Scuba diving is dangerous Joe and Jake are going on vacation , Joe says “hey man while we are on vacation let’s go SCUBA (Self Contained Breathing Apparatus) diving.” Jake tells him that he does not want to go because it is too dangerous and people have been killed. In this report I will talk about how SCUBA diivng has changed peoples lives, giving them hope when they thought there was nothing to live for. I am also going to talk about the advancements in SCUBA equipment and trainig. I will also talk about how many people have actually been hurt or killed while diving, in different areas of the world.
When it comes to the dangers of SCUBA diving, which is what we are all intersted in, I found that most of the injuries or deaths were not from the acutal act of SCUBA diving. Some of them were from free diving which just goes to show that if you have the proper equipment then you will be prepared for almost any contingency. On the other hand there are some things that are beyond your control. According to the the article Scuba Diving Accident Statistics, 38 percent of the scuba fataliies have been caused by cardiac incient, trauma, DCS, loss of condiousness, or inappropriate gas. In the same article it showed that 33 percent of the fatalaties were from drowning. 29 percent were from an Arterial Gas Emobolism, which is caused when the diver holds his breath while coming to the surface.
So you can see compared to riding a motorcycle, a motorcycle seems more dangerous. To put this into perspective 4,778 people were killed in 2006 due to motorcycle accidents while only 90 fatalaties were reported in 2001. (6)(7) In another report it was stated that 11 to 18 deaths per 100,000 members (6) It is hard to say how many people actually SCUBA dive but it seems to me that it is less dangerous than riding a motorcylce. I hope this has releived any misconceptions that you may have had about how dangerous SCUBA diving is. I hope to see you under the water sometime.
The history of SCUBA equipment goes back as far as 3000 BC when divers would hold their breath to collect oysters. The frequent exposre to cold water subjected the divers to what is knon today as surfer’s ear. Most of the early implementations of SCUBA equipment was used for the Military. In the poem “lliad” written 1250 BC by Homer military divers used this technique during the Trojan War. Scyllias attacked Persian ships using a reed snorkel. In the 1600’s people started getiing concerned about the safety of the divers. Robert Boyle was the first to study the relationship between water pressure and gas volumes. This is what is known of today as Boyles Law. In 1840 the Augustus Siebe develops an diving suit that will aid deep sea divers. It was a suit with a waterproof canvas suit that would pump air to be pumped to the suit from the surface. (1)
In 1878 Paul Bert would study the effects of breathing compressed air, it is what we today call Caissons Disease. This study lead to help make the use of SCUBA equipment more safe. There have been many other advancements is SCUBA protection as well the biggest one would be the invention of the flipper by Louis de Cortieu, in 1933, and the Neoprene wet suit adapted by the Navy Seals in 1953.
This is only a few inprovements to the SCUBA diving equipment. There have been several studies that show SCUBA diving is helpful in the healing process of many people. One article I read stated that the soldiers returning from stressfull situations such as combat and going through reahbilitation have found it rewarding. (2) They state that it is not only a good way to get exercise without causing unwarrented stress on their injured limbs it also builds their confidence and self esteem. (2) The military has adapted SCUBA diving as part of their rehabilitation porcess to aid in the healing process. In another article I read Cody Unser, grandaughter of Al Unser Sr. was diagnosed with transverse myelitis (TM). It is neuroligical disorder that causes inflamation on both sides of the spinal cord. She was paralized from the waist down. She did not let that stop her though, after everal years of not wanting to be a part of anything she founded the Cody Unser First Step Foundation (CUFSF) that sets up dive excursions for people that are physically impaired. With the help of her father and other contributors the excursions are free.

References: (1) The History of Scuba Diving, How Diving Has Evolved through the Ages, http://www.best-scuba-diving-tips.com/history-of-scuba-diving.html (2) Diving into healing waters. Petty Officer First Class, Jamye Pasotoric, http://ehis.ebscohost.com.proxy.itt-tech.edu/eds (3) Underwater respite, Kari Kovach, http://ehis.ebscohost.com.proxy.itt-tech.edu/eds

(4) http://www.destination-scuba.com/History-of-scuba-diving.html

(5) Morgan, C., & Stevens, C. A. (2008). Changes in perceptions of risk and competence among beginning scuba divers. Journal Of Risk Research, 11(8), 951-966. doi:10.1080/13669870802187691

(6) Scuba Diving Accident Statistics, Scuba diving articles, Scuba diving resources, 15 September, 2009, www.thescubasite.com

(7) Motorcycleaccidents.com

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