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Charles P. Wohlforth
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The Whale and the Supercomputer: On the Northern Front of Climate Change Paperback – May 4, 2005

by Charles Wohlforth (Author)
4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 18 ratings
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In The Whale and the Supercomputer, scientists and natives wrestle with our changing climate in the land where it has hit first
--and hardest

A traditional Eskimo whale-hunting party races to shore near Barrow, Alaska-their comrades trapped on a floe drifting out to sea-as ice that should be solid this time of year gives way. Elsewhere, a team of scientists transverses the tundra, sleeping in tents, surviving on frozen chocolate, and measuring the snow every ten kilometers in a quest to understand the effects of albedo, the snow's reflective ability to cool the earth beneath it.

Climate change isn't an abstraction in the far North. It is a reality that has already dramatically altered daily life, especially that of the native peoples who still live largely off the land and sea. Because nature shows her footprints so plainly here, the region is also a lure for scientists intent on comprehending the complexities of climate change. In this gripping account, Charles Wohlforth follows the two groups as they navigate a radically shifting landscape. The scientists attempt to decipher its smallest elements and to derive from them a set of abstract laws and models. The natives draw on uncannily accurate traditional knowledge, borne of long experience living close to the land. Even as they see the same things-a Native elder watches weather coming through too fast to predict; a climatologist notes an increased frequency of cyclonic systems-the two cultures struggle to reconcile their vastly different ways of comprehending the environment.

With grace, clarity, and a sense of adventure, Wohlforth--a lifelong Alaskan--illuminates both ways of seeing a world in flux, and in the process, helps us to navigate a way forward as climate change reaches us all.

Previous page
  1. Print length
    336 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publication date
    May 4, 2005
  4. Dimensions
    5.5 x 0.76 x 8.5 inches
  5. ISBN-10
    0865477140
  6. ISBN-13
    978-0865477148
  7. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“The ancient heart of arctic Alaska beats loudly in The Whale and the Supercomputer. Charles Wohlforth writes passionate advocacy in brilliant prose, very much in the tradition of Peter Matthiessen and Barry Lopez, that is, inimitably. The Inupiaq Eskimo's vigilant concerns, ideas, know-how--side by side with modern science's approach to the profound effects of climate change--are brought to readers with unalloyed power to disturb and enchant in equal measure. Mr. Wohlforth is an indispensable environmental journalist.” ―Howard Norman, author of The Bird Artist and My Famous Evening

“Charles Wohlforth has sent us a fascinating dispatch from the front lines of global warming. With this satisfying blend of adventure and philosophy, he paints a rich and often surprising picture of life at the edge of the world. And, by showing us two cultures struggling to grasp the epic changes upon them, he tackles fundamental questions about the nature of knowledge itself, and the purpose of seeking it.” ―Barbara Freese, author of Coal

About the Author

Charles Wohlforth is a lifelong Alaska resident and author of The Whale and the Supercomputer, winner of the L.A. Times Book Prize, as well as many other books and articles about nature, history, politics, and travel in the North. An avid cross-country skier, Wohlforth lives during the winter in Anchorage with his wife, Barbara, and their four children. In summer they live off the grid on a remote Kachemak Bay shore reachable only by boat. Wohlforth began his career as a reporter for a small-town newspaper. As a reporter for the Anchorage Daily News he worked months in the field covering the Exxon Valdez oil spill.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ North Point Press (May 4, 2005)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 336 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0865477140
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0865477148
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 14.4 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.76 x 8.5 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 18 ratings

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Charles P. Wohlforth

Charles P. Wohlforth

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Customer reviews

4.8 out of 5 stars
4.8 out of 5
18 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Arvella B. Oliver
5.0 out of 5 stars I am reading parts of this book aloud to my children
Reviewed in the United States on December 12, 2006
Verified Purchase
who are 11 and 13. They wanted me to read the whole chapter about the snow-sampling expedition. They are thrilled and disturbed by the whale hunts and the vivid descriptions of the ice, and they are more interested in the science than I expected -- but as another reviewer noted, the author is a parent, too, and while the science isn't oversimplified, it is set out in plain language.

My kids want to go to Alaska as soon as possible, "before it's all melted and gone forever" as my daughter says. And my son wanted to know -- "Mom, if I can figure out cold fusion, will you be proud of me?"

All the accolades by other reviewers here are well deserved. This is a wonderful read; the science is woven into the story so seamlessly that you don't realize just how much you're learning. But I think the most important message of this story is that the earth has an intrinsic value and beauty that we do not have the right to destroy.

So, get this book. Read it. Donate a copy to your local library. Maybe our children really can save the planet. This book could be the inspiration.
2 people found this helpful
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B. Moose Peterson
5.0 out of 5 stars A MUST read !
Reviewed in the United States on May 30, 2004
Verified Purchase
In my twenty+ years of working with enviromental issues and the hundreds and hundreds of books I've read on those topics, none have been as good a read as The Whale and the Supercomputer!
There is a clear need, no matter the science, of relating the science to the real world. This book does of great job of doing that on a topic that is so important to our world today and for our kids of tomorrow.
Be entertained as you learn, understand a world so few are fortunate enough to explore. Read this book!
9 people found this helpful
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Eugene N. Miya
4.0 out of 5 stars Well, not quite five stars in my book (9?)
Reviewed in the United States on April 16, 2012
The first chapter of Wohlforth's book Whale & Super, I would say, can rival Preston's Hot Zone book:  The Hot Zone: A Terrifying True Story . The chapter's real life drama rises to its conclusion or collision. The book over all is a fast read, however, the North Slope of Alaska, like this book is a highly political place.

One has a hard time trying to challenge the subsistence life in Barrow by the Inupiat; it's a tough life which lower-48ers only barely comprehend (you can get a tiny sense of it in the recent film  Big Miracle  (which is still mostly a kids film), but every character/person tries to think of the PR aspects including the Inupiat). Most tourists come in summer and few have any concept of what Alaskan night is like. At least at the end of the book, both the Inupiats and scientist committees getting along and combining knowledge to mutual benefit.

I, too, have flown in ERA helos (just last summer) and planes on the North Slope and various parts of the Brooks Range, West and East of the Haul Road. And I've also witnessed permafrost melting of thermokarst (a relatively new word).

I give this book 4 stars only, because I have the knowledge of a dozen field seasons at Toolik Lake that this chapter upset my friends who work very hard there: which basically took a day off time and made this field station sound like a day at the beach. Wohlforth should be chided for this.

Similarly, while "supercomputer" is in the title, the chapter on the simulation done at the Arctic Region Supercomputer Center (ARSC) is a little weak. Yes, sorry, it's a technical topic, and ARSC was perceived as Ted Stevens' pork barrel by other UAF friends. This chapter could have been stronger.

The best that one can hope is that should Mr. Wohlforth write a revised edition, these small errors get corrected (in general reporters don't). It's not a bad book; it won't change the minds of some climate skeptics, but the Arctic has advantages for detecting changes which won't be as quickly noticed until too late in temperate regions. Most people can look past these points, but others can't. I debated on 3 stars, but I'll give some sway to other reviewers. But definitely not five stars. Get your public library to buy it and go with the knowledge of this review.
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Eunice T.
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United States on June 13, 2015
Verified Purchase
Thought provoking and angering at the same time.
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Donna Eckert
5.0 out of 5 stars I enjoyed it greatly and learned a lot.
Reviewed in the United States on May 4, 2023
Starting with very little knowledge of Alaska and the Natives and their whalehunting culture, I learned a LOT. And I didn't know how heavily invested so many scientists were in studying in this area either. I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know all the real-life characters and the contrast of modern and native ways of looking at things.
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