"...co-evolution of flora and flow led to the meandering rivers we know today..."Hmm. I respectfully disagree. Strongly.
One need only to look at Mars, which is, as far as I know, completely devoid of plant life throughout its history, yet shows river meanders quite clearly in exhumed deposits in Eberswalde Crater as seen below (click to enlarge):
And take a look at these meandering stream courses on Titan, not created by flowing water but by liquid hydrocarbons:
No plants on Titan (a moon of Saturn), either, as it's impossibly cold there.In other words, stream gradient and sediment particle size and total sediment load are considerably more important controls on river meandering than the establishment of plants (although certainly a stabilizing influence on the floodplain) that is the premise of the linked podcast.
I concur with your interpretation. Another theory is that meanders form when dams are built, either by animals or humans. Not too likely on Mars or Titan, I'd say...
ReplyDeleteI would have expected more from reviewers/editors at Sci Am regarding content that they post on their web site. There were at least some good comments posted in response.
ReplyDeleteHi, apologies for butting in..
ReplyDeleteI am a layman (ex Geography student) trying to explain to my local community in The Cheviots (Northern England uplands) that the 'problems' our community is having because the River Breamish is meandering will not be solved by constraining and straightening it..
How do I explain about the turbulent nature of fluids and how this effects water's flow and eroision/deposition patterns?