The story of what happens when a camera becomes a piece of flotsam.

Benor arrives in Port Naain intent on the simple task of producing a handbook for merchants. Then there is a murder, and a vengeful family who will stop at nothing to silence those who found the body. Suddenly Benor's life is no longer simple.

"Ebbesmeyer's goal is noble and fresh: to show how the flow of ocean debris around the world reveals 'the music' of the world's oceans." -New York Times Book Review Through the fascinating stories of flotsam, one of the Earth's greatest secrets is revealed. In Flotsametrics and the Floating World, maverick scientist Curtis Ebbesmeyer details how his obsession with floating garbage-from rubber ducks to discarded Nike sneakers-helped to revolutionize...

A plague erupted. The victim suffers a two-month latent period during which he is infectious but shows no symptoms. The virus is spread by aerosol, so that millions of people are soon infected and infectious, but without knowing it. At the climax of the disease, there is what a character calls a rite of distribution. At the climax, the victim does what he or she most wanted or feared doing, the idea being that this kind of fear is laced with fascination....

"Many consider Ricky Yamamoto to be the island's most competent diver, but the police think she has a few screws loose. Those who consider her a friend wouldn't disagree with either assessment. When her morning dive is interrupted by a spinning tangle of chains, bodies, and what appears to be a truck axle, she is dragged into an international free-for-all. As authorities bicker, and rumors fly, the crime crew fights to eliminate loose ends, following...

Pioneering oceanographer Curtis Ebbesmeyer unravels the mystery of marine currents, uncovers the astonishing story of flotsam, and changes the world's view of trash, the ocean, and our global environment by calling attention to the threats that global warming and disintegrating plastic waste pose to the seas...and to us.