Archaeologists have traditionally called the North China Plain the heartland of Chinese civilization and focused much of their investigations on the progression of archaeological culture groups. However, this focus on culture history has often come at the expense of simplifying the complex interactions societies have had with their environments. In this dissertation, I discuss the ways in which archaeologists can use geological concepts and methods to better understand human-environmental interactions. I support this argument with two case studies of archaeological significance along the course of the Yellow River. One study focuses on a sediment source, the Luoyang Basin in western Henan Province, the other, a sediment sink in Neihuang County, Henan Province. These studies demonstrate that humans played a large role in shaping the hydrology of the Yellow River and smaller tributary streams since the late Bronze Age around three thousand years ago. Human influence on sedimentary and fluvial systems becomes increasingly apparent during China's Imperial Age (ca. AD 200--1200). By using geological methods and concepts, scientists can understand how humans have shaped the much of the North China Plain.