"For much of human history, the oceans were politics-free zones ... In this edition of The Reference Shelf, we examine "The Politics of the Oceans" and consider humanity's evolving relationship with the sea"--Preface.

I.LOST at sea: debating the Law of the Sea Treaty. The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea: (a historical perspective) / United Nations ; LOST would be a loser for the U.S. / James Carafano ; Editorial: A treaty whose time has come / The New York Times ; LOST ratification would sacrifice sovereignty, weaken military: exclusive interview / Chris Carter ; Sea treaty has broad support, but little chance of ratification / Andrew Jensen -- II. Lines in the water: territorial disputes in the Arctic and beyond. From sea to shining sea to Arctic ocean: sovereignty issues and energy opportunities can no longer be ignored / Joe Ralston ; As ice melts and technology improves, interest in Arctic grows / Jarondakie Patrick and Erika Bolstad ; As the far north melts, calls grow for Arctic treaty / Ed Struzik ; Bolivia-Chile dispute could turn ugly / Andres Oppenheimer ; Center-stage for the twenty-first century / Robert D. Kaplan -- t III. Trouble in the Gulf: the BP oil spill. The oil spill's surprise endings / Newsweek ; The spill, the scandal and the president / Tim Dickinson ; Oil and water / Paul Burka ; BP oil spill : forgotten but not gone / Charles Wohlforth ; America's Chernobyl / Ruth Conniff -- IV. Pollution and the island of trash. Wasted waves: surveying the plastic adrift in the world's oceans / Anna Cummins ; Trashing the island / Charlie Gillis ; Out of sight, out of mine : ocean dumping of mine wastes / Robert Moran, Amanda Reichelt-Brushett, Roy Young ; Japanese tsunami aftermath floating Alaska's way / Doug O'Harra ; The peril of plastic / Bettina Wassener -- V. Scourge of the seas: piracy. Somalia: total cost of piracy menace hits U.S. $12 billion / Christine Mungai ; As pirate attacks grow, shipowners take arms / Peter Apps ; Nigeria: the "other" maritime piracy hotbed / Donna J. Nincic ; How Somalia's fishermen became pirates / Ishaan Tharoor ; We're firing blanks in the war against piracy / Praveen Swami -- VI. The end of seafood? Overfishing around the world. Overfishing could take seafood off the menu by 2048 / David Biello ; Fish on Fridays: the end of overfishing in America / Michael Conathan ; Fish on Fridays: maximizing the value of America's fisheries / Michael Conathan ; Time for a sea change / Paul Greenberg ; Red fish, green fish : what you need to know about seafood ratings / Jacqueline Church ; Food : something's fishy / Matthew McClearn.