Ephemerality in the context of "Watering hole"

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⭐ Core Definition: Ephemerality

Ephemerality (from Ancient Greek ἐφήμερος (ephēmeros) 'lasting only a day') is the concept of things being transitory, existing only briefly. Academically, the term ephemeral constitutionally describes a diverse assortment of things and experiences, from digital media to types of ponds and streams. "There is no single definition of ephemerality". With respect to unique performances, for example, it has been noted that "[e]phemerality is a quality caused by the ebb and flow of the crowd's concentration on the performance and a reflection of the nostalgic character of specific performances". Because different people may value the passage of time differently, ephemerality may be a relative, perceptual concept: "In brief, what is short-lived may not be the object itself, but the attention we afford it".

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👉 Ephemerality in the context of Watering hole

A watering hole or waterhole is a geological depression in which a body of water forms, usually a pond or a small lake. A watering hole is "a sunken area of land that fills with water".

Watering holes may be ephemeral or seasonal. Ephemeral rivers sometimes form waterholes in geological depressions or areas scoured by erosion, and are common in arid regions of Australia. In Australia, the term "billabong", often defined as a type of oxbow lake (an isolated crescentic pond left behind after a river loop is cut off when the river channel changes course), is also used to refer to other types of waterholes. While they exist in both wetlands and arid lands, they are of particular importance in desert areas of Australia, where they are often the only water source for native animals, people, and livestock, and provide critical habitat for a number of wildlife species. Their existence is being threatened by climate change. Desert waterholes are often found in dry hilly areas, sustained by discharge of groundwater, remaining for long periods after flood events or normal flows of rivers and creeks. Depending on the climate, they can be permanent or semi-permanent depending on climatic conditions. They are of particular importance to Indigenous Australians in desert areas, providing water to the local population as well as attracting animals which are used as food, and sustaining plants which can be used for food (bush tucker), bush medicine, tools, shelter, and clothing. They may also be of cultural significance, as places to conduct ceremonies, and are usually named and part of their jukurrpa (Dreaming) stories.

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Ephemerality in the context of Conifer cone

A conifer cone, or in formal botanical usage a strobilus, pl.: strobili, is a seed-bearing organ on gymnosperm plants, especially in conifers and cycads. They are usually woody and variously conic, cylindrical, ovoid, to globular, and have scales and bracts arranged around a central axis, but can be fleshy and berry-like. The cones of Pinophyta (conifer clade) contain the reproductive structures. The woody cone is the female cone, which produces seeds. The male cone, which produces pollen, is usually ephemeral and much less conspicuous even at full maturity. The name 'cone' derives from Greek konos (pine cone), which also gave name to the geometric cone. The individual plates of a cone are known as scales. In conifers where the cone develops over more than one year (such as pines), the first year's growth of a seed scale on the cone, showing up as a protuberance at the end of the two-year-old scale, is called an umbo, while the second year's growth is called the apophysis.

The male cone (microstrobilus or pollen cone) is structurally similar across all conifers, differing only in small ways (mostly in scale arrangement) from species to species. Extending out from a central axis are microsporophylls (modified leaves). Under each microsporophyll is one or several microsporangia (pollen sacs).

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Ephemerality in the context of Tsauchab

The Tsauchab is an ephemeral river in the Hardap Region of central Namibia. Its source is in the southern Naukluft Mountains, from where it flows westwards through the Namib-Naukluft National Park into Sossusvlei, an endorheic basin. The lower river has in the past had a slightly different courses and also formed two other basins, the Deadvlei and the Hiddenvlei.

The Tsauchab is approximately 150 km (93 mi) long, its catchment area (including its tributary, the Zebra River) is estimated to be between 4,000 and 4,431 km (1,711 sq mi). Since it is in the Namib Desert, the Tsauchab carries water only during the rare times when rain falls in the Naukluft Mountains and runs off, since it cannot seep into the soil fast enough (see flash flood). During these rains, the Tsauchab becomes a rapid-running, strong river within a matter of hours. As a result of the occasional rains, it has over the past two million years carved the Sesriem Canyon, a 1 km (0.62 mi) long and up to 30 m (98 ft) deep canyon in sedimentary rock. Past the canyon, the Tsauchab flattens and grows broader, and is surrounded by a riparian forest as it slopes towards the Sossusvlei salt pan. In the Sossusvlei area, the riparian forest consists of both the living trees including Maerua crassifolia and the remaining skeletons of dead trees.

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Ephemerality in the context of Wadi

A wadi (/ˈwɒ.di/ WOD-ee; Arabic: وَادِي) is a river valley or a wet (ephemeral) riverbed that contains water only when heavy rain occurs. Wadis are located on gently sloping, nearly flat parts of deserts; commonly they begin on the lowest portions of alluvial fans and extend to inland sabkhas or dry lakes. Permanent channels do not exist, due to lack of continual water flow. Water percolates down into the stream bed, causing an abrupt loss of energy and resulting in vast deposition. Wadis may develop dams of sediment that change the stream patterns in the next flash flood.

Wadis tend to be associated with centers of human population because sub-surface water is sometimes available in them. Nomadic and pastoral desert peoples will rely on seasonal vegetation found in wadis, even in regions as dry as the Sahara, as they travel in complex transhumance routes.

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