Abstract
No nation surpasses the French in brilliant popular expositions of the various departments of Science. They already possess a large number of works of this kind, several of which have been translated into English, and the present work by M. Girard deserves to take its place among them as an extremely interesting and wonderfully full account of the numerous and valuable results which have of late years been obtained by deep-sea exploration. The two introductory chapters gives a rapid résumé of the history of deep-sea exploration, with a short description of the interior economy of the Challenger, and a clear and pretty full description of the various apparatus used in carrying on the explorations. The subsequent part of the work consists of four divisions, the first of which treats of the characteristics of the sea-bottom looked at in its geographical relations; the second treats of life in the depths of the sea, describing eloquently the various organisms which inhabit the ocean; the third division deals with the waters themselves, pointing out the chemical properties and the physical phenomena which take place in the midst of the ocean; in the last division an attempt is made to depict the seas of ancient geological epochs, and compare them with the discoveries which have been made by recent soundings. The author seems to have fairly mastered the literature of his subject, and has managed to write a book containing a vast deal of information conveyed in clear and eloquent language. The work is profusely illustrated with artistically executed, useful, and most attractive woodcuts. The work might well be translated into English.
Les explorations Sous-Marines.
Par Jules Girard. (Paris: Libraire, F. Savy, 1874. London: Dulau and Co.)
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Les explorations Sous-Marines . Nature 10, 102 (1874). https://doi.org/10.1038/010102b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/010102b0