Flume

A flume is a human-made channel for water, in the form of an open declined gravity chute whose walls are raised above the surrounding terrain, in contrast to a trench or ditch.

[citation needed] Flumes route water from a diversion dam or weir to a desired materiel collection location.

They were also extensively used in hydraulic mining and working placer deposits for gold, tin and other heavy minerals.

It is used in America for a very narrow gorge running between precipitous rocks, with a stream at the bottom, but more frequently is applied to an artificial channel of wood or other material for the diversion of a stream of water from a river for purposes of irrigation, for running a sawmill, or for various processes in the hydraulic method of gold-mining.

[6] In competitive swimming, specialized flumes with transparent sides are often employed by coaches to analyze a swimmer's technique.