vania-janet/multiturn-rag-retrieval-data huggingface dataset:
History of Puerto Rico
Land tenure did not become concentrated in fewer hands , but incomes increased as American agribusiness and capital investments arrived . The land tenure system in the firm control of local farmers ( small , medium , and large ) . After 1940 dairying became an industry second only to sugar , and had a higher dollar output than the better - known traditional crops -- coffee and tobacco .
Alternative energy
Cellulosic ethanol can be produced from a diverse array of feedstocks , and involves the use of the whole crop . This new approach should increase yields and reduce the carbon footprint because the amount of energy - intensive fertilizers and fungicides will remain the same , for a higher output of usable material . As of 2008 , there are nine commercial cellulosic ethanol plants which are either operating , or under construction , in the United States .
Manhattan Project
Scaling this up to a production plant presented a formidable technical challenge . Urey and Cohen estimated that producing a kilogram ( 2.2 lb ) of uranium - 235 per day would require up to 50,000 centrifuges with 1 - meter ( 3 ft 3 in ) rotors , or 10,000 centrifuges with 4 - meter ( 13 ft ) rotors , assuming that 4 - meter rotors could be built . The prospect of keeping so many rotors operating continuously at high speed appeared daunting , and when Beams ran his experimental apparatus , he obtained only 60 % of the predicted yield , indicating that more centrifuges would be required . Beams , Urey and Cohen then began work on a series of improvements which promised to increase the efficiency of the process . However , frequent failures of motors , shafts and bearings at high speeds delayed work on the pilot plant . In November 1942 the centrifuge process was abandoned by the Military Policy Committee following a recommendation by Conant , Nichols and August C. Klein of Stone & Webster . Electromagnetic
New Deal
Roosevelt was keenly interested in farm issues and believed that true prosperity would not return until farming was prosperous . Many different programs were directed at farmers . The first 100 days produced the Farm Security Act to raise farm incomes by raising the prices farmers received , which was achieved by reducing total farm output . The Agricultural Adjustment Act created the Agricultural Adjustment Administration ( AAA ) in May 1933 . The act reflected the demands of leaders of major farm organizations ( especially the Farm Bureau ) and reflected debates among Roosevelt 's farm advisers such as Secretary of Agriculture Henry A. Wallace , M.L. Wilson , Rexford Tugwell and George Peek .
North Carolina
North Carolina is the leading U.S. state in production of flue - cured tobacco and sweet potatoes , and comes second in the farming of pigs and hogs , trout , and turkeys . In the three most recent USDA surveys ( 2002 , 2007 , 2012 ) , North Carolina also ranked second in the production of Christmas trees .
Green Revolution in India
The production of wheat has produced the best results in fueling self - sufficiency of India . Along with high - yielding seeds and irrigation facilities , the enthusiasm of farmers mobilised the idea of agricultural revolution . Due to the rise in use of chemical pesticides and fertilizers there was a negative effect on the soil and the land such as land degradation .
Tariff
In 1800 , the United Kingdom , which accounted for about 8 % to 10 % of the European population , provided 29 % of all pig iron produced in Europe , a proportion that reached 45 % in 1830 ; industrial production per capita was even more significant : in 1830 it was 250 % higher than in the rest of Europe compared to 110 % in 1800 . In 1846 , the industrialization rate per capita was more than double that of its closest competitors such as France , Belgium , Germany , Switzerland and the United States .
Southwestern United States
Copper was also discovered in 1877 , near Bisbee and Jerome in Arizona , which became an important component of the economy of the Southwest . Production began in 1880 , and was made more profitable by the expansion of the railroad throughout the territory during the 1880s . The
Rice production in Thailand
Starting in late 2014 , Thailand 's rice industry was hit with a drought that has extended to 2016 . The drought is accompanied by decreasing worldwide demand for rice . The drought is expected to cost the economy about 84 billion baht ( US $2.4 billion ) in 2016 and sap demand for durable goods . Farmers are suffering : farm output has declined seven to eight percent in each of the past two years and farmers ' debt to agricultural income is around 100 percent . The military government approved 11.2 billion baht of measures in 2015 to help farmers , including encouraging them to plant crops that need less water . Rice is the primary target of the water use reduction campaign because it requires up to two and a half times more water than wheat or maize . The major dams in the central region , the Bhumibol and Sirikit Dams , the main water sources for the country 's central plain , are at their lowest levels since 1994 . The government wants to cut rice production to 27 million tons in the planting season starting May 2016 , 25 percent less than the five - year average .
History of agriculture
After its introduction from South America to Spain in the late 1500s , the potato became a staple crop throughout Europe by the late 1700s . The potato allowed farmers to produce more food , and initially added variety to the European diet . The increased supply of food reduced disease , increased births and reduced mortality , causing a population boom throughout the British Empire , the US and Europe . The introduction of the potato also brought about the first intensive use of fertilizer , in the form of guano imported to Europe from Peru , and the first artificial pesticide , in the form of an arsenic compound used to fight Colorado potato beetles . Before the adoption of the potato as a major crop , the dependence on grain had caused repetitive regional and national famines when the crops failed , including 17 major famines in England between 1523 and 1623 . The resulting dependence on the potato however caused the European Potato Failure , a disastrous crop failure from disease that resulted in widespread famine and the death of over one million people in Ireland alone .
Banana peel
The coefficient of friction of banana peel on a linoleum surface was measured at just 0.07 , about half that of lubricated metal on metal . Researchers attribute this to the crushing of the natural polysaccharide follicular gel , releasing a homogenous sol . This unsurprising finding was awarded the 2014 Ig Nobel Prize for physics .
Colonial history of the United States
Rice cultivation in South Carolina became another major commodity crop . Some historians have argued that slaves from the lowlands of western Africa , where rice was a basic crop , provided key skills , knowledge and technology for irrigation and construction of earthworks to support rice cultivation . The early methods and tools used in South Carolina were congruent with those in Africa . British immigrants would have had little or no familiarity with the complex process of growing rice in fields flooded by irrigation works . Africans were instrumental in the development of major earthworks for cultivating these commodities , as well as in the knowledge of technology and techniques for processing . The earthworks included extensive , elaborate systems of dams and irrigation for rice .
Water in California
Alfalfa uses about 18 % of California irrigation water and produces 4 % of California 's farm-gate revenue , most of which is used as livestock feed . In 2015 , California exported one - fourth of its total alfalfa production of roughly 2 million tons . About one - third of that , around 700,000 tons , went to China , Japan took about the same amount and Saudi Arabia bought 5,000 tons . Alfalfa farmers pay about $70 an acre - foot , in Los Angeles that same amount of water is worth $1000 per acre - foot . In 2012 , California exported 575,000 tons of alfalfa to China , for $586 million . Other common crop water use , if using all irrigated water : fruits and nuts with 34 % of water use and 45 % of revenue , field crops with 14 % of water and 4 % of revenue , pasture forage with 11 % of water use and 1 % of revenue , rice with 8 % of water use and 2 % of revenue ( despite its lack of water , California grows nearly 5 billion pounds of rice per year , and is the second largest rice - growing state ) , and truck farming of vegetables and nursery crops with 4 % of water use and 42 % of revenue ; head of broccoli : 5.4 gallons ; one walnut : 4.9 gallons ; head of lettuce : 3.5 gallons ; one tomato : 3.3 gallons ; one almond 1.1 gallon ; one pistachio : 0.75 gallon ; one strawberry 0.4 gallon ; one grape : 0.3 gallon .
History of agriculture
From the 8th century , the medieval Islamic world underwent a transformation in agricultural practice , described by the historian Andrew Watson as the Arab Agricultural Revolution . This transformation was driven by a number of factors including the diffusion of many crops and plants along Muslim trade routes , the spread of more advanced farming techniques , and an agricultural - economic system which promoted increased yields and efficiency . The shift in agricultural practice changed the economy , population distribution , vegetation cover , agricultural production , population levels , urban growth , the distribution of the labour force , cooking , diet , and clothing across the Islamic world . Muslim traders covered much of the Old World , and trade enabled the diffusion of many crops , plants and farming techniques across the region , as well as the adaptation of crops , plants and techniques from beyond the Islamic world . This diffusion introduced major crops to Europe by way of Al - Andalus , along with the techniques for their cultivation and cuisine . Sugar cane , rice , and cotton were among the major crops transferred , along with citrus and other fruit trees , nut trees , vegetables such as aubergine , spinach and chard , and the use of spices such as cumin , coriander , nutmeg and cinnamon . Intensive irrigation , crop rotation , and agricultural manuals were widely adopted . Irrigation , partly based on Roman technology , made use of noria water wheels , water mills , dams and reservoirs .
Mechanised agriculture
As of 2007 , mechanised harvesting of raisins is at 45 % ; however the rate has slowed due to high raisin demand and prices making the conversion away from hand labour less urgent . A new strain of grape developed by the USDA that drys on the vine and is easily harvested mechanically is expected to reduce the demand for labour .
Plant breeding
The majority of commercially released transgenic plants are currently limited to plants that have introduced resistance to insect pests and herbicides . Insect resistance is achieved through incorporation of a gene from Bacillus thuringiensis ( Bt ) that encodes a protein that is toxic to some insects . For example , the cotton bollworm , a common cotton pest , feeds on Bt cotton it will ingest the toxin and die . Herbicides usually work by binding to certain plant enzymes and inhibiting their action . The enzymes that the herbicide inhibits are known as the herbicides target site . Herbicide resistance can be engineered into crops by expressing a version of target site protein that is not inhibited by the herbicide . This is the method used to produce glyphosate resistant crop plants ( See Glyphosate )
Rice production in Thailand
The Thai government had strong incentives to increase rice production and they were successful in most of their plans . The government invested in irrigation , infrastructure , and other pro-rice projects . The World Bank also provided financing for dams , canals , locks , ditches , and other infrastructure in the Greater Chao Phraya Project . Pro-small farm mechanization policies protected agro-machinery manufacturers from outside competition . They also stimulated small machinery research and development that resulted by the late - 1990s in nearly two million locally produced two - wheel tractors , as well as one million axial flow pumps for irrigation , hundreds of thousands of small horsepower rice threshers , and 10,000 small horsepower caterpillar track - propelled combines that are able to harvest in small , fragmented , and still wet fields
Mining industry of Nigeria
Coal was first discovered in Enugu in 1909 , and the Ogbete Mine had opened and begun regularly extracting coal by 1916 . By 1920 , coal production had reached 180,122 long tons ( 183,012 t ) . Nigeria 's peak coal production was in the late 1950s , and by 1960 production was at 565,681 long tons ( 574,758 t ) . The Nigerian Civil War caused many mines to be abandoned . After the war ended in the early 1970s , coal production was never able to recover . Attempts to mechanize the industry in the 1970s and 1980s were ultimately unsuccessful , and actually hindered production due to problems with implementation and maintenance .
Atlantic slave trade
Historian Eric Williams in 1944 argued that the profits that Britain received from its sugar colonies , or from the slave trade between Africa and the Caribbean , was a major factor in financing Britain 's industrial revolution . However , he says that by the time of its abolition in 1833 it had lost its profitability and it was in Britain 's economic interest to ban it .
History of West Africa
In the steppes and savannah of the Sahara and Sahel , the Nilo - Saharan speakers started to collect and domesticate wild millet and sorghum between 8000 and 6000 BCE . Later , gourds , watermelons , castor beans , and cotton were also collected and domesticated . The people started capturing wild cattle and holding them in circular thorn hedges , resulting in domestication . They also started making pottery . Fishing , using bone tipped harpoons , became a major activity in the numerous streams and lakes formed from the increased rains .
Environmental impact of irrigation
Irrigated land area worldwide occupies about 16 % of the total agricultural area and the crop yield of irrigated land is roughly 40 % of the total yield . In other words , irrigated land produces 2.5 times more product than non-irrigated land . This article will discuss some of the environmental and socioeconomic impacts of irrigation .
The Gambia
Agriculture accounts for roughly 30 % of gross domestic product ( GDP ) and employs about 70 % of the labour force . Within agriculture , peanut production accounts for 6.9 % of GDP , other crops 8.3 % , livestock 5.3 % , fishing 1.8 % , and forestry 0.5 % . Industry accounts for about 8 % of GDP and services around 58 % . The limited amount of manufacturing is primarily agricultural - based ( e.g. , peanut processing , bakeries , a brewery , and a tannery ) . Other manufacturing activities include soap , soft drinks , and clothing .
New Deal
In the 1920s , farm production had increased dramatically thanks to mechanization , more potent insecticides and increased use of fertilizer . Due to an overproduction of agricultural products , farmers faced a severe and chronic agricultural depression throughout the 1920s . The Great Depression even worsened the agricultural crises and at the beginning of 1933 agricultural markets nearly faced collapse . Farm prices were so low that in Montana wheat was rotting in the fields because it could not be profitably harvested . In Oregon , sheep were slaughtered and left to the buzzards because meat prices were not sufficient to warrant transportation to markets .
Great Depression
The deficit spending had a transformative effect on Japan . Japan 's industrial production doubled during the 1930s . Further , in 1929 the list of the largest firms in Japan was dominated by light industries , especially textile companies ( many of Japan 's automakers , such as Toyota , have their roots in the textile industry ) . By 1940 light industry had been displaced by heavy industry as the largest firms inside the Japanese economy .
Carbon dioxide
The concentration of carbon dioxide has risen due to human activities . Combustion of fossil fuels and deforestation have caused the atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide to increase by about 43 % since the beginning of the age of industrialization . Most carbon dioxide from human activities is released from burning coal and other fossil fuels . Other human activities , including deforestation , biomass burning , and cement production also produce carbon dioxide . Human activities emit about 29 billion tons of carbon dioxide per year , while volcanoes emit between 0.2 and 0.3 billion tons . Human activities have caused CO to increase above levels not seen in hundreds of thousands of years . Currently , about half of the carbon dioxide released from the burning of fossil fuels remains in the atmosphere and is not absorbed by vegetation and the oceans .
American Civil War
Surdam argues that the blockade was a powerful weapon that eventually ruined the Southern economy , at the cost of few lives in combat . Practically , the entire Confederate cotton crop was useless ( although it was sold to Union traders ) , costing the Confederacy its main source of income . Critical imports were scarce and the coastal trade was largely ended as well . The measure of the blockade 's success was not the few ships that slipped through , but the thousands that never tried it . Merchant ships owned in Europe could not get insurance and were too slow to evade the blockade ; they simply stopped calling at Confederate ports .
Great Depression
The dramatic rise in productivity of major industries in the U.S. and the effects of productivity on output , wages and the work week are discussed by Spurgeon Bell in his book Productivity , Wages , and National Income ( 1940 ) .
Economic history of Argentina
Néstor Kirchner became president in May 2003 . In the mid-2000s , export of unprocessed soybeans and of soybean oil and meal generated more than 20 % of Argentina 's export revenue , triple the joint share of the traditional exports , beef and wheat . Export taxes comprised 8 % to 11 % of the Kirchner government 's total tax receipts , around two - thirds of which came from soy exports . Taxes on imports and exports increased government spending from 14 % to 25 % of GDP . However , the import and export taxes have discouraged foreign investment , while high spending has pushed inflation over 20 % .
American Civil War
The causes of secession were complex and have been controversial since the war began , but most academic scholars identify slavery as a central cause of the war . James C. Bradford wrote that the issue has been further complicated by historical revisionists , who have tried to offer a variety of reasons for the war . Slavery was the central source of escalating political tension in the 1850s . The Republican Party was determined to prevent any spread of slavery , and many Southern leaders had threatened secession if the Republican candidate , Lincoln , won the 1860 election . After Lincoln won , many Southern leaders felt that disunion was their only option , fearing that the loss of representation would hamper their ability to promote pro-slavery acts and policies .
American Civil War
The American Civil War ( also , known by other names ) was a civil war that was fought in the United States from 1861 to 1865 . As a result of the long - standing controversy over slavery , war broke out in April 1861 , when Confederate forces attacked Fort Sumter in South Carolina , shortly after U.S. President Abraham Lincoln was inaugurated . The nationalists of the Union proclaimed loyalty to the U.S. Constitution . They faced secessionists of the Confederate States , who advocated for states ' rights to expand slavery .
American Civil War
Slavery was illegal in much of the North , having been outlawed in the late 18th and early 19th centuries . It was also fading in the border states and in Southern cities , but it was expanding in the highly profitable cotton districts of the rural South and Southwest . Subsequent writers on the American Civil War looked to several factors explaining the geographic divide .
American Civil War
The election of Lincoln caused the legislature of South Carolina to call a state convention to consider secession . Prior to the war , South Carolina did more than any other Southern state to advance the notion that a state had the right to nullify federal laws and , even , secede from the United States . The convention summoned unanimously voted to secede on December 20 , 1860 , and adopted the `` Declaration of the Immediate Causes Which Induce and Justify the Secession of South Carolina from the Federal Union '' . It argued for states ' rights for slave owners in the South , but contained a complaint about states ' rights in the North in the form of opposition to the Fugitive Slave Act , claiming that Northern states were not fulfilling their federal obligations under the Constitution . The `` cotton states '' of Mississippi , Florida , Alabama , Georgia , Louisiana , and Texas followed suit , seceding in January and February 1861 .
History of the United Kingdom
During the American Civil War ( 1861 -- 1865 ) , British leaders personally disliked American republicanism and favoured the more aristocratic Confederacy , as it had been a major source of cotton for textile mills . Prince Albert was effective in defusing a war scare in late 1861 . The British people , who depended heavily on American food imports , generally favoured the United States . What little cotton was available came from New York , as the blockade by the US Navy shut down 95 % of Southern exports to Britain . In September 1862 , Britain ( along with France ) contemplated stepping in and negotiating a peace settlement , which could only mean war with the United States . But in the same month , US president Abraham Lincoln announced the Emancipation Proclamation would be issued in January 1863 making abolition of slavery in the Confederacy a war goal . Since support of the Confederacy now meant support for slavery , there was no longer any possibility of European intervention .
United Kingdom and the American Civil War
Once the war with the US began , the best hope for the survival of the Confederacy was military intervention by Britain and France . The US realized that as well and made it clear that recognition of the Confederacy meant war and the end of food shipments into Britain . The Confederates who had believed in `` King Cotton '' ( Britain had to support the Confederacy to obtain cotton for its industries ) were proven wrong . Britain , in fact , had ample stores of cotton in 1861 and depended much more on grain from the US .
Confederate States of America
Once war with the United States began , the Confederacy pinned its hopes for survival on military intervention by Great Britain and France . The Confederates who had believed that `` cotton is king '' -- that is , that Britain had to support the Confederacy to obtain cotton -- proved mistaken . The British had stocks to last over a year and had been developing alternative sources of cotton , most notably India and Egypt . They were not about to go to war with the U.S. to acquire more cotton at the risk of losing the large quantities of food imported from the North . The Confederate government repeatedly sent delegations to Europe , but historians give them low marks for their poor diplomacy . James M. Mason went to London and John Slidell traveled to Paris . They were unofficially interviewed , but neither secured official recognition for the Confederacy .