sion and
incompatibility in the collection, processing, and dissemination of
area-specific data and is particularly useful for interchanging data
between databases. Appendix F cross-references various country codes
and Appendix G does the same thing for hydrographic codes. Data
codes-country: This information is presented in Appendix F:
Cross-Reference List of Country Data Codes which includes the US
Government approved Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS),
the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), and Internet
country codes.

Data codes--hydrographic: This information is presented in Appendix G:
Cross-Reference List of Hydrographic Data Codes which includes the
International Hydrographic Organization (IHO), Aeronautical Chart and
Information Center (ACIC; now National Imagery and Mapping Agency or
NIMA), and Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) hydrographic codes. The
US Government has not yet approved a standard for hydrographic data
codes similar to the FIPS 10-4 standard for country data codes.

Dates of information: The information cutoff date was 1 January 1997,
although a few important changes after that date have been included.
Most demographic statistics are estimates for 1997.

Death rate: This entry gives the average annual number of deaths
during a year per 1,000 population at midyear; also known as crude
death rate. The death rate, while only a rough indicator of the
mortality situation in a country, accurately indicates the current
mortality impact on population growth. This indicator is significantly
affected by the age distribution, and most countries will eventually
show a rise in the rate, in spite of continued declines in mortality
at all ages, as declining fertility results in an aging population.

Debt--external: This entry gives the total amount of public foreign
financial obligations.

Dependency status: This entry describes the formal relationship
between a nonindependent entity and a sovereign nation.

Dependent areas: This entry contains an alphabetical listing of all
nonindependent entities associated in some way with a particular
sovereign nation.

Diplomatic representation: The US Government has diplomatic relations
with 184 nations, including 178 of the 185 UN members (excluded UN
members are Bhutan, Cuba, Iran, Iraq, North Korea, former Yugoslavia,
and the US itself). In addition, the US has diplomatic relations with
6 nations that are not in the UN--Holy S