This text blends theoretical and scientific aspects with practical and directly applicable diving physiology and medical information. It is divided into three sections - the underwater environment, physiological responses to the underwater environment, and medical problems associated with the sport.

Technically Speaking – Talks on Technical Diving Volume 1: Genesis and Exodus is the latest book from best-selling Scuba series author Simon Pridmore. It is a series of themed talks telling the early history of technical diving—where it came from, how it developed, how it expanded across the world, who the important movers were and how, in the decade from 1989 to 1999, the efforts of a few determined people changed scuba diving forever. These ten years saw the greatest shake-up the sport has ever seen but technical diving’s road to universal acceptance was anything but smooth, many obstacles had to be overcome and there were times when even viewed in retrospect, it seemed that its advocates might fail in their mission. Ultimately, success came down to perseverance, people power, good timing and more than a little luck. Technical diving trailblazer Kevin Gurr comments: “Simon has completed a complex task with consummate skill and has accurately unravelled the when's, the who's and some of the why's, much of which would have been unjustifiably lost in the mists of time if not for this work. Thank you, Simon, for capturing the memory of lost and surviving friends, for detailing one of diving's most pioneering eras and for helping others and myself remember how much fun it all was!” And Oztek and Tekdive convenor David Strike writes: “Charting the growth and development of an aspect of diving that ranks as one of the most important in the entire history of underwater developments— and with comprehensive and detailed appendices—Simon Pridmore’s ‘Technically Speaking’ breaks the mould of dry-as-dust historical reference works. It sets the record straight on many of the myths and misconceptions that continue to surround the development of technical diving and does so in an engaging way.” Author Simon Pridmore has been at the sharp end of the scuba diving industry for 30 years, working as a guide, divemaster, instructor, instructor trainer and instructor trainer-trainer. In the 1990s, he pioneered mixed-gas deep diving in Asia, first with Mandarin Divers in Hong Kong and later through his own shop in Guam, Professional Sports Divers, the first dedicated technical diving centre in the Western Pacific. He also held the regional franchise for IANTD, with technical diving operations in such exotic locations as Bikini Atoll, Majuro, Palau, Kosrae and Truk Lagoon. He then moved to the United Kingdom and became the IANTD licensee there, as well as working for cutting-edge mixed-gas computer and rebreather manufacturers VR Technology. Today, he is one of scuba diving’s most prolific writers, with a five-volume Scuba series, several guides for travelling divers, a biography, a novel and even a couple of divers’ cookbooks to his name. He and his wife Sofie currently live in Taiwan. Find out more about Simon and his books at his website www.simonpridmore.com or via his Substack newsletter Scuba Conversational.

Recent rapid globalisation of manufacturing industries leads to a drive and thirst for rapid advancements in technological development and expertise in the fields of advanced design and manufacturing, especially at their interfaces. This development results in many economical benefits to and improvement of quality of life for many people all over the world. Technically speaking, this rapid development also create many opportunities and challenges for both industrialists and academics, as the design requirements and constraints have completely changed in this global design and manufacture environment. Consequently the way to design, manufacture and realise products have changed as well. The days of designing for a local market and using local suppliers in manufacturing have gone, if enterprises aim to maintain their competitiveness and global expansion leading to further success. In this global context and scenario, both industry and the academia have an urgent need to equip themselves with the latest knowledge, technology and methods developed for engineering design and manufacture. To address this shift in engineering design and manufacture, supported by the European Commission under the Asia Link Programme with a project title FASTAHEAD (A Framework Approach to Strengthening Asian Higher Education in Advanced Design and Manufacture), three key project partners, namely the University of Strathclyde of the United Kingdom, Northwestern Polytechncial University of China, and the Troyes University of Technology of France organised a third international conference.