Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Science/2013 May 11

Science desk
< May 10 << Apr | May | Jun >> May 12 >
Welcome to the Wikipedia Science Reference Desk Archives
The page you are currently viewing is an archive page. While you can leave answers for any questions shown below, please ask new questions on one of the current reference desk pages.


May 11

edit

Photography treatment at The Guardian online.

edit

The Guardian's online photographs look slightly washed out to me. I'm not sure I like the style but I'd like to experiment with reproducing it. What are they doing? Is it slightly-low-exposure-slightly-high-contrast? Is this going to be trendy? Hayttom 11:30, 11 May 2013 (UTC) — Preceding unsigned comment added by Hayttom (talkcontribs) [reply]

Can you give us a link to a specific example - the pictures on their main page right now don't look unusual to me. SteveBaker (talk) 14:03, 11 May 2013 (UTC)[reply]
It hasn't seemed so obvious since I asked the question but here is an example. I think I answered my own question above - it's low exposure with high contrast.
  Resolved
.

Scuba + weight training?

edit

Can we have an article on underwater weight training? I saw this guy if you google underwater weight training videos

Or

Www.underwaterbreathable.com

Just curious to know more!

Thanks, — Preceding unsigned comment added by 174.236.227.194 (talk) 11:40, 11 May 2013 (UTC)[reply]

You may find this explanation of the process of creating a new article helpful - please pay particular attention to the parts about notability and use of reliable sources. You don't seem to have asked a science question, so I'll stop there. -- Scray (talk) 12:08, 11 May 2013 (UTC)[reply]
Sustained weight training - or any other form effort - at depth is extremely dangerous as your increased respiration and heart rate will accelerate nitrogen on-gassing beyond the levels assumed by decompression tables and diving computers resulting in an increased risk of decompression sickness. Effort - even after a dive - is also to be avoided as it increases the risk associated with an undetected patent foramen ovale. In addition, breathing compressed air even at swimming pool depths places you at risk of a potentially fatal pulmonary barotrauma.
Perhaps there is something good to be said about underwater weight training, but I'd be surprised to find it in any sort of reliable source.78.245.228.100 (talk) 13:58, 11 May 2013 (UTC)[reply]
Oh? How about NAUI's textbook, Physics, Physiology, and Decompression Theory for the Commercial and Technical Diver (available through the NAUI bookstore)? During my training as a Nitrox Diver, we learned extensive details about physiology, including endurance and performance. Lots of things get really different when you aren't breathing atmospheric air at atmospheric pressure. Commercial and technical divers, especially those who dive deep and use exotic gases or trimix (helium/nitrogen/oxygen) need to know a lot about physiology so they can judge safety, endurance, and work capability. NAUI's technical diver text is probably as reliable a resource as you can find outside of a Navy manual. However, I do not believe the subject "underwater weightlifting" warrants an encyclopedia article. This sort of information, if properly referenced, could be covered in our articles about SCUBA, technical diving, diving physiology... but ultimately, if this sort of thing piques your interest, it requires a little bit more specialized treatment than can be reasonably covered in an encyclopedia article. That's why, for example, technical diving courses are a few hundred dive-hours into a reasonable SCUBA certification program. Nimur (talk) 17:20, 11 May 2013 (UTC)[reply]
I'm not sure if you're agreeing with me there or not. Are you suggesting that commonly used civilian and military dive tables or computers are calibrated for anything other than basically no-effort situations? Or that effort is strongly counter-indicated towards the end and after a dive due to the lung-shunting effect of the foram ovale? Or that pulmonary barotrauma isn't a significant risk from as little as 0.1bar overpressure?
You can check out for yourself the instructions to the MN90 tables (that's Marine Nationale - a navy manual) and the FFESSM the governing body of scuba diving in France have to say on the subject here De ce fait, il va de soi que dans le cadre de la plongée sportive ou de loisir, l’usage des tables MN90 fédérales est déconseillé pour toute activité sortant de son domaine d’utilisation, en particulier lorsqu’il s’agit d’effort physique important en immersion 78.245.228.100 (talk) 19:20, 11 May 2013 (UTC)[reply]
I think we're in agreement. I initially responded to dispel the claim that there are no reliable sources on the topic; there are many, though this arcana may be found in sources that are a bit too obscure for an encyclopedia article. Nimur (talk) 15:05, 13 May 2013 (UTC)[reply]