Deep-sea science is big science. Ocean covers 365 million square kilometres, and most of it is more than two kilometres deep. To understand what goes on down there, you need a ship to brave the high seas and equipment that can reach into the abyss. As today's researchers agonize over grant proposals and publication records, some may yearn for the time when they could chart the depths without worrying about tenure or research assessment exercises. But as these three books charting the history of deep-sea science reveal, that golden age never existed. Fathoming the Ocean by Helen Rozwadowski chronicles the birth of deep-sea oceanography, from early observations by Benjamin Franklin to the voyage of HMS Challenger in the 1870s. She weaves a rich narrative from the work of renowned as well as lesser-known oceanogra-phers. While unearthing the foundations of the subject, she reveals some striking parallels with modern research careers.
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