Deck 17: Flowing Water: Fluvial Systems

Question 1

Today, Mesopotamia consists of Spain and France.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

Stream piracy occurs when two streams merge to form one larger stream.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

First-order streams are often intermittent streams.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

The Johnstown Flood in 1889 was a flash flood.

Question 5

First-order streams are less likely to have meanders than higher-order streams.

Question 6

Flowing water is the most important and geographically widespread agent of erosion.

Question 7

Distributaries are found at the headwaters of a stream.

Question 8

Soils deposited by streams are poor in plant nutrients.

Question 9

Stream rejuvenation can form a water gap.

Question 10

Internal drainage basins sometimes have highly salty lakes.

Question 11

Streams in undeveloped areas experience sudden spikes in discharge during heavy precipitation events compared to streams in urbanized areas.

Question 12

There are two main types of flooding: flash floods and seasonal floods.

Question 13

Geologic uplift gives streams more energy to erode Earth's surface.

Question 14

Waterfalls slowly migrate downstream through erosion.

Question 15

The radial stream drainage pattern is the most common type of drainage pattern.

Question 16

Drainage basins are usually small and geographically limited.

Question 17

Natural levees are built up only during stream flooding.

Question 18

Stream deposits are often sorted by size.

Question 19

Dams and reservoirs reduce peak discharge amounts of a stream following a storm.

Question 20

Meanders only develop in low-gradient streams.

Question 21

Seasonal floods are more dangerous than flash floods.

Question 22

Many major world cities are located on stream floodplains.

Question 23

It is not possible to tell whether a stream is superposed or antecedent by simple visual observation.

Question 24

High-gradient streams occur on the floodplains of a drainage basin.

Question 25

The California Gold Rush miners used hydraulic mining to wash gold from the hillsides.

Question 26

A first-order stream has no tributaries.

Question 27

Water diversions by people can create anthropogenic intermittent streams.

Question 28

Australia has the largest internal drainage basins in the world.

Question 29

Which is not one of the pros of dams and their reservoirs?

A)water storage
B)sedimentation
C)flood control
D)recreation

Question 30

Stream capacity refers to the amount of material collectively that a stream can carry.

Question 31

The dissolved load carried by a stream settles out by gravity at base level.

Question 32

The amount of water flowing in a stream channel is called stream size.

Question 33

A stream is a channel in which water flows downhill by the force of gravity.

Question 34

Floodplains experience flooding on a regular basis.

Question 35

If the Sun were to stop shining permanently, fluvial erosion would continue.

Question 36

Hydroelectricity is a carbon-free energy source.

Question 37

Subsidence occurs when sediments compact and the land surface elevation lowers.

Question 38

Early subsistence farming first began in ancient Mesopotamia.

Question 39

Geographers refer to the size of fragments a stream can transport as stream competence.

Question 40

Which is not among structures typically used by people to reduce flooding?

A)dams
B)levees
C)stream bypasses
D)canals

Question 41

Which is a disadvantage of levees?

A)sedimentation reduces reservoir capacity
B)often constrict the stream channel and reduce riparian habitat
C)requires large amounts of undeveloped land that can be flooded
D)controls flooding

Question 42

In a stream's headwaters, what size of stream channel material would most likely be found?

A)large, angular boulders
B)well-rounded stones and pebbles
C)sand, silt, and clay
D)dissolved minerals

Question 43

In the figure, box B shows what type of drainage pattern?

A)trellis
B)radial
C)deranged
D)centripetal

Question 44

What do dams and levees do to the rate of natural subsidence in coastal deltas?

A)They increase the rate of subsidence.
B)They decrease the rate of subsidence.
C)They do not influence the rate of subsidence.
D)Scientists are not certain how they affect the rate of subsidence.

Question 45

Blocking the flow of a stream with a concrete dam creates a __________.

A)reservoir
B)delta
C)lake
D)distributary

Question 46

As rills deepen, they develop into __________.

A)exotic streams
B)gullies
C)interfluves
D)sheetwash

Question 47

Which term refers to the fastest area of flow in a stream?

A)thalweg
B)cut bank
C)point bar
D)oxbow lake

Question 48

What type of delta is found at the mouth of the Mississippi River?

A)arcuate delta
B)bird's foot delta
C)artificial delta
D)forested delta

Question 49

A __________ is a single large stream into which smaller tributaries merge.

A)drainage basin
B)trunk stream
C)tributary
D)mouth

Question 50

Floodplains are built through the process of __________.

A)aggradation
B)degradation
C)denudation
D)erosion

Question 51

__________ drainage occurs in internal drainage basins.

A)Trellis
B)Deranged
C)Radial
D)Centripetal

Question 52

At about the halfway point between a stream's headwaters and its mouth, what size of stream channel material would most likely be found?

A)large, angular boulders
B)well-rounded stones and pebbles
C)sand, silt, and clay
D)dissolved minerals

Question 53

A stream's __________ is found where the stream meets the ocean.

A)drainage basin
B)trunk stream
C)tributary
D)mouth

Question 54

Canada makes about __________ percent of its electricity from dams.

A)50
B)60
C)90
D)98

Question 55

__________ drainage resembles the branches of a tree.

A)Dendritic
B)Deranged
C)Radial
D)Rectangular

Question 56

Which defines an alluvial fan?

A)a cone-shaped accumulation of sediments deposited by a stream
B)a small stream that joins with other small streams
C)the area of flat land near a stream that experiences flooding on a regular basis
D)a stream that forms intertwining channels around sediments in the streambed

Question 57

A __________ is a geographic region drained by a stream.

A)drainage basin
B)trunk stream
C)tributary
D)mouth

Question 58

Which is not a characteristic of a low-gradient stream?

A)low stream order
B)high capacity
C)low competence
D)mostly sand, silt, and clay on the streambed

Question 59

__________ are flat areas between stream channels.

A)Exotic streams
B)Gullies
C)Interfluves
D)Sheetwash

Question 60

Small particles of clay and silt that are suspended in the stream are an example of what?

A)abrasion
B)the dissolved load
C)the suspended load
D)the bed load

Question 61

The Mississippi River has an average annual discharge of about __________ cubic meters per second.

A)10,000
B)20,000
C)30,000
D)40,000

Question 62

Which is a disadvantage of stream bypasses?

A)sedimentation reduces reservoir capacity
B)often constrict the stream channel and reduce riparian habitat
C)requires large amounts of undeveloped land that can be flooded
D)controls flooding

Question 63

Heavy material moving in the streambed is an example of what?

A)abrasion
B)the dissolved load
C)the suspended load
D)the bed load

Question 64

Which defines a braided stream?

A)a cone-shaped accumulation of sediments deposited by a stream
B)a small stream that joins with other small streams
C)the area of flat land near a stream that experiences flooding on a regular basis
D)a stream that forms intertwining channels around sediments in the streambed

Question 65

Why do coastal deltas subside?

A)Plate tectonics lowers the land elevation.
B)The weight of buildings people place on deltas causes them to sink.
C)Farming activities cause them to subside.
D)The weight of sediments causes them to compact.

Question 66

Which is the most likely sediment sorting sequence that would occur during stream flooding?

A)gravel closest to the stream channel, then sand, silt, and clay farther away
B)sand closest to the stream channel, then gravel, silt, and clay farther away
C)clay closest to the stream channel, then gravel, sand, and silt farther away
D)silt closest to the stream channel, then gravel, sand, and clay farther away

Question 67

In the figure, box A shows what type of drainage pattern?

A)dendritic
B)radial
C)rectangular
D)centripetal

Question 68

In the figure, box E shows what type of drainage pattern?

A)deranged
B)radial
C)rectangular
D)trellis

Question 69

Which is not a characteristic of a high-gradient stream?

A)low stream order
B)low discharge
C)large, angular rocks
D)high stream order

Question 70

Blocking the flow of a stream with a natural phenomenon, like a landslide, creates a __________.

A)reservoir
B)delta
C)lake
D)distributary

Question 71

Stream height is measured using what?

A)a stilling well
B)a current meter
C)a laser
D)a stream hydrograph

Question 72

Which best describes stream discharge in an undeveloped area immediately following a storm?

A)rapid increase and rapid decrease in discharge
B)gradual increase and gradual decrease in discharge
C)rapid increase and gradual decrease in discharge
D)gradual increase and rapid decrease in discharge

Question 73

__________ drainage can form where bedrock jointing creates a linear pattern of streams.

A)Dendritic
B)Deranged
C)Rectangular
D)Trellis

Question 74

A(n) __________ flows briefly only after heavy rainstorms.

A)intermittent stream
B)ephemeral stream
C)permanent stream
D)exotic stream

Question 75

__________ drainage forms on a surface that was recently covered by ice sheets.

A)Dendritic
B)Deranged
C)Radial
D)Rectangular

Question 76

__________ form where a stream cuts through alternating layers of hard and soft bedrock.

A)V-shaped valleys
B)Slot canyons
C)Stair-step canyons
D)U-shaped canyons

Question 77

__________ form where a stream downcuts into bedrock with vertical joints.

A)V-shaped valleys
B)Slot canyons
C)Stair-step canyons
D)U-shaped canyons

Question 78

If a stream has a 1% annual probability of flooding, what is the probability that it will flood sometime during a 100-year period?

A)1%
B)50%
C)75%
D)100%

Question 79

If a stream is 6 meters wide, 1 meter deep on average, and flows at 1 meter per second, what is its discharge in cubic meters per second?

A)1
B)6
C)8
D)10

Question 80

A(n) __________ is a looping bend in a stream on a floodplain.

A)knickpoint
B)escarpment
C)slot canyon
D)meander