Oxygen is the most basic life support system our bodies employ, and yet also has the capacity to cause great harm. Keller (1946) has called oxygen “The Princess of Gases. She is beautiful but has to be handled with special care”. We cannot live without it, but in prolonged breathing exposures or in deep depths … Read more
I don’t want to participate in any sport in which my species is not at the top of the food chain. — Ken Fonte Stress in diving is probably the central problem in the accidents and resulting injuries and fatalities that occur to divers . . . — Art Bachrach and Glen Egstrom STRESS Many … Read more
Remember when you first decided to learn to scuba dive? I do! I wanted to stay underwater a little longer than I could simply by holding my breath. I learned to scuba in 1979 and those first dives were seldom deeper than 33 feet (10m) deep. My tank had a valve release that you pulled … Read more
by Mel McCombie We’re on a long dive trip and wondering about some everyday practical things—diving with contact lenses, sun protection—and wondered what others have to say? For example, I dive with soft contact lenses; I notice that during dives, when my eyes encounter sea water, they create mucus (which I delicately term “eye boogers”), … Read more
At weekends, I work in a store that specializes in underwater photography equipment. We try to match products to each customer’s needs. Recently, a young woman came in to buy an underwater camera. She professed to be a professional writer intending to supply articles to diving magazines. She wanted a camera that was very straightforward … Read more
