In this scientific meditation on and spiritual exploration of one of our least appreciated natural resources - the Atlantic Ocean - Deborah Cram er weaves the details of the history and science of the Atlantic into a tapestry that documents our many-faceted reliance on the sea, our betrayal of that bond, the changing landscape of the ocean floor, and the threatened life of its inhabitants. Bringing together the scientific research of physical oceanographers, geologists, biologists, and chemists from both sides of the Atlantic, Cramer presents a report of the environmental damage inflicted on these waters. From the decks of her sailing vessel she describes the intricate and fragile web of marine life, the visible disappearance of schools of fish plundered by the competitive fishing industry, and the changing rhythms of the Atlantic from the rough, chilly Gulf of Maine to the calm, weedy currents of the Sargasso Sea.