To prevent this, divers need to return to the surface slowly a rate of feet per minute. With all that information in hand, it was my turn to try scuba diving. Before that, though, I had to fill out a medical questionnaire, noting any issues that could cause problems. While I was cleared to dive, if you have a lung disease, such as asthma, talk to your doctor before you dive.
Once I arrived at my scuba diving class, the first thing the instructors did was pick out gear. Fins, mask and a snorkel, and then I was fitted for a buoyancy compensator device, or BCD, which is like large vest. Weights were put in the BCD to counteract my body's natural buoyancy. Last, I was given an air tank and an octo regulator the breathing apparatus. Sitting on the edge of the pool, I put on the equipment, and Amy, another instructor, inflated my BCD so that I would float at the top of the surface until we were ready to dive.
All I needed to do was lift my body, so the tank didn't hit the side of the pool, and hop in. I am not uncomfortable in water. I swam since I was 5. I've snorkeled in the Caribbean, swam with dolphins on the coast of New Zealand, and free dived in the Red Sea. But, as I sat on the edge of that pool, with an air tank strapped to my back, my heart was pounding like I was about to take a leap off a story building. With several experienced divers in the pool, two life guards on duty and the surface a few arm pulls away, the chances of drowning were nearly zero.
Still, this was not like my other experiences with water. Trembling, I pushed off the edge and hit water. I didn't need the regulator, or my mask, but I decided to practice breathing underwater before we moved deeper. At first, I did exactly what Jared and Bob told me not to do—I held my breath. It's like I had forgotten how to breathe out of my mouth, but once I made a conscious effort to take big breaths from the regulator, it was OK.
It also felt a bit unnatural not to pop my head up for a breath; I could stay face down and still get all the air I needed. Next, it was time to go underwater.
Amy was my diving buddy and she gave me a thumbs down which meant it was time to dive. Using a button on my BCD, I deflated the vest, allowing me to sink to the bottom of the pool. At the same time, I had to blow short puffs of air out of my nose, while pinching it, to keep my ears from popping.
It took just a few seconds until we reached the bottom of the pool, and Amy made a signal for me to kneel and then another to ensure I was OK. On the pool deck, before we dove, the instructors taught us a couple of skills. These skills help determine a diver's advancement in a certification course. Because this was an introductory class, we would learn just two—taking the regulator in and out of our mouths and clearing our mask from the inevitable water that would leak into them.
In the water, kneeling, Amy asked me to perform the first one. I was scared to take my regulator out and losing my constant source to air, but I had to do it.
So, once I had the signal, I took it out and demonstrated that I was not holding my breath—still a no-no—by blowing a bit of bubbles. After two seconds, I put the regulator back in and cleared it of water the way the instructors showed us. It was easy enough. I wasn't gasping for air, and once I had the regulator back in, I returned to my normal breathing. Clearing the mask was a bit harder, but after a few attempts, I did it.
Then came the part I had been waiting for—swimming. For the next 20 minutes, I followed Amy around the pool, touching the bottom and scooting past other divers. Like I said, I had been in pools before, but this was much different. It felt like I had never really experienced water before. Subscriber Account active since. Scientists have created a crystalline material that can actually pull oxygen out of the surrounding environment, which could mean no more oxygen tanks — underwater or on dry land.
Using cobalt, the material can pull and release oxygen as needed without bulky storage tanks. Just a few grains of the material are all that is needed to store enough oxygen for a breath, so toting around the material would be easy and light — light enough that swimmers could go for an extended dive without being weighed down and lung patients who require oxygen could leave the oxygen tank at home.
According to the research, the compound is so good at sucking up oxygen that just one spoonful could actually suck up all of the oxygen in a room. Even more important, the material can hold that oxygen until you want to release it.
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