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A Megalodon was an ancestor of modern great white sharks. With the difference that it could have killed and eaten whales without worry of injury. It is believed that these creatures went extinct hundreds of thousands of years ago.

If the megalodon lived in the ocean, man would have many problems with crossing the oceans. If they did, how would modern man build boats to defend against their attacks?

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  • $\begingroup$ "Boat" generally refers to submarines; ore-carrying, lake-bound vessels; and pleasure craft. Is that what you had in mind, or the more generic "water vessel"? $\endgroup$ – Frostfyre Oct 6 '15 at 20:02
  • $\begingroup$ "If the megalodon lived in shallow waters man would have many problems with crossing the oceans." So, which is it? Do they live in the shallows, or the oceans? $\endgroup$ – DaaaahWhoosh Oct 6 '15 at 20:10
  • $\begingroup$ I didn't see that typo sorry. $\endgroup$ – TrEs-2b Oct 6 '15 at 20:11
  • $\begingroup$ Why would modern ocean crossing boats have problems with Megalodons? Even a shark the size of a blue whale isn't going to pose a significant threat to a cargo vessel, cruise ship or a first world naval ship. Or are you just talking about smaller craft? $\endgroup$ – Dan Smolinske Oct 6 '15 at 20:37
  • $\begingroup$ Your 'new research' link concludes that there are no Megalodons in the deepest oceans... $\endgroup$ – ckersch Oct 6 '15 at 20:44
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In all honesty, there probably wouldn't be any meaningful change in boat/ship development resulting from scientific evidence confirming the existence of modern megalodons. If they are proven to exist, then that means we've been coexisting with them for the entirety of human existence on Earth without any noticeable interaction.

Humans (and boats/ships) simply aren't a natural prey item for megalodon (any shark, to be honest). I would expect encounters to be more along the lines of current human-shark interactions: the shark investigates, the human panics, and the two go their separate ways. Sharks aren't malicious and have no ill will towards humans; I see no reason megalodon would become hostile once we've proven it exists.

In short: There wouldn't be a change in design with definitive proof of a modern megalodon.

Instead, there would be a massive push for research into common hunting grounds and migration paths to reduce the chances of an encounter.

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Small boats (under 30 metres):

  • Depth Charges
  • Sonar
  • Convoys
  • Electroshock gear under the hull
  • Possibly, sonic repellers (not sure if this works with sharks)

Or maybe:

  • Big Metal Hulled Boats(TM)
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