HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: leej@sgi.com (Lee Jones)
Newsgroups: rec.scuba
Subject: Re: Shark Attacks
Date: 17 Dec 1992 23:34:32 GMT
Organization: Silicon Graphics, Inc.
NNTP-Posting-Host: diver.asd.sgi.com

In article <1992Dec17.101158.916@resonex.com> dan@resonex.com (Dan Kell) writes:
>But going back to my original question. Is there any record of a shark pack
>attacking someone? Say for example, a surfer suddenly being set up by a group
>of hungry blues, a swimmer being attacked by multiple tigers.

I suspect that *in general*, shark attacks are by a single shark, mostly 
because any shark that's willing to attack a human is likely to be an apex
predator that doesn't hang out in schools.

The top three sharks implicated in attacks on humans are the white, tiger,
and bull.  None of those is known for their schooling behavior.  The ones
that are routinely seen in schools - Sphyrna sp. (hammerheads) and
C. amblyrhynchos (Grey Reef Shark) come to mind - are not largely implicated
in attacks on humans.

In the ship-wreck model, I suspect that the guys that do the most damage
are the oceanic whitetips (C. longimanus), and while I think they largely
travel alone, they all hear the dinner bell ringing from the explosions,
scents, etc.  Then you've got big (10') predators involved in a feeding
frenzy situation and it's not a pretty sight.

Regards, Lee
Organization: Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA
Newsgroups: rec.scuba
Date: Fri, 11 Dec 1992 12:09:50 -0500 
From: "Peter A. Simon" <ps3p+@andrew.cmu.edu>
Subject: Re: missing deco stop ... re-entering

Excerpts from netnews.rec.scuba: 9-Dec-92 Re: missing deco stop ... r..
by William Mayne@phi.cs.fsu 
> In article <1992Dec8.192226.659@cattnts.canada.ncr.com>
craig@cattnts.canada.n
> cr.com (Craig Campbell) writes:
> >
> >Remember, diving is as safe as you make it, but stuff happens.  I have done
> >in water recompression.  Why?  a)  the pain started on a deco stop;
b)  there
>  
> >was (effectively) no chamber available.  We had no O2 (our mistake).
>  
> Details would be interesting. What was your profile? On what stop did you
> get hit? What did you do? I'm guessing that since you called it
> "recompression" you didn't just stay on the schedule you had started
> which obviously wasn't working.

A friend of mine used to run a "crawfish" boat off the coast of Wales
(what he was catching were, I believe, lobsters configured like the
Calif. spiney variety, not the Maine big-claw type).  He told me that
crawfish divers *never* did planned decompression.  He said that if he
"felt a niggle" on the way up he's go down until the pain went away and
hang off there "for awhle" and then start up again, more slowly than
before.  Neither he nor his fellow boat owners would hire ex-military
divers because they'd insist on doing decompression according to the
tables and on staying within the "exceptional exposure" limits.

Well, time is money and these guys didn't bring up their share on their
dives so it wasn't worth using them (and from the diver's standpoint, it
wasn't worth being dead meat for a few bucks, I guess).

No, I don't think this is one of those stories like, "Waaall, I save up
my decompression for the week and do it all on Friday night, before
nipping off to the pub with the lads."

Who knows what the incident/fatality rate was!

Peter
NAUI I #1434
Newsgroups: rec.scuba
From: jcook@mumble.cs.Colorado.EDU (Jonathan E. Cook)
Subject: Re: Snorkeling Crystal River
Organization: University of Colorado, Boulder
Date: Mon, 14 Dec 1992 18:46:40 GMT

In article <1992Dec14.134154.12827@mailer.cc.fsu.edu> mayne@cs.fsu.edu writes:
>
>Here are a couple of fun things to do: (1) Take a cyalum (sp?)
>- chemical light stick - down to the grate which blocks access to
>the cave. After starting it cut it open and watch the glowing
>drops moving in the current. There is a plan to do this with a
>large number of cyalums and divers (with lights out) on New Years
>Eve. (2) During the day time (don't cavern dive at night, by the
>way) put enough air in your BC to be fairly positive and crawl
>around on the ceiling for a while. (Flame retardant: I wouldn't
>suggest that at fragile cave.) Eventually this starts to seem
>normal. Then crawl over to the edge and peek over, seeing the
>sky in the direction which looks like down.
>
>Bill Mayne
>

Pardon me, but absolutely no smilies here!  What you're doing
is purposely polluting for your visual enjoyment!

And you plan to do this with a large number of light sticks????
What if people every day did this, then what would the place
look like. This is a real sick idea. I hope you reconsider.

Jon.

Newsgroups: rec.scuba
From: bill@cac.washington.edu (Bill Whitson)
Subject: Re: Dive Sites Around San Luis
Organization: University of Washington
Date: Sat, 12 Dec 1992 19:52:40 GMT

Hi! I learned to dive in SLO (I now live in Seattle).  There are some
really great dive spots around.  First thing, the dive shop you should
check out is Depth Preceptions in Morrow Bay.  They know a lot and they
have a free wash station for your gear in back (no small thing in the
land of the ever-lasting drought).

All the sites I know of are beach entry and suitable for NAUI OW1 divers.
Be sure and check with a store before trying any of them, though.  The
names I use are fairly common and your should be able to find them on a
local map.  Here goes:

Hazard Canyon -- In Montana de Oro State Park -- is a moderate surge area
with channels worns in the soft rock bottom.  Entry is accomplished vis
giant stride from the long area of rock that extends into the water.  Exit
can be tricky and you should talk to someone who has dived there.

Coast Guard Pier at Morrow Bay -- You have to ask at the office right next
to the pier before you can dive here.  They'll let you.  It's a very basic
dive but really cool if you like invertebrates.  Everything is covered with
anemones and there are some large rocks covered with club-tipped anemones
(a type of soft coral).  We even found a small octopus in a pipe when 
diving here.

Areas around Piedras Blancas -- There are huge kelp beds up about 40 miles
up the coast from SLO.  A dive store should be able to give you specific
directions.

There are several local boats that take divers out at least fairly regularly
I belive.  I got a chance to go on one (sorry, don't have the name) and it was
well worth it.

There are enough great dive sites in the area to warrant a book.  The best
suggestion is to talk to the folks at Depth Perceptions.  They'll know
enough places to keep you busy the whole time.

Bill Whitson
bill@booster.u.washington.edu


---
Sorry, I'm .signorant

Newsgroups: rec.scuba
From: pulcher@convex.com (Harold Pulcher)
Subject: What about those squid?
Organization: CONVEX Computer Corporation, Richardson, Tx., USA
Date: Fri, 18 Dec 1992 16:35:04 GMT
X-Disclaimer: This message was written by a user at CONVEX Computer
              Corp. The opinions expressed are those of the user and
              not necessarily those of CONVEX.

While killing channels last night(you how us guys love the remote
control), I came across a show on A&E.  It was a bunch of guys looking
to film some giant squid.  The guys on the ship that normally fish for
the squid told them to be extremely careful, as they are MORE afraid of
the squid that ANY shark.  They dove down to what they said were safe
limits.  I imagine it was however long thier light cords happen to be.
Oh, by the way this was a night dive.  Anyway, the ran into a group of
squid 3-6 feet in length.  They filmed while the squid took the bait on
the fisherman's lure, then one brave(not so smart) soul took chunk of
fish off the line and proceeded to hand feed the squid.  If you are not
aware, the squid's suckers are not just suckers.  They have hooks in
them.  Once the squid is attached, if they are pulled(or pull off
themselves) they take a chunk of whatever they were attached to with
them.  During the whole process the squid were turning all kinds of
colors: black, pink, green, red, and orange.  They divers also noticed
that the lights tended to make the squid shy away.  Only the most
aggressive really came into the light.  This turned out to be a problem.
On the way to the surface, with the filming lights off, a diver
suddenly felt himself decending.  As it turned out, there were 3 squids
attached to the diver hoping for a treat.  Luckily for the diver the
squid had attached themselve to what they called breakaway gear.  The
guy ended up losing a watch and som other stuff the show did no
mention.  From that time on, they started lowering remote controlled
cameras to do the filming.  They say they are looking for that giant
squid they believe to be alive.  Current estimates(for tentacles found
ashore) say that there is a squid out there that is 64 feet in length.
Try hand heedin' that boy!!

later,
harold
-- 
( Harold Pulcher               | Two Birds are tied together.  Although      ) 
( System Integration/Support   | they have four wings, the cannot fly!       )
( Convex Computer Corporation  |                     -movie "Circle of Iron" )
( Email: pulcher@convex.com    | #include <disclaimer.h>                     )
Newsgroups: rec.scuba
From: lchang@cbnewse.cb.att.com (lilian.y.chang)
Subject: Wanted: info on long weekend dive areas
Organization: AT&T
Distribution: usa
Date: Mon, 14 Dec 1992 19:29:00 GMT


Hello,

I don't read this newsgroup, so please excuse this
post if this is a common question.  My husband and I are 
novice divers - we've dove 3 or 4 times in small Wisconsin 
lakes.  The first (and only) time we dove without wetsuits 
was on a trip to Jamaica this past October, however, we 
were only able to go once due to weather and health 
reasons.  But that just whet our appetites for warmer
climate/higher visibility diving...

So now, we'd like to go on a long weekend trip focused
on diving in the spring sometime.  Criteria is:

	1) warm location with interesting aquatic
	   life (light wetsuits/skins is warm enough)

	2) preferably in the US (our vacation time
	   and travel budgets are limited)

	3) reputable dive shops/tours

	4) don't have to go *too* deep to see
	   interesting things (too deep = > 80 ft.,
	   somewhat intimidating for us novices!)

It doesn't have to be the Best Diving Spot - our 
experience is so limited that there's probably a lot of 
places which are warmer and have more interesting things 
to see than murky Wisconsin freshwater lakes! 

Some places we've heard of are Key Largo/Biscayne Park 
area, Gulf side of Florida, San Diego??  Can anyone recommend 
areas/hotels/dive shops?

Please reply directly by email since I don't read
this newsgroup.

Thanks in advance,

Lilian Ficht

l.y.ficht@att.com
Newsgroups: rec.scuba
From: mayne@phi.cs.fsu.edu (William Mayne)
Subject: Re: Nitrox Diving
Reply-To: mayne@cs.fsu.edu
Organization: Florida State University Computer Science Department
Date: Tue, 15 Dec 92 18:07:42 GMT

In article <1992Dec15.140405.11375@newssun.med.miami.edu> dbrown@newssun.med.miami.edu (Daniel Brown) writes:
>In article <1992Dec14.160128.4711@cattnts.canada.ncr.com> craig@cattnts.canada.ncr.com (Craig Campbell) writes:
>
>>The risk is NOT new.  The cruxial question is, "How deep do you dive"?
>>(Actually, the real question is "How deep and how long", but that's too 
>>complex and unnecessary for this discussion.)
>
>The risk of O2 toxicity isn't new, that's true, but the risk of it occurring
>at shallower depths is new.  I can't remember an air dive I've done where
>depth was restricted by O2 toxicity.

I have. But I am a chicken and start to take the risk very seriously
at 1.6 ATA O_2 (218 fsw on air). Others have gone deeper on air regularly
and lived to tell about it - if they could remember. :-)

However the risk of O_2 toxicity using nitrox is grossly exaggerated.
A 32% mix is fine down to 130 fsw for longer than anyone but a technical
diver could stay down anyway. Except for wall dives the max depth for most
sport dives is fixed by the bottom. And anyone diving in the 130 foot
range who doesn't keep good track of their depth shouldn't be doing that
kind of diving and isn't safe no matter what they are breathing. It is
easy to control the risk from O_2. And the safety and health benefits
from reduced N_2 are considerable. More than that, it could be argued
that the hypothetical Complete Idiot Diver needs the safety margin
provided by nitrox the most, assuming that the bottom will prevent going
deep enough to worry about O_2 (as is usually the case) and the Complete
Idiot isn't competent to manage his N_2 exposure. (I assume that since
I am talking about someone who is incompetent it is PC to use masculine
pronouns.)

Bill Mayne
Newsgroups: rec.scuba
From: carrie@wam.umd.edu (Carrie Lynn Leonard)
Subject: Re: missing deco stop ... re-entering
Organization: University of Maryland, College Park
Date: Mon, 14 Dec 1992 01:18:16 GMT

In article <Bz7zF1.AFw@optimla.aimla.com> walter@optimla.aimla.com (Walter Hunt) writes:
>In article <sf_AhSy00iUz82bn0_@andrew.cmu.edu>, "Peter A. Simon" <ps3p+@andrew.cmu.edu> writes:
>
>|> A friend of mine used to run a "crawfish" boat off the coast of Wales
>|> (what he was catching were, I believe, lobsters configured like the
>|> Calif. spiney variety, not the Maine big-claw type).  He told me that
>|> crawfish divers *never* did planned decompression.  He said that if he
>
>	Reminds me of when I was sitting at a table with a guy (FOAF) who had
>just returned from a trip with a local diving-knowledgable doctor to a small
>tropical country. Seems they were fishing (lobstering maybe? the details slip
>away) deep on SCUBA with much the same game plan. They would drop to the bottom,
>stuff their game bags till they were out of air, and then shoot to the surface
>to get another tank. No decompression, no tables, no chamber within any
>reasonable distance. Villagers had a habit of pucturing their eardrums so they
>wouldn't even have to clear on the way down. Most of the former divers were
>bent, and many of the working ones felt symtoms on a frequent basis! 
>
>-- 
>Walter Hunt					walter@optimla.optimage.com
>OptImage Interactive Services Company, L.P.	walter@optimla.aimla.com
>11040 Santa Monica Blvd., Suite #300		netcom!optimla!walter
>Los Angeles, Ca. 90025				(310) 445-5718

What country was this?  I spent the month of August in Fiji doing some research
diving, and learned some interesting things about local diving practices.  The
Cousteau society had just donated a chamber to the islands, and it had been in
place since March, and since then six people had used it - all local Fijians.
I think this was more a result of the tourist industry - the locals watching the
tourists dive and then taking on the sport themselves with no training or
understanding of the dangers.

Carrie

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
|   Carrie Leonard                         |                               |   
|   Marine-Estuarine-Environmental-Science |   Respect the Beach           |
|   University of Maryland                 |                               |
|   carrie@wam.umd.edu                     |                               |
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Newsgroups: rec.scuba
From: tung@Xenon.Stanford.EDU (Charles C Tung)
Subject: Anybody has experience of Cozumel in Dec. ?
Summary: I need info of what to do and which dive shop to go.
Keywords: Cozumel mexico cancon
Organization: CS Department, Stanford University, California, USA
Date: 16 Dec 92 17:14:52 GMT

I am going Cozumel with my friends for a week during X'mas. I don't
know the water temperature would like, and I need rent all my dive
gear there. Did any body know a good place to rent, or any 1 day boat
trip that include the equipment. Few friend of mine just want to do
snorkeling.  Is there any good place around Can'cun or Cozumel that we
can even reef walk during low tide?   Please e-mail me to
tung@cs.stanford.edu

If you have any things to do, resturant to eat, that you enjoyed like
visit fo Mayan ruin, please let me know too.

Thanks in advance!!

Newsgroups: rec.scuba
From: walter@optimla.aimla.com (Walter Hunt)
Subject: Re: missing deco stop ... re-entering
Organization: OptImage Interactive Services Co., L.P.
Date: Sun, 20 Dec 1992 02:08:40 GMT

In article <1992Dec16.131454.17681@cattnts.canada.ncr.com>, craig@cattnts.canada.ncr.com (Craig Campbell) writes:
|> In article <Bz7zF1.AFw@optimla.aimla.com> walter@optimla.aimla.com (Walter Hunt) writes:
|> >
|> >	Reminds me of when I was sitting at a table with a guy (FOAF) who had

|> 
|> Ok, I'll ask... what does "FOAF" mean?
|> 

	Friend Of A Friend. Sorry, I thought that was standard net-speak.


|> craig
|> -- 
|> Craig Campbell	|	These opinions are entirely the result of a 
|> Systems Engineer	|	small butterfly crashing into the far side
|> NCR Canada,		|	of the planet.  Chaos Rules.
|> an AT&T Company	|	I speak for no one, except, possibly, myself.

-- 
Walter Hunt					walter@optimla.optimage.com
OptImage Interactive Services Company, L.P.	walter@optimla.aimla.com
11040 Santa Monica Blvd., Suite #300		netcom!optimla!walter
Los Angeles, Ca. 90025				(310) 445-5718
From: jdale@cats.ucsc.edu (Jonathan Dale)
Newsgroups: rec.scuba
Subject: Re: ***I need equipment***
Date: 14 Dec 1992 20:56:54 GMT
Organization: University of California; Santa Cruz
NNTP-Posting-Host: si.ucsc.edu


In article <1992Dec14.162943.16259@PacBell.COM> rrrucke@srv.PacBell.COM (Rod Rucker) writes:
>In article <1992Dec13.123714.8698@eskimo.com> jammer@eskimo.com (Lyle Harwood) writes:
>>Hi, guys, I need some advice on equipment. I just became qualified, and
>>would like to dive here in Seattl.e
>>I've been told that to do any serious diving around the PNW, I need a
>>dry suit.
>>So, I need some advice on how & where to buy a dry suit, and what else
>                                                              ^^^^^^^^^
>>I'd need to start out.
> ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>About a thousand dollars.... (for a cheaper one, with good underwear).  
>-- 
>Rod Rucker
>rrrucke@srv.PacBell.COM
>PADI DM-47240

Just tell whoever told you that you needed a dry suit that they're a wimp.
You can do Puget Sound in a wetsuit, I did.  :)  Just be sure to warm up
between dives -- you don't want to _start_ out cold, or you'll have problems.

Alternately, neoprene dry suits (AKA damp suits, or maybe even semi-drys?)
are fairly cheap (maybe $400-500?) and will keep you warmer than a wetsuit,
though not as warm as other dry suits, and they don't have a lot of the
advantages of other dry suits.  Also, there are chemical heat packs and 
other weird things if you decide to tough it out in a wet suit.

Jonathan Dale
jdale@cats.ucsc.edu
NAUI Advanced/UCSC Research Diver
From: gd@gehenna.sw.stratus.com (Greg Dawe)
Newsgroups: rec.scuba
Subject: Re: Nitrox Diving
Date: 17 Dec 1992 14:48:07 GMT
Organization: Stratus Computer, Software Engineering
NNTP-Posting-Host: gehenna.sw.stratus.com

In article <kf=rsbO00iV0M2xSU8@andrew.cmu.edu> "Peter A. Simon" <ps3p+@andrew.cmu.edu> writes:
>gd@gehenna.sw.stratus.com (Greg Dawe) writes:
>
>>This leads to a second point, which you're probably aware of, but always
>>seems to get left out of these types of discussions: the equipment must be
>>oxygen compatible as well as oxygen cleaned.  There are some regulator
>>first stages, and SCUBA cylinders that can't be used with high O2 fractions.
>>In the case of the regulators I've run into, the problem is usually the 
>>unavailability of compatible replacement parts (diagphrams, and in some cases
>>an O-ring or two).
>
>Does this information get disseminated in NITROX courses (I hope, I hope)?

Not really - the IANTD NITROX course deals with gas mixtures of 40% O2 or less,
so you don't need a cleaned/compatible regulator.  In theory, you shouldn't
need a cleaned tank/valve either, as long as the shop isn't mixing the NITROX
in your tank (i.e. the valve never sees high pressure pure O2).  However, I
suspect that all IANTD/ANDI affiliated shops require cleaned tanks/valves in
order to get a NITROX fill regardless of whether they're dispensing premixed
NITROX or not.  But, I've digressed here.

The subject of O2 compatible vs O2 cleaned is covered in the IANTD NITROX 
class.  Generally, at least in my area, if a shop offers a NITROX course they 
also offer equipment rebuilding/cleaning services, so they'd be able to tell 
you if your reg and tanks can be setup for higher O2 fractions.

The IANTD Technical NITROX course delves into higher O2 fractions and gas 
switches for optimizing decompression.  Taking that course requires the use
of O2 cleaned regs etc.
-- 
Greg Dawe                        | Disclaimer: I don't speak for my employer,
Voice : (508)-490-6666           |             nor they for me...
e-mail: Greg_Dawe@vos.stratus.com|
From: rwr@uis.co.za (Richard Ramsden)
Newsgroups: rec.scuba
Subject: Re: Instructor Entertainment
Date: 11 Dec 92 10:33:36 GMT
Article-I.D.: uiscpt.124
Organization: Unix Information Systems (Pty) Ltd (UIS)
Disclaimer: #include <disclaimer.h>


In article <18231@mindlink.bc.ca> Charlie_Gibbs@mindlink.bc.ca
(Charlie Gibbs) writes:
>In article <14559@cis.rand.org> schutz@rand.ORG (Karl Schutz) writes:
>
>>One of my favorite bits, especially for open water classes, is:
>
>>I have a set of plastic funny-nose-and-glasses where I have removed the
>
>     One of the local instructors told us about a time he sent a
>group of students off on a navigation exercise while he sat on
>the bottom waiting for them to return.  Beside him on the bottom
>he found a pair of Vuarnets which someone must have dropped from a
>boat.  He took off his mask, stuffed it inside his BC, and put on
>the sunglasses, and sat there looking way cool when his students
>returned...
>
>Charlie_Gibbs@mindlink.bc.ca
>"I'm cursed with hair from HELL!"  -- Night Court

This may be (sub) urban myth but here goes:

A local instructor was taking novice divers out for their first 
open water dive.  He had several sub-instructors with him.  Approaching
a clump of kelp he withdrew his knife and swan ahead in order to cut
some and show his class.  He turned around to see his entire class
swimming along with their knives out in front of them.

--
Richard Ramsden            | #include <disclaimer.h> |        /
Unix Information Systems   | Internet rwr@uis.co.za  \        |
The Old Mowbray Hotel      | Voice  +27 21 689-9131   \      /
Cape Town, Southern Africa | Paper  +27 21 689-9130    *____/
From: leej@sgi.com (Lee Jones)
Newsgroups: rec.scuba
Subject: Re: Cayman Brac Recommendations
Date: 14 Dec 1992 19:08:56 GMT
Organization: Silicon Graphics, Inc.
NNTP-Posting-Host: diver.asd.sgi.com

In article <1992Dec12.180139.22257@athena.mit.edu> eckhouse@athena.mit.edu (D. Noah Eckhouse) writes:
>Hello Net Diving World:
>
>My fiancee and I are trying to get our honeymoon plans finalized, and
>are trying to decide which place on the Brac is better.  I've checked
>the archives, and am looking for additional comments, namely:
>
>Is the Brac Reef Beach Club more 'Sunset House-ish' than it is
>advertised?
>
>We've heard less about the DIVI Tiara.  Any good/bad feelings about it?
>

It's been five years since I was on the Brac :-(, but at the time, the 
Divi was much nicer - wicker and wood as opposed to tile and linoleum at 
the Brac Reef.  If I was taking a bunch of gorilla divers, I wouldn't worry
about which place I was going since the diving's the same.  For your 
honeymoon, I'd call the Tiara Beach a clear winner (unless you get more
recent information to the contrary).  Divi has been going through some tough
financial times, but I have the impression they've recently put some money
into the Tiara Beach.

Regards, Lee
From: jewett@hpl-opus.hpl.hp.com (Bob Jewett)
Date: Sat, 19 Dec 1992 03:19:11 GMT
Subject: Re: Weight Question
Organization: HP Labs, High Speed Electronics Dept., Palo Alto, CA