EXTENDING YOUR KNOWLEDGE

These questions are more general than the Interactive computer corrected questions. In fact, many of the questions may not have one correct answer. The purpose of these questions is to provide the users of the RAK with an opportunity to evaluate and apply their understanding of the water balance.

In order to answer these questions you can return to the material in the main text to review information on each topic, you can get some ideas about the answer by discussing the issues they raise with some of your colleagues, or you can utilize the RAK web site and Bulletin Board to get help from other RAK users or from one of the content experts that participated in the development of the RAK.

1. Using the primary points that define the hydrologic cycle, describe the possible pathways that water from rain that falls in the Mekong River's catchment area could follow.

2 What is meant by the terms "hydrologic curve", "flood pulse" and "flood cycle" and how can these terms be used to understand the flooding of the Mekong River?

3. What is the difference between the hydrologic regime and the hydrograph of a river?

4 How may dams affect sediments transport in the Mekong river during the flood season, and what influence may this have on fertility of soils for agriculture?

5. Explain how a transfer of water from one basin to another can alter the hydrological regime in each basin. What are some of the environmental consequences of such a transfer in each basin?