Do Dive Computers Make Diving Safer?

I was looking though scuba diving related articles on Ezine Articles and came across an interesting article about the safety of dive computers. The author argues that dive computers can make scuba diving safer. The article is a good one about the benefits of dive computers to recreational scuba divers. However, as I read through the article, the author failed to discuss ascent strategies and general decompression knowledge to make computer diving safer. The article is called Diving Computers Make Diving Safer.

Certainly, we can see that dive computers do have some benefit. The flaw in our thinking is that the majority of scuba divers have no idea how these devices work. Most recreational divers do not need to have complete knowledge of decompression theory or decompression algorithms. All divers do need to have an understanding of what is going on inside their bodies in order to make safe decisions regarding their ascent profiles. The author is hinting that the diver does not need to think about their exposure to decompression, because the dive computer will continually calculate a diver’s no decompression limit...[Link]

What flag do I fly when boat diving?

A red flag with a diagonal white stripe is ubiquitous in scuba diving. You’ll find its image emblazoned on everything from equipment bags to bumper stickers. It is commonly referred to as the diver down flag, but did you know that it’s not the official flag to fly when actively diving from a boat in Washington?

Washington State law specifies that the proper flag to display during active diving from a boat is the international alpha flag – a blue and white swallow-tailed flag that is part of the larger set of signal flags specified by the International Code of Signals. While the alpha flag represents the letter “A” when combined with other signal flags, when used alone the alpha flag means “I have a diver down, keep well clear at slow speed.”...[Examiner.com]

Dive for Earth Day events in SoCal and globally

This month, as we head toward Earth Day on Apr. 22, you’ll get a jolly green earful of great festivals and events where you can celebrate our planet upon terra firma. But since over 70% of the Earth’s surface consists of water, it’d make sense to get a little wet for the occasion, don’t you think?

That’s where Dive for Earth Day comes in. Initiated by environmental nonprofit Project AWARE Foundation in 2000, the campaign has prompted thousands of divers in over 115 countries to volunteer and raise awareness about our fragile aquatic environments. Projects on and surrounding Earth Day largely consist of beach and underwater cleanups as well as educational events.

Last year, in Katowice, Poland, 280 volunteers collected 1,500 bags of trash from shores and sea. On the Isle of Wight in the UK, a “fancy dress beach cleanup” attracted the likes of a James Bond look-a-like and others festively collecting tar, cans, bottles and other rubbish. On Maui, Hawaii, divers collected 500 pounds of garbage and recycled some of it, including fishing lines and weights that were cleaned and got a chance at new life via a local shop, according to the Project AWARE website...[LATimes]

Sunken Greek treasures at risk from scuba looters

A corroded mechanism recovered by sponge divers from a sunken wreck near the Greek island of Antikythera in 1902 changed the study of the ancient world forever.

The Antikythera Mechanism, a system of bronze gears from the 2nd century BC, was used to calculate the date of the Olympic Games based on the summer solstice. Its mechanical complexity was unequalled for 1,000 years, until the cathedral clocks of the Middle Ages.

Archaeologists believe hundreds more wrecks beneath the eastern Mediterranean may contain treasures, but a new law opening Greece's coastline to scuba diving has experts worried that priceless artifacts could disappear into the hands of treasure hunters.

"The future of archaeology in this part of the world is in the sea," said marine archaeologist Harry Tzalas. "This law is very dangerous, it opens the way to the looting of antiquities from the seabed which we don't even know exist."

Greece's 1932 antiquities law says all artifacts on land and in the sea belong to the state, but it does not regulate scuba diving, developed in the 1940s by Frenchman Jacques Cousteau.

A new law implemented in 2007 and designed to promote tourism opens most of Greece's 15,000-km (9,400-mile) coastline to scuba divers, except for about 100 known archaeological sites.

Greece's archaeologists' union and two ecological societies have appealed for the law to be rescinded. Meanwhile, some tour companies are luring tourists with the promise of ancient artifacts. "Scuba diving in Greece is permitted everywhere ... Ideal for today's treasure hunter," says one website (www.scuba-greece.com).

Katerina Dellaporta, director of antiquities at the Culture Ministry, says metal detectors and bathyspheres allow treasure hunters to find artifacts with ease in the Adriatic and Aegean.

"It's good to have tourism but we must protect antiquities," she said. "Not every diver is an illegal trafficker ... but we need to ensure these treasures remain for future generations."...[Reuters]

Repairing underwater vandalism

Some 80 feet underwater and 700 feet into the bowels of a spring in Lafayette County, they've combined art and science to restore a cave that vandals damaged last year.

Those who worked for months on the project say it's the first known successful underwater cave restoration, and it took place in late December at Cow Springs, a small, remote spring off State Road 51 near Luraville, north of the town of Mayo.

To achieve the restoration, they enlisted the help of Michael Angelo Gagliardi, professional artist and actor from Chicago, who led a team of divers to document the restoration of the spring's vandalized clay bank.

"I happily volunteered my time and money for this project," Gagliardi said. "But it wouldn't have been done properly without the help of my dive team."...[Ocala.com]

Making waves for diver safety

Attending the Blue Wild Ocean Adventure Seminar & Expo will not only make you a better diver, it'll make you a safer diver.

The event, which is Feb. 6-8 at the IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame & Museum in Dania Beach, features a who's who of diving experts such as freediving instructor Kirk Krack, freediving world record holder Pipin Ferreras, spearfishing legend Art Pinder and shark wrangler Manny Puig.

In addition, Tom Greene, Capt. Bouncer Smith and Capt. Skip Smith will share their fishing secrets and there will be workshops on tying knots, catching lobsters, filleting fish, cooking seafood and underwater photography and videography. Steve Callahan, the author of Adrift, the best-selling book that detailed his 76 days lost at sea after his sailboat sank in the Atlantic Ocean, will discuss survival at sea.

Perhaps the most notable personalities at the Blue Wild are two divers who have survived the worst experience imaginable..[SunSentinel.com]

Taking coral from off the Treasure Coast can land you in hot water

Jeff Westerhoff sells legally acquired coral for up to $80 a piece at his Aquatic Life store in Stuart.

Other people just dive into the ocean and steal these colorful sea creatures for their saltwater fish tanks or to sell online, but taking coral is illegal, can harm the living coral reefs and can bring the coral thieves fines and even jail time.

In Florida, most coral is found from Stuart to the Florida Keys, where the water is warm and there are only moderate waves.

Hard corals include the types that are used to build reefs and aid in the filtration of saltwater aquariums. If caught taking the live coral from the wild, the firstoffense is a second-degree misdemeanor, which is up to $500 in fines, 60 days in jail, or both depending on the judge. Repeated offenses are first-degree misdemeanors, which include higher fines and longer jail sentences.

Officer Robert Dube, who works for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission in Monroe County, said coral theft doesn't seem to happen frequently in the Keys.

"I've had maybe five or six (arrests) in the 20 years I've worked here," Dube said.

Coral reefs grow 1 to 16 feet every 1,000 years, according to the Florida State Department's Web site. So, the reef may not have replaced the coral fragments recovered by Dube — even the pieces from two decades ago...[TCPalm.com]