The Wavewatcher's Companion
Jun 2010 · Bloomsbury Publishing
5.0star
2 reviewsreport
Ebook
336
Pages
reportRatings and reviews aren’t verified Learn More
About this ebook
One bright February afternoon on a beach in Cornwall, Gavin
Pretor-Pinney took a break from cloudspotting and started watching the
waves rolling into shore. Mesmerised, he wondered where they had come
from, and decided to find out. He soon realised that waves don't just
appear on the ocean, they are everywhere around us, and our lives
depend on them.
From the rippling beats of our hearts, to the movement of food through
our digestive tracts and of signals across our brains, waves are the
transport systems of our bodies. Everything we see and hear reaches us
via light and sound waves, and our information age is reliant on the
microwaves and infrared waves used by the telephone and internet
infrastructure. From shockwaves unleashed by explosions to torsional
waves that cause suspension bridges to collapse, from sonar waves that
allow submarines to 'see' with sound to Mexican waves that sweep
through stadium crowds... there were waves, it seemed, wherever Gavin
looked. But what, he wondered, could they all have in common with ones
we splash around in on holiday?
By the time he made the ultimate surfer's pilgrimage to Hawaii, Gavin
had become a world-class wavewatcher, although he was still rubbish at
surfing. And, while this fascinating, funny book may not teach you how
to ride the waves, it will show you how to tune into the shapes,
colours and forms of life's many undulations.
Pretor-Pinney took a break from cloudspotting and started watching the
waves rolling into shore. Mesmerised, he wondered where they had come
from, and decided to find out. He soon realised that waves don't just
appear on the ocean, they are everywhere around us, and our lives
depend on them.
From the rippling beats of our hearts, to the movement of food through
our digestive tracts and of signals across our brains, waves are the
transport systems of our bodies. Everything we see and hear reaches us
via light and sound waves, and our information age is reliant on the
microwaves and infrared waves used by the telephone and internet
infrastructure. From shockwaves unleashed by explosions to torsional
waves that cause suspension bridges to collapse, from sonar waves that
allow submarines to 'see' with sound to Mexican waves that sweep
through stadium crowds... there were waves, it seemed, wherever Gavin
looked. But what, he wondered, could they all have in common with ones
we splash around in on holiday?
By the time he made the ultimate surfer's pilgrimage to Hawaii, Gavin
had become a world-class wavewatcher, although he was still rubbish at
surfing. And, while this fascinating, funny book may not teach you how
to ride the waves, it will show you how to tune into the shapes,
colours and forms of life's many undulations.
Ratings and reviews
5.0
2 reviews
A Google user
- Flag inappropriate
May 16, 2012
Already have this in print. Brilliant book!! Please put cloudspotter's companion online Google play
About the author
Gavin Pretor-Pinney is the founder of The Cloud Appreciation Society and author of two Sunday Times bestsellers, The Cloudspotter's Guide and The Cloud Collector's Handbook. He also co-founded the Idler,
a magazine that defends the noble art of doing nothing. Gavin loves
watching waves in every form, whether on the seashore or around a
football stadium, and has learned to enjoy their subtle and beautiful
progress through our lives. He lives in Somerset.
a magazine that defends the noble art of doing nothing. Gavin loves
watching waves in every form, whether on the seashore or around a
football stadium, and has learned to enjoy their subtle and beautiful
progress through our lives. He lives in Somerset.
Rate this ebook
Tell us what you think.
Reading information
Smartphones and tablets
Install the Google Play Books app for Android and iPad/iPhone. It syncs automatically with your account and allows you to read online or offline wherever you are.
Laptops and computers
You can listen to audiobooks purchased on Google Play using your computer's web browser.
eReaders and other devices
To read on e-ink devices like Kobo eReaders, you'll need to download a file and transfer it to your device. Follow the detailed Help Center instructions to transfer the files to supported eReaders.
