Oxygen also has a narcotic effect at depth, so nitrox won't reduce narcosis for all divers. The following link describes this pretty well:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nitrox
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nitrox
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Are these instructor notes/lesson guide? I didn't get any lecture, just read the study guide and watched the DVD. I could have missed it, but I thought I was pretty attentive to the differences and positive/negatives of NITROX. I will have to dig out my student guide and review it. I will admit that when I took this course, I knew nothing about gas mixes (related to breathing), and the benefits and limitations of those mixes. What I came away with was too much N2=> nitrogen narcosis and possibly the bends, too much 02=>Oxygen toxicity and CNS. I guess I missed an important part.String:PADI definitely teach to assume O2 is narcotic. Its in the nitrox notes and on the prescriptive lesson guide.