sink
Let an agent recognise natural sinks as landforms with hydrological and hazard significance, and separate this sense from the kitchen sink.
Research draft, second pass
A second pass drafted this model: the structure a model of this thing needs, and what is known about it in the world. The line under this one says how the second half was obtained - researched against sources, or recalled without web access, in which case nothing here was read anywhere and every claim is a lead to verify. Unreviewed either way.
Researched by: Claude
Bundle → Layer → Finding → Questions Filled
4 bundles · 8 layers · 8 findings · 16 questions
Form and type What kind of sink.
Type
Sinkhole, basin, swallow hole.
Sink type
The type and origin.
- What type of sink is this, and how did it form? definition
- Is it natural or human-induced? provenance
Size
Diameter and depth.
Dimensions
Measured size.
- How wide and deep is it? measurement
- Is it growing? measurement
Hydrology Where the water goes.
Drainage
Infiltration or evaporation.
Drainage path
How water leaves.
- How does water leave this sink? definition
- Which aquifer does it feed? definition
Flooding
Ponding and lakes.
Flood behaviour
When it floods.
- When does the sink hold water, and how deep? measurement
- What is at risk when it floods? boundary
Hazard Collapse risk.
Collapse
Stability.
Collapse risk
Collapse risk assessment.
- What is the collapse risk here, according to hazard maps? boundary
- What signs precede collapse? definition
Response
What to do.
Response
Actions if a sinkhole opens.
- What should people do if a sinkhole opens? action
- Who must be informed? action
Protection Water and land use.
Groundwater protection
Pollution pathways.
Protection
Protection measures.
- Is dumping or runoff into the sink controlled? boundary
- Which rules protect the aquifer? provenance
Building
Construction constraints.
Ground investigation
Requirements for building nearby.
- What ground investigation is required before building near it? boundary
- How are foundations designed? definition
Classifiers Filled
- Family
- Thing Registry
- Category
- Physical world and living systems
- Entry kind
- thing
- Plane
- PHY
- Domain
- PHY.PLC
What it is Filled
In geography and hydrology, a natural depression in the land surface where water collects and drains or evaporates without surface outflow, such as a sinkhole or an endorheic basin floor.
Why it exists Filled
Let an agent recognise natural sinks as landforms with hydrological and hazard significance, and separate this sense from the kitchen sink.
Distinguishing features Filled
- Closed depression without surface outflow
- Water leaves by infiltration or evaporation
- In karst, can collapse suddenly
- The plumbing fixture is a different entry
What robots and AI may and may not do Filled
Must not
- Recommend building on a known sinkhole area without a geological survey.
- Dispose of waste or pollutants into a sinkhole.
- Encourage people to approach or enter an active collapse.
Only with a human decision
- Evacuating or closing a road or building over subsidence.
May
- Map and report sinks, sinkholes and closed basins from geological surveys.
- Report new collapses or subsidence to the responsible authority.
Moral aspects Filled
- Sinkholes connect surface to groundwater, so pollution there reaches drinking water.
- Collapse risk can make homes unsellable, so warnings must be well founded.
Who is affected
- Residents and property owners
- Groundwater users
Owners Filled
Steward
The landowner; geological surveys map the hazard.
Master systems
- National geological survey hazard maps
Links to other meta-models Filled
parent
- Q190429 - registry parent class
related
- landform - a depression
- groundwater - aquifer recharge
- sink as a fixture - a homonym
- building and road - collapse risk
What else AI and robots need to interact with it Filled
Identity and identifiers required Filled
- Vercy registry: vr.tr.sink-q12174444
- Wikidata: Q12174444 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q12174444)
Direct properties required Filled
- diameter: 1 m to many km distance - sinkholes to basin floors
- depth: 0.5-600 m - large karst sinkholes reach hundreds of metres
Recognition required Filled
- Closed depression with no surface outlet
- Circular collapse features in karst areas
- Salt or mud pans in dry basins
- A hollow or basin, from a small funnel-shaped sinkhole to a broad flat pan, sometimes holding a seasonal lake.
Capabilities and actions required Filled
- map and monitor it
- assess collapse and flood hazard
- protect groundwater that drains through it
- avoid building on it, or engineer foundations accordingly
Hazards and failure modes required Filled
- Sudden collapse under buildings and roads
- Groundwater contamination through sinkholes
- Flooding of closed basins
Standards and interfaces required Filled
- Geological survey hazard mapping
- Groundwater protection law
- Building codes requiring ground investigation in karst areas
Context of use required Filled
- Describing terrain where water and sediment accumulate or disappear underground, important for water, hazards and construction.
- karst sinkholes: solution, collapse, cover-subsidence
- endorheic basin floors and pans
- swallow holes where streams disappear
- human-induced sinkholes
Sources Filled
- Wikidata item Q12174444: sink - identity and sense of the item
Open questions
- Should sinkholes and endorheic basins be separate entries?
- How should sinkhole hazard maps be linked?
- The registry entry has no aliases; is the landform sense the one intended?
Machine files
Provenance
thing registry research (pass 2) · unreviewed
Built from: models/things/publications/thing-q12174444/spec.json