Ocean (American Museum of Natural History) [Paperback]

Robert Dinwiddie (Author), Philip Eales (Author), Sue Scott (Author), Michael Scott (Author), Kim Bryan (Author), David Burnie (Author), Frances Dipper (Author), Richard Beatty (Author), Fabien Cousteau (Introduction, Foreword)

Book Description

Series: American Museum of Natural History | Publication Date: July 21, 2008

Breathtaking, powerful, and all-encompassing in its sheer scope and visual impact, Ocean sweeps you away on an incredible journey into the depths of our astonishing marine world. As the site where life first formed on Earth, a key element of the climate, and a fragile resource, oceans are of vital importance to our planet. This definitive visual guide to the world's oceans - including the geological and physical processes that affect the ocean floor, the key habitat zones, the rich diversity of marine life - is now available in paperback.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Too often we take for granted the ways oceans enrich our lives. Thankfully, this magnificent volume encourages eyes, mind, and spirit to attend more closely to this fragile otherworld. Opening with a minicourse in oceanography, covering circulation, climate, tides, and waves, the authors continue with details of ocean environments, from coasts and seashores to shallow seas, the open ocean, and polar waters. They also similarly describe the richly varied forms of underwater life, from bacteria to mammals, all the while exploring the earth history lesson embodied in the ocean's geography. Crafted by devoted scientists and visual artists, Ocean offers page after page of stunning images and vital information about the very heartbeat of planet Earth. Pamela Crossland
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"...the definitive reference for the entire family" -- Bookpage

"...the ultimate informational book on the ocean -- its behavior, inhabitants, drama and beauty around the world." -- Good Morning America, December 21, 2006 --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 512 pages
• Publisher: DK ADULT; Reprint edition (July 21, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0756636922
• ISBN-13: 978-0756636920
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 8.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (39 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #41,868 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #22 in Books > Science & Math > Nature & Ecology > Ecosystems
  • #41 in Books > Science & Math > Nature & Ecology > Oceans & Seas

More About the Author

Robert Dinwiddie specialises in writing or contributing to educational illustrated books on scientific topics for a general audience. His particular areas of interest include Earth and Ocean Science, Astrophysics and Cosmology, and the History of Science. In the past he has also been involved in IT and medical publishing.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

83 of 84 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Huge and beautiful, December 12, 2006

By 

wiredweird "wiredweird" (Earth, or somewhere nearby) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Ocean: The World's Last Wilderness Revealed (Hardcover)

"Huge" means coffee table size, and roughly 500 pages. That's almost six pounds of enjoyable reading - if you decide to read it, rather than just letting the magnificent imagery wash over you. That's how the book starts, by the way. Page after page of full-page, full-color photos, including some two-page spreads, before you even get to the introduction.

It gets off to a slightly slow start, with a quick review of just what seawater is, chemically, and why that matters. Geology and meterology come next, the rocky basin that holds the sea and the air above it. In both cases, land and sky, the ocean shapes them as much as they shape the ocean. This discussion includes things as important as El Niño and hurricane Katrina. Although wide-ranging and informative, vivid illustrations and photos keep it lively and personal. The first 200 pages or so continue the discussion of the polar icecaps, shores, underwater geography, and the rest of the ocean itself.

Then the discussion turns to oceanic life. Historical life start it off, from the age of dinosaurs. The authors then move into the plankton, clearly distinguishing the bacteria from archaea, and both from the eukaryotic protists and diatoms. Next comes plant life in and near the ocean, including aquatic algae and shoreline plants, lichens, and fungi. These sections set the pattern, clearly identifying several levels of taxa to which specimen belongs, its worldwide distribution, gorgeous pictures, and a paragraph or two. Discussion varies, sometimes highlighting distinctive parts of an organism's life cyle, special relationships, or the scientists who've done most to uncover and spread this wonderful knowledge.

It's the section on animals that young readers will be most drawn to. It starts with the sedentary corals, bryozoans, and other beautiful and colorful critters of simple habits. The authors work their way up to bottom-dwelling benthos and the free-swimming nekton. That includes fish, sharks, porpoises and whales, turtles, and other wonderful beings. Next come birds, lizards, seals, and other lives spent on or only partly in the sea.

But you won't take it in order - you won't be let to if you have a kid in your lap when you read it. So much of this book is so exciting, even parts you might not have guessed, that you're sure to skip around, finding new surprises nearly every time you flip to a new page. It's huge fun, good science, and a great way to stir any child's (or adult's) fascination with the majority of the world's surface and the lives in it.

//wiredweird

29 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A beautiful investment in your oceanic education!, March 25, 2007

By 

Amy Y. "Tell me, what is it you plan to do wi... (FREMONT, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Ocean: The World's Last Wilderness Revealed (Hardcover)

This is one of the most beautiful boks I've purchased in a long time. I was a little skeptical, so many of these big "coffee table" books end up collecting dust or eventually taking the long ride in the trunk to the thrift store drop.

You'll have to pry this book out of my cold, dead hands.

The photographs are beautiful and amazing. I've been diving and this captures that same "Wow!" factor that you wish you could take back with you when you resurface. I got this book because my daughter was studying ocean life for school. I could hardly put the thing down. It sucks you in with tales from the deep and the amazing lives of the creatures who live there.

Mch of the text is very informative but also well written. My daugher and I have enjoyed pouring over it, sometimes reading, sometimes just looking at all the amazing photographs.

Yes, it's big enough that it could actually just replace your coffee table altogether. Still, it's just that many more wonderful images and fascinating tidbits about the ocean. I'd definately say this book is worth the space it will take up on your coffee table or bookshelf.

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautifully Illustrated, Accurate Descriptions, March 3, 2007

By 

John Matlock "Gunny" (Winnemucca, NV) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Ocean: The World's Last Wilderness Revealed (Hardcover)

By National Research Council Ocean Studies Board

This huge book is divided into four major sections:

Introduction -- covering such things as the properties of water that make the ocean what it is, the geology, circulation, climate, tides and waves. These are properties that apply to all oceans.

Ocean Environments -- broken down by areas such as depth, temperature, the sea floor.

Ocean Life -- subdivided into two sections that cover first the ecology of marine life, followed by a breakdown of the plant and animal life in considerable detail.

Atlas of the oceans -- includes maps of all the oceans as well as additional maps showing things like current flow, depths, undersea features, the seas around the oceans, basically everything there is to know.

This is a beautifully illustrated huge book. Over 500 pages, 10 x 12 inches. It's a great book to read with a youngster on your lap just looking at the pictures of weird life.