A watery romp under the waves that will appeal to anyone wanting to broaden their knowledge of our watery planet.
Coral and reef ecologist Hardt dives into the sex lives of sea creatures.
In a fun, lively style, the author explains the sexual antics going on under the waves. She links the science of sex to the sustainability of oceans and emphasizes that creatures’ sex lives are vital for a healthy environment. Just as with humans, finding the right mate takes some searching. Hardt describes the travails faced by creatures having to find a mate in a watery environment, which covers “about 99 percent of the habitable space on the planet.” In a largely informal narrative, the author interweaves pop-culture images and contemporary analogies with scientific facts. Who knew male blue whales are “getting their Barry White on” when they emit deep baritone sounds while searching for a sweetheart? Or that sharks and rays enlist the power of electromagnetism to find the right partner? Or sex in lobster language means “peeing in your lover’s face?” Hardt traces creatures from “dating” to “post climax.” Along the way, the author touches on the importance of penis size, sex-changing clownfish, fish with personal sperm banks, sex triggered by critical mass, and threesomes. Hardt notes how sound pollution, overfishing, and climate change affect the ocean’s creatures, which then impact human food security, shoreline protection, medicines, and sheer enjoyment of the ocean environment. The discussion includes new methods and emerging technologies for further study and possible protection of the ocean and its creatures. The author also includes amusing illustrations, sea sex trivia, and short fictional vignettes such as Fifty Shades of Grunion Run, as well as a list of organizations promoting healthy oceans. Not all readers will appreciate Hardt’s tone, but all will learn plenty.
A watery romp under the waves that will appeal to anyone wanting to broaden their knowledge of our watery planet.Pub Date: Feb. 9, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-137-27997-2
Page Count: 288
Publisher: St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: Dec. 7, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2015
The Johnstown Flood was one of the greatest natural disasters of all time (actually manmade, since it was precipitated by a wealthy country club dam which had long been the source of justified misgivings). This then is a routine rundown of the catastrophe of May 31st, 1889, the biggest news story since Lincoln's murder in which thousands died. The most interesting incidental: a baby floated unharmed in its cradle for eighty miles.... Perhaps of local interest-but it lacks the Lord-ly touch.
Pub Date: March 18, 1968
ISBN: 0671207148
Page Count: 312
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Oct. 12, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1968
IN THE NEWS
A media-savvy scientist cleans out his desk.
Tyson (Astrophysics for People in a Hurry, 2017, etc.) receives a great deal of mail, and this slim volume collects his responses and other scraps of writing.
The prolific science commentator and bestselling author, an astrophysicist at the American Museum of Natural History, delivers few surprises and much admirable commentary. Readers may suspect that most of these letters date from the author’s earlier years when, a newly minted celebrity, he still thrilled that many of his audience were pouring out their hearts. Consequently, unlike more hardened colleagues, he sought to address their concerns. As years passed, suspecting that many had no interest in tapping his expertise or entering into an intelligent give and take, he undoubtedly made greater use of the waste basket. Tyson eschews pure fan letters, but many of these selections are full of compliments as a prelude to asking advice, pointing out mistakes, proclaiming opposing beliefs, or denouncing him. Readers will also encounter some earnest op-ed pieces and his eyewitness account of 9/11. “I consider myself emotionally strong,” he writes. “What I bore witness to, however, was especially upsetting, with indelible images of horror that will not soon leave my mind.” To crackpots, he gently repeats facts that almost everyone except crackpots accept. Those who have seen ghosts, dead relatives, and Bigfoot learn that eyewitness accounts are often unreliable. Tyson points out that extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence, so confirmation that a light in the sky represents an alien spacecraft requires more than a photograph. Again and again he defends “science,” and his criteria—observation, repeatable experiments, honest discourse, peer review—are not controversial but will remain easy for zealots to dismiss. Among the instances of “hate mail” and “science deniers,” the author also discusses philosophy, parenting, and schooling.
A media-savvy scientist cleans out his desk.Pub Date: Oct. 8, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-324-00331-1
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Norton
Review Posted Online: Sept. 1, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2019
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