The University Of Chicago Press is taking an interesting approach to promoting some of its authors - it's publishing lengthy blog essays written by their writers about current topics that are tied in with their books. The first two are of particular interest to me, especially the one about Oceans, having just got back from three weeks of scuba diving (hence why I've been a bit quiet).

I think this is a great - if labour intensive - way for authors to keep re-introducing their work to a potential audience, by continually pointing out its connection to current affairs. Too many books get published and simply disappear because no one - not even the author - bothered to point out its importance to ongoing debates etc.

Anyway, here's the three essays of the UoC Press has recently put up:

OCEANS AND SUSTAINABILITY
Dorrik Stow, professor of ocean and earth science at the University of Southampton, UK, and the author of _Oceans: An Illustrated Reference_, points out that the US can only sustain itself for six months of the year--for the rest in relies on imports. Even the vast resources of the oceans cannot provide enough resources when the world consumes at that rate.

THE WILL TO ACT ON THE ENVIRONMENT
R. Bruce Hull, professor of natural resources at Virginia Tech and author of _Infinite Nature_, argues that we have the knowledge to improve our management of the environment, but we lack the will to do so. Part of the problem is that our concept of nature is too abstract, black and white, human vs. non-human. Identifying the actual variety in our ideas of nature--the many ideas of nature we've created--helps us transcends the human-nature dichotomy.

DESTRUCTION OF ARMENIA
Also we've just posed a new book excerpt from _The Destruction of Memory: Architecture at War by Robert Bevan (published by Reaktion, distributed in US and Canada by Chicago). The excerpt concerns the Armenian Genocide:

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Posted by Chris to splinters: books, authors, literature, travel, politics at 5/03/2006 01:58:01 AM