• Skip to Content
  • Skip to Main Navigation
  • Skip to Search

Indiana University Bloomington Indiana University Bloomington IU Bloomington

Open Search Menu

The College of Arts & Sciences

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences

  • Home
  • About
    • Mission & Vision
    • Diversity, Equity, + Inclusion
    • EAS Advising Guidelines
    • EAS Ombudsperson
    • Advisory Board
    • History
    • About Bloomington
  • Directory
    • Faculty
    • Adjunct Faculty
    • Post-Docs & Research Associates
    • Emeriti Faculty
    • Staff
    • Graduate Students
    • Undergraduate Students
  • Undergraduate
    • Atmospheric Science B.S.
    • Atmospheric Science Minor
    • Atmospheric Science Certificate
    • Earth & Atmospheric Sciences B.A.
    • Earth & Atmospheric Sciences Minor
    • Earth Science B.S.
    • Environmental Geosciences B.S.
    • Earth Science B.S./M.S.
    • Environmental Sciences B.S.
    • Courses
    • Field Courses
    • Advising
    • Honors Program
    • Funding Opportunities
    • Scholarships & Awards
    • Research Opportunities
    • Student Experience
  • Graduate
    • Degrees
    • Courses
    • Field Courses
    • Financial Support
    • Fellowships & Awards
    • Research Opportunities
    • Student Experience
    • How to Apply
  • Research
    • Research Areas
    • Centers, Labs, & Resources
    • Workshops
    • IU Geologic Field Station
  • Career Preparation
    • Career Advising
    • Career Paths
    • Internships
  • Giving
    • Department Endowed Funds
    • Alumni & Giving
  • News + Alumni
    • EAS Calendar of Events
    • Colloquia & Seminars
    • Department News
    • EAS Named Lectures
    • Outreach
    • Alumni News
    • EAS Newsletter
    • Get Involved
  • Search
  • Contact
  • Student Portal
  • Home
  • Alumni & Giving
  • Alumni Newsletter
  • Hoosier Geologic - Atmospheric Record 2017-2018
  • Study: River deltas ‘self-organize’ to withstand human and natural disturbances

Study: River deltas ‘self-organize’ to withstand human and natural disturbances

Monday, August 27, 2018

Douglas Edmonds

Quoting IU Newsroom, October 31, 2017:

River delta channels that carry water, sediment and nutrients may appear to be random and arbitrary in how they are organized. But research by a team that includes an Indiana University geologist finds there is order to the complexity. The researchers, using field observations and mathematical modeling, concluded that deltas self-organize according to an “optimality principle,” creating networks of channels that increase the diversity of ways in which sediment is transported.

“Channel networks are the blood vessels of a delta system, and their job is to deliver water, sediment and nutrients to the larger delta environment,” said study co-author Douglas Edmonds. “We have uncovered an organizing principle that describes how these channel configure themselves to do that job.”

The article, “Entropy and optimality in river deltas,” is published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science. Edmonds is an associate professor and the Malcolm and Sylvia Boyce Chair in the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences in the Indiana University Bloomington College of Arts and Sciences. Other authors are at the University of California, Irvine; the University of Nevada, Reno; the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne; and the University of Padua in Italy.

Read the full story

  • Faculty + Staff Intranet

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences social media channels

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • College of Arts & Sciences
  • Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences

The College of Arts & Sciences

Indiana University

Copyright © 2023 The Trustees of Indiana University

Accessibility | Privacy Notice

The College of Arts & Sciences

  • About
    • Mission & Vision
    • Diversity, Equity, + Inclusion
    • EAS Advising Guidelines
      • Faculty Advisor Guidelines
      • Graduate Student Guidelines
    • EAS Ombudsperson
    • Advisory Board
    • History
      • Faculty in Memory
      • GFS Endowment Campaign
    • About Bloomington
  • Directory
    • Faculty
    • Adjunct Faculty
    • Post-Docs & Research Associates
    • Emeriti Faculty
    • Staff
    • Graduate Students
    • Undergraduate Students
      • Austin Parks
  • Undergraduate
    • Atmospheric Science B.S.
    • Atmospheric Science Minor
    • Atmospheric Science Certificate
    • Earth & Atmospheric Sciences B.A.
    • Earth & Atmospheric Sciences Minor
    • Earth Science B.S.
    • Environmental Geosciences B.S.
    • Earth Science B.S./M.S.
    • Environmental Sciences B.S.
    • Courses
    • Field Courses
      • EAS E116 ASPIRE Semester in Salerno, Italy
      • Treks in Provence: Geology, History, and Culture in Southern France
      • Eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains, California
      • IU Geologic Field Station, Montana
      • Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania
    • Advising
    • Honors Program
    • Funding Opportunities
    • Scholarships & Awards
      • Rudman-Pavlis Undergraduate Research Fellowship
    • Research Opportunities
    • Student Experience
      • GeoClub
  • Graduate
    • Degrees
    • Courses
    • Field Courses
      • Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania
      • IU Geologic Field Station, Montana
      • Indiana
    • Financial Support
    • Fellowships & Awards
      • EAS Application for Graduate Scholarships
    • Research Opportunities
    • Student Experience
    • How to Apply
  • Research
    • Research Areas
      • Faculty Positions in EAS
      • Atmospheric Sciences
      • Economic Geology
      • Geoarchaeology
      • Geobiology and Geoanthropology
      • Geochemistry and Biogeochemistry
      • Geophysics, Structural Geology, Tectonics
      • Mineralogy and Petrology
      • Sedimentation and Stratigraphy
      • Surface Processes
    • Centers, Labs, & Resources
      • IU Seismograph Station
      • Stable Isotope Research Facility
    • Workshops
      • Water Resources Workshop
    • IU Geologic Field Station
  • Career Preparation
    • Career Advising
    • Career Paths
      • Atmospheric Science Career Paths
      • Earth Sciences Career Paths
    • Internships
  • Giving
    • Department Endowed Funds
    • Alumni & Giving
  • News + Alumni
    • EAS Calendar of Events
    • Colloquia & Seminars
      • Archive
        • Fall 2020 Colloquia
    • Department News
      • Archive
    • EAS Named Lectures
      • Daniel Tudor Lecture
      • Richard Owen Alumni Award Lecture
    • Outreach
      • Science Fest
      • Princeton Earth Physics Project (PEPP)
      • K-12 Professional Development
      • Meet + Greets
    • Alumni News
    • EAS Newsletter
      • EAS Newsletter Summer 2022
        • EAS Chair's Message
        • News
      • EAS News Archive
        • EAS Directories Archive
    • Get Involved
  • Contact
  • Student Portal
    • Undergraduate
      • Atmospheric Science B.S.
      • Atmospheric Science Minor
      • Atmospheric Science Certificate
      • Earth & Atmospheric Sciences B.A.
      • Earth Science B.S.
      • Earth Science B.S./M.S.
      • Environmental Geosciences B.S.
      • Environmental Sciences B.S.
      • Earth & Atmospheric Sciences Minor
      • Honors Program
      • IU Resources
      • Fields of Study
      • Courses
        • Spring Courses
        • Fall Courses
        • Comprehensive Undergraduate Course List
    • Graduate
      • Degrees
        • Ph.D. Geological Sciences
        • Ph.D. Geological Sciences-Atmospheric Sciences
        • M.S. Geological Sciences
        • M.S. Geological Sciences-Atmospheric Sciences
      • Graduate Student Handbook
        • Handbook Archive
      • Courses
        • Spring Courses
        • Fall Courses
        • Comprehensive Graduate Course List
      • Employment Resources
      • Professional Organizations
      • IU Resources
    • Grant Sources
    • Forms