The exam will cover all of the lectures plus the assigned readings, as well as general knowledge derived through field trips. Much of this material is covered in student presentations and you should be sure to use these resources for your study. Be sure to read all of the assigned readings and utilize the web sites linked through the syllabus. We will not specifically test on material in the web pages but you should review these sources for additional information.
Geological Setting: Know Mississippi River’s world ranking in terms of discharge, sediment load & drainage area. Know the major tributaries of the Mississippi River. What are the relative contributions of major tributary systems to total sediment and water volume? Where does all the sediment in the river come from and where does it go? What controls how sediments move in river? What is the cycle of Mississippi River delta development? Be able to define meander, cut bank, batture, point bar, crossing, crevasse, and oxbow. Why does the Mississippi River meander? What is the relationship between river behavior and sea level? Understand the following human modifications to the river: levees, cutoffs, dredging, revetments, & dikes. How have cutoffs affected the Mississippi River? What are the major flood control structures in the Mississippi River? In what order would they be activated? Why is the Old River Control Structure where it is? What is the Auxiliary Control Structure and why was it erected? Why is the Sidney Murray Hydroelectric plant located at Old River? What is the total latitude flow into the Atchafalaya system? Who mandates this flow and who regulates it? What is the role of elevation in determining of affecting the faunal and floral communities in the Delta region. What is a backswamp?
Biogeochemistry/LUMCON: What are the sources of increased nitrogen & phosphorous in the Mississippi River since ca. 1940? What are the environmental impacts for the Gulf of Mexico? What is the Dead Zone? Why does it form? Why doesn't it last all year? What is hypoxia? What are limiting nutrients? What are the different impacts of point vs. non-point pollution sources? What are some effects of reduced sediment loads in the Mississippi River? Why are sediment loads reduced in the river?
River Continuum Concept: How does organic matter, canopy/light, gross primary productivity to community respiration (P/R ratio), and functional composition of invertebrate and vertebrate communities change from headwaters to mouth in streams? Be prepared to draw a map illustrating stream order from 1st to 4th order. What is the serial discontinuity model? How does human modification of stream habitats impact fish communities?
Prehistory, Colonial History, New Orleans History & Topography. Describe the Poverty Point site. What are its major physical and architectural features. In what ways is Poverty Point important? Why is the Mississippi River important to Spanish colonialism in Mexico? What is the sequence of colonization in the Mississippi Valley? Why was New Orleans selected as capital and point of entry/export for the territory? What pressures did the French face in trying to maintain political control over the river? Why was the battle of Vicksburg said to be one of the most important battles of the Civil War? In what way did our trip on Magazine Street reflect on the history of immigration in New Orleans? What economic role did the Irish occupy? What are the major topographic features of New Orleans? What is the significance of Bayou St. John? What was the impact for historical development of the development of drainage facilities in New Orleans? If rich people live in places where the elevation is high, why is Tchoupatoulis St. not the wealthiest street in the city? Sketch the physical spread of settlement in New Orleans and its rough chronology. What is a fauborg? Name two fauborgs.
Farming. Why are cotton farmers earning less right now than they are paying in expenses? What are GM products? Describe how a cotton gin works. Why, at least in the Mississippi Valley, is the family farm dying or dead? What is a sharecropper? Despite their natural wealth, counties along the Mississippi River are among the poorest in the country. What are some of the reasons for this poverty?
Rising Tide. What was the levees only policy? How does flooding in the Mississippi Valley alter the lives of people living in California or in Massachusetts? What was the impact of the flood on economic relations between the White aristocracy and the African-American working classes? How did the flood alter the relationship between states and the Federal government? What are some reasons African-Americans migrated out of the South after the Civil War?
Corps of Engineers. What is the Corps’ primary role in the Mississippi Valley? What is the Mississippi River Commission? What kind of projects does the Corps undertake? Why does the Corps maintain the Inner Harbor Navigation Lock? Why does the Corps want to expand the Locks? Why does the Corps spend so much time and money dredging the river south of Venice (consider both geological and fiscal reasons)? What is the Mississippi River and Tributaries Project?
Environmental Justice. What is Environmental Justice? How does the river and its history affect the distribution of minority communities relative to the petrochemical industry? What is a Fence-line Community? What was the Shintech case? What rules were promulgated (and by what agency) that allowed the Shintech case to become so controversial? What was the role of Tulane’s Environmental Law Clinic? How is industry/Government responding to EJ claims? Are their responses adequate?
Cancer & Cancer Alley. Is there a Cancer Alley? Why are the Louisiana Tumor Registry data imperfect in regards to detecting cancer incidence relative to petrochemical facilities? What is the difference between cancer incidence and cancer mortality? Does the Industrial Corridor have a higher incidence of cancer than the rest of the nation (the SEER comparison group)? What are some possible explanations for higher mortality in the Industrial Corridor?
Subsidence & Freshwater Diversion. What is subsidence? If subsidence is a natural process why is it that coastal Louisiana hasn’t already eroded away? How are humans accelerating subsidence in the coastal zone? What is the effect of salt-water intrusion on marshes? Where is land-loss the greatest? Why are barrier islands so important? What is Coast 2050? Why is it different from other programs? What are some of the other programs now in place? What are the Caernarvon and Davis Pond Freshwater Diversion projects? What are they intended to do? What are the negative consequences of freshwater diversion?
Music and literature of the River. Why can it be said that the flow of musical heritage of the Mississippi is opposite that of water and contaminants? What are sounding calls? What does Mark Twain mean? What is an Alligator Horse? What was the role of river boats in the spread of jazz in the 1900s? How do African/African-American spiritual songs lead towards blues and jazz? Who were W.C. Handy and Robert Johnson and why are they important? How do riverboats link the pre-jazz era to rock & roll? What is meant by Ring Shout? Be prepared to discuss how the Mississippi River is portrayed in both Langston Hughs' poem, The Negro Speaks of Rivers and in The Mississippi River Empties into the Gulf? by Lucille Clifton. How do these forms of literature relate to the African/African-American experience on the river and on its banks.