vania-janet/multiturn-rag-retrieval-data huggingface dataset:
Atlantic Ocean
During the LGM the Laurentide Ice Sheet covered most of northern North America while Beringia connected Siberia to Alaska . In 1973 late U.S. geoscientist Paul S. Martin proposed a `` blitzkrieg '' colonization of America by which Clovis hunters migrated into North America around 13,000 years ago in a single wave through an ice - free corridor in the ice sheet and `` spread southward explosively , briefly attaining a density sufficiently large to overkill much of their prey . '' Others later proposed a `` three - wave '' migration over the Bering Land Bridge . These hypotheses remained the long - held view regarding the settlement of the Americas , a view challenged by more recent archaeological discoveries : the oldest archaeological sites in the Americas have been found in South America ; sites in north - east Siberia report virtually no human presence there during the LGM ; and most Clovis artefacts have been found in eastern North America along the Atlantic coast . Furthermore , colonisation models based on mtDNA , yDNA , and atDNA data respectively support neither the `` blitzkrieg '' nor the `` three - wave '' hypotheses but they also deliver mutually ambiguous results . Contradictory data from archaeology and genetics will most likely deliver future hypotheses that will , eventually , confirm each other . A proposed route across the Pacific to South America could explain early South American finds and another hypothesis proposes a northern path , through the Canadian Arctic and down the North American Atlantic coast . Early settlements across the Atlantic have been suggested by alternative theories , ranging from purely hypothetical to mostly disputed , including the Solutrean hypothesis and some of the Pre-Columbian trans - oceanic contact theories . Based
European colonization of the Americas
Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés took over the Aztec Kingdom and Francisco Pizarro conquered the Inca Empire . As a result , by the mid-16th century , the Spanish Crown had gained control of much of western South America , Central America and southern North America , in addition to its earlier Caribbean territories . Over this same timeframe , Portugal claimed lands in North America ( Canada ) and colonized much of eastern South America , naming it Santa Cruz and Brazil .
New Spain
The 21 northern missions in present - day California ( U.S. ) were established along California 's El Camino Real from 1769 . In an effort to exclude Britain and Russia from the eastern Pacific , King Charles III of Spain sent forth from Mexico a number of expeditions to the Pacific Northwest between 1774 and 1793 . Spain 's long - held claims and navigation rights were strengthened and a settlement and fort were built in Nootka Sound , Alaska . A
Arctic Ocean
Early cartographers were unsure whether to draw the region around the North Pole as land ( as in Johannes Ruysch 's map of 1507 , or Gerardus Mercator 's map of 1595 ) or water ( as with Martin Waldseemüller 's world map of 1507 ) . The fervent desire of European merchants for a northern passage , the Northern Sea Route or the Northwest Passage , to `` Cathay '' ( China ) caused water to win out , and by 1723 mapmakers such as Johann Homann featured an extensive `` Oceanus Septentrionalis '' at the northern edge of their charts .
Gulf of Mexico
Although Christopher Columbus was credited with the discovery of the Americas by Europeans , the ships in his four voyages never reached the Gulf of Mexico . Instead , Columbus sailed into the Caribbean around Cuba and Hispaniola . The first European exploration of the Gulf of Mexico was by Amerigo Vespucci in 1497 . He followed the coastal land mass of Central America before returning to the Atlantic Ocean via the Straits of Florida between Florida and Cuba . In his letters , Vespucci described this trip , and once Juan de la Cosa returned to Spain , a famous world map , depicting Cuba as an island , was produced .
Great Lakes region
The Great Lakes region of North America is a bi-national Canadian - American region that includes portions of the eight U.S. states of Illinois , Indiana , Michigan , Minnesota , New York , Ohio , Pennsylvania and Wisconsin as well as the Canadian province of Ontario . The region centers on the Great Lakes and forms a distinctive historical , economic , and cultural identity . A portion of the region also encompasses the Great Lakes Megalopolis .
Great Lakes
The Saint Lawrence Seaway and Great Lakes Waterway make the Great Lakes accessible to ocean - going vessels . However , shifts in shipping to wider ocean - going container ships -- which do not fit through the locks on these routes -- have limited container shipping on the lakes . Most Great Lakes trade is of bulk material , and bulk freighters of Seawaymax - size or less can move throughout the entire lakes and out to the Atlantic . Larger ships are confined to working in the lakes themselves . Only barges can access the Illinois Waterway system providing access to the Gulf of Mexico via the Mississippi River . Despite their vast size , large sections of the Great Lakes freeze over in winter , interrupting most shipping from January to March . Some icebreakers ply the lakes , keeping the shipping lanes open through other periods of ice on the lakes .
Delaware River
The Delaware River is a major barrier to travel between New Jersey and Pennsylvania . Most of the larger bridges are tolled only westbound , and are owned by the Delaware River and Bay Authority , Delaware River Port Authority , Burlington County Bridge Commission or Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission .
Drinking water supply and sanitation in the United States
The cities on the Mississippi River are supplied by water from that river except for Memphis . The metropolitan area of Atlanta receives 70 % of its water from the Chattahoochee River and another 28 % from the Etowah , Flint , Ocmulgee and Oconee rivers . Chicago is supplied by water from Lake Michigan and Detroit receives its water from the Detroit River . Philadelphia receives 60 % of its water from the Delaware River and 40 % from the Schuylkill River . Washington , D.C. receives its water from the Potomac River through the Washington Aqueduct . Cities
Technological and industrial history of the United States
Even as the country grew even larger with the admission of Kentucky , Tennessee , and Ohio by 1803 , the only means of transportation between these landlocked western states and their coastal neighbors was by foot , pack animal , or ship . Recognizing the success of Roman roads in unifying that empire , political and business leaders in the United States began to construct roads and canals to connect the disparate parts of the nation .
Technological and industrial history of the United States
Numerous canal companies had also been chartered ; but of all the canals projected , only three had been completed when the War of 1812 began : the Dismal Swamp Canal in Virginia , the Santee Canal in South Carolina , and the Middlesex Canal in Massachusetts . It remained for New York to usher in a new era in internal communication by authorizing in 1817 the construction of the Erie Canal . This bold bid for Western trade alarmed the merchants of Philadelphia , particularly as the completion of the national road threatened to divert much of their traffic to Baltimore . In 1825 , the legislature of Pennsylvania grappled with the problem by projecting a series of canals which were to connect its great seaport with Pittsburgh on the west and with Lake Erie and the upper Susquehanna on the north . The Blackstone Canal , ( 1823 -- 1828 ) in Rhode Island and Massachusetts , and the Morris Canal across northern New Jersey ( 1824 -- 1924 ) soon followed , along with the Illinois and Michigan Canal from Chicago to the Illinois River ( 1824 -- 1848 ) .
St. Croix River (Wisconsin–Minnesota)
Although the addition of an interstate bridge connected to MN Highway 36 was objected to by residents , nearby communities , conservation groups , and the National Park Service , construction of the bridge was authorized by amending the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of 1968 . Light and noise pollution are concerns of those opposed to the bridge , who cite the original act that kept such activity to the south along the Interstate 94 corridor .
Mississippi River
On the lower Mississippi , from Baton Rouge to the mouth of the Mississippi , the navigation depth is 45 feet ( 14 m ) , allowing container ships and cruise ships to dock at the Port of New Orleans and bulk cargo ships shorter than 150 - foot ( 46 m ) air draft that fit under the Huey P. Long Bridge to traverse the Mississippi to Baton Rouge . There is a feasibility study to dredge this portion of the river to 50 feet ( 15 m ) to allow New Panamax ship depths .
Midwestern United States
Traditional definitions of the Midwest include the Northwest Ordinance Old Northwest states and many states that were part of the Louisiana Purchase . The states of the Old Northwest are also known as Great Lakes states and are east - north central in the United States . The Ohio River runs along the southeastern section while the Mississippi River runs north to south near the center . Many of the Louisiana Purchase states in the west - north central United States , are also known as Great Plains states , where the Missouri River is a major waterway joining with the Mississippi . The Midwest lies north of the 36 ° 30 ′ parallel that the 1820 Missouri Compromise established as the dividing line between future slave and non-slave states .
Mississippi River
Before 1900 , the Mississippi River transported an estimated 400 million metric tons of sediment per year from the interior of the United States to coastal Louisiana and the Gulf of Mexico . During the last two decades , this number was only 145 million metric tons per year . The reduction in sediment transported down the Mississippi River is the result of engineering modification of the Mississippi , Missouri , and Ohio rivers and their tributaries by dams , meander cutoffs , river - training structures , and bank revetments and soil erosion control programs in the areas drained by them .
Midwestern United States
The region was shaped by the relative absence of slavery ( except for Missouri ) , pioneer settlement , education in one - room free public schools , democratic notions brought by American Revolutionary War veterans , Protestant faiths and experimentation , and agricultural wealth transported on the Ohio River riverboats , flatboats , canal boats , and railroads . Bleeding
Drinking water supply and sanitation in the United States
Bulk water suppliers . There are also a few large bulk water suppliers in the arid Southwest of the United States , which sell water to utilities . The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California ( MWD ) sells treated water from the Colorado River and Northern California to its member utilities in Southern California through the California Aqueduct . Twenty - six cities and water districts serving 18 million people are members of MWD . The Central Arizona Water Conservation district supplies water from the Colorado River to 80 municipal , industrial , agricultural and Indian customers in Central and Southern Arizona through the Central Arizona Project Aqueduct ( CAP ) .
Shenandoah River
German River Cedar Creek Smith Creek Toms Brook Passage Creek Linville Creek Shoemaker River Little Dry River Turley Creek Runions Creek
Technological and industrial history of the United States
Like the turnpikes , the early canals were constructed , owned , and operated by private joint - stock companies but later gave way to larger projects funded by the states . The Erie Canal , proposed by Governor of New York De Witt Clinton , was the first canal project undertaken as a public good to be financed at the public risk through the issuance of bonds . When the project was completed in 1825 , the canal linked Lake Erie with the Hudson River through 83 separate locks and over a distance of 363 miles ( 584 km ) . The success of the Erie Canal spawned a boom of other canal - building around the country : over 3,326 miles ( 5,353 km ) of artificial waterways were constructed between 1816 and 1840 . Small towns like Syracuse , New York , Buffalo , New York , and Cleveland , Ohio that lay along major canal routes boomed into major industrial and trade centers , while canal - building pushed some states like Pennsylvania , Ohio , and Indiana to the brink of bankruptcy .
History of rail transport in the United States
Railroads financing provided the basis of the private ( non-governmental ) financial system . Construction of railroads was far more expensive than factories or canals . The famous Erie canal , 300 miles long in upstate New York , cost $7 million of state money , which was about what private investors spent on one short railroad in Western Massachusetts . A new steamboat on the Hudson , Mississippi , Missouri , or Ohio rivers cost about the same as one mile of track .
Mississippi River
Steamboat transport remained a viable industry , both in terms of passengers and freight until the end of the first decade of the 20th century . Among the several Mississippi River system steamboat companies was the noted Anchor Line , which , from 1859 to 1898 , operated a luxurious fleet of steamers between St. Louis and New Orleans .
Drinking water supply and sanitation in the United States
With water use in the United States increasing every year , many regions are starting to feel the pressure . At least 36 states are anticipating local , regional , or statewide water shortages by 2013 , even under non-drought conditions .
Delaware River
Since 1941 , the Delaware River Main Channel has been maintained at a depth of 40 ft ( 12 m ) . A 102.5 - mile stretch of this federal navigation channel , from Philadelphia and Camden to the mouth of the Delaware Bay , is being deepened to 45 ft ( 14 m ). , with a 2017 projected completion date .
New Jersey
New Jersey has interstate compacts with all three of its neighboring states . The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey , the Delaware River Port Authority ( with Pennsylvania ) , and the Delaware River and Bay Authority ( with Delaware ) operate most of the major transportation routes in and out of the state . Bridge tolls are collected in one direction only -- it is free to cross into New Jersey , but motorists must pay when exiting the state , with a few exceptions .
St. Croix River (Wisconsin–Minnesota)
Dunn , James Taylor . The St. Croix : Midwest Border River . ( New York : Holt , Rinehart and Winston , 1965 , 309 pp. ISBN 978 - 0 - 873 - 51141 - 4 McMahon , Eileen M. , and Theodore J. Karamanski . North Woods River : The St. Croix River in Upper Midwest History . ( Madison : University of Wisconsin Press , 2009 . xii , 338 pp. ISBN 978 - 0 - 299 - 23424 - 9
Hudson River
Along the east side of the river runs the Metro - North Railroad 's Hudson Line , from Manhattan to Poughkeepsie . The tracks continue north of Poughkeepsie as Amtrak trains run further north to Albany . On the west side of the river , CSX Transportation operates a freight rail line between North Bergen Yard in North Bergen , New Jersey and Selkirk Yard in Selkirk , New York .
Seine
The Seine ( / seɪn / SAYN ; French : La Seine , pronounced ( la sɛːn ) ) is a 777 - kilometre - long ( 483 mi ) river and an important commercial waterway within the Paris Basin in the north of France . It rises at Source - Seine , 30 kilometres ( 19 mi ) northwest of Dijon in northeastern France in the Langres plateau , flowing through Paris and into the English Channel at Le Havre ( and Honfleur on the left bank ) . It is navigable by ocean - going vessels as far as Rouen , 120 kilometres ( 75 mi ) from the sea . Over 60 percent of its length , as far as Burgundy , is negotiable by commercial riverboats , and nearly its whole length is available for recreational boating ; excursion boats offer sightseeing tours of the Rive Droite and Rive Gauche within the city of Paris .
Delaware River
Below Trenton the river flows between Philadelphia and New Jersey before becoming a broad , sluggish inlet of the sea , with many marshes along its side , widening steadily into its great estuary , Delaware Bay .
Oyster
The largest oyster - producing body of water in the United States is Chesapeake Bay , although these beds have decreased in number due to overfishing and pollution . Willapa Bay in Washington produces more oysters than any other estuary in the US . Other large oyster farming areas in the US include the bays and estuaries along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico from Apalachicola , Florida in the east to Galveston , Texas in the west . Large beds of edible oysters are also found in Japan and Australia . In 2005 , China accounted for 80 % of the global oyster harvest . Within Europe , France remained the industry leader .
Lake Michigan
The Saint Lawrence Seaway and Great Lakes Waterway opened the Great Lakes to ocean - going vessels . Wider ocean - going container ships do not fit through the locks on these routes , and thus shipping is limited on the lakes . Despite their vast size , large sections of the Great Lakes freeze in winter , interrupting most shipping . Some icebreakers ply the lakes .
Drinking water supply and sanitation in the United States
The leaders in use of reclaimed water in the U.S. are Florida and California , with Irvine Ranch Water District as one of the leading developers . They were the first district to approve the use of reclaimed water for in - building piping and use in flushing toilets .
Mississippi River
So many settlers traveled westward through the Mississippi river basin , as well as settled in it , that Zadok Cramer wrote a guide book called The Navigator , detailing the features and dangers and navigable waterways of the area . It was so popular that he updated and expanded it through 12 editions over a period of 25 years . Shifting
Lake Michigan
Two passenger and vehicle ferries operate ferry services on Lake Michigan , both connecting Wisconsin on the western shore with Michigan on the east . From May to October , the historic steam ship , SS Badger , operates daily between Manitowoc , Wisconsin , and Ludington , Michigan , connecting U.S. Highway 10 between the two cities . The Lake Express , established in 2004 , carries passengers and vehicles across the lake between Milwaukee , Wisconsin , and Muskegon , Michigan .
Mississippi River
Genevieve , Missouri Kaskaskia , Illinois Chester , Illinois Grand Tower , Illinois Cape Girardeau , Missouri Thebes , Illinois Commerce , Missouri Cairo , Illinois Wickliffe , Kentucky Columbus , Kentucky Hickman , Kentucky New Madrid , Missouri Tiptonville , Tennessee Caruthersville , Missouri Osceola , Arkansas Reverie , Tennessee Memphis , Tennessee West Memphis , Arkansas Tunica , Mississippi Helena - West Helena , Arkansas Napoleon , Arkansas ( historical ) Arkansas City , Arkansas Greenville , Mississippi Vicksburg , Mississippi Waterproof , Louisiana Natchez , Mississippi Morganza , Louisiana St. Francisville , Louisiana New Roads , Louisiana Baton Rouge , Louisiana Donaldsonville , Louisiana Lutcher , Louisiana Destrehan , Louisiana New Orleans , Louisiana Pilottown , Louisiana La Balize , Louisiana ( historical )
Mississippi River
The Rivers and Harbors Act of 1930 authorized the 9 - foot ( 2.7 m ) channel project , which called for a navigation channel 9 feet ( 2.7 m ) feet deep and 400 feet ( 120 m ) wide to accommodate multiple - barge tows . This was achieved by a series of locks and dams , and by dredging . Twenty - three new locks and dams were built on the upper Mississippi in the 1930s in addition to the three already in existence . Formation
Yadkin River
There are many reservoirs created by damming the Yadkin and Pee Dee rivers within the bounds of North Carolina , and are listed from upstream to downstream :
Mississippi River
Failure of the Old River Control Structure , the Morganza Spillway , or nearby levees would likely re-route the main channel of the Mississippi through Louisiana 's Atchafalaya Basin and down the Atchafalaya River to reach the Gulf of Mexico south of Morgan City in southern Louisiana . This route provides a more direct path to the Gulf of Mexico than the present Mississippi River channel through Baton Rouge and New Orleans . While the risk of such a diversion is present during any major flood event , such a change has so far been prevented by active human intervention involving the construction , maintenance , and operation of various levees , spillways , and other control structures by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers . The
Monongahela River
Three ships in the United States Navy have been named Monongahela after the river . In the 1930s , severe drought caused the river to run dry .
Delaware River
After New York City built 15 reservoirs to supply water to the city 's growing population , it was unable to obtain permission to build an additional five reservoirs along the Delaware River 's tributaries . As a result , in 1928 the city decided to draw water from the Delaware River , putting them in direct conflict with villages and towns across the river in Pennsylvania which were already using the Delaware for their water supply . The two sides eventually took their case to the U.S. Supreme Court , and in 1931 , New York City was allowed to draw 440 million US gallons ( 1,700,000 m ) of water a day from the Delaware and its upstream tributaries .
Transport in London
The River Thames is navigable to ocean - going vessels as far as London Bridge , and to substantial craft well upstream of Greater London . Historically , the river was one of London 's main transport arteries . Although this is no longer the case , passenger services have seen something of a revival since the creation in 1999 of London River Services , an arm of Transport for London . LRS now regulates and promotes a small - scale network of river bus commuter services and a large number of leisure cruises operating on the river . Boats are owned and operated by a number of private companies , and LRS manages five of central London 's 22 piers .
St. Croix River (Wisconsin–Minnesota)
The river is the result of geologic forces going back 1.1 billion years . At that time , the Mid-Continent Rift rended the middle of North America apart , creating a volcanic zone . The lave spewed forth cooled into hard basalt . That basalt is what today creates the dramatic cliffs around the Interstate State Parks . About 500 million years ago , a shallow sea covered the area , laying down layers of sand and minerals that make up much of the sandstone bluffs now seen along the river . In the last 20,000 years , glaciers have scraped the landscape and released torrents of meltwater , which carved the St. Croix River 's course .
Drinking water supply and sanitation in the United States
According to the National Academies , climate change affects water supply in the U.S. in the following ways :
Monongahela River
The Monongahela River in Pittsburgh passing the South Side on the right and Uptown / The Bluff on the left just before entering Downtown Pittsburgh Country United States States Pennsylvania , West Virginia Counties Marion WV , Monongalia WV , Greene PA , Fayette PA , Washington PA , Westmoreland PA , Allegheny PA Tributaries - left Peters Creek , Streets Run , Becks Run - right Cheat River , Youghiogheny River , Turtle Creek Source Tygart Valley River - location Pocahontas County , West Virginia - elevation 4,540 ft ( 1,384 m ) - coordinates 38 ° 28 ′ 06 '' N 79 ° 58 ′ 51 '' W ﻿ / ﻿ 38.46833 ° N 79.98083 ° W ﻿ / 38.46833 ; - 79.98083 Secondary source West Fork River - location Upshur County , West Virginia - elevation 1,309 ft ( 399 m ) - coordinates 38 ° 51 ′ 08 '' N 80 ° 21 ′ 32 '' W ﻿ / ﻿ 38.85222 ° N 80.35889 ° W ﻿ / 38.85222 ; - 80.35889 Source confluence - location Fairmont , West Virginia - elevation 863 ft ( 263 m ) - coordinates 39