All life —
whether on land or in the sea — depends on the oceans for two
things:
• Oxygen. Most of Earth’s oxygen is produced by
phytoplankton in the sea. These humble, one-celled organisms, rather
than the spectacular rain forests, are the true lungs of the planet.
• Climate control. Our climate is regulated by the ocean’s
currents, winds, and water-cycle activity.
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Sea Sick is the
first book to examine the current state of the world’s oceans
— the great unexamined ecological crisis of the planet —
and the fact that we are altering everything about them; temperature,
salinity, acidity, ice cover, volume, circulation, and, of course, the
life within them. |
Alanna Mitchell joins the
crews of leading scientists in nine of the global ocean’s
hotspots to see firsthand what is really happening around the world.
Whether it’s the impact of coral reef bleaching, the puzzle of
the oxygen-less dead zones such as the one in the Gulf of Mexico, or
the shocking implications of the changing Ph balance of the sea,
Mitchell explains the science behind the story to create an engaging,
accessible yet authoritative account.
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Sea Sick
The Global Ocean in Crisis
by Alanna Mitchell
McClelland & Stewart, 2010
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