Washington, D.C., officially the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States of America. The city is on the Potomac River across from Virginia and shares land borders with Maryland to its north and east. It was named after George Washington, a founding patriot and the first president of the United States. The district Washington, D.C., is a leading center for national and international research organizations, especially think tanks engaged in public policy. As of 2020, 8% of the country's think tanks are based in the city, including many of the largest and most widely cited, including the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Center for Strategic and International Studies, Peterson Institute for International Economics, The Heritage Foundation, and Urban Institute. Washington, D.C., is home to many non-profit organizations that engage with issues of domestic and global importance by conducting advanced research, running programs, or public advocacy. Among these organizations are the UN Foundation, Human Rights Campaign, Amnesty International, and the National Endowment for Democracy. Major medical research institutions include the MedStar Washington Hospital Center and the Children's National Medical Center. The city is the country's primary location for international development firms, many of which contract with the D.C.-based United States Agency for International Development (USAID),… The National Gallery of Art is on the National Mall near the Capitol and features American and European artworks. The U.S. government owns the gallery and its collections. However, they are not a part of the Smithsonian Institution. The National Building Museum, which occupies the former Pension Building near Judiciary Square, was chartered by Congress and hosts exhibits on architecture, urban planning, and design. The Botanic Garden is a botanical garden and museum operated by the U.S. Congres However, they usually are weak by the time they reach Washington, partly due to the city's inland location. Flooding of the Potomac River, however, caused by a combination of high tide, storm surge, and runoff, has been known to cause extensive property damage in the Georgetown neighborhood of the city. Precipitation occurs throughout the year. The highest recorded temperature was 106 °F (41 °C) on August 6, 1918, and on July 20, 1930. More recently, Washington, D.C. recorded a high temperature of 105 °F (41 °C) on July 7, 2012. The lowest recorded temperature was −15 °F (−26 °C) on February 11, 1899, right before the Great Blizzard of 1899. Despite popular belief, no law has ever limited buildings to the height of the United States Capitol or the 555-foot (169 m) Washington Monument, which remains the district's tallest structure. City leaders have cited the height restriction as a primary reason that the district has limited affordable housing and its metro area has suburban sprawl and traffic problems. Washington, D.C., is divided into four quadrants of unequal area: Northwest (NW), Northeast (NE), Southeast (SE), and Southwest (SW). The axes bounding the quadrants radiate from the U.S. Capitol. All road names include the quadrant abbreviation to indicate their location. Among these organizations are the UN Foundation, Human Rights Campaign, Amnesty International, and the National Endowment for Democracy. Major medical research institutions include the MedStar Washington Hospital Center and the Children's National Medical Center. The city is the country's primary location for international development firms, many of which contract with the D.C.-based United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the U.S. federal government's aid agency. The American Red Cross, a humanitarian agency focused on emergency relief, is also based in the city. U Street Corridor in Northwest is home to Howard Theatre and Lincoln Theatre, which hosted music legends such as Washington, D.C. natives Duke Ellington, John Coltrane, and Miles Davis. Just east of U Street is Shaw, which also served as a major cultural center during the Jazz Age. Intersecting with U Street is Fourteenth Street, which was an extension of the U Street cultural corridor during the 1920s through the 1960s. The collection of Fourteenth Street, U Street, and Shaw was the location of the Black Renaissance in D.C., which was part of the larger Harlem Renaissance. Duke Ellington, among the most prominent jazz composers and musicians of his time, was born and raised in Washington, and began his music career in the city. The center of the city's jazz scene during those years was U street and Shaw. Among the city's major jazz locations were the Lincoln Theatre and the Howard Theatre. Washington has its own native music genre called go-go; a post-funk, percussion-driven flavor of rhythm and blues that was popularized in the late 1970s by D.C. band leader Chuck Brown. The district is an important center for indie culture and music in the United States. The National Building Museum, which occupies the former Pension Building near Judiciary Square, was chartered by Congress and hosts exhibits on architecture, urban planning, and design. The Botanic Garden is a botanical garden and museum operated by the U.S. Congress that is open to the public. There are several private art museums in Washington, D.C., that house major collections and exhibits open to the public, such as the National Museum of Women in the Arts and The Phillips Collection in Dupont Circle, the first museum of modern art in the United States. It is a complex of three buildings: Thomas Jefferson Building, John Adams Building and James Madison Memorial Building, all located in the Capitol Hill neighborhood. The Jefferson Building houses the library's reading room, a copy of the Gutenberg Bible, Thomas Jefferson's original library, and several museum exhibits. The District of Columbia Public Library