Page ii

NATIONAL ACADEMY PRESS • 2101 Constitution Ave., N.W. • Washington, D.C. 20418

NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competencies and with regard for appropriate balance.

This report and the committee were supported by grants from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. The views expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the sponsors.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

From monsoons to microbes : understanding the ocean's role in human health / Ocean Studies Board, 
Commission on Geosciences, Environment, and Resources, National Research Council.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index.
ISBN 0-309-06569-0 (casebound)
1. Marine pollution—Health aspects. 2. Marine microbiology. 3.
Marine pharmacology. I. National Research Council (U.S.). Ocean
Studies Board.
RA600 .F76 1999                    99-6094
616.9´8—dc21

From Monsoons to Microbes: Understanding the Ocean's Role in Human Health is available from the National Academy Press, 2101 Constitution Ave., N.W., Lockbox 285, Washington, DC 20055; (800) 624-6242 OR (202) 334-3313 (in the Washington metropolitan area); Internet, http://www.nap.edu

Cover art: Small single-celled algae known as dinoflagellates fall on the background of a rainstorm, along with a satellite image of a hurricane brewing over the tropical ocean. The dinoflagellates are watercolors taken from C.A. Kofoid and O. Swezy (1921), "The Free-Living Unarmored Dinoflagellata," Memoirs of the University of California, Vol. 5, University of California Press, Berkeley.

Copyright 1999 by the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

Printed in the United States of America