This collection of scholarly essays begins with the evolution and histroy of life on earth. It concludes with a fascinating discussion of the "unity of the ocean" which has even inspired a unity of literary epics.
The relationship between the ocean and changes in the world's climate is also sigificant and is thoroughly explored in this groundbreaking volume. Our knowledge, however, of the role of the ocean in climate modification is still unclear. A number of questions persist: Are observed changes in sea levels the product of, or the cause of, sea ice which correlates with glacial episodes? And then there are the effects of ocean circulation, involving various parts and depths of the oceans on different time scales, being affected by both temperature and salinity differences. Moreover, changes in biota may be sufficiently important to affect ocean properties and even icean processes on the surface.
In addition, major sections of The Ocean in Human Affairs discuss the commercial use of the ocean throughout history. Ocean commerce originated in ports which then became cities. Venice is best known. It is threatened by physical and chemical processes from the natural environment. One of the first efforts to deal with this crisis is a mathmatical model for the prediction of ocean storm surges causing floods. This model is currently being employed by a city service to warn residents of imminent flooding. A study of Venice's unique environmental problems, and the answers which science can provide, may be useful to other ocean cities, particularly if world climate changes produced by human activities result in a rise of sea level and the inundation of low-lying coastal areas.