HJ+Las+Vegas

Las Vegas  By: Hee Jae Choi & Jane Yang

__Movie: 21 __

media type="youtube" key="-NThsFs4Pwo" height="340" width="560" ( ~ 4:37)

**Introduction ** Understand the selection, be able to explain why the place being referenced in it is important to the artist(s) that produced it. As well, be able to add to why it is important to anyone. What is the place's function? What makes it so popular? So special?

Physical geography: ** Climate - arid, desert climate - very little rainfall/precipitation: (annual) 4.5in (110mm) --mainly occurs during winter - Summer (June-September) --daytime average temperature: 34°C - 40°C --nighttime average temperature: 21°C - 26°C - Winter (short duration) --daytime average temperature: highs near 16 °C --nighttime average temperature: lows near 4 °C (25) ||= 87 (31) ||= 92 (33) ||= 99 (37) ||= 109 (43) ||= 116 (47) ||= 117 (47) ||= 116 (47) ||= 113 (45) ||= 103 (39) ||= 87 (31) ||= 78 (26) || (14) ||= 63 (17) ||= 69 (21) ||= 79 (26) ||= 88 (31) ||= 99 (37) ||= 104 (40) ||= 102 (39) ||= 94 (34) ||= 81 (27) ||= 66 (19) ||= 57 (14) || (3) ||= 41 (5) ||= 47 (8) ||= 54 (12) ||= 63 (17) ||= 72 (22) ||= 78 (26) ||= 77 (25) ||= 69 (21) ||= 57 (14) ||= 44 (7) ||= 37 (3) || (-13) ||= 16 (-9) ||= 19 (-7) ||= 31 (-1) ||= 29 (-2) ||= 48 (9) ||= 56 (13) ||= 54 (12) ||= 43 (6) ||= 26 (-3) ||= 15 (-9) ||= 11 (-12) || (15) ||= 0.69 (17.5) ||= 0.59 (15) ||= 0.15 (3.8) ||= 0.24 (6.1) ||= 0.08 (2) ||= 0.44 (11.2) ||= 0.45 (11.4) ||= 0.31 (7.9) ||= 0.24 (6.1) ||= 0.31 (7.9) ||= 0.40 (10.2) || Source: Wikipedia  Landforms - surrounding environment: desert vegetation&wildlife - arid city surrounded by dry mountains - city elevation: approximately 2,030 ft above sea level - west: Spring Mountains - rocky and dusty
 * 
 * mild winter
 * snow very rare
 * ~ **Weather data for Las Vegas, Nevada** ||
 * ~ Month ||~ Jan ||~ Feb ||~ Mar ||~ Apr ||~ May ||~ Jun ||~ Jul ||~ Aug ||~ Sep ||~ Oct ||~ Nov ||~ Dec ||
 * ~ Record high °F (°C) ||= 77
 * ~ Average high °F (°C) ||= 57
 * ~ Average low °F (°C) ||= 37
 * ~ Record low °F (°C) ||= 8
 * ~ [|Precipitation] inches (mm) ||= 0.59
 * = //Source: [|[12]][|[13]][|[14]] May, 5 2009// ||

 Vegetation of the place - Lower Sonoran (dry deserts)-Creosote-Bursage Flats: vast desert with equal height shrubs - Upper Sonoran (bushy scrub)-Mojave Desert Scrub: Vast desert uplands with various kinds of shrubs, such as Joshua trees, and cactus - Upper Sonoran (pinyon-juniper) - Pinyon-Juniper Woodland: a mixture of forest and open grasslands with low slops, short evergreen trees + upland shrubs -Transition (yellow pine forest) - Yellow Pine Forest: woodland, pine trees+diverse upland shrubs - Canadian (pine-fir forests) - Pine-Fir Forest: evergreen trees (i.e. pine, fir trees: short sharp, crowns -like leaves)+shrubs - Hudsonian (subalpine forests) - Bristlecone Pine Forest: high elevation with short deformed trees - Arctic (tundra above timberline) - Alpine Tundra: too hostile for plants Source: http://www.birdandhike.com/Veg/_Veg_index.htm

 **Human geography:** Economy - the economy depends on tourism - average income per person: $46000 - average income per family: $58465
 * 1996 || 1,119,705 || 546,808 || $28,071.1 || 30,339 || 29,636.4 || $5,783.4 ||
 * 1997 || 1,188,110 || 584,633 || $30,941.5 || 28,814 || 30,464.6 || $6,152.3 ||
 * 1998 || 1,246,196 || 614,583 || $34,713.8 || 30,391 || 30,605.1 || $6,348.0 ||
 * 1999 || 1,321,317 || 661,917 || $37,747.7 || 26,624 || 33,809.1 || $7,211.7 ||
 * 2000 || 1,428,690 || 698,433 || $41,239.3 || 26,811 || 35,849.7 || $7,671.1 ||
 * 2001 || 1,498,274 || 725,942 || $43,179.7 || 29,668 || 35,017.3 || $7,636.0 ||
 * 2002 || 1,578,332 || 730,000 || $45,202.6 || 29,427 || 35,071.5 || $7,630.0 ||
 * 2003 || 1,641,529 || 760,208 || $48,600.9 || 36,771 || 35,540.1 || $7,831.3 ||
 * 2004 || 1,747,025 || 812,667 || $54,976.2 || 36,434 || 37,388.8 || $8,712.0 ||
 * 2005 || 1,815,700 || 871,608 || $63,040.6 || 39,012 || 38,566.7 || $9,717.4 ||
 * 2006 || 1,912,654 || 917,292 || $68,031.6 || 33,942 || 38,914.9 || $10,630.5 ||
 * 2007 || 1,996,542 || 928,008 || $72,411.6 || 24,069 || 39,196.8 || $10,868.5 ||
 * 2008 || 1,986,146 || 915,333 || $77,278.6 || 12,394 || 37,481.6 || $9,797.0 ||
 * *2008 is estimated ||  ||   ||   ||   ||   ||

Data Sources: Clark County Comprehensive Planning, Nevada State Demographer, US Bureau of Economic Analysis, Local Building Permitting Agencies, Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, State of Nevada Gaming Control Board.

Language The main language used in Las Vegas is English, but just as every part of the world has its own language, Las Vegas is no exception. Since Las Vegas is a city of casinos, there are lots of expressions that are relevant to gambling. Here are some examples of words or phrases that are unique to Las Vegas only:


 * Dark**: No show; as in Dark Sundays means no shows on Sunday.
 * Comp**: Short for free or complimentary.
 * High roller**: A customer with the reputation of wagering large sums of money in the casino.
 * Shooter**: A gambler who is rolling the dice on a craps table.
 * Shoe**: container from which several decks of cards are dealt on the Baccarat and blackjack tables which prevents the dealer from holding cards.
 * Stickman**:The dealer who moves the dice around on a craps table with a hook-shaped stick.
 * Drop box**: A locked box located on live gambling tables where dealers deposit paper money.
 * Pit boss**: A casino boss who oversees numerous table dealers.
 * Hit me**: A phrase used by blackjack players who want another card from the dealer. Usually used in connection with a hand signal.
 * Eye in the sky**: A one-way mirror surveillance in the casino area. Be sure to smile! Mirrors or dark glass that circles casino ceilings conceals people who are assigned to watch the casino action to prevent cheating by players or dealers. There are also cameras behind the decorative looking glass.

 Man-Made Structures Las Vegas is famous for its luxurious hotels, theaters, and casinos.



Politics The government of Las Vegas operates as a council-manager government, whereby the City Council as a whole is responsible for the management of the city. The City Council exercises legislative power by enacting ordinances, resolutions, orders and other policies necessary for the management and execution of the powers vested in the city through the City Charter. It is made up of one mayor and six other council members. The mayor is basically the chief executive of the city and presides over all of the City Council's meetings. He is the official representative of the people and officially signs enactments of City Council. The city attorney provides legal aid and support for elected city officials, city departments in conducting business. He/she represents the city before judicial and administrative agencies in civil litigation proceedings and prosecutes all violations occurring within Las Vegas. The city auditor operates under the direction of City Council and conducts official inspection of an individual's or organization's accounts. Lastly, the city manager is responsible for effective administration and operation of all municipal services; therefore, their job in the government ranges vastly from managing general affairs, proposing annual budget, enforcing laws, etc. Elections for these positions are determined by majority votes of the citizens. <span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 150%;">Religion The most dominant religion in Las Vegas is Catholicism, with a percentage of 17.2. Many of the people in Las Vegas are also Protestants and LDS. Although only 36.25 percent of the population follows a particular religion (which is much lower than the national percentage of 50.03), the global economic crisis rendered church attendance in Las Vegas to increase dramatically by 33 percent. Due to the effects of


 * **Religions** || **Percentage (%)** ||
 * Catholic || 17.2 ||
 * Protestant || 5.86 ||
 * LDS || 5.97 ||
 * Jewish || 5.45 ||
 * Another Christian faith || 1.59 ||
 * Islam || 0.12 ||
 * Eastern faith || 0.05 ||

<span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 160%;">Population **Ethnicity** Las Vegas has a total population of 599,087 people. The most dominant race is the white population with the highest percentage of 74.3 percent. The other two major races include the Hispanic/Latino population (28.6%) and the Black/African American population (11.3%). Minor races include Asian (4.8%), Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islander (0.4%), and other races that are not shown in this graph (5.6%). One might expect the percentage of population for others to be relatively high because Las Vegas attracts people from all over the world, but as much as it is a tourist city, most people come for pleasure and entertainment and ultimately leave at the end of their vacation. In terms of age, there's a high population of those who are 20 years old and over and a comparably low population of those who are 65 years and over, however the child and adolescent population seems to be comparably high, indicating that there's a higher birth rate than death rate in Las Vegas. Age distribution seems to be fairly even and shows no signs of an aging population.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;"> Race || <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">Number of Population || <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">Percentage (%) ||
 * White || 400,007 || 74.3 ||
 * Hispanic or Latino || 153,813 || 28.6 ||
 * Black/African American || 60,002 || 11.3 ||
 * Asian || 25,779 || 4.8 ||
 * Others || 29,916 || 5.6 ||
 * Native Hawaiians & other Pacific islander || 2,206 || 0.4 ||
 * <span style="color: #000000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Age Distribution **

<span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace; font-size: 160%;">Bibliography
 * Category. "Casinos - Las Vegas." __Casino Gambling__. 10 Sep. 2009 <http://casinogambling.about.com/od/casinoslasvegas/Casinos_Las_Vegas.htm>."Las Vegas Nightlife - Bellagio Bars." __Las Vegas Hotels - Bellagio__. 10 Sep. 2009 <http://www.bellagio.com/nightlife/>.
 * "Las Vegas, Nevada." __Censusscope__. 10 Sep. 2009 <www.censusscope.org/us/m4120/chart_age.html>.
 * "Marginal Revolution: Why so many churches in Las Vegas?." __Marginal Revolution__. 10 Sep. 2009 <http://www.marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2008/09/why-so-many-chu.html>.
 * laws. "IABC Las Vegas - Bylaws." __IABC Las Vegas - Home__. 10 Sep. 2009 <http://www.iabclasvegas.com/about_us/bylaws.htm>.
 * "Las Vegas Hotels - Las Vegas Shows - Las Vegas Entertainment | VEGAS.com." __Las Vegas Hotels - Las Vegas Shows - Las Vegas Entertainment | VEGAS.com__. 10 Sep. 2009 <http://www.vegas.com/>.