Several factors influence bookbinding: how much the publisher wishes to spend on binding; the publisher's judgment on the type of binding likely to appeal to a book's readership; the state of binding technology; and, the contemporary climate of design. Developments in bookbinding in the 1800s including the Victorian influence on design are illustrated with examples from books on the ocean held in the Scripps Library's rare book collection.

The book cites data on the fauna in deep-sea trenches and demonstrates the conditions for existence in them of deep-sea organisms. It correlates information regarding all the biological research conducted by Soviet and foreign expeditions from 1875 to 1985. Complete lists are given of the animals (from Protozoa to fish) that are known from depths over 6 km, over 800 species with an indication of their habitat depth and geographical dissemination. The unique nature of the animal world in the trenches, the reasons for its originality, questions of the evolution and origin of the trench fauna, and data on its zoogeographical zoning are discussed.