Tag Archive for: visual

The Visual Water Dictionary: Bank Stability

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Confused about wonky water terms? No prob! The Visual Water Dictionary attempts to cut confusion on ambiguous water terminology with easy visual references.

Today’s Term: Bank Stability

Bank Stability refers to the conditions and properties of a river or stream bank that either resist or counteract erosion,  such as water flow, type of soil, trees and vegetation cover.Some warning signs of poor bank stability include steep banks, exposed soil, soil that has fallen into the stream, leaning trees and exposed intrastructure.

Visible signs of poor bank stability (via trailvoice on flickr)

Often confused with…

No credit for you when when bank stability is eroding. (via sameold2008 on Flickr)

Bank Stability (in the financial sector) refers to the conditions and properties of a financial institution that either gain or erode capital (i.e., your money/life savings.) Some warning signs of poor bank stability in the financial sector include soiled pants,  steep losses, fallen investments, leaning politicians and exposed fraud and criminal mischief.

The Visual Water Dictionary: Plume

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The Visual Water Dictionary attempts to cut confusion on ambiguous water terminology with easy visual references.

Today’s Term: Plume

Plume is an underground pattern of contaminant concentrations created by the movement of groundwater beneath a contaminant source, with the contaminants spreading in the direction of groundwater movement.  The source site has the highest concentration, and the concentration decreases and dissipates away from the source.

Diagram of a polluted groundwater plume (via www.earthsci.org)

Diagram of a polluted groundwater plume (via www.earthsci.org)

Thirsty in Suburbia desirability grade: F
(Major points deducted for threat to water quality, sneakiness and long-winded disputes over “who’s going to clean up this mess?” )

Often confused with…

A chapeau with Plume by Givenchy (via www.thisislondon.co.uk)

A Plume is a feathery accessory attached to a hat or other headgear. This plume floats merrily along with the direction of the wearer, and tends to disrupt the concentration and sight lines of other persons near the Plume’s source.

Thirsty in Suburbia desirability grade: B
(Minor points deducted for the laughing and finger-pointing that modern Plume wearers must endure.)

Previous entries in the Visual Water Dictionary:

Slurry
Cake
Mixed Liquor
Oasis

The Visual Water Dictionary: Oasis

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In our ongoing mission to educate and inform the general public on nuances in the world of water language, a new feature: the visual water dictionary, which will attempt to cut confusion on selected water words with easy visual references.

Today’s word: Oasis

1. a fertile tract in a desert where the water table approaches the surface.
Thirsty in Suburbia desirability grade: A
This oasis looks like this:

Huacachina (Peru)

Huacachina (Peru)

2. A British rock band that occupies a big chunk of space on my iPod. No relevance to water.
Thirsty in Suburbia desirability grade: A-
This Oasis looks like this:

UK band Oasis

UK band Oasis

3. A Middle Eastern bottled water brand featuring a cute palm tree “i” in its logo.
Thirsty in Suburbia desirability grade: C- (Points gained for tap water scarcity in arid desert locations.)
This Oasis looks like this:

Oasis brand bottled water

Photos: huacachina from thecontaminated.com, oasis bottled water from johnallan199on Flickr.