Editing Talk:2155: Swimming

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The title text reminds me of https://xkcd.com/1115/   
[[Special:Contributions/108.162.242.13|108.162.242.13]] 17:22, 27 May 2019 (UTC)   

I never fully enjoyed swimming in lakes & oceans for this same reason. Getting nipped by a snapping turtle, pinched by crawfish & crabs, & nudge-tested by snakes probably pushed my experiences in a negative direction as well. Chlorine & urine content don't make swimming pools nearly unpleasant enough to feel ickier than most open water I've been in. As someone who grew up in a hot climate, I ''love'' swimming, but I like to be able to see what's in the water around me. The deeper & murkier the water is, the more uneasy I feel venturing into it.   
[[User:ProphetZarquon|ProphetZarquon]] ([[User talk:ProphetZarquon|talk]]) 17:49, 27 May 2019 (UTC)
:In most open water, there is no chlorine, but there is definitely some urine and blood and probably also fish sperm. It SHOULD be more diluted, though ... -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 22:15, 27 May 2019 (UTC)
::I find it ridiculous that some people are grossed by the supposedly urine (or, God forbid, sperm) contaminated swimming pools yet fine to drink water coming from open reservoirs containing (highly diluted!) duck poop, fish stuff, slimes and molds etc. Some even have spilled millions of gallons of perfectly fine water after some guy peed in it, even if it was wide open to any flying source of poo ([http://time.com/66459/portland-reservoir-pee/]) -- [[User:Malgond|Malgond]] ([[User talk:Malgond|talk]]) 08:27, 28 May 2019 (UTC)
: haha. I live in Australia. I love swimming at the beach. But my rule is, as much as possible, always swim with someone bigger, slower and further out. The first two are not as easy as they used to be!![[User:Boatster|Boatster]] ([[User talk:Boatster|talk]]) 13:43, 28 May 2019 (UTC)
: also " nudge-tested by snakes" W.T.A.F!!![[User:Boatster|Boatster]] ([[User talk:Boatster|talk]]) 13:45, 28 May 2019 (UTC)

I am confused. The explanation says there is a person as you scroll down, but I don't see any people below the surface. Is it talking about the jellyfish?--[[Special:Contributions/172.69.42.28|172.69.42.28]] 19:57, 27 May 2019 (UTC)
: not any more [[User:Boatster|Boatster]] ([[User talk:Boatster|talk]]) 13:43, 28 May 2019 (UTC)

This panel is approximately 4.047 times as tall as it is wide. [[User:Moosenonny10|Moosenonny10]] ([[User talk:Moosenonny10|talk]]) 00:19, 28 May 2019 (UTC)

I don't agree it's an '''entirely''' irrational fear -- it's much easier to rescue a drowned person from the lake/ocean bottom if the water is shallow. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.182.16|172.68.182.16]] 07:50, 28 May 2019 (UTC)
:It is still irrational &ndash; if someone's drowned at the bottom it isn't rescue anymore, just potentially recovering a dead body. Completely irrelevant for the unfortunate swimmer, unless she is worried about her family's emotions and the amount of (not entirely rational) public expense &ndash; all these expert divers, rescue units time, police work etc. cost a lot. -- [[User:Malgond|Malgond]] ([[User talk:Malgond|talk]]) 08:19, 28 May 2019 (UTC)
: disagree. My sister rescued an unconscious kid from the bottom of a 3m deep pool. Rescuscitated him. Full recovery. Not common but it happens.[[User:Boatster|Boatster]] ([[User talk:Boatster|talk]]) 13:36, 28 May 2019 (UTC)
:I believe that very deep waters are occasionally (and more frequently than shallow ones) dangerous due to cold undercurrents, so I support "not entirely irrational fear".[[User:Jkrstrt|Jkrstrt]] ([[User talk:Jkrstrt|talk]]) 08:59, 28 May 2019 (UTC)
:Furthermore, on the topic of the specific fear in the comic, it's perfectly rational to be afraid of the ground you are relying on for support to suddenly and precipitously drop orders of magnitude deeper. Presumably the issue is not the irrationality of the fear but the language used - that is, "swimming" should be "wading" since their "feet touch bottom". Someone wading who was incapable of swimming would be rightfully afraid of suddenly being dropped into open sea, as they'd have limited ability to make it back to safety. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.142.22|172.69.142.22]] 18:16, 28 May 2019 (UTC)
Back when I was teaching beginning swimming for adults, I would tell them that the deep end of the pool was better for swimming because there was more water under them to support them. Some of them found that the idea inspired confidence . . . others, not so much. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.214.100|162.158.214.100]] 17:22, 28 May 2019 (UTC)
: My wife is learning to swim at the moment (she's 50, never too old to learn!) and has this specific issue about being able to touch the bottom. She was told by her instructor about the deep end being "better for swimming" and definitely falls into the "not so much" category you mention![[User:Daemonik|Daemonik]] ([[User talk:Daemonik|talk]]) 14:38, 29 May 2019 (UTC)
: there is a way in which this is correct, and not trivially. Deeper pools cause less reflected turbulence to impede the swimmer so are marginally faster. Most international competition is now held in pools of uniform depth of, i think, at least 3 metres [[User:Boatster|Boatster]] ([[User talk:Boatster|talk]]) 05:26, 30 May 2019 (UTC)

What is the Lemmings reference mentioned in the explanation? [[User:Herobrine|Herobrine]] ([[User talk:Herobrine|talk]]) 12:18, 29 May 2019 (UTC)
:Thank you, herobrine. My question exactly! [[User:Ianrbibtitlht|Ianrbibtitlht]] ([[User talk:Ianrbibtitlht|talk]]) 16:07, 29 May 2019 (UTC)
::I would guess it is to the {{w|Lemmings (video game)}}, I put in wikilink assuming that that is what is meant.  Not sure though.  [[Special:Contributions/162.158.106.102|162.158.106.102]] 18:05, 29 May 2019 (UTC)I thought this was a global warming reference at first glance. it works pretty well as one. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.214.28|162.158.214.28]] 03:19, 30 May 2019 (UTC)
:::Quite right.  As someone old enough to remember {{w|Lemmings (video game)}}, one of the tools to keep your lemmings from dying from a fall was an umbrella. [[User:Observer of the Absurd|Observer of the Absurd]] ([[User talk:Observer of the Absurd|talk]]) 21:53, 2 June 2019 (UTC)
:::As someone who played and loved the Lemmings games back in the day, at first I actually wondered at the claimed connection for a second until it clicked. For the uninitiated: the titular creatures simply walk. Blindly, unendingly. If their ground or floor ends (such as if there were no water here and they were walking to the right past Megan), they simply fall, and if they fall far enough (about the height of 3 lemmings, a LOT shorter than this cliff), they die with a splat. The point of the game is to assign jobs and abilities to them to survive / save everybody. One ability is to give them an umbrella, which they use on any significant drop to land softly and safely. Another ability is the reverse, to climb, such as if they were walking left from the umbrella they could climb to Megan. Assigning both makes the game call that particular lemming Athlete. :) If this were a level of Lemmings, the solution would be to make the first one a Miner (dig diagonally downwards, from off panel, further up the beach than the height of the cliff) then give umbrellas to anyone who walked past him before he got deep enough to cut off access to the cliff edge. Eventually there would be a gentle slope down to the lower shelf. [[User:NiceGuy1|NiceGuy1]] ([[User talk:NiceGuy1|talk]]) 03:05, 8 June 2019 (UTC)

When I saw this, one element of it immediately reminded of a 26th/May [https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-48360832 BBC article] that just barely preceded the comic's appearance. So maybe part of the fear is actually that of pellebaphobia. (Pelle''batho''phobia, even?) [[Special:Contributions/162.158.155.86|162.158.155.86]] 20:54, 30 May 2019 (UTC)