1 A half step (or ''semitone'') is the distance from one key on the keyboard to the next adjacent key. 2  Key 1 to Key 2 is a half step since they are next to each other. 3  A half step is not always from a white key to a black key.
The Virginia House of Burgesses established in 1619 is considered the first representative assembly (government) in the US and the Americas.
The United States is a multi-faceted Representative Democracy: we elect representatives in many aspects of our government form, all of which have specific duties and limits on power. We periodically have elections to either retain or replace our representatives. Representative form of government is one where (some) citizens chose another citizen to make political decisions for them. That is, rather than a citizen being directly involved in politics and government, they chose a proxy to make their choice for them.