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FRANCISCO ALCÁNTARA NAVADIJO

































Germany (German: Deutschland) is a Central European country that is part of the European Union (EU). Bordered on the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea, to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic, to the south by Austria and Switzerland, and to thewest by France, Luxembourg, Belgium and the Netherlands. The territory of Germany is 357,021 km ² and has a temperate climate. With over 82 million inhabitants, is the largest population among member states of the European Union and is home to the third largest group of international migrants of world.
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After World War II, it was divided into two separate states, but the two states werereunited again in 1990. Germany was a founding member of the European Community (1957), which became the European Union in 1993. adopted the common European currency, the euro (€), in 1999.

Germany is a federal parlamentary republic. The capital and bigger city is Berlin. Also it´s a member of the United Nations Organization and it signed Kyoto Protocol.

It is the fourth largest economy of theworld, the first in Europe, and the largest exporter of goods in the world in 2007. The country has developed a high standard of living and established a complete system of social security.It has a key position in European affairs and maintains . Germany is recognized as a leader in the scientific and tecnológic.




Culture

The country is often called “Das Land der Dichter und Denker” (theland of poets and thinkers).
In Germany have developed some of the most renowned composers of European classical music, including Johann Sebastian Bach, Ludwig van Beethoven, Johannes Brahms and Richard Wagner
Numerous German painters have enjoyed international prestige through their works in diverse artistic currents. Hans Holbein the Younger, Matthias Grünewald, and Albrecht Dürer wereimportant artists of the Renaissance, Caspar David Friedrich of Romanticism, and Max Ernst of Surrealism.




Science

Germany has been the home of some of the leading researchers in different fields scientific. Thus about 100 Germans (of nationality or origin) have been Nobel Laureates. The work of Albert Einstein and Max Planck was crucial to the foundation of modern physics. Wilhelm ConradRöntgen discovered X-rays, an accomplishment that made him the first winner of the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1901.

Germany was also the home of famous inventors and engineers, such as Karl Friedrich Benz, who is considered one of the inventors of the automobile.

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Karl Benz, 1885



Education
 Responsibility for educational oversight lies primarily with individual federal states,while the government has only a minor role.
To enter a university, high school students need to pass the Abitur examination, similar to the Advanced Level. Students with a diploma from a vocational school may enter a University of Applied Sciences. Most german universities are state-owned. In all universities there have to pay administrative fees, which are between 50 and 200 euros. In some statesthere have also to pay fees amounting to 500 euros per semester (Bavaiera).
The universities are recognized internationally, indicating the high level of education in the country. In the THES ranking 2006, ten german universities were ranked among the top hundred in the world.






Religion

Christianity is the largest religious denomination with 53 million adherents (64%). The secondlargest religion is Islam with 3.3 million adherents (4%). About 24.4 million Germans (29.6%) have no registered religious denomination.
The current Pope, Benedict XVI, was born in Bavaria.
The number of people without religion, including atheists and agnostics amount to 29.6% of the population, and are especially numerous in the former East Germany and major metropolitan areas. According to...