Greg Festinger, age 12, of Nashua, N.H., for his question:

HOW WERE THE FINGER LAKES FORMED?

In west central New York you'll find a group of long, narrow lakes called the Finger Lakes. They received their name because they are shaped somewhat like the fingers of a hand. Geographers differ on how the lakes were formed.

Some geographers believed the lakes were create when river water filled valleys dammed by glacial deposits. Others believe that ice from glaciers carved out valleys as much as 175 feet below sea level, allowing the lakes to form.

Most geographers include 11 lakes in the group. From east to west they are Otisco, Skaneateles, Owasco, Cayuga, Seneca, Keuka, Canandaigua, Honeoye, Canadice, Hemlock and Conesus, Seneca is the largest of the Finger Lakes.

It is 37 miles long and four miles wide at its broadest point. This lake is 600 feet deep at some points.

Cayuga Lake is 40 miles long, two miles wide and 435 feet deep. Taughannock Falls, which is 215 feet tall, is near the head of Cayuga Lake. It is one of the highest falls east of the Rocky Mountains.

Seneca and Cayuga lakes are connected at their northern ends by the Cayuga and Seneca Canal, part of the New York State Barge Canal System.