Most of the state's people are members of "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints", commonly referred to as the Mormons or the LDS Church. As of 2007, 60.7 percent of everyone in the state are members of "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints". Mormons are not as common as they used to be in Salt Lake City. Usually, rural areas are almost all Mormon. Though the LDS Church does not support or oppose any political parties, the church's doctrine has a strong connection with politics. In the past, many of Utah's lawmakers have been church members; the effect has contributed to the state's towards alcohol (sales and content) and gambling. Another effect can be seen in Utah's high birth rate (25 percent higher than the national normal; the highest for a state in the U.S.). The Mormons in Utah normally have conservative views when it comes to most political . Most voter-age Utahns do not belong to a political party (60%), but vote mostly for Republicans. John McCain got 62.5% of the vote in the 2008 Presidential Election while 70.9% of people of Utah chose George W. Bush in 2004.
Utah's population is concentrated in two areas, the Wasatch Front in the North-Central part of the state, with a population of over 2 million; and southwestern Utah, locally known as "Dixie", with nearly 150,000 people who live there.
According to the 2000 Census, Utah was the fourth fastest growing state (at 29.6 percent) in the United States between 1990 and 2000. St. George, in the southwest, is the second-fastest growing area in the United States, right behind Greeley, Colorado.
The state's two fastest growing counties are: "Summit" (at 91.6 percent; ranking it 8th in the country) and "Washington" (at 86.1 percent; ranking it 12th). The cities (defined as having at least 9,000 people living there in 2000) that saw the greatest increases between 1990 and 2000 were: "Draper" (248 percent), "South Jordan" (141 percent), "Lehi" (125 percent), "Riverton" (122 percent), and "Syracuse" (102 percent). Between 1990 and 2000 the five fastest-growing cities of any size were "Cedar Hills" (302 percent), "Draper" (248 percent), "Woodland Hills" (213 percent), "Ivins" (173 percent), and "South Jordan" (141 percent). The U.S. Census Bureau estimates, the five fastest-growing cities of any size between 2000 and 2008 were "Saratoga Springs" (1,501%), "Herriman" (1,061%), "Eagle Mountain" (934%), "Cedar Hills" (209%), and "Lehi" (146%).
The Bahamas
The Bahamas (officially called Commonwealth of The Bahamas) is a group of islands in the West Indies. The country's capital, Nassau, is on New Providence Island.
The Taino were the first people living there. In 1492, Christopher Columbus found the Americas by landing on another of the islands, San Salvador. The Eleutheran Adventurers soon came along, making a home in Eleuthera.
The islands' mostly black population speaks English, the country's main language.
The Bahamas are a popular place for people to visit for holidays, the 700 islands and cays attract many visitors from nearby America, as well as Europe and other countries.
Lucayanss were the first people to arrive in the Bahamas. They moved into the southern Bahamas from Hispaniola and Cuba around the 11th century AD, having come there from South America. They came to be known as the Lucayan. About 30,000 Lucayan lived the Bahamas when Christopher Columbus arrived in 1492. Columbus' first landfall in the New World was on an island named San Salvador, which some scholars believe to be present-day San Salvador Island.
The Spanish forced much of the Lucayan population to move to Hispaniola. They were used for forced labour. This and the exposure to foreign diseases led to most of the population of the Bahamas dying. Smallpox alone wiped out half of the population in what is now the Bahamas.
In 1670, King Charles II rented out the islands to the Carolinas, along with rights of trading, tax, and governing the country. During this time, the Bahamas became a haven for pirates, including the infamous Blackbeard. To restore proper government, Britain made the Bahamas a crown colony in 1718. The first governor was Woodes Rogers.
After the American War of Independence, the British resettled some 7,300 Loyalists and their slaves in the Bahamas from New York, Florida, and the Carolinas. The first group of loyalists left St. Augustine in East Florida in September 1783. These Loyalists established plantations on several islands. British Americans were outnumbered by the African-American slaves they brought with them, and ethnic Europeans remained a minority in the territory.
On 10 July 1973 The Bahamas gains full independence within British Commonwealth.
Nearly 500,000 people live in the Bahamas. The ethnic groups of the population is: 82% African descent 15% European & Mixed descent 3% Asian and other.
The official language of the Bahamas is English, but they also speak a local dialect called Bahamianese. The Bahamian dialect is based based on the West Country England accents along with South Hiberno English dialects with strong influences from West African languages.
In 1864 the Governor of the Bahamas reported that there were 29 islands, 661 cays, and 2,387 rocks in the colony.
The closest island to the United States is Bimini. The southeasternmost island is Inagua. The largest island is Andros Island. Nassau, capital city of The Bahamas, is on the island of New Providence.
All the islands are low and flat. The highest point in the country is Mount Alvernia on Cat Island. It is high.
The climate of The Bahamas is subtropical to tropical. The Gulf Stream can be very dangerous in the summer and autumn. This is when hurricanes pass near or through the islands. Hurricane Andrew hit the northern islands during the 1992 Atlantic hurricane season. Hurricane Floyd hit most of the islands during the 1999 Atlantic hurricane season.
There has never been a freeze reported in The Bahamas. The temperature can fall as low as .
The Bahamas are divided into 32 districts and the town of New Providence.
The districts are:
The Bahamas does not have an army or an air force. The Royal Bahamas Defence Force (RBDF) is the navy. The Defence Force has a fleet of 26 coastal and inshore patrol craft along with 2 aircraft and over 850 personnel including 65 officers and 74 women.
Vanuatu
Vanuatu is a country in the Pacific Ocean. The official languages of Vanuatu are Bislama, English and French. Vanuatu has a population of over 250,000 people. The capital of Vanuatu is Port Vila. The country was ruled as a colony by England and France. It got its independence in 1980. During the colonial time, it was named the "New Hebrides" or "Nouvelles Hebrides".
Evidence shows, that people lived in Vanuatu by 1300 BC. Portuguese explorer Pedro Fernández de Quirós first discovered the islands in 1606. British explorer, navigator James Cook discovered the islands in 1774. Cook mapped the islands and named them "New Hebrides".
Vanuatu is an island archipelago. It has about 82 small islands. The islands were made from Volcanos. 65 of the islands are inhabited. There is about north to south distance between the outermost islands. Two of the islands (Matthew and Hunter) are also claimed by France. Fourteen of Vanuatu's islands have surface areas of more than .
The highest point in Vanuatu is Mount Tabwemasana, at , on the island of Espiritu Santo.
Even though it has tropical forests, Vanuatu has a small number of plant and animal species. There are no large mammals. The 19 species of native reptiles include the flowerpot snake, found only on Efate. The Fiji Banded Iguana ("Brachylophus fasciatus") was introduced as a feral animal in the 1960s. There are 11 species of bats and 61 species of land and water birds.