The Silent World: A Story of Undersea Discovery and Adventure
Encyclopedia
The Silent World is a 1953 book co-authored by Captain Jacques-Yves Cousteau
and Frédéric Dumas
and edited by James Dugan
. Although a French national, Cousteau wrote the book in English. Cousteau and Émile Gagnan
designed, built and tested the first "aqua-lung
" in the summer of 1943 off the southern coast of France. In the opening chapters Cousteau recounts the earliest days of scuba diving
with his diving companions Frédéric Dumas and Philippe Tailliez
. The aqualung allowed for the first time untethered free-floating extended deep water diving and ushered in the modern era of scuba diving. Later chapters include excursions diving ship wrecks.
It was the basis of the Academy Award-winning documentary The Silent World
(1956). It has been very successful; as of the book's 50th anniversary it has been translated into some 22 languages and sold over 5 million copies and is still in print, notably as a 2004 hardcover edition published by the National Geographic Society.
The book contains 48 pages of black-and-white photos by various photographers, and 16 pages of color made available by National Geographic Magazine
. The hand-held work in Ektachrome
"is the first ever made in significant depths, using artificial light and scientific color correction."
Jacques-Yves Cousteau
Jacques-Yves Cousteau was a French naval officer, explorer, ecologist, filmmaker, innovator, scientist, photographer, author and researcher who studied the sea and all forms of life in water...
and Frédéric Dumas
Frédéric Dumas
Frédéric Dumas was part of a team of three, with Jacques-Yves Cousteau and Philippe Tailliez, in which he was nicknamed Didi. They had a passion for diving, and developed the diving regulator with the aid of the engineer Émile Gagnan...
and edited by James Dugan
James Dugan
James Dugan was a historian, editor and magazine article writer. Born in Altoona, Pennsylvania he is best known for his collaborations with Jacques Cousteau....
. Although a French national, Cousteau wrote the book in English. Cousteau and Émile Gagnan
Emile Gagnan
Émile Gagnan was a French engineer and co-inventor of the diving regulator used for the first Scuba equipment in 1943...
designed, built and tested the first "aqua-lung
Aqua-lung
Aqua-Lung was the original name of the first open-circuit free-swimming underwater breathing set in reaching worldwide popularity and commercial success...
" in the summer of 1943 off the southern coast of France. In the opening chapters Cousteau recounts the earliest days of scuba diving
Scuba diving
Scuba diving is a form of underwater diving in which a diver uses a scuba set to breathe underwater....
with his diving companions Frédéric Dumas and Philippe Tailliez
Philippe Tailliez
Philippe Tailliez was a friend and colleague of Jacques Cousteau. He was an underwater pioneer, who had been diving since the 1930s.- Biography :...
. The aqualung allowed for the first time untethered free-floating extended deep water diving and ushered in the modern era of scuba diving. Later chapters include excursions diving ship wrecks.
It was the basis of the Academy Award-winning documentary The Silent World
The Silent World
The Silent World is a 1956 French documentary film co-directed by the famed French oceanographer Jacques-Yves Cousteau and a young Louis Malle. The Silent World is noted as one of the first films to use underwater cinematography to show the ocean depths in color...
(1956). It has been very successful; as of the book's 50th anniversary it has been translated into some 22 languages and sold over 5 million copies and is still in print, notably as a 2004 hardcover edition published by the National Geographic Society.
The book contains 48 pages of black-and-white photos by various photographers, and 16 pages of color made available by National Geographic Magazine
National Geographic Magazine
National Geographic, formerly the National Geographic Magazine, is the official journal of the National Geographic Society. It published its first issue in 1888, just nine months after the Society itself was founded...
. The hand-held work in Ektachrome
Ektachrome
Ektachrome is a brand name owned by Kodak for a range of transparency, still, and motion picture films available in most formats, including 35 mm and sheet sizes to 11x14 inch size. Ektachrome has a distinctive look that became familiar to many readers of National Geographic, which used it...
"is the first ever made in significant depths, using artificial light and scientific color correction."
External links
- Book review, C. H. Blickenstorfer, scubadiverinfo.com