Difference between a continent and a country
Most people know which country they live in and on which continent. But what exactly is the difference between the two? A continent is a very large land mass, often separated by oceans. Some of them are separated by other geographic or social characteristics. Geographical separation can be a narrow strip of land, while social separation can be based on a shared culture. The rules defining the continents are not immutable. As a general rule, the world recognizes separate continents 7: North America, South America, Africa, Europe, Asia, Antarctica and Australia. Although some schools of thought combine North and South America into one, creating continents 6. Yet others, adhering to the theory of “solid mass”,
A country, however, is a separate political entity. In most cases, there are clearly defined boundaries resulting either from geographic features such as rivers and mountains, or from cultural boundaries. Constitutions and peace treaties formalize the location of these borders. According to recent figures, there are 206 sovereign countries in the world.
Is Australia a continent?
Geography of australia
Australia includes mainland Australia, Tasmania, Seram, New Guinea, sometimes Timor and the surrounding islands. It is the smallest of the continents with an area of 3,310,000 square miles and is the lowest continent with human inhabitants. The neighboring islands are connected to the mainland by the continental shelf, including the Sahul platform and the Bass Strait. About half of the continental shelf is 160 feet deep or less
Geology of australia
Geologically speaking, the Australian continent lies on the Indo-Australian plate. This plate separated from the Gondwana supercontinent around 96 millions of years ago. He moved away from Antarctica and headed north. Around 10,000 BC, the ice age ended and the melting caused a rise in sea level. These rising waters eventually formed the Bass Strait that separated Tasmania from the land mass. Years later, between 2,000 and 4,000, additional floods created New Guinea and the Aru Islands in the north of the continent. Australia is the only continent without active volcanic regions. Over time, the Australia-New Guinea tectonic plate collided with the Eurasian plate.
Biodiversity Of Australia
The northward drift of the Indo-Australian plate has helped the continent to offset the global trend of cooling. As other land masses have cooled, the Australian continent is approaching the equator, neutralizing temperature changes. This temperature stability has allowed flora, fauna and fungi to evolve towards specific ecological roles. Its isolated position also prevented the influence of external species, allowing a unique development without competition. Due to the absence of volcanoes and glaciers, the soil of the Australian continent was not disturbed and was able to retain nutrients. This high level of fertility favored the diversity of plants, allowing a coevolution rather than a divergent evolution. The Wallacea Islands were fairly close to the tropical forests of Southeast Asia and some plants were able to reach New Guinea. The oceanic straits were, however, too large to allow the migration of mammals.
This combination of events has resulted in high levels of biodiversity and endemism on the continent today. Marsupials (mammals with pockets to carry their young) and monotremes (laying mammals) may have dominated the placental mammals so prevalent in other parts of the world. Many species of birds have been able to develop; Scientists believe that songbirds first evolved on the Australian continent before migrating to other countries in the world.
Is Australia a country?
History of Australia
The natives lived here, descendants of the migrants who came to the region between 42,000 and 48,000 years ago, when the Europeans first arrived. Dutch explorers landed on the Australian mainland in 1606 AD, mapped the north and west coasts and named it New Holland. They did not establish colonies. In 1770, James Cook claimed the eastern coasts for Great Britain and baptized it New South Wales. The British government established a penal colony, an isolated colony for prisoners, here in 1783. Additional settlers arrived in 1788, forming what would become Sydney.
The growing number of European settlers led to additional colonies across the continent and as far as Tasmania. The United Kingdom claimed the west and divided New South Wales into South Australia, Victoria and Queensland in the mid-1800s. The second half of the 12th century brought a gold rush and the colonies obtained a certain autonomy . As free settlers and penal colonies spread throughout the territory, the indigenous population suffered up to 19 million deaths in the coming years 1.
By 1901, the colonies were established as the Commonwealth of Australia, a dominion of the British Empire. In 1931, the British government adopted the Statute of Westminster, granting the dominions legislative independence and making nations sovereign. Australia adopted the statute in 1942, the antidrider to 1939. After World War II, the country opened its borders to European immigrants and to the 1970s, to Asian immigrants (after the end of the policy of white Australia ). The country cut all ties to the United Kingdom in 1986, removing the right of the United Kingdom to legislate in the Australian government.
Today, the country is made up of 6 states: New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Victoria, Western Australia and Tasmania. These are all located on the mainland, with the exception of Tasmania and the islands to the south. Neighboring countries include Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, East Timor, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and New Zealand.
Population of Australia
The population of Australia is approximately 22.4 million. This number has increased exponentially since the Second World War, largely due to government encouragement for immigration. About 24.6% of the population was born abroad and 43.1% have at least one parent born abroad. Indigenous peoples make up 2.5% of the population. The total number of people in Australia is expected to almost double by 2050.
The most widely used language here is English, especially Australian English. About 81% of the population speak only English at home. The other languages spoken at home are: Mandarin (1.7%), Italian (1.5%), Arabic (1.4%), Cantonese (1.3%), Greek (1.3%) and Vietnamese (1.2%). Among the 250 native languages, 20 is used by all age groups and 150 by older generations.
Over half of the 61.1% of the population identify as Christians. Christian churches have strongly influenced the development of education, health and social services in the country.
Australian economy
Australia is the largest economy in the world. It has a high gross domestic product (GDP) per capita (the fifth highest in the world) and low poverty rates. It is considered a wealthy country with an average annual growth rate of 12%. The most important industries include mining exports, telecommunications, banking services and manufacturing. Four of its main cities are ranked among the best cities in the world: Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide and Perth.