NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- Attacks are what usually make people think about sharks, but expert George Burgess wants to change that.

"The point of the matter is a lot of people have grown up with misunderstandings," said Burgess, curator of the University of Florida's Shark Attack File and director of the Florida Program for Shark Research.

From the vicious creature in the movie "Jaws" to the upheaval raised by the media's controversial 2001 "Summer of the Shark" label, Burgess said the influences and misconceptions are all around us.

To dispel pop culture and media myths, the biological scientist visited the Marine Discovery Center on Monday. Speaking before about two dozen Florida Master Naturalist students and volunteers, he talked about the biggest threat in the ocean.