By: Kevin Johnso By: Kevin Johnson and Austin Krauss

By Austin

 The government is controlled by the Chinese Communist Party.  Leaders are not elected by citizens.  They deny individual freedom, and give harsh punishments to people who criticize them.  They have no respect for human rights.  Leaders are called Emperors.

 65 percent of people live in rural areas  Many people are moving to cities to find higher paying jobs.  People in cities earn enough money for extra clothing and electronics.  China has some of the worlds largest cities.  China has one of the worlds fastest growing economies.

 Chin a is the world leader in agriculture production.  China is the world largest oil user besides the U.S.A  Hong Kong and Macao are leading manufacturing centers.

 Meditating  Baseball  Tennis  Soccer  Basketball  Making lanterns  Making puppets  anime

 Major tourist attraction  Took over one million people to build it  Built to separate east and west China  feet  About 31,000 miles long

JAPAN

 Japan a constitutional monarchy  Emperor is the head of state  Has a strong economy  Only resources found in Japan are coal, iron ore, and oil

 The Japanese life expectancy is very high, but there is a low birth rate.  Japan is next to the Ring of Fire so it has to deal with many fires and earthquakes  Tokyo is home to over 35 million people, about the same as California’s total population.

 The average home has about four rooms  Traditional homes have wooden floors, covered with straw mats,called tatami’s.  There is little furniture in homes.

 Japanese dinners consist of rice, meat, or fish, and vegetables.  They also eat things from other countries like cheeseburgers and chicken.

 The two main religions are Shinto and Buddhism.  Shinto’s focus on respect for nature  Buddhism respects respect for nature and stress the need for inner peace.

 Taiwan and Mongolia have been influenced by Chinese ways and traditions.  Taiwan is an island close to China’s mainland.  Mongolia is located along China’s northern border.  Mongolia has been called the “Texas of Asia,” because it is filled with vast grasslands and herds of grazing animals.  A ridge of steep, forested mountains runs through Taiwan’s center.

 The Korean peninsula juts out from northern China between the sea of Japan and the yellow sea.  For centuries Korea was a united country.  Korean culture has been influenced by China.  Both religions Confucianism and Buddhism spread to Korea from China.  Koreans modified a type of pottery called celadon by changing the color and designs into the pots.

 Korea started the Chinese writing system.  King Sejong ordered scholars to develop a different system, called hangul, that contains only 28 symbols, far fewer than the thousands of symbols needed to write Chinese.  After World War 2, Korea became a divided country.  For thousands of years, most Korean’s lived in the countryside and farmed.

 Today 80% of South Korean’s live in cities.  South Korea’s population is generally young.  South Korea today is the leading manufacturer of electronics.  North Korea is an isolated country whose people are very poor.  North Korea has long been economically poor.  Poverty is widespread throughout North Korea.

 Thailand was known as Siam until 1900’s.  It is the only Southeast Asian country that has never been a European colony.  Hundreds of Buddhist temples dot the cities and country sides.  Most Thais live in rural areas, although many look for jobs in Bangkok, the capital.  Bangkok has beautiful temples and royal palaces that are surrounded by modern skyscrapers, bust stores, and streets filled with traffic.

 Singapore lies in the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula.  It is one of the world’s smallest countries.  It has one of the world’s most productive economies.  It was once covered by rain forests.  Today it is filled with busy highways, factories, office buildings, and docks.  Trade is extremely important in Singapore.

Bungee jumping is illegal. The sale of gum is prohibited It is illegal to come within 50 meters of a pedestrian crossing marker on any street. If you are convicted of littering three times, you will have to clean the streets on Sundays with a bib on saying, “I am a litterer. It is illegal to pee in an elevator.

 Vietnam’s rapidly growing population is the largest in mainland Southeast Asia.  Most Vietnamese live in rural villages.  Vietnam’s largest city is Ho Chi Minh City, named after the country’s first communist leader.  Vietnam’s capital is Hanoi. It is located in the north  Vietnam’s capital is Hanoi. It is located in the north.

 Indonesia is an archipelago of thousands of islands.  Sumatra, Java, and Celebs are the major islands.  Indonesia lies where two of the Earth’s tectonic plates meet.  As a result, Indonesia has many active volcanoes and experiences earthquakes.  An undersea earthquake off the shore of Sumatra in late 2004 launched a huge tsunami that struck Indonesia and other countries bordering the Indian Ocean.  That disaster left as many as 200,00 dead in Indonesia alone.

 Exploring Our World: Eastern Hemisphere, Chapter 21, pgs  Exploring Our World: Eastern Hemisphere, Chapter 21, pgs