Duxbury/Introduction to the World's Oceans, 6/e

Dr. Eddie N. Bernard Review

The authors have certainly achieved their major objective, "to stimulate student interest and curiosity by blending contemporary information and research with basic principles to present an integrated introduction to the study of the oceans." I enjoyed reviewing this textbook and found the content to be current and comprehensive, the layout clean and logical, and the writing style appropriate for the intended audience.

I was particularly impressed with the care and attention the authors paid to the wide range of oceanographic content in this textbook. The book itself serves as a rich resource for classical oceanographic information, but the surprise bonus was the extensive use of additional references and web sites to supplement and enhance the comprehensive discussion of oceanographic topics. This allows the student or interested reader the opportunity to delve into any topic in great depth. The web site references provide fresh information while the journal references provide high- quality, peer-reviewed material. The authors are to be commended for using the latest types of information technology to provide students with literally up-to-the-minute content.

The layout of the textbook also reflects the authors' concern for clear communication. The extensive use of photographs and illustrations of concepts nicely complements the thoughtful discussion of complex scientific ideas. The photographs on "Going to Sea" were especially informative regarding life and work at sea. I thought the discussion on ocean environmental issues of coastal erosion, waste disposal, marine debris, and non-indigenous species were presented with scientific objectivity, but clearly illustrate the concern for man's impact on the ocean environment.

The authors' writing style of providing thoughtful explanations for the non-scientist reader and the extensive use of examples makes the book especially attractive for use as a textbook for an introductory oceanography course. The storytelling style helps the reader weave together the details to understand complex scientific ideas. The details are available, but do not overwhelm the broader flow of the stories. I believe this writing style will encourage students to ask many questions on each subject.

The book is not without flaws. As one would expect, there are mistakes in a few of the figure explanations. However, given the large number of figures and illustrations, the overall quality control is very high. In summary, I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in an introduction to the complex world of oceanography. McGraw Hill and the authors should be very proud of this excellent educational product. I hope that the publisher and the authors continue their productive partnership and produce an even better 7th edition for future readers to enjoy.

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