The marine biologist then divided the tank into two
compartments by inserting a sturdy piece of clear fibreglass. She then placed a
fresh batch of bait fish on one side of the fibreglass and the shark on the
other.
Once more, the shark struck rapidly. The shark hit the
fibreglass border this time, but it bounced off. The shark persisted in
engaging in this action ineffectively for several minutes. The bait fish
continued to swim about in the second partition undamaged. The shark eventually
gave up after approximately an hour of the trial.
Over the following few weeks, this experiment was performed
a number of dozen times. Every time, the shark became less hostile and made
fewer efforts to attack the bait fish. Eventually, the shark grew weary of
slamming against the fibreglass divider and stopped making any attacks.
The shark didn't attack after the marine biologist took down
the fibreglass partition, though. The bait fish could swim anywhere they
pleased because the shark had been conditioned to think a barrier separated it
from them.