d by the US Bureau of
the Census. The smaller entities are compared with Washington, DC (178
sq km, 69 sq mi) or The Mall in Washington, DC (0.59 sq km, 0.23 sq mi,
146 acres).

Background

This entry usually highlights major historic events and current issues
and may include a statement about one or two key future trends.

Birth rate

This entry gives the average annual number of births during a year per
1,000 persons in the population at midyear; also known as crude birth
rate. The birth rate is usually the dominant factor in determining the
rate of population growth. It depends on both the level of fertility
and the age structure of the population.

Budget

This entry includes revenues, expenditures, and capital expenditures.
These figures are calculated on an exchange rate basis, i.e., not in
purchasing power parity (PPP) terms.

Capital

This entry gives the name of the seat of government, its geographic
coordinates, the time difference relative to Coordinated Universal Time
(UTC) and the time observed in Washington, DC, and, if applicable,
information on daylight saving time (DST). Where appropriate, a special
note has been added to highlight those countries that have multiple
time zones.

Climate

This entry includes a brief description of typical weather regimes
throughout the year.

Coastline

This entry gives the total length of the boundary between the land area
(including islands) and the sea.

Communications

This category deals with the means of exchanging information and
includes the telephone, radio, television, and Internet host entries.

Communications - note

This entry includes miscellaneous communications information of
significance not included elsewhere.

Constitution

This entry includes the dates of adoption, revisions, and major
amendments.

Coordinated Universal Time (UTC)

UTC is the international atomic time scale that serves as the basis of
timekeeping for most of the world. The hours, minutes, and seconds
expressed by UTC represent the time of day at the Prime Meridian (0