Hans Hass

Hans Hass (born January 23, 1919 in Vienna, Austria) is a biologist and mainly known for his documentaries about sharks, the energon theory, and his commitment to the protection of the environment.

His Matura trip of 1937 to the Riviera, which included underwater hunting and photography, had a formative effect on him. After making expeditions to the Caribbean Sea and writing his first professional articles, in 1940 Hass switched from reading law to zoology studies and graduated in 1943. In his early diving he used rebreathers which he had made for him by the German diving gear makers Dräger: he had these sets made with the breathing bag on his back, as he did not like the bag-on-chest "frogman look".

In 1945 his research vessel got lost when the Russians captured Königsberg, so he addressed himself to anthropology and evolution. In 1947 his movie Menschen unter Haien (Men Among Sharks) had its world premiere in Zurich, and his most popular book with same title was released in 1948. As a consequence, he got contracts with Herzog-Film (Munich) and Sascha-Film (Vienna). He also performed his first "Xarifa" expeditions. The new research ship, named Xarifa, mostly had to be self-financed through photo safaris in the Red Sea and by the BBC.

After expeditions in East Africa and South Asia his first TV series were developed in 1959, in 1961 for the first time about creatures outside the water. This was followed by behavior research and the energon theory from 1963 to 1966 as the basis of the following works. Combined with management strategies, in 1969 Hass published about commonalities with the evolution. In the 1970s he addressed envorinmental and commercial themes and was appointed to a professorship by the University of Vienna.

In 1983 he started longtime studies and a huge amount of tutorials about predatory instincts in profession. Hass consolidated marine biology, behaviour research and management theories under one umbrella. From his point of view his energon theory cannot be disproved. In 1989 he addressed himself to environmental themes.

Hans Hass has been married to his second wife, Lotte Baierl, since 1950. His son, Hans, was born in 1946.

Publications

4 popular films
about 70 TV films
more than 25 books among others:
* 1939: Jagd unter Wasser mit Harpune und Kamera (Hunt under water with harpoon and camera)
* 1941: Unter Korallen und Haien (With corals and sharks)
* 1942: Fotojagt am Meeresgrund (Photo-hunt at the sea-bottom)
* 1947: Drei Jäger auf dem Meeresgrund (Three hunters on the sea-bottom)
* 1949: Menschen und Haie (Humans and sharks)
* 1952: Manta, Teufel im roten Meer (Manta, devil in the Red Sea)
* 1954: Ich fotografierte in den 7 Meeren (I photographed in the 7 seas)
* 1957: Wir kommen aus dem Meer (We come from the sea)
* 1958: Fische und Korallen (Fish and corals)
* 1961: Expedition ins Unbekannte (Expedition into the unknown)
* 1968: Wir Menschen. Das Geheimnis unseres Verhaltens (We humans. The secret of our behavior)
* 1970: Energon: Das verborgene Geheimnis (Energon: The hidden secret)
* 1971: In unberührten Tiefe. Die Bezwingung der tropischen Meere. (In unaffected depth. Conquest of the tropical seas)
* 1972: Vorstoss in die Tiefe. Ein Magazin über Abenteuer bei der Erforschung der Meere. (Raid into the depth. A magazine over adventures with the study of the seas)
* 1973: Welt unter Wasser. Der abenteuerliche Vorstoss des Menschen ins Meer. (World under water. The adventurous raid of humans in the sea)
* 1976: Eroberung der Tiefe. Das Meer - seine Geheimnisse, seine Gefahren, seine Erforschung. (Conquest of the deeps. The sea - its secrets, its dangers, its research)
* 1976: Der Hans-Hass-Tauchführer. Das Mittelmeer. Ein Ratgeber für Sporttaucher und Schnorchler. (The Hans Hass dive guide. The Mediterranean. An adviser for sport divers and snorkellers.)
* 1977: Der Hai. Legende eines Mörders. (The shark. Legend of a killer)
* 1978: Die Schöpfung geht weiter. Station Mensch im Strom des Lebens. (The creation continues. Station of humans in the river of the life)
* 1979: Wie der Fisch zum Menschen wurde. Die faszinierende Entwicklungsgeschichte unseres Körpers. (How fish became humans. The fascinating history of the development of our body)
* 1980: Im Roten Meer. Wiederkehr nach 30 Jahren. (In the Red Sea. Return after 30 years)
* 1985: Stadt und Lebensqualität. (City and quality of life)
* 1986: Abenteuer unter Wasser. Meine Erlebnisse und Forschungen im Meer. (Adventure under water. My experiences and research in the sea)
* 1987: Der Ball und die Rose (The ball and the rose)
* 1988: Der Hai im Management. Instinkte steuern und kontrollieren. (The shark in the management. Instincts steer and control)
* 1991: Vorstoss in unbekannte Meere (Push into unknown seas)
* 1994: Die Hyperzeller. Das neue Menschenbild der Evolution. (The Hyper-cellars. The new human picture of evolution)
* 1996: Aus der Pionierzeit des Tauchens. In unberührte Tiefen. (From the pioneer time of diving. Into untouched depths)
* 2004: Erinnerungen und Abenteuer. (Memories and adventures)

Awards

Biennale Prize 1951
Oscar for extraordinary underwater photography for the film Unternehmen Xarifa 1959
Austrian decoration for science and art 1998
Konrad Lorenz Award 1999
International Scuba Diving Hall of fame, 2000, [link]
Five more science awards

External links

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