Sharks vs Lightning

[Laurie S.]

Just got back from a cruise where we had a dive with sharks at Nassau. It was fun, as always:

 

[boulderjohn]

If I ever saw a shark I would exit the water. IMO, this is just another meaningless (to me at least) statistical comparison.

My reaction is pretty much the opposite. I want to see these beautiful creatures as clearly as I can.

 

[Scuba_Noob]

Ill be actively looking for sharks whenever I have a chance - however not on "chum dives".
Ive never seen more than 8 at once, I need more!

Atleast they where mature hammerheads and only 2-3 meters away from us

I've never seen more than one at once. And they were all dogfish! You're getting spoiled

But then again, when I get up to your dive experience level, I'll hope to see many more sharks!

 

[Laurie S.]

Tahiti is a great place to see sharks. There are at least 10 in this photo, and there were a lot more around us that day:

 

[RonFrank]

83.43% of statistics are made up!

 

[Tigerman]

83.43% of statistics are made up!

And whats more, 8 out of 7 people cant read them either..

 

[archiebald]

Someobody said on the first page that they don't go out in thunderstorms and they exit the water if they see a shark.

Well, I've only had one shark encounter so far and that was only a nurse shark (which looked to be about as threatening as a cuddly teddy bear), but I will confess that I am drawn to lightning. I love being anywhere near a really powerful thunderstorm, and I'm in awe of the power of nature. It is really beautiful.

Having said that I do take sensible precautions like not using an umbrella, sheltering in the right places etc. A little like watching sharks sensibly I suppose.

 

[TMHeimer]

It's not that I dispute the statistics charts here. But you have to think--Does the shark deaths mean for all divers diving everywhere or just those that happen to come across a shark(s)? Fresh water? Salt water if there are no sharks for miles? Hunters are usually not alone, but with others that also have guns. Drivers are almost always near other drivers (unless they live in Northern Manitoba).

 

[archiebald]

You'll notice that very few shark cases involve missing (aka eaten) limbs. Why are most surface shark attacks hit and runs? It's simply mistaken identity or curiosity. Sharks don't have hands, the only way to really investigate something is to put it in their mouth. It's exactly the same reason babies are always sticking things in their mouth, it's easier to tactile sense for them.

Peter Benchley, the author of Jaws realized his mistake in writing a horror novel on the great white and has spent a great deal of time and money trying to turn public opinion. Spielberg, likewise, regrets making the movie adaptation as well.

If Spielberg really had a conscience, he should use some of his personal fortune to distribute a major documentary on the oceans and what man is doing to them, with a focus on barbaric shark finning. I am thinking something like Deep Blue.


On the subject of statistics, I quite like this little image...

 

[boulderjohn]

It's not that I dispute the statistics charts here. But you have to think--Does the shark deaths mean for all divers diving everywhere or just those that happen to come across a shark(s)? Fresh water? Salt water if there are no sharks for miles? Hunters are usually not alone, but with others that also have guns. Drivers are almost always near other drivers (unless they live in Northern Manitoba).

I am really not sure what you are talking about here. Unless we are talking about a different set of statistics, we are talking about total numbers, so why would any of those things matter?

And by the way, the shark fatalities do not generally involve divers. They are usually swimmers, snorkelers, and surfers. Almost all such attacks occur on the surface. The only diver attacks I know were also on the surface. If you can find numbers for divers killed while actually on a dive, I would like to see them. I don't think there have been many at all.