Photo: University of South Florida.
Joseph Dituri retired from the Navy as a commander after 28 years and went back to school. He is now a hyperbaric medicine researcher and associate professor at the University of South Florida.
How much do you love the ocean? Enough to live in it for more than 75 days without coming up? In May, Kyle Melnick at the Washington Post wrote about a guy who did that.
“Joseph Dituri, a hyperbaric medicine researcher and associate professor at the University of South Florida, has been living in an underwater pod in Key Largo, Fla., since March 1. He’s exploring whether living underwater is possible through daily tests on his brain, heart, lungs and blood.
“On [his] 73rd day at Jules’ Undersea Lodge — Dituri believes he broke the world record for the longest stint living underwater. But Dituri, 55, is still determined to live submerged for 100 days to complete his experiment.
“ ‘It’s not about the world record,’ Dituri told the Washington Post. ‘It’s about living underwater and in an isolated, confined, extreme environment. I have 100 days as the mark, but it’s only because I couldn’t afford to spend 200 days.’
“Dituri has long been fascinated with water. He grew up near the Atlantic Ocean in Long Island and served in the U.S. Navy for nearly 28 years before retiring as a commander in December 2012.
“Around that time, Dituri was scuba diving near Orange County, Calif., when he said he saw an 11-inch sea lice. He had believed all sea lice were only a few millimeters long. He wondered what other species he could discover in the sea.
“Dituri knew living underwater was possible. In 2014, two Tennessee professors stayed in Jules’ Undersea Lodge, an underwater hotel in Key Largo, for 73 days. Since watching his military colleagues suffer concussions during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Dituri has studied treatments for traumatic brain injuries. He wondered whether living underwater in a pressurized environment could aid brain injuries. …
“Dituri needed more degrees to become a researcher, so he earned a PhD in biomedical engineering from the University of South Florida in December 2017. In 2019, Dituri and four friends stayed at Jules’ Undersea Lodge for five days to test underwater life. But Dituri wanted to be submerged longer, and by himself, to see how his brain and body would respond. …
“Before Dituri went underwater, doctors recorded his vitals, including blood pressure, cholesterol, calcium levels, muscle inflammation and stem-cell health. He also underwent anxiety and depression exams with psychologists.
“Dituri booked a 100-square-foot pod — similar to a 10-by-10-foot room — that rests 22 feet underwater. The lodge gets electricity, oxygen and water from a cord connected to land. Dituri also attached an ethernet cable to a router on land for internet access. The pod has a small kitchen, toilet, shower and bedroom.
“Every three days, Dituri said his research colleagues swim to his pod to deliver food, including eggs and salmon, in a pressurized container. But Dituri can only cook in a microwave because of the increased pressure in the sea. He also makes Café Bustelo coffee every morning. Dituri still teaches his hyperbaric medicine and biomedical engineering classes virtually three days per week for the University of South Florida.
“He exercises with resistance bands and takes vitamin D supplements. But his main research has come from tests on his body. He frequently takes urine samples and has undergone electrograms, which record brain and heart activity. …
“Dituri said that his cholesterol and stress have dropped, that he spends more of his rest in REM or deep sleep, and that he has produced stem cells at a faster rate. …
“Still, Dituri has missed human touch. He only sees his girlfriend and three daughters virtually. … On Saturday, Dituri’s 80-year-old mother, Mary, will take a scuba-diving course so she can visit her son.”
More at the Post, here.
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