Introduction to Physical Oceanography

Unlike most books, I am distributing this book for free in digital format via the world-wide web. I am doing this for two reasons:

1. Textbooks are usually out of date by the time they are published, usually

a year or two after the author finishes writing the book. Randol Larson,

writing in Syllabus, states: “In my opinion, technology textbooks are a

waste of natural resources. They’re out of date the moment they are

published. Because of their short shelf life, students don’t even want to

hold on to them”—(Larson, 2002). By publishing in electronic form, I can

make revisions every year, keeping the book current.

2. Many students, especially in less-developed countries cannot afford the

high cost of textbooks from the developed world. This then is a gift

from the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to the

students of the world.