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Go back to the water cycle diagram.

The Water Cycle for Kids
Lakes serve many purposes

This picture of a lake at Interlaken, Switzerland gives you an idea of how people congregate and live near bodies of water. Would you choose to live on a lake? Vote for your favorite water body and let us know.

By the way, the water cycle, many thousands of years ago, was responsible for the mountainous scene you see here. It happened during the last Ice Age, about 18,000 years ago. The U-shaped (happy) valley (looks like a smile, right?) between the mountains is a dead giveaway that tremendous glaciers once existed here and carved out the valley leading to the lake.

This picture also shows how lakes serve many purposes. From the beginning of human times, people lived near water bodies for water supply and also to get rid of wastes. I'm sure the people living here in Interlaken would tell you that the lake adds to the aesthetic pleasure of life....as well as to the property values of those residents who live near the water.

Credit: James' Switzerland blog