This book aims to share newly obtained results and information on regional oceanography of the South China Sea by leading experts in fields such as water mass, circulation, mesoscale eddies, near-inertial motion, upwelling, mixing, continental shelf waves, internal waves and fronts. These comprehensive results can provide new insights on global and regional climate change.

Pinxian Wang and Qianyu Li The South China Sea (SCS) (Fig. 1. 1) offers a special attraction for Earth scientists world-wide because of its location and its well-preserved hemipelagic sediments. As the largest one of the marginal seas separating Asia from the Paci?c, the largest continent from the largest ocean, the SCS functions as a focal point in land-sea int- actions of the Earth system. Climatically, the SCS is located between the Western Paci?c Warm Pool, the centre of global heating at the sea level, and the Tibetan Plateau, the centre of heating at an altitude of 5,000m. Geomorphologically, the SCS lies to the east of the highest peak on earth, Zhumulangma or Everest in the Himalayas (8,848m elevation) and to the west of the deepest trench in the ocean, Philippine Trench (10,497m water depth) (Wang P. 2004). Biogeographically, the SCS belongs to the so-called “East Indies Triangle” where modern marine and terrestrial biodiversity reaches a global maximum (Briggs 1999). Among the major marginal sea basins from the west Paci?c, the SCS presents some of the best conditions for accumulating complete paleoclimatic records in its hemipelagic deposits. These records are favorable for high-resolution pa- oceanographic studies because of high sedimentation rates and good carbonate preservation. It may not be merely a coincidence that two cores from the southern 14 SCS were among the ?rst several cores in the world ocean used by AMS C dating for high-resolution stratigraphy (Andree et al. 1986; Broecker et al. 1988).

The history of the South China Sea is a catalyst of international cooperation and conflict. Security in the Indo-Asia-Pacific is largely governed by command of these strategic waters. More than half of global shipping transits the South China Sea, which also holds significant reserves of oil, gas and minerals as well as some of the largest fisheries in the world. Drawing on a team of field-leading researchers, Jenner and Thuy provide an empirical study of the global ocean's most contested sea space. The volume's four parts offer an insightful analysis of the significance of the South China Sea to the international order; sub-national agents of influence on relations between states; the disputes over sovereignty through the analytical prism of international law; and the conflictful region's prospects. The primary source-based conclusion elucidates the agency of history and strategy in the South China Sea

This is a book guaranteed to delight the reader. It not only depicts the state of mathematics at the end of the century, but is also full of remarkable insights into its future de- velopment as we enter a new millennium. True to its title, the book extends beyond the spectrum of mathematics to in- clude contributions from other related sciences. You will enjoy reading the many stimulating contributions and gain insights into the astounding progress of mathematics and the perspectives for its future. One of the editors, Björn Eng- quist, is a world-renowned researcher in computational sci- ence and engineering. The second editor, Wilfried Schmid, is a distinguished mathematician at Harvard University. Likewi- se the authors are all foremost mathematicians and scien- tists, and their biographies and photographs appear at the end of the book. Unique in both form and content, this is a "must-read" for every mathematician and scientist and, in particular, for graduates still choosing their specialty. Limited collector's edition - an exclusive and timeless work. This special, numbered edition will be available until June 1, 2000. Firm orders only.

South China Sea (SCS) issues are complex and dynamic, ranging from historic claims to present day military occupation, from military security to regional stability, from rhetorical appeasements to national interests, from intraregional competition to extraregional involvement. The submissions made in 2009 by several Southeast Asian states to the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) respecting outer limits of extended continental shelves beyond 200 nautical miles in the South China Sea resulted in renewed attention to the maritime disputes over the insular features and the waters of the South China Sea among several claimant States. Questions have resurfaced about the future of cooperation in the region. Furthermore, the improvement of cross-Strait relations between Taiwan and China after 2008 has added a new element to the evolution of South China Sea issues. This book describes these recent developments in depth and provides an examination of possible future developments in the South China Sea. The articles in this book were originally published as special sections in Ocean Development & International Law.