this post was submitted on 11 Jun 2024
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[–] [email protected] 100 points 4 months ago (7 children)

Americans will literally do anything except build trains

[–] [email protected] 18 points 4 months ago

4 kms across the ocean:

[–] [email protected] 14 points 4 months ago (3 children)

now that we have this river across the whole country, we can finally introduce swimming cars!

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[–] [email protected] 80 points 4 months ago (2 children)

Well, the Panama Canal is exactly that, built mostly that way.

[–] [email protected] 32 points 4 months ago (1 children)

Panama Canal is the biggest NIMBY project ever

[–] [email protected] 23 points 4 months ago (1 children)

Because it was built at the thinnest part of the content and used existing lakes?

Pretty sure Omaha would have loved an East\West canal across the continent.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 4 months ago (4 children)

Because it wasn't done for or with the approval of locals

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[–] [email protected] 13 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago)

It connected several lakes in the narrowest part of the continent. Not ‘exactly that’ at all

[–] [email protected] 54 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago) (1 children)

If they could do it in ancient Greece then Americans can do it today for sure!

Stolen from [email protected]

Also: although planned over 2000 years ago, it wasn't really made by ancient Greeks. They gave up and made a road to transport ships on it instead of actually digging. Only in modern time did they actually finish the canal

[–] [email protected] 15 points 4 months ago (6 children)

Wait... They had a movable pool that they rode the ships into and then horses dragged to the other waterway? That sounds awesome

[–] [email protected] 31 points 4 months ago

They more or less put wheels on ships or rather loaded them on trailers and simply dragged them over land. Funny thing is that Thucydides (460 BC–395 BC) wrote about this, and described it as an ancient practice!

https://www.amusingplanet.com/2018/09/diolkos-ancient-trackway-that-carried.html?m=1

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[–] [email protected] 33 points 4 months ago (4 children)
[–] [email protected] 16 points 4 months ago (1 children)

I love the 1950s, the solution to any problem was just "idk, have you tried nuking it?"

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[–] bdonvr 29 points 4 months ago (4 children)
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[–] [email protected] 28 points 4 months ago

"I get my kicks... on Canal 66."

[–] [email protected] 27 points 4 months ago (1 children)

You might need to account for an extra day or two to dig down low enough in the rocky mountains. Unless you're working with a friend and they brought their own shovel.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 4 months ago (1 children)

Just get some pickaxes and dig a tunnel

[–] [email protected] 9 points 4 months ago

This would also allow for a super cool water park. I'm all for it.

[–] [email protected] 23 points 4 months ago (4 children)

My first thought was if this was remotely possible on this scale, how many things would be disrupted and changed from the water movement alone. The Panama canal has to have locks because of the ocean differences, but no way would you have locks spanning a few hundred miles across. This thing would have tides back and forth.

[–] [email protected] 22 points 4 months ago (4 children)

Panama canal has to have locks because of the ocean differences

It's actually mostly due to the landscape of Panama, including the lake it uses to traverse and the mountains. The Pacific and Atlantic oceans don't different that much, maybe a few feet. And mostly due to tidal differences.

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[–] [email protected] 11 points 4 months ago (4 children)

Plus literally chopping down a large stretch of both the Appalachians and the Sierra Nevada would be insane.

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[–] [email protected] 19 points 4 months ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 32 points 4 months ago (1 children)

Actually, guys, maybe we should hear them out?

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[–] [email protected] 17 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago) (4 children)

Assuming the river would be identical in depth and breadth to the Panama canal, if every man, woman, and child in the US picked up a shovel they would need to move 305 cubic feet of dirt each. So if we all just moved 1 cubic foot of dirt per day, we could pull this off in a year.

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[–] [email protected] 17 points 4 months ago (6 children)

it could solve the water crisiseses

[–] [email protected] 24 points 4 months ago

Dude all you need is 4 square meters and 2 water buckets

[–] [email protected] 15 points 4 months ago (1 children)
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[–] [email protected] 16 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago) (1 children)

Do it small scale first and turn Florida into an island.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 4 months ago (5 children)
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[–] [email protected] 15 points 4 months ago

This will require more bridges, which creates more jobs. It's genius!

[–] [email protected] 15 points 4 months ago

I feel like there has to be an easier way to solve the homeless problem in San Francisco.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 4 months ago (2 children)

In which direction would it flow?

[–] [email protected] 10 points 4 months ago (1 children)

From the center to the borders, due to rain.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 4 months ago (4 children)

I wouldn't be so certain about that. Evaporation might be stronger similar to the mediterreanian sea. So water would flow from both sides into the channel.

But such a project probably disturbes weather patterns and ocean currents all together. Hence, I don't think we can be curtain until we've tried it. Now grab your shovel. FOR SCIENCE!

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[–] [email protected] 14 points 4 months ago

I don't trust anyone South of the Mistersippi river.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 4 months ago

A lot of the canals in the world (the majority I think, but please fact check that) were built in the 19th century. So yeah... with shovels.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 4 months ago (4 children)

Literally described the Mississippi river.

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[–] [email protected] 12 points 4 months ago (1 children)

With the low resolution I can't quite tell if I would suddenly live on the beach or underwater

[–] [email protected] 12 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago) (1 children)

Depends on if you can outrun a shovel.

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[–] [email protected] 11 points 4 months ago (2 children)
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[–] [email protected] 10 points 4 months ago (1 children)

I would need a study on if this would negatively impact desert ecosystems or introduce invasive species, but otherwise it sounds pretty cool if we limit the size until it's about as big as the new Panama Canal expansions.

[–] [email protected] 16 points 4 months ago (24 children)

Nevermind any communities you'd separate or destroy by dropping a big ol' river through the middle of them

[–] [email protected] 10 points 4 months ago

Americans don't mind building highways, so it is not a concern to them.

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[–] [email protected] 9 points 4 months ago (5 children)

But a bit more south would be easier. Oh, wait.

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