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Several forces affect the stream channel and influence whether it is at equilibrium, or whether erosion or deposition is occurring.
In our model the interaction of the variables is represented by a swing arm balance where the forces act on one arm or the other. These forces are represented by the weights sitting on top of the balance arm or by the colored arrows. If the forces on the two sides balance out the arm is hortizontal - in our model this means that the stream channel is at equibrium
If the forces on the two sides don't balance out the swing arm goes up or down, indicating that either erosion or deposition will occur in the stream channel.
The varibles are the size of the sediment particles, the amount of sediment entering the channel segment (the load), the slope of the stream channel, and the amount of water passing through the stream channel (the discharge). These variables are discussed on the next page.
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