Practice exam explanation...wrong?

[Kimberly Klavoon]

*Posting again because I accidentally deleted - d'oh!*

Just wanted to get some other opinions - and I hope it is OK I post this.  I understand if not..

I took a practice exam yesterday and this was one of the questions/answers. I'm feeling very confused about the explanation. To put simply…given the graphics shown: Top Left and Bottom Right are both BERMS, correct? And Top Right and Bottom Left would both be SWALES? The explanation has this reversed for the top two graphics.

I got this marked wrong because the explanation says top left and bottom left are both swales even though those contours are going in opposite directions...  Am I just missing something very obvious? Or is the explanation wrong?

[Lindsey Rullman]

I'm not the best at explaining things but I basically memorize this: swale/valley contour lines point UPHILL, ridge/berm contour lines point DOWNHILL. I threw in a quick sketch for the bottom left graphic. Visualizing how a section cut may look helps. Especially this particular graphic. You can see that the 13 contour line slightly goes through the section line I drew starting from the 12 contour line, therefore indicating it is going up 1 unit in elevation. I hope this helps! 

[Nick Pentico]

Great question, and you're not alone in being confused by this one. The key is to simplify it down to two rules:

1. Contour lines pointing uphill = Swale
2. Contour lines pointing downhill = Berm

All four graphics have contours labeled 11→14 left to right, meaning uphill is always to the right. Just read which direction the bend points relative to that, then confirm whether the offset is 0.5 or 1 unit.

Also, ignore the 1.5 unit reference diagrams on the left side. They're a distractor, not part of the answer. That said, the practice exam explanation is false. It should be Top Left: 0.5 Unit Swale, Top Right: 0.5 Unit Berm, Bottom Left: 1 Unit Berm, Bottom RIght: 1 Unit Swale. 

[Kimberly Klavoon]

Thank you Nick -  I think this was what I was looking for!  Regardless of whether I got it right or wrong, I couldn't get past the fact that the explanation was stating that both graphics on the left side were the same element when the contours were going in opposite directions. It didn't make sense that they would BOTH be either swale or berm but rather should be opposites - so I just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing something in their explanation. 

Thanks everyone! 

[Nick Pentico]

No worries. I definitely did a double-take and questioned my own understanding. Ive also come across wrong answers on practice exams and spent way too much time second-guessing myself. Just persevere, trust your knowledge, and keep at it. Good luck on your LARE journey. I'm down to my last test, GDSM. It's a beast, but I was close to passing last time. Excited to take it again in April. 

[Kimberly Klavoon]

Good luck to you as well! I'm taking CDA next month which will be 3 of 4 for me and then hopefully GDSM in August... that one is definitely a little daunting!