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Introduction When you think of big cities you may think of New York City, Tokyo, Istanbul, Mexico City, Shanghai, London and so on. But what does «big» really mean? For most of us, big cities are places with lots of people and with lots of tall buildings called skyscrapers, like New York City. But not all big cities have skyscrapers: some cities have some skyscrapers but more smaller buildings, like London. As more people go to live in cities, more skyscrapers are necessary. These make the space for people to live in and work in. How and why did people start building and living them and where are the tallest buildings in the world at the moment?
Large buildings of the ancient world The first cities were in Mesopotamia (in modern Iraq), in Egypt, and in the valleys of the Indus River. In all of these places there were very large buildings.
The Industrial Revolution • The Industrial Revolution helped create very big cities. The Industrial Revolution first happened in Great Britain and then in the United States. It began at the end of the eighteenth century. • During this time, there were a series of important changes to the economy and to people’s lives. One of the negative effects of the Industrial Revolution was the terrible working conditions. One of the positive effects was the creation of the middle class.
Population increases in cities More and More people live in cities today. There are many reasons for this: greater work possibilities and better education standards are two important ones.
Some important cities NEW YORK CITY, USA Population: 8 million New York City used to be called «New Amsterdam» Another name for New York City is «The Big Apple» New York City has five local areas, called boroughs: Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx and Staten Island.
LONDON, England Population: 7.5 million In the Great Fire of London in 1666 half of London was destroyed. London is the largest city in Western Europe. More than 300 languages are spoken in London.
Moscow • MOSCOW, Russia • Population: 12108257 • Transport: 5 airports • 9 railway stations • 3 see ports • Metro: 194 stations • Moscow is regularly named one of the most expensive cities in the world. Although you'll find a historic center here, complete with palaces, churches, and monuments, Moscow is a fully modern city with skyscrapers, a network of public transportation, and traffic, traffic, traffic.
Life in the megacities of today • A megacity has a population of more than 10 million people. Today there are around twenty-five megacities, and the five largest are Tokyo, Mexico City, Sao Paulo, New York City and Mumbai.
Problems of megacities High level of pollution A lot of travel jam Violent crimes Negative effects of industry Expensive prizes for living