The danger and excitement of Antarctic exploration from the earliest sea voyages through the 20th-century overland expeditions racing to the South Pole.

Account of the thrilling race to the south pole. With an introduction by Fridtjof Nansen.

During the long twentieth century, explorers went in unprecedented numbers to the hottest, coldest, and highest points on the globe. Taking us from the Himalaya to Antarctica and beyond, Higher and Colder presents the first history of extreme physiology, the study of the human body at its physical limits. Each chapter explores a seminal question in the history of science, while also showing how the apparently exotic locations and experiments contributed to broader political and social shifts in twentieth-century scientific thinking. Unlike most books on modern biomedicine, Higher and Colder focuses on fieldwork, expeditions, and exploration, and in doing so provides a welcome alternative to laboratory-dominated accounts of the history of modern life sciences. Though centered on male-dominated practices—science and exploration—it recovers the stories of women’s contributions that were sometimes accidentally, and sometimes deliberately, erased. Engaging and provocative, this book is a history of the scientists and physiologists who face challenges that are physically demanding, frequently dangerous, and sometimes fatal, in the interest of advancing modern science and pushing the boundaries of human ability.

Describes the continent of Antarctica, its geographical features, visitors, and animals.

"A beautiful large-format history of a surprisingly fragile Eden. 'A journey to Antarctica changes your life. It forces you to take a long hard look at the state of our planet and its last wild places!Antarctica promises man the chance to do something that he has never done before -- commit to the preservation of a vast wilderness, simply because it exists.' Best known for their African safaris, Jonathan and Angela Scott's other passion lies in their travels to Antarctica. When the sun sets at the end of a hot day in the Mara-Serengeti, they long for the austere and beautiful landscape of the Antarctic. A journey to the southern ocean offers an array of emblematic creatures -- penguins, albatrosses, seals and whales. A spectacular number of birds flock to the breeding colonies there each year, and whales gather in the southern oceans to feed during the Antarctic summer making it the perfect location for whale watching. But the recent boom in tourism is only the latest in a long history of man's attempt to own and exploit this icy wilderness. Weaving together the discovery stories of explorers such as Cook, Shackleton, Scott and Amundsen, with the ecological stories of whaling, mining and the greenhouse effect, the Scotts reveal man's impact on this remote and austere sanctuary for wildlife"--Publisher's description.

Antarctica -- Life-and-death decisions -- the early 1900's. How Scott, Shackleton, Amundsen and Mawson risked it all in their quest for the South Pole and beyond, and what we can learn from their situations to improve our modern-day decision making.

The words of the great explorers of Antarctica--James Cook, Ernest Shackleton, Robert Falcon Scott, Roald Amundsen and Richard Byrd--are gathered together in this gripping narrative history of the race to reach the South Pole.