Cultural Analysis of Australia
Geography
Australia is both the smallest and oldest continent in the world, and it is the only country that is also a continent. [1] It is an island located between the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific, just south of Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. At 2,941,299 square miles, Australia is the sixth-largest country in the world and only about 150,000 square miles (about the size of Montana) smaller than the continental United States. Its interior land is a flat and sparsely populated desert, but as you move outward the climate changes to grassland, subtropical, tropical, and even temperate in the southeastern region. [1] While more than 70% of Australia is arid, the rest includes a variety of rich environments including flood plains, rainforests, and tropical beaches. [2]
Australia is comprised of 6 states (Queensland, New South Wales, Western Australia, Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania) and 2 mainland territories (Northern Territory, Australian Capital Territory), as well as several smaller territories that do not figure in the official count. [1]
Western Australia and parts of the Northern Territory are home to the Western Plateau, by far the largest region in Australia. It consists of miles of flat desert land, unoccupied and broken only by a few mountain ranges and rivers. This desert plateau turns into rolling hills on the western shore, which is home to the bustling city of Perth. Perth is the fourth largest city in Australia and is one of the most isolated cities in the world. [2]
Northern Australia includes the Northern Territory and Queensland and is home to the city of Brisbane and popular attractions like Uluru and the Great Barrier Reef. Queensland is known for its wet tropics climate where rainforests are abundant. For the most part the Northern Territory is arid desert and is mostly uninhabited. Southeastern Australia is home to the Australian Alps and has Australia’s highest point at Mount Kosciusko at 2,228 meters. [3] The
Australia is both the smallest and oldest continent in the world, and it is the only country that is also a continent. [1] It is an island located between the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific, just south of Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. At 2,941,299 square miles, Australia is the sixth-largest country in the world and only about 150,000 square miles (about the size of Montana) smaller than the continental United States. Its interior land is a flat and sparsely populated desert, but as you move outward the climate changes to grassland, subtropical, tropical, and even temperate in the southeastern region. [1] While more than 70% of Australia is arid, the rest includes a variety of rich environments including flood plains, rainforests, and tropical beaches. [2]
Australia is comprised of 6 states (Queensland, New South Wales, Western Australia, Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania) and 2 mainland territories (Northern Territory, Australian Capital Territory), as well as several smaller territories that do not figure in the official count. [1]
Western Australia and parts of the Northern Territory are home to the Western Plateau, by far the largest region in Australia. It consists of miles of flat desert land, unoccupied and broken only by a few mountain ranges and rivers. This desert plateau turns into rolling hills on the western shore, which is home to the bustling city of Perth. Perth is the fourth largest city in Australia and is one of the most isolated cities in the world. [2]
Northern Australia includes the Northern Territory and Queensland and is home to the city of Brisbane and popular attractions like Uluru and the Great Barrier Reef. Queensland is known for its wet tropics climate where rainforests are abundant. For the most part the Northern Territory is arid desert and is mostly uninhabited. Southeastern Australia is home to the Australian Alps and has Australia’s highest point at Mount Kosciusko at 2,228 meters. [3] The
Bibliography: [1] Our Country. 2010. Australian Government. 10 Sep. 2012. <http://australia.gov.au/about-australia/our-country>. [2] Australia. London: Dorling Kindersley, 2012. Print. [3] Australia’s History. 2011. Tourism Australia. 10 Sept. 2012. <http://www.australia.com/about/culture-history/history.aspx>. [5] PopulationLabs.com. 2011. GlobeFeed.com. 10 Sep. 2012. <http://www.populationlabs.com/Australia_Population.asp>. [6] Year book Australia. 2012. 05 May 2012. Australian Bureau of Statistics. 10 Sep. 2012. <http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/by%20Subject/1301.0~2012~Main%20Features~Geographic%20distribution%20of%20the%20population~49>. [11] Australia’s federation. Australian Government. 11 Sep. 2012. <http://australia.gov.au/about-australia/our-government/australias-federation>. [12] The Australian Government. Australian Government. 11 Sep. 2012. <http://australia.gov.au/about-australia/our-government/australian-government>. [13] Parliament and Government. Parliament of Australia. 11 Sep. 2012. <http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Work_of_the_Parliament/Forming_and_Governing_a_Nation/parl#execgov>. [14] About Australia: Australia’s system of government. Australian Government: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. 11 Sep. 2012. <http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/sys_gov.html>. [15] The Party. Liberal Party of Australia. 11 Sep. 2012. <http://liberal.org.au/the-party/>. [16] Our Story. Australian Greens. 11 Sep. 2012. <http://greens.org.au/our-story>. [17] About Australia: Legal System. Feb. 2012. Australian Government Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. 10 Sep. 2012. <http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/legal_system.html>. [18] Understand the AFL. 2012. Australian Football League. 10 Sep. 2012. <http://www.afl.com.au/>. [19] Official Website of the Australia Rugby Union. 2012. Australian Rugby League. 10 Sep. 2012. <http://www.rugby.com.au/>. [20] About Australia: People, culture and lifestyle. Feb. 2012. Australian Government Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. 10 Sep. 2012. <http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/people_culture.html>. [21] Chapter V. The States. Parliament of Australia. 11 Sep. 2012. <http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Senate/Powers_practicen_procedures/Constitution/chapter5>. [22] 2071.0 - Reflecting a Nation: Stories from the 2011 Census, 2012-2013. 2012. Australian Bureau of Statistics. 11 Sep. 2012. <http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/2071.0main+features902012-2013>. [23] Australian Social Customs. 2012. Australian Government Department of Immigration and Citizenship. 10 Sep. 2012. <http://www.immi.gov.au/living-in-australia/choose-australia/about-australia/au-customs/>. [24] International Human Development Indicators. 2011. United Nations Development Programme. 10 Sep. 2012. <http://hdrstats.undp.org/en/countries/profiles/AUS.html [25] Education in Australia – College, University, TAFE