Tides of Fire (Sigma Force #17)

by James Rollins

“It presents our greatest challenge. Humanity’s future will not be discovered on the surface of Mars, but in that 99.9 percent of the Earth’s oceans that remain a mystery. And we neglect it at our peril. The oceans are our breadbasket, our playground, even our pharmacy. More importantly, the seas are the true lungs of our planet, producing 80 percent of the world’s oxygen and consuming 25 percent of the carbon dioxide. If even a quarter of the ocean dies, so does most life on Earth.”

Despite appearances, the world is only one disaster away from barbarism.

“The escalation of China’s saber-rattling has grown unnerving throughout the region. It grew worse after AUUKUS, a trilateral treaty between Australia, the U.K., and the U.S. And the situation with Taiwan grows ever more tense. During the past few years, the PLA Navy has increased its number of live-fire exercises and patrols. Including conducting incursions into territorial waters, especially around Australia of late.”

零八

Eight

五,

Five

“While octopuses are classified as cephalopods, they make no evolutionary sense. Their huge brains, their complicated nervous systems, their camera-like eyes, even their ability to camouflage—all these features just suddenly appeared on the evolutionary scene. Octopuses can even edit their own RNA to help them adapt to their environment, unlike any other organism. Across the board, they’re light-years ahead in evolution compared to all their cephalopod relatives.”