Application of Geomorphic Data to Archaeology: A Comment

1973 ◽  
Vol 38 (4) ◽  
pp. 428-431 ◽  
Author(s):  
David L. Weide ◽  
Margaret L. Weide
Keyword(s):  
Archaeological Site ◽  
Stream Channels ◽  
Drainage Basins ◽  
Recent Proposal ◽  
Geographic Space ◽  
Drainage Networks ◽  
Locational Analysis ◽  
Hydrologic Data ◽  
Standardized Method

AbstractArchaeological site surveying and locational analysis of anthropological data depend in part on discrete subdivisions of geographic space. This fact is amplified in a recent proposal by Plog and Hill (1971) that outlines a numerical system for ordering stream channels and drainage basins as part of the statistical basis for correlation of site data. As proposed, however, their system is unworkable when used in conjunction with available geomorphic and hydrologic data. It is more convenient to use an established and standardized method of ranking drainage networks that allows correlation of comparable geomorphic data between and within basins of all sizes.

scholarly journals Peak Flows and Stormwater Networks Design—Current and Future Management of Urban Surface Watersheds

Water ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 759 ◽  
Author(s):  
António Freire Diogo ◽  
José Antunes do Carmo
Keyword(s):  
Unsteady Flow ◽  
Rational Method ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Urban Drainage ◽  
Drainage Basins ◽  
Peak Flows ◽  
Input Surface ◽  
Drainage Networks ◽  
Saint Venant Equations ◽  
And Control

Stormwater urban drainage systems are typically designed in open channel flow. Pipe sewers must have enough capacity to transport maximum design flows for a given frequency of the project rainfall. The classic rational method or related procedures that are based on rational approaches are still currently used to a great extent, particularly for small urban drainage basins, and the pipes are frequently designed in uniform steady flow. Numerical integration of Saint-Venant equations for one-dimensional gradually varied unsteady flow allows the computation of waves’ progression along the pipes for given input surface hydrographs. This paper presents a comprehensive, systematic, simple, and original comparison between the peak flows that are achieved through simulation in unsteady flow using an implicit complete dynamic model, developed in the Laboratory of Hydraulics, Water Resources and Environment of Coimbra University, and those that are obtained with the classic rational method along urban drainage networks. Boundary conditions and some approximations typically considered in the methodologies are analyzed in detail. Classic rational approaches may underestimate the peak and design flows. Practical recommendations for the system design phase when rational approaches are used are also proposed. The need for indispensable requirements for suitable urbanization rules, intelligent management of surface runoff in urban basins, and control measures for the reduction of peak flows entering existing networks is confirmed and reinforced.

scholarly journals Controlling Factors of Badland Morphological Changes in the Emilia Apennines (Northern Italy)

Water ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 539
Author(s):  
Paola Coratza ◽  
Carlotta Parenti
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Agricultural Land ◽  
Drainage Basin ◽  
Morphological Changes ◽  
Land Use Changes ◽  
Northern Italy ◽  
Drainage Basins ◽  
Drainage Networks ◽  
Intensive Land Use

Badlands are typical erosional landforms of the Apennines (Northern Italy) that form on Plio-Pleistocene clayey bedrock and rapidly evolve. The present study aimed at identification and assessment of the areal and temporal changes of badlands within a pilot area of the Modena Province (Emilia Apennines), where no previous detailed investigation has been carried out. For this purpose, a diachronic investigation was carried out to map the drainage basin and the drainage networks of the linear erosion features in the study area during the last 40 years, and to evaluate changes in badlands drainage basins morphometry and surface, land use and pluviometry. The investigation carried out indicated a general stabilisation trend of the badlands in the study area. In fact, a reduction in the bare surface area from 6187.1 m2 in 1973 to 4214.1 m2 in 2014 (31%), due to an intensified revegetation process around the badland areas, has been recorded. This trend, in line with the results of research carried out in other sector of the Northern Apennines, is mainly due to intensive land use changes, mostly the increase in forest cover and the reduction of agricultural land, that occurred in the study area from the 1970s onwards.

scholarly journals THE INFLUENCE OF LITHOLOGY ON THE FORMS OF HILLSLOPES AND DRAINAGE BASINS IN SOIL MANTLED LANDSCAPES

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sam Johnstone
Keyword(s):  
Rock Properties ◽  
Slope Aspect ◽  
Geologic Structure ◽  
Drainage Basins ◽  
Soil Thickness ◽  
Soil Transport ◽  
Rock Types ◽  
Drainage Networks ◽  
Basin Scale ◽  
Valley Networks

Much of the Earth's surface is blanketed by a mantle of soil and weathered rock. In these settings, topographic forms are typically smooth, with convex hillslopes grading subtly into the concave valley networks that define drainage basins. In 1877, G.K. Gilbert recognized that this smooth topography masked the underlying variability in geologic structure and proclaimed this the `Law of Divides.' Gilbert reasoned that in settings where rock weathered to soil faster than that soil could be eroded, topographic forms would be dictated by the processes transporting that soil rather than the variations in strength of the underlying rocks. There are exceptions to every rule, and this dissertation focuses on exceptions to Gilbert's `Law of Divides,' situations where lithology influences the form of soil-mantled landscapes. I begin at hillslopes, demonstrating that if soil transport is sensitive to soil thickness, which in turn depends on underlying rock properties, variations in hillslope gradient can arise at geologic contacts, a phenomenon observed in some landscapes. Following this, I focus on the heads of valley networks and ultimately entire drainage basins. In the Gabilan Mesa, in the central Coast Ranges of California, properties of the weathered zone vary with slope aspect, placing rocks that favor headward channel growth close to the surface on south facing slopes. As a result, the preferential expansion of channel heads on south-facing slopes has led to a basin-scale topographic asymmetry. I conclude by measuring asymmetry in drainage basins in a number of other landscapes, and demonstrate that asymmetry in the structure of drainage networks is most pronounced in rock types that may be especially vulnerable to erosion. Hence, even at the largest scales, soil-mantled topography may encode some signature of the properties of underlying rocks.

scholarly journals Detecting Associations between Archaeological Site Distributions and Landscape Features: A Monte Carlo Simulation Approach for the R Environment

Geosciences ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 326
Author(s):  
Richard J. Hewitt ◽  
Francis F. Wenban-Smith ◽  
Martin R. Bates
Keyword(s):  
Monte Carlo Simulation ◽  
Monte Carlo ◽  
Archaeological Site ◽  
Distribution Patterns ◽  
Aerial Photographs ◽  
Archaeological Sites ◽  
Software Environment ◽  
Point Distribution ◽  
Drainage Networks ◽  
High Degree

Detecting association between archaeological sites and physical landscape elements like geological deposits, vegetation, drainage networks, or areas of modern disturbance like mines or quarries is a key goal of archaeological projects. This goal is complicated by the incomplete nature of the archaeological record, the high degree of uncertainty of typical point distribution patterns, and, in the case of deeply buried archaeological sites, the absence of reliable information about the ancient landscape itself. Standard statistical approaches may not be applicable (e.g., X2 test) or are difficult to apply correctly (regression analysis). Monte Carlo simulation, devised in the late 1940s by mathematical physicists, offers a way to approach this problem. In this paper, we apply a Monte Carlo approach to test for association between Lower and Middle Palaeolithic sites in Hampshire and Sussex, UK, and quarries recorded on historical maps. We code our approach in the popular ‘R’ software environment, describing our methods step-by-step and providing complete scripts so others can apply our method to their own cases. Association between sites and quarries is clearly shown. We suggest ways to develop the approach further, e.g., for detecting associations between sites or artefacts and remotely-sensed deposits or features, e.g., from aerial photographs or geophysical survey.

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