An Ode to Shark Week

Written by John Edward Betancourt

We are currently in the middle of Discovery Channel's annual event; Shark Week and well...I simply could not be happier because Shark Week is the greatest thing to happen in the history of ever. On a personal level, I've always been a big fan of these majestic creatures and this event is always an incredible treat.

For me, my love of these creatures stems from my geeky nature. Shortly after seeing Jaws as a boy I became fascinated and obsessed with sharks and made it a point to learn everything I could about the mighty Great White and well, Shark Week has only helped fuel my childhood obsession. But what I love about this event the most, is not the fact that it feeds the geek in me, I love the science that comes with all of it. 

There's often something new to discover when Shark Week arrives and the last couple of years have popped up some incredible finds. Last year we were introduced to Big Blue, a massive 5,000 lb. Great White Shark that was 20 feet long. She was truly the stuff of legend and the closest thing to Jaws that we have ever seen. This year we met Emma, a 16 footer length wise that just so happened to fall asleep on camera, giving scientists their first ever view of a Great White Shark at rest and it's those magnificent moments of wonder that keep me coming back year after year. 

But what matters most, is that Shark Week gets everyone excited about learning. I see the joy over this event all over my Facebook feed and engage in conversations with my friends about it and that's simply magical to see. This is an era where we can learn anything we want at our own pace, and an era where sometimes science finds itself embattled by opinion over fact. So to see people energized to learn more about sharks and find themselves educated in the process is nothing short of amazing and kudos to the Discovery Channel for figuring out how to make learning fun and to make Shark Week a 'can't miss' event.

Either way, I'm a little saddened by the fact that Shark Week is nearly over, but at the same time I'm filled with joy at the strong possibility that there are people out there now curious to learn more about sharks and will no doubt seek out more knowledge about them once the programming ends and that's largely in part thanks to The Discovery Channel for finding the sweet spot in regards to making learning fun and I certainly hope that Shark Week inspires other programming in a similar vein to pop up to continue to inspire learning about our magnificent world.​

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