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Forthcoming requirements concerning marine safety standards are examined in particular those relating to the construction and equipment of ships. A detailed historical account introduces the development of relevant international maritime safety instruments subsequent to the Titanic disaster in 1912 and including the first International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea 1929 (SOLAS) and its successors protocols and amendments to-date; the 1930 and subsequent International Load Line Conventions; complementary safety codes for specialised ship types in particular the International Code for the Construction and Equipment of Ships carrying Dangerous Chemical in Bulk (IBC formerly the Bulk Chemical Code BCH) and similarly for Liquefied Gases in Bulk (IGC formerly the Gas Carrier Code GC). Appendixes contain examples of companion and supplementary documents to the 1974 SOLAS convention; assembly resolutions incorporated in the 1981 amendments to SOLAS 1974; comparison of SOLAS 1974 and 1981; amendments to SOLAS 1974 relating to existing ships; status of implementation to the codes; and a harmonised system of survey and certification.

Developments in maritime communications are reviewed from the sinking of the Titanic to the implementation of the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS). Some of the problems associated with GMDSS are discussed including false distress signals complexity of equipment the need for a common language and a lack of computer literacy amongst deck officers. Possible solutions and suggestions are presented. Ways of enhancing the knowledge and understanding of the GMDSS with modern teaching techniques are considered.

If you were to ask people at rnadom in the street to name an important ship the chances are they'd say Titanic QE2 Victory Cutty Sark or even Great Britain. The liklihood of anyone saying Charlotte Dundas is pretty unlikely but should not be so.

In 1843 Brunel's ironship 'Great Britain' was launched, becoming the forerunner of the great steel-hulled ships of today. Yet she was tiny compared with the transatlantic liners of the early 1900s as ship owners vied for a top spot in terms of speed, elegance, and size. Liners such as 'Mauritania' and 'Titanic' were later followed by two giant Queens and France's liner 'Normandie'. But the coming jet age threatened the end of the ocean line until the dedicated cruise ship was born a decade later and now the ships are as massive as the industry itself. Geoff Lunn traces the many changes in construction and design over the years, and looks at what the biggest means across all spheres, and not just physical size. This illustrated book also reviews the careers of the greatest ships, culminating in the building of Royal Caribbean's Genesis-class cruise ships, 'Oasis of the Seas' (2009) and 'Allure of the Seas' (2010), each incredibly measuring three times the tonnage of the 'QE2' (the 'Queen Elizabeth 2').

ARTICLES Craig, Robin. "Millionaires and Enterprising Nobodies," XVI, 2, 1-15 Thornton, Helen. "Hugo Grotius and the Freedom of the Seas," XVI, 2, 17-38 Van Gelder, Maartje. "Supplying the Serenissima: The Role of Flemish Merchants in the Venetian Grain Trade during the First Phase of the Straatvaart," XVI, 2, 39-60 Gleicher, David and Stevans, Lonnie K. "Who Survived Titanic? A Logistic Regression Analysis," XVI, 2, 61-93 Abreu-Ferreira, Darlene. "The French in Porto in the Seventeenth Century," XVI, 2, 95-110 Heazle, Michael. "The Politics of Uncertainty: The International Whaling Commission’s Road to Management by Moratoria," XVI, 2, 111-144 Frandsen, Karl-Erik. "The Scale and Politics of Danzig’s Salted Herring Trade in the Late Sixteenth Century," XVI, 2, 145-167

An overview of manned and unmanned submersibles is provided along with a detailed description of the deep submergence Argo-Jason vehicle system. The importance of such systems in the exploration of ocean bottom geology and underwater wrecks is touched upon. A comprehensive forensic treatment of the Titanic and Bismarck wrecks is given as a matter of interest for history and nautical archaeology as well as a demonstration of the vehicles' usefulness in determining the causes of a ship's casualty.

Here is the story of 20th century passenger shipping, from the first of the superliners (the German Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse) to Cunard's Queen Elizabeth and Queen Mary, right up to Queen Elizabeth 2, and including such other favourites as Mauretania, the Lusitania, the Normandie and the legendary Titanic. From the early four-stackers to the post-jet transition to cruising, the accent is on the North Atlantic trade, but other routes such as Australia, Africa and Latin America are also included in this superbly illustrated look at the past, present and future of ocean travel.