base isolation - a modern way of protecting various structures (buildings, bridges and equipment) from the destructive effects of earthquakes. The technology requires that the entire structure be supported by elastomeric or sliding bearings. For a simulation of this technology, click here.
biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) - measurement of the amount of organic material in wastewater by predicting the amount of free oxygen that would be consumed in the normal degradation process.
flood plain - level land that may be submerged by floodwaters, or a plain built up by stream deposition.
liquefaction - the transformation of loosely packed, saturated sand and/or silt into a fluid mass due to ground motion, as by an earthquake.
meander - turn or winding of a stream.
orographic lifting - mountains or highlands acting as barriers to the flow of air force the air to ascend. The air cools, adiabatically, and clouds and precipitation may result.
oxbow - something (as a bend in a river) resembling an oxbow.
plutons - deep reservoirs of magma.
richter scale - an open-ended logarithmic scale for expressing the magnitude of a seismic disturbance (as an earthquake) in terms of the energy dissipated in it with 1.5 indicating the smallest earthquake that can be felt, 4.5 an earthquake causing slight damage, and 8.5 a very devastating earthquake
total suspended solids (TSS) - a measurement of the concentration of both organic and inorganic particles within the sewage.
watershed - a region or area bounded peripherally by a divide and draining ultimately to a particular watercourse or body of water.
biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) - measurement of the amount of organic material in wastewater by predicting the amount of free oxygen that would be consumed in the normal degradation process.
flood plain - level land that may be submerged by floodwaters, or a plain built up by stream deposition.
liquefaction - the transformation of loosely packed, saturated sand and/or silt into a fluid mass due to ground motion, as by an earthquake.
meander - turn or winding of a stream.
orographic lifting - mountains or highlands acting as barriers to the flow of air force the air to ascend. The air cools, adiabatically, and clouds and precipitation may result.
oxbow - something (as a bend in a river) resembling an oxbow.
plutons - deep reservoirs of magma.
richter scale - an open-ended logarithmic scale for expressing the magnitude of a seismic disturbance (as an earthquake) in terms of the energy dissipated in it with 1.5 indicating the smallest earthquake that can be felt, 4.5 an earthquake causing slight damage, and 8.5 a very devastating earthquake
total suspended solids (TSS) - a measurement of the concentration of both organic and inorganic particles within the sewage.
watershed - a region or area bounded peripherally by a divide and draining ultimately to a particular watercourse or body of water.