Guide to Marine Mammals of the World illustrated by Pieter Folkens et al is a National Audubon Society book organized into four major groups of marine mammals; marine fissipeds, pinnipeds, cetaceans, and sirenians.

There is fascinating detail as the book goes on to describe the world's whales, dolphins, porpoises, seals and sea lions, manatees, marine and sea otters, and polar bears. Not only is there detailed descriptions, but there are maps to show where these animals live throughout the world. There is a general introduction that outlines the evolution and tanonomy of marine mammals, distribution, migration, watching guidelines, identification techniques, organizations and laws that protect marine mammals.

There are 120 species represented in this book. Also, there are facts about social organization, surface behaviors, swimming and diving, details about food items and foraging techniques, and estimates of population in the wild, plus current and historic threats.

If you are taking a trip to the coastlines or live near the oceans then don't be caught without this fine field guide. You will be amazed by the wildlife near the and in the ocean. This is a comprehensive and beautifully illustrated work.

Don't leave home without it, as your trip will be richer and more fulfilling as you spot the animals listed.

Pieter Folkens illustrates Guide To Marine Mammals Of The World, a comprehensive desk reference which blends color photos and maps with realistic drawings of marine mammals. Paintings illustrate juvenile and subspecies, photos show typical behavior and appearance in the wild, and color range maps reflect the latest information, while chapters cover all the natural history basics. Guide To Marine Mammals Of The World promises to be a lasting, important library reference.

The National Audubon Society's Guide to Marine Mammals of the World contains a wealth of information about pinnipeds (seals and sea lions), cetaceans (whales, dolphins and porpoises), sirenians (manatees and dugongs), polar bears and otters that's timely and easy to digest. Descriptions, range, behavior, etc. of the various species are informative, with just enough detail for anyone short of a marine biology major.

Along with a number of excellent quality photographs, Pieter Folkens (from my hometown of Benicia, CA!) illustrations are superb. From Knopf, the same publishers of the Sibley Guide to Birds, the graphics and layout of this guide are similarly clean and very attractive. I think it's one of the best looking books of it's type, and an ideal introductory guide for anyone with an interest in marine mammals.

I recommend this to all beginning bridge players and will recommend to all my students. Frank presents the material in a logical fashion along with a thought process that will get you going in the right direction. Bridge is more than memorizing the basics. Learn how to "think"bridge from Frank's easy to follow explanations. IngridH at OKbridge

Ok, there is absoltuely NO denying the fact that Shakespeare is an awesome guy. Also, there is no denying that The Sonnets are gorgeous and intriguing. However, with the help of many FANTASTIC performers, there is NOW no denying that spoken sonnets are even better. Read by the stars, the sonnets have a new life to them- something inderscribable is added when they are read aloud by these voices. Kudos to (the one and only ) Brian Stokes Mitchell, who I particularly enjoyed, not only because I'm a huge fan of his, but because his voice lends itself extremely well to the words The Bard wrote. Great recording!

This books comes with a CDROM containing the SCTP reference implementation by the authors. Most of the book discusses what the RFC2960 already describes. But Chapter 14 contains a nice explanation of the code on the CDROM. That in itself makes the book worth buying.

There are other items explained better in the book than the RFC. If you are woriking with SCTP protocol, then this is a good book to have.