Graded beds are characterized by a gradual change in grain size from coarse (large) to fine (small) from bottom to top. This pattern is commonly related to changes in the energy level of the water that carries, and eventually deposits, the grains. High-energy, vigorous currents can pick up and transport large, heavy sediment particles. In contrast, stagnant water has no energy and cannot keep even fine-grained sediments suspended in the water column. As a result, very fine, mud-sized grains can be deposited. If beds exhibit a gradual change in grain size, then it follows that the current velocity that deposited them must also have changed during the depositional process. In this activity, choose from statements that describe how grain size and current velocity are connected, and how that helps us understand graded beds. Read the following sentences and select which is true.