Stream Processes and Landforms
GEO 411
Spring 2012
Instructor: Dr. Alan F. Arbogast
Office: 121 Geography
Office Hours: 2:00 to 3:00 on Tuesday; 1:30 to 2:30 on Wednesday; and by appointment
Phone: 355-5262
Email:
Lectures: 12:40-2:00 T/Th; 120 Geography Building
Text: No specific text is used in this class. Instead, a variety of readings will be assigned from textbooks and primary literature.
COURSE GOALS
The course examines the classic themes associated with the behavior of streams, including channel hydraulics, sediment transport, hydraulic geometry, regime theory, channel patterns, river networks, and landform evolution.
ASSESSMENT
Exams: There will be two examinations in this class - a midterm and final. Each of these exams will be an essay exam worth 100 points. Dates of the exams are provided below.
Readings: Approximately every other class period we will discuss a reading associated with fluvial processes and geomorphology. Each of you will lead one discussion of a selected reading. Readings will be assigned in the previous class period. In an effort to insure that everyone reads the assigned papers, a series of pop quizzes will given. Each quiz is worth 10 points. The number of quizzes is to be determined. Your worst quiz score will be dropped.
Course Project: This project will contribute to our understanding of fluvial systems in Michigan. The project will consist of an analysis of individual watersheds (drainage basins; e.g., Grand, Muskegon) to basin characteristics. This project will involve topographic and hydrological analysis, as well as a field component to provide examples of each system. This project will be a team project (2 per team) for undergraduate students, whereas graduate students will work on an individual basis. Results of these investigations will be presented at the end of the term in both oral and written form. Oral presentations will consist of 15-minute powerpoint talks outlining project results. A 12-page written summary, including maps, figures, and references will also be submitted.
Course assessment will be based on the following criteria:
Midterm Exam 100 points
Final Exam 100 points
Written Report 100 points
Oral Presentation 50 points
Pop Quizzes 10 points each; # to be determined
FINAL GRADES ARE BASED ON THE FOLLOWING SCALE
Percent / Grade91-100 / 4.0
84-90 / 3.5
78-83 / 3.0
72-77 / 2.5
66-71 / 2.0
59-65 / 1.5
50-58 / 1.0
< 50 / 0.0
TENTATIVE CLASS OUTLINE (Subject to Change)
DATE, LECTURE, TOPIC (& associated readings) READINGS
1/10 Introduction to the Course
1/12 The Fluvial System Arbogast
1/17 Hillslope Processes and Channel Initiation
1/19 Drainage Basin Morphology and Network Characteristics Knighton (Ch 2)
1/24 Basin Hydrology and Sediment Yield Griffiths et al.
1/26 Stream Discharge
1/31 Open Channel Flow Knighton (Ch 3)
2/2 Open Channel Flow
2/7 Floods and Flood Frequency Baker et al.
2/9 Hydraulic Geometry
2/14 Hydraulic Geometry Stewardson
2/16 Channel Patterns (meandering, braided, straight)
2/21 Channel Patterns
2/23 Complex Response and the Graded Stream Knox
2/28 The Stream Valley
- Midterm Examination (Take Home)
3 – 1 Association of American Geographers Conference (No Class)
SPRING BREAK (3/5 - 3/9)
3/13 Valley Fills Blum et al.
3/15 Stream Terraces
3/20 Stream Terraces Reneau
3/22 Reconstructing Valley Histories
3/27 Reconstructing Valley Histories
3/29 Deltas Arbogast et al.
4/3 Deltas and Alluvial Fans
4/5 Alluvial Fans Hooke & Dorn
4/10 Fluvial Sedimentology
4/12 Fluvial Sedimentology Friedman & Sanders
4/13 - 4/14 Field Trip
4/17 Human Impact on Rivers Womack and Schumm
4/19 Human Impact on Rivers Graf
4/24 Student Presentations
4/26 Student Presentations
FINAL EXAMINATION - Wednesday, May 2; 12:45 - 2:45 p.m.
Disability Accommodations
Any student who feels that she or he may need accommodations based on a disability should make an appointment to see Prof. Rivers or Prof. Schmitt Olabisi. Resources and information for students with disabilities are available at http://www.rcpd.msu.edu/ or at the resource center in 120 Bessey Hall.
Academic Integrity
Academic integrity is a fundamental value of higher education at any institution of higher education; therefore, we can not tolerate acts of cheating, plagiarism, falsification or attempts to cheat, plagiarize or falsify. Should we determine that an academic integrity violation has taken place, we reserve the right either to assign a grade sanction or to refer the case to appropriate campus authority. Ignorance (not knowing the rules) is NOT an excuse for an academic integrity violation. Therefore, if you have any questions about what constitutes academic dishonesty, please do not hesitate to speak with us before you turn in a test or assignment.
Drops and Adds
The last day to add this course is the end of the first week of classes. The last day to drop this course with a 100 percent refund and no grade reported is 2/3/2012. The last day to drop this course with no refund and no grade reported is 2/29/2012. You should immediately make a copy of your amended schedule to verify you have added or dropped this course.
COURSE READINGS
Readings will be derived from the following texts and research articles.
Arbogast, A.F., Bookout, J.R., Schrotenboer, B.L., Lansdale, A.M., Rust, G.A., Bato, V.A. Post-glacial fluvial response and landform development in the upper Muskegon River Valley in North-Central Lower Michigan, U.S.A. Geomorphology 102: 615-623.
Baker, V.R., Kochel, R.C., and Patton, P.C., 1988. Flood Geomorphology. Wiley, New York.
Bloom, A.L. 1991. Geomorphology: A Systematic Analysis of Late Cenozoic Landforms. Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ.
Blum, M.D., Guccione, M.J., Wysocki, D.A.., Robnett, P.C., and Rutledge, E.M., 2000. Late Pleistocene evolution of the lower Mississippi River valley, Southern Missouri to Arkansas. Bulletin of the Geological Society of America, v 112: 221-235.
Bull, W.B. 1991. Geomorphic Responses to Climatic Change. Oxford University Press. New York, NY.
Friedman, G.M., and Sanders, J.E. 1978. Principles of Sedimentology. John Wiley and Sons, Inc. New York, NY.
Graf, W.L. 2006. Downstream hydrologic and geomorphic effects of large dams on American rivers. Geomorphology 79: 336-360.
Griffiths, P.G., Hereford, R., and Webb, R.H. 2006. Sediment yield and runoff frequency of small dranage basins in the Mojave Desert. Geomorphology 74: 232-244.
Hooke, R.L., and Dorn, R.I. 1992. Segmentation of alluvial fans in Death Valley, California: New insights from surface exposure dating and laboratory modeling. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 17: 557-574.
Knighton, D.A. 1984. Fluvial Forms and Processes. Arnold Publishing, New York, NY.
Knox, J.C., 1976. Concept of the graded stream. In W. Melhorn and R. Flemal, eds., Theories of landform development, p. 169-198, Binghamton, New York, State University of New York, Publications in Geomorphology.
Reneau, S.L. 2000. Stream incision and terrace development in Frijoles Canyon, Bandelier National Monument, New Mexico, and the influence of lithology and climate. Geomorphology 32: 171-193.
Schumm, S.A. 1977. The Fluvial System. Blackburn Press, Caldwell, NJ.
Stewardson, M. 2005. Hydraulic geometry of stream reaches. Journal of Hydrology 306: 97-111.
Womack, W.R., and Schumm, S.A. 1977. Terraces along Douglas Creek, northwestern Colorado: An example of episodic erosion. Geology 5: 72-76.