[1] The term also has connotations of academic excellence, selectivity in admissions, and social elitism. Seven of the eight schools were founded during America's colonial period; the exception is Cornell, which was founded in 1865. Ivy League institutions, therefore, account for seven of the nine Colonial Colleges chartered before the American Revolution. The Ivies are all in the Northeast geographic region of the United States. They are all considered to be "private" schools, although Cornell has several state-supported "statutory" colleges which are an integral part of the institution. All eight schools receive millions of dollars in research grants and other subsidies from federal and state government.
Harvard University[15] 1636 as New College Yale University 1701 as Collegiate School 1740 as Church and Charity School of Philadelphia Princeton University 1746 as College of New Jersey Nonsectarian, Columbia University 1754 as King's College Brown University 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations Dartmouth College 1769 Cornell University 1865

Land-grant universities (also called land-grant colleges or land grant institutions) are institutions of higher education in the United States designated by each state to receive the benefits of the Morrill Acts of 1862 and 1890.The Morrill Acts funded educational institutions by granting federally controlled land to the states for the states to develop or sell to raise funds to establish and endow "land grant" colleges. The mission of these institutions as set forth in the 1862 Act is to focus on the teaching agriculture, science and engineering as a response to the industrial revolution and changing social class rather than higher education's historic core of classical studies
50. Popular culture
American popular culture has expressed itself through nearly every medium, including movies, music, and sports. Mickey Mouse, Barbie, Elvis Presley, Madonna, Aerosmith, Babe Ruth, Baseball, American football, Basketball, screwball comedy, G.I. Joe, jazz, the blues, Rap & Hip Hop, The Simpsons, Michael Jackson, Superman, Gone with the Wind, Marilyn Monroe, Michael Jordan, Indiana Jones, Sesame Street, Catch-22—these names, genres, and phrases have joined more tangible American products in spreading across the globe.
The U.S. is also popular for evolving/adapting many elements of various other cultures, such as food (i.e. pizza, hamburgers, and hibachi), and t.v. shows (American Idol, Power Rangers).
Fashion
Apart from professional business attire, fashion in the United States is eclectic and predominantly informal.[citation needed]Blue jeans were popularized as work clothes in the 1850s by merchant Levi Strauss, a German immigrant in San Francisco, and adopted by many American teenagers a century later. They are now widely worn in every state by people of all ages and social classes.[citation needed]Along with mass-marketed informal wear in general, blue jeans are arguably U.S. culture's primary contribution to global fashion.[16] The country was also home to the headquarters of many leading designer labels such as Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein. Labels such as Abercrombie & Fitch, American Eagle, Hollister, and Eck cater to various niche markets.
Theater
Theater of the United States is based in the Western tradition, mostly borrowed from the performance styles prevalent in Europe, especially England. Today, it is heavily interlaced with American literature, film, television, and music, and it is not uncommon for a single story to appear in all forms. Regions with significant music scenes often have strong theater and comedy traditions as well. Musical theater may be the most popular form: it is certainly the most colorful, and choreographed motions pioneered on stage have found their way onto movie and television screens. Broadway in New York City is generally considered the pinnacle of commercial U.S. theater, though this art form appears all across the country. Off-Broadway and off-off-Broadway diversify the theatre experience in New York. Another city of particular note is Chicago, which boasts the most diverse and dynamic theater scene in the country. Regional or resident theatres in the United States are professional theatre companies outside of New York City that produce their own seasons. There is also community theatre and showcase theatre (performing arts group). Even tiny rural communities sometimes awe audiences with extravagant productions.
Television
Television is one of the major mass media of the United States. Ninety-seven percent of American households have at least 1 television set and the majority of households have more than 3.
Music and Film
American music can be heard all over the world, such as through Channel V, VH1 and by artists such as Jimi Hendrix, Chuck Berry, Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson, Benny Goodman, Frank Sinatra, Miles Davis, B. B. King, The Doors and Ramones; American films and television shows are also very popular, including icons like Star Wars, The Godfather, Schindler's List, Titanic and The Matrix; American sports figures are widely known, such as Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, Venus Williams, Mike Tyson, Michael Phelps, Muhammad Ali, Michael Johnson and Lance Armstrong; and American movie actors and actresses are widely recognized such as Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Brad Pitt, Marilyn Monroe, Marlon Brando, Robert De Niro, Leonardo DiCaprio, Denzel Washington and Tom Cruise.[citation needed]
Dance
There is great variety in dance in the United States, it is the home of the Lindy Hop and its derivative Rock and Roll, and modern square dance (associated with the United States of America due to its historic development in that country--nineteen U.S. states have designated it as their official state dance) and one of the major centers for modern dance. There is a variety of social dance and concert or performance dance forms with also a range of traditions of Native American dances.
Exportation of popular culture
The United States is an enormous exporter of entertainment, especially television, movies and music as well as news. This readily consumable form of culture is widely and cheaply dispersed for entertainment consumers worldwide. It's even considered to be an "entertainment superpower" along with Europe, and Japan.