Attempts to Correct Swimming Errors

: Blindfolded divers, using either snorkels or SCUBA gear, when attempting to swim a straight line, tend to make a consistent error either to the right or to the left of their intended target. Attempts were made to correct for this veering tendency by (1) reducing the area of one of the swimfins, and (2) by attaching an adjustable rudder to the SCUBA tank. Swimming accuracy was not reliably improved in 5 subjects by either method. The results argue against several proposed explanations of swimming errors.