Brazil, one of the world's largest and most populous
countries. It is the largest country in South America,
occupying almost half of the continent and extending from
north of the equator to south of the Tropic of Capricorn.
Its largest city is São Paulo, and its capital is Brasília.
Brazil's large size and diverse population provide great
variety in the natural environment, culture, and economy.
The nation's natural beauty is reflected in a wide variety
of geographic locations, from the distinctive dome shape
of Sugar Loaf Mountain in the city of Rio de Janeiro,
to the magnificent Iguaçu Falls in the far south, to the
strange limestone formations in the state of Minas Gerais.
A broad contrast exists between the nation's two main
physical features: the densely forested lowlands of the
Amazon Basin in the north and the generally open uplands
of the Brazilian Highlands to the south. The climate is
generally tropical, but areas located at higher elevations
or farther from the equator tend to be more temperate.
Vegetation varies from rain forests to pine forests to
savannas and semiarid scrub. The forests are a rich source
of timber, and the country sustains a diverse agriculture,
producing tropical crops such as sugar and coffee. In
recent years environmentalists have become increasingly
concerned over the future of the Amazon region, where
human encroachment has threatened the world's largest
intact rain forest. -- quoted from encata.msn.com
