On a recent afternoon aboard a research boat, Hammerschlag and his team from the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, found what they refer to as an “amazing” creature.

“Any day that you can see a shark is an amazing day,” Hammerschlag said. “Sharks are in a lot of trouble. They need all the help they can get.”

Hammerschlag studies the mythical sea creatures to discover how their ailments could be linked to the development of human diseases.

“The shark is sending us an SOS,” he said as he traveled on a boat with his research team. “I’m attempting to draw blood.”

It’s an SOS about a health threat that not only affects sharks, but also affects man. His team has found links between the sharks and diseases that cripple and kill humans.

“Toxins that can give you Alzheimer’s, dementia, ALS, Parkinson’s. Pretty scary stuff,” Hammerschlag said.

Back on land, his partner Dr. Deborah Mash, a professor of Neurology for the Miller School of Medicine at the University of Miami, studies his findings inside a lab.

“This is a first. No one has seen this data,” Mash said.

“Is there a footprint suggesting an SOS from the shark?” CBS4’s Chief Investigative Reporter Michele Gillen asked.

“There is,” Mash said. “He is an apex predator, as we are. He is going to mirror what we are doing to our bodies. The shark is giving us a mirror on what is coming into our diet. Showing us what is out there in our marine environment that can damage out bodies.”

The journey for answers begins with a dizzying display of precision, which begins with the intubation of the shark so that oxygenated water pours through its gills. Then, the sharks are examined, biopsied, blown on and electronically tagged.

For scientists and students, this is a key moment — not only tagging the shark but evaluating the blood and stress levels of the shark, for research the world awaits.

What they found in the shark fin? The neurotoxin BMAA (short for B-Methylamino-L-alanine), which is produced by an algae known as cyanobacteria, often found in lakes, oceans and the soil.

“We were really surprised at the level of detection of this toxin BMAA in the shark fins,” Mash said.

The team examined 100 samples from seven shark species.

“We found it in all but three samples that we tested. I never expected that. That means that it is very prevalent in the shark diet,” Mash said. “The results are staggering. I never predicted that we would see the incidence of this toxin in the large number of shark samples off the South Florida coastal waters.”

When asked why this toxin is so dangerous, Mash said, “This toxin has been shown to damage neurons. Neurons are the primary building block of the brain.”

The toxin, which has been shown to kill brain cells, has turned up – repeatedly – in Mash’s studies of the human brain — particularly of the brains of victims of Alzheimer’s, Parkinson and Lou Gehrig’s patients.

“We are detecting BMAA in the brains of the patients that have donated them for research,” Mash said. “That is why we are seeing linkage with Alzheimer’s and with Lou Gehrig’s disease.”

If the shark holds clues to brain-based diseases that have the potential to affect everybody — it’s even more chilling that the shark is threatened today because of a demand for soup made from its fin.

“100 million sharks are killed a year,” Hammerschlag said. “A rate of 270,000 sharks per day mostly to make shark fin soup.”

The soup is considered a delicacy and sign of prosperity in Asian cultures. But South Florida’s team of scientific detectives are just publishing their work that suggests consumers might want to think twice before biting into a food that tradition says will bring them luck.

“If you consume shark fin products or you use this in your diet, yes, you are going to be exposed to increasing amounts of BMAA’s,” Mash said. “With repeat exposure throughout the life span, it could put someone at risk for a brain disorder like Alzheimer’s and Lou Gehrig’s disease.”

All this is the first chapter of a medical mission aimed at unearthing clues that link man – the oceans top predator – and our survival.

“This is all about human health and this is all about the risk to human health,” Mash said. “And the shark may give us the fundamental clue that allows us to make a great breakthrough.”

One of the students, who was in the classroom full of children when the incident is alleged to have occurred, told CBS4 News that the Arthur Ashe Middle School teacher hit a girl in the chest and choked a boy then cursed the entire class.

The mother of one of the students called the teacher’s actions “wrong” and added that she believes parents should “press charges” against the teacher.

The Broward County School District confirmed to CBS4 News on Wednesday that earlier this week the teacher was removed from the classroom. A district spokesperson said the teacher has been reassigned to a position in the district away from children.

The spokesperson would not release specific details of what transpired in the classroom but it’s been the talk of the campus.

“It is what it is,” said student Everett Oates, who spoke to CBS4 with the permission of his mother. “But I feel as if he shouldn’t lay his hands on a student.”

CBS4 News has decided not to name the teacher at this point because these are only allegations. We tried to reach the teacher for comment but we could not locate him.

Parents at Arthur Ashe said the school district needs to hear both sides before making a decision on the teacher’s future. However, parents said if the allegations are proven true, they cannot understand how a teacher could strike a child.

“The teachers are here to teach the kids not to abuse them or anything,” said Jackie Adams. “That’s not good.”

“No matter what they do, the teachers should constrain their actions and language around the kids,” said Timothy Peterson.

The decision was made after Morano, a 66 year-old Davie man who had served as a Scout volunteer for 2 years, changed his mind about standing trial on charges he had 111 pieces of child porn in his possession when arrested in July 2010.

Jury selection was about to begin in the trial when Morano decided he wanted to change his plea to guilty.

The former scoutmaster struck a deal; one year for every child porn image, and Broward Circuit Judge Jeffrey Levenson sentenced him to 111 years, 11 months in prison.

Then, Levenson reduced that sentence, saying Morano could satisfy his sentence by serving 4 years, followed by 12 years probation as a sex offender, assuming he shows up in court to surrender March 26th.

Morano was arrested after investigators found he kept a computer in a rented building where he apparently went to view pornography.

He was arrested at his Davie home, and while he admitted the images were on his computer, he denied ever having sexual contact with a child.

Since March 2008 until the time of his arrest, Morano was a volunteer Boy Scout Leader and Assistant Scoutmaster with Troop 183.

According to FloridaStateGasPrices.com, a Shell station in Lake Buena Vista, not far from the Walt Disney World Resort, was charging $5.89 a gallon. Midgrade was $5.94 while premium was $5.99 a gallon. Whether the prices are a publicity stunt to draw attention to the station is anybody’s guess. But if it was a stunt – it’s working.  Word of the price spike has made headlines nationwide.

The Shell station in the Orlando area wasn’t the only one to nudge prices near the six-dollar a gallon range. A Sun Gas Express and a Suncoast Energy station in southeast Orlando on Butler National Dr are charging $5.69 to $5.79 respectively.

A Mobil station in Lake Buena Vista on Apopka Vineland Rd near I-4 was charging $4.69 a gallon for regular Wednesday afternoon.

In South Florida, we couldn’t find any stations with outrageous prices like the above, but we did find a few that have already reportedly breached the four-dollar a gallon mark.

Some stations by Miami International Airport are already selling regular unleaded for $4.39 a gallon.

Wednesday afternoon it was reported that a Chevron station at NE 167th Street and NE 6th Avenue was charging $4.09 for regular unleaded. Another North Miami Beach Chevron, at NW 167th Street and North Miami Avenue, was reportedly charging $4.01 for regular unleaded.

Miami driver William Ortiz blames speculators for hiking the price of wholesale oil. He says that’s who’s behind the recent spikes in local gas prices.

Since January gas prices have climbed about 20 cents a gallon here and across the country and average about $3.73 around South Florida.

The latest spikes are being fed by Iran’s warnings to cut oil sales in retaliation for economic sanctions as it develops its nuclear energy program.

Some oil industry analysts predicts gas prices could average between $4.00 to $4.25 nationwide before the summer driving season.

Some analysts now predict gas prices could not only slow the course of the US economic recovery, but also become a major campaign issue as we approach the fall elections.

Sharks that need human protection.  At the center of that effort is Dr. Samuel Gruber, a professor at the University of Miami’s Rosential School for Marine and Atmospheric Science and director of their Bimini Biological Field Station. You could call him the “shark whisperer.” But he hardly whispers.

“I want you to clear that shark. Can you do that,” asked Dr. Gruber point to a large shark in the water. “Look at that shark!”

Perhaps he is the “shark barker. At 74-years old, Dr. Gruber could be summed up in one word:  crazy.

“I frankly never thought I’d live past 30,” Gruber told CBS4′s David Sutta while he fought to pull up a tiger shark on the side of a boat. Somehow Doc has survived encountering sharks from Florida through the Bahamas, since the 60′s.

Gruber’s love for one of the most feared animals in the ocean drove him to set up the school’s shark lab in Bimini. He was forced there when research in the Florida Keys collapsed.

“I watched the population that I worked with dwindle down to nothing over a period of several years due to overfishing,” explained Gruber.

Today, he’s far from nothing. Sharks are everywhere.

Biologists come to Bimini from around the world to study the ocean’s top predator. It’s not by chance that Gruber, the biologists or the sharks are here.  For three decades the Bahamas have been protecting the shark.

“If we did not ban long lining, our shark population would have crashed just like they have almost every where in the world,” explained Eric Carey with the Bahamas National Trust.

As a result in the Bahamas you’ll find some of the most diverse shark populations in the world.

For example, Tiger sharks.

“They are giant, giant sharks, 20-footers,” said Dr. Gruber as he struggled to pull one along side a boat so it could be tagged.

Dr. Michael Domeier has traveled from California to attach satellite trackers on their fins.

“When he’s finning and the tags out of the water, it can fix a position on where the shark is,” said Domeier with the Marine Conservation Science Institute.

Domeier has developed and app which can track dozens of sharks in real-time on the iPad.  The app is called “Expedition White Shark” and can be found in Apple’s app store or at www.expeditionwhiteshark.com.

“The yellow ones are the ones that we have had hits from satellite tags in the past seven days,” he added pointing tot he screen.  “It’s more than just a novelty.  It’s a research tool.  If you tag enough animals this way you can start to figure out their entire life history pattern.”

The tracks show us a side of sharks we never see.  Jaws, as we’ve come to know them, may be the world’s most misunderstood animal.  Gruber described them as the Budda’s of the ocean.

“I’m going to let her go.  She’ll swim away into the sea,” said Gruber. ”Tiger sharks have terrible press.  It’s getting better and after today it may get a lot better.”

It was certainly unexpected and so was what we found waiting for us back at the dock in Bimini. The two sharks we saw swimming are bull sharks.

“They are the ultimate top predator.  They are even more of a top predator than a great white shark.  They are designed to prey on sharks.  As a consequence they are the real controllers of everything,” said Gruber.

The bull sharks are so dangerous the CBS4 crew had to film them using a camera on a stick.

Gruber said these particular sharks are in trouble because of their fins. The Chinese go wild for them.  Each year 70-million sharks are killed for their fins which are used to make soup.  In search of bigger fins, fishermen now target bigger sharks, like these bulls.

“Bull sharks are totally unprotected.  You can kill as many as you want,” said Gruber.

Biologists are growing concerned because it takes sharks 12-years to reach adulthood. Basically, their fishing is unsustainable.

“You guys, especially in Florida, should be looking to see what we’ve done,” said Eric Carey.

The Bahamas, seeing a disaster coming, took a dramatic step this summer to stop it.

“Sharks are fully protected in the Bahamas,” said Carey.

It was a bold move protecting all sharks from fishing.

Doc takes us five miles out into the ocean to explain why the move was necessary. You could call these, shark infested waters.

“Well it is exciting and we are all propagandized for our entire lives how bad these things are.  The real propaganda is that they are being killed off at a rate unsustainable and they play a very important roll in this reef,” said Gruber.

Wild Caribbean Reef sharks dart in from every direction. The sharks are skittish but curious.

“Doc we are not in any danger,” asked Sutta.

“Actually these sharks are dangerous,” responded Dr. Gruber, who then pets one.

It’s here that Gruber explains why we need sharks in the first place.

“If the reef sharks disappear, all the animals that were fed on by the reef sharks would start to proliferate and expand in their numbers,” Gruber explained.

In other words, sharks keep the ocean in check. It’s something the Bahamas needs for its survival. Despite the efforts of the Bahamians, it may be in vain.

“Our national anthem don’t make a difference to them (sharks).  Our international boundaries are insignificant to them,” said Carey.

The moment the sharks migrate away from Bimini they are vulnerable. The Bahamas is hoping the United States joins them to protect the sharks by banning shark fishing outright. It’s a battle full of economics and politics.

“I try to convince the government of it.  But they are more worried about being sued than what some old, crazy, shark guy has to say,” Gruber said.

So Gruber, while ever persistent and perhaps crazy, continues his push for the world’s most misunderstood animal.

Someone is listening.   The United States recently banned the process of taking shark fins while throwing the carcasses out.  It’s a big step but not nearly as big as the Bahamas.  Time will tell which country was right.

That’s how many Giant African land snails have been collected in Miami-Dade by state’s agriculture department since the first one was found in September, 2011. All of the snails were found in 14 core areas of the county; from Hialeah south to Homestead.

Check out the Giant African Land Snail Map to see where they’ve been found.

State agriculture officials said this invasive species of snail eats at least 500 different agricultural crops, can cause damage to plaster and stucco on homes and though rare, can carry rat lungworm, a parasite that can cause meningitis in humans, although no cases have been identified in the US.

The Giant African land snail is one of the largest land snails in the world, growing up to eight inches in length and more than four inches in diameter.

Anyone who thinks they may have them in their yard or planting bed is urged to call the state’s Division of Plant Industry Helpline, 1-888-397-1517.

Our journey began in Pompano Beach. Nova professor Stephen Kajiura is prepping his plane. He shows us two high-definition cameras hanging out the window. “The nice thing about this system is it’s totally automated. So once I get going I can just turn the cameras on and just forget about it. Just concentrate on flying” Kajiura says. As we take off he quickly banks over towards the shoreline. The two high-definition cameras are turned on. “Go low and slow over the water, trying to get some good footage of the sharks.” he tells us.

Cruising just 500 feet off the ground near Boynton Beach inlet we see them. “There. There are thousands of them. Literally thousands of them, you guys came up on a good day,” we hear Kajiura say. Just below us are hundreds of black dots. Each dot represents a shark up to 20 feet long no more than 50 feet off shore. Kajiura is amazed every time he sees it. “It’s also interesting to see the people out on the water completely oblivious that there are sharks all around them, just a stone’s throw away.” he adds.

While Kajiura flies the entire shoreline of Palm Beach a single frame of film records 1500 sharks. Moving towards the county line the count skyrockets. By the end of his 47 mile flight more than 100,000 sharks can be counted off his footage all just feet from the sunbathers. I ask him “Why is it that they are coming so close?” “It may be there are lots of sharks further out but we just don’t see them because we are only flying close to shore here.” he responds.

These remarkable congregations began to be noticed about a decade ago off Florida. Biologists were perplexed. Where did they come from? “We didn’t know if they were staying here year round.” Biologist Dr. Steven Kessel told us. A number of biologists began experiments to track them and what they found was ground breaking. Sharks are snowbirds. “It’s very defined, almost to the day that they arrive and depart.” Kessel told us.

How biologists learned that involves frightening hands-on work with the sharks. Kessel invited us on one of his overnight jaunts off Jupiter to see it with a warning. “If you get really close to them they will bite you or the camera.” Apparently sharks are not only dangerous but quite smart. Kessel explained “Lemons will often bite their time and wait for you to put your hand where you shouldn’t put your hand.”

As the sun sets the team of biologists and volunteers set out their bait. It’s an intricate trap using bait, hooks and line to catch the oceans top predator. Within minutes they have their first catch. Kessel wraps one up with a rope around the tail. “It’s going to run I think now she’s going crazy.” He yells as he fights the shark over to the boat. It’s a lemon shark weighing 400 pounds. They pull her into the boat and Kessel makes a discovery “She might be pregnant. I think she’s pregnant.” They throw a cloth over her face so she can’t plot to bite anyone. They then offer the shark a paddle. They call it a pacifier. “Stick it in his mouth.” The shark clamps down and the team starts working the shark up, measuring and taking DNA samples. The process resembles a NASCAR pit stop. In and out in six minutes. They repeat it over and over into the early morning hours and each time it’s dramatic.

Some sharks fight hard biting anything around them including the boat. As the moon appears things get intense… the team makes a rare catch. It’s a great hammerhead. Kessel reaches for a transmitter. This shark, along with all the other sharks brought aboard, is given a tiny transmitter just beneath her skin. “Anywhere she swims she can be detected.” Kessel explains. The transmitter will track her movement like a GPS. “And it doesn’t feel any of this?” I ask “Well it’s not reacting.” he responds.

The hammerhead is sewn up and returned to the sea. Suddenly the shark turns around heading right for our underwater cameraman. In a panic our photographer actually surfaces flagging us to pick him up. Thankfully the shark’s curiosity fades and he cruises away. Kessel explains the danger is worth it. “Now we can study that shark for the next 10 years.”

They started inserting transmitters in 2007. Since then they have discovered sharks travel to Florida for warm winter weather starting in January and by the summer they are gone. They are tracked moving up and down the Eastern seaboard, in rare occasions even crossing the Atlantic to visit Europe. And boy can they move. Recently one left Jupiter going deep into the Florida Keys. That’s 323 miles in just five days, a trek that would take you two weeks walking 12 hours a day.

Lately, though, the tags have been showing a growing problem. When fisherman catch and kill these sharks they return the tags. Biologists say the returns coming from Tiger and Hammerhead sharks, like the one we caught off Jupiter, show they are disappearing at an alarming rate. It turns out that the massive congregation off our shoreline makes them easy prey for fishermen. “Any animal that aggregates is easy to exploit because you get a lot in a small area, so you can really hit them hard.” Kessel says. Concerned, this winter the State of Florida became the first state in the country to ban the fishing of tigers and hammerheads. “It’s a great step in the right direction but given the large-scale movements of these animals you need protection on a geographical scale that’s appropriate.” Kessel explained. “Unfortunately these rules only apply to state waters. And I believe the definition of state waters is how far you can fire a cannon ball back in the day.” That’s three miles, exactly where we caught the sharks off Jupiter. “Sharks don’t really care about cannon balls. They go where they like to go.” Kessel says.

There may be one place in Florida where all sharks are protected. It may have happened by accident in Cape Canaveral. Canaveral is home to the Kennedy Space Center, the space shuttle, and apparently quite a few sharks. NASA agreed to let us on the grounds as long as we didn’t reveal exact locations of sensitive areas. Near launch pads we saw thousands of sharks in the surf. One, a lemon shark, actually appeared to be surfing. “Often times you can’t see them until they are right between your legs basically.” NASA biologist Eric Reyier tells us. He calmly walks into the surf armed with a cast net. He quickly throws it out and catches a shark. As he drags the shark up, it clamps down on his net. “Ugh. He’s tearing a huge hole in my net. Holy cow kid!” he says in angst.

Reyier tells us the whole this is odd. “It’s unique. The Lemon shark has been studied for a long time and no one expected to find this.” The fascinating discovery was made nine years ago as Reyier drove along the beach. “It was a really cold day and we would see these waves crashing and you would see these dorsal fins popping. You could see 20, 30 sets of dorsal fins. We realized we had something special here.” Many speculate the sharks are here as a by-product of 60 years of federal protection of the space program. This sliver of beach, inaccessible to the public, you could call untouched Florida. No one can bother them here. As ask Reyier “Do you think the sharks know?” “I don’t know if they know or not.” “It’s sort of a hidden gem to be honest with you” he adds. We wonder if the sharks would be here if NASA wasn’t.” “If the space center and the air force were not here we would have condos. We would be standing in the shadow of condominiums right now.” Reyier tells us. “Do you think the sharks would be congregating the way they are?” I ask. “Ah I don’t think so.” he responds.

Almost all of them are juvenile lemon sharks. It almost appears that their parents, on their way south, dropped them off here knowing they would be safe. Reyier drags another one onto the beach. “These little guys are feisty.” This was the first time this phenomenon was being documented on television. Just like the sharks in Jupiter, NASA biologists are hoping tagging them will lead to new revelations about shark behavior.

Florida’s efforts to ban the fishing of Tiger and Hammerhead sharks is a first for the United States. But just fifty miles from here, in the Bahamas, they outright protect all sharks from fishing. Tuesday night we will take you there to see why. We get uncomfortably close in this report, which you can see on CBS4 News at 11, and again here online.

If you’ve banged your head to some of the most popular hard rock/heavy metal in the past 30 years, you may not have known some of the top bands in the genre have ties to South Florida. So who are the most noteworthy metalheads coming out of South Florida?

Credit: AP

Marilyn Manson

marilynmanson.com

The shock rocker, born Brian Warner, is originally from Ohio, but cut his teeth at Cardinal Gibbons High School and later at Broward Community College. His career has included hits like “The Beautiful People,” and a metal remake of the pop song “Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This).” He’s also been depicted in the media as bad for children and was initially blamed for the Columbine massacre. He penned a lengthy response to the tragedy and said if he could have done anything with the students who killed at Columbine, he would have simply listened. He was heavily influenced by bands like Nine Inch Nails and other metal bands like Slayer, who he has toured with repeatedly.

Credit: Nonpoint.com

Nonpoint

nonpoint.com

Formed in January 1997, the band is a compilation of nu-metal as a four-piece band. The band toured heavily after releasing a major label debut in 2000. They landed a spot on the Ozzfest tour in 2001 and their career started to rise. They hit the road with bands like Mduvayne, Taproot, Drowning Poll, Sevendust, and Disturbed. The band’s first major hit was “Bullet With A Name,” but they also drew praise for their remake of the Phil Collins’ classic, “In the Air Tonight.”

Credit: saigonkick.com

Saigon Kick

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While not necessarily as heavy as the first two in this list, Saigon Kick was formed in Miami in 1988 and gained a following on the club scene and while their first record only sold marginally, they hit it big with the song “Love Is On The Way.” More of a hair metal ballad, the band’s hit helped them score a gold record. The band wouldn’t have another song to make it into the Billboard Hot 100, but did have some success in the mainstream rock charts with the son “All I Want,” released after “Love,” in 1992.

Credit: Getty Images

Yngwie Malmsteen

yngwiemalmsteen.com

While not originally from Miami, Malmsteen now reportedly resides in Miami. He’s one of the pioneers of shredding on the guitar. His albums have included a neo-classical approach that feature wide stretches and picking at speeds that have rarely been matched. Perhaps his greatest album as a guitarist was the first album he released as a solo-artist, “Rising Force.” He was ranked 9th all-time best electrical guitarist by Time magazine.

Credit: www.cannibalcorpse.net

Cannibal Corpse

www.cannibalcorpse.net

From just up the road in Tampa, Cannibal Corpse was so original that it created it’s own genre of metal affectionately known as “death metal.” The band cut its teeth around Florida including South Florida. It has had no radio or television exposure, but has a cult following. The band’s performances have been banned at various times by different countries. It had a spot appearance in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, filmed in Miami. Among the band’s releases are “Butchered at Birth” and “Tomb of the Mutilated.”