United States Military Academy

Прочитайте текст US Military Academy. Coотнесите данные предложения с номером абзаца, в котором они встретились.

Познакомьтесь с переводом следующих слов.

Reliance – зависимость

To instill – внушать, прививать

To be aware of – осознавать

To major – специализироваться

1. West Point`s role in the nation`s history dates back to the Revolutionary War, when both sides realized the strategic importance of the commanding plateau on the west bank of the Hudson River. General George Washington considered West Point to be the most important strategic position in America. Washington personally selected Thaddeus Kosciuszko, one of the heroes of Saratoga, to design the fortifications for the West Point in 1778, and Washington transferred his headquarters to west Point in 1779. Continental soldiers built forts, batteries and redoubts and extended a 150-ton iron chain across the Hudson to control river traffic. Fortress Wes Point was never captured by the British. West point is the oldest continuously occupied military post in America.

2. Several soldiers and legislators, including Washington, Knox, Hamilton and John Adams, desiring to eliminate America’s wartime reliance on foreign engineers and artillerists, urged the creation of an institution devoted to the arts and sciences of warfare. President Thomas Jefferson signed legislation establishing the United States Military Academy in 1802. He took this action after ensuring that those attending the Academy would be representative of a democratic society.

3. Colonel Sylvanus Thayer, the “father of the Military Academy,” served as Superintendent from 1817-1833. He upgraded academic standards, instilled military discipline and emphasized honorable conduct. Aware of a young nation’s need for engineers, Thayer made civil engineering the foundation of the curriculum. For the first half century, USMA graduates were largely responsible for the construction of the bulk of the nation’s initial railway lines, bridges, harbors and roads.

4. In recent decades, the Academy’s curricular structure was changed to permit cadets to major in any one of more than a dozen fields, including a wide range of subjects from the sciences to the humanities. The core curriculum incorporates 31 courses equally balanced between the arts and science. It provides the foundation for the academic program and the broad knowledge necessary for achieving success as a commissioned Army officer. Academy graduates are awarded a bachelor of science degree and a commission as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army, serving a minimum of five years on active duty. The Academy, with its long and noble history, remains an energetic, institution that attracts some of the best and brightest young men and women.

5. Cadet life is immersed in a military environment that is unique to West Point The Corps of Cadet is organized as a “brigade” under the command of Commandant of Cadets. The commandant is a brigadier general in the U.S/ Army. There is both an officer and cadet “chain of command”, providing many opportunities to practice and develop personal leadership skills. The choice to enter West Point is a choice to join a distinguished, time-honored profession that is rich in tradition. An officer must master complex military equipment and weapons systems. Leadership and management skills are stressed in the early years of officer service in the U.S. Army, so West Point graduates immediately gain an opportunity to test their leadership skills. The Army was one of the first professions in America to judge a person on merit rather than on social class. Imagination and talent continue to be the keys to success in the Army.

– The father of the Military Academy made civil engineering the foundation of the curriculum.

– There is both an officer and a cadet “chain of command”.

– West Point’s role in the nations history dates back to the Revolutionary War.

– Several soldiers and legislators urged the creation of an institution devoted to the arts and sciences of warfare.

– Academy graduates are awarded a bachelor of science degree and a commission as a second lieutenant in the US Army.

Дата добавления: 2014-12-25