NOT since the 1975 release of ''Jaws'' have sharks received as much media attention as they did last summer, when three people were killed in a series of attacks along the East Coast. And just when you thought it was safe to go back into the water, experts are predicting that the number of shark attacks in the United States this summer may surpass the 55 reported last year, as more and more people flock to the beach.

''Like thunderstorms, there will be more shark incidents this summer,'' Robert E. Hueter, director of the Center for Shark Research at the Mote Marine Laboratory in Sarasota, Fla., said at a news conference on shark attacks last month in Washington.

Indeed, most people who have been in the ocean have come within 15 feet of a shark without knowing it, other experts said at the news conference.

Looking to allay fears, an Australian company has introduced a lightweight electronic device that repels sharks. The Shark Shield, which weighs a pound and is about the size of a mobile phone, attaches to the ankle and surrounds surfers or swimmers with an electromagnetic field that affects the shark's central nervous system. The discomfort from the field becomes worse as the shark approaches until it causes muscle spasms and prompts the shark to turn away.