The Next Wave: The Quest to Harness the Power of the Oceans

by Elizabeth Rusch

Overview

Journey to the wave-battered coast of the Pacific Northwest to meet some of the engineers and scientists working to harness the punishing force of our oceans, one of the nature’s powerful and renewable energy sources. With an array of amazing devices that cling to the bottom of the sea floor and surf on the crests of waves, these explorers are using a combination of science, imagination, and innovation to try to capture wave energy in the hopes of someday powering our lives in a cleaner, more sustainable way.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780544099999
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	10/14/2014
Series:	Scientists in the Field Series
Pages:	80
Product dimensions:	9.10(w) x 11.10(h) x 0.50(d)
Lexile:	1070L (what's this?)
Age Range:	10 - 12 Years

About the Author

Elizabeth Rusch is the author of You Call This Democracy?, a finalist for the YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults, and more than a dozen acclaimed children’s books, including picture books, middle grade, fiction, nonfiction, and a graphic novel. In a starred review Kirkus called her book The 21: The True Story of the Youth Who Sued the U.S. Government Over Climate Change a “nail-biting account of a still-unresolved landmark case.” She lives in Portland, Oregon, with her family.

Editorial Reviews

* "Lively design, clear explanations, text boxes, photographs and diagrams all contribute to an informative look at how people are working right now to find ways to use a previously inaccessible energy source." —Kirkus, starred review "Rusch fully explores the engineering process, capturing the determined, entrepreneurial spirit of the profiled engineers as well as the need for creative problem-solving and ingenuity, a test-and-retest mentality, a high tolerance for failure, and perseverance through the quest for research funding." —Horn Book Magazine * "This pellucid look into a promising field of alternative energy (so needed in a warming world) and into the scientists devoting their lives to bring concept into reality is informative, intriguing, and inspiring." —School Library Journal, starred review "Kids who imagine an engineering career in their future will want to explore this timely work." —Bulletin "Rusch once again looks at the convergence of science and technology. Writing clearly about the engineers' trial-and-error methods, she conveys the importance of testing, the necessity of funding, and the satisfaction of working toward a worthwhile goal." A fine choice for young people intrigued by engineering and oceanography!" —Booklist Online   —

From the Publisher

★ 11/01/2014
Gr 5–8—Rainforests and savannahs, coral reefs and tundra—readers are most likely familiar with these fields in which scientists work. But this time, it is the energy of the physical movement of the global ocean that is the field, and here in this world of watery physics, a series of imaginative, innovative engineers have been designing, building, and experimenting to successfully harness this inexorable surge of energy. Rusch's readable text follows three very varied groups of visionary engineers on this quest: Mike Morrow and Mike Delos-Reyes (who are working on a device that will allow people to sit upon the ocean floor), Annette von Jouanne and her team (working on a floating design), and the cofounders of Ocean Power Technologies, the first to win a permit to generate "ocean electricity" to be marketed to homes and businesses on the Oregon coast. Included are sidebars on a rich variety of topics such as "Working with Watts" and a global inventory of "Wild Wave Inventions of the World." Colorful diagrams and a plethora of photos provide visual stimulation as well. This pellucid look into a promising field of alternative energy (so needed in a warming world) and into the scientists devoting their lives to bring concept into reality is informative, intriguing, and inspiring.—Patricia Manning, formerly at Eastchester Public Library, NY

School Library Journal

★ 2014-08-27
Scientists and engineers from around the world work to harness the power of ocean waves, testing their ideas in an Oregon research lab and the stormy seas off the Oregon coast. Here's another well-written science title from an author whose previous contributions to the Scientists in the Field series introduced researchers studying volcanic eruptions on Earth and exploring Mars. After explaining the world's need for renewable energy sources and the force of ocean power, Rusch focuses on three different approaches to harnessing this power that were underway at the time of her writing. She draws in young readers by introducing two engineers as young tinkerers, following their work through college to the development of a company testing an energy-capture device that sits on the ocean floor. An Oregon State University faculty member has equipped a testing ground offshore to monitor different approaches; some of her students are now building a device that uses the up-and-down motion of the waves. A third company has created working wave-powered buoys using a different design. A center spread describes other approaches from around the world. Lively design, clear explanations, text boxes, photographs and diagrams all contribute to an informative look at how people are working right now to find ways to use a previously inaccessible energy source. Timely, important, appropriately focused and interesting. (extensive chapter notes, sources, suggestions, index) (Nonfiction. 10-15)

Kirkus Reviews