Deep Sea

Recommendation to everybody who (weirdly) feels at home in the water. A nice overview over the diving reflex and what it does and actually means for our bodies. Seems that our species forgot how to use some handy senses we were born with. About the side-stories and research-facts in this book: I agree with everything. We need so much more research about the oceans. We need to stop overfishing. We need to stop whale hunting, shark killing ... killing any of these beautiful creatures. They're obviously intelligent. Regardless of my love for whales and dolphins, cases like this tear my heart in two: In 2007, a Bowhead whale was discovered with the end of a harpoon left embedded in its neck from a previous hunt. It was found that the harpoon tip was originally manufactured in 1890, indicating the whale had survived a human attack more than a century ago. Killer whales have been around about 11 million years. The Greenland shark can live to be 400 years old. Researchers discovered this longevity by carbon dating the sharks’ eyes based on the fallout from nuclear bomb testing in the 1960s, which means there are sharks in the ocean that were born before the United States was a country. Sharks have been on Earth longer than trees! And then we have this: Dolphins have been known to protect humans when they’re in trouble. A California surfer was once being attacked by a shark when a group of dolphins surrounded him and escorted him safely to shore. Many people have been saved by dolphins in a similar manner and reports date back to Ancient Greece. In the Red Sea, a group of dolphins reportedly surrounded 12 divers who were lost for over 13 hours, repelling sharks living in the area. People aboard a rescue boat also reported that the animals seemed to be trying to show them where the stranded divers were. I'm ashamed to be part of a race that kills every damn thing without getting to know it. I'm sure we're not the most short-sighted species but we're pretty damn close.