Verified answer

http://www.uwsp.edu/geo/faculty/ritter/geog101/tex...

http://www.uwsp.edu/geo/faculty/ritter/geog101/tex...

Hot air rises. (That's why a professor stands at the lowest portion of a lecture hall and the seats rise up from there. JK) As it rises, it is replaced by surface air. In the interim, you have a low pressure area. Similarly, cold air falls. This puts more air into the area, creating a high pressure cell. Add the effects of the Earth's rotation, and you have a spin of the air around the cells. On a broader basis, you have similar changes varying with latitude, giving you the doldrums, trade winds, etc. These winds drive the ocean currents, modified by the land masses in the way.