1. Baltimore: a city in northern Maryland, adjacent to Baltimore County. Baltimore is located at the head of navigation of the Patapsco River, near its mouth on Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is the largest city in Maryland and is one of the busiest ports in the United States. It is a major industrial, research, and educational center. Please visit the web site http://baltimore.about.com to get more information.
2. Oakland: a city in central California on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay and a major industrial center and west coast port. Oakland is among the most ethnically diverse cities in the United States. The web site http://www.ci.oakland.ne.us/ will provide you with more information about it. 3. California: a state in the western United States, bordering the Pacific Ocean. The third largest state in the Union, California covers an area of great physical diversity in which uplands dominate the landscape. The mountains, hills, ridges, and peaks of California flank the coastline, rise to nearly 4,600 m (15,000 ft) in the towering Sierra Nevada, encircle the great fertile basin of the Central Valley, and separate the desert into innumerable basins. However, despite the physical dominance and economic value of the uplands, California’s urban areas and economic production are concentrated in the valleys and lowlands, such as in the huge metropolitan region centered on Los Angeles, the state’s largest and the nation’s second largest city. Manufacturing, agriculture, and related activities are the principal sources of income. They are based in large part on the state’s wealth of natural resources, its productive farmlands, its large and highly skilled labor force, and its ability to market its output both at home and abroad. More information is available at the web sites http://www.cathedralcity.gov/ and http://www.state.ca.us. 4. Auckland: a city in northern New Zealand, situated on an isthmus joining northwestern North Island and the North Auckland Peninsula. It borders on Manukau Harbour (an arm of the Tasman Sea) and Waitemata Harbour (an arm of the Pacific Ocean). The city, which has several extinct volcanoes within its boundaries, is a seaport and a naval base and a fishing, commercial, and manufacturing center. Products of the metropolitan area include iron and steel, processed food, machinery, textiles, clothing, motor vehicles, forest products, and fertilizer. Among the points of interest in Auckland are the Auckland City Art Gallery, with a collection of paintings by European and New Zealand artists; the Auckland Institute and Museum, featuring exhibits on natural history and ethnology; the Melanesian Mission Museum; the Museum of Transport and Technology; and Parnell Rose Garden. The University of Auckland (1882) and the Auckland Institute of Technology (1964) are here. Auckland Harbour Bridge is the longest of several bridges linking the central city with its fast-growing suburban areas. New Zealand’s main international airport is in Auckland. The web site http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/ provides you with more information about the city. 5. New Zealand: a self-governing country in the South Pacific Ocean, a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, situated southeast of Australia. It comprises two large islands — North Island and South Island — and numerous smaller islands, including Stewart Island to the south of South Island. The area of New Zealand is 270,534 square kilometers (104,454 sq mi). Associated with New Zealand are Ross Dependency (in Antarctica), Niue, Tokelau, and the Cook Islands (in the Pacific Ocean). The capital of the country is Wellington. Auckland is the largest city. You can learn more about the country at the web sites http://www.q.co.nz/ and http://www.photo.net/nz/moon/.
Misunderstandings 背景知识/background information
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