Flotsam & Jetsam

Travel Tip: If you’re flying coach on your next dive trip, ask your travel agent or airline representative to ensure in advance that your assigned seat fully reclines. On United, as many as 10 percent of 747 seats don’t recline fully. On American, up to 8 percent of DC-10 seats don’t fully recline. And make sure your seat is located away from both the lavatory and the galley, where the disruptive traffic will keep you awake. Your best bet is the exit rows, where there is often more leg room.

Cojones: If you’re among the 75 percent of Undercurrent subscribers who are male, this item is for you. Well, maybe not.... But if you’re sporting a testicle implant made by Beyer-Schulte, you’ll be happy to know you can continue diving to 160 feet without worrying that your implant will be damaged. However, don’t dally too long: a forty-minute exposure led to “singular air bubbles inside the testicle implants,” according to researchers at the 23rd Annual Scientific Meeting of the European Underwater and Baromedical Society. Also note that the implants were tested in a chamber using a computer to verify depths; apparently, the tested implants had not yet been implanted.

Go figure: In a study released by DEMA last year, the “U.S. Divers” trademark had the highest brandname recognition among active divers and those who once dived. (Riding high on this wave, U.S. Divers then decided to change its name to Aqualung — somewhat of a pratfall, I should think.) Half the respondents to the study recognized the U.S. Divers brand. The others with high brand-name recognition were Sea Quest (46%), Oceanic (34%), Scubapro (29%), Sherwood(25%), Dacor (14%), Tabata (13%), and Mares (12%).