Families,  Food and Transportation

FAMILIES

This website shows the different families in the US:
http://www.10families.com/exh.htm 
You see many different kinds of families in addition to the typical “nuclear family” (Connecticut)

For example, the family in San Francisco, California is a lesbian couple with children.  The one in Kansas is a "blended" family, where divorce and remarriage create a group of children from both former marriages. The one in Maine shows an adopted girl who is also very close with her birth parents. In South Dakota, a Lakota (American Indian tribe) family practices their tradition of welcoming foster children.  There are 21 people in this picture! The family in New York City, on the other hand, has only 2 people--and a dog. The family in New Orleans, Louisiana has 4 generations in one home.  The one in Cleveland, Ohio has a divorced dad, an example of a single parent home. In San Antonio, Texas, the couple had a child when they were teenagers. And the one in Washington is a multi-racial family, with a Western husband and a Chinese-American wife. My own family has examples of all of these kinds of families, except for adopted and foster children.


There are many different kinds of families now in the US, but one thing binds them all together, and that is love.
 "A family is made up of love. It doesn't matter if you are related. It only matters 
 if there's love. If there is no love, then it is not a true family, even if you are 
 related. Love is what a true family is made of."  By Alanna Gold (age 13) 

WOMEN VS MEN
|| border=1
|| || Women || Men ||
|| Population  ||    140 million	||	134 million ||
|| Life expectancy  || 79 years	||	74 years ||
|| Graduated HS	||   84%	||	84% ||
|| College        ||    30%	||	28% ||
|| Working	||   61%	||	74% ||

Birth rate : 2.0  
Married and living together:  55%
(In 2000) 
Women’s Jobs, Men’s Jobs
Women’s Earnings

FOOD 

Food is very different in Japan in the US.  Not only the food itself, but the way of thinking about food and health is a bit different. In Japan, food is categorized into rice and okazu, but in the US we think of a balanced meal as one that has four food groups: protein, dairy products, cereals and grains, and fruits and vegetables.  Even though people try to eat balanced meals, there is too much junk food in America. Because of this, 60% of Americans are overweight, and the problem is getting bigger.  According to CNN, “the typical fast food meal -- hamburger, large fries, large soft drink and dessert -- includes as many calories as one person is supposed to eat in an entire day. “ 


TRANSPORTATION

As you know, America is a big country and a country of cars. Most Americans use cars every day. Airplanes are used for long distance travel, but trains and buses are rarely used. On the other hand, the need for rapid transit is becoming more and more recognized. Some cities have or are developing good rapid transit systems.  Los Angeles used to have only cars and buses, but now there is a growing light rail system. West Virginia is experimenting with "personal rapid transit”.  Even so, Americans still love their cars, but with the high prices of gas (still cheaper than in Japan though) recently EV cars and hybrids are becoming more and more popular.