Physical Geography
Chapter 16 Learning Objectives and Study Questions
1. Describe the three types of load a stream transports and suggest how you might
obtain a sample of each.
2. Briefly explain why a stream attempting to remain graded will develop a braided
channel if its load is greater than its capacity or a meandering channel if its load is
less than its capacity.
3. Briefly explain under what conditions a meandering stream will develop an oxbow
lake, entrenched meanders, or stream terraces.
4. Explain why streams build alluvial fans at the mouths of steep canyons in arid
environments; what factors lead to sediment deposition at these sites?
1. Streams do the work of erosion by:
A. abrasion
B. hydraulic lifting
C. dissolution
D. all of the above
E. none of the above
2. Streams carry sand and gravel primarily as _____ load.
A. bed
B. suspended
C. dissolved
D. wide
E. over
3. A graded stream balances its _____ with its _____.
A. load, velocity
B. discharge, capacity
C. capacity, load
D. velocity, discharge
E. ends, means
4. The Fall River in Rocky Mountain National Park (shown in accompanying photo) has
a/an _____ channel.
A. braided
B. overgrown
C. incised
D. straight
E. meandering
5. Braided channels form where a stream’s _____ exceeds its _____.
A. velocity, load
B. load, capacity
C. capacity, load
D. discharge, load
E. discharge, capacity
6. In response to rapid uplift or a drop in base level, streams cut into their own
floodplain deposits to produce:
A. canyons
B. entrenched meanders
C. gullies
D. badlands
E. alluvial terraces
7. Streams deposit sediment and build alluvial fans in response to decreases in all of
the following, except:
A. discharges
B. dissolved loads
C. gradients
D. capacities
E. velocities
8. In arid regions, ephemeral lakes that form in closed basins—as well as the dry beds
left behind when they evaporate—are known as:
A. floodplains
B. sinks
C. sumps
D. oases
E. playas