The Sea Around Us (1951) spent months on nonfiction bestseller lists, won the National Book Award, and made Carlson world famous.Ĭarson spent July and August of 1951 in Woods Hole, on leave from the Bureau of Fisheries. During the voyage, Carson wrote early parts of her second book, The Sea Around Us, a study of the history, ecology and uses of the ocean. In 1949, Carson took a 10-day trip on the agency’s research vessel, the Albatross III, from Woods Hole to Georges Bank. While there, Carson wrote numerous pamphlets on wildlife and conservation in her admirable style, both scientifically detailed and lyrical. Bureau of Fisheries (now the Fish and Wildlife Service) in Washington, where she worked from 1936 to 1952, eventually becoming chief editor of the agency’s publications.

Those who dwell, as scientists or laymen, among the beauties and mysteries of the earth are never alone or weary of life.' - The Sense of Wonder by Rachel Carson (New York: Harper and Row, 1965)Ĭarson blended her talents as a biologist and a writer at the U.S. Carson’s summers in Woods Hole greatly influenced the writing of her first book, Under the Sea-Wind (1941). She received her master’s degree in zoology from Johns Hopkins in 1932. In the summer of 1932, while a graduate student at Johns Hopkins University, Carson returned to the MBL to carry out embryological research on teleosts (bony fish). Carson first lived by the sea in 1929 when she spent six summer weeks at the MBL as a beginning investigator in zoology, after having earned her bachelor’s degree at Pennsylvania College for Women. Wilson has written, it “became a national political force, largely responsible for the establishment of the Environmental Protection Agency in 1970.īefore Silent Spring, Carson was already well known for her trilogy of books about the sea, which was her passion. Silent Spring galvanized the nascent environmental movement and, as Edward O. The book was denounced by the American chemical industry, igniting a storm of controversy, but Carson’s detailed message was heard. Silent Spring describes the devastating impact of chemical pesticides, such as DDT, on wildlife and the environment. Rachel Carson, biologist and writer, is best remembered for her last book, Silent Spring, published in 1962. If you want to talk to them, you just come here in the summer instead of traveling all around the country to find them in winter.” - Rachel Carson, July 1951 (interview with the Falmouth Enterprise) There are biologists here from all over the country. “Woods Hole is a wonderful place to come for research. This piece, with additional photos of Carson, was first published on the MBL website in 2007.

Science Communication Resources for Scientists.

The Edge of the Sea by Rachel Carson