Description System and Population is a lyric account of the proposed damming of the American River in Northern California. It explores the intersections of personal and cultural experience, scientific study, and politics of dams and rivers; meditates on human experiences, such as parenthood and loss; and studies the effects of environmental damage and disaster. About the Author Christopher Sindt is a professor of English at Saint Mary’s College of California, where he teaches in the MFA Program in Creative Writing and serves as the vice provost for academic affairs. He is the author of The Bodies, published in Parlor Press’s Free Verse Editions series (2012), and a chapbook of poetry, The Land of Give and Take.