 They attempted to use several European formulas for stream discharge they had learned at West Point, but came to discover that they were all flawed.They then developed their own formula which ultimately also proved to be faulty, most notably they forgot to account for the roughness of slopes in river canals.Although the formula was not without flaw it influenced the evolution of hydrology and was instrumental in the establishing of a United States Army Engineer School at Fort Totten in New York City.